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Fukuppy? Really? Here's our top five marketing fails Fukuppy? Really? Here are our top five marketing fails
(3 days later)
A Japanese refrigeration company rather unfortunately called Fukushima Industries has faced embarrassment this week, after it unveiled a cartoon egg mascot named Fukuppy. Not only did the name provoke amusement in the English-speaking world, it also seemed to suggest that the firm might be linked to the Fukushima disaster of 2011. The company is actually based miles from the nuclear site, but it didn't stop people from making jokes about an apt name for a mascot. The company has since changed the English name to the Japanese characters on its website. Fukuppy is not the first, and will not be the last, marketing error of this magnitude. Here are five other strategies that attracted the wrong kind of attention:A Japanese refrigeration company rather unfortunately called Fukushima Industries has faced embarrassment this week, after it unveiled a cartoon egg mascot named Fukuppy. Not only did the name provoke amusement in the English-speaking world, it also seemed to suggest that the firm might be linked to the Fukushima disaster of 2011. The company is actually based miles from the nuclear site, but it didn't stop people from making jokes about an apt name for a mascot. The company has since changed the English name to the Japanese characters on its website. Fukuppy is not the first, and will not be the last, marketing error of this magnitude. Here are five other strategies that attracted the wrong kind of attention:
1) #susanalbumparty
1) #susanalbumparty
Promoting Susan Boyle's new album on Twitter seemed like an easy PR move for one music industry lackey. Unfortunately, their hashtag appeared to be promoting a different kind of celebration to some eagle-eyed users, and the phrase went viral, trending for several days, and still popping up every now and again.Promoting Susan Boyle's new album on Twitter seemed like an easy PR move for one music industry lackey. Unfortunately, their hashtag appeared to be promoting a different kind of celebration to some eagle-eyed users, and the phrase went viral, trending for several days, and still popping up every now and again.
2) The La Redoute flasher
2) The La Redoute flasher
French fashion brand La Redoute was left red-faced when online customers spotted a naked man in one of their promotional pictures. The photo showed four happy kids playing in the sand, stylishly dressed in La Redoute clothes. Unfortunately, it also showed a man eschewing clothes of any kind standing behind them. The photo was pulled, but the damage was done. Inevitably, the photo has become a meme.French fashion brand La Redoute was left red-faced when online customers spotted a naked man in one of their promotional pictures. The photo showed four happy kids playing in the sand, stylishly dressed in La Redoute clothes. Unfortunately, it also showed a man eschewing clothes of any kind standing behind them. The photo was pulled, but the damage was done. Inevitably, the photo has become a meme.
3) The Peta rough sex advert
3) The Peta rough sex advert
Animal rights group Peta is known for its provocative ad campaigns, but it suffered the wrath of the public when it released a video showing a woman wearing a neck brace and underwear, wincing in pain. The advert tries to make it clear that her boyfriend has become a rampant lover since becoming a vegan, but the message taken by many outraged viewers was one of condoning domestic violence.Animal rights group Peta is known for its provocative ad campaigns, but it suffered the wrath of the public when it released a video showing a woman wearing a neck brace and underwear, wincing in pain. The advert tries to make it clear that her boyfriend has become a rampant lover since becoming a vegan, but the message taken by many outraged viewers was one of condoning domestic violence.
4) Ikea airbrushes women from its catalogue
4) Ikea airbrushes women from its catalogue
The Ikea catalogue in Saudi Arabia was much the same as the catalogue in other countries. Except that the women in it had magically disappeared. Ikea admitted the error, and said: "We should have reacted and realised that excluding women from the Saudi Arabian version of the catalogue is in conflict with the Ikea Group values."The Ikea catalogue in Saudi Arabia was much the same as the catalogue in other countries. Except that the women in it had magically disappeared. Ikea admitted the error, and said: "We should have reacted and realised that excluding women from the Saudi Arabian version of the catalogue is in conflict with the Ikea Group values."
5) Can Pepsi bring your relatives back from the dead?
5) Can Pepsi bring your relatives back from the dead?
This story has never been confirmed or denied, but it's a famous example of how marketing can go wrong, and it's hilarious, so it's on the list. In a bid to compete with Coca-Cola in the 1960s, Pepsi came up with a new slogan: "Come alive! You're in the Pepsi generation." When this advertising message reached China, legend has it that sales of Pepsi dropped dramatically. This drop was explained away by an apparent mistranslation in the slogan, which is said to have read as: "Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead." Unfortunately, the fact-finding website Snopes will neither confirm nor deny this wonderful supposed advertising failure, but the tale lives on all over the web.This story has never been confirmed or denied, but it's a famous example of how marketing can go wrong, and it's hilarious, so it's on the list. In a bid to compete with Coca-Cola in the 1960s, Pepsi came up with a new slogan: "Come alive! You're in the Pepsi generation." When this advertising message reached China, legend has it that sales of Pepsi dropped dramatically. This drop was explained away by an apparent mistranslation in the slogan, which is said to have read as: "Pepsi will bring your ancestors back from the dead." Unfortunately, the fact-finding website Snopes will neither confirm nor deny this wonderful supposed advertising failure, but the tale lives on all over the web.
• What are your favourite examples of advertising gone wrong? Let us know in the thread below.• What are your favourite examples of advertising gone wrong? Let us know in the thread below.
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