RIP to beige bullshit

My mom drove a green VW bug named Zelda (back in the early 80s).

And of all the cars she's had since (Toyotas, Hondas, a Volvo), Zelda's the only one she still talks about.

And that's cuz people remember things that break the mold.

Back in '62, most car ads were parroting the same old shit: bigger, faster, more luxurious.

Then some old-school madmen at Doyle Dane Bernbach dropped this absolute A-bomb:​

White space everywhere.

Tiny-ass VW Bug floating in space like an afterthought.

It looked like a freakin' layout oversight...

But it CRUSHED and turned the Beetle into a piece of American pop culture recognizable even to people born decades after the last one rolled off the assembly line.

Why? Because while every other car company was flexing the masculine bigger, better, more vibes, VW leaned into their supposed weakness: size.

They also stressed simplicity over luxury or power, which was legit unheard of at the time.

They said: Yep, it’s small. Weird-looking too. But it’s reliable, cheap, and a good option for regular peeps.

It was honest as hell. Human. A straight-up gut punch to competitors.

And it slapped America in the face with a new kind of advertising that was raw, unapologetic, and honest.

I see this ad as an early precursor to a paradigm marketing shift that's quietly gathering steam as I write.

High-gloss, overhyped, too-good-to-be-true-sounding copy doesn't work like it used to.

In 2025, people see hundreds of ads every day, and their first instinct is to doubt everything.

Look, we’re all up to our ears in bullshit 24/7, and I know you know this.

So if you want people to believe you, you’ve got to stop hiding behind slick corpo-speak copy that plays it safe.

Be bold. Say what most people in your space are afraid to admit. Be willing to embrace what makes you unique and different.

Say shit that really matters to your ideal customer and stop trying to appeal to everyone with a pulse.

Sound like you—lead with what makes you different, say the real thing instead of the safe thing.

That's why people still remember the VW Beetle.

It wasn’t the fastest. Or the flashiest.

But it had the guts to show up differently on purpose.

Do the same, and you won’t need to fight for attention.

Later,

​Graham

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