Korean Oreo ad

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Korean Oreo ad

Looking at the Korean Oreo advert that seems to have caused a stir in the US, it seemed obvious to me that the advert was a case of throwing creative against the wall. It may have been used as a calling card, a way to spur debate or a mock-up for an award as Kraft seem to suggest.

In this respect it is rather like Volkswagen Polo car bomb ad that went around London agency world a number of years ago.
Controversal Oreo advert
Korea like Singapore and China is a quite conservative country and has a higher proportion of practicing christians than you would expect. So I am not inclined to think that this was really designed to go out as marketing material from the band.

The Korean public would create uproar. Korean consumers have a reputation for staging protests and product boycotts. That would be way too risky for a foreign brand like Kraft.

I also found it is also interesting that Kraft has thrown Cheil under the bus really fast on this.

For what it’s worth I think that this could be a great creative if it had the right context – say targeting young men as a snack rather their more traditional demographic of  family decision-makers – housewives. But you would have to select your media very carefully and be prepared for Lynx / Axe type backlash. More related content here.

More information

Double Slip: Controversial Korean Oreo Ad Leaked – ABC News