Twitter Moms Create a Motrin-Sized Headache for J&J

Hell hath no fury like an angry, baby-carrying mom armed with a blog, YouTube, and Twitter accounts.

Yesterday, Johnson & Johnson posted a Motrin ad on its Web site and on YouTube all about alleviating the pain of “baby wearing,” or toting around your baby in a sling. It was part of a broader ad campaign about the different pains Motrin can alleviate. In particular with this ad, JNJ tried to use humor to unite moms in some Oprah-like virtual high-five over the rigors of carrying around babies.

The controversial ad
Motrin united moms alright—only they united against J&J. What began over the weekend is continuing today as thousands of Tweets (as individual microblogging posts are called) are still flying about the scandal. Many moms said they felt patronized, disrespected and insulted with language that implied carrying a baby was a fashion accessory. “Supposedly it’s a real bonding experience,” and referring to carrying babies in slings as “these things.” (You can see the ad here)

What’s at the heart of this controversy? Authenticity on the web. The stakes are high in the realm of social media. The right ad—like Obama’s “Yes We Can” —can hit the right populist chord, and outperform even the most glitzy, expensive media buy. But a wrong ad can become not just an embarrassment but make your brand the object of an angry digital mob.

Motrin pulls the ad
Of course, if Motrin was hoping for a viral campaign, they got it. The outrage in the Twitter-verse guaranteed that far more moms saw the ad than those who would have visited the Motrin site. But judging by Motrin’s swift reaction, that wasn’t the intent.

The company apologized, removed the ads, which were also to be featured in magazines, and said on its site, “We are parents ourselves and we take feedback from moms very seriously.”

Lessons in social media
The lesson? If you’re going to produce an edgy ad that speaks for moms—or any group—in today’s fast-moving age of hot-headed Tweets and YouTube uploads, make sure it actually speaks for them. Given the swift megaphone bloggers have, it wouldn’t hurt to send a few of them the ad first and solicit feedback. That way, if a controversy does boil over, advertisers can be sure some thought leaders have their back. A marketer’s best bet is to get influencers on their side from the get-go and then brace for the best or worst in an effort to move swiftly to capitalize -- or quickly do damage control.