Mattess Makers Try to Sell You a New Mattress with Zombie-Baiting Imagery
You know, every time I think that the ridiculous trend of combining absolutely everything with (hating) Zombies might finally have reached its peak, I see something even more ridiculous.
Case in point: the Zombie Apocalypse, or rather its cliche imagery and tropes, are being used to sell mattresses, with sleep deprivation recast as ‘Zombieitis’.
In the days leading up to May 1, Better Sleep Council was planning to push its fun-oriented “Stop Zombieitis” website by leveraging earned media via social sites like Facebook and Twitter. There would be no paid ads. But then the Osama bin Laden kill by the C.I.A. consumed the national conversation, and the trade organization’s team immediately started rethinking the budget for its larger “May Is Better Sleep Month” initiative.
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In short, Better Sleep Council – a nonprofit supported by mattress manufacturers – did not want its efforts to get lost in the tidal wave of bin Laden-related news for the first half of May. So it scraped together a modest $5,000 to drive traffic to the site, which plays off the Zombie Awareness Society’s claim that May is “Zombie Awareness Month.”
It has spent approximately $4,000 so far. On Facebook, Better Sleep Council has spent $2,500 on ads targeting a variety of profile attributes: people who “liked” zombie-themed movies like “Shaun of the Dead”; women interested in nutrition/health; those who had shown a predilection for technology issues; and 26-to-45-year-olds living in metro areas. Last week, Better Sleep Council purchased roughly $1,000 worth of Google AdWords. In addition, Better Sleep Council will be giving away five $100 gift cards to people who register for a contest on the microsite.
Pure, a 60-person agency based in Columbia, MO, developed the microsite, bought the ads, and has been leveraging social media efforts in the name of Better Sleep Council. They’ve also created a “Cure Zombieitis” YouTube video the team hopes goes viral on Friday, which they’ve dubbed “Stop Zombieitis Day”. It follows up on a video (see below) launched at the beginning of the campaign.
First, it’s the ‘Zombie Research Society’, not the ‘Zombie Awareness Society’. We know the name of our adversary quite well here at the ZRC.
Secondly, somebody, please, please make this stop. It was thought to be impossible, but alas, someone has found a way to trivialize Facebook. Facebook!
Not to rest on that achievement, these marketing devils also plan to flood social media like Twitter with this scary (not really) faux disease, and naturally, you can cure it – with a new mattress.
Did any of these people ever even consider that Zombies might need mattresses too? I mean really, do you think caskets are actually comfortable? Please. Zombies are a valuable and underserved demographic, but I guess that never crossed the minds of these advertising eggheads. Nope; instead it’s ‘Zombieitis’ this, ‘Cure’ that.
Disgusting, discriminatory and inflammatory. The ZRC rates this ad campaign Anti-Zombie.
About The Author
You make perfect sense and as the Chairman of the Better Sleep Council I would like to apologize to everyone in the Zombie community. We don’t mean to be insensitive but let’s face it there are some issues with Zombies in terms of diet, looks and attitude. We want to be part of the solution, not the problem. You guys need some new mattresses!
Actually, I just got a new mattress recently, but that’s neither here nor there. While we agree that those Zombies who still require sleep deserve a comfortable night’s rest, I don’t think pointing out potential cultural differences re: appearance and diet is a good way to make inroads. Maybe the goal should be to meet Zombies halfway, and find a sleep solution that is right for the Differently Animated. It could be a lucrative market as it’s currently grossly underserved.