Surprise: Ad execs don’t like user-generated ads
Steve Safran May 28th, 2007
The New York Times embeds videos of some user-generated ads for a Heinz Ketchup contest in this piece, along with quotes from ad executives who, unsurprisingly, mock the quality of the content.
“These are just so bad,” said Linda Kaplan Thaler, chief executive of the Kaplan Thaler Group, and advertising agency in New York…
As opposed to the ads on television? Ms. Kaplan Thaler goes on to mock the regular people who appear in the ads, pointing out one man’s less-than-perfect teeth. Because everyone should be gorgeous in ads, of course.
Scott Goodson, chief executive of StrawberryFrog, an advertising agency in New York, said the shortcomings of contest entries… refuted predictions that user-generated content might siphon work away from agencies.
Like coming up with a better name for an agency than one that sounds like a psychedelic ’60s band? Ad execs - like news execs before them - miss the point of user-generated content. It’s not supposed to steal from the existing content. It’s supposed to add to it. Any time you can get your most passionate consumers to work for you and help spread the word, that’s good. Write our friends Ben and Jackie at the Church of the Customer: “Don’t be surprised if the pitch for this particular story came from the agency owner who’s quoted in this piece.”
15 Comments Add your own
1. ! | May 28th, 2007 at 5:42 pm
f’d up teeth never stopped sec. of state rice.
2. ! | May 28th, 2007 at 5:44 pm
a little off topic…
what’s up with nexstar broadcasting?
3. Kyle | May 28th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
How is Ms. Kaplan Thaler supposed to justify the expense of her advertising campaigns if user content starts to bump her in the bottom line?
Of course she is going to point out why the user ads dont work, because if it turns out that they DO work, she might have to send her kids to community college.
4. Anonymous | May 28th, 2007 at 6:10 pm
Cory, are you saying you don’t think these user-generated Heinz ads are godawful? And if so, is that because you think they’re worse than godawful?
5. Steve Safran | May 28th, 2007 at 6:33 pm
It’s Safran, not Cory this time…. and of course some are godawful. Probably most. Just like many professionally-produced TV ads. That’s not the point. When you can get people to take the time to make ads for your product - that’s amazing. They’re spreading the word for you. The quality will run the range. And a few will be great.
The goal isn’t to replace pro ads. It’s to generate interest and excitement in the product. It’s to generate PR (which this has certainly done). The ad people are making the same mistake TV people make when they look at YouTube and think “That’s lousy.”
6. Rob | May 28th, 2007 at 6:35 pm
… and despite all the ad execs’ whining, the ketchup brand they’re pushing is getting column inches in NYT and free advertainment exposure on YouTube thanks to all this user-generated content.
Yes that’s definitely something for an ad exec to be upset about. Not.
7. Anonymous | May 28th, 2007 at 6:52 pm
Sorry about the mix-up Steve, and you’re right, the article doesn’t highlight the value of the buzz generated for the product through the campaign itself. But the end product really is something I would be embarrassed to put on TV.
Though, the viewers over at current.tv seem to be able to put together some really quality ads. I think there’s probably a good contingent of j-school and communications students as well as other ambitious videographers who watch Current, which may explain the higher quality of submissions.
8. ! | May 28th, 2007 at 7:12 pm
anybody got anything on nexstar?
the shares have tripled since the beginning of the year.
yowzer.
9. Vapeur Ware | May 28th, 2007 at 8:55 pm
This all get to the root idiocy of the “it’s about the conversation” schtick of Jarvis and his dittoheads, such as Safran and his consulting partners. What if the conversation sucks? What if it’s boring? And clearly, in this case, what if it doesn’t sell ketchup? User generated content and social networking in all their manifestations are worthy things but not much more than that. Not the new paradigm, sea change or any other such phrase now resurfacing from the days of the first internet bubble. We’re now in the second and Safran and Jarvis and their ilk are the Blodgetts this time around.
10. ! | May 29th, 2007 at 5:10 am
good to know they’ll be someone left to make the koolaid and not drink up all the profits.
11. Steve Safran | May 29th, 2007 at 8:44 am
Sounds like Vapeur hasn’t had his first cup of ketchup yet this morning…
12. rosenblum | May 29th, 2007 at 12:22 pm
The strawberryfrog comment: brutal. Loved it.mazel tov
13. Victor | September 28th, 2007 at 6:03 am
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14. Ron | November 19th, 2007 at 5:19 am
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15. Unison | November 20th, 2007 at 11:12 am
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