I was out to dinner last night with my friends Tony and Michael, when all the sudden the Shake Weight commercial appeared on the tv above the bar. Michael and I about wet ourselves from laughing so hard, in our utter disbelief that something so obviously pornographic was appearing on basic cable. Tony's back was to the TV, so he missed it the first time. Fortunately, the commercial appeared in every commercial break of Coal Miner's Daughter and within minutes, Tony was in on the vulgarity as we all laughed until we cried like 13-year old girls.
For your viewing pleasure, here's the commercial we saw.
It turns out that there's a Shake Weight for women too.
Thank goodness Saturday Night Live has also contributed to the hilarity of the Shake Weight.
I don't know if it actually builds arm muscles, but my abs and kegels got a great workout from all of the hysterical laughter.
And, if you receive Little Merry Sunshine via email, trust me you want to visit the site and watch the videos. It may well be the highlight of your day.
Showing posts with label stupid advertisements. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stupid advertisements. Show all posts
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Monday, August 2, 2010
What This Woman Really Wants Is Not A Vacuum Cleaner
Dear Oreck,
Thank you so much for including me in your current direct mail marketing campaign for your "What A Woman Really Wants Sale." (emphasis yours) You know, most campaigns are boring, use big words and don't really speak to me in a language that my female brain can understand. But you spoke my language: purses, flowers, candles, stilettos, BFFs, beauty sleep, and diamond rings. Best of all, you tell me how I can be "Queen of [My] Castle" as I spend my days cheerfully vacuuming. And you did it using the Universal Female Colors pink and green. I can't begin to thank you enough for your thoughtfulness and ability to speak to the woman of the late-1950s and early-1960s.
Oh, wait. This is 2010. Ya, so that means, I'm pretty offended.
Seriously, what are you thinking? Are you using Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce to create your ad campaigns? I guess on the upside, you didn't suggest I go ask my husband if I can get a new vacuum or ask him to buy me one because I haven't burned dinner this week. Do you really think that I can only be inspired to make a purchase when your ad dangles graphics of purses, stilettos, flowers, and diamond rings in it? Do you think I'm that simple and shallow?
Let me tell you that I'm not so simple, shallow, and easily persuaded. In fact, your marketing campaign, while it succeeded in getting me to talk about it (congratulations on that), has completely turned me off to your company. It turned me off because now when I think "Oreck," I'll think "The Company That Talks to Women Like We're Idiots." And that's kinda bad.
Shall we take a look at your flier and point out all the ways in which it's sexist?
Notice how the cover doesn't even have a vacuum on it. It's got a purse with a flower and offers me some free votive candles if I try the Oreck Edge. Evidently, it doesn't matter what the Oreck Edge is because what's important to me, as a woman, obviously, is free votive candles. Do you see the little white graphics of rings, purses, birds, gloves, buttons, hats, safety pins, perfume bottles, and tiaras?
On the inside of the front cover, I learn what the Oreck Edge is and how it will make me Queen of My Castle, complete with a tiara graphic! Note to Oreck: I HAVE a tiara. Two, in fact, but I don't wear them while I clean and vacuuming doesn't make me feel like a queen. What would make me feel like a queen, actually, would be having someone else clean my house. Like maybe my husband. (Ya, that statement just made a whole lotta single men line up to marry me!).
Notice the cute play on words with the graphic of the stiletto . . . Get it? HIGH hopes and the HIGH heel stiletto? Clever.
I am so grateful to Oreck for reminding me (and all women) that when we accepted (or accept in the future) that diamond ring and said our "I Do's," what we are really agreeing to is a life of vacuuming and servitude to our husbands. I also LOVE the reference to the "magic wand" in the ad. If I had a magic wand, I would wave it and I'd never have to clean again.
Finally, I love how using Oreck products is going to allow me to get more "beauty sleep" and my vacuum will be my BFF.
While the name of my blog is Little Merry Sunshine, I'm anything but stupid, simple, or shallow. In the future, I'd appreciate being spoken to and advertised to in a way that respects my intelligence. Until then, I'll stick with Hoover.
Little Merry Sunshine
Thank you so much for including me in your current direct mail marketing campaign for your "What A Woman Really Wants Sale." (emphasis yours) You know, most campaigns are boring, use big words and don't really speak to me in a language that my female brain can understand. But you spoke my language: purses, flowers, candles, stilettos, BFFs, beauty sleep, and diamond rings. Best of all, you tell me how I can be "Queen of [My] Castle" as I spend my days cheerfully vacuuming. And you did it using the Universal Female Colors pink and green. I can't begin to thank you enough for your thoughtfulness and ability to speak to the woman of the late-1950s and early-1960s.
Oh, wait. This is 2010. Ya, so that means, I'm pretty offended.
Seriously, what are you thinking? Are you using Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce to create your ad campaigns? I guess on the upside, you didn't suggest I go ask my husband if I can get a new vacuum or ask him to buy me one because I haven't burned dinner this week. Do you really think that I can only be inspired to make a purchase when your ad dangles graphics of purses, stilettos, flowers, and diamond rings in it? Do you think I'm that simple and shallow?
Let me tell you that I'm not so simple, shallow, and easily persuaded. In fact, your marketing campaign, while it succeeded in getting me to talk about it (congratulations on that), has completely turned me off to your company. It turned me off because now when I think "Oreck," I'll think "The Company That Talks to Women Like We're Idiots." And that's kinda bad.
Shall we take a look at your flier and point out all the ways in which it's sexist?
Notice how the cover doesn't even have a vacuum on it. It's got a purse with a flower and offers me some free votive candles if I try the Oreck Edge. Evidently, it doesn't matter what the Oreck Edge is because what's important to me, as a woman, obviously, is free votive candles. Do you see the little white graphics of rings, purses, birds, gloves, buttons, hats, safety pins, perfume bottles, and tiaras?
On the inside of the front cover, I learn what the Oreck Edge is and how it will make me Queen of My Castle, complete with a tiara graphic! Note to Oreck: I HAVE a tiara. Two, in fact, but I don't wear them while I clean and vacuuming doesn't make me feel like a queen. What would make me feel like a queen, actually, would be having someone else clean my house. Like maybe my husband. (Ya, that statement just made a whole lotta single men line up to marry me!).
Notice the cute play on words with the graphic of the stiletto . . . Get it? HIGH hopes and the HIGH heel stiletto? Clever.
I am so grateful to Oreck for reminding me (and all women) that when we accepted (or accept in the future) that diamond ring and said our "I Do's," what we are really agreeing to is a life of vacuuming and servitude to our husbands. I also LOVE the reference to the "magic wand" in the ad. If I had a magic wand, I would wave it and I'd never have to clean again.
Finally, I love how using Oreck products is going to allow me to get more "beauty sleep" and my vacuum will be my BFF.
While the name of my blog is Little Merry Sunshine, I'm anything but stupid, simple, or shallow. In the future, I'd appreciate being spoken to and advertised to in a way that respects my intelligence. Until then, I'll stick with Hoover.
Little Merry Sunshine
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