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DennyCrane
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
Wendy's > KFC > McD's> Burger King > Taco Bell >>>>>>>>>>>>>DelTaco
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PamBeesley
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
I wanted Mickey D's fries so bad yesterday at the airport. It was too far away and my flight was too soon. :(

Burger King is disgusting.
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BxgrlJeri
06/22/09

@PamBeesley: Mickey D's is also disgusting.
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MisterHippity
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
I think Burger King was targeting the pot-smokers-with-the-munchies demographic.

The trouble is, half of that crowd takes off from the drive-thru window at 3 a.m. without paying for their food. So that put kind of a dent in the ad campaign's revenue impact.
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fileunder
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
If it means anything, I'd be willing to see what a "BK Crispin'!" sandwich was all about.
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BxgrlJeri
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
People stupid enough to eat the crap food at either of these places aren't going to be wow'd or not wow'd by clever commercials. They are mindless masses eating horrible food cooked badly because it doesn't cost anything.

The American consumer has forgotten how to think, has forgotten what good food tastes like and will plop into a McDonald's or other crap-food eatery because it's "convenient" and "cheap."

So who cares who's besting who in horse-meat-for-hire wars?
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Smitros
06/22/09

@BxgrlJeri:

Eric Schlosser FTW.
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1.1.1.
06/22/09

@BxgrlJeri:

It's really sad. A friend of mine is a psychologist who as part of a state program travels to counsel recovering drug addicts in their neighborhoods (I think a lot of them don't have cars.).

She usually takes them out for coffee and they always choose Starbucks as opposed to another interesting no-name local coffee bar (This is a city with lots of really good ones.).

Why? Because Starbucks signifies prestige to them, the same way, she said, as does McDonalds.

The idea of someone thinking McD's is a treat, is very depressing to me. But I guess it's cheap and easy for a lot of people. They claim that the nutritional content is improving.
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BxgrlJeri
06/22/09

@1.1.1.: I have eaten a McDonald's burger TWICE in my life. First time I was 18 and traveled to East Overshoe New England and had not really seen one before (in the Bronx we had other crap like Jack in the Box and White Castle). I ordered a Big Mac and took one bite and thought what the hell is this SLOP in my mouth? I spit it out.

About 10 years later I was driving cross country and had driven all day and into the night and was starving and could not find a place open. I went through small Where The Hell Are We No Name Midwestern State and everything was closed EXCEPT one McDonald's. I ordered a burger and fries. Took one bite out of the burger and though I was STARVING, I threw it out the window and ate the fries. No one believes me when I say I've eaten there twice. And I've never eaten at Burger King or Subway or Dominos or any other horrible place like that.

How does Starbucks signify prestige? It's overpriced crap in the way that McDonald's is underpriced crap.

Crap is crap.
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Nice Beaver
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
I have a plan to get BK moving in the right direction. Picture this: A boy wearing only torn black fishnet stockings is tied to a wooden chair under a single lightbulb in a stark white room. He is laughing then crying, laughing then crying. After 24 seconds of this, Jodeci's "Forever My Lady" starts to play. Fade to black as the words "Burger King. Is truth God or is God truth?" appear on the screen in bright yellow. Fin.
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TouchedByAnOctopus
06/22/09

@Nice Beaver: Somebody's been reading my diary. Btw, I heard once that Brad and Angelina's kid was a hermaphrodite. Any truth to that rumor?
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Nice Beaver
06/22/09

@TouchedByAnOctopus: The "girl" Shiloh? PM me.
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Gregoire
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
Maybe Burger King should debut some kind of Starbucks ripoff like McD's. Middle America wants expensive coffee. Being an edgy Crispin Porter Bogusky campaign, they can show the King pissing in a cup, sitting it on the counter, slathering it with foamy shaving cream and calling it the King's Latte.
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abettertomorrow
06/22/09

@Gregoire: HA!
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HiredGoons
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
No amount of advertising will get me to eat something which common sense and my sense of self-preservation tells me to avoid ingesting at any cost.
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BadUncle
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
If only the product were good. Burger Thing will always have its ass kicked until they learn how to make palatable food.
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Wrapitup
06/22/09

@BadUncle: True, I am still resentful at the giant disappointment that was the Angry Whopper. So much wasted potential there. And McD's fries are little golden fingers of heaven.
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Wrapitup
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
The very thought of waking up suddenly in the middle of the night to see a guy next to me, in a costume and grinning creepily, makes my bowels loose. And not in the good way. No thanks, Burger King. I'm gonna stick with the shitty fast food company that at least doesn't look like they slipped a mickey in my drink and just had their way with me. In fact that oughtta be McD's logo: McDonalds. Our food sucks but we won't molest you.
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Smitros
06/22/09

@Wrapitup:

Flame-broiled roofies?
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TouchedByAnOctopus
06/22/09

@Smitros: Mayor McCheese hand went down the front of my bathing suit while the Fry Guys held me down and watched. I wish I could tell you that I fought the good fight, and the Sisters let me be. I wish I could tell you that, but McDonalds is no fairy-tale world.
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Smitros
06/22/09

@TouchedByAnOctopus:

Won't even ask about the Hamburglar.
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BadUncle
06/22/09

@TouchedByAnOctopus:@Smitros: And let me tell you, the Grimace lives up to his name.
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Pope John Peeps II
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
So basically these are "ads" in the same way Andy Kaufmann was a "comedian".
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Zanzibar Buck-Buck McFate
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
They're chasing a limited group of people and annoying the rest.
The ads are funny, but they don't make me want to eat their food. (Minor flaw.)
Plus they did that in-the-face-of-nutritional-advice, quadruple-meat-your-lunch bit for a while too, which were neither funny or attractive.

Though I actually prefer their basic burger to McD's.
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Tart of Darkness
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
This actually made me laugh out loud. One other issue with great award winning ad campaigns is that I might enjoy the ads for a product I would never ever buy. The Burger Kind ads are kinda weird and disturbing and kinda cool, but I find Burger King's food so salty as to be inedible.

They need to fix the food first, then go on to weird, disturbing and kinda cool advertising.
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Smitros
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
The problem is that the King is a dick.

And anyone who salaams to implants deserve what he gets.
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kneetoe
06/22/09

In reply to World's Cleverest Ad Campaign Is Big Failure
Yes, but without the ads they would have slipped to 14.1% of the market.
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abettertomorrow
06/22/09

@kneetoe: are you our AE?
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