At a recent roundtable event I attended, a topic that came up briefly was that of the danger of using blind networks to advertise, as this can result in display ads appearing alongside content that can be contradictory - or even damaging - to the brand or product.
Although this wasn’t the topic of the table, which was focused primarily upon the convergence and optimisation of online advertising, it got me thinking about the examples I’ve seen floating around the internet where poor placement has resulted in a cringeworthy visual. (Judging by where the majority of these ads have been seen, advertising on news sites can be a risky business...)
By my own admission, some of the examples I’ve pulled out have been around for a bit, and all are terribly tongue-in-cheek. So consider this a warning: If easily offended, don’t read any further. For those who can appreciate a bit of black humour and can understand the importance of carefully planned and placed media, read on.
1. Want to grill like an expert?
2. Hooray for beer!
3. Free dinner for two
4. Samsung blast
5. We've got you under our wing
6. Toyota
7. Dad, what would happen...
8. Evian
9. Point. Shoot. Wow.
10. Win a mini-break in gorgeous Greece...
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The Online Advertising Survey Report, produced in association with the Rubicon Project, is a useful overview of the online display advertising environment. It contains information about spending trends, the use of ad networks, types of targeting and use of data. The research also examines the impact of real-time bidding and the increasingly important role played by online advertising exchanges, demand-side platforms (DSPs) and trading desks.
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11:35AM on 1st October 2010
Ha ha..That's an incredible compilation...
Specially liked the Toyota one .. Perfect ad with perfect timing :)
Senior Research Analyst at Econsultancy
11:39AM on 1st October 2010
@Harsh - Thanks! There's a few more around on the internet, but some are in really poor taste and I didn't want to push the boundaries too far. These ones are awkward enough, I think...
11:40AM on 1st October 2010
It can happen offline too. I remember when Boscastle was pretty much washed away in flooding, it was on the front page of the Guardian in the UK, next to an advert for damp-proofing. I wish I'd scanned it.
11:43AM on 1st October 2010
Amazing timing!
12:01PM on 1st October 2010
I laughed out loud at the duck one. Some of the others are terrible though, and to think that these brands are now going to be associated with bad taste by some people because of this.
12:18PM on 1st October 2010
lol...great timing..particularly "Free dinner for two".. perfect match.. :)
12:37PM on 1st October 2010
I agree with Ian the Duck made me laugh too. On a serious note though the others give frightening examples of the real danger of using ad systems that display your ad randomly beside beside on line content. I do love the duck though.....
1:01PM on 1st October 2010
Agree with Ian and the Paul. It’s the duck #5 that is best. Do the ducks eyes seem to follow you?
Founder & Managing Director at 7thingsmedia
1:04PM on 1st October 2010
Jake this is the finest post on Econsultancy to date!
1:06PM on 1st October 2010
Paul re: "real danger of using ad systems that display your ad randomly beside beside on line content. " I don't think it's exactly random, but keyword based--which is why examples like these happen so often. Ad placement is delegated to a stupid algorithm that understands "baby," (see example no. 8) but not the essential context: "baby murdered and eaten."
PPC and Display Manager at LOVEFiLM
1:12PM on 1st October 2010
Too funny!
1:14PM on 1st October 2010
Brilliant! My favourites were the duck and the beer one ;-)
Senior Research Analyst at Econsultancy
1:27PM on 1st October 2010
Seems that the duck and beer has struck a chord!
@Chris Bishop - Thanks, Chris! I'm wondering if we should replace all our best-practice tips and analysis articles with funny pictures of marketing #fails...
@KerryatDell - They do! I'm feeling nervous now... must be my anatidaephobia.
1:40PM on 1st October 2010
While funny, these ads are a prime example why nothing should be auto-generated based solely on keywords. Translate this to auto-posting on Twitter based on hashtags. Major fail.
Director at Bold Internet Ltd
1:47PM on 1st October 2010
Very amusing (though, of course, with a serious message). Thanks for sharing.
2:01PM on 1st October 2010
This is the best thing I've seen since Tim Minchin's Pope Song... does that mean I need help?
2:12PM on 1st October 2010
I used to use a screenshot of a Yahoo Group covering Anorexia that used to carry ads for slimming products to make this point. Wish I could still find it to post it here.
2:15PM on 1st October 2010
ahhhh.... the joys of contextual targeting at its finest ;)
Managing Director at Fuse Lead Marketing
2:22PM on 1st October 2010
Fantastic and worrying all at the same time. Cheers for that Jake. It just shows how even the best targeting technology can't replace an experienced human eye checking copy the old fashioned way.
Senior Research Analyst at Econsultancy
2:34PM on 1st October 2010
@Adrian Bold - Cheers!
@Simon - Not at all, means good sense of humour...
@Peter Bell - No worries; agreed!
2:36PM on 1st October 2010
actually I think #7 works fine. okay, so it is, in effect, using a real father's death to add punch to an ad for life insurance. but that's not poor taste compared to the jokes about Steve Irwin and his family that went the rounds after his death.
2:49PM on 1st October 2010
Some CV ( Content Verification) tools will eliminate this hazard, if applied correctly. Content screening, at page level and in real time (in addition to common sense in terms of domain partnering) technologies are available today.
SEO Director at Guava UK
3:50PM on 1st October 2010
Ouch. So funny it hurts. The @Guavauk office are now in hysterics. The more your read the articles themselves...the worse it gets. I'm voting for the beer one.
Great post Jake!
Some more howlers in a similar vien: http://www.oddee.com/item_87332.aspx
Information Architect at Ideactif Conseil
4:02PM on 1st October 2010
This example on the BBC site of a video ad from a few years back was quite shocking. Fortunately, it was taken off the site minutes after I took this screenshot.
4:12PM on 1st October 2010
That first one sounds like part of a Doug Stanhope bit!
Gary Marshall points these out regularly over at http://www.bigmouthstrikesagain.com/
5:12PM on 1st October 2010
Brilliant! This is the first time I look into this site and yours was the first article I have read. I couldnt have started better! Thanks!
6:51PM on 1st October 2010
The Duck Phobia is fictional according to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_phobias - it comes from the Gary Larson comics. I expect that there are people out there who do have an acute fear that they are being watched by a duck though...
10:16PM on 1st October 2010
The wonders of automation.
2:48PM on 2nd October 2010
Excellent examples to make you point. Personally, I hate AdSense ads. They just bother me and I automatically assume most of these are AdSense, which is bad advertising for Google too.
11:37PM on 2nd October 2010
What do you think about astrology advertisements on the BBC Science Page?
9:52AM on 3rd October 2010
After the attack in Apeldoorn, Holland, where a man drove his car into the crowd which were watching the Dutch royal family passing by, I saw an article about it all on some website. Next to the article there was an advertisement about driver's insurance. It said "What kind of driver are you?"
I have a screenshot of it somewhere
9:10PM on 3rd October 2010
I love your pics. It is like an ad for AYDS back in the 80's. It was a diet pill to help people lose weight and then the disease AIDS came. Comedians did the rest. It was too funny. As for your funny finds - I'm McLovin it.
10:57PM on 3rd October 2010
I once got a ReCAPTCHA that asked me to type "wants 15-year-old". Automation, I tell ya.
Lead Generation Coordinator at Kumon Educational UK
11:05PM on 3rd October 2010
Pesky duck. Follows me everywhere I go
Assistant Team Leader (Affiliate Marketing) at Darshan Softech Pvt. Ltd., Surat, Gujarat, India
8:56AM on 4th October 2010
Brilliant collection. Someone can write a thesis on Dangers of context advertising. I do have gone through such ad before. I liked the FREE dinner for TWO :-)
9:04AM on 4th October 2010
Great stuff, but not confined to the digital age. The real problem is advertising on a news page - online or offline. Nobody knows what the news agenda is going to be or the context that it will provide for your ad. Online, however, at least there's the possibility of content validification as Ross points out.
PS If enough people get spooked by the duck does at what point does the phobia become real?
10:32AM on 4th October 2010
Awesome compilation. But this is pretty scary too. Any idea as to how we can keep track of our ads? Google Display Ad Network needs a lot of fine-tuning.
Founder at Alpha Content
11:33AM on 4th October 2010
Dan, don't disillusion me! I've seen the duck one before and had so hoped it was genuine...
Great article, though.
Digital Marketing Director at Cimex
11:45AM on 4th October 2010
Adwords allows advertisers to pre-empt these by using negative keywords. But there's just no way you're going to be able to predict *every* keyword hazard...or is there?
11:47AM on 4th October 2010
:-) :-)
11:52AM on 4th October 2010
That's a great combination :-) I feel the most funniest is the Hooray for beer! What a match. Thanks for sharing.
11:52AM on 4th October 2010
Oh dear. Epic fail!
11:56AM on 4th October 2010
I have always said this to my colleagues,"Working with a network is good only if you are targeting specific sites". I say, learn the In's and Out's of Google advertising, GDN, its one of the best advertising tools, plus you have more control over your budget.
I know this might be wrong, but subconsciously you would click on those banner ads, it just might not bring in the right conversions.
11:59AM on 4th October 2010
haa haa haa
Hilarious compilation... Hats off to you... Almost all are great. I liked the "Samsung Blast" the most :D
12:01PM on 4th October 2010
Good compilation, though scary too, an eye opener to anyone using automated adnetworks.
Janaki
12:03PM on 4th October 2010
absolute genius. bravo
12:03PM on 4th October 2010
LOL! Really enjoyed.One must be mindful before placing the brand image on stake.Thanks for sharing.
12:05PM on 4th October 2010
Great post Jake!
12:08PM on 4th October 2010
Truly hilarious and also educational.
12:14PM on 4th October 2010
One of the first I remember was during the coverage of Princess Diana's funeral in 1997 - there was streaming video of the funeral cortege and an ad (I think for IBM) about not putting the horse before the cart.
12:15PM on 4th October 2010
Hilarious !! I love it. Thanks for sharing.
Digital Marketing Director at BHP Information Solutions
12:17PM on 4th October 2010
Say what you like about damage to the brand, for some of these placements I'd argue there's value in the comedy. The very fact we're all tweeting this content must have given them a few thousand more impressions, all of which were unpaid. Sometimes bad placement can be good placement after all ;-)
12:18PM on 4th October 2010
Yes this did bring some laughter, but is a gentle warning at the same time to be careful what you splash onto your site - it may not be intentional so be cautious.
As mentioned above....
Adwords allows advertisers to pre-empt these by using negative keywords. But there's just no way you're going to be able to predict *every* keyword hazard...or is there? - Thanks Dan, for advice and reminders.
12:31PM on 4th October 2010
Wonderful example of where computers don't quite get right. Very amusing selection ofthe thouands that must be out there.
Co-Founder and CEO at Adtronik
12:41PM on 4th October 2010
Better protaction for brands can be offered using semantics technology that is far more sophisticated than a negative keywords list. It uses sentiment recognition and through advanaced natural language processing can decide whether a page is talking about a brand in a negative or positive lights. One solution on the market, Site Screen is provided by Ad Pepper media. There are a few others too.
12:43PM on 4th October 2010
Hahahaaa.
Me likes..!
12:56PM on 4th October 2010
This will happen when you cloud ads to gether
1:02PM on 4th October 2010
Hilarious! I think the Duck is my favourite. Please add some more!!
1:38PM on 4th October 2010
I really enjoyed this. Thanks for a fun start to my Monday morning! Content Network ad distribution has always been 'iffy', but your examples have given me another reason to skip them. Good thing I do SEO, not PPC, so I haven't inadvertently caused these problems for me clients. Haha.
1:54PM on 4th October 2010
Ha, ha brilliant. Nice to see that the links they make to ads by snooping and picking up words from editorial can actually badly misfire.
1:56PM on 4th October 2010
One of the best ones I saw a few years ago circulating on the Chinwag list was an ad 'be kind to your feet' next to a headline 'severed hands and feet washed ashore on beach' :)
2:10PM on 4th October 2010
Ah ah!! I like the Greek one!
2:22PM on 4th October 2010
Funny stuff!
3:01PM on 4th October 2010
Loved all of those, toyota, duck and grill have my vote go the keyword identity. needed a laugh
3:04PM on 4th October 2010
Wawwawewa! This demonstrates the negative side-effect of allowing robots to auto-generate the connection between key words and content. That is why I strongly believe that adding the human element to any job is absolutely necessary to get the job done right.
3:12PM on 4th October 2010
From a story a few years ago about the housing bust, foreclosures and tent cities - a tent ad: http://myleftone.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/tent_ad.jpg
3:21PM on 4th October 2010
Its Funny..Good one.
3:24PM on 4th October 2010
Hilarious!
European Web Analytics Specialist at Canon Europe
4:45PM on 4th October 2010
happy to make this the most commented post on econsultancy!
4:52PM on 4th October 2010
Amazing. Just goes to show why we need human intervention before our company ads get displayed using keyword search algorithms.
Great compilation Jake
6:30PM on 4th October 2010
That is hilarious! Digital Fail.
9:28PM on 4th October 2010
I'd have to say that these are either keyword targeted or run of network (no targeting just unlucky chance), but they are NOT contextually targeted. There is a subtle but important difference.
10:12PM on 4th October 2010
Awesome compilation and thank you for making my Monday! :) AS
10:29PM on 4th October 2010
Awesome stuff!
11:19PM on 4th October 2010
While an amazing compilation, Brand Safety -- namely in the form of inappropriate content adjacencies -- is one of the biggest issues facing marketing today as they try to reach their consumers online, at scale. Content Rating and Brand Protection services like www.adsafemedia.com allow marketers to leverage new online data and media buying tools, without the risk of their ads ending up on this list!!!
12:37AM on 5th October 2010
Thanks for sharing these; I loved the Aflac one! Let these be a reminder to periodically check webpages that your ads are posted on!
12:47AM on 5th October 2010
The downside of automated keyword targeting! While you can have a blacklist of words you don't want to associate with, it's hard to imagine every scenario that could arise, especially the more odd ones. Thanks for sharing these!
2:08AM on 5th October 2010
F***ing LOL so funny!
3:57AM on 5th October 2010
So funny, drove me to tears!
However, by looking at other posts, it seems that opinion is that the ads should only be placed after checking for the context. However, I would've thought that a good way to create some momentum behind your brand is to generate some controversy. Personally, I don't remember ads (especially beer) that don't stand out in some way or the other!
Cheers.
7:45AM on 5th October 2010
Jake as much as they are horrifying...UGC gone awry is what i have too say.
Advertising has always had "side effects" :-). this is our learning for the new media.
I did laugh at the free dinner at Olive Garden, i happened to visit nov last in New York...and i was planning to go to Greece :-)
cheers!
10:34AM on 5th October 2010
It always makes me chuckle that when I check the spam mail folder on my gmail account, there is always an automated ad on show promoting recipes for spam the meat!
There is a lot of work to be done on the functioning of keyword activated auto ad systems that's for sure.
E-Commerce Manager - Plumb Center at Wolseley UK
12:27PM on 5th October 2010
Very amusing though does make you question the planning involved in placement of ads in the first place and the negative impact it can have on the brand.
Marketing Manager at Coast Digital
3:26PM on 5th October 2010
Haha this has had the Coasties chuckling this afternoon. Great post Jake.
Head of Search at WebPropaganda Ltd
3:41PM on 5th October 2010
The BIG mistake of sponsored advertising and keywords placement... 3,7 and 10 are a disaster for the brands
3:41PM on 5th October 2010
Back in the 80's a very violent movie was aired on the television about a girl who was stocked and then stabbed over 40 times. Right after the violent stabbing scene, an ad aired for self-sharpening knives. The ad showed a large cook's knife being plunged numerous times into the self sharpener. I could never remember the product's brand name but I never forgot the ad.
3:50PM on 5th October 2010
Appocryphal me thinks some of these are...very amusing though! I'm surprised it doesn't happen more often.
Or maybe it does, and we just don't notice them? In the same way we ignore most of the display ads...
Web Analytics Manager at John Lewis Financial Services
3:59PM on 5th October 2010
Jake - brilliant way to create segment of Econsultancy customers with somewhat strange sense of humour!!! Always so much to learn from you guys! ;-)
Cheers
4:18PM on 5th October 2010
Fantastic - adsenseless advertising!
4:20PM on 5th October 2010
brillant!
4:32PM on 5th October 2010
awesome...i love the grilling an expert and samsung blast...toyota was also funny...some mistakes that have lead to bad publicity...hence funny but definitely a serious lesson to be learned
4:32PM on 5th October 2010
I've been trying to keep my own personal collection of these.
adsgonebad.com
E-communications Manager at National Pharmacy Association
4:39PM on 5th October 2010
hilarious - keep more blogs like this coming!
Digital Marketing Executive at NewcastleGateshead Initiative
4:48PM on 5th October 2010
Brilliant, I think the Toyota one is the best, it looks like one of those annoying ads that expand out when you move your mouse over them to get to another point on the page. Ads like these can do enough to make people dislike your brand without having unfortunate content on the page
Head of Digital at Lab Lateral
4:51PM on 5th October 2010
I remember the day the greece ad appeared on the guardian & adding ad serving rules so we would not make the same mistake.
5:44PM on 5th October 2010
Jake, Oh keyword target advertising, how fickle. Heh. Love Tomatzso with "adsenseless".. brill. I agree with Ian that while the accidental comedy can work for something like the Aflac duck, but I also agree with you that it can be in poor taste, possibly damaging to the brand (or even just a waste of money). FWIW.
5:47PM on 5th October 2010
This is one of the blogs which is worth reading and commenting on. Relying on automated placement.Ha-ha
Senior Research Analyst at Econsultancy
5:58PM on 5th October 2010
Hi everyone,
Many thanks for your individual comments, thoughts and kind words. I'm glad this particular article seems to have amused, but also raised a few serious issues amongst you all.
Cheers
- Jake
9:55PM on 5th October 2010
Haha, hilarous, forwarded to all my mates, this is an epic blog post!
Free dinner for two rocks!! Haha!
1:36PM on 6th October 2010
I did sell display ads for Yahoo, and to my experience these cases happen often with simple media planning or even run of site campaign. Most of advertisers want to preempt news properties as a quality audience context. There is always a risk for an advertiser to appear alongside to contrary content. Your examples illustrate well your point of view, but I find it incomplete. It would requires to verify in the URL if it's operated by a proprietary or a third part adserver. You might be surprised! It can also be extrapolated to any kind of physical ad placements. Think about airline company that planned a mix media campaign months before, and was displayed at the same time of a massive air crash with number of deaths. They might face some problem to anticipate and withdraw their billboarding or press campaign. Appologies for my english
5:03PM on 6th October 2010
So love the duck!
5:49PM on 6th October 2010
Yes, thanks to Photoshop...
6:51PM on 6th October 2010
Amazing post. Hope no PS
9:02PM on 6th October 2010
These examples may be the result of advertisers buying contextually targeted placements on a network. It is a great way to target ads 99% of the time but that 1%, well it looks like the above examples.
11:20AM on 7th October 2010
Number 6 is amazing - quality.
8:58AM on 8th October 2010
Are these all genuine? Remember seeing two billboards once. One on the left headline - "what does it feel like to be raped?" (Rape charity and support) to the right - "You'll never know until you try it" (Brandy)
4:43PM on 10th October 2010
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ENTONCES ERES VICTIMA DE DIFAMACION RETIRAN LA CUENTA DE SU PAGINA Y CUANDO LLEGAN A UNA CONCLUSION QUE SE EQUIVOCARON TE PIDEN QUE ENVIES LA COPIA DIGITAL DE TUS DOCUMENTOS DE IDENTIFICACION, QUIEN LOS REGULA POR QUE DEBEMOS DE ACEPTAR ESTOS ATROPELLOS. paul_ricra@yahoo.com
6:31PM on 11th October 2010
Here's one of my favorite juxtapositions with an ad from Netflix - would've fit right in the Top 10 (macabre, yes):
http://googlebought.blogspot.com/2007/03/no-doubt-this-is-accidental-as-ive-been.html
1:05AM on 12th October 2010
actually, if you think about it, the 7th one is good placing. The news makes you think about death and then the ad just plays on that with the little kid.
3:28PM on 13th October 2010
Funny, but I guess that there is no such thing as bad pubblicity anyway.
10:05AM on 14th October 2010
I think the duck wins hands down. I also like the fact that the website in question has a tag for 'duck'.
5:18PM on 17th October 2010
Awful news but didn't anyone notice the URL of this blog post? Does that make things even more horrifying? :P
Yet another cases of ad failures… but I can assume there is much more of similar failures out there… ;)
6:17PM on 18th October 2010
Priceless! :)
3:53AM on 20th October 2010
That first one nearly made me vomit :(
9:55AM on 1st November 2010
Excellent work. Top of the class stuff.
4:51PM on 11th November 2010
Funny, but a lot of these are obviously photoshopped. Don't be so gullible, people.
10:14AM on 22nd December 2010
Could this actually happen with the automated Google Display Network?! If yes, then I wouldn't want to risk it. I will have to place the ads myself!
5:06AM on 23rd December 2010
Ridiculous article with phony, doctored ads.
9:45PM on 9th April 2011
hahaha. i liked the 10th one
7:16PM on 25th August 2011
Haha. Very funny. Unfortunately for the advertisers, they didn't have a choice. That was just the dumb thing done by Google content network. They are targeting "keywords" only and have no idea what the content on the site actually was about.
3:58AM on 2nd October 2011
The very fact we're all tweeting this content must have given them a few thousand more impressions, all of which were unpaid.
7:27PM on 4th October 2011
Funny stuff. Poor advertisers though.
6:05PM on 23rd October 2011
Having a laugh!!!