Advertising for the eclectic UC Berkeley campus can be challenging. The stress and the surprises we’ve experienced in Berkeley can overstimulate us, so it can be pretty difficult for companies and organizations to grab our attention. But we have noticed some eye-catching and downright bizarre ads this semester. We thought we’d share our favorites:
Tattoos and Scrapbooking. Near Amtrak, the Tattoo Expo and the Scrapbooking Expo were advertised right next to each other. They weren’t on the same day or at the same location, but just the fact that they were advertised using the exact same method is pretty funny.
Reek Food. We feel kind of bad about this one. While we’ve never tried Souvlaki’s on Southside, we imagine their food doesn’t actually “reek.” Unfortunately, that’s what their sign, which should read “Greek Food,” implies to passers-by.
WTFWJD? The Lutheran church certainly caught our attention with this banner for its Wednesday night discussions. We never stopped in, but we appreciated its eye-grabbing spin on WWJD. It stopped us and made us think, “Did I really just read that?”
STOP driving. Nothing like a friendly little bit of Berkeley activism. Most of us certainly have stopped driving since we came to Berkeley. We saw this sign one day when we were searching for apartments. We did not drive and instead walked ― and walked and walked ― from as far south as Parker to as far north as Hearst.
Cone of shame. Blueprint Test Prep appealed to Berkeley’s love of dogs and Cal students’ love for Pixar’s “Up!” by incorporating this downcast dog in its advertisement. We read deeper into this ad: The LSAT and other graduate school exams can be full of pain and shame, just like what this dog must be experiencing right now. Poor puppy. We hope he or she healed up soon after this photo was taken.
What funny signs have you run into in Berkeley this spring? Share your findings in the comments below!
Contact Jessica Rogness at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @jessarogness.