Yesterday, the Toronto Star ran an article about a Coors Light billboard campaign in BC that played on the friendly battle between Torontonians and West Coasters. Following the "Colder Than" slogans, the billboard featured a frosty can of Coors Light and read:
"Colder than most people from Toronto"
These slogans aren't new and are usually pretty clever. There is also a social campaign where consumers can create their own Coors Light "colder than" slogan for a chance to win prizes.
The catch phrase was meant to be humorous and poke fun at Toronto, which is often labeled the most hated city throughout the rest of Canada. The resentment between the East and the West isn't new and is generally harmless. In fact, it's no different than the age old Canadian tradition of poking fun at our American neighbours (or Aussies vs. Kiwis. Or the Irish vs. the English... you catch my drift).
Yet for some odd reason, this ad generated such an outrage by the sensitive people of Hogtown that Coors decided to pull the billboards and replace them with more generic "Colder Than" slogans.
When it comes to advertising you can play it safe and put out another boring ad that might engage the audience, or you can take a chance and try to be a little edgy. The further off-centre you go, the more people will react to (and remember) your ad. Sure, there's a line that shouldn't be crossed, but in today's supposedly politically correct world, that line seems to be getting shorter.
This ad, which I thought was absolutely brilliant was designed in Toronto by Coors Light's agency DraftFCB. That's right - it was a group of Torontonians who thought up this slogan. While the campaign was only run in BC, it managed to not only get all kinds of press nation-wide, but it also generated 32 PAGES of comments from Toronto Star readers across the country.
Was it edgy? Yes.
Did it capture people's attention? Yes.
Did it cross the line and come across as blatantly offensive? I really don't think so.
I'll leave you with a couple of thoughts:
1) A localized billboard campaign got people are talking about the ad and the brand (good or bad) and scored national coverage.
2) If you were offended by this ad, you really need to lighten up. Honestly... are you REALLY that upset? I suspect that if an ad was run in Toronto poking fun at BC Hippies or Newfies, we'd get a chuckle out of it at their expense.
3) I'm willing to bet that Coors Light sales will jump - not suffer as a result of this ad. Mainly because the people crying bloody murder don't fit into their target demographic anyway.
4) If you haven't already, PLEASE watch the brilliant documentary: Let's All Hate Toronto!
Kudos to DraftFCB for a fun and engaging ad campaign. I'll raise a Cold Certified silver bullet to your team.
I hope to see a billboard over the DVP that reads:
Coors Light: Colder than a Torontonian offended by a billboard about Torontonians
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