In Your Face Ads - When Is It Too Much?

I was watching the re-air of the Kansas City Chiefs vs. Seattle Seahawks on August 29th on the NFL Network. The original broadcast was aired by the Chiefs Television Network on @KCTV5. I can't remember at what point I had turned on the game but what I do remember is how offended I was during a couple minute period when the Chiefs were driving on the Seahawks. I took the following images from my TV set with my iPhone to illustrate the reason behind my disturbed feelings.

This image is of the Chiefs driving just inside the Seahawks 20 yard line. Notice Sonic the ad. Small but still on the football field.

Kansas City Chiefs on the Seattle Seahawks 20 yard line

This image is when the Chiefs had driven into the Red Zone. See the Price Chopper ad? Does it get any more obnoxious? Oh it gets better.

Kansas City Chiefs in the Red Zone vs Seattle Seahawks

This image is after the Chiefs scored and are kicking the extra point. Throwing Garmin right in my face! What's next? Am I going to have Pizza Hut rammed down my throat by having to view the logo on team helmets and jerseys? I'll gain 5 pounds a game for goodness sake.

Kansas City Chiefs kick extra point vs. Seattle Seahawks

I know ads are essential for the television business, but these ads are so interruptive, and so distracting, it seemed to me the Chiefs Television Network had absolutely no respect for me as a viewer. I'm there to watch football and the Chiefs Network is shoving Price Chopper and Garmin in my face. I don't like anything shoved in my face.

Television ads, by nature, are one way, interruption marketing. We accept these commercials as part of TV and they provide short breaks for us to use the restroom and get a snack.

Traditional commercial spots have morphed into these little sneaky ads that are now slowly creeping into the shows we watch, while we're watching them. Have you seen the small ads at the bottom right or bottom left corner of the show we are actually watching? Even those are tolerable. They're small, they're short, and then they're gone.

So when are ads too much? When ads are shoved in our faces. That's too much. No one likes to be strong armed into doing anything.

I enjoy watching the Chiefs ( @KC_Chiefs1 ) on the NFL Sunday Ticket. If I'm subject to this type of advertising, I WILL NOT be watching.

Go Chiefs!

Please let me know if you agree, disagree, or you think I'm overreacting.

Sincerely,
Jim Adams - CEO
New Homes Directory .com

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Comments

Posted by: Ed Doss | August 30 2009 4:39 PM

Overreacting? No I don't think so.....well maybe some because we know how much you like your football. Seriously, the art of interruption marketing is losing ground every year because the organizations that promote that kind of marketing are realizing that the public is just fast forwarding their adds more & more. All praise TIVO! So if I'm a ... Read Moretypical marketing firm that hasn't gotten the message yet and I still want to interrupt, what do I do? I know......what is one thing on TV that most people will want to watch live vs. recording it? Sports!
While the people that dreamed up that Red Zone idea are probably patting themselves on the back and sipping some kind of adult beverage in celebration........they still don't get it and probably never will until someone somewhere figures out a way to eradicate that kind of marketing all together. In my opinion, it's only a matter of time.

Posted by: Alta White | June 30 2010 4:06 AM

Good points. These ads do become irritating sometimes.

Posted by: i-link 8000 | July 20 2010 1:58 AM

I hate watching TV with many ads like watching boxing here in the Philippines. If you cant afford to pay per view to wait for the main event 3-4 hours, it took ten minutes per round because of the ads.

Posted by: hockey equipment kyg | July 31 2010 9:09 AM

I thought it was amusing when I first started noticing this in baseball. Where they have the ads on the walls change, but to inject them onto the actual playing field is in my opinion a huge distraction.

Posted by: Pro thermostats | September 22 2010 12:22 PM

I'm on your side. These ads are absolutely ridiculous. Commercials are bad enough, but this is just insulting.
It won't be long before they're transmitting ads into our dreams!