Notice the familiar fine print?
It’s the same ad as months before, just with a dog! How unimaginative is 3M's creative department that they can only come up with one gag? Did they hope that if it only aired on Animal Planet no one would notice? At least they changed the backgrounds.
Thanks to reader Michael Mills for the idea submission.
Here is the fine print:
This fine print directly debunks what the narrating agent is saying. “Most people who switch” is not the same as “new policyholders who reported savings by switching.” What about the people who did not save? Or the customers who only saved $10 and did not want to fill out the survey? This a clear case of voluntary response bias since the ad already misleads the survey information. In case you were wondering, you can only afford two of the twelve things shown in the commercial. The Viking Horn Helmet ($200) and Genghis Khan Outfit ($150) are within the $480 savings, while the Tuba ($6k), Double Bass ($1,500), Jukebox ($1,500), Segway ($5k), Blue Marlin Mount ($1k), Cockatoo ($1k), Model T Go Cart ($2k), Moose Head Mount ($4k), Giant Gumball Machine ($1,700) and Saddle ($500) are not. Even a falconry license cost $300 itself plus equipment and training. Hopefully my bill goes to my insurance policy and not their research team.
There are two fine prints that pop out besides the obvious do not attempt:
While this one is similar to the earlier shark post since the product is tested in absurd displays, the focus this week is not on possible rigging or clever editing. What exactly is SWR? Sweat Wetness Reduction? Sweat Retention? Single White Repulsion? Bonus points if you can find it, since it’s not listed anywhere. What is it being compared to? A regular Degree stick? The FDA minimum? Who is the average Degree user? If you’re still confused, don’t worry since Bear Grylls repeats the same shtick with wolverines and for Trail Mix and Nissan.
Thanks to reader Erryn Gallasch for the idea submission.
