Both slogans and taglines are very important for a brand's positioning in the business. They only differ in their scope: a tagline represents an entire business, while a slogan usually only represents a single product or is a part of a particular advertising campaign. Dan Cullen-Shute, chief executive and co-founder of the independent advertising agency, Creature London, says, "We live in a world where brands think they need ‘purpose’." Brands want their audiences not only to perceive a product but also to connect it with a higher purpose. That's where slogans and taglines come in - the best ones capture this higher purpose in a memorable way. For example, everyone and their mothers can surely recall Nike's call to action "Just Do It" or Red Bull's promise to "give you wings." However, not all slogans seem to work. Some appear at bad timing - for example, the ad for Ayds - an appetite suppressant - aired a TV commercial along with the slogan "Lose weight deliciously with the aid of Ayds." Given that the brand's name sounded phonetically identical to AIDS and that it aired during the epidemic period of the disease... well, I guess you can sort this one out yourselves. Bored Panda has compiled for you a whole list of various brand's slogans and taglines that are just plain bad, weird or blatantly stupid, so scroll down below to see them all.
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The More You Play With It, The Harder It Gets
Sitting On Faces Since 2001
Nothing Sucks Like An Electrolux
Good Luck
I've tried their planes twice : it's the most honest advertisement in the world !
Something For Every Hole
After Dinner, You Can Stab Your Date
The Best Things In Life Come In Cellophane
Went Shopping And Found This Ad Promoting Safe Sex
Cheat On Your Girlfriend, Not On Your Workout
Men Are Better Than Women!
She Can Have A Tummy... And Still Look Yummy!
Imagine More Snacks Than You Can Imagine
Va-Dry-Na?
You Can Never Be Too Thin; Tastes As Good As Skinny Feels
It's Amazing What You Can Do With Two Fingers And A Thumb
The Beer That Beer Would Drink
If We Can't Have Fresh Air, At Least We Can Have Fresh Muffins
Look Like A Girl, Act Like A Lady, Think Like A Man, Work Like A Boss
You Only Know What You're Made Of When You've Been Stuffed A Few Times
White Is Purity
Lose Weight Deliciously With The Aid Of Ayds
I remember this, my mom took them. It was the 70's before the disease had a name.
Load More Replies...I remember these. My mom bought a pack. They were actually pretty yummy. Til mom caught me and stuck her finger down my throat to make me throw the whole box back up.
Good lord. Please tell me you didn't end up with an eating disorder.
Load More Replies...The product actually came out before the AIDS epidemic, and was apparently quite popular. Then when AIDS came along, the product fell through the floor.
I don't know when this ad came out but I figure it got more ironic once AIDS was identified.
It wasn't a bad product name when it came on the market and for many years afterward. It was a popular, drug-free way to help people lose weight. You would eat two candies and drink a hot beverage a half hour before meals; the candy would help you feel full so you wouldn't overeat. It only became a bad product name after the AIDS crisis hit. The company had to go out of business because of the product name.
I have a problem with "Appetite Suppressant Candy". They are either misleading their customers, or the chemical make up of the candy is illegal and very bad for you.
I'd read about this in an Uncle John's book, funniest thing was seeing my sister and her husband's reaction when they saw the commercial during a Nostalgia Critic special
i tried a similar product in the '90s and they tasted good, but i still failed
omg ... i remember that.... 😵. And it was creepy before it was REALLY creepy...
OMG! I knew I had something againt the acronym AIDS. THIS. I remember these. How could I have forgotten? They were caramels, and you couldn't eat just one, so you gained weight, you were body-shamed again, and they made MILLIONS!
These were appitite suppressors from the 70s, they were like toffee.
To be fair, this product came out before AIDS; we were using it in the 70s.
I had a Saturday job in a pharmacy in the early eighties and we used to sell these. They were incredibly popular and within a few years they obviously weren't.
I've tried these and ate them like candy. Didn't lose any weight, though. I believe they were popular before the AIDS virus was discovered. Not so popular, if they're even still on the market.
This product was around LONG before HIV. It's not their fault that AIDS happened years later.
I remember these....I think this was way before AIDS happened....I thinks this was back in the 70's. I think my mom had them and I ate one just thinking it was a piece of chocolate.
Approach Women Like You Do Wild Animals, With Caution And A Soothing Voice
#BecauseNoReason
Painfully Thick
Open Your Snack Hole
She's Seen More Ceilings... Than Michelangelo; You're Not Popular... You're Easy
It's Not For Women
Spike Up Your Best Friend's Eggnog When They're Not Looking
What Can Brown Do For You?
I want to get a shirt that says that now cuz I'm brown and I can do a whole lot
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Some are plain genius and others are just idioticly funny (i spelled that wrong give me a break)
And some are just horribly misogynistic and racist.
Load More Replies...I agree, it would be helpful because some (like the Ayds candy) were around well before their names or their taglines developed different meanings.
Load More Replies...Oh I wish they had put the "not beersies" ad! It was a "drink water instead of beer" drink responsibly campaign, but people kept going into liquor stores and supermarkets looking to buy "not beersies" XD
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11371914
Load More Replies...The Dr. Pepper one reminds me of a promotional campaign done by Yorkie chocolate bars here in the UK (no idea if they exist elsewhere). Basically, the bars are made up of segments of pretty thick chocolate chunks that women apparently couldn't eat, so the tagline in their commercials was "Yorkie - It's not for girls". Oh, and McCoys crisps use/used the tagline "Man crisps", also because they were slightly larger than other brands.
The thing with the Yorkie ads was that they were so obviously tongue-in-cheek that nobody could sensibly be offended, you could tell that they were poking fun at the boys who wanted to keep their chocolate to themselves ;-)
Load More Replies...It’s really unfair to view vintage ads under a modern lens and call it inappropriate. Times were different as were people.
In my opinion, the sad side of the story is that those slogans made because the society is like those slogans and the hidden messages of sex, racism and misogynistic.
Anyone else remember those awful "man up" ads that Miller Lite aired about ten years ago?
I guess they figure "There's no such thing as bad publicity." I beg to differ - several of these woulds turn me right off their product/service.
Load More Replies...I'd think they were more clever finds if they weren't done on purpose.
Some are plain genius and others are just idioticly funny (i spelled that wrong give me a break)
And some are just horribly misogynistic and racist.
Load More Replies...I agree, it would be helpful because some (like the Ayds candy) were around well before their names or their taglines developed different meanings.
Load More Replies...Oh I wish they had put the "not beersies" ad! It was a "drink water instead of beer" drink responsibly campaign, but people kept going into liquor stores and supermarkets looking to buy "not beersies" XD
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11371914
Load More Replies...The Dr. Pepper one reminds me of a promotional campaign done by Yorkie chocolate bars here in the UK (no idea if they exist elsewhere). Basically, the bars are made up of segments of pretty thick chocolate chunks that women apparently couldn't eat, so the tagline in their commercials was "Yorkie - It's not for girls". Oh, and McCoys crisps use/used the tagline "Man crisps", also because they were slightly larger than other brands.
The thing with the Yorkie ads was that they were so obviously tongue-in-cheek that nobody could sensibly be offended, you could tell that they were poking fun at the boys who wanted to keep their chocolate to themselves ;-)
Load More Replies...It’s really unfair to view vintage ads under a modern lens and call it inappropriate. Times were different as were people.
In my opinion, the sad side of the story is that those slogans made because the society is like those slogans and the hidden messages of sex, racism and misogynistic.
Anyone else remember those awful "man up" ads that Miller Lite aired about ten years ago?
I guess they figure "There's no such thing as bad publicity." I beg to differ - several of these woulds turn me right off their product/service.
Load More Replies...I'd think they were more clever finds if they weren't done on purpose.