It generated millions in earned media and spurred tons of buzz, from pissed-off Police Associations around Canada to nervous parents.
It also garnered attention in newscasts, editorials, magazine articles, and even a four-hour debate in the Québec National Assembly, which is like a U.S. State Legislature, except everyone mostly speaks French and gets way more emotional.
The first spot is rated PG-13, so Parental Discretion is advised. The second spot is a revised version, where we took the offensive part out, and ran it like that.
The client stayed rock steady through most of the intense press and online buzz because he was brave, and it was moving metal, as car folks say. Finally, though, it just became too much. We pulled the spot above. But with the brave client pushing us again, we edited and ran a revised version that went back on the air. More earned media and almost everyone was happy. Especially the Ontario KIA Dealer Association. In the middle, is that infamous ‘Goat” redux.