New Ad Campaign Wants You to Chew Gum, Not Surf the Internet
New Ad Campaign Wants You to Chew Gum, Not Surf the Internet
Posted 09/25/2008 at 8:12am
| by Paul Lilly
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As part of a new ad campaign called "Make face time," Dentyne, the No. 2 gum maker in the U.S. (Wrigley is No. 1, in case you were wondering), is making a plea for you young hipsters to "power down, log off, unplug" and chew some gum instead. The ads, which have already appeared in several major cities for the past month, are gearing up to go nationwide, kicked off with a web campaign this week followed by TV ads next week.
According to market research company Mintel, Dentyne Ice sales have fallen 9 percent from 2005 to 2007, with Dentyne Fire tumbling 26 percent in the same time period. The new campaign will seek to reintroduce the Dentyne Ice line and reverse the sliding sales figures by targeting young people who would rather play with their internets than each other.
"Everyone loves technology and everyone uses it," said Josette Barenholtz, the marketing director for Dentyne. "What's meaningful is being reminded that being face to face can't be substituted."
Launching a web campaign would seem to contradict the very message Dentyne is trying to send (you know, the one that says get offline and, um, chew some gum), and so the company has created a 3-minute website (Protip: Be sure and check out how Dentyne feels about smileys). A timer sits in the upper right corner letting you know how much time you have until the site shuts down, because "when people are surfing the web, they're missing the best part of life - being together."
Can't wait to see your comments on this one.
Image Credit: The New York Times
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johnny3144
September 25, 2008 at 12:44pm
i think they are using the wrong approch...
all they really have to do is to develope a mic that can pick up the smell of your breath, and send it to the other side by chemically reproducing it through a special speake or something.
sirphunkee
September 25, 2008 at 1:36pm
Hey Johnny, the recruiter from Willy Wonka Studios called, they're done checking your references and want to know if you can start showing up to your new job at 8:00 tomorrow morning.
Damage
September 25, 2008 at 10:50am
"Launching a web campaign would seem to contradict the very message Dentyne is trying to send"... Not contradicing at all! They are targeting the very people they are trying to reach!
And, by the way, I agree with them.
Talcum X
September 25, 2008 at 10:15am
Get TMJ from us.
***********
Every morning is the dawn of a new error.
"In Ireland, there are more drunks per capita than people." - Peter Griffin
dmateja06
September 25, 2008 at 10:11am
this seems very similar to the VERB ad campaign...
instead of sitting in front of the comp and/or tv go chew some gum and maybe you'll hopefully go do something with urself instead of sit on the comp and/or tv all day.
nedwards
September 25, 2008 at 8:44am
There's really nothing to stop us from, say, chewing gum while surfing the internet.
sirphunkee
September 25, 2008 at 9:03am
well I fear that's the real reason behind this ad campaign...they doubt our ability as a society to be able to handle both at once.
beemans gum
April 29, 2010 at 10:29pm
Where can I get a
clip of the Chewing Gum advert Sting ?
<a href="http://www.beemansgum.org">beemans gum</a>
Pr0LifIC_onE
September 25, 2008 at 8:37am
Chewing gum makes my jaw ache and gives me a headache... It takes hours of surfing before I get a headache, so I guess I'll just keep surfing. I don't have any gum anyway.PrOLifIC_onE
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