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'I hate this so much': People slam disturbing billboard

A “creepy” billboard campaign along a major motorway has proved to be unpopular with drivers lambasting it on Facebook.

A woman posted a photo of one of the billboards in Lansing, in the US state of Michigan last week.

“I hate this so much,” she wrote.

The billboard features a man’s eyes staring directly at the viewer with no text.

A billboard with eyes seen in Lansing, Michigan.
Drivers don't seem to be fans of this billboard in Lansing, Michigan. Source: Facebook

“My feelings on this sign: Nope. Nope nope nope nope nope. NOPE,” one woman wrote.

Another woman questioned the campaign and asked, “Who thought this was OK?”

Other people on Facebook called the billboard “creepy” and “unsettling” but one question remained on viewer’s minds: What exactly is the billboard with the big eyes actually trying to sell?

One man wrote he has “no clue”.

“It might be a psychological speed deterrent,” one man wrote.

“There was that famous study where they taped a picture of eyes above a communal coffee pot that recommended tips, and found that the presence of the eyes subconsciously made people more honest and tip more.

“Could be the same idea here.”

Well, it turns out the billboards, owned by Adams Outdoor Advertising, are trying to sell advertising space.

So, they are actually advertising… advertising.

The spot along the motorway in Lansing isn’t the only place the eyes have been seen either with WKFR 103.3 reporting they have been spotted across southwest Michigan too including Battle Creek and Kalamazoo to the south of Lansing.

It’s not clear exactly why Adams chose to use eyes on its billboards, but presumably it’s to grab people’s attention, which if the Facebook thread is anything to go by, the campaign has achieved exactly what was intended.

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