Um…
Capital One Bank’s “Quit Banking Like a Pilgrim” campaign doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. It’s just … weird. We’ve all got impressions of what pilgrims are, and few (if any) of those ideas have anything to do with money. It might as well say, “Quit banking like you wear buckled shoes and knee socks.” Or “Quit banking like someone who’s fleeing persecution from the Church of England.”
I think the intent was to suggest that Capital One is a solution to outdated banking practices, right? But that’s so obscure. The only way this could play well is if “pilgrim” suddenly becomes synonymous with “moron.”
“Ted, why are you so late to work?”
“I locked my keys in the car.”
“Christ, Ted, you are such a fucking pilgrim.”
See? Then it makes sense. I’ll even help spread the new lingo: The folks behind this ad are a bunch of pilgrims.
Location: Boston Subway