My Thinque Tank

Oh.

My. Freaking.

God.

Progressive Commercials:  If I have to watch that annoying chick from the Progressive commercials one more time, I don’t think I can be held accountable for what happens! Damage to the walls, furniture, you name it. Why did they pick her? You know the one I am talking about, right? OK, maybe you don’t. Here’s a link for you: Progressive Annoying Red-Headed Chick. Scroll down through the list and just choose a couple with her in it.

Alli Commercials: Alli is a weight loss product. Supposedly, if you take it and start eating just a little bit healthier, you can lose more weight than just with dieting alone. It blocks some of the fat from your food from turning into pounds. Nice concept, right? Well, from one of their commercials, which quotes a woman saying that she was “horrified” at a picture of herself as a mere 26 pounds overweight, you would think that Alli is only for those people who are basically thin already! Hell, if we all only had 26 pounds to lose, well, there wouldn’t be any obesity in the world. Who wants to use a weight loss product that’s marketed to basically skinny chicks? I was so turned off by the commercial that I emailed the company about the offensive marketing campaign. They answered me. Here’s their reply, which is fair:

Dear xxxxxxx,

We have received your e-mail on the alli™ website and appreciate your comments on our advertising efforts.

Since consumer reaction to any facet of our business is very important to us, we appreciate hearing from you. Comments such as yours personally acquaint us with individual consumers’ perceptions of our advertising efforts. Sincere, intelligent input allows us the opportunity to more critically evaluate our advertising messages while enabling us to view these endeavors from the viewpoints of our customers.

Please be assured that it was not our intent to endorse a specific point of view to the public by way of our product advertising. As you are probably already aware, whether in magazines, on television or as part of a product’s label, advertising, along with its other intended purposes, is used to educate the public by introducing products and their benefits by getting consumer’s attention.

We regret any concerns that our advertising placement has caused you. Your message has been shared with those people involved in the creation of our advertising campaigns for consideration and possible future incorporation.

Again, we appreciate your contacting us and expressing your valid opinions.

Sincerely,

Javier
GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare

OK, great, findy-dindy. I thought that in light of this problem with the commercial, it would air less. I mean, I can’t be the only person offended, right? Wrong. I see it at least 4 or 5 times a week. Score a loss for Alli. And I’ll tell everyone I know.