Chinese Firms Too Heavy-Handed in Ads Promoting Themselves

I was surprised by how fast Nike responded to a thrilling sports event. Just one day after Liu Xiang broke the world record for the men's 110 meters hurdles race in Switzerland last week, Nike aired a highly effective ad - only mentioning Nike at the end.

By contrast, Chinese advertisements are often heavy-handed, routinely and blatantly promoting themselves over their competitors.

Naobaijin healthcare is an example of self-promotion of healthcare products.

In the Nike ad, Liu was wearing Nike shoes but the ad didn't say that.

The ad had three parts: The flashing digital display as appeared on a stopwatch starting from zero to the 12.88th second (the new world record set by Liu), cheers from the audience as background, and then a two-second display of the trademark.

Simple, but well conceived. I would not have been surprised at all if such a nice marketing concept appeared one week after Liu's new record.

I am not a fan of Nike. My point is how to make an artistic piece out of a commercial ad. We have been bombarded too much by senseless self boasting ads for many Chinese brands. They literally yell at the audience: I am the best, I am the wisest, I am the ultimate choice.

Mediocre or even vulgar ads are not just about ads, they reflect the lack of effective marketing strategies of many Chinese companies.