TJ Vasquez
Advertisements are everywhere, and because of this, it becomes incredibly easy for consumers to differentiate “good” ads from “bad” ads. Advertising methods and content are not all created equal, and to make the right impression, your approach needs to be sound.
Keep reading to learn more about what makes a bad ad so that you can avoid these pitfalls when you’re creating pieces of marketing material.
What Constitutes Bad Ads?
The Coalition for Better Ads (CBA) actually conducted a study to explore the science of bad ads. During this study, more than 25,000 participants were surveyed on their reactions to various advertising methods. They were asked to rate each ad type from least to most favorable, in other words, which ads were ‘good’ and which were ‘bad.’
The CBA created an infographic of the data they collected and also listed several of the least favorable ads, as depicted by the data points on the left side of the threshold.
Among the most intolerable advertising methods were:
- Pop-Ups
- Fullscreen Scrollovers
- Prestitial Ads (especially those with countdowns)
- Glaring, flashy ad animations
- Videos that auto-play (loudly)
- Pages with over 30% ad density
In addition to the unfavorable advertising methods mentioned above, the most unfavorable ad content was confusing, annoying, distracting, or even insulting.
Components of Bad Advertising
There’s more to a bad ad than choosing an inconvenient delivery method, which we briefly covered in the section above. A great many things can factor into what makes an advertisement good or bad, so let’s take a look at some of the most common components of bad ads.
Ads with No Substance
There’s a lot that can make an ad appear flat and unremarkable, and in some cases, a piece of ad content can become irritatingly bland or confusing. Whether the ad features an unconvincing sponsor script, watered-down messages, or disjointed content, it’s essentially saying “nothing” to the audience. That said, they’re probably going to take exactly nothing from it.
Real-World Examples:
- Calvin Klein – several perfume/cologne ads
- Saltigo – this mysterious chemical ad
Moral Concerns in Ads
More and more consumers are keeping up to speed with current events, and with that and the connectivity of social media, news travels fast. People are so much more aware of how brand CEOs, representatives, and executives behave. When those behaviors push the boundaries of standard morality, public opinions are going to change.
Usually, this problem takes on one of three forms.
- The ad content isn’t related to the concerning behavior in question, but upon distributing ads, the news follows them.
- The ad content expresses a message or ideal that the brand doesn’t follow, which evokes negative public opinions.
- The ad content features or promotes a harmful message.
Real-World Examples:
- Bloomingdales – Christmas Catalog 2015
- Hyundai – “Pipe Job” Ad, which turned inner turmoil into a car-promoting joke
Insensitivity or Patronization
There’s a time and a place for having a jest at someone else’s expense, and “in the middle of your ad content” isn’t it. Very few people respond positively to tone-deaf ads, ads that talk down to them, or ads that actively make fun of them. The line between what passes for humor and what’s incredibly offensive can be thin, so pushing the envelope in this way isn’t always going to pay off.
Real-World Examples:
- Victoria’s Secret – “Perfect Body” Ad
- Dr. Squatch’s pointlessly-gendered soap ads (bonus points for misleading and blatantly insulting its target audience)
Banking On “All Attention Is Good Attention.”
Getting people to notice an ad shouldn’t be the main objective for marketers, because it takes far more to convert a lead into a customer. It’s not easy to pull off a “hey, look at me,” sort of approach to advertising when the content itself doesn’t connect to people. Moreover, plenty of ads that marketers intend to be cheeky or humorous come off as obnoxious to audiences.
There’s a real art to “going there” in your ads. When it works, it works well, and when it doesn’t, audiences puzzle over who thought the ad was a good idea.
Real-World Examples:
- AirBnB – taking a shot at public libraries (of all places) with this tax-related ad
- The Keg Stand” Ad segment of the “Got Insurance?” campaign (actually, most of the ads in that campaign are kind of ridiculous)
Pushy Ads
Ads that intentionally annoy or bombard the audience rarely perform well, and it’s easy to understand why. Most people aren’t going to respond well to being repeatedly prodded, especially not well enough to give money to the source of their irritation.
Real-World Examples:
- JG Wentworth’s “877-CASH NOW” Ad
- HEAD-ON’s repetitive “Apply Directly to the Forehead!” Ad
Misrepresentation
Ads that blatantly exaggerate or misrepresent the features of a product or service might sound like a quick and easy way to make sales. Even if it initially converts leads, doing this is one of the worst ways to ensure failure and public outrage. Not only is it incredibly unethical to knowingly misrepresent a product, but false advertising also violates consumer protection laws.
When it comes to the kind of ads you want to avoid making, misrepresentation is at the top of the list.
Real-World Examples:
- LifeLock – Displaying the CEO’s SSN in ad content to attest to the product’s usefulness, which resulted in a whopping 13 times that the CEO had his identity stolen.
- Activia – Claimed their yogurt was clinically/scientifically proven to regulate digestion, which wasn’t true.
Strategies for Avoiding Bad Ads
It’s not a major challenge to avoid creating ads that are truly unacceptable, but there are finer details to consider if you want to move away from generally low-quality ads. Follow this guideline if you want to steer clear of ad content that’ll cause more harm than good.
Avoid Misrepresentation
Lying to your audience can bring about several different consequences, even if you experience short-term gains right after publishing deceptive ads. It’s essential to tell the truth about your products and services when you’re marketing them to your audience. If you want to maintain your credibility and brand reputation, take these steps.
- Don’t embellish the capabilities of your product or service
- Clearly list your company’s qualifications
- Don’t exclude key pieces of information that your customers should know, and don’t be vague with your coverage
- Have evidence prepared to support any claims you make
- Be careful about the words you use (ex: “proven” or “verified”)
- Don’t portray your business as something it isn’t
- Avoid holding customers to higher standards than your business (such as imploring audiences to recycle if your manufacturing produces significant waste)
Don’t Piggyback
The social climate has its ups and downs, and sometimes a major incident or situation emerges that deeply affects the public. When these things happen, it’s often not appropriate for businesses to attach themselves to the current circumstances in an effort to make sales. In some cases, it’s acceptable when the business relates to the situation at hand, but particularly when a massive, negative incident occurs, piggybacking off of it isn’t a good idea.
For example, the entire world was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, what with the lockdowns, worry over immune-compromised family members, overwhelming pressure on first responders, widespread illness, and financial strain hitting so many households. Still, companies like Amazon, McDonald’s, GMC, Buick, and AT&T (to name just a few) decided that a global pandemic was an opportunity to advertise. In most cases, the products or services being marketed had little to nothing to do with the struggles people were facing.
Keep Pricing Clear
Don’t try to be sneaky about pricing. Reputable, ethical businesses take care to list their prices as clearly as possible so that their customers can avoid unpleasant surprises. Deceptive pricing practices you’ll want to avoid include:
- Abusing “fine print” by listing initial pricing in large, legible text, then adding a plethora of charges the customer will be responsible for in the smallest possible text at the bottom of the page.
- Omitting requirements, such as advertising a “FREE” item without listing any of the conditions that need to be met in order to qualify. For example, if you have a deal for one free product when the customer purchases two, include all of the information the customer needs, not just the portion that’ll get their attention.
- Ignoring your pricing completely until customers visit your sales pages
Know Your Audience
Being disconnected from your audience can result in ads that just don’t work. Pop culture and current events are constantly changing, and trends rise and fall all the time. If you want to produce ads that reach the people you want as your customers, you need to get familiar with the audience you serve.
- Conduct frequent market research
- Create customer profiles
- Collect data on past ad campaigns
- Look into current events to make sure your subject matter is relevant
- Pay attention to comments and reactions to your ads
Treat Your Audience with Kindness
Don’t insult or patronize your audience. This one is quite easy to accomplish, even if you’re trying to appeal to your audience with humor. Your ads can be funny without cruelty, in fact, most of the funniest ads in history were just that, funny without being mean. As mentioned above, sometimes cheeky humor works to sell a product, but it’s not an easy accomplishment. If you have an idea for an amusing ad, run it by several people on and off your team to gather differing opinions about it before you move forward.
Always Use Convenient Formatting
If you’re advertising online, use ad formats that users can click away from without a lot of hassle. Forcing them to listen to or look at your advertisements will probably only irritate them, especially if the ad is massive, flashy, loud, or poorly made. Avoid using pop-ups, full-screen ads, ads with hidden closeout boxes, autoplay features, unskippable ads, and ads that follow the user down the page.
How to Address a Bad Ad
Let’s say you recently published an ad campaign and your audience isn’t happy with one or more of the advertisements therein. Don’t ignore the issue or become defensive. Take a moment, retain your professional composure, and evaluate the situation.
Sometimes audiences can get annoyed that they’re seeing ads at all, but the negative overall reception of your ads is always worth investigating. When you may have created a bad ad, return to the source. Take a look at your ad, then look for audience feedback to shed light on what went wrong.
If you find that your audience has made valid points,
- Address the issue in a calm, respectful manner
- Respond to customer complaints
- Apologize for the content
- Be grateful for the feedback
- Correct the situation if there’s a way to do so
- Discontinue the ad if needed
Sticking to ethical, high-quality ads is the best way to attract an audience and turn them into customers. When creating ad content, take your time, collaborate with others, test reactions, and make changes as needed.
If you’d like help in creating stellar ad content, reach out to Content Cucumber to discover what we have to offer. Book a demo at your convenience.
