Video: Monster.com recently launched a very funny and entertaining TV ad campaign in tandem with the launch of their new website. The only problem, though, is despite being hilarious the ads lack relevancy and completely miss the mark.
The campaign was created by BBDO, Monster’s agency of record, and it would appear that the concept behind the TV commercials was conceived 12+ months ago and that nobody has considered the sustained relevancy of such ads in this economy.
The concept behind each commercial is simple
An inept worker is shown in some hilarious scene, and then question appears on the screen, “Are you in the right job?” Haha!
Is there anybody in the known universe who is thinking of leaving a secure job to try their hand at something completely different? To go further, who in their right mind would leave a stable position to become the “new guy” in the “right” job in this climate? If you’re unemployed then yes, switching industries may be exactly what you need in order to find good work, but the commercial doesn’t appear to be addressing those who are unemployed: it addresses those who are gainfully employed and yet might not be in the “right” job. With unemployment above 7% and with 11,000,000 workers hunting for a job, ANY job is the right job right now and I’ve counseled readers and friends that if you’re unemployed right now, be prepared to take a “step” job to a lower-paying position, so forget leaving your job to find the “right job,” that’s so Q1 2008. When the economy swings back and the layoffs slow and companies begin hiring at their prior rates then YES, follow your heart and find that “right job” you can be passionate about. But not now.
Falling standards?
Both the NY Times and Ad Week have written favorably about the campaign, but have our (and their) standards fallen so far? Is something GOOD just because its funny, regardless of the relevancy of its context? If a campaign is launched in the height of a recession, do we automatically perceive it to be timely and appropriate, regardless of what we see on screen? BBDO says their research reveled jobseekers “wanted humor even in a cheerless economy” (NYTimes), and I find no fault there; where I find fault is in the follow-through of the campaign, the point at which the idea to make a funny commercial during a recesion loses its relevancy by ignoring how the recession has changed job hunting.
Obviously I find serious fault with BBDO/Monster.com with the relevancy of this ad campaign, but the coup de grace is that this campaign isn’t original, it’s a blatant rip-off of a campaign created by SnagAJob 3 years ago.
As an aside, on Friday, January 23rd Monster.com learned their database was illegally accessed and that certain contact and account data were taken, including Monster user IDs and passwords, email addresses, names, phone numbers, and some basic demographic data. If you have a Monster account, it’d behoove you to read this statement.
UPDATE:
On 2/2/09 this video was removed from YouTube, so I can no longer embed it in this post… the only place I’ve been able to find the video is on the New York Times
Or, kick it old school and watch the Cindy Crawford Pepsi ad from the 1997 Superbowl.
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