I wanted to talk about marketing campaigns that have been banned because I find it interesting and intriguing as to why large multi-national companies spend thousands if not millions on advertising only to find out that they are not allowed to air it. It’s interesting because TV commercial regulators such as the FCC (United States) have specific guidelines on their websites for companies to follow. Even with guidelines posted, many companies still fail to adhere to the minimum requirements and end up having their commercials banned from public tv.

One of the more interesting observations I found was with the Swedish Company IKEA. IKEA has a long history of banned commercial advertisements. The banned advertisements are known to be notoriously funny and exciting but it is unfortunate that they were not allowed to be aired.

So, why do companies decide to push the limits of those regulations and try for bold commercials outside the box? It is easy to note that viewership for banned commercials are, in most cases, much higher than commercials that are not banned. So it’s safe to say that these commercials are a lot more appealing and noticeable to the public, which is their intended purpose. However, going forward, companies have to be aware and take into account the guidelines and at the same time ensure that their commercials are appealing and safe for the general public.

One of the more popular banned commercial from IKEA circulating on the internet:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ony_iJRcCmY