FTAdviser.com

As an editor, I come across all sorts of adverts, some of which get complaints from readers. One especially that gave cause for offence was carried several years ago and featured the kind of gizmo you put in your car that warns you when you are approaching a speed camera.

At the time they were illegal, (and may well still be, for all I know…) Several indignant readers wrote in along the lines of why does anyone need such a gizmo – all you need to do is keep to the speed limit and the need is obviated.

I was caught in the middle of all this because I never saw the advert before it went in. But the advert did not appear again. This was a fairly clear cut case of which adverts are acceptable and which are not, but some circumstances are less clear cut.

What about the question of good taste? Much more tricky. I mention this because I was thumbing through a pinky personal finance paper this week and I came across a full page advert for a company advertising its SIPP service.

This particular advert made me do a double take because at first I couldn’t make out what exactly the picture was supposed to be. I could see that it was the rear end of an animal, and at first I thought it was a cow because of the tail and the dappled appearance of the skin. But it was too small to be a cow and, anyway, a closer look revealed that it had to be an animal of the opposite gender.

It was then that I realised what it was – it was a picture of the rear end of a dog. And then the penny dropped. The message of the picture was that this advertiser’s service was – you got it – the dog’s bollocks. (Although I put asterisks in the heading to avoid offending anyone, I felt it needed to be said here in full to make the point).

And the name of the company with the advert? To be honest I can’t remember – I only remember the ad! But it made me wonder whether I would have agreed to the ad appearing in Money Management if this SIPP provider had deigned to advertise with us. To be honest, I don’t know.

So here’s the $64m question – does this advert make a valid, humorous point that gets the reader’s attention, or is it simply just bad taste?