today's AMAZING TV AD : honda's "cog" 2 minute tv spot

for more on this, go to this post : http://the-wawam-file.blogspot.com/2008/04/cog-honda-tv-spot-another-amazing-ad.html; april 14 post.
the inspiration is mount pinatubo when some years ago, all of a sudden, after decades of being dormant, it decided to erupt, spewing debris and ash several kilometers high, blowing ashes to float everywhere, far and wide, turning the skies gloomy gray as far away as metro manila, hundreds of kilometers away, covering metro manila streets and rooftops with thick ash. the pinatubo eruption was so powerful that its ashes changed the color of sunsets not only in the philippines but also worldwide.

that's what happens when clients and advertising agencies decide to run ads not worthy to be called advertising. its dark, its huge and very irritating and unfortunately, everywhere!


all they are doing is wawam! what a waste of advertising money!


here is a first row view of Philippine Advertising and Philippine Marketing.

mount pinatubo erupts shooting ashes several kilometers high, then floating to blanket many other towns hundreds of kilometers away

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Sunday, September 21, 2008

KFC philippines' shrimp ad makes us all shrimpy!

oh, this ad should win an award for best comedy if there is an award like that in an ad competition. see this ad a million times, smile or laugh a million times.

it's a simple story - kfc has just launched a shrimp meal in their menu. we all know kfc is all chicken, but a shrimp among the chickens is a big surprise. and that's what this ad wants you to remember -- that now, there is a shrimp meal in kfc.

and it works! you not only do you remember they now have a shrimp meal, you now think the kfc brand is a really cool brand for having this much humor.







man 1 : tingin ko isa sa tin dito may tinatago (the way i see it, one among us here is hiding something.)
man 2 : may suspetsa din ako (i also have my suspicion.)
man 3 : sino kaya? (who do you think is it?)
man 1 : alam ko na. (i know what to do!)
man 4 : ayyyy! (something like a yelp, very feminine)
pregnant pause
man 4 : may, may shrimp na pala sa kfc, pare. (kfc has now shrimp, pare?) ("pare" meaning buddy is what men usually call each other)
announcer : you too will be surprised with the kfc surfers, made from real shrimp, battered and breaded the kfc way. freshly cooked to a golden crisp.
man 3 : dude, we accept you!
men : o, group hug! group hug! group hug!
man 4 : nabigla lang ako! sarap kasi ng shrimp! (i was just surprised. it's because the shrimp is really delicious!)

16 comments:

  1. tawang-tawa din ako sa ad na to!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I disagree. My distaste stems from my personal belief that we should respect the wishes and privacy of any person who, for any reason whatsoever, feels unsure, insecure or is not yet ready to proclaim to the world his personal preferences.

    In this case, forcibly and treacherously "outing" someone then trying to sanitize it by saying they accept him is, for me, unacceptable.

    The irony is that the character himself still denies the "outing", saying his reaction was merely because he was surprised. Maybe the writers should have written it in such a way that the character felt liberated to have been "outed"?

    ReplyDelete
  3. the person in the commercial was not outed by someone else, he outed himself.

    the "secret" was the shrinp in the kfc box but he unexpectedly outed himself with his reaction.

    ReplyDelete
  4. it's a funny commercial just the same.

    ReplyDelete
  5. He did not "out" himself, qwerty.
    It was a planned "outing". Why else would the other characters say...

    man 1 : tingin ko isa sa tin dito may tinatago (the way i see it, one among us here is hiding something.)
    man 2 : may suspetsa din ako (i also have my suspicion.)
    man 3 : sino kaya? (who do you think is it?)
    man 1 : alam ko na. (i know what to do!)

    It was planned. They "used" the product to "out" their suspect.

    Saying that the victim outed himself is a fallacy because his reaction was elicited thru treachery. If the others did not try to take him by surprise, would he have reacted in the same way? I don't think so.

    ReplyDelete
  6. dont know how anyone can take offense from this ad. it's obviously tongue-in-cheek. very pinoy humor.

    ReplyDelete
  7. the outed person was not a target, nobody knew. they all got surprised when the outed person yelped.

    ReplyDelete
  8. To cabby, I am a TV viewer and a supposed member of KFC's target market. My distaste should provide valuable insight to KFC's agency, I should think.

    Remember when they had that series of "hiritan" ads? When a guy blew bubbles into his drink in retaliation after his friend kept teasing him with his KFC sandwich?

    I found that really funny but a hell of a lot of people reacted, saying it was "bastos" (rude). I didn't agree with them but I certainly saw how they could think it was"bastos".

    Hopefully, now you know how people can take offense from this ad. And yes, it was very pinoy and very tongue in cheek. Still, being very pinoy and very tongue in cheek does not grant it immunity from being offensive.

    ReplyDelete
  9. To qwerty

    The intent of the "shrimp" ploy was to "out" someone who did not want to be outed. Regardless of whether it was one guy or another, the treacherous intent remains the same.

    Also, I highly doubt it that the characters in that ad did not have a target. if you've ever been in that situation, think back if you had your suspicions about anyone in that group. If you're honest, you'll remember that you've always had an idea on whoever had a skeleton in his/her closet (whether it be a secret life, a secret wish, a secret hobby, a secret desire...)

    ReplyDelete
  10. there is no shame nor angst, not pain in this KFC ad. it's an ad that shows good humor.

    ReplyDelete
  11. To qwerty,

    Ok. I just wanted to point out that the acclaim for this ad is not universal.

    I also understand that a lot of people find it funny. That's perfectly fine too.

    ReplyDelete
  12. there has never been an ad that has won universal acclaim or universal disdain. there will always be a split between the audience saying they "like the ad" and "not like the ad". that is also shown in consumer research.

    what is more important for admen is the split or ratio between those who gave the ad acclaim vs those that gave it disdain. having more negatives than positives mean the ad has failed. while the opposite, having more positives vs negatives means its a success.

    for this KFC, i think this has gotten much more positive than negative.

    i like the ad a lot. and i think there's very little negative to it.

    ReplyDelete
  13. gay ending number 436.

    ReplyDelete
  14. To qwerty:

    Why can't I be serious about my reaction to the KFC ad? You can't be serious about finding no merit at all in my reaction. After all, I am a TV watcher, a member of the target market and my opinion is a personal preference.

    Also, if you noticed, I'm not trying to change your mind or opinion about the ad. If you like it, well, go on liking it. Like I said, I do see why most people find it funny. Just don't try to control my personal reaction. That's how the ad affected me and nothing you say can change that.

    And what makes you think I do not complain about the way homosexuals are portrayed in TV and film (you can also include dwarves, "promdis" and "dumb blondes" to my list of pet peeves) ? I've complained and complained and complained. Too bad people like you aren't complaining with me. Maybe then the TV networks will listen.

    ReplyDelete
  15. It all started with the shrimp meal...Damn that Shrimp! O.o

    ReplyDelete

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