Ad Creep Update: Zurich Insurance Fake Car Damage
Ad Creep Update is a regular feature on ANIMAL documenting the spreading epidemic of advertising media placement into every nook and cranny of your daily life. Zurich Financial Services, a worldwide insurance conglomerate, thought you wouldn’t mind too awful much if they placed some shattered glass, graffiti, and gouge stickers on your parked car to advertise their HelpPoint auto care service centers. Wait! Don’t key the jerk’s car next to you, it’s just a sticker! After you peel off the sticker—if you haven’t dropped dead from a stroke (Zurich also sell life insurance)—this is what it says (translated) on the back: “For car repairs that are always this simple and fast, contact Zurich HelpPoint.” These little pieces of clever, absolutely fucking obnoxious guerrilla marketing were created by Publicis in Zurich, so I’m assuming the stunt was only done in Switzerland. Do we have a new leader in Most Intrusive Ad Placement? Or is it still your crotch?
Editor-in-Chief:
Hey! I just got punk’d! This makes me want to spend money with these guys, not chase them down and punch them in the teeth!
Yeah. Great idea.
It is my understanding that they used these stickers on people who agreed to it in the first place, i.e. company cars, employee’s cars etc. Hence no one would have to feel overly-punked about it. I think it is fantastic.