First, watch this video. It’s funny, basically showing the discomfort women suffer from their bra tags.
The site (linked in the above headline) purports to be an amateurly designed petition from a few concerned women calling on bra makers to design bras without itchy tags at the back, as Hanes has done with men’s undershirts. The site also links to a few blogs on the topic.
I am sure (just based on what I see) that this is really a stealthy preview campaign for some bra maker that already has such a product they are about to unleash on the world, and this is a viral advance teaser. If I’m wrong about that, it’s certainly an market and marketing opportunity some such company should capitalize on. But, I’m not wrong; trust me. This is too slick and well-orchestrated to be genuinely a populist thing. This has slick cyber agency written all over it. Stay tuned…
UPDATE:
Oh yeah, it’s definitely a campaign. Here’s an ad for the “grassroots” site on hip fashion site DailyCandy.com. Expect TV ads to follow soon.
ANOTHER UPDATE:
In case you’re too lazy to click on the comments on this post, reader John Fratus observes, “The domain registration on betagfree.com is to Sara Lee (i.e. Hanes, Bali, Playtex, Wonderbra, etc.).” Now, why didn’t I think of that?
The domain registration on betagfree.com is to Sara Lee (i.e. Hanes, Bali, Playtex, Wonderbra, etc.).
Comment by John Fratus — July 17, 2004 @ 8:22 am
Nice observation. Can’t believe I didn’t think of that.
Comment by Rick Bruner — July 17, 2004 @ 8:48 am
If you didn’t like the Raging Cow, you’re going to hate this Bra Tags Thing
No, Rick Bruner is not in his cups, he’s id’d a viral wedge marketing campaign that will likely make some in the blogosphere as uncomfortable as the subject bra tags. While you’re there, we suggest you also read Bruner’s interview…
Trackback by EDDix News & Views — July 17, 2004 @ 11:36 pm
Deceptive Advertising, such as this is a stupid childish move, if it is on the part of SaraLee…..but then, we americans like to be lied to – by our government, our elected officals and our marketing folks…. still.. its silly..and will be an embarrssement to sara lee when it surfaces…..
Comment by David R. Hibbeln — July 18, 2004 @ 3:56 am
Hmmm, food for thought. Do people (men?) have as much trouble undoing Sara Lee packages as they do with bras?
Will the Entemann’s people come up with the new velcro bra fastener?
Comment by Dean Landsman — July 18, 2004 @ 5:38 pm
I think introducing a few more practical bra designs would be a heckuva lot more popular than “no tags”. Any tag problem can be solved by your average pair of scissors…not does one have to pay extra for it.
Tags don’t bother me. And frankly, it’s nice to be able to consult the tag for its bra size, come next time I’m out shopping.
But then, that’s American marketing to women: pretend there’s a problem where there’s not, charge thrice as much to “solve” it, and make the real problems worse.
Comment by Maureen — July 19, 2004 @ 8:44 am
birth of a stealth campaign
http://www.businessblogconsulting.com/2004/07/be_tagfree.html…
Trackback by anil dash's daily links — July 19, 2004 @ 10:06 am
Bra tags
Bra tags: Rick Bruner was sent a Windows Media file of someone removing her bra during a videoconference, and it ping’d his BS meter. Sure enough, readers traced it back to a bra manufacturer who was trying to start a…
Trackback by JD on MX — July 19, 2004 @ 1:05 pm
“The domain registration on betagfree.com is to Sara Lee ”
Cheesecake! but of course.
Comment by Alice Marshall — July 19, 2004 @ 1:47 pm
email viral stealth campaign
http://www.businessblogconsulting.com/2004/07/be_tagfree.html First, watch this video. It’s funny, basically showing the discomfort women suffer from their bra tags. the film pings this site. The site purports to be an amateurly designed petition from …
Trackback by rtwodtwo — July 20, 2004 @ 3:49 am
I dunno, I mean, it’s cute. Sure it’s not gut-wrenchingly funny/compelling, nor does it serve to repair an across-the-board complaint from women about their bras (scissors being pretty effective, as mentioned). It’s the sort of thing my mother-in-law would send me. Isn’t declaring it an embarrasment a bit severe?
Comment by Laura Sanders — July 26, 2004 @ 4:42 am
Deceptive advertising; Marketing ploy; Real … Does it matter? The video is cute, bra tags are a pain for some (me), and I don’t care if it is Sara Lee. I’m glad they have a sense of humor.
Comment by Kellie — July 27, 2004 @ 10:08 am
Oh that is hilarious!!! Even more so that Sara Lee is running it. Wouldn’t that be false advertising? Crazy.
Just found your blog… through Google searching on “read more html blog tag”. LOL I was trying to look for an html tag that would enable me to put a link in my blog posts that would allow readers to see just the short version and then click on the link if they wanted to see the rest of it. You guys sound knowledgeable maybe someone here can help me out? I’m on blogger.com but the tags they give to do it puts it on EVERY post which I don’t want. And even when I did that it still showed the long versions of all my posts.
ANY way interesting blog, even as new to blogs and my own blog as I am I can certainly see how one might use it for a marketing tool. I’m on my way to checking out the rest of your site here in a moment…
Comment by Pink Sun Drops — August 15, 2004 @ 11:17 pm