Our job is to be an ally for our clients. We can be tactical/executional allies (Dear Mason, please update these 6,000 links by end of day) we can be Strategic allies (Hey Mason, we want to increase Back Friday sales by 3X over last year – let’s align on a plan to show the board) and we can be both. I think we offer more use as strategic partners than as execution-based allies, but that’s a discussion for another day.
This Monster ad, above, fails on both levels*.
Tactically/Executionally, this is really bad targeting. There’s plenty in my twitter feed to suggest that I might open a record store, or run for city council, or open a bar, or book concerts at small punk clubs, but nothing to suggest that I might become a limo dispatchure**
Strategically it’s bad because it will not bring them more money. This is a wasted effort in man-hours, media spend, and reporting time.
I’d expect any client we did this for, to call me angrily ASAP.
* FYI, we work with a competitor of Monster’s.
** I drove a yellow cab here in NYC after college, and am in no way above driving for a living then or now. I’m just not a good demographic fit for this ad.