Is Your Marketing Offensive?
Even the biggest brands can make huge marketing blunders. From 'Math is Tough Barbie' to Adidas’ controversial sneaker with shackles, these mistakes serve as a reminder: always think carefully about your message before releasing new products or ads. Missteps can damage your brand and offend your audience, so take the time to ensure your marketing resonates the right way. Learn from these examples—avoid jumping the gun!
I'm sure that nobody who follows this blog has made any offensive mistakes with their marketing. Amazingly enough, several very large companies have. And boy, are the mistakes huge!
This one here happens to be "Math is Tough Barbie". I don't know about you but I'd rather not have my child playing with this little lady. The company has since removed the saying from the doll’s list of phrases and offered consumers a swap. Whew!
As if that wasn't bad enough, another company came out with a running shoe that had shackles attached.
Adidas recently canceled plans to release its new Jeremy Scott Roundhouse Mid Handcuffs.
The $350 sneakers were labeled as racist and reminiscent of slavery.Obviously that did not sit well with many folks out there.
Although these are extreme cases, it's still a (humorous) lesson to be learned. Think about your message when releasing a new product or advertisement.
By jumping the gun, you could end up like one of these folks.
Information and photos: By Venessa Wong | Business Week
.jpg)