Consider copy carefully your...

Occasionally, we all enjoy finding the little ironies in life. For instance, I'm always on the lookout for marketing faux pas, especially by large companies that really should know better.

One of the best known examples is the Chevy Nova. The popular car sold well in anglo markets, but hardly moved at all in hispanic markets. The punchline came when GM product and marketing teams realized Nova ("No Va") literally means "No Go" in Spanish. (Oh if they only had online translators back in the day...)

Today's installment comes from retail packaging brought home by my lovely wife. Let me first say I have no qualms at all with Quilted Northern Ultra Plush; in fact I actually prefer it over most other brands. :-)

However, as I sat down to coffee this morning, I noticed the package above on our kitchen counter. At first, I saw nothing strange, other than a few missing rolls (so why was the package left in the kitchen, but I digress.) Then, like any visual designer worth his salt, I began to peruse the packaging...

• 3 Ply...yep, that's important
• Quilted Northern Ultra Plush...can't mist that
• 24 Double Rolls = 48 Regular Rolls...obviously a bargain
• Support Susan G. Komen for the Cure...corporate philanthropy, very nice
• A bunch of boilerplate copy...naturally
• And then this...

FLUSHABLE ???  Hello - this is 'toilet paper' right? Apart from the occasional sneeze or knee scrape, what would one do with this product if not flush it? Or could it be...gasp...Quilted Norther alone has solved an ancient engineering challenge leaving all the other non-flushable TPs struggling to catch up?!?!?

Of course the point of the mnemonic is that the product is "Septic Safe" which is an important point for many consumers. And I submit those two words alone would have made the point, and informed the buyer, much more effectively - albeit less interestingly.

In the end one may ask, "Does it really matter?" To which I say yes. Does it matter much? Probably not. Will it make or break any buying decisions? Highly unlikely. On the other hand, if well respected and serious consumer brands who spend millions bringing products to market can make such silly mistakes, what about your marketing communications?

Oversights like No-Go Cars and Flushable Toilet Paper are easy to commit, especially the closer you are to the creative process. If you typically generate marketing copy internally, be sure to get unbiased reviews from other staff members before signing off on projects. Better still, a professional copywriter can help ensure you publish the most clear, concise, and accurate information possible.

In the meantime, keep an eye open for more fun examples and let me know what you find...