Sushi Fail: Ad Placement Gone Wrong

by Freddy Tran Nager, Founder of Atomic Tango & Japanese Restaurant Lover…

So you manage a small chain of sushi restaurants, and business is not exactly stellar, so you decide to run one of those direct-mail ads that winds up in people’s mailboxes en route to the recycling bin. And that’s when this happens…

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When I first saw the ad, I noticed the right part first, since red type catches the eye much better than reverse type on a blue background. Then I noticed the people, since our eyes gravitate to human faces. My first thought: “Oh, look, white sushi chefs in L.A. That’s different.” Then I noticed the logo for “Worst Cooks in America.” Then I knew, “This must be blogged.”

The ad is run not by Sushi Mac but by Valpak Direct Marketing Systems, Inc. Usually, only one business appears per ad; I’ve never seen two. So I wonder what Valpak told the folks at Sushi Mac… “Hey, we’ll give you a discount if you let us run a contest for the Food Network on your ad.” I can only guess that they did not tell them that “Worst Cooks in America” would be located just inches away from “Unique Dining Experience!”

My appetite for sushi magically diminished. The offers on the reverse side, which included “All Sushi $3.00 (Tax Included!) Per Order,” did not provide any culinary reassurance, since most consumers associate low prices with low quality. Not exactly what I want with raw fish.

In addition to poor ad placement and questionable pricing strategy, having a sushi chain sound like an Apple computer doesn’t help much, either: “Get the New Sushi Mac: Raw Power for Those on a Roll! Now Comes with iTunas.”

Recycling bin here it comes.