Ads Gone Bad

Political Ad Doppelganger

thedigitalhobo — Wed, 26 May 2010 20:25:15 +0000

Tipped to this one on Post Politics, looks like there’s a sever lack of originality in local politics.

Career politicians have failed us from Harbinger International on Vimeo.

…and its doppelganger….

Why Does EW Think I’m a Chick?

ckronengold — Thu, 13 May 2010 18:08:30 +0000

Did one of my female co-workers borrow my laptop while I was out at lunch? That would be the only excuse for this sad display of ad targeting (or lack thereof).

There’s zero chance I’d be watching Real Housewives of anything, and I certainly don’t need a tampon. More ads gone bad.

Cablevision Ad on Pirated OSCARS Webcast

thedigitalhobo — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:40:49 +0000

The web is a funny place. While Cablevision and ABC were sparring over carriage rates, Cablevision viewers were prevented from watching the OSCARS, or at least the first 20 mins until it was finally aired.

So while users flocked to the web for alternatives, I coudln’t help but laugh at the irony of this well placed ad. Justin.TV may have been streaming pirated content, but the ad definitely makes you chuckle.

Erectile Ad Dysfunction

thedigitalhobo — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:50:59 +0000

Is this contextually targeted based on alternative spellings of “Cox”?

$9 Muff Diving?

thedigitalhobo — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 20:28:06 +0000

Someone will be fired for this one. I’m guessing its the junior copywriter that pulled a fast one on his boss, but not on the ever-peering eyes of Twitterville.

From the Spirit Airlines homepage:

CEO Needs a Wax?

thedigitalhobo — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 18:02:37 +0000

Spotted on ScribeMedia.org:

Either David Wadler, CEO of Twistage, has a sexy little secret, or Blip.TV needs to work on their contextual targeting. This should have been an easy, B2B layup for a contextual overlay. Doesn’t anyone want to reach the online video B2B market?

Here’s the whole interview….

Just Checking…

thedigitalhobo — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 07:40:33 +0000

Does Lysol know that they’ve got auto-play, audio on video ads with no mute or pause button on a site that publishes a list of cracked, patched and otherwise copyright protected software? Does Adotube know they are serving it?

Oddly, the inventory is alledgedly protected by Mpire, whose website claims that their technology offers “Publisher accountability ensures advertisers’ messages are being delivered to the right sites.” I’m not sure this is the type of inventory - or ad experience - their advertisers have in mind. Maybe Lysol will switch to using DoubleVerify? This raises the question - Who is checking all of the inventory that the verification / authentication / brand protection software claim to protect? Surely Mpire isn’t the only with a few ads gone bad.

Conan’s Tonight Show Ad on Craigslist

thedigitalhobo — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 19:47:46 +0000

But whats with the :30 pre-roll for Pantene? C’mon. I’m a guy. That uses Rogaine.

Another Bad Contextual Match for Aflac

thedigitalhobo — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 22:25:38 +0000

Wow. These guys can’t catch a break.

Screen shot courtesy of Jai Decker, CEO, DrivenTide

Fear of Ducks, Sponsored by AFLAC

thedigitalhobo — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 18:14:37 +0000

Bad contextual match here. But who has a fear of ducks anyway?