Creative advertising and marketing ideas often go viral on social media – receiving attention for the uniqueness of their conception or execution. However, a recent viral ad example has received mixed reactions online for its unconventional approach. A person took to X to share a photo of “human ads” being used by a food delivery app. On closer inspection of the same, one can make out that the company in question is called Swish and that it is promising food delivery “in just 10 minutes.” The photo, reportedly taken in Bengaluru, shows people carrying the lit-up billboards on their backs as they walk on the street. Three such ads are visible in the viral post. Check it out below:
VC : how much funding do you need ?
Startup : 5 million $
VC : what’s your customer acquisition plan
Then : Human ads
VC : Take my money pic.twitter.com/67BkVHLG1j— Roshan (@roshanonline) December 6, 2024
Also Read: How A Frenchman Built A Rs 50 Crore Sandwich Business In Bengaluru
The X post has received over 135K views so far. In the comments, some people have expressed curiosity about how successful such ads can be. A few have pointed out that this is not the first time “human billboards” have been deployed by a brand. On the other hand, many X users claimed that the concept made them feel disturbed/uncomfortable. Some called it “dehumanising”. Check out some of the reactions below.
“Worse kind of advertising.”
Worse kind of advertising— Vivek Gupta | Fat Loss Coach (@vivekguptaa) December 6, 2024
“If I see ads like this, I will find the option to block that app in the PlayStore.”
If I see ads like this, I will find the option to block that app in playstore— Nikhil Kumar Aggarwal (@_Nikhilkumar25) December 6, 2024
“I don’t know how one sees this and doesn’t feel sick in their stomach.”
Idk how one sees this and doesn’t feel sick in their stomach— Aneekavat Thakur 🇮🇳 (@aneekavat) December 6, 2024
“I can’t put a word to it but seems weirdly inhumane.”
I can’t put a word to it but seems weirdly inhumane— ripcap (@ripcapitalmgmt) December 7, 2024
“Nothing new… come to Delhi you will see this all over the place… Sarojini , Lajpat, KB, KNags list is pretty long…”
Nothing new .. come to Delhi you will see this all over the place .. Sarojini , Lajpat, KB, KNags list is pretty long..— Soumen Mukherjee (@soumenm) December 9, 2024
“Imagine you are in a park, want to relax and these people start walking with bright advertisements. Same on busy street as well. It might lead to negative publicity.”
Imagine ur in a park, want to relax and these ppl start walking with bright advertisements. Same on busy street as well.
It might lead to negative publicity.— 🇮🇳 Chandrashekhar 🇳🇴 (@shekhar_kotekar) December 7, 2024
“Maybe it’s just me, but human ads make me so sad, they’re walking around with that heavy thing on their backs for god knows how long.”
maybe it’s just me, but human ads make me so sad, they’re walking around with that heavy thing on their backs for god knows how long— pri (@achuupri) December 7, 2024
NDTV Food has reached out to Swish for a comment but they have not yet responded.
