The Motrin Ad

Okay, there is a storm in a teacup over this American ad. I simply put it down to flakey execution.

Motrin - a company owned by Johnson & Johnson that produces pain relief pills, has just pulled this ad after too many Mothers and Fathers complained about it.

Take a look.



Did you spot the offense? If not, I really suggest you watch it again.

So after a second time, can you see where the problem lies?
You can "see what they're doing" right? You can understand who they are targeting right?
So what's missing?

Better execution.

Their agency broke the golden rule: Keep it simple. They clogged us with all this rhetoric and fluff about nothing. Look at your target audience for this campaign: "Mothers". They need coherent information quickly to make decisive choices. Tell 'em it will reduce your pain, and they will buy it in droves. DO NOT talk about their image - they're already super conscious and senstitive about being a new mother. And do not blab on about nothing. If there's anything I've learnt from writing scripts for female audiences - get to the point, and fast.

The Vice President of Marketing posted this on their website shortly after the complaints came in:

With regard to the recent Motrin advertisement, we have heard you.

On behalf of McNeil Consumer Healthcare and all of us who work on the Motrin Brand, please accept our sincere apology.

We have heard your complaints about the ad that was featured on our website. We are parents ourselves and take feedback from moms very seriously.

We are in the process of removing this ad from all media. It will, unfortunately, take a bit of time to remove it from our magazine advertising, as it is on newsstands and in distribution.

Thank you for your feedback. Its very important to us.

Sincerely,
Kathy Widmer
Vice President of Marketing
McNeil Consumer Healthcare

And before you send me your thoughts - watch the following video to get some perspective.



If you are still truly offended - send your feedback HERE. If you have any other thoughts on this campaign, I'd love to hear about it.