Ad watchdog rules on offending Fresh One coffee Facebook posts following campaign by Collective Shout urging people to complain
The Ad Standards Board has been split on complaints over a number of meme-style Facebook images that were used to promote coffee brand Fresh One, with activist group Collective Shout describing photos, including one that featured a “wet pussy” and a “cock”, as “sexist and porn-inspired advertising material”.
Fresh One’s “Wet pussy” and “cock” Facebook ad. Click to enlarge.
In response to the complaints, Fresh One suggested the complaints had come from The Collective Shout, an organisation which describes itself as a grassroots campaigning movement against the objectification of women in media, advertising and popular culture.
“From our investigations and further assumptions these seem mostly to be from a group known as Collective Shout and some of their derivative supporters although I can see from most of the official complaints to the ASB that anonymity has been requested,” Fresh One said.
I recall Destroy the Joint posting about this company on their page also, urging their supporters make a formal complaint to the Advertising Standards Bureau. A lot of people don’t know how or where to make a complaint, and some of these groups point people in the right direction. That seems perfectly reasonable.
What a silly campaign.
This campaign is definitely over the top for a facebook audience in addition to any other outlet where an MA15+ audience is not monitored! This is profit monging irreponsible sexism at its finest!
The pics certainly got my attention. Where do I buy this stuff?
What a lousy campaign from a company without any fresh ideas. I can just hear the discussion ‘Let’s go for cheap, smutty one liners – that’ll get some attention and the complaints will double our exposure’.
Grow up!
Wow, its good to see that advertising community has grown up and has standards.