When Airbnb put up ads suggesting various ways San Francisco could use the company’s tax payments, it was undoubtedly aiming to drum up good will.
“Dear Parking Enforcement,” one of the ads read, “Please use the $12 million in hotel taxes to feed all expired parking meters. Love, Airbnb.”
[...]
But instead of good will, the flippant tone of the ads, which went up on billboards and bus stops around the city on Wednesday, unleashed a torrent of sarcasm and anger on social media.
— NY Times
Last week, a deluge of anger and annoyance rained down on Airbnb after their new ad campaign popped up around San Francisco. Billboards plastered with phrases suggesting ways various government agencies could better use the roughly $1 million in taxes per month generated by the company were received as "snarky," "passive-aggressive," and plain-old "not cool."
Bright, pastel-colored billboards were plastered with statements like "Dear Public Library System, We hope you use some of the $12 million in hotel taxes to keep the library open later. Love, Airbnb."
"Dear SF Tax Collector, You know the $12 million in hotel taxes?" reads another. "Don't spend it all in one place." An adjacent advertisement states, "But... if you do spend all $12 million in one place, we suggest burritos."
Incidentally, this is a particularly bad time for a PR-mess like this to happen, considering Proposition F, a measure intended to restrict Airbnb-type rentals, will be on ballots this November. Airbnb has spent a reported $8 million to fight the measure.
"We failed you," stated the company's marketing chief Jonathan Mildenhall after they pulled the ads.
5 Comments
haha...free speech can be a bitch
If only it was free.
So it was a big deal that they paid their taxes? weird!
Dear AirBnB,
You're not very smart when it comes to cultivating good will, are you?
Love,
The Public
prop F is unconstitutional...fascism...
Block this user
Are you sure you want to block this user and hide all related comments throughout the site?
Archinect
This is your first comment on Archinect. Your comment will be visible once approved.