In this space we have occasionally noted how major corporations are incorporating what sucks into their marketing campaigns. Spurred, no doubt, by the edgy attitude of their advertising agencies, but clearly comfortable using such an attention-getting device.
Recently, two new campaigns of that sort hit the mass and social media.
The first is for Gett, a cab-hailing mobile app in competition with upstart start-ups Uber and Lyft. The campaign, “Surge Sucks,” taps into rider discontent with those competitors’ practice of hiking prices at a time of greater demand; http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/gett-launches-surge-sucks-campaign-reimburse-riders-article-1.2430389.
Likely driven by how hard it is to get a word in edgewise with Uber and Lyft dominating the media, Gett took a direct approach. Think of it in the same vein as the ’70s-era Pepsi Challenge that helped the soft drink make inroads into Coke’s market share.
The second is for Jolly Rancher, the candy that can annoyingly be heard being unwrapped in theaters from Broadway to LA.
Taking advantage of the football season and the plight of its rookies, Jolly Rancher took off with “Being a Rookie Sucks” featuring St. Louis Rams’ first year running back, Todd Gurley; http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/11/rams-rookie-todd-gurley-sings-and-wears-a-tutu-in-hilarious-new-commercial.
Yes, Dyson may suck and Hoover, too, all by themselves, but with candy it takes two to tango, or in this case pas de deux.
These ads are all part of a pretty healthy tradition. In this space we’ve talked about Taco Bell’s “Sharing Sucks” campaign and UK mobile network Three’s hashtag, “WhenStuffSucks,MakeItRight” But one of my favorite is historical in ad years.
Nearly seven years ago, Nicorette, the don’t-smoke-chew-gum company, introduced us to the Suckometer; http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/nicorettes-suckometer-ads-still-do-not-suck-13061. It was a classic look, a bit like the head of Robby the Robot from the ’50s scifi movie, Forbidden Planet; http://www.hammacher.com/publish/10921.asp
I guess if they bring it back today, it will have a Star Wars tie-in and look like R2D2.