All companies make mistakes in their advertising from time to time (I recall roping in Nancy Sorrell in 2005 as a one-time model which generated very little awareness for us and cost a fortune) but most companies learn from their mistakes and react quickly to them.
2009 has brought with it a wave of repeat broadcasts of the Specsavers TV ad featuring Edith Piaf. I dont listen to her music, but like many people (especially since the recent film about her life La Vie en Rose) I am aware of her talent as arguablly France’s greatest popular music singer ever, and her tragic and premature death.
Edith Piaf would be turning in her grave if she could see this advert. This is a song that the French regard as something of a national anthem, about someone who was a chronic alcoholic and drug user looking back on her life, and saying that she regrets nothing; that all the pain was worth it for her to become the person she now is. It is poignant and heartfelt. (reference)
Whoever sold her out to Specsavers must regret doing so – I’m just suprised Specsavers hasnt stopped broadcasting this once it became clear how misguided it was. The Guardian called it ‘sacrilege, vandalism, and just plain wrong‘. I just did a google search, and it looks like it’s been shorlisted by someone as one of ‘TV’s worst adverts’ and someone else on page 1 of the listings calls it ‘evil’ . As I speak, the latest comment on youtube reads ‘I’m sure I’ve seen a worse ad than this. But I can’t think what it is. ‘.
Specsavers’ advertising can be impressive, like the viral Barclaycard style ad, but surely it’s time for these particular broadcasts to stop?
While I agree with the sentiment, I’m slightly uncomfortable with the whole slating of a competitor for something that you’ve not really managed to succeed in yourself (I’m afraid that the Glasses Direct slogan has yet to reach the appeal that Specsaver’s one has).
Hopefully this is part 1 of an on-going ‘crap ads’ series and not just a rant about other optical facewear companies.
You imply in your comment that only the market leader has the right to comment on other people’s advertising. I dont think that you need to be a big corporate with a great strap line to write a commentary on something interesting that’s happening in our industry at the moment.
I have no intention of writing about ads i other sectors. The reason I chose this commercial is precisely because the ad belongs to one of our competitors, and therefore i) it would be of interest to our customers, staff, and the industry who read this blog ii) I have an insight into it and can write about it in a thoughtful (and I hope balanced) way, and iii) it sits extremely comfortably in a blog that doesnt shy away from providing topical, fun, and relevent articles about glasses, our company, and developments in the optical industry to our readers.
I’m sorry, but the implication was not that only the market leader can pass comment. What I was implying was, having never seen your attempts at producing a television campaign, how can I (average Joe Sixpack) actually trust your “insight”. Remember print and on-line advertising are completely different to television.
To me, the context of the post came across as low-rate electioneering, where you couldn’t claim to be able to do things better so you saw fit to attack your opposition with a few choice soundbites in an attempt to gain some sort of moral highground.
Whilst this system might seem to work in Politics, it’s worth remembering how popular ‘politicians’ actually are.
Ben – I just saw the ad and thought the fact that it was misjudged — another example of this would be that apparently Piaf was also blind between the ages of three to seven, with the disease Keratitis – so Specsavers’ chosing of someone who was a sadly deceased alcoholic and blind as a child as collatoral for a TV commercial looked like an interesting story to me.
reference)
hi guys out there,
all i want to know, how can i get a refund from specsaver eyeglasses, since i paid a whooping £380.00 for my glasses.and i unfortunately i need to refund it because its tooo much. is there any way i can just refund it without any problem since i did not retrieve it yet. i read a lot of things about this shop.cannot take chances. guys please, how should i do this,
Kaori- unfortunately I’m not sure Specsavers offer a no-quibble money back guarantee…
GREAT COMMERCIAL!!! YOU JUST NEED A LITTLE SENSOR OF HUMOR. AND GOOD PIAR TOO.
Laboom77 that’s one point of view, the other is mine. By way of any update, Specsavers’ TV advertisement turned out to be the ninth most complained about commercial to the Advertising Standards Authority during 2008.
Excellent blog post. I await reading more from you.
Hey greet post !