As a newly minted Mad Man, I’ve really gotta hand it to the ad wizards who managed to sell Camel on THIS campaign. Mind you, it’s the sales side that’s impressing me here, not the creative.
I mean, you only come away from this item wondering two things:
- Does “Snus” rhyme with “news” or with “fuss?” And whichever it is, what the heck does it mean? Where’d it come from (I get the “snu-” part, just not the “s”)? Does it describe or suggest something camels do?
- Come on, can’t you GUARANTEE that I’ll suffer gum disease and tooth loss? That “can” seems a bit weak.
I mean, really — if the warning’s gotta be that bold and so much more readable than anything else on the document, why go to the trouble of crafting this item? Are you TRYING to lose market share? Or is it that you assume that anyone who uses your product is so amazingly stupid that they can be relied upon to ignore the warning, and be dazzled by the garish colors? Or, is it that you’re assuming that they know ALL such products will give them horrible diseases, but you think this will still inspire them to choose your product over the others? And if so, what precisely in this particular communication do you think is going to reel them in?
The coupon, perhaps. Yeah, that’s the ticket. It’s gotta be the coupon…
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The warning should read “This product can cause cancer of your mouth and jaw, at a surprisingly young age, which, if you survive it, will leave you with a severely deformed face.”
I see this ad in Car and Driver magazine. I look at this and think of those poor souls hooked on nicotine.
I don’t see in on the above, but the ad says “refrigerated for freshness” or something.
The lengths those death merchants will go to to push their lethal products.
Oh. I see that “snus” is actually the generic name of the product.
You learn something every day.
From what I hear, reading the news and such, meth can also cause gum disease and tooth loss.
But I am not one to smoke, or chew tobacco or use snuff, or meth.
I think it rhymes with noose. They are thinking addicted people have been lulled into complacency for warning messages combined with – hey look, neat shiny boxes – combined with – here’s a way for you to still be addicted at work!!!! I think the most interesting thing is the little camel in the corner in a circle with the words “break free” around him. I think that is just rude since this product just facilitates further bondage.
Well, Ralph, sure–and not brushing and flossing aren’t so great either–although I don’t know that meth and poor dental hygiene cause serious cancer in young people.
@ Doug– There’s more wrong with these products than mere nicotine. You don’t get cancer from Nicorette products. There’s cardiac and stroke risk, as well as addiction, with both, but an additional problem with tobacco is that you get a load of carcinogens and, in th ecase of smoked products, particulates and other lung-cloggers.
How do you remove the coolness factor?
Note to Michael P.: Am, too.