Plug Your Lugs...

Mark Andrews · 09-04-2011, 06:39 AM

...if you don't like bad language.

How to turn a customer complaint into a great piece of advertising sales copy...

Don't Talk - Angry Voicemail (Uncensored) -...

What do you think is the point to this advertisement?

Myself? I love it. Think it's ace.

What about you? Thoughts?

max5ty · 09-04-2011, 07:10 AM

Their point is to show they mean business when they say they enforce the rules.

They believe most will side with the theater after hearing this.

It's a clever marketing ploy...although I would bleep out some words

The Copy Nazi · 09-04-2011, 07:12 AM

Brilliant.

Mark Andrews · 09-04-2011, 07:38 AM

Exactly Max, they're clearly demonstrating their transparency and social proof. They're saying if you can't follow our rules, we'll churn you out the door. Which might sound a little extreme but...

...in fact, it isn't. Far from it.

What the ad is saying (thanks customer!

) is that we take your movie experience very seriously indeed. We value everyone who shows respect to other people in the audience. Just as talking is not acceptable during a film or creating a disturbance is not acceptable - we will not put up with anyone who distracts or otherwise causes distractions to others.

The video ad is in fact saying, 'We care so much about our customers enjoyment that we are prepared to go the extra mile to make sure that you, as a customer, ultimately enjoy your time spent here and we're not afraid to put our foot down to proof it'.

But this ad goes one step further...

It clearly shows on the part of the business owner a willingness and adeptness to use every opportunity possible to turn what appears to be a disadvantage into an advantage in terms of their own marketing.

They're prepared to think outside the box. Laterally.

They love coming up with new ideas to portray themselves in a good light.

Rude, obnoxious people or just plainly very thick individuals of course won't get it. The knee-jerk reaction of many would possibly be to instantly jump to the woman's rescue and condone her behavior. (Nevermind the fact that in using her phone as a flashlight to find her seat, after arriving late, was itself distracting a lot of other people and their enjoyment of the movie experience.)

This is an excellent example of sending out a very positive buying signal from what many would consider to be a negative experience.

And I bet they got a bloody good chuckle out of it too. If an advertising agency had come up with this idea it would have cost the Alamo Drafthouse many thousands of dollars but thanks to this disgruntled customer, they got the ad (which incidentally went viral) for virtually free. And in return made a fantastic return on their investment.

As Malcolm Lambe said - Brilliant!

Pete Walker

PS I should also add that the Alamo Drafthouse does give out several on screen warnings to the audience before the film commences to make sure that all of the audience' mobile phones are switched off.

If the lady in question had turned up earlier (whilst the lights were still on) she would have clearly seen these on screen. So they were perfectly entitled to show her the door.

Tashi Mortier · 09-04-2011, 09:44 AM

I think this is just an excellent example. They have a very clear target market:

People who want to enjoy their movie 100%. They don't want any lights in the audience, they don't want any texters, and people talking on the phone.

I'm sure there are a lot of people that are a lot more pissed off by ladies behaving like the one that left this angry message on voice mail.

Alan Ashwood · 09-12-2011, 08:42 AM

I wish more people would say it like it is.

Here in the UK the cinema chains (oh yeah, we call 'em cinemas, theatres have stages and actors and stuff like that) wouldn't have the bottle (courage) to take this sort of action.

They should.

If I'm ever in the area, The Alamo Draughthoues will get my patronage, coz I know I'll be able to watch a film (movie) in peace, without some arsehole (asshole) spoiling it.

Good on them.

That 'lady's' got a foul mouth, hasn't she?

Cam Connor · 09-12-2011, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pete Walker

What do you think is the point to this advertisement?

Myself? I love it. Think it's ace.

What about you? Thoughts?

I think it's entertaining, but I wouldn't exactly use it as an advertisement, it doesn't really entice me to jump in my car and hop over to the Alamo Theater...

JakeDaly · 09-12-2011, 09:22 AM

It's viral marketing much more than it can be considered a single advertisement, although technically it's both. Shortly after it was uploaded by, I must assume, an employee, it went viral on sites like Break.com and YouTube. People who have never heard of the Alamo Drafthouse have now and I'm sure it's doing wonders for their business.

I remember reading some of the video comments shortly after this appeared and nearly everyone was saying something along the lines of ".. Wow, I wish my movie theatre took this stance!"

09-04-2011, 07:10 AM	#2
max5ty HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: USA Posts: 431 Thanks: 675 Thanked 352 Times in 140 Posts	Re: Plug Your Lugs... Their point is to show they mean business when they say they enforce the rules. They believe most will side with the theater after hearing this. It's a clever marketing ploy...although I would bleep out some words

09-04-2011, 07:12 AM	#3
The Copy Nazi Mal Lambe War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: The Bunker, Paris Posts: 2,490 Blog Entries: 2 Thanks: 791 Thanked 1,481 Times in 701 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: Plug Your Lugs... Brilliant.

09-04-2011, 07:38 AM	#4
Mark Andrews SmokingHotCopy@gmail.com War Room Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: In Somebody Else's Shoes Posts: 1,685 Blog Entries: 2 Thanks: 1,587 Thanked 1,333 Times in 722 Posts Contact Info	Re: Plug Your Lugs... Exactly Max, they're clearly demonstrating their transparency and social proof. They're saying if you can't follow our rules, we'll churn you out the door. Which might sound a little extreme but... ...in fact, it isn't. Far from it. What the ad is saying (thanks customer! ) is that we take your movie experience very seriously indeed. We value everyone who shows respect to other people in the audience. Just as talking is not acceptable during a film or creating a disturbance is not acceptable - we will not put up with anyone who distracts or otherwise causes distractions to others. The video ad is in fact saying, 'We care so much about our customers enjoyment that we are prepared to go the extra mile to make sure that you, as a customer, ultimately enjoy your time spent here and we're not afraid to put our foot down to proof it'. But this ad goes one step further... It clearly shows on the part of the business owner a willingness and adeptness to use every opportunity possible to turn what appears to be a disadvantage into an advantage in terms of their own marketing. They're prepared to think outside the box. Laterally. They love coming up with new ideas to portray themselves in a good light. Rude, obnoxious people or just plainly very thick individuals of course won't get it. The knee-jerk reaction of many would possibly be to instantly jump to the woman's rescue and condone her behavior. (Nevermind the fact that in using her phone as a flashlight to find her seat, after arriving late, was itself distracting a lot of other people and their enjoyment of the movie experience.) This is an excellent example of sending out a very positive buying signal from what many would consider to be a negative experience. And I bet they got a bloody good chuckle out of it too. If an advertising agency had come up with this idea it would have cost the Alamo Drafthouse many thousands of dollars but thanks to this disgruntled customer, they got the ad (which incidentally went viral) for virtually free. And in return made a fantastic return on their investment. As Malcolm Lambe said - Brilliant! Pete Walker PS I should also add that the Alamo Drafthouse does give out several on screen warnings to the audience before the film commences to make sure that all of the audience' mobile phones are switched off. If the lady in question had turned up earlier (whilst the lights were still on) she would have clearly seen these on screen. So they were perfectly entitled to show her the door.
	"He struck the match. Fire flickered. The fuse lit and an explosion of emotional trigger words emanated like lightning through his fingertips..."

09-04-2011, 09:44 AM	#5
Tashi Mortier HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Hesse, Germany Posts: 356 Thanks: 37 Thanked 76 Times in 66 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: Plug Your Lugs... I think this is just an excellent example. They have a very clear target market: People who want to enjoy their movie 100%. They don't want any lights in the audience, they don't want any texters, and people talking on the phone. I'm sure there are a lot of people that are a lot more pissed off by ladies behaving like the one that left this angry message on voice mail.
	Want to read my personal blog? Tashi Mortier

09-12-2011, 08:42 AM	#6
Alan Ashwood Senile Limey Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Magic Forest, West of England Posts: 542 Thanks: 421 Thanked 161 Times in 98 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: Plug Your Lugs... I wish more people would say it like it is. Here in the UK the cinema chains (oh yeah, we call 'em cinemas, theatres have stages and actors and stuff like that) wouldn't have the bottle (courage) to take this sort of action. They should. If I'm ever in the area, The Alamo Draughthoues will get my patronage, coz I know I'll be able to watch a film (movie) in peace, without some arsehole (asshole) spoiling it. Good on them. That 'lady's' got a foul mouth, hasn't she?
	I've removed my Sig Links 'cos some evil b*stard in Indonesia, and another in Gaza somewhere have hacked all my sites.

09-12-2011, 09:22 AM	#8
JakeDaly Copywritin' War Room Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Cincinnati, Ohio Posts: 178 Thanks: 34 Thanked 30 Times in 28 Posts	Re: Plug Your Lugs... It's viral marketing much more than it can be considered a single advertisement, although technically it's both. Shortly after it was uploaded by, I must assume, an employee, it went viral on sites like Break.com and YouTube. People who have never heard of the Alamo Drafthouse have now and I'm sure it's doing wonders for their business. I remember reading some of the video comments shortly after this appeared and nearly everyone was saying something along the lines of ".. Wow, I wish my movie theatre took this stance!"