The Musings Of An Opinionated Sod [Help Me Grow!]

Almost immediately afterwards, I watched a show talking about the diet of Americans, and their seemingly never-ending quest to be obese.

And this got me thinking.

If cars are getting more fuel efficient, but people are getting fatter – doesn’t that mean that it takes the same amount of power to move people as it did when people were lighter but cars were less fuel efficient?

In other words, are the benefits of fuel efficient cars being cancelled out by the increasing weight of drivers & passengers?

Maybe I’m wrong – I was shit at school – but if that’s the case, maybe it would be good if Toyota gave a diet plan with every car sold.

Or gave a price discount to anyone who is in the recognised height/weight ratio.

Or encouraged people to walk rather than drive to the post box.

First the Hyundai.

Now the Volvo.

2 cars.
Both estates/station wagons.
Both using a similar photographic angle.
Both appearing in exactly the same magazine.

Now while I accept that the price point of the vehicles may mean they’re targeting different audiences [& – to be fair – the Volvo is selling efficiency rather than Hyundai’s style] from my personal perspective, the Hyundai car is way better looking than the Volvo and so if I was in the market for a vehicle like that – even a car that had to be fuel efficient – I’d probably pass on checking out the Volvo and explore the possibilities of the Hyundai.

Now I know what you’re thinking, “… but what if the Hyundai ends up having the fuel efficiency of the Space Shuttle?”

Well, then there’s a possibility I might go back and check out the Volvo, but that’s a hell of a risk for a brand.

OK, I accept the reason I like the Hyundai is because I’m a sad bastard who responds to shiny things more than a magpie, but what these ads highlight is that if you execute category convention ad styles, then you run the risk your audience could directly compare you to a competitor and if you’re not good enough – regardless of the reason – you might lose out.

That might be a good strategy if you’re a challenger brand [“We’re the same, but different”] but it’s not if you’re a market leader and that’s why it’s a bit strange that the brands who need to keep things fresh the most are often the ones that keep things the same.

[Yes, I appreciate I am ignoring how ‘distribution ownership’ is often the key to success – especially with FMCG brands – but this is my blog so I’ll ignore it if I want to]

Of course, the bigger issue is that they are still ‘ads’ and maybe they’d be better off developing an idea that makes people experience the product rather than just show it … however I guess the real point I’m trying to make is that it could be argued the real point of having a strong brand is less about forging powerful & emotional bonds with your audience and more to do with ensuring people find it hard to directly compare your offering to a competitors.

That said, in this case it hasn’t worked for Volvo.

I feel I understand what they stand for way more than what Hyundai stands for, but to be quite honest, I’d rather be seen getting out the back of a sheep than one of those beige Swedish tanks.

Well maybe I’m getting into the festive spirit – or maybe I’m ill – but I’m going to give it another dollop of praise.

OK, so this has nothing to do with the ad, but when I checked out the spot on Youtube, I saw a bunch of links to other John Lewis ‘films’ … except instead of more emotion inducing ads, they were little clips giving useful tips to many of the issues people face at Christmas.

Whether it’s how to wrap presents to errrrm, how to groom a beard, John Lewis want to be there to help you make everything ‘perfect’.

That said, I couldn’t find any tips on how to get over a hangover, stop granny from making racist comments or apologise for telling your boss they were an unmitigated prick at the office Christmas party … but maybe they’re still filming those.

In an industry that likes to celebrate the brands that do the big, statement-making spots … these little films remind us that it’s often the little things that make the biggest difference.

I know Mr Mortimer did a wonderful review of Supermarket Christmas ads [including our London offices freshly launched Tesco work] over on his blog recently.

I know you could argue that last years spot was better.

[Which I don’t think it was, despite being utterly great]

I know you could say the ‘character’ could have saved himself a lot of hassle by just ordering online.

But this spot from John Lewis is – in my opinion – just completely and utterly wonderful.

A simple, genuinely universal premise.

A totally fantastic soundtrack.

A story that’s beautifully shot with perfect grace & pace.

Characters that somehow capture, convey & induce emotion.

Fear, vulnerability, isolation, innocence, happiness, love.

Magical. Totally and unconditionally magical.

Apart from capturing the essence of gift giving [give from the heart, not the wallet] it just makes you feel utterly wonderful.

How just changing the twigs on the snowman’s mouth can make you understand the feelings that are supposedly going through his head is amazing.

We talk about storytelling like its some sort of science, but it’s not really – and this ad shows how it can be done so simply, elegantly and emotionally.

No wonder the agency behind it – Adam & Eve – got recently bought by DDB.

And for an alleged SIXTY MILLION QUID, despite having only started in 2008.

To think I thought we did well when we sold cynic. Talk about a reality check. Ha.

Now whether DDB overpaid is not my issue nor my business, the fact is this agency have created a body of work for John Lewis that has not only differentiated the brand from the copious amounts of competitors, but has created a genuine, emotional bond with people.

Maybe not all people.

But some.

And that’s the sort of gift every brand would like to receive this Christmas.

There’s two to choose from, both classified as weapons of optical destruction.

This clip from the classic Spinal Tap should sum up the sort-of horror you’ll be handing out.