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Wall St. Ads Must Stop Lying

Time for banks to level with customers

By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 20, 2008 7:11 PM CDT

(Newser) – You may see some ironic ads by flicking on CNBC. Financial companies have spent decades advertising their stability and trustworthiness, but these days such claims seem ridiculous, writes Paul Farhi of the Washington Post. As recently as Monday, AIG was running ads with the slogan “The Strength to Be There,” while Merrill Lynch’s latest commercials promised to weather the economic storm.

Even for solvent firms, this kind of advertising is poorly timed, says one advertising executive. Consumers are well aware that the economy is in crisis, and firms need to level with them. “Give them the facts about what’s going on. They’re lost,” said the executive. “This is about education. It’s not about tag lines and pretty pictures.”

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[Videos (2)]

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The corporate logo for Merrill Lynch is shown Monday, Sept. 15, 2008 in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

Merrill Lynch's bull logo stands proud in this YouTube screenshot from their most recent ad.

The AIG logo is shown Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2008 in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

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A now-ironic Merrill Lynch ad. (JetSetsProductions)

An AIG ad that aired Sept. 17, 2008. (idiolekt)

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You have to talk straight with your customer right now. They're lost and need help. This is about education. It's not about tag lines and pretty pictures. - Tom Score, advertising executive

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Wall St. Ads Must Stop Lying