Hasta La Creative!

by Rob Frappier

Advertisers strive for creativity. It is at the core of practically everything we do. Sometimes, however, our efforts fall flat, leading to complete and utter embarrassment. This is an example of what can happen when creative goes bad.

New York City Council candidate Joe Nardiello sought a way to catch up in the polls. Facing long odds, Nardiello and his campaign staff tossed around ideas that could close the gap. In a flash, an idea came: If Nardiello’s opponent was elected, then residents in Brooklyn’s Park Slope neighborhood would see their free street parking come to an end, replaced by a $200 annual parking permit. What better way to inspire the masses than to let them know you’re the guy who doesn’t want to take money out of their pockets?

Perhaps sensing the dynamic of the race needed to be shaken up, Nardiello and his team figured out a way to call attention to the issue in the most creative way possible. Rather than knocking on doors or distributing leaflets, Nardiello decided to call people to action with a more visceral approach. During the night, his campaign workers walked the streets of Park Slope and left flyers on cars (an illegal act, by the way). The catch? The flyers were made to look like New York City parking citations.

The New York Daily News reported the aftermath. “You see a ticket and you run down there with your heart beating,” a woman named Lisa said. “People were very angry. Even if we liked him, we might not vote for him now.”

In this instance, people cared more about the method than the message. Nardiello’s campaign voice mail filled with furious calls. People yelled; they spewed insults. They expressed their feelings in short and punchy words.

There are those who would argue that Nardiello’s parking ticket stunt was harmless and actually a creative way of getting his message out. At first, I was one of them. I asked whether or not people could take a joke. Then, I remembered my reaction the last time I got a parking ticket. Seeing that evil orange and white envelope tucked under your windshield wiper or stuck to your window is one of the most frustrating things that can happen to a driver, especially when you know you weren’t parked illegally. As much as I appreciate Nardiello’s strategic goal, I believe his tactics would have upset me as well.

In our efforts to create effective marketing, we sometimes ignore what makes a campaign work in the first place: the message. If what you’re selling has value, sometimes the best thing you can do is simply share it. Forget shock or humor, just be honest. “Gotcha” marketing tactics seldom attract new customers; they tend to upset people. If your goal is to stir a reaction, fine, but if your goal is to win an election, sell a product, or promote your business, you should reconsider your approach.