Brand Icon Goes Off Leash, Parents of Frightened Children Don’t Like It

Experiential marketing is good stuff. When done right, it helps connect brands and consumers in meaningful ways. Yet, sometimes the message goes astray, or the messenger, as the case may be.

Take Denver Water’s “toilet man”. He shows up at events around the Mile High City and reminds people not to flush precious water needlessly down the drain. It’s an important message that can’t be trusted to two-dimensional ads alone. Or broadcast for that matter.
Yet, this particular spokescomode is not always welcome. According to Denver’s alt weekly, Westword, the character scared some kids playing in a fountain recently.

I don’t think the toilet meant to scare them, but you have to admit that a giant toilet appearing out of nowhere and running through the fountain is a bit weird. A couple of concerned parents looked like they were just a second away from tackling it — like security did two years ago at a CU vs. CSU game, or last year when guards at Rapids game stopped the running toilet.

[via The Denver Egotist]