Marketing plays a significant role in promoting a brand and it’s products and services, especially if they’re introducing something new. Influencing your audience’s opinion and behavior while hitting all the right notes in marketing is no easy task. Thus, developing an effective and well-tuned marketing strategy is crucial in executing successful campaigns. However, there are times when brands miss some marks because of a miscalculated attempt to stand out from the competition. We’ve collated some of the worst marketing errors that huge brands have committed over the past years. Learn from them to avoid these same mistakes... Read the full article: https://connextdigital.com/6-marketing-mishaps-learn-from/

1. 6 Legendary Marketing
Mishaps You Should Learn
From
connextdigital.com

2. connextdigital.com
GETTING STARTED
Marketing plays a significant role in promoting a brand and it’s products and services, especially if
they’re introducing something new.
Influencing your audience’s opinion and behavior while hitting all the right notes in marketing is no
easy task. Thus, developing an effective and well-tuned marketing strategy is crucial in executing
successful campaigns.
However, there are times when brands miss some marks because of a miscalculated attempt to
stand out from the competition. We’ve collated some of the worst marketing errors that huge brands
have committed over the past years. Learn from them to avoid these same mistakes

3. connextdigital.com
In 1985, the big-name soda company tested out a reformulation of their soda recipe, which
unofficially became known as New Coke.
The reformulation’s result was a catastrophe. It received backlash, and many people
resented the reformulation to the point that Coca Cola’s Atlanta HQ received thousands of
complaints daily. They even hired a psychologist to attend to the calls. The interesting bit
is, many people gave the new taste high marks. But as it turned out, people want the
same Coke they grew up with—the “real” taste of their favorite drink.
Brands always find ways to innovate and step up their game. However, this principle did
not work for Coke. The infamy was dubbed as the “marketing blunder of the century,” and
was born out of Coca-Cola being too good at marketing that they overlooked its iconic
brand.
1. The New Coke Fiasco

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2. The H&M Racist Gaffe
The fast-fashion titan came under fire when they released a photo on their website of a
child of African-American descent modeling a sweatshirt with the slogan “Coolest Monkey
in the Jungle.” Customers called out the brand on social media for its racism and lack of
cultural sensitivity. Artists The Weeknd and G-Eazy even cut ties with the brand following
the offensive image.
Since the offensive mishap, H&M hired a diversity leader and issued a public apology that
was promoted at the top of their website. The company immediately took down the
pictures from all their channels as well as the garment in question from their global
catalog. This reminds marketers to take a step back, look at the big picture, and work with
a diverse team.

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What was once a well-known chain for the VHS and DVD rental industry has since been reduced to just one
physical store left in the world. The video rental company failed to adapt to digital fast, especially when
Netflix came out and shook the entertainment industry with online video streaming.
Blockbuster didn’t fail because of a marketing mishap. The company failed because it fell behind, causing
self-destruction when they stuck with traditional retail outlets, refusing to enter the online revolution
despite the winds of change pushing the movie and video industry to evolve. They were doomed then and
there. The lesson here is: adapt or be forgotten.
3. Blockbuster’s Strategic Boo-Boo

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Susan Boyle’s album release hashtag is a prime example of why marketers must always double-check their
marketing copy. Boyle’s social media marketing used the hashtag #susanalbumparty to promote the release
of the singer’s album. However, the PR fail became a laughing stock all over Twitter for an obvious reason.
Boyle’s PR team quickly changed the hashtag to #SusanBoylesAlbumParty for damage control. The mistake,
however, drew unprecedented attention. Publicity is still publicity, after all. Even so, something as simple as
a campaign hashtag—an important tag to help your audience find your content easily—can make or break a
message.
4. Susan Boyle’s Album Twitter Hashtag

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The adverse reaction to Kendall Jenner’s Pepsi ad started the moment she opened her can of Pepsi. Amid
2017’s political activism events and #BlackLivesMatter protests, Pepsi’s exploitation was seen as a tone-deaf
ad in action. This served as one of the biggest marketing fails of 2017.
The ad features a group of young people holding signs like “Join the Conversation” and “Love,” culminating
with Jenner taking off a wig as she leaves a photoshoot and joins a protest where she gives a police officer a
can of Pepsi as a peace offering, saving the day.
The ad was ridiculed for being tone-deaf and exploitative, which prompted Pepsi to take it down. The lesson
here for brands is, if they insist on interlacing social messages into their marketing, it should be sincere and
must take a solid stance, like the Colin Kaepernick ad by Nike.
5. The Controversial Pepsi and Kendall
Jenner Ad

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When Heineken’s “Sometimes Light is Better” campaign launched in the U.S., the ad gained immediate
backlash, forcing the brand’s U.S. division to pull it out. The ad featured a beer sliding down a bar, being
passed down from dark-skinned people until it makes its way into a light-skinned woman’s hand. The video
gave off a sour interpretation and was blasted for lack of racial sensitivity.
It came under intense fire when Chance The Rapper expressed his scrutiny on Twitter, saying it’s “terribly
racist.” Heineken immediately issued an apology for missing the mark, and that they will use the error to
influence future campaigns. This is an example where it’s crucial to hire a diverse marketing team to spot
potential errors like this before it goes live.
6. Heineken’s Racist Commercial

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Regardless if you’re the best marketer around, you’re still susceptible to mistakes. You’re
only human, and mishaps are bound to happen one way or another. But gaffes like the
examples above went too far, resulting in irreversible consequences.
Use these marketing fails to develop sound marketing strategies. Conduct customer
profiling and segmentation to understand your customers on a deeper level, and therefore,
create compelling and successful campaigns.
The Takeaway

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