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Viagra in the Mid-East

A couple of days ago I thought of an ad I once saw in Saudi Arabia many years ago (2002, I think). So, trying to be the best ad blogger I could be, I tried to find that particular TV commercial. The commercial I saw was a spot for Viagra but even that I am not sure of. All I know for sure is that it was a commercial promoting some erectile dysfunction medication.

Now before I tell you about the commercial you should know that television in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East in general is highly censored. You should also know that I can’t recall every exact detail of the commercial but I do remember the important points of the spot. The spot involved a vending machine and some Saudi dollars not being accepted by the machine until they get some Viagra.

The main point I am trying to make with this story is that in countries like Saudi Arabia and others in the Mid-East agencies must be very clever and creative to get around cultural taboos. It is not permitted to display affection between the sexes like what is shown in Western media. Therefore, to make people understand the message of the Viagra commercial, the message is often cloaked in metaphor.

Now I could never find the spot involving the dollars and the vending machine but I found another spot involving fast food soda cups and straws. Please remember I saw the vending machine spot many years ago. It’s a similar idea in that Viagra gets its point across without using men or women only inanimate objects.

I Believe the ad agency is Young & Rubicam, Jeddah, but I am not certain how accurate that information is.

Best,
A.B.

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