Philadelphia-based ad agency Gyro Worlwide caused a stir in the city with a phony campaign designed to prove that newspaper advertising still works. They attraced a lot of media attention for a fabricated airline, Derrie-Air, that charges by the pound. "Pack less. Weigh less. Pay less."

This highly provocative service was designed to attract attention, interest and probably some outrage on a press and consumer level, which it did.  Derrie-Air attracted immediate attention and received immediate coverage on the websites of MSNBC, Newsweek, Business Week, USA Today and over 100 other news sites, as well as numerous mentions on TV and Radio.
 
The phony campaign featured 36 different spoof ads that ran throughout the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News, as well as on their website philly.com, on Friday, June 6th. The ads featured cartoon-ey drawings of a super model, ex-football player and computer geek with slogans like “ Nice Tail” and “Weigh More Pay More”. All of the ads directed interested consumers to the website, http://www.flyderrie-air.com.

Update: Apparently the fake ads are causing a bit of a stir in the journalism world.

Posted by Megan