Recently seen in New York's Times Square was a billboard for a jacket company called Weatherproof. No big deal, just another ad you say — until you notice that the person in the campaign image is President Obama.
This past Monday morning, Push CEO, John Ludwig, appeared on the nationally syndicated "Daily Buzz" to speak about the controversial usage of this topic.
John spoke about the fact that this was a classic case of begging for forgiveness vs. asking for permission. The company never received White House approval to run this ad and it blatantly misleads consumers to believe that the President endorses this company and/or jacket — which he does not. However, Weatherproof received a ton of buzz and publicity from their acts...exactly what they wanted.
John is a seasoned speaker on topics of branding and advertising, but this was the first time he had appeared on 162 TV stations across the nation.