Monday, February 2, 2009

Wrong Word

If I were attempting to build an advertising campaign around a single word, that word would NOT be "Obey." Mainly because I'm a fan of old-school Doctor Who, and every time I see "1 Flat Stomach Rule: Obey" - I simply can't get away from the image of a bunch of people locked in a health club with a giant self-propelled pepper shaker with a plunger for an arm screaming at them: "You will get in shape with the Daleks! You will perform thirty-thousand sit-ups! Obey! OBEY!" Unlike other would-be alien conquerors of Earth, the Daleks did not sound dark and menacing. Instead they sounded shrill and hysterical - these were aliens in dire need of decaf.

1 comment:

Catnapping said...

i'm always amazed at the number of people who want someone to tell them what to do.

they don't seem capable of motivating themselves...or taking any initiative. they always wait for someone to give them instructions.

maybe someone blamed them for something...and they grew afraid of taking responsibility in the event things went wrong...and then eventually, they just forgot how to perform without external (exogenous?) direction.

maybe this 'obey' thing is working on those particular people...i'd be curious what percentage of the market responded to that.