Radio advertising and the dumbing down of the airwaves

impr0v · 29-09-2004 10:56AM #1

There should be legislation introduced to ensure Irish Radio station signals cannot be picked up outside of the state borders, or in tourist rental cars, and to prevent them broadcasting on the internet. Any foreign power with territory gain aspirations picking up these signals will consider us ripe for conquering given our endemic stupidity levels, as evidenced by the low regard radio advertisers hold us in. Surely the lowest common denominator which these scum are appealing to isn't that low?

If any of you listen to Today FM on a regular basis you will more than likely have heard the current Buitoni pasta campaign (it may be on other stations, but I haven't heard it). They consist of talentless Irish voiceover actors attempting to sound Italian by putting on a cheesy super Mario voice and adding an 'a' sound to every word ending in a hard consonant. 'I think-a da beautiful ladies'. The stupidity of these ads, along with plenty of others airing at the moment, is insulting, and because of them I will never buy their products unless I develop some freak and potentially fatal heart disease and the only substance which I can take to prolong my life is Buitoni pasta, and even then I'd think twice.

The 'concept' of the ad is something along the lines of the pasta maker, an Italian straight out of the advertisers stereotype collection volume 3, rather than a Nestle minion in a white jacket and hairnet in a factory in Dublin. He's putting extra care into his pasta because of all the beautiful women who will be eating it. He also 'think-a the men, but not-a so often', presumably still when he's making the pasta, rather than jerking off.

There is also a sister ad where a female 'Italian', who sounds suspiciously like the female Irish voice off a hundred other 30 second spots telling an Italian joke to her mates, badly, spewing some more of the same stuff.

'I think-a them eating al-fresco, *cue sound of thunder*, but not-a so often when I remember the Irish weather'

I'd like to meet the idiots who came up with these two ads in particular and indict them on crimes against humanity.

monkeyfudge · 29-09-2004 11:26AM

On the radio station that I work with we only allow adverts to make clear statements about their product or service.

Eg. Murphy's Butchers - Sausages only €3.99

we don't allow 'Murphy's Sausages are really great!'

But, yes... I used to have to listen to Today fm in the office I used to work in. And the adverts are horrible. Listening them even once is nauseating, but listening to them after every 3 songs is just life threatening...

mike65 · 29-09-2004 11:34AM

Yet another media thread ends up on after hours...anyways anyone hear that new "funny" ad which plays on a sillly German accent which mutates into a silly Irish one for a meat product or some such. I really hate those "conversational" type ads featuring a couple of nattering modern wimmin extolling the virtues of chocolate or alcohol

Mike.

jor el · 29-09-2004 11:37AM

I haven't heard that pasta ad, but I only ever listen to TodayFM in the morning for a half hour so maybe it's not on then. One I have heard in the last few weeks is for some book about interior decor or something like that. Anyway, it has a female voice-over in a really bad French accent. Why a French accent I don't know, it seems to have nothing to do with the product, it's just a bloody book for your coffee table.
That and the Bank of Ireland mortgage ad with the kissing sounds, that's so annoying

SprostonGreen · 29-09-2004 11:55AM

I've heard that Buitoni ad, and it is indeed appalling.

All adverts are evil, I wish there was such an invention that could block out all ads.
How annoying is it to have some bastard try to sell you something in annoying voices/accents/scenario when all you wanna do, is drive from A to B or just chill out in your home.

Until then, I'll have to continue switching off the radio and then flicking back on when they're finished.

impr0v · 29-09-2004 11:57AM

jor el wrote:

That and the Bank of Ireland mortgage ad with the kissing sounds, that's so annoying

All trainee advertisers, for any medium, are initiated into the profession by spending their first three weeks of work locked in a soundproof booth listening to a tape repeat 'every product can be related to sex, every product can be related to sex, every product can be..'

This thread is sponsored by Don Wycherley, single-handedly stimulating consumer confidence with his honeyed and authorative tones.

super_furry · 29-09-2004 12:00PM

Go Harvey go!

I think the funniest one at the moment is the Ray Darcy O2 experience effort. Some hugely enthusiastic guy is trying to explain to Ray how great iPods are, while his reaction is the most bored sounding 'Wow' I've ever heard. You can picture him in the studio just itching to get out of there and spend his cheque on another ivory back-scratcher.

magpie · 29-09-2004 03:03PM

All radio is ****e, not just the adverts! Between the god-awful MOR muzak and the even worse djs with mid-atlantic accents it's not worth the aggravation.

If you have to drive anywhere buy one of those tape converter thingies and plug your Minidisc/ipod/Cd player in. Save yourself the annoyance of poxy Irish radio.

While we're talking about Don Wycherley. If he's from Cork why does he sound Danish?

monkeyfudge · 29-09-2004 03:10PM

magpie wrote:

All radio is ****e, not just the adverts! Between the god-awful MOR muzak and the even worse djs with mid-atlantic accents it's not worth the aggravation.

True True...

The station I'm involved with frowns on DJ voices... But I certainly don't listen to it anyway. I studied Radio Broadcasting in college for 3 years and I've seen it inside and out and I now bloody hate Radio.

Miguel_Sanchez · 29-09-2004 04:43PM

"You know those annoying coffee ads where two people yammer back and forth?

I invented those!:

Homer punches him in the face.

Enough said

Flukey · 29-09-2004 06:00PM

Impr0v, the very fact that you are talking about that ad proves it works. The quality of the ad may not be important, it is getting people to remember it. That is the initial objective. Some ads are deliberately awful because they get attention. True, you may never buy their product, but it has been put into your mind You have now heard of it, as have many others. The next time someone is out shopping and sees those products on a shelf somewhere, the name will look familiar, which gives it a slight advantage over some other brand sitting on another nearby shelf that no one has ever heard of. We are more likely to buy Tayto crisps than Joe Bloggs crisps, although, were Joe Bloggs Crisps begun to be advertised in the media, even with a woeful ad, its name would be out there in the public conscience and more people will recognise it and possibly buy it. The advertising and marketing people are out there to get product names recognised and terrible ads can do that very well, as this thread has proved.

SantaHoe · 29-09-2004 06:51PM

I only listen to Newstalk 106, and at night when they repeat the programmes... no adds, no news... just perfect.
I gave up on regular radio a long time ago... "blah blah blah, I think I'm so funny, buy our product... now listen to some Britney Spears", eerr - no thanks.
They listened to TodayFM in my old office every day... please - ****ing spare me the inane chatter, shít music and interminable adds.

Any foreign power with territory gain aspirations picking up these signals will consider us ripe for conquering given our endemic stupidity levels, as evidenced by the low regard radio advertisers hold us in.

Not to mention intelligent life from outer space... throw away your tinfoil hats, if they hear our radio, it's all over

I don't think stupid advertising is limited to Ireland though.

impr0v · 29-09-2004 07:13PM

Flukey wrote:

Impr0v, the very fact that you are talking about that ad proves it works. The quality of the ad may not be important, it is getting people to remember it. That is the initial objective. Some ads are deliberately awful because they get attention. True, you may never buy their product, but it has been put into your mind You have now heard of it, as have many others. The next time someone is out shopping and sees those products on a shelf somewhere, the name will look familiar, which gives it a slight advantage over some other brand sitting on another nearby shelf that no one has ever heard of. We are more likely to buy Tayto crisps than Joe Bloggs crisps, although, were Joe Bloggs Crisps begun to be advertised in the media, even with a woeful ad, its name would be out there in the public conscience and more people will recognise it and possibly buy it. The advertising and marketing people are out there to get product names recognised and terrible ads can do that very well, as this thread has proved.

Unfortunately, you're pretty much spot on. I am now the third part of the Buitoni ad trilogy.

Piste · 29-09-2004 07:44PM

I HATE that add for 'Blonde' in Dun Laoighre. Like, why do the two girls have such DAMN FAKE AMERICAN ACCENTS??????? Can you not be a thick bimbo from Dublin? Hello!

pork99 · 30-09-2004 12:37AM

Jeff_Lebowski wrote:

"You know those annoying coffee ads where two people yammer back and forth?

I invented those!:

Homer punches him in the face.

I think the next line is "You'd be surprised how often that happens"

Apparently only 50% of advertising works, problem is nobody knows which 50%

ferdi · 30-09-2004 01:11AM

magpie wrote:

All radio is ****e, not just the adverts!

agreed, in ireland all radio is bollox - no variety, purely money driven, very little concern for quality of service and as far as music goes, its mostly just crap filler between the ads.

we need phantom fm back and then a few more stations just like it catering for the wide variety of musical tastes which exist in this country.

billy the squid · 30-09-2004 01:33AM

Have heard the butoni advert on 95 fm here in limerick. thought it was quite funny.

Only ad at the moment that really annoys me is that one for UTV internet where the entire conversation between two people is "free free free free free free free free free free free free..."

Radio advertising and the dumbing down of the airwaves

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