Advertising and the End of the World.

Gripe about advertising up and coming.
Firstly: The Lexus RX300 ad that they publish regularly in the vehicles section of the classifieds every Saturday. Now correct me if I'm wrong but Lexus is a classy brand right? Every Saturday however, there's a tagline that appears in the ad, "The Original RX300. After all, there is no such thing as a "2.4-Litre RX300/330". When it first came out I thought it was amusing at best...I mean it's a dig at all the Singaporeans who basically buy a Toyota Harrier and stick on the Lexus badge with the RX300 lettering. Then I realised that this was their marketing campaign. OK...There's not much good that I can attribute to a brand name that's SO insecure that they think that they need to restate the fact that their branded car is better than a cheap knockoff. I think that the RX300 is a nice vehicle. I think that the fact that it is a Lexus means that it's quite a prestigious vehicle (although I just see it as an overpriced Toyota...). I think that the car ought to be able to speak for itself. I don't think an ad campaign telling people that, aside from the 2.4 Litre engine, there's no perceivable difference between their $300,000 SUV and a $150,000 Toyota works to their advantage and the consistent stupidity that we can see Saturday after Saturday is testament to a level of incompetence on the part of their advertisers.
Speaking of incompetence...
I was watching The West Wing and there are ads in there that really don't belong. And I mean REALLY.
Now, anyone who's got about a half a brain will be able to tell you that ads have to get to the people who will buy your product especially in a day and age where advertisements are falling into the realm of the ignored. People have stopped watching ads. Now, you can sell beer during Baywatch. Why? Demographics. People who watch Baywatch drink beer. In fact, they probably drink beer while they're watching Baywatch. You can sell cars on F1 hour and you can sell basketball shoes during an NBA match.
What you cannot sell is breasts during The West Wing. You also probably won't sell much hair tonic and sleazy chatlines. You will definitely NOT be able to convince fans of the show (You'd have to be a fan to record or watch the show...it's shown at the 12:30am...) that they should visit a trichologist in the unfortunately-named hair treatment facility called GLOWER. (Which means: To look or stare angrily or sullenly.) Do these advertisers even know who watches The West Wing? Do your research, people.
To the television station marketing department: It would be good if you actually watched shows so that you have some idea of who your target audience is. To the advertisers, thanks for helping to keep TWW on the air...but you really need to rethink your strategy.
These are but some of the gems that shine forth. I think I should try to find some more. :)
Later...