Subliminal Message

A subliminal message is a message that is hidden in a manner that should hide it from conscious perception. It's then supposed to be perceived by the unconscious.
In other words : you don't know the message is there, but you will act upon it. A famous example is a hidden commercial for popcorn in a movie. There is no real evidence that this technique actually works. But it's still fun to find the hidden messages.

Pepsi cans spell out SEX, 1990
	In a promotional campaign by Pepsi in 1990, the company sold cans with a neon-design. If you stack two of those cans and turn them just right, the word SEX becomes readable. Intentional or not, it proves that sublimal ads can work after all. This fact or fantasy turned a lot of attention to Pepsi. And it obviously still does.
Snopes.com - Pepsi's Got a Lot to Give Did the stacking of two Pepsi cans spell out the word SEX ?

Feel The Curves !
	Coca Cola advertised in Australia with this poster, somewhere during the eighties. Until someone discovered what could be seen in the ice cube on the right ... That's not a bottle she's going to put in her mouth ! The artist, which probably thought it was a good joke (it was), was fired and sued. All posters were recalled and a new campaign was launched.
Snopes.com - Feel the curves ! About the hidden image on a Coke ad.

The Rescuers, 1977
	In the Disney movie The Rescuers, one of the animators built in a joke. During a flight scene, something odd is visible in a window in the background. This would be barely visible in the movie, but it's very clear in this frame : a naked woman in the window !
Snopes.com - The Rescuers Naked woman in The Rescuers.
IMDB - The Rescuers The Rescuers on IMDB.

Laid by the best
	This ad appeared in the British Yellow Pages The title is of course already double in itself. But if you turn the picture upside down and cover part of it, you can see a young girl fingering herself. I think this is the most convincing example of a subliminal ad, possibly also a joke. What else would the picture of a drinking woman be doing on an ad for flooring ?

Pack of Camel Cigarettes
	In something as complicated as Camel fur, one can always recognize things which aren't really there. All kinds of things have been written about what can be seen in this Camel. But I found this shape and Manneken Pis (on the Grote Markt in Brussels) just too simiral to be coincidence ! Look at the front legs of the camel and you will see the little pissing boy. The national symbol of Belgium, how about that ?
Snopes.com - Joe Carnal About hidden images on a pack of Camel cigarettes.

Carrefour
	It could just be me of course, but it took me a long time to realize that the logo of Carrefour (a chain of supermarkets) actually shows a white character C.

Coca Cola Man, 1886
	If you put the Coca-Cola logo on its side, and add a little fantasy, you can see a smoking man. Some sources say it looks like a person snorting cocaine, but let's keep it to the smoking shall we ...
Snopes.com - Cokelore Snort The hidden man in the Coca Cola logo.

Junior Jazz Dance Classes
	This is a hilarious example of what happens when you design a logo without checking it afterwards or asking a second opinion. About half of all people will first see a naked woman's torso here. I did't even know there was also a dancing couple until I read the title of the ad.

Wikipedia - Subliminal Message More about subliminal messages.