Did Heinz Go Too Far?
Friday, June 27th, 2008
There’s a big fuss across the pond about two men kissing. A recent Heinz ad was taken off the airwaves after the UK Advertising Standard Authority received over 200 complaints.
And I always thought they were supposed to be so much more open-minded than us Yanks! A Boston news outlet’s editorial claims, “As far as images of same-sex families go, it’s positively delicious.” I think that author missed the boat completely. What’s funny is that I don’t think the commercial has anything to do with being gay. We’ve discussed marketing to gays on this blog before, but this is an entirely different scenario. The idea behind the ad is that the deli mayo is so authentic tasting that the “mother figure” is replaced as a New York deli worker. Either that, or it’s normal for children of gay couples in London to call their one father “mum” and for that person to be dressed in the morning like they’re working at a diner.
Heinz used creativity in making a provocative, compelling and memorable ad. What more could a brand want?
What’s your take on the ad? Was Heinz wrong to make it? Were they wrong to pull it?
Pat Cauley is Electronic Retailer magazine’s eMedia Editor
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