Ghost With the Most… Stupid Ad Campaign
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I donât know much about the Ghost Rider character, but like everyone else in America I have been subject to the barrage of advertising for the newly released Nicolas Cage movie. If you haven’t had the pleasure, please review the trailer below. Pay special attention to the information given in the voice over.
(Click below to play video)
The advertisements are so prevalent it comes as no surprise that other companies would think it a good idea to use the character for their own promotional campaigns. Lets take a quick look at Jackson-Hewittâs ghost Rider commercial.
(Click below to play video)
Does anyone else see the problem here?
I can only assume that the advertisers intended to show that getting your tax return at its locations is quick and easy.
Thatâs not the message that I see.
The first thing explained in the movie trailer is â¦. “at night, IN THE PRESCENCE OF EVIL, the rider takes over”. Lets go back to a little basic logic here:
Universal Modus Ponens
Combining universal instantiation and modus ponens produces the rule of universal modus ponens. To understand this, consider the following syllogism:
The ghost rider only appears in the presence of evil.
The ghost rider appears in the presence of Jackson-Hewitt.
Therefore - Jackson-Hewitt is evil
(If my high school math teacher could see me now!!!)
Basically what Iâm trying to say here is- this is an ill advised and poorly thought out campaign. If you are going to use a symbol or character in your advertising, you should take 5 minutes to understand the background and meaning of your choice. Make sure that your message can only be interpreted as you mean it to be.
See you all at Turbo Tax.
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Tags: Business Principles, Marketing, Marketing Methods & Providers
Posted in Business Principles, Marketing
Dude, your thinking way too much… It’s just a funny commercial. The Ghostrider is so badass, he even pays his taxes.
May 5th, 2007 at 6:59 pm