The NERF brand stands for "Non Expanding Recreational Foam" and was introduced to the world in 1970 as the world's first indoor ball. True to its origins, even to this day Nerf still produces foam sporting goods and foam firing blasters, and has expanded into non-foam related areas (Hasbro's questionable decision to brand its Super Soaker and Lazer Tag lines as Nerf puzzled many of us) but we're now really starting to see the brand being flogged off in all different shapes and sizes.
Coming from a communication pedigree, I totally understand why they'd want to exploit Nerf as a brand; for Hasbro it's not only the market leader but also one of the few brands they have that defies the odds in a struggling toy industry. The thing is, they're merely slapping the logo on totally unrelated products, and that for mine, just doesn't do it for me. If they had put mounting brackets on these cameras for instance- say for a way to attach your camera to your blaster via tactical rails- I would see the link to the traditional Nerf blaster. As they stand now, a paint job or orange and yellow doth not maketh a Non Expanding Recreational Foam product.
The slapping the brand on scooters and skateboards is also a shameless plug of a brand on something totally unrelated. If the scooter had a way to mount your Nerf blaster to it, I'd again understand the link; OR if these were JUST promo items that were given away at events or competitions then I could understand that they were meant to promote the brand. But these are actual Nerf branded products.. again with nothing to do with Nerf as it stands.
I'll pass thanks.:)
Huh... The skateboard and scooter are new to me. I ran across the camera a few weeks ago, as well as the MP3 player, both surprised me as to their price; way too high for their capability. I have a friend who's a Nerf completionist, and he was certainly interested. I wanted to get him one for Christmas, but... Yeah, I let him know what I thought of that idea...
ReplyDeleteWhat really bugs me is the Nerf name is being flaunted everywhere now on so many different products that don't seem to fit together. Though the NERF name's status as an acyronym is debatable, it really stands as an irrelevant point--why bother spontaneously flaunting the name now? I guess what bugs me is that I can't quite understand the target market Hasbro is going for... Are they looking into using Nerf for all outdoor activities? Or are they really just trying to shill out the brand name to the nearest kid with intent to sell... And what irks me most of all is this enormous lineup of products, yet not a single T-shirt in sight, even though they were advertised at Toy Fair in 2010!
It's Nerf or nothing. I understand their branding policy as good business, but unless it shoots I ain't buyin' it.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of these products before, but I'm with you on this one. Using the name to sell products that have nothing to do with what NERF is really about is sad.
ReplyDeleteIT'S NERF (foam weaponry) OR NOTHING!!
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