Outrageous ad alludes to running your dog to death...dog lovers hit the roof

This is when “edgy” = falling off a cliff headfirst.

We know that advertising, especially print ads, needs to have eye-catching power to raise itself above the parapet. We have seen all sorts of shenanigans to grab attention.

This ad, from shoe outfit Pearl Izumi, is no different in its aims.

Problem is that they went too far, driving the dog lovers who saw it into a frenzied state of disbelief and disgust.

The text reads:

Project E:MOTION isn"t for the faint of heart. That"s because our new midsole design forces your stride into fluid submission. This undeniable submission translates into less work for your legs, so you get into your zone faster and feel like you could stay there forever. Sure, not everyone will appreciate your increased efficiency, but, ironically, not everyone was born to run like an animal.

So basically, the image and text suggest that you will not only outrun your dog, but that your dog risks running itself to death. I am sure they thought about the repercussions, and decided it was a good bet.

Obviously, they got it wrong. Some reports even suggested that they published how-to-save-your-dog-when-he’s-run-way-too-hard video to accompany this ad.

And that is the risk of being edgy in marketing, social and ad campaigns: you can easily overstep the mark. And you can’t use consensus to avoid this trap because you risk your campaign being as dull as dishwater.

The good news is that Pearl Izumi did apologise publically for getting it wrong.

And here are some the comments you can see on the Facebook page

You know, I can’t help but wonder whether the whole thing was a campaign: go waaay too far, then pull back, ban the ad and apologise in order to get the people’s good will back and a glut of PR for free.

Hmmmmmm……..