Best use of advertising...

[craig]

... among some of the 'credit' adverts on the telly there are actually some either really funny ones or really powerful ones that convey a really important message (often better than the actual show they are inbetween).

I've just seen one on the TV (an anti smoking campaign), which shows people in their mid 30's pulling cigarettes out of packets and this what I can only describe as 'white shit' dribbling out of the cigarettes and the they look at it disgusted and just flick it away.

The guy narrating tells you that this is the amount of 'blockage' that was found in the arteries of a 30 year old smoker and the advert becomes clear.

I swear, if I hadn't already given up smoking, the current trend of anti-smoking commercials would really make me think.

Anyway, have you seen any good adverts on the television recently?

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See if anyone can play along without mentioning the 'HONDA' advert

 

[Dedalus]

i don't watch much telly because...well..it's 99% shit. anyway, from what i can remember about ads on tv, pretty much all of them include some sort of semi clad lady pining over something or other. that tells me one thing: go have a wank over that lady..NOW.

 

[The Dark Elf]

Yeah that new smoking one is pretty damn good.. As in it made me consider quiting.. none of the others have.. Still didn't make me stop though, but if cigs started doing that with the fat pouring out of them then I would certainly give up
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I think those Fosters head adverts are pretty funny, though the first one with the croc biting the bungi jumpers head off has to be the best of those.

 

[Feath]

I'm getting a bit sick of anti smoking ads. It gets to the point when you say, "That's a bit too graphic".

But I'm quite a fan of driving adverts. My favourite is this one: http://www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk/campaigns/teenagers/download/myhome.mpg

 

[craig]

Yeah that new smoking one is pretty damn good.. As in it made me consider quiting.. none of the others have.. Still didn't make me stop though, but if cigs started doing that with the fat pouring out of them then I would certainly give up
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I think those Fosters head adverts are pretty funny, though the first one with the croc biting the bungi jumpers head off has to be the best of those.

have you seen the one with the babies smoking and the tagline 'If you smoke, I smoke'? That one is pretty awful, but doesnt have quite the same power as the 'fat' one.

As for that driving advert I saw that at the cinema and thats another good one. Makes me wonder how far they can go down the 'shock' route.

 

[RandomPING]

Yea some of those second hand smoking ads piss me off. I mean, most people i know with kids will never smoke in the house. It's sort of implying "if you smoke, you're a bad parent".

That's a pretty good drinking ad though, seems like the UK gets better public service advertisments then we do in the states. Because the only good ones i've seen lately have been beer commercials.

For those of you who arn't in the US, we have the worst anti-smoking campaign ever, it's called "truth", you can see some of the advertisments at http://www.thetruth.com/ I recomend you check them out if you haven't seen them, they make you want to start smoking. It's sponsored by Philip Morris, a smoking giant, so take that however you will.

 

[Farrowlesparrow]

But lets be honest, if you do smoke around your children then are being a bad parent. Its doing no good at all for your kid. Not only are they getting the negative effects of the smoke, but the parent will probably die a lot sooner...(PS Im not having a go at you by the way, because i realise what you actually said)

As far as being too graphic. Well, its obviously not clear enough because you still smoke. Yes, yes its your life, but maybe people actually care and dont want to see you hurt.


I think the fosters ad with the eagle bitting off that guys head is pretty good

The "THINK!" Ones seemed pretty effective too.

 

[Shippi]

It's good that smoking adverts shock and disgust, people remember them then. I know I'm never gonna smoke after seeing what it's done to my dad, but seeing that anti-smoking advert with the fat dripping out made me even more determined not to.

People who complain because adverts like that are too graphic are missing the point. They're supposed to be like that. If they weren't, what's the point in them? No one is put off by the warning labels on the packs (I know kids who smoke, and they just laugh at them) and we need more campaigns like this to put people who don't smoke already off before they start,

 

[Feath]

Actually, I don't smoke.

But on the point of smoking. Did you know, there are medicines to help stop smokers getting cancer and stuff? They aren't very available because they want people to quit smoking and the threat of dying is the best way to do it. So, people are dying because they don't have access to medicine.

 

[el Chi]

have you seen the one with the babies smoking and the tagline 'If you smoke, I smoke'? That one is pretty awful

Personally I thought it was funny.
The road safety ad Feath mentioned is really good. There's also that other one where it shows the kid being run over in very slow motion. That was horrible. But not as bad as the one where the guy in the back doesn't put his belt on and then smashes into his mum's headrest in front and kills her. I couldn't watch that one. Road safety ads are in general good, in terms of what they set out to do.
The Vladivar vodka ads with Har Mar Superstar are fantastic - but if you're not sure who he is the effect isn't quite so good. But they're still funny.
Strange - as soon as someone asks about good ads, I can't think of any.

 

[The Dark Elf]

Well anyone who starts smoking, or started in the past 20ish years has no excuse whatsoever for complaining about illness brought on from smoking. It's laughable when some say "oh, but I didn't know" thats rubbish, I was well aware of what it would eventually do to me if I started smoking. I was 15/16 years old when I did, I'd be kidding myself if I said I didn't know, its impossible not to know.

 

[RandomPING]

But lets be honest, if you do smoke around your children then are being a bad parent. Its doing no good at all for your kid. Not only are they getting the negative effects of the smoke, but the parent will probably die a lot sooner...(PS Im not having a go at you by the way, because i realise what you actually said)

Oh yea, I probably should have clarified that if you are holding your kid and smoking, or smoking in the area of your kids you are being a bad parent, though the risks arn't proven on second hand smoke, these are your children with developing lungs, why risk it. Just trying to say that all the parents i know actually go outside the house to smoke so they don't expose their children to it. Like just cause you smoke doesn't automatically make you a danger to your kids.

Yea anyone who started smoking, especially in the last 10 years, has no excuse to complain about not knowing about how bad it is. I smoked for three years myself, now i'm down to only having one cigarette when i drink. I guess all the education did help, cause i had no desire to quit, but i figured that it's not worth the risk.

I think fatty foods are just as bad for you as smoking though, and really should be educated about. More people die of heart attack and heart disease then lung related smoking problems. I'd like to see a PSA about not eating hamburgers and fries, and showing a clogged heart and maybe a statistic on how many people die a year of diet related illness. Then they could flash to a little kid wheeling food to his dad's room, saying, "he just hasn't been the same since his stroke, if only he would have watched what he ate, i may not have a half mentally handicapped man for a father" then it'll fade out and it'll say some catchy tag line like "Diet related illness kills X ammount of people a year... what's going to be on your plate tonight?"