| NEW PLYMOUTH: A television advertisement helped a New Plymouth man remember the name of "that evil bastard tyre company" on Tuesday evening.
New Plymouth Plumber Steve McGivney was at the Local RSA with friends and work related acquaintances when he bought up the tyre company that was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people in North America last year. McGivney (34) momentarily forgot the name or the corporation and was about to bring up the resurgence of the Auckland Warriors when a Bridgestone advertisement came on television. "It just goes to show you," said McGivney, "advertising does work." University of Otago Advertising lecturer Prof. Michael Hays was in agreement with McGivney. "This example, not only shows that advertising works, it also reinforces the need for corporations to continually advertise." "Although Mr McGivney had low Recall for the Bridgestone/Firestone brand, there was nothing wrong with his recognition of the brand name. Once prompted with the brand name he could informally share his knowledge and experience of the brand with fellow members his peer group." "This (lack of recall) is a constant problem for advertisers, they need to make sure that their brand name is "top of mind", or at least in the consumer's 'Evoked Set' for their product category." Having knowledge of the brand name allowed Mr Kirk to educate his fellow patrons about Bridgestone's murderous corporate policy, in turn spreading free "word of mouth" advertising about the Bridgestone brand. "Boy those Bridgestone people were some mean evil bastards. I wouldn't be trusting my family's safety to them this Christmas, no matter what that smug Vince Martin guy says," McGivney concluded before going to "bleed the lizard" in the male restrooms. |
| Advert helps man remember name of Evil Bastard Tyre Company |
Tuesday, 01 May 2001 12:00
