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Would you eat "baby food for adults?"

Brands are constantly adapting to our ever-changing world in an effort to stay relevant and viable and, ultimately, make their bottom line. However, sometimes these attempts at gettin’ with the times are so out of touch they miss the mark completely. We call these instances marketing fails.

One such marketing fail happened in 1974, when Gerber—the brand synonymous with baby food—tried, and failed, to rebrand itself as a food for college kids.

As explained by Max Miller of Tasting History, in a short but sweet video (though maybe not as sweet as Gerber’s puréed mango-apple-banana flavor), the ‘70s saw a dramatic decline in marriages and births following the Baby Boom between 1946 and 1964. Less babies, of course, meant less need for baby food, and Gerber was looking for ways to combat a slump in its sales.

Their solution? Rebrand their product as something for college kids.

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Using the logic of “We were good for you then. We’re good for you now,” Gerber rolled out full meals like "Beef Burgundy," "Mediterranean Vegetables," "Ham Casserole," "Creamed Beef," and even "Sweet and Sour Pork” placed in the exact same jars used to contain infant food.

Though the idea itself might have been sound—convenient, all-in-one meals? What busy single person doesn't want that?— the biggest flaw was in the execution. Depressing, or condescending taglines like "Something to eat when you're alone" and "Look at you! All grown up!" didn’t exactly endear young folks to drown out their loneliness with a savory, lukewarm meat mush.

gerber baby food, baby food, marketing fail, commercial, vintage commercials, tasting history, max miller Who doesn't wanna eat beef burgundy right out of the can?Wikimedia

All in all, the failed product went off the shelves within only a few months of its launch. As many viewers pointed out, this very well could have been an idea too ahead of its time, because in today’s fitness-centric world, it could have been a hot ticket item.

“There's a market for meal replacements, both for people with finite time and health buffs,” one person noted.

Another echoed, “Honestly, just put it in a squeeze pack and market it for fitness and those sales will soar.”

Others brought up the fact that the elderly, sick, or, as one person put it it, “the Soylent crowd who hate how the subsistence of their physical body interferes with the grindset,” could have easily bought into the product. But cool college kids? Not so much.

Still, this probably doesn’t go down in history as the most out of touch market schemes. Certainly not in comparison to the infamous Kendall Jenner Pepsi Ad from 2017.

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Or the short-lived Dove Facebook Ad, also from 2017, where a Black woman takes off her shirt to reveal a white woman standing in her place. The idea was to imply that the product was for all women. The interpretation was that it promotes white ideals of beauty. Whoops.

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Or when the American Dairy Association made a translation blunder with their “Got Milk?” campaign, when it wrote “Tienes leche?” for its Spanish-speaking audience. This literally translates to “Are you lactating?”

You could also put the recent Sydney Sweeny American Eagle blue jeans ad in this category. The highly controversial commercial might have boosted web site traffic, but sales? Not so much, according to sites like Adweek and Retail Brew.

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Bottom line: brands ultimately aim to serve themselves, and they do so by trying to tap into the potential emotional triggers of their customer base. We know this, but, let’s face it, even the most scrutinous among us might be swayed by the clever or heartfelt story told in an ad. When they majorly faceplant, however, it’s a lot easier to see their true intentions and a good reminder to take it all with a grain of salt.

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Check out Budweiser's powerful Super Bowl ad celebrating immigrants.

'Go back home!' — a message immigrants have been hearing for a while now.

In 1857, a man named Adolphus Busch arrived in America.

As an immigrant from Germany, he stood out.

Some people didn't like that.

Like many other immigrants in the 1800s, he faced hardships on his journey to find his new home.

But he finally made it to where he was meant to be.

Busch, of course, is the Busch of Anheuser-Busch — the world's largest beer producer. And it's his American story being told in a new Super Bowl ad for Budweiser:

As Slate reported, the ad is a more sensationalized version of Busch's past. Nonetheless, it sends a bold message.

Given today's political climate, the ad's pro-immigrant sentiment has people talking.

The ad — showing Busch overcoming xenophobic attitudes held by early colonists — was released amid talks of President Donald Trump's controversial U.S.-Mexico border wall and just days after Trump signed an executive order banning travel to the U.S. by green card holders and refugees from seven predominantly Muslim countries.


The ban prompted protests in airports across the country. It resulted in Attorney General Sally Yates being fired by Trump for refusing to defend its legality. Lawyers swooped in immediately, many working pro bono, to defend those affected in transit. And dozens of celebrities and influencers slammed the ban as an attack on civil rights.

And believe it or not, Anheuser-Busch dove into white-hot political territory with this ad ... on accident.

Demonstrators protest Trump's travel ban in Chicago. Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images.

Anheuser-Busch didn't intend for the ad — which it's been developing for nearly a year — to be political.

The commercial was conceptualized long before Trump's travel ban was signed and the announcement of his controversial proposal to pay for the U.S.-Mexico border wall using an import tariff.

The brand wanted to "celebrate those who embody the American spirit" by recapping one of its founder's early days in America — not throw in its two cents when it comes to immigration policy.

Marcel Marcondes, vice president of marketing at Anheuser-Busch, said in a statement (emphasis added):

"Budweiser’s Super Bowl commercial highlights the ambition of our founder and his unrelenting pursuit of the American dream. ... It’s an idea we’ve been developing along with our creative agency for nearly a year. We believe beer should be bipartisan, and did not set out to create a piece [of] political commentary; however we recognize that you can’t reference the American Dream today without being part of the conversation."

Either way, it really shouldn't matter what the political climate is — the message of this ad shouldn't have to be a political one.

What often gets glossed over in American history books (besides our horrific treatment of the only non-immigrants in this country, Native Americans) is the fact nearly every ethnicity and nationality endured some form of discrimination upon arriving on our shores.

When the Irish settled, they were seen as lazy, unintelligent criminals. Italian-Americans were deemed superstitious and violent — an ignorant group that was prone to terrorism. The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 halted immigration from the East Asian country — even while Chinese-Americans made up less than 1% of the population — in part to uphold "racial purity."

A Muslim woman attends a prayer and rally event against Trump's travel ban in New York City. Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images.

Today, Latinx are fighting back against a wave of xenophobia — one that's often exploited for political gain. Black people are still trying to overcome the systemic racism that's lingered from slavery and the Jim Crow era. Muslim Americans are witnessing a surge in Islamophobic terrorism against their communities. And just about every other minority group faces its own hurdles in the form of hurtful stereotypes or prejudice.

We have our work cut out for us.

America is a flawed but marvelous melting pot reflecting a big, beautiful world. And whether Anheuser-Busch meant to or not, its ad sent a powerful message every one of us should keep in mind now more than ever: We're all welcome here.