Ford’s ad debacle offers important lessons for brands
Do you know what your advertising agency is up to?
Thing is, Ford didn’t have anything to do with it. Employees at the JWT agency in India created the ads entirely on their own initiative. The same individuals uploaded the work to Ads of the World, a website where people in the advertising business post their work. According to Advertising Age, they also submitted the mockups to India’s top ad awards program.
The ad was never requested, seen, or approved by Ford or even their agency.
Most people agree the fault lies with the individuals who created and uploaded the images, as well as JWT India for a lack of supervision. According to MarketWatch, JWT India fired the employees responsible for the ads.
Perhaps a small part of the blame could be attributed to Ford because its oversight of the agency was imperfect, but this is surely a minor sin of omission.
The court of public opinion’s ruling
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