Great moments in advertising
As I tweeted earlier this day, I believe this ad sold exactly zero Snapper Mowers:
I saw it in the office today, sound off; I was compelled to find it online because the women did this fist-bump / finger-flutter thing that made me want to throw a spanner through the set. Then, of course, they arm-wrestle, with a little callback to the “We Can Do It!” WW2 Rosie the Riveter poster. Meanwhile, the men drive around like passive dorks, looking like they're on trikes with motors. I hope there's ice cream afterwards!
Obvious, tiresome, humorless point: the ad would be unacceptable if the roles were reversed. Boring, equally obvious observation: the ad is supposed to be Clever because women don’t talk like this, but of course if the ad suggested in any way that women really don’t talk like this it would be doubleplus ungood. In a just world of gender equality, they would! In fact they do already, but society conspires to shame them if they do. And so on.
The real question is this: what sort of company looks at this ad, considers its target market, and thinks: yeah, that’ll work. Is it possible the real intent of the ad is to make it okay for men to buy a Snapper mower, because his spouse saw the ad and has a positive opinion of the product because the ads were all girrrl-powery and such?
(BTW, they found the woman who posed for the Rosie the Riveter poster. Her name was Geraldine Hoff Doyle. She did indeed work in a defense plant, but as her wikipedia bio notes: "Because she was a cello player, Hoff feared a hand injury from the metal pressing machines and soon left the factory.")
Before anyone gets up in my grill, as I never say, and suggests I have issues with strong women: you should meet my dynamo wife, who has an adamantine spine and a legal mind that makes a leg-hold trap look like a paperclip. It’s not about strong women. I’s about the advertising culture’s belief that expressions of female strength need to be accompanied by milquetoast simpletons, and that men will look at that and think “I’m lame! Dude, you totally nailed it.”
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Dec '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
Mmmm, Kaylee.
If ever there was something to be grumpy at Fox corp about, that would be it.
Mar '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
I can't get worked up about every mediocre ad that tries to be funny. Would you say this is more annoying than the Geico pig, or Vonage assaulting our ears with that blasted "WooHooHoo" song? Please, James, ask your doctor about Xanex. You're too talented a writer. We don't want you to stroke out at dogs barking "The Carol of the Bells."
Edited on April 6, 2012 at 11:55pmJun '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
His question is- "Why did they think this would sell expensive lawn tractors?"
I confess I pay attention to advertising in this way as well. Often the answer (when the ad shows men as total morons) is that, while the product may be used by men, it's actually sold to women. But, in this case, I would really want to see the ad agency data that told them that women make the buying decision on riding lawn mowers. I doubt it. And that assumes that this portrayal would be appealing to women anyway.
If they seriously thought that men old enough to own a large enough lawn to need a sit-down mower would find that ad appealing (beyond the brief shot of the leggy blonde) I would say that they missed the mark badly. Not only are the men portrayed as little more than trained animals running a small tractor but the women are acting like the dopey guys who date the potential buyer's precious daughter.
Fire them and call Draper. The proposition is to get a man to not buy a $400-500 deluxe walk-behind but to spend 6 times as much to sit down.
Jul '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
Hm. I'm actually in the market for a mower right now. Congrats, Snapper: you just got scratched off the list.
Dec '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
Huh, and here I was planning on a trip to Arby's today for lunch. Now...perhaps a nice salad.
May '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
James, I completely agree with your reaction to that ad. When I saw the women standing at the fence I expected them to start drooling over how "hot" their husbands are on those sexy mowers. THAT would make more sense than this mess of bizarreness they produced.
Also, I know why you wrote your last paragraph, James, but there's another observation. It's a shame that we have to give disclaimers, now, so we don't offend anyone as we speak the truth.
May '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
etoiledunord
Ken Owsley: I don't think James actually wrote this post, for two reasons:
1 - The use of the word spanner, instead of wrench.
2 - "before anyone gets up in my grill"
I suppose the next podcast he'll say something like "You should really go to Encounter books because it's dope, yo."
I'm making a joke, James...!
Re: Spanner.
It could just mean that James drives a foreign car, and actually reads the manual. · 8 hours ago
No. It means that James has lived in the Peoples Leftist Republic of Minneapolis far too long and that he needs to move to Rockingham, NC or to Taledega, AL or to Bristol, TN.
C'mon James. Rainch some of that liberal outta yer hair and call that tool a wrainch like hiz honor Mr. Petty wouldda.
Feb '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
Best mower I have ever owned. I'm hard on outdoor equipment, and it's unstoppable and un-killable. Three years ago, faced with replacing the 20 yr old riding mower, or replacing the engine for $450, I went with changing out the engine. Snapper quality is heads and shoulders above most other brands, but their ad department is awful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAec9QilUrk
Jun '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
Charles Allen: The only stereotypes missing from this ad were scratching and spitting.... · 11 hours ago
Edited 11 hours ago
Oh, they were in there, but they had to get it down to 30 seconds. There are only so many dumb male stereotypes you can fit into a half minute.
Jun '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
Exactly. This is not bad enough to be worth much time.
Now if they'd put the ladies in ratty ol' wifebeaters and shorts...
Fat Dave: I can't get worked up about every mediocre ad that tries to be funny. Would you say this is more annoying than the Geico pig, or Vonage assaulting our ears with that blasted "WooHooHoo" song? Please, James, ask your doctor about Xanex. You're too talented a writer. We don't want you to stroke out dogs barking "The Carol of the Bells." · 4 hours ago
Edited 4 hours ago
Jun '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
Oh, if only they'd put the scratching in...I'd finally see something in the "Jonah's Fricosis Guy" wheelhouse!
tabula rasa
Charles Allen: The only stereotypes missing from this ad were scratching and spitting.... · 11 hours ago
Edited 11 hours ago
Oh, they were in there, but they had to get it down to 30 seconds. There are only so many dumb male stereotypes you can fit into a half minute. · 37 minutes ago
Mar '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
James Lileks:
I mean, everyone's talking about Arby's these days because they bailed on the Limbaugh show
Actually... they didn't. They made a big deal about their commercials being taken off the air during Limbaugh's programs, but as you know, such commercials can be a mix of both his sponsors AND local sponsors whose ads are aired throughout the day. EIB confirms that Arby's has never had a national ad buy with them. The Arby's ads being pulled during Rush's show were all local ads. Limbaugh lost exactly Zero Dinero.
To me it's a good thing, as Arby's has outed their leadership as haters of the GOP and conservatism. And not only that, they're being petty about it. It seems they're blocking conservative tweeters that are complaining about the anti-Limbaugh campaign. It seems Arby's CEO is a huge Dem donor. Shock, eh?
So, I know not to drop any more coin their way. And Rush? He's added even more sponsors since then. Think I'll go buy some pink slime on a bun from someone else today.
Oct '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
These sorts of ads don't bother me because the unintended subtext is:
'Men are more knowledgeable about these mechanical contraptions in spite of progressive's/society's efforts to homogenize the sexes. We can minimize them a little by presenting their disgusting patriarchal dominance of the internal combustion engine as goofy dorkism.'
If the world they portray here (women dominating in men's traditional areas of achievement while men become ever more drone-like and unnecessary) came to pass, the ad wouldn't be seen as humorous. No irony, no perceived humor. And they wouldn't see the need. That's when I'll start to worry.
May '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
I am hereby officially inviting your lovely (strong) wife to my All Women's Ricochet Sleepover. Date and location to be determined.
Sep '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
Um, friends?
Might it possibly be that the focus of this ad isn't on men or women buyers--but on dealers? Note the punch line, "my dealer? Man crush...."
Snapper/Simplicity sells through a dealer channel. The point they're making in this ad is to that channel--the local hardware stores, power equipment dealers, and lawn & garden supply stores.
That said, my wife and I, when we can't Tivo past the ads, like to consider what it is about a given ad that made the marketing committee say, "yup--tell Al from 'Tool Time' thanks, but we're going to women sounding butch to show the lawn & garden supply channel some love."
The entire "cave man" ad series from GEICO strikes me the same way. What were they thinking? (Although, evidently, that ad series seems to work. For somebody.)
Jul '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
John Murdoch:
The entire "cave man" ad series from GEICO strikes me the same way. What were they thinking? (Although, evidently, that ad series seems to work. For somebody.) · 51 minutes ago
I actually liked the cave man ads. They had a nice absurdist feel, and slyly parodied our hyper-PC offense-taking culture.
May '10
Re: Great moments in advertising
FeliciaB
I am hereby officially inviting your lovely (strong) wife to my All Women's Ricochet Sleepover. Date and location to be determined. · 6 hours ago
Great idea! I'm still on the invite list, right?
Dec '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
Amen James. We need more prominent journalists, pundits, bloggers etc speaking out about the denigration of men in the media, especially commercials. As a 48 year old male father, veteran and productive member of society, I'm sick and tired of seeing condescending advertisement after advertisement portraying us men as dolts and goofballs. The blogfather's lovely wife Dr. Helen has taken up the torch on this issue, and I hope you and others with influence continue to highlight this enraging and disturbing trend.
Edited on April 7, 2012 at 4:07amMar '11
Re: Great moments in advertising
I think I've seen adds that were more condescending to men than that one. It's sad that it's easier to achieve equality by dragging the top down than by raising the bottom up, but while this add is not especially kind to men, it is women who are being dragged down.
I think it's wrong to assume this add will not sell any ride-on mowers. Remember Sidney Greenstreet's rant about the importance of an add being remembered, and the demonstration that preceded it, in The Hucksters.
Re: Great moments in advertising
Don't we men get them back with sitcom pairings? Yes, the men are usually dorky, but as my wife points out, they pair those men with very pretty women who would appear "our of their league" were all things equal.