REAL-TIME MARKETING IN A VISUAL WORLD 189 Real-Time Marketing Examples, continued 3. Holidays or festivals. General Electric cele- disbelief “as my lady changed from the loving, brated February 11, Thomas Edison’s birthday gentle, normal skin colored lady to the little and Inventors’ Day, by highlighting inventions girl from The Exorcist with added venom and and inventors and asking its audience to join extra 360-degree head spin.” Bodyform had 15 in. lied! Richard wanted to ask why Bodyform 4. Current events such as a snowstorm, had misled men all these years through their celebrity wedding, or royal baby. Mini advertising and why they had set him up for Cooper responded to a snowstorm by putting such a fall. out an ad showing how its new all-wheel- Over 100,000 people have now liked drive Nemo model would help you “just Richard’s post. Bodyform’s real-time mock-se- keep swimming.” The text accompanying the rious video reply featured CEO Caroline image of the car driving in the snow read: Williams (in reality an actress) pouring her- “Find your way through the storm.” It was a self a glass of blue water and apologizing timely and smart continuation of its existing about the fact that the company had lied in marketing. its ads. Their adverts weren’t, she explained, 5. Responding to a comment, criticism, or “a factual representation of events. . . . They suggestion. Some of the most creative visual are actually metaphors. They are not real. . . . responses have come from customer com- There is no such thing as a happy period. . . . plaints. Bodyform recently released a video Some people simply can’t handle the truth.” in reply to a humorous rant on its Facebook Williams explained how the company’s adver- page by a man named Richard Neill, which tising hoped to shield men from the awful took issue with Bodyform’s glamorization of truth of what actually happens: “the mood “this time of joy and ‘blue water’ and wings.” swings, the cramps, the insatiable hunger, His tongue-in-cheek complaint said that, as a and—yes, Richard—the blood coursing man, he had been a little jealous of women’s from our uteri like a crimson landslide.” But, menstrual cycles, as portrayed by Bodyform. she said, Richard’s Facebook post had now He said he had been delighted when he first “exposed all men to a reality we hoped they got a girlfriend and “couldn’t wait for this would never have to face.” The video is hilar- joyous adventurous time of the month to ious and has now had over 5 million views. If happen,” but his anticipation soon turned to you haven’t seen it, you can watch it here: (continued)