One series of adverts I'm tempted to comment on, seing as the Dr Pepper one seemed to get some interested (and interesting) responses is the new Skoda ones.

In line with the Dr Pepper ads, Skoda are advertising their new range of cars with the tagline "Honest. It's a Skoda.". The difference here is that everyone in the country knows what Skodas are like: They have a worse reputation than any car manufacturer short of Travant. Skoda have been the butt of jokes for as long as I can remember (How do you double the value of a Skoda? Fill the fuel tank.).

Skoda's advertisers are using that reputation very well to suggest that these cars are well-made, reliable and won't make you a laughing stock. The cars themselves look a lot nicer than the old ones, and I have no doubt that they will live up to the hype (if that's the right word, when all you promise is "not as bad as you remember").

If I drove I would certainly not dismiss a Skoda out of hand, as I would once have done, so in that respect this is far more successful than the Dr Pepper advert is. That said, I don't drive and am therefore probably outside their target audience.

Question: Why does this tactic work for a product that is universally despised, but not for one that no-one can bring themselves to care for?

I suspect that in trying to work out how to phrase that, I buried at least half the answer in there, but your usual wit and wisdom would be appreciated.

winter"How do you get a Skoda to do 70? Push it off a cliff."mute