PFIZER REACTS TO SPOT WITH SEQUEL
By Adnews Staff
Pharmaceutical company Pfizer Canada Inc. of Kirkland, Quebec has launched a modified version of its "Fashion Victim" television commercial that first ran in April for its over-the-counter allergy mediacation Reactine. The spot, from Taxi Advertising and Design of Toronto, featured a runway fashion show being disrupted by an allergy outburst, when one model's sneezing and snot causes those walking behind her to slip and fall. The spot continues with the allergy sufferer/model sneezing on the face of a person sitting in the audience. The "Fashion Victim" sequel launched nationally August 14 with "pop-up video" style messages. According to Pfizer, the humorous messages are for those who felt the ad was a little too edgy. Michael Smith, Reactine brand manager, explained while non-allergy sufferers reacted more negatively to the ad, allergy sufferers gave it a thumbs up. Over the course of the modified commercial, messages including "24% of viewers dislike this Reactine commercial" and "They're probably not among the 1 million Canadians allergic to Ragweed" are seen. The modified spot is scheduled to run until mid-September. Public relations for Reactine is handled by Strategic Objectives of Toronto.