The NY Times had an article recently on the Product Red campaign and how big corporations are increasingly donating to charities like it. In the article, IIRC, a cynic pointed out that for every donated dollar these companies spend four or five publicizing their good deed.
Watching the Oscars tonight (congrats to Joel and Ethan Coen for their three big wins) I think Coke fell into this same dark alley. They ran a short ad during just about every single commercial break–for over three hours!–announcing a new women’s health initiative sponsored by Diet Coke. Plus a chance to win a red dress worn by Heidi Klum!
Running the spot once every 45 or 60 minutes would probably have fallen within the bounds of good taste but this was just sad. As the show wore on I found myself thinking again and again that Coca Cola would do a hell of a lot more good for women (and men) if they’d just stop selling regular Coke, not exactly the reaction their marketing execs were looking to get.
Seriously, how much damage do their ‘regular’ beverages cause? How can donating a few dollars to a good cause outweigh that?
BillSaysThis 