7 seats left:

Join us Dec. 1-3 in New Orleans for the Digiday Programmatic Marketing Summit

SECURE YOUR SEAT

5 Bad Brand VMA Tweets

Whether it’s a cultural or sporting event, like the Super Bowl, or a natural disaster, like Hurricane Sandy, brands seem to be forever angling for ways to insert themselves into trending online conversations – for better or worse.

This time it might not be for better. MTV’s Video Music Awards were held last night and, predictably, brands just couldn’t resist chiming in. Here are five of the more-awkward social attempts. Are there any others we missed?:

Taco Bell


Yes. For Subway.

Red Bull

This is a surprisingly forced tweet from a brand that constantly receives deserved praise for being so innovative.

Red Cross Oklahoma

This is a fairly clumsy attempt at glomming on to the N’SYNC chatter. But at least it’s for a good cause.

Coca-Cola

Just, don’t.

Domino’s

This joke was old 10 years ago. Hopefully your pizzas arrive more quickly than your zingers.

Image via Shutterstock

More in Marketing

How Kind snack bars is using AI to curb creative, marketing costs at business ‘inflection point’

Adopting generative AI and synthetic audiences, Kind North America’s marketing overhaul is cutting creative time and shifting agencies into strategic partners.

As would-be buyers and critics circle, WPP’s siege mentality deepens

The London holding company is beset by challenges and critics. A bunker philosophy and pushback may be emerging in response.

‘We’re in a league of our own’: How X is planning to take over the World Cup, starting with Draw Day

The platform is using the tournament’s draw as an early proving ground for a broader strategy to reassert its creator content around live events.