Frankenstein Ads
Wednesday, November 7th, 2007
Frankenstein ads, we’ve all seen them, I’m just giving them a name.
Frankenstein ads are the ads where the “best” elements from other ads are thrown together to make a whole new ad. Throw in the the hook from this tent event, the credit line from this spot, add in a sprinkle of the jingle from last months ad, then come up with a new event name and “Poof,” we have this month’s event ad (I know the symbolism reflects more of a witch’s brew than Frankenstein but just stay with me).
The problem is when we create ads this way, we’re really creating a monster. What do I mean? Well with Frankenstein all the human elements were there (eyes, ears, nose, arms, etc), but he was never really human. Frankenstein is, when you boil it down, just parts thrown together. And when these parts are just thrown together the results are devastating.
Now a Frankenstein ad has all the elements of a car dealer ad, but it’s never really an ad. It lacks meaning and purpose. When parts of other ads are just thrown together, the focus of the ad becomes diluted and ultimately lost.
