Sir
The power of advertising is unquestionable and people often cite my criticism of what I regard as a bad advert as being proof in point; “Are, but you remember it, so they did their job” will be crowed gleefully at me.
True, the ad agency, marketing team and whoever else came up with that ad, or even that whole campaign, did make me remember, but it is not remembering that makes an ad successful, it is whether or not it induces its audience to part with their cash to buy the product or service.
Where an advert has irritated me it may well also have adversely affected my view of the product or service and its supplier, for it is the judgement of the latter in creating the offending, in my view anyway, item.
This is especially true where music is concerned. Music stirs emotions and if an advert does something nasty to a piece of popular music that I hold dear then they do so at their peril. Thankfully I have expunged many from my mind over the years, but there was a car advert that used an appalling modern cover of a Beach Boys classic, the Halifax committed many sins (and not just musical) that mean that it will be a long time before I ever cross their doorway again and I can barely bring myself to type the words National Accident Helpline…
And then we have the current media frenzy over the use of Ding Dong the Witch is Dead. I am appalled that anyone could misappropriate a cheerful little song from a much loved family musical and use it to celebrate the passing of a woman whose evil reign cast a shadow over this country for around a decade. And in any case, Cherie Blair isn’t dead yet…
Yours etc
Disgusted of Dorcan
The Voice of the Bloke at the Back 