U.S., Texas, Mexico

From what I hear, Absolut got a lot of criticism for this ad, featuring a billboard map of Mexico that includes Arizona, Texas, California and several other American states that were a part of Mexico until the Hidalgo treaty in 1948. Absolut, a Swedish company, ran this ad campaign in Mexico, and was highly criticized in the U.S., to the point that Absolut has retracted the ads and issued the statement:

The In An Absolut World advertising campaign invites consumers to visualize a world that appeals to them -- one they feel may be more idealized or one that may be a bit "fantastic." As such, the campaign will elicit varying opinions and points of view. We have a variety of executions running in countries worldwide, and each is germane to that country and that population.

This particular ad, which ran in Mexico, was based upon historical perspectives and was created with a Mexican sensibility. In no way was this meant to offend or disparage, nor does it advocate an altering of borders, nor does it lend support to any anti-American sentiment, nor does it reflect immigration issues. Instead, it hearkens to a time which the population of Mexico may feel was more ideal.

As a global company, we recognize that people in different parts of the world may lend different perspectives or interpret our ads in a different way than was intended in that market. Obviously, this ad was run in Mexico, and not the US -- that ad might have been very different.

By Paula Eriksson, VP Corporate Communications, V&S Absolut Spirits

The Absolut blog on which this statement ran is littered with 3190 comments, of which more than half are posts from outraged Americans calling for a boycott of their products, including lists of product names made by Pernod Ricard.

Of the remaining posts, many of those are people saying "Oh, you're making way too big a deal about this."

Some are hopeful that the ad will educate Americans and the world about its history with Mexico. I find this response a tad optimistic, but I can't disagree with the sentiment. Along the same lines, a blogger named 'Pablo' wrote:

"For all you Americans that seem to have no sense of humor, how do you think we feel whenever Mexicans in your commercials are portrayed as donkey-riding, big sombrero wearing people with funny accents following around a Chihuahua saying "Quiero Taco Bell." I for one would like to thank Absolut for always being creative and imaginative with their ads. You are one of the best- I will continue to proudly drink Absolut."

I'm trying to wrap my mind around the relationship between these two sentiments--a hope for the re-education of Americans and for a less-biased and stereotyped portrayal of Mexicans in the media. Thoughts? And then there's Tom from Texas who writes, “The American response to this add is so typical it's laughable, not everything is about the USA, the world doesn't revolve around the USA. It's reactions like this to a simple add that makes the USA one of the most unlike countries...well that and your tendency to run around the world killing people. =-D” His comment makes me wish that the American bloggers might read it and get some perspective on the way the U.S. continues to be seen by the rest of the world, but reading the posts that follow it don't leave much room for hope on this point.

Also, somebody wrote "As an owner of three restaurants I will say good buy to absolut," and I couldn't tell if he was joking or not. Hah. Good buy.

The ad didn't offend me much. In general I like things that are smaller in scale, localized and specialized for a particular audience, and this includes advertising campaigns (even if
they are part of a multinational marketing campaign). Many companies have local consultants to help them promote their products in specific regions or countries. (I learned, though it's still unconfirmed, that this particular ad was made by a Mexican company based in Florida.) I think this particular ad was quite clever. This is probably more action than the Absolut blog has ever seen. I have doubts that the boycott will have too large of an impact, and the publicity that this fiasco has caused will probably do more to promote the product than to ruin its name. I guess you could say I think it's a success. Rock on, Absolut.

The response from All-American Skyy vodka a week later deserves some attention. My favorite representation of the press release can be found on Hamilton Nolan's Gawker post, where he added choice patriotic quotes like:
"I like SKYY Vodka!", said William Gheen. "It is great to be able to have an occasional martini without contributing to a Global corporation, like Absolut, that is encouraging the invasion of my nation."

Here are some other, less-controversial "In an Absolut World" advertisements from 2007. The more I look at these, the more I think it's kind of a great campaign:










I especially like this last one because it's got a kind of self-deprecating irony about the advertising industry.

(I found these at http://www.absolutads.com/?p=727. See more, and recent ones at http://www.absolut.com/iaaw)

This whole thing makes me wonder if they would have gotten this much attention/criticism if not for the internet. Americans could have just as easily not noticed the campaign if not for the bloggers, right? I wonder if there is a historical precedent for multinational corporations facing criticism for localized ad campaigns.