‘Tasteless’ mattress ad is latest 9/11-themed promotion to spark backlash

‘Tasteless’ mattress ad is latest 9/11-themed promotion to spark backlash

Posted by John P. Bradford // September 11, 2016

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Ad showing men falling into two piles of mattresses prompts apology as Texas store announces indefinite closure but its not the first such controversy

Every advertiser dreams that their content might go viral just not like this. On the eve of the 15th anniversary of 9/11, a San Antonio mattress store has apologised for promoting a twin towers sale, and closed its doors in response to the backlash.

Right now, you can get any sized mattress for a twin price! says a grinning woman flanked by two employees in the 20-second spot. She flings her arms out and the men tumble backwards, knocking over two tall piles of mattresses. The woman screams Oh my God! in mock panic, then immediately recovers her composure and adds, with a half-smile: Well never forget.

The now deleted video was posted on the stores Facebook page earlier this week, the San Antonio Express-News reported. It quickly attracted local, then national outrage.

I say this unequivocally, with sincere regret: the video is tasteless and an affront to the men and women who lost their lives on 9/11, Mike Bonanno, owner of Miracle Mattress, said in a statement.

Furthermore, it disrespects the families who lost their loved ones and continue to struggle with the pain of this tragedy every day of their lives.

By Friday afternoon, the companys Facebook page had attracted more than 3,000 negative reviews, with many commenters expressing disgust. I literally hope a small plane crashes into your absolute piece of shit store and it burns to the ground just for the sake of irony, said one.

Bonanno issued another statement on Friday, saying: Effective immediately, our Miracle Mattress store will be closed indefinitely. We will be silent through the 9/11 anniversary to avoid any further distractions from a day of recognition and remembrance for the victims and their families.

Marian Salzman, New York-based chief executive of Havas PR North America, said that even well-intentioned efforts around 9/11 can come across as opportunistic intrusions into what should be a time of sober reflection.

You can have a tasteful response it still doesnt mean I feel its appropriate, she said. Its a day Id prefer not to see commingled with marshmallows or dog food or airline travel or my favourite luxury car.

Id feel a brand respects me more and understands me better if they left a few things sacrosanct Do me a favour, let a national day of mourning be a day about mourning.

Miracle Mattress is not the first company to misjudge the tone of an ad. In 2014, for example, a yoga studio in Virginia attracted negative responses with a 9+11 = 20% off Patriot Day Sale.

Even major brands have produced 9/11-related advertising, promotions and would-be tributes that have been criticised as tasteless and exploitative. Earlier this week, a Walmart store in Panama City, Florida, took down a September 11-themed soft drink display.

Boxes of Coke and Sprite were stacked to form an American flag, with two dark towers of Coke Zero in the middle. A banner depicting the Lower Manhattan skyline and bearing the line We Will Never Forget hung above the price tag, which floated between the towers and informed customers that the multipacks were now $3.33.

A Walmart spokesman told Orlando Weekly the display had been taken down.

Shawn (@online_shawn) September 6, 2016

Florida c’mon man pic.twitter.com/HU4y2rxgFG

In 2013, the communications giant AT&T responded to an immediate backlash by swiftly deleting a tweet that showed a hand holding a smartphone with the Tribute in Light memorial on its screen. Also that year, Marriott apologised and said it was reminding its hotels to be sensitive after a property in San Diego informed guests: In remembrance of those we lost on 9/11 the hotel will provide complimentary coffee and mini muffins from 8.45-9.15am.

In 2009, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and an advertising agency apologised for a newspaper advertisement that appeared in Brazil and depicted dozens of planes heading for the twin towers. The goal was to remind readers of the need to respect the power of nature by comparing the death toll on 9/11 with the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which killed about 230,000 people.

In no way was it done in bad faith or with disrespect to American suffering. WWF Brazil and DDB Brasil acknowledge that such an ad should never have been made, approved or published, the charity and the ad firm said in a statement.

It then emerged that a TV commercial on the same theme had been submitted to awards shows. As the Guardian reported: Copy attached to the submission states: We see two airplanes blowing up the WTCs [World Trade Centres] twin towers … We see hundreds of airplanes invading the screen. Before they hit the buildings … lettering reminds us that the tsunami killed 100 times more people.

There has been a 9/11-themed commercial that worked. In the US, only four months after the attacks, Budweiser aired a muted and widely admired tribute featuring Clydesdale horses passing the Statue of Liberty and kneeling as they face towards Ground Zero. It aired only once, during the 2002 Super Bowl.

The concept was reprised 10 years later, adding the line: Well never forget.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/10/september-11-mattress-ad-backlash