• by November 21, 2008

I believe that J&J were wrong to pull the ad! Moms are not all alike, you know. I bet that many of them are weary of "baby wearing." The message probably has resonated with at least some mom, and the whole controversy around it probably brought Motrin to the awareness of those consumers. I don't know if Motrin did or did not do a panel research, or a closed online community research (which amounts to exactly the same). But even if they did, and found out that a small percentage of participants felt offended by the message -- the same kind of moms that eventually "revolted" against the ad in online media -- should that have caused them to cancel the creative?

Some consumers don't like you. That's always been the case. As Catharine [Taylor] rightly points out, marketers are now facing a situation where consumers can talk back. However, that should not deter them -- IF they find out that there is an interesting enough market segment that would love them for the exact same reasons!