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Just six days before the 49th SuperBowl, GoDaddy revealed its heavily teased “puppy ad” in an exclusive on the NBC Today Show. (An “ad” on a “news” show means free advertising. Well played, GoDaddy.)
The response was immediate and negative.
Shame on @GoDaddy for their absolutely reckless and heartless Super Bowl Commercial. #nodaddy
— Aracely Vega Worley (@daytrippingmom) January 27, 2015
Transferred my domains away from @GoDaddy because #noDaddy that commercial shows a complete lack of compassion & common sense #adoptdontshop
— Teresa Rhyne (@TeresaRhyne) January 27, 2015
Initial protests focused on the need to adopt pets from shelters and the horrors of puppy mills. Reputable breeders do not sell online.
@Blakei No reputable breeder sells online. Period. They have websites, but do not sell puppies to strangers on websites or in FaceBook.
— Malley B Heinlein (@malloise) January 27, 2015
Thank you @animalrescuers for the candid feedback. What should have been a fun and funny ad clearly missed the mark and we will not air it. — Blake Irving (@Blakei) January 27, 2015
Although CEO Blake Irving announced on Twitter that the company would pull the ad, the website’s news release section hasn’t caught on. It’s on the blog; good luck finding it from the home page.
But at least one analyst smells a rat.
So maybe GoDaddy felt an ad about an ill-treated puppy simply wouldn’t cut the mustard. Or maybe – just maybe – it’s maximizing a media that has fully embraced positing and airing Super Bowl ad teasers as newsworthy, rather than what the acts really are – pretenses for free publicity. If this is indeed a childish ploy, it shouldn’t necessarily be rewarded with attention or applause.
My initial horror was different.
It centered on the content of the ad.
- Putting dogs in the back of a truck so that they will slide around is not humane or safe. And in my state (and a handful of others), it’s illegal. As it is in California, where the commercial was shot.
- If a puppy were to be tossed out the back of a truck like Buddy was in the commercial, the puppy would likely be hurt.
- The woman representing GoDaddy’s small business customer sold Buddy when she didn’t know where he was! (“I’m so glad you made it home. Because I just sold you on this website I built with GoDaddy.”) Can we say “unethical” and “breeder without a conscience”?
Moreover, according to GoDaddy statements, the company reached out through digital social networks to find a name for the puppy.
But Buddy is the name of the puppy in the 2014 Budweiser SuperBowl commercial. That ad also featured rural life, a puppy returning “home” and a good ole farming stereotype, the red barn. Plus, Budweiser is featuring a puppy again in 2015.
There are no coincidences.
Still looking for your dog, @Budweiser? @GoDaddyBuddy can help by building you a website. #bestbuds — GoDaddy (@GoDaddy) January 23, 2015
Nothing new, move along.
I was stunned at how media framed this company’s history of demeaning advertisements. I shouldn’t be — it means that their PR folks did a damn good job of getting “reporters” to regurgitate corporate talking points.
Go Daddy pokes fun at cheesy-but-adorable commercials featuring puppies – you know, like those Budweiser ads. ~
Pokes fun? Dear Ms. Grossman: satire and parody are hard. This ain’t it.
Previously known for its risqué spots involving women in various stages of comic undress, the domain name registration company has had a change of approach lately. ~ Ben Popken, Today.com
Comic undress? What’s funny about scantily clad women prancing about in a 30-second commercial?
GoDaddy has developed a reputation for Super Bowl commercials that toe the line for what is and what isn’t politically correct. ~ Adam Stites, SBNation.com
Politically correct? The ads have historically been demeaning to women. That’s not politically correct. It’s sexist.
GoDaddy has a history of tasteless SuperBowl commercials. The company’s first SuperBowl commercial ran in 2005 and “spoofed” the Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” of the prior year’s game. See a sampling from the intervening eight years.
Some people – and organizations – show maturity after a 10-year period.
And some don’t.
My PSA
GoDaddy’s Super Bowl ad is getting people talking…but it’s also getting canceled accounts. Including mine. #nodaddy pic.twitter.com/0jUw9GivG3
— jennifer b. jacobs (@JenniferBJacobs) January 27, 2015
Known for gnawing at complex questions like a terrier with a bone. Digital evangelist, writer, teacher. Transplanted Southerner; teach newbies to ride motorcycles. @kegill (Twitter and Mastodon.social); wiredpen.com