You, the Shopper

HEY, WHO WANTS TO HEAR ME RANT ABOUT DR. PEPPER TEN SOME MORE?

Why yes, it is my go-to example for bad marketing/product failure/consumer backlash/etc., why do you ask?

Some of the best ways to appeal to your market are as follows: "It's perfect for the everyman like YOU!", "Billy's just like you, and he's got this thing!", "You know that problem you have/thing you hate? Well this will fix it!", "Look how much better your life will be when you get this thing!"

Notice how nowhere in there are the words "Insult/alienate literally half the population." And yet for some reason, Dr. Pepper decided to turn the testosterone nob waaaay past eleven to the point where it was kind of insulting. Low-cal drinks and manly aren't often associated with each other, so it was already weird, and then they had to go that extra mile and flat out SAY "It's not for women!" In the end, it was so manly it was insulting. Once again, when people are uploading vlogs to youtube about how insulting your ad is, it's time to turn around and go right back to the drawing board.

This has been another (slightly more obvious) lesson in selling stuff.