When you care enuff to send the very best?

[Roxane]

From another source:

Please cross post immediately!
Everyone in rescue and all the puppies in the world, especially the CHRISTMAS puppies who will be sold because of this commercial ask for your help!
Has anyone else seen the new Christmas commercial from Hallmark? Tonight (11-19-00) I was cringing as the two lovely children asked their parents for PUPPIES for Christmas. Then on Christmas morning, both the kids AND the parents are surprised when Santa leaves three yellow lab puppies!!! Oh NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Please go to www.hallmark.com (http://www.hallmark.com) and fill out their feedback form under "Contact Us", then click on "other information". I believe that is the place to request that they take this commercial off the air immediately!
*************
Roxane & crew +2

[Oscar's Mom]

Thanks for the info. I just sent an email to Hallmark.

[Mickamack]

Here's the email I sent:

I would like to comment on a commercial that Hallmark has recently put on TV for the holiday season. It shows two children asking their parents for PUPPIES for Christmas. Then on Christmas morning, both the kids AND the parents are surprised when Santa leaves three yellow lab puppies.

This commercial may seem cute and cuddly because it involves both children and puppies, but it's message could prove very harmful for potential pets everywhere.

Seeing this commercial, kids all over will be asking their parents for puppies for christmas, and more than likely, their parents will get the puppies at pet stores.

Pet stores do not buy their dogs from reputable breeders, but rather puppy mills. Puppy mills are atrocious places filled with disease, filth and squalor. They abuse and torture innocent animals for the sake of greed. The NBC news show "Dateline" recently did an expose on the horror of puppy mills. Not too cute or cuddly, huh?

Your commercial encourages people to go out and buy dogs for their children, which will more than likely come from puppy mills. If you don't think your innocent commercial could have that effect, think again! The Disney movie "101 Dalmations" would seem innocent enough right? But it encouraged thousands of people to go out and buy cute little dalmation puppies for their kids, and then once the novelty wore off, many of the dogs were abandoned or left at the SPCA to be put to sleep. The only people who made off on that deal were Disney, and the puppy millers who made a MINT off breeding dalmations.

Please, don't do the same with your commercial. Don't encourage people to go out and buy pets for children for Christmas, not without a message to make sure they don't buy them from a reputable breeder or adopt them from the SPCA.

Pet stores that sell animals are only furthering the cause of the puppy mills and are only making money off the abuse and torture of other animals.

Thank you for hearing my complaint and I ask you again to rethink airing the commerical about puppies.

[dutchman]

I've added my comments. I also referred them to the rspca site I posted to this group last week.

Tom

[Owen's Mom]

Did anyone see the new Discover commercial.. It involves a petshop, a man buying a dog for his daughter... ARGGGHhhh!! Very maddening. It's supposed to be tounge in cheek, but it basically says "When you're buying a petstore puppy, use your Discover Card"

So Sad!
~~Amy~~

[Wienergal]

Good catch, Roxane! I've sent my two cents too! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/wink.gif

[Roxane]

You folks always come through. Tom, have you seen the Discover Card commercial Amy mentioned? You are so good at digging out information, maybe that is one more complaint we need to register.http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/mad.gif
Because of all the response about the new Disney film, they put a disclaimer at the end of the movie. Forgive if this is something you all already knew. But it does prove a point, doesn't it?
Roxane & crew +2

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Roxane on November 20, 2000 at 09:30 PM</font>

[Penny's Aunt]

BTW, when you contact a company about something like this, be sure to tell them that you've changed your mind about buying their product or watching their show.

Nothing really catches their attention unless it affects THEM.

[Tryergirl]

Well.. I searched the Discover card web site and found this address to make comments/feedback:

https://services.novusnet.com/data/ems/emsform.html

So if anyone wants to write and make a complaint about that commercial.....

And you're right.. while it is supposed to be tongue in cheek, it is very much a "use discover to buy puppy store puppies" commerical. UGH. <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm23.gif" border=0>

-TG

[Mickamack]

This is the response I got back from Hallmark about my email...

"Thank you for your note regarding our HHOF television commercial
entitled "Santa's Cookies," and your concerns about impulse buying of
animals for gifts. We understand this is a sensitive issue for you and
appreciate your willingness to share your views. Our intent was not to
encourage the gift of puppies rather to share a family oriented vignette
that portrays the magic of Christmas and the emotional impact of the
greeting card.

All consumer viewpoints are considered in future plans for products and
promotions. We will share your comments internally.

Thanks for contacting us. We truly appreciate your interest in
Hallmark."

[Roxane]

Haste makes waste! I did this once and must have hit the wrong button.
1. Thanks Tryergirl Friday, I will write. I was in such a rush, I thought it was Tom that answered.
2. Mickamack at least you got a reply. That must have been some letter! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/bounce.gif We know now, they are hearing us.
3. PA you are right, so very right!
Happy tomorrow, gobble, gobble,
Roxane & crew +2


<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Roxane on November 22, 2000 at 06:55 PM</font>

[Penny's Aunt]

I got mostly the same response from Hallmark that Mickey's Mom did. Of course, I probably wasn't a polite as she was. I gave 'em both barrels.

I've reached the point in life where I only ask one question: ONE shotgun shell, or TWO?

[Roxane]

Sue, that poses the question:
How many shells does it take to shot a Hallmark Turkey?
Thanks for the laugh,
Roxane

[Wienergal]

I got the same response from Hallmark that Karen did--with an apology for taking so long to get back to me and an explanation that they had an unusually large volume of mail....

So THAT'S good! Off to write to Discover now. I'm a cardholder, so that gives me an eensy-weensy bit of clout. I just saw that ad. It infuriated me.

[Wienergal]

Here's the text of the letter I sent to Discover about their pet store ad:

I'm a long-time Discover card holder, so I hope you will take my comments seriously. I am writing about a television ad for Discover that is currently running. It's the ad that takes place in a pet store that sells puppies.

While I understand the humor that your agency was seeking to use, and I understand the ironic nature of the ad, I am asking that you pull the ad immediately.

The ad sends a message beyond the value of spending more money to get more value: It sends the message that buying puppies in pet stores is perfectly OK. It is not. Puppies in pet stores come from puppy mills, the vast majority of which are horribly inhumane breeding facilities, where dogs are bred literally to death, where they live their whole lives in cages and never walk or run or even touch grass, and where the health conditions are often deplorable. DATELINE did an hour-long expose of this problem recently; I'm sorry your agency was not aware of the problem of mills when it did this ad for you.

Many of us are out here working long hours as volunteers, rescuing dogs from these places and trying to educate the public about NOT buying puppies from pet stores. All of our efforts can be oblitered in 60 seconds by a slick ad like yours.

Please do the right thing. Pull this ad and make sure your agencies don't make such irresponsible ads in the future.

Thanks very much for listening.

Here's the response I just got:

Thank you for your recent e-mail. The Discover Card television advertisement is intended to position our valued cardholders as a smarter group of consumers by highlighting clearly over-the-top comedic situations that would never occur in real life.

We regret if any individuals have taken offense to any of our commercials. We appreciate the information you provided and have forwarded your concerns to the appropriate department for review.

Once again, if any individual has interpreted our advertising to be offensive in any manner, we sincerely apologize.

Typical corporate BS. A smarter group of consumers? Well, this smart consumer will be returning her card, cut into tiny pieces, with my next bill. Any other Discover card holders out there? Tear 'em up!
<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm23.gif" border=0>

[Susan's Freddie]

Pamela,

Very good job, WELL written and to the point!
NOW....I look at it this way; it doesn't matter WHAT type of credit card it is, plastic money is plastic money. SO, if they (Discover) think that their customers are TOO smart, well then why not have AMEX do the commercial? I just do NOT get it!
The commercial CLEARLY (I have not seen it, but I take your word) sends a message to buy on IMPULSE. Unfortunately, the majority of our society is UNeducated about Puppy Mills. So therefore, there is going to be a lot of people walking into a pet store and making a $800-900 purchase!http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/frown.gif Do I make sense? I'm sorry Discover agency, but your cardholders are NOT any different! DUH!<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm9.gif" border=0>

Susan

[Tryergirl]

I found a new web site that might be useful, especially in situations like this. It's called www.planetfeedback.com (http://www.planetfeedback.com) - a web site that helps you get letters to the right people, and makes sure you get a response. I haven't explored the site throughly, but it could be really helpful.

Only problem - they may be more fill-in-the-blanks than descriptive about the issue. We'll see. I think I might try this out, and let you know how it works.

-TG

[Roxane]

Tryergirl, thanks for the webpage. I have bookmarked it to look at and possibly use when I have a bit more time. My guesstimate is that will be sometime in June, the way things seem right now!http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/lol.gif
Pamela, super letter, typical corporate reply. Is the inference that you, unlike the vast majority of Discover card users, do not understand satire? Oh puuuleeze! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/mad.gif
May I lend you a pair of very sharp scissors?
Roxane, G, B, S, B

[Wienergal]

Discover will never know what hit them. I e-mailed Lee Wheeler at HUA to tell her not to put any more of my monthly contributions on my Discover card because I was no longer using it. And I told her why.

She had never seen the ad, but she e-mailed me this morning that she saw it last night, and she was flabbergasted. She is going to write them.

When Lee gets finished with them, they won't have any arms left to lift the BS shovel! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/bad-boy.gif She'll probably send graphic photos, videotapes, and stickers.

By the way, I responded to their corporate response, but it's too nasty to post. I DID say that I had posted their reply on all my bulletin boards, so they should expect to be swamped with outraged smart consumer mail.

[Oscar's Mom]

Way to go Wienergal!!
I also got the same response from hallmark.

[Wienergal]

Boy, and we thought WE wrote tough letters! Someone who runs a rescue BB--not Lee Wheeler--sent the following letter to Discover and gave me permission to post it here. It will be interesting to see whether she gets the same packaged reply that the rest of us have gotten:

******************************
I have a really good idea for a commercial for Discover Card!

Why don't you show a mother taking her teenage daughter down a dark alley and then leading her into a door. Then show a really dirty guy in a doctor's coat with a coathanger in his hand. Then switch to a nice, clean hospital. You can close the commercial by saying "Sometimes it's worth spending a little more--Discover Card"

I think that this will encourage your cardholders to use their cards more during this holiday season, don't you? Sort of a different version of your commercial showing the father and son at the pet store???

Get with the political program, Discover! It is not politically, morally or financially correct to buy a puppy from a pet shop. Of course it is legal...millions of people do it. But so is abortion and I don't see you promoting that on your commercials.

Sorry---my Discover card will stay in my purse this Holiday season---I won't support a company that supports puppy mills!
**************************

[Owen's Mom]

Holy Cow! Now that's a letter!!!!

Love it!

~~Amy~~

[Tryergirl]

Sweet letter!

Well... I used PlanetFeedback, and sent a letter.. (I must admit.. I borrowed a bit.. well a lot from Weinergal) but I haven't heard anything back yet. I'll let you know when I do.

-TG

[georgette]

I used Planetfeedback too - also no response yet. - G

[isobelsmom]

I wrote Hallmark--haven't heard back yet. About this Discover commercial: is this the one where the father and son have a choice between a $600 Beagle puppy and a $50 Hyena (sp?)? Saw that one Thanksgiving day. My dad watched me watching it and said out loud: "Uh oh, somebody is in deep doo-doo," when he saw me getting angry! Then he asked if my "weiner people" were gonna go after them. Smart man, my dad! I'll write to them next as to why I will not use their credit card--but will another company. I love the "coathanger-hospital choice" letter . . .same thing!

mary

[Wienergal]

Mary, your <FONT size="5">WIENER PEOPLE</FONT s>???? That is hilarious!!! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/lol.gif Guess that's us!!

Yup, that would be the ad! Isn't it disgusting???? By the way, I got a response to my SECOND letter to Discover...the one that was too nasty to post here. This one was an actual letter, which said they were "sorry to hear of your continuing concern." And that they would pass my comments on to the marketing doo-dahs. My "continuing concern........" As a writer, I have to wonder who trains these geniuses who write the letters. Yeah, my concern continues, you bozos--it takes up a huge chunk of my life! <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm23.gif" border=0> <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm23.gif" border=0> <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm23.gif" border=0>

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Wienergal on December 01, 2000 at 05:25 PM</font>

[Roxane]

Slipping in for just 2 minutes.
When I finally received my "form" letter from Hallmark I attached it to an email I sent which said:


Since I took the time to send an email that was not composed to be a form letter, would you have the courtesy to reply in kind?
For a company that professes to know what is "the very best" to send, you are making a mockery of your slogan.
To date I know of 4 people who received the same reply from Hallmark.
This really makes me wonder if you were armed and ready to respond, regarding a commercial you knew was of questionable merit.
If you will let me know how many people must complain, for you to pull that ad, I will make sure you hear from them all.
A former customer,
**********************
Roxane

[isobelsmom]

You go, Roxane! Pamela, yup, you guy's is my wiener people!!!! He always asks about this board <IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm42.gif" border=0>

And Pamela again . . .wanna send me your nasty letter so I can take a gander at it? You have my curiosity piqued!

Oh, and I received the same letter from Hallmark. Hmmmm, I sense a pattern here . . .

mary