In marketing, you can not play with people’s feelings. It is a fine line, and a marketing manager should be able to see it. McDonald’s pulls a TV advertisement in the U.K. about a boy whose father died. This happened after the company was accused of exploiting the feelings of children who have lost a parent.
According to PRWeek, more than 150 people have complained about the advertisement to the U.K. Advertising Standards Authority: A statement released on Tuesday afternoon by McDonald’s said: “We can confirm today that we have taken the decision to withdraw our ‘Dad’ TV advert. The advert will be removed from all media, including TV and cinema, completely and permanently this week. “It was never our intention to cause any upset. We are particularly sorry that the advert may have disappointed those people who are most important to us – our customers.
“Due to the lead-times required by some broadcasters, the last advert will air tomorrow, Wednesday 17 May. We will also review our creative process to ensure this situation never occurs again.” The fast food company had earlier apologized “for any upset this advert has caused” early today, saying: “This was by no means an intention of ours and we regret some have interpreted it in a negative way.”
The outside agency that created the ad for McDonald’s, Leo Burnett Group, declined to comment.