Muddy Messaging

A large company is currently running a series of ads on the television.  They're pretty bad.  For one they are 100% "Brand X" spots in which their only statement is that the competitor is "bad."  And for another, they're poorly recorded so that some of the actors' lines end up as mumbling.  

What is worse is that their message is remarkably muddy.  I do not know who the target audience is.  The actors involved portray conspicuously "bad" archetypes yet bitterly complain about the competitor, which is, as noted, "bad".  Does that mean that the poor folks buying service from the competitor are awful? (and undesirable?) or is it that even the competitors' base are too dumb to switch?---or, perhaps, are as dumb as the advertiser thinks its own customers are?  No matter which way I look at it, there is no obvious target in mind.

Advertising is expensive and every word, minute, and image counts.  There should be no question who is the intended audience nor how the advertiser will help that audience.  Anything else is a waste of good money.

Bottom Line:  How muddy is your message?  Is it obvious who you are having a conversation with? what you're inviting them to do? how you can help?  Solicit other opinions before committing money to a campaign.  Don't confuse "good" with "bad"!