What's with all the Anti-Arthur Day campaign ?

meemeemee

It's this.

In a TV ad, the actors get paid, the photographers get paid, the technicians get paid. Everybody knows it is a commercial entity, and they get paid for being part of it.

A big company's marketing department cooks up a cynical "anniversary" and lots of people get involved. Some might be open eyed. But plenty are not. They are seduced by the marketing department's strategies, and they become an unpaid actor in a commercial. Fine.

It's just that one despairs of people who can be so easily influenced. If a marketing department can get them to that. What else can they get them to do ? What might the sheeple be persuaded to do next. Perhaps a short german gentleman with a Charlie Chaplin style moustache might be able to use his marketing skills can convince them to wear armbands and smash shop windows in ?

AnonoBoy

meemeemee wrote: »

What might the sheeple be persuaded to do next.

Hopefully it's turn violently on people who use the phrase 'sheeple'.

EyeSight

i said it before, i like Arthurs day. But i don't like that every other drinks company is trying to do the same now

AnonoBoy

EyeSight wrote: »

i said it before, i like Arthurs day. But i don't like that every other drinks company is trying to do the same now

Dutch Gold Wednesdays aren't that bad are they?

humanji

AnonoBoy wrote: »

Dutch Gold Wednesdays aren't that bad are they?

It's a bit much after Pimm's Tuesday.

zenno

Systemic Risk wrote: »

Ok let me put it simply.

Many people like to go out and have fun.

Many of these people like to go out and have fun when they know there will be a lot of other people out having fun that they can interact with.

Many of these people like to go out and have fun when they know there will be a lot of other people out having fun in venues with quality, free, live entertainment.

Many of these people have a decent level of intelligence and know this is a marketing ploy by diageo and pubs to increase sales but dont care because they like to go out and have fun with loads of other people having fun in places with quality free live entertainment.

I seriously question the intelligence of many posters on here who feel the need to point out its a marketing ploy to others as if they didnt already know. The social issues with alcohol is a different debate entirely with some merits.

Sounds just like any other weekend out for the buzz, Arthur's day just seems like any other weekend wholly session, but with added spice-advertisements to titillate mildly/strongly drunk minds.

Feck this, let's have a boards.ie day... now that i will get pissed for.

I would guess the issue of the advertising of products impeding and effecting large parts of everyones life is a valid point to make. The difference in this scenario is that alcohol is essentially a drug, and Diageo are essentially the 'pushers', using a incredibly large advertising budget to make people consume larger quantities of their drug than usual. Makes no difference in my eyes, Guinness and Diageo can do what they like - and so can everyone else. But you must be able to see why some people may find the idea of a drug being pushed so heavily in every day life just a little abhorrent.


There is something just a little bit stereotypical and embarrassing about the whole thing, though. Here's a video of people standing around in a circle cheering glasses being smashed in the centre, in the middle of Temple Bar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gi4ROnYoZL8

I would imagine you may see scenes like this in other countries, perhaps during riots or sports victories. The difference here, I think, is how the belligerence spills across the demographics to a point where you have seemingly normal, average people cheering the concept of a glass being smashed in the middle of one of Dublin's most popular thoroughfares.

humanji

Why in the name of god were bars giving out glasses? Would they not have saved themselves a load of trouble by getting in a rake of plastic cups?

meemeemee

Drinks marketing is cynical.

Caffreys, a drink invented in a laboratory by lab technicians; Went to Prague and went to an Oirish bar. It slowly dawned on me that the painted murals on the walls were all scenes from Caffreys marketing.

In Britain, every alcohol company is in on St Patricks Day. It started with Guinness and Jamesons. Now, in the run up to "St Patricks Week", every pub chain in the land, every supermarket, every drinks brand, is clamouring to get in on it. Alcohol, cos thats what the Irish do, innit ? In chain bars, youngsters get smashed on shots of schnapps, and Sourz, and Woodys. If you think Arthur's day is bad, you want to see a day of St Patricks Week in a Mexican themed chain bar in Northern England.

Systemic Risk

AnonoBoy wrote: »

Hopefully it's turn violently on people who use the phrase 'sheeple'.

Jesus h christ when i read sheeple there in his post a surge of anger went through me. I hope i dont turn violent if someone uses that phrase in my vicinity in public. Not likely though as the people i meet in every day life generally arent stupid enough to say such shoite.

zenno

Rojomcdojo wrote: »

I would guess the issue of the advertising of products impeding and effecting large parts of everyones life is a valid point to make. The difference in this scenario is that alcohol is essentially a drug, and Diageo are essentially the 'pushers', using a incredibly large advertising budget to make people consume larger quantities of their drug than usual. Makes no difference in my eyes, Guinness and Diageo can do what they like - and so can everyone else. But you must be able to see why some people may find the idea of a drug being pushed so heavily in every day life just a little abhorrent.


There is something just a little bit stereotypical and embarrassing about the whole thing, though. Here's a video of people standing around in a circle cheering glasses being smashed in the centre, in the middle of Temple Bar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gi4ROnYoZL8

I would imagine you may see scenes like this in other countries, perhaps during riots or sports victories. The difference here, I think, is how the belligerence spills across the demographics to a point where you have seemingly normal, average people cheering the concept of a glass being smashed in the middle of one of Dublin's most popular thoroughfares.

Seen this many times scratching my head walking by wondering if it is brain-dead day. Sad bunch of people. If you asked them who Arthur is, they wouldn't have a clue.

zenno

humanji wrote: »

Why in the name of god were bars giving out glasses? Would they not have saved themselves a load of trouble by getting in a rake of plastic cups?

That is common sense thinking, but with the scenario, the pubs only think of the crowd and busyness which will hit them soon so they just try to organise everything in-doors too fast without thinking about the out-side scenario.

hatrickpatrick

Rojomcdojo wrote: »

The difference in this scenario is that alcohol is essentially a drug, and Diageo are essentially the 'pushers', using a incredibly large advertising budget to make people consume larger quantities of their drug than usual.

This is the fallacy - how is advertising being used to "make" anyone drink anything?
All of these arguments essentially imply that your average punter is a mindless zombie who unquestioningly obeys everything he or she sees on TV. I for one find that kind of argument insulting - Diageo didn't "make" me do anything I don't want to do last night. Unless they've found some way to remotely program people's brains, suggesting that advertising "makes" people do anything is to imply that people don't think with their own minds.

meemeemee

What's wrong with sheeple ?

You find them in plenty of places. In sleeping bags outside the Apple store in the queue for the iPhone 9. Watching X Factor in tears as some kid, who was bullied at school, his mam died, and he currently has cancer, wails a Boyzone B side, whilst carefully edited shots of Simon Cowell's jaw drops in slow motion. Faithfully executing the "traditions of Arthurs Day ...

bill buchanan

Systemic Risk wrote: »

Ok let me put it simply.

Many people like to go out and have fun.

Many of these people like to go out and have fun when they know there will be a lot of other people out having fun that they can interact with.

Many of these people like to go out and have fun when they know there will be a lot of other people out having fun in venues with quality, free, live entertainment.

Many of these people have a decent level of intelligence and know this is a marketing ploy by diageo and pubs to increase sales but dont care because they like to go out and have fun with loads of other people having fun in places with quality free live entertainment.

I seriously question the intelligence of many posters on here who feel the need to point out its a marketing ploy to others as if they didnt already know. The social issues with alcohol is a different debate entirely with some merits.

I don't think that's the point. it certainly isn't from where I'm standing anyway. My concern, and that of those I know, is that we've handed over a national day of celebration to a marketing company. we even call it Arther's "day". Telling people that it's a cynical marketing ploy won't surprise them, i agree. My concern is that things that we come together to celebrate as a country should be special, important things, because these days are few and far between. A company shouldn't be able to buy that for the price of a pint and a band. way more people "celebrate" Arthur's day than commemorate things like the lockout I'd imagine and other important things in our history, and that's what worries me.

Basically we're seen to celebrate diageo above all the things worth celebrating in our history, because someone puts on a band and gives us a free pint. That can't be good for us a country.

zenno

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

This is the fallacy - how is advertising being used to "make" anyone drink anything?
All of these arguments essentially imply that your average punter is a mindless zombie who unquestioningly obeys everything he or she sees on TV. I for one find that kind of argument insulting - Diageo didn't "make" me do anything I don't want to do last night. Unless they've found some way to remotely program people's brains, suggesting that advertising "makes" people do anything is to imply that people don't think with their own minds.

I saw the adverts, I sat there slumped into the sofa in a friends house baked, and my mouth was watering looking at an advert from Guinness, and man did i want one, but hey, i had no cash so i realised this and put it out of my mind, so no beer for me, FIN.

Adverts of alcohol don't work at all, especially if you cannot afford it, next advert please.

humanji

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

This is the fallacy - how is advertising being used to "make" anyone drink anything?
All of these arguments essentially imply that your average punter is a mindless zombie who unquestioningly obeys everything he or she sees on TV. I for one find that kind of argument insulting - Diageo didn't "make" me do anything I don't want to do last night. Unless they've found some way to remotely program people's brains, suggesting that advertising "makes" people do anything is to imply that people don't think with their own minds.

I think at this stage we can stop being pedantic and take it as said that Diageo aren't holding people down and pouring booze down their throats. The argument is that without the occasion, there'd be no reason to drink.

cloudatlas

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

This is the fallacy - how is advertising being used to "make" anyone drink anything?
All of these arguments essentially imply that your average punter is a mindless zombie who unquestioningly obeys everything he or she sees on TV. I for one find that kind of argument insulting - Diageo didn't "make" me do anything I don't want to do last night. Unless they've found some way to remotely program people's brains, suggesting that advertising "makes" people do anything is to imply that people don't think with their own minds.

Jameson hold a film festival every year. At no point am I near alcohol nor do I feel coerced into buying a Jameson even though I like Jameson very much, but if you're going to hold music events in pubs and not in an arena drink will be present and close by. Holding a toast at a certain time makes people feel that they have to get a Guinness for the toast as we can see by pictures and videos of the event. We are programmed to respond to social conventions like toasts. I'd like to think of the Arthur's day people as brainless monkeys rather than mindless zombies.

zenno

bill buchanan wrote: »

I don't think that's the point. it certainly isn't from where I'm standing anyway. My concern, and that of those I know, is that we've handed over a national day of celebration to a marketing company. we even call it Arther's "day". Telling people that it's a cynical marketing ploy won't surprise them, i agree. My concern is that things that we come together to celebrate as a country should be special, important things, because these days are few and far between. A company shouldn't be able to buy that for the price of a pint and a band. way more people "celebrate" Arthur's day than commemorate things like the lockout I'd imagine and other important things in our history, and that's what worries me.

Basically we're seen to celebrate diageo above all the things worth celebrating in our history, because someone puts on a band and gives us a free pint. That can't be good for us a country.

The line is drawn, and soon they will be able to patent your DNA so no biggy, but they will own you ALL.

humanji

humanji wrote: »

I think at this stage we can stop being pedantic and take it as said that Diageo aren't holding people down and pouring booze down their throats. The argument is that without the occasion, there'd be no reason to drink.

Whats wrong with having a reason to drink? Yes you can go out any night you wish and I know I certainly don't need any excuse to go drinking but having a day like this gets lots of people out at the same time, which makes for a better atmosphere and creates a bit of a buzz compared to a normal Thursday night.

People are thinking about this so much and reading into it so much their heads must be bursting. The sum total of my thinking about arthurs day was. "It's Arthurs day, there will be a bit of craic around lets go for a few pints". I don't care that its marketing, or that we are celebrating a brand, sure I love the stuff and I've no problem celebrating it

hatrickpatrick

cloudatlas wrote: »

Jameson hold a film festival every year. At no point am I near alcohol nor do I feel coerced into buying a Jameson even though I like Jameson very much, but if you're going to hold music events in pubs and not in an arena drink will be present and close by. Holding a toast at a certain time makes people feel that they have to get a Guinness for the toast as we can see by pictures and videos of the event. We are programmed to respond to social conventions like toasts. I'd like to think of the Arthur's day people as brainless monkeys rather than mindless zombies.

One of my mates toasted Arthur last night with a glass of coke because he had to drive home later that night and had come out not for the booze but because it was a fun reunion of our friends, some of whom were just home after being away for the summer.
My point is, nobody is forced to do anything on Arthur's Day, and if people don't have the self control to resist peer pressure they're probably not even old enough to be in the pub anyway!

C14N

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

This is the fallacy - how is advertising being used to "make" anyone drink anything?
All of these arguments essentially imply that your average punter is a mindless zombie who unquestioningly obeys everything he or she sees on TV. I for one find that kind of argument insulting - Diageo didn't "make" me do anything I don't want to do last night. Unless they've found some way to remotely program people's brains, suggesting that advertising "makes" people do anything is to imply that people don't think with their own minds.

You're oversimplifying. Seeing an ad doesn't trigger a switch in your brain that makes you think "I need Guinness", it works on a subconscious level. There's also the element of mob-mentality. Diego have done a decent job in the run up each year to make it look like "hey, everyone is going out for Arthur's Day" which kind of causes a coercion factor. If you're a student for example, you don't just stay in on Arthur's Day, everyone will think you're a massive dry sh!te.

Most people think they are immune to the influences of advertising and that their decisions are made completely by themselves and yet all of these major companies spend billions on it each year.

meemeemee wrote: »

What's wrong with sheeple ?

You find them in plenty of places. In sleeping bags outside the Apple store in the queue for the iPhone 9. Watching X Factor in tears as some kid, who was bullied at school, his mam died, and he currently has cancer, wails a Boyzone B side, whilst carefully edited shots of Simon Cowell's jaw drops in slow motion. Faithfully executing the "traditions of Arthurs Day ...

http://xkcd.com/610/

Amerika

With all the sales Guinness enjoys over here, they couldn't send a little of that Arthur Day love to this side of the pond?

meemeemee

It's Arthurs Day ?

And another fellow Toasted Arthur ?

Will people celebrate Arthurs Day and Toast Arthur, when Diego decide the day does not exist anymore and sponsor extreme sports as it is a opportunity for consumers in the target demographic to sample the product in a brand specific environment, with a raft of brand extensions ready for roll out ?

cloudatlas

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

One of my mates toasted Arthur last night with a glass of coke because he had to drive home later that night and had come out not for the booze but because it was a fun reunion of our friends, some of whom were just home after being away for the summer.
My point is, nobody is forced to do anything on Arthur's Day, and if people don't have the self control to resist peer pressure they're probably not even old enough to be in the pub anyway!

It's psychology and social behaviour 101, you're at a wedding someone says there's a toast what do you do? I don't equate it with peer pressure as it doesn't make me feel anxious. I secretly admire their marketing department they are quite the evil genius's. Well done to your friend but there are pictures and videos of people of all ages holding drink aloft for a toast to Arthur and if he hadn't been driving I bet he would have joined them.

humanji

Lorelai Inexpensive Catapult wrote: »

Whats wrong with having a reason to drink? Yes you can go out any night you wish and I know I certainly don't need any excuse to go drinking but having a day like this gets lots of people out at the same time, which makes for a better atmosphere and creates a bit of a buzz compared to a normal Thursday night.

People are thinking about this so much and reading into it so much their heads must be bursting. The sum total of my thinking about arthurs day was. "It's Arthurs day, there will be a bit of craic around lets go for a few pints". I don't care that its marketing, or that we are celebrating a brand, sure I love the stuff and I've no problem celebrating it

You're asking the wrong person. I don't really care. I was just pointing out that people were being pedantic instead of discussing a point.

thebaz

zenno wrote: »

Seen this many times scratching my head walking by wondering if it is brain-dead day. Sad bunch of people. If you asked them who Arthur is, they wouldn't have a clue.

the reality is do we need another day to celebrate neaderthal day in Ireland - in many cultures acts of binge drinking and drunkeness is looked at as a mental illness and something to be ashamed of , rather than something to be celebrated and be proud of.

zenno

Lorelai Inexpensive Catapult wrote: »

Whats wrong with having a reason to drink? Yes you can go out any night you wish and I know I certainly don't need any excuse to go drinking but having a day like this gets lots of people out at the same time, which makes for a better atmosphere and creates a bit of a buzz compared to a normal Thursday night.

People are thinking about this so much and reading into it so much their heads must be bursting. The sum total of my thinking about arthurs day was. "It's Arthurs day, there will be a bit of craic around lets go for a few pints". I don't care that its marketing, or that we are celebrating a brand, sure I love the stuff and I've no problem celebrating it

Well, i admire your social input regarding Arthur's day, whoever he/she is, but i'm celebrating my voyage to the moon with Clannad, so happy Clannad day. Yes this budweiser doesn't taste great, but it's better than Arthur's.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2NMKw3pal4

Dyr

I was drinking beamish the whole night, f**k arthur

humanji

Oh, here's a question I was wondering about, that maybe people who were out can answer: were there any bars that weren't serving non-diageo beers? A few years ago a couple of places had covers over the non-diageo taps and I curious to know if they did it again.