Holidays and historic anniversaries are like social media landmines for brands (just ask AT&T about its tacky 9/11-themed tweet or SpaghettiOs about their Pearl Harbor “remembrance” tweet), and yet corporate social media directors continue to dance through them with steel-toed boots, all in the horribly misguided pursuit of brand awareness.
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day has been no different. From over-the-counter sleep aid ZzzQuil making a tacky “dream” association to Malt-O-Meal urging followers to load up at breakfast so they can “do something meaningful today,” brands are crudely trying to climb their way up MLK-related hashtag ladders. Below are some of the worst examples, permanently preserved via screenshot magic.
Credit for uncovering/exposing many of these goes to comedian and Parks and Recreation writer Joe Mande (@JoeMande), the Internet’s resident brand-shaming wizard. Bizarro Darren Rovell, if you will.
Pop Chips
Bailey, The Los Angeles Kings Mascot
ZzzQuil
Krazy Glue
U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command (MARSOC) (apology here)
Malt-O-Meal
Arby’s
Forever 21
Microsoft/Windows/Bing
Schwinn
Canoe & Kayak Magazine
White Castle
Pornhub (Admittedly, this can’t be considered “dumb” since they knew exactly what they were doing)
Dow Chemical
Chicken of the Sea
Staples
PETA
Hats.com
Party Bus Bookings
EyeSmart
The Nature Conservancy of Washington
This post will be updated throughout the day. *Furiously refreshes @NRA feed*