5 Shock-Vertisements That Torture Random and Unsuspecting People
Britain’s latest Public Service Announcement, entitled Pub Loo Shocker, subjected unsuspecting people in a bar’s bathroom to an absolutely terrifying occurrence. See for yourself:
Frightening? Yes. If that had happened to me, would I have started crying? Entirely a possibility. But effective? Questionable.
Props to the U.K. for being this creative with their PSAs, but I’m not sure any of the men pictured really understood the anti-drunk-driving message through their terror. I don’t think the viewer gets much out of it either, other than a slight scare and then a laugh at the poor guys stumbling out of the bathroom.
The British government is only the latest group to try this kind of "shock-vertising" marketing campaign that targets unsuspecting ordinary people to out-of-the-ordinary situations and then records the outcomes. While the PSA angle might not be the most effective, this campaign's use as a marketing ploy has been widespread and interesting. The moral of this article is, you're never safe.
Here are five other over-the-top shock-vertising campaigns:
1. Elevator Murder Experiment Promoting "Dead Man Down"
2. Heineken Puts Interns Through the Ringer
3. Nivea Accuses Woman of Being Terrorist to Test Deodorant
4. Playing Dead to Hand Out Brochures for Magazine
While there isn't a video for this one, Argentinian magazine Los Inrockuptibles hired several actors to play dead, attracting a crowd, and then proceed to jump up and hand out brochures.
