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NewsByte: BMW’s Bad Ad Move

In the digital age, even a print ad intended very obviously and specifically for the men’s luxury market can get “out” to the rest of the world. More’s the pity for BMW – a brand that had generally managed to do fine by women (at least in the U.S.) in recent years. Check out the Muse Communication post to learn more about BMW’s European “Premium Used Cars” campaign.

The sleazy sexual innuendo is marketing to men at its most lazy – not only alienating women who may have been potential BMW buyers, but riling so many women bloggers in the marketing field, and beyond, that it will surely become a negative blogging influence case study.

P.S. There is continuing discussion of this ad on a lot of marketing to women (and otherwise) blogs. As of 7/24/08, my HuffPo piece on this topic published. Thank you for all your comments – here and on Huffpo (if you feel like it).

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Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008 in Grading The Ads, Marketing to Men | Tags: , ,

  • http://www.socialmediaexplorer.com Jason Falls

    From a male and advertising agency point of view and here are my thoughts:

    1. It will appeal to the base urges of men with the image and copy, so if that’s their target, the ad will show some effectiveness. Men are simple. What can I say? However, it’s appealing to the young and horny. Not exactly the kind of folks who can afford BMWs. It’s off-target in that regard.

    2. It will deservedly get backlash from women consumers and I think brands have to weigh how much negative they can stand to be targeted with potentially insulting or controversial ads. In the end, will the ad deliver sales? Maybe. Will it deliver talk? Damn right. Is that bad for BMW? Maybe, maybe not.

    3. Personally, I don’t want to buy a BMW any more now because they use an attractive woman with a suggestive tag line. I don’t think mature men (those in BMW’s target) will probably get much more than a eyebrow raise out of it. While I wouldn’t go overboard and say it’s sexist and crass and insulting to women, I would say that it’s not exactly tasteful and doesn’t do much for me.

    Two cents. That’s all.

  • http://mammaren.wordpress.com mammaren

    I don’t mean to sound simple-minded, but what’s the big deal? How is THIS ad any different from any other marketing campaign that has exploited the image of a woman before? And to echo what was said in aforementioned blog comments, the more it is discussed, the more it gets the attention it is seeking. Perhaps I just lack the gusto required to get too upset. This seems like an age old advertising tactic. Shame on BMW, but really, what’s the big deal??

  • http://www.radicaltrust.ca collin

    I haven’t got a problem with the ad, nor the message. The only thing I’m confused about is her age… she is soooo young! I realize that this lolita/virgin thing is the point, but still… What 17 year old is buying a Beamer?

    Sexist? Not really
    Sexy? Certainly
    Sell more cars? Probably not.
    Sell less cars? Probably not.
    Result? – meh.

  • http://www.learnedonwomen.com Andrea

    I completely understand your point, Mammaren. We’ve definitely seen this sort of thing before (and will see it again). But, thanks to the discussion of men and women around this topic right now, maybe we’ll advance the cause against lame ad approaches at least a teeny bit?

    Another angle: you’d expect it from a lesser car brand or a smalltown weekly used car flyer, but it’s pretty surprising from a brand on the Mercedes/Lexus level, isn’t it?

    Thanks for your input – both Jason and Mammaren!

  • http://www.learnedonwomen.com Andrea

    Collin – nice, succinct response. “Result? – meh” says it all…

  • http://babblingaboutnothing.com Matt

    Two quick comments.
    First, Jason is right, I would not buy a BMW any more now than I would before seeing the ad. I hate to break it to my GOOD friends in the Advertising world, but NEVER has an ad influenced me to buy based on the pretty pictures or the fancy words. Underneath the pretty dress needs to be substance, or there’s no point in purchasing. Most reasonable people know this. Therefore, It could be the most incredible woman with the most perfect body and a “WELCOME” sign under her body, it wouldn’t sell me on the product if I didn’t already want the product, nor would it tip the scale if I’m evaluating two different products. And yes, I am in the BMW demographic. So the ad is a fail.

    2)Contrary to my point above, Sex Sells. Perhaps the firm that BMW uses knows that, and uses it to as much of their advantage as possible.

    As for it causing outrage, I’ll humbly request all you upset ladies recall this ad campaign with Marky Mark. And please, spare me with the “That was targeted at men” crap.

  • Edward Shepard

    It’s pretty cheesy. It’s like an ad for Axe body spray. Maybe that’s the audience BMW is targeting here – young, inexperienced men who are eager (desperate) to strike a more grown up pose but are still susceptible to juvenile marketing. That is, younger men who can’t quite afford a new BMW but might be able to afford a used model. Uh, I mean model of car.

    Those ads for Axe body spray are so ridiculous they’re funny, and so is this one. Among the 30-something men I know, this ad would be silly and meaningless, and would not influence them either way. BMW’s brand is too well established. However, if all BMW marketing was like this, it would be another story. The cheesiness would dissuade them.

    That said, if an even more staid auto company (such as Volvo) ran an ad like this it would be bigger news.

    Also, don’t forget, highly sexualized marketing to men is so common that for most of us it’s simply background noise.

  • http://www.learnedonwomen.com Andrea

    Matt – thanks for the reminder about Marky Mark (Calvin Klein’s ad agency clearly knew that women were the one’s doing the buying of men’s underwear, so I’m not sure anyone could argue that it was targeted to men, other than homosexual men, I suppose).

    Anyway – I think the thing that causes the most outrage with the ad, when it is all boiled down, is the lolita element Collin mentioned. That perhaps takes what might be clever/trendy sexual innuendo among adults to a whole new very low level. Really appreciate your input!

  • Kim drdeclutter via Twitter

    I didn’t take the time to read the above comments, but, can you say incest? mental rape? BMW scraping the bottom the the virgin-on-the-edge-of-the-volcano barrel? Pretty sad. Humans are lame. We have so many centuries to go to get past this “base” stuff. I hope this “child” got paid well and spends it well too!

  • Rachel Luxemburg

    My guess is they’re going on the consumer insight that used cars are not perceived as “sexy” so they’re trying to turn that perception around. I have no problem with that particular strategy.

    HOWEVER, I do think the ad is sexist, and given how young the model is, borderline inappropriate as well. There are better ways to get the strategy across than that.

  • Richard

    I’ve never bought a car based off of an ad anyway so it makes no difference to me. Consumer Reports is where I go when I look for a car.

  • http://www.annhandley.com Ann Handley

    Rachel — Well said. I understand that BMW is trying to turn around the “used as un-sexy” idea. As a strategy, it might be sound. But the age of the model is the problem, as others have pointed out. If she appeared another 10 years older — even 5 or 6 (!) — it wouldn’t be nearly the issue. As it is, it’s just wrong.

    What’s more, I kind of like Andrea’s take: “The sleazy sexual innuendo is marketing to men at its most lazy.” I know, I know… sex sells. But seriously, BMW.. can’t you try harder?!

  • http://www.servantofchaos.com Gavin Heaton

    It seems way off target from a brand and a market point of view. And you are right, this is sleazy, not sexy — certainly not very attractive for a luxury car brand.

    When I see this, I wonder who approved it? What was the strategic insight that precipitated it? And really, why associate your brand with a low-rent positioning like this? Very disappointing brand storytelling from a car maker that has some great stories to tell (eg recycling, efficiency, workforce).

  • http://kidsofqueers.blogspot.com/ Jen

    I’m not likely to by a BMW I would rather have a Mercedes if I could afford that class of car. However, I’d buy one if they advertised the ease with which one could remove dog hair left behind from a weekend trip to the cabin or one that has enough cup holder to hold all my 1/2 empty cans of pop that I inadvertently leave in the car only to return with another one.

    An underage wannabe porn star hardly gets me to open my purse. But of course I’m not the target audience.

  • http://www.lipsticking.com Yvonne DiVita

    At risk of giving BMW even more press, although this discussion continues over at Lipsticking, too…

    The Marky Mark campaign does not remotely compare to this. He is an adult… not a child. Were he a child, I would be as outraged at that as I am at this tasteless BMW ad.

    I don’t care about the whole “sex sells” mindset… done right, done well… it can be tasteful, funny, inviting, and engaging – as long as children are not depicted as the “treat” … as this young girl (doesn’t matter her true age, she is meant to look sultry but sweet, and oh so young!).

    BMW needs to stand up and answer the questions: Did they approve this ad? Why? Are they willing to admit it crossed the line, and will they promise to be more focused next time?

    Good looking women and men, scantily clad appear in many ads, the world over. And, sometimes those ads work. But, the models are ADULTS… That’s all. Adults.

    Sell using sex, by using adults.

    (most men I’ve shown this ad to are appalled, and ready to swear off BMW completely; and, at the core of the issue, they agree the ad doesn’t work – they don’t buy something because the brand is using sex to sell it)

  • Frenchie

    I am really shocked because she looks so young but Mercedes did an ad on the same concept something like a year and a half ago with a red hair girl if my memory is right. The ad said something like “would it matter not to be the first one” So actually, BMW is not only making a ad of really really bad taste, it is also copying it from one of its major competitor. that s pretty sad.

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  • http://www.socialmediaexplorer.com/ Jason Falls

    From a male and advertising agency point of view and here are my thoughts:

    1. It will appeal to the base urges of men with the image and copy, so if that's their target, the ad will show some effectiveness. Men are simple. What can I say? However, it's appealing to the young and horny. Not exactly the kind of folks who can afford BMWs. It's off-target in that regard.

    2. It will deservedly get backlash from women consumers and I think brands have to weigh how much negative they can stand to be targeted with potentially insulting or controversial ads. In the end, will the ad deliver sales? Maybe. Will it deliver talk? Damn right. Is that bad for BMW? Maybe, maybe not.

    3. Personally, I don't want to buy a BMW any more now because they use an attractive woman with a suggestive tag line. I don't think mature men (those in BMW's target) will probably get much more than a eyebrow raise out of it. While I wouldn't go overboard and say it's sexist and crass and insulting to women, I would say that it's not exactly tasteful and doesn't do much for me.

    Two cents. That's all.