We received a Google Alert today when the blog Boi from Troy posted an entry about BMW launching a gay-friendly ad on bus stops in West Hollywood, CA. While we’ve been known to have strong opinions about BMW advertising in gay media, we can’t say much about these ads simply based on their placement in the gay mecca of West Hollywood.
So, we’d like YOUR opinion. What do you think of these ads? Do you think they are targeted to the GLBT community? Would a non-gay person “get it”? Tell us what you think by posting a comment below. Tell your friends to chime is as well.
Thanks for your feedback!
(Photos courtesy of Todd Bianco)
Hey. I have seen these ads spread throught West Hollywood as well. I am actually the managing editor for a blog and I posted an article about this as well.
http://www.thetorquereport.com/2007/04/has_bmws_marketing_gone_too_fa.html
If you want to see the many comments I got about it visit this url:
http://omidr.typepad.com/torque/2007/04/has_bmws_market.html
Good to see that these ads got other peoples’ attention as well.
Feels a little like pandering to me. Why do manufacturers think every ad targeted at gays has to have sexual double-entendres?
It’s one thing to use references to things gays commonly encounter in life… such as coming out, introducing a partner to one’s parents, etc… even if those border on cliché as well. But to resort to sexual puns to sell any product to gays is no less adolescent than Dodge’s much-lambasted penis-size ad for the Durango that was targeted at straight men who watch a lot of football.
And to anyone who says “sex sells,” I’m not opposed to that, either. Hyundai’s European ad where a husband and wife each hide a boyfriend via reclining seat when they see each other at an intersection was charmingly done. But BMW is not using sexual innuendo in any of its other advertising, so why suddenly take that route when speaking to us? Do they think a man who sleeps with another man cannot appreciate a BMW as a car?
I look forward to the day when a marketer can speak to me as a person whose sexual identity is not just about sex, just as they do when targeting women or other demographic segments.
If that means BMW runs the same ad in Out as they do in Road & Track (and, surprise, I read both), I’d be more likely to feel like they value me as a customer instead of just trying to sell me a car.
The top/bottom jokes are almost too easy when it comes to a convertible.
I think the ads play to a sterotype that being gay is just about sex and promiscuity. Like everyone else, life is much more than just your sexual orientation and there is a difference between being gay and having gay sex.
Did BMW’s ad agency really think that they had to sink this low to market a car that is already a guaranteed hit in the gay community?
I think the ad is more about being funny than sexual. We shouldn’t forget to laugh.
I’m not comfortable with BMW (or any corporate entity) contemplating my sexual proclivities and using any conclusions in a marketing ploy. I would be appalled by an ad displaying a vehicle with studded black leather upholstery, perhaps also painted black, but for one rear fender (left or right) painted red, or blue, or khaki, etc. with a sly tag-line attached.
I prefer to be engaged regarding a product’s merits, as I believe most of the public do.
This car is targeted to an upwardly mobile professional age 35-50. Anyone who makes cash enough to live in LA and buy this car in that age range would “get” this ad. I am a straight guy and I understand the ad. What I find disagreeable is the same thing I find disagreeable about much advertising: using negativity to sell. The inference in the second one is that someone in a relationship will cheat when their partner is away. That is negative. The first one, being gender neutral and sexuality neutral is great. It is not negative and not demeaning and when you think about it, works for all of us, not just GLBT. I think ads should be more that way: positive and inclusive and not negative, nichey and effectively exclusive.
Personally, I think the ads are funny. They are not demeaning, they are just using the same methods we would use to get attention. BMW has always presented it’s cars as “sexy” but the “sexy” has been targeted to to straight population. Did the ad get your attention? Then it did it’s job. Sometimes I think we take ourselves to seriously.
I can’t believe the top-bottom ad ever made it past the usual battery of reviews. Regardless of whether it’s intended as an homage to their gay male customers or/and a reference to the region’s addiction to female silicone enhancements, either someone at the local BMW store is skating on thin ice, or someone is having some guerilla campaign fun at BMW’s expense.
The ad appeals to my tawdry sense of humor, but the down ‘n dirty is that it’s pretty tasteless and horribly out of character for the Bavarians. So much so, that the viewer will probably only concentrate on the shock of the ad rather than take time to decode its message that the new 3er cabrio is now a retractable hardtop. At that rate, they’ll be lucky if people could even remember if it was a BMW ad instead of a Chrysler Sebring ad.
My partner and I both think this ad is just funny–perhaps because we live in Southern California and can appreciate the humor. That being said, I still would not buy this beautiful fantastic ultimate driving machine because BMW is NOT a gay friendly corporation. So if the ad is the only thing that the company is doing to reach out to the community, it falls short. Honestly, I’d rather see boring ads and know that they were offering benefits to their gay employees.
OMG, no wonder people say we are all drama…its an add, its funny and it confirms they are not ashamed of recognizing publicly that we can (and most likely will) purchase one of these vehicles. Bravo BMW!!!
I think its funny and it may be, that I live in Denmark, that I’m tolerent, but I think, that gay people may be a bit like “I want to be offented”. I welcome adds, that have some humor.
I’m really disappointed to say the least. I have a BMW and I truly love my convertible. It really is the ultimate driving machine. I would have never thought that BMW, a European company would not be gay friendly. Tonight my best friend that is shopping for a BMW called me to show me his findings on this controversial news about BMW, as a result he may not be buying a BMW.
I’ve read all of the comments that most of the readers have made and I too think that the ads are funny and frankly it’s great to see manufactures going after the gay community. It’s unfortunate that some of the readers are missing the point. So the ads are funny, catchy and sexy…would we truly not expect this from BMW? The point is that on one hand they are NOT supporting the gay community and most disturbing their gay and lesbian employees. On the other hand, they are reaching out to a community that they don’t support.
BMW, what a fine piece of machinery! We love your cars, now do the right thing and support your gay and lesbian employees.