I am not sure if you saw this article across the wire, but it grabbed national headlines. Hacienda is a small chain of Mexican restaurants based out of South Bend, IN. We reviewed their Famous Wet Burrito.
What surprised me the most about this article is not the advertisement itself, but instead it was the massive response to this add. I think that people believe they have the freedom or right not to be offended. Howard Stern said it best when he said “If you don’t like what I am saying, simply turn the channel.”
Now, was the billboard in poor taste? Probably. I think that trivializing the death of 912 people including 276 children is a horrible thing to do, but did they really do that here? I think the “to die for” part took this over the top. However, Hacienda surely didn’t come up with the term “Drinking the Kool Aid.” Think about this, how many sayings can you list that trivialize pretty hateful thoughts that are used in casual ways? I can think of a lot of them.
I can understand how people have difficulties correlating this add to selling more burritos and margaritas. Even Hacienda admitted that “we lost the core message.” But, not so fast. A few months ago, I saw an Abercrombie & Fitch billboard that showed a guy’s pecs and face with not a stitch of clothes in the pic. They sell clothes right? At least the Hardee’s add with Paris Hilton washing a car had the actual burger in the commercial. You really don’t have to advertise to your core product anymore.
Hacienda has always provided attention grabbing billboards and I think that overall, their marketing is pretty solid. The problem is that shocking people for entertainment is a slippery slope. Once the dust settles, they will forget about you and you have to shock people more this next time to grab their attention. Look at Lady Ga Ga, one year is a meat dress and the next is arriving in an egg. If she doesn’t do something bat-shit crazy (otherwise than ripping of Madonna) at the next Grammy’s, quite frankly.. I will be bored.
Point is, was this Haceinda marketing piece intentionally there to create a stir? A normal add wouldn’t have grabbed any attention. Offending the masses is one easy way to gain notoriety. Even though there was some backlash here, I can guarantee this is their most successful add as far as page hits and press coverage. When a friend of Truman Capote said “They are talking about you…” Capote’s response: “I would be worried if they weren’t.”
Back to my original point, no one has the right NOT to be offended, in fact, we should accept that being offended is going to happen sooner than later. We surely can’t control every aspect in the world around us, in fact…most of the time the only thing we can is our reactions. If you don’t like what Hacienda said, you can picket outside their restaurants, boycott their product, or tell them that you don’t appreciate it. Or, you can look to the Buddhist meditation technique of Mindfulness and not judge any of this at all. I know that sounds like some hippy bs, but I can guarantee that you will be less stressed.
The beautiful thing is that we live in the USA and we have freedom of speech and not freedom FROM speech. In light of government uprisings in the Middle East, this billboard was a kind reminder that freedom and democracy are alive and well and everyone has the ability to say stupid shit from time to time.
-wibia
Tags: billboard, hacienda mexican restaurant, howard stern, rant
Dig it! This was a great rant. I think the billboard is funny, but I know a lot of people don’t have a sick sense of humor like me. Regarding their allegedly poor taste: Bad press is better than no press, right? This is the first time I’ve ever heard of the place. And I’m not ashamed to say that I’d eat at Hacienda now, if there was one nearby!
This is America, if you don’t like the way a company is doing something then vote against them by not spending your money there. It’s really just that simple. If you don’t like something so much that you feel EVERYONE else should not see what YOU don’t like then the problem is YOU and not what you don’t like.
If your a sick puppy that likes dark humor (like myself) then you you giggle at the billboard and then at the people that are offended by it.
Actually maybe we should start a protest against people that are offended by everything. It turns out that those people really offend me!
I agree. Given how common the “kool aid drinker” expression has become I couldn’t see why this was a big deal. I hate political correctness.
Freedom means the freedom to make bad and stupid decisions…like this one…
BTW it wasn’t kool-aid that they used, it was Flav-r aid… so not only a poor marketing decision but an incorrect one also…
Not to offend those that have said they are not offended but I wonder if the creators if the billboard and those who have posted here are old enough to actually remember the event? Or maybe this is just a horrible story people have been told like Pearl Harbor. I personally will never forget the pictures of those 900 dead bloated bodies and the news that a U.S. Congressman had been brutially murdered. Think about the recent coverage of the shooting that invoved U.S. Rep. Giffords. Is it only time that would a humorous ad about her death a bad idea? Or is it just never a good idea to joke about the violent death of anyone?
I will agree with the above posters who say that it is their choice to bad marketing decisions. And there are those who don’t find anything funny that is not also shocking. But I’m asking, where do you draw the line? Anything less than 20 years old is too recent to joke about? Certain cultural events like September 11, 2001 or Pearl Harbor? Jokes about concentration camps? Or anything goes and too bad for those who don’t like it?
I don’t believe this is political correctness. For me this is about the memories of seeing that story on the news and feelings they inspired in me personally. But then again I have never used the phrase drink the Kool-Aid either.
All that said since thier food is mediocre at best, I wasn’t planning to visit them anyway.
amen brother!
When I see major marketing fails like this I can’t help but wonder: didn’t they run this by any focus groups or test markets to see how the message would play to a sample of the general population?
A billboard is a simple ad, but it involves a big investment – conceptualization, art and design, geographic research … you’d think they could spare a few $20 bills to get an idea of how the general public might react.
Me personally, I’m not particularly offended by it, but I will point out that a reference to the Guyana tragedy doesn’t make me crave sub par Mexican food, contrived atmosphere or overpriced margaritas.
It’s freedom of speech. If someone wants to make a joke about concentration camps or Hitler, they can do so if they want. Ricky Gervais does so, and it’s hilarious. Plus the whole ‘Tragedy + Time = Comedy’, you may not like it, but that’s pretty much how it goes. And they should continue joking about everything, because if you take anything too seriously, then you’re just going to be sad and miserable. Comedy is all-encompassing – to say any one thing is not free to make fun of, is a ridiculous idea.
Oh and the billboard is fine, people need to lighten up.
Mr. Harwood, you are right. I was confusing comedy with good taste. Just because I think you can have both doesn’t mean that others don’t specifically look to offend as many as possible with thier humor. But even if it is funny as comedy is it appropriate as advertising?
I am sorry, but I cannot take anyone seriously who agrees in any way with the Paris Hilton Hardee’s ad. I think if you want to see practically naked women act provocatively, then you should go to a strip club. As for this ad, I am offended in a way. When Ice Cube says, “Drink the kool aid”, he does so as a rapper while accepting mainstream villainization and maintaining an image of anger and edginess. I don’t think this restaurant chain can pull this off nor would anything I am about to consume associated with poison.
could not have said it better myself. thanks, some persons will always be offended and cry crocodile tears, no matter what. a local resturant had a steve irwin special. it was heart pierced by a tail. too soon? everybody need to climb off their high horse a bit. the worst it could do is cause traffic accidents. if your family or kids are so easily swayed, you got more more problems than a billboard.
Wow, Shannon – time to relax a little. Take some slow deep breaths; maybe go for a walk to blow off some steam. Your little Paris/strip club rant was just a little over the top. It’s obvious that the Hardees commercial was only mentioned to discuss the changes in advertising today. I didn’t see anyone endorse it.
Pat, I must disagree with you. I feel that you are disrespectful and the author of the post did endorse the Paris ad in the fact that it contained the item being advertised while the other ad did not. Pat, you need to read a book.
Actually, people who saw the billboard exercised their right to free speech by expressing their disgust. And the restaurant chain chose to heed them. It wasn’t a case of government censoring either side. The fact that we’re discussing this is a case in point. I am offended by the billboard, and if I and people like me don’t say so, how will the offender know? Someone telling me to lighten doesn’t alter the fact that I am offended. So, go ahead and tell me to lighten up, but I’ll speak up when I feel a need to do so. And may you and I continue to share our opinions.
let’s talk about the food…
it sucks.
Ha ha, nice.