Well, that's one way to sell cars.
Volkswagen of India decided to create a buzz around the brand by putting a vibrating black box in ads the appeared in Indian newspapers.
The company ran the two-page vibrating ad in various Indian newspapers, including the Times of India, Autoblog reported. On the first page, the tagline reads "Feel the shiver of excitement?" On the second page a light-sensitive box starts vibrating.
But the ad was mocked by readers who related the vibrating box with sex rather than a Volkswagen vehicle. Some reactions include:
Volkswagen India's little black box didn't get such a positive response, and the company reportedly has not responded kindly to the criticism.
A sexist tweet was allegedly sent out from the Volkswagen India account directed at females who made fun of the vibrating ad, according to Jalopnik. However, the tweet has since been deleted.
The tweet reportedly read: "Women would be dumb to call it a vibrator. Or maybe that do not understand real driving experience #PunIntended #Volkswagen #Creative."
"Dumb on so many levels," quipped Jalopnik's Matt Hardigree. "First, not only women were making the joke. Second, it's just offensive. Three, don't imply women can't enjoy driving you chauvinist dickweed. Fourth, unless puns work differently in India there's no pun there. #puntintended, #punnotachieved."
It is unclear whether Volkswagen India posted the tweet.
According to Wired, Volkswagen first used a black box in September of 2010, when the car company inserted an audio advertisement into the Times of India:
Volkswagen paid the publication to fit an audio chip inside the pages (above) that plays in an endless loop until you close the paper, according to tech blog Digital Inspiration. For power, the chip appears to incorporate a photodiode, a photo detector that converts light into current or voltage. That’s pretty clever.