How to Destroy Your Brand in 30 Seconds | MarTech

People can debate which Super Bowl ad was the best, but there’s no doubt which one was the most consequential — and not in the way the brand wanted.

The Ring ad “Search Party” appeared in the third quarter of the game, and it’s easy to see why someone thought this was a good idea: it’s about finding lost dogs. Who isn’t in favor of that? In general? Virtually no one. In this specific case? A lot of people. Because it specifically involved using Ring’s networked, AI-enabled cameras to find lost dogs.

There was a huge disconnect between what the ad showed and what people understood. Clearly, executives at Ring (an Amazon subsidiary) thought footage of a dog being followed from house to house would make consumers feel warm. In reality, it gave them the creeps because they were seeing a mass surveillance apparatus in action.

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The ad did in 30 seconds what safety and civil rights experts had been trying to do for years: inform the public about the real problem with Ring. And the crowd responded quickly. Here are some headlines from the next day:

That happened because the only people who believed the ad were on Ring’s payroll. As WeRateDogs’ Matt Nelson said in a video that quickly went viral:

“Neither Ring’s products nor its business model are built around finding lost pets, but rather creating a lucrative mass surveillance network by turning private homes into surveillance posts and well-meaning neighbors into informants for ICE and other government agencies.”

(WeRateDogs started as a popular social media account that humorously ‘rated’ dogs and has since grown into a respected charity that funds veterinary care. Nelson has built a large, loyal following – and has real credibility with that audience.)

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Nelson also pointed to Ring’s partnership with private security company Flock Safety. That integration allowed Ring’s footage to be made accessible to law enforcement through a community request system that did not require a traditional warrant. Data obtained through these channels has been shared with federal agencies, including ICE, the FBI and the Navy.

That partnership ended last Friday, when “Amazon’s Ring Cancels Flock Partnership Due to Advertising Backlash to the Super Bowl.”

What marketers need to know

Smart brands confront their reputational baggage head-on or design around it. BMW recognized its polarizing image and repositioned the Mini as an antidote. Ring did the opposite: it built a feel-good story around the very assets that fuel public discomfort.

In an AI-powered world, you can’t reframe risk with sentimentality. When the public sees surveillance, no amount of lost puppies will change the lens.