Timothy Maloney

Lately I have seen a lot of ads that take shots at a competitor’s products. At one point in time it was just Coke vs. Pepsi, now it’s everything from autos to cell phones. Chevy takes shots at Honda in some of their commercials and Verizon wireless is showing how AT&T’s map of coverage is not as big as their own.

Chevy has ads are for the Traverse that portray their vehicle as better than the Honda Pilot. Their commercials boast better gas mileage, more room and an overall better crossover. With these ads they get the point across that their crossover is better by putting down their competitors. Chevy even has an ad that shows that Honda can beat them in one thing and that’s lawnmowers, which Chevy doesn’t make. Huh?

Verizon has a series of commercials that show that the maps for AT&T covered a lot less than their own. This has upset AT&T and there was even a lawsuit between the two that has now been dropped. AT&T has even been quoted to say that “They should have kept up with the times and been able to cover more of the area.”

I don’t know how other customers feel about these ads, but I personally do not enjoy them. I feel that companies should use advertisement to show the goods parts of their product or services. Companies would have a better perception and people would see companies and their products in a better light. I would rather watch an upbeat fun commercial like the old Coke and Pepsi ads than one from a company putting down their competition.

How do feel about companies that put other products down to make their own look more superior?

Graphic Credit:
Sabrina Segal