Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Brand, Brands, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Luxury, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Mediocrity
A few weeks ago, a friend of mine sent me this picture.
Yes, they’re varieties of soap but I realised they’re also an incredible ad for the power of brand and brand advertising.
No, I have not lost my mind. Yet.
You see of all those soap brands, 2 resonated with me the most: Imperial Leather and Shield.
That doesn’t mean I didn’t know the others – I did, or most of them – but Imperial Leather and Shield stood out because both played a part in my childhood.
But it’s the position in my mind they have that’s the bit I found fascinating … even more so given I’d not thought about them – let alone used them – for literally decades.
You see in my mind – thanks to their advertising – Shield is still the young and exciting brand. A soap for modern times and new generations challenging conventions and traditions [whatever the fuck that means]
Meanwhile Imperial Leather is a symbol of status and luxury used by the wealthy and elite.
Who am I???
What’s wrong with me???
I’m talking about soap for fucks sake. SOAP!!! The stuff you wash your face and bits with …
But thanks to childhood gullibility and the power of brand advertising, these connections and emotions still exist, despite being decades older and ‘allegedly’ wiser.
What makes me laugh is that Imperial Leather would have a few pence.
Sure, maybe it was more than some of the other brands, but still pennies rather than pounds – and yet, like Vienetta, After Eight Mints or a Hostess Trolley – it created an impression of being very aspirational, even though everyone knew you could pop down to Asda and fill your trolley up with them with no problem.
And while times have changed, the power of brand remains … which is why it surprises me how few companies really invest in it, probably because so many are either fixated on the short-term, think brand equates to spending a fuck-ton endlessly reinforcing rational product features that only they care about or have fallen for the sales patter of the ‘ego guru’™ who – for a price – will tell you their system which they say guarantees an easy path to untold success when all it does is sell category conformity.
Which suggests that for all the possibilities and technicalities that modern marketing practice like to champion, it appears it has [conveniently] forgotten what drives and creates – and what is needed to drive and create – sustainable, premium priced value.
AKA. Brand thinking. Brand investing. Brand behaving.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Brands, Context, Corporate Evil, Creativity, Culture, Cunning, Customer Service, Devious Strategy, Effectiveness, EvilGenius, Experience, Management, Northern, Perspective, Planners, Planning, Provocative, Relationships, Relevance, Reputation, Resonance, Standards, Strategy, Stubborness, Wieden+Kennedy
Maybe it’s because I’m British …
Maybe it’s because I’m naïve …
Or maybe it’s because I’m privileged …
But I’ve always been pretty shit when it comes to ‘negotiating’.
That changed quite dramatically when Metallica’s management taught me both ‘the value of value’ and how procurement is a game … but even now, there are situations where I feel weird to push back.
Ironically, the thing that snaps me out of it is not confidence, but disgust.
Recently a company sent me a bill that was 49% more than the previous year.
My situation hadn’t changed.
I was a long-term customer of theirs.
I had not used their services any differently than any time before.
And yet they sent me the invoice without explanation or consideration.
And I was pissed. Properly fucked off.
And while I could have just walked away, I wanted to play them at their own game.
I should point out my goal was not to get a price reduction; it was more so I didn’t feel a mug just blindly accepting their shit.
I wanted to feel I’d pushed back …
That I wasn’t a pushover …
And while I suspected they wouldn’t care – or maybe even notice – what I was doing, it was important for me that I did it.
Short story is I rang them up and ‘had a chat’ before ending up with all the price increase being removed.
Every last penny.
And while you may think that means ‘I’d won’, the thing is my definition of ‘winning’ had changed … which is why once I got the reduction, I informed the company I wouldn’t be working with them anymore and why.
Petty?
Sure.
Pathetic?
Possibly.
Pointless?
Maybe.
Unprecedented by me?
Errrrm, no.
But as my old Wieden boss – the great Jason White – once told some people, I’d asked him to meet,
“Be true. Be transparent. Believe they want to do the right thing with the right intentions. But if you suspect they think they’re hustling you … make sure you’re hustling them right back”.
Which is why, if you want to know the real art of ‘strategy’ – both in terms of effectiveness and creativity – don’t follow the methodologies or tools flogged by the never-ending list of Linkedin Pundits, study cats or petty bastards.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Attitude & Aptitude, Brands, British, Comment, Communication Strategy, Creative Development, Creativity, Distinction, Family, Fast Food, Innovation, Luxury, Marketing, Marketing Fail, Mum & Dad, My Childhood
When I think of the ads I saw when I was growing up, there are so many for categories I just don’t see – or don’t see much – any more.
Cream Cakes.
Carpet Stores.
Digital Watches.
Stranger Danger Campaigns.
Maybe they’re still happening and I don’t know it because I don’t watch much TV … but given I work in the industry and I don’t hear about them – let alone see them – it does feel they are campaigns of a bygone age.
But of all these category of ads, one that is burned into my mind is Smash.
Smash was a mashed potato brand.
It came in a packet and by adding boiling water and stiring vigourously, you’d get masses of creamy mash.
The original ‘fast food’.
This approach to food prep was space-age technology back in the day … which is why the ads featured alien robots who were so impressed with the technological advancement that Smash represented, they chose not to invade Earth because they felt they couldn’t compete with our innovation, despite the fact the humans they had been secretly watching were – to put it lightly – thick as shit, given their traditional choice for mashing spuds.
I know. I know … sounds bonkers doesn’t it, so have a look at this early ad to see what I mean:
OK, so it was bonkers.
But as you can tell, it was all most definitely tongue in cheek, however – as demonstrated by the fact I am writing about them decades later – the alien robots soon became iconic in British society.
Still are in fact. At least for people of a certain age.
But despite this – and despite being 54 years of age – I’ve never eaten Smash.
Not knowingly, at least.
Not because I don’t like it or don’t like the idea of it … but because my parents never allowed it in the house.
Just to be clear, it wasn’t because they were against such manufactured ‘convenience’ food – we used to eat Angel Delight for fucks sake – but because compared to boiling some spuds and mashing them, it was too expensive.
I say all this because recently I walked past a Prada store and saw this.
Now I am sure they didn’t intend to create the ‘luxury version’ of the Smash alien robots, but they’ve created the luxury version of the Smash alien robots!!!
And while this decision could open a lot of conversations about a lot of different subjects – from the changing definition of luxury, the influence of nostalgia, generational creativity and the overall decline in the quest for originality – the biggest thing it did for me was prove my parents were right in believing SMASH is an expensive indulgence for people who want to short-cut their way to satisfaction rather than earning it.
Or something like that. Probably without the judgement on the character, motivations and aspirations of those who would bung it on their evening meal plate.
Still would give my left arm to eat some.
Which is why Prada would probably be disappointed to learn that their ‘robots’ have made hungrier to eat SMASH mashed potato than to buy and wear their clothes. Or worse … anyone seen wearing a Prada coat can be called a ‘Jacket Potato’.
In terms of branding disasters, that has to be up there with these classic [bull]shitshows.
Filed under: A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Agency Culture, Attitude & Aptitude, Brand, Brand Suicide, Brands, Comment, Complicity, Consultants, Context, Corporate Evil, Creative Brief, Creative Development, Creativity
Kind-of following on from yesterdays post, here’s another post about the power and importance of understanding.
Ever since I got in this industry – when dinosaurs still ran around the planet – I’ve been surprised at how many companies spend millions upon millions on consumer research but still end up knowing so little about them.
There’s a billion reasons for this – some of which are understandable, though with a major emphasis on the word ‘some’ – however the reality is far too many make the mistake of looking for things that suit their agenda rather than their audiences.
Nothing sums this up more than those who call it ‘consumer research’ … because by naming it that, they not only reveal their attitude towards the audience is that they’re walking wallets whose only value to them is they ‘buy stuff’, but also that they believe the only thing they need to do is identify functional and rational problems ‘consumers’ have in relation to their category and future success is assured.
This literal, narrow-minded attitude can be seen everywhere.
In every category. In every country. In every media.
Hence we end up with the same approach to the same problems in the same media with the same messages over and over and over again. Where success is increasingly defined by adherence to an approach rather than a fundamental or disproportionate impact on how people feel, act or behave towards who you are or what you stand for.
Except at award time.
Oh then, it’s amazing how the rules change.
Then it’s all about standing out rather than blending in.
Doing things that make a difference rather than reinforce a conformity.
But even then it often falls short, because what’s done is more about what lets you express your ego rather than doing something that reflects what people need or want.
Of course not everyone is like that …
The best places tend to do stuff that’s based on how culture and humanity live, not how marketing wants wishes they did. And they do this all the time, not as one-offs or on one ‘pro-bono’ client.
It’s why I always find it funny when I see brands or agencies being given massive accolades and yet you don’t understand how that happened because you don’t recognize anything they’ve done. Even when it’s explained.
Sure there are some circumstances where that may happen, but when that happens with a global player or a local competitor, you can be sure there’s something fishy going on.
The reality is I love this industry.
It has given me a life I never dared imagine I could have.
But seeing it fuck itself over and reward itself for taking shortcuts drives me literally insane. Even more so when you just have to look at what’s going on in culture and see far more provocative, imaginative and powerful examples of creativity solving real problems without the need for proprietary processes, eco-systems or questionable research methodologies.
Paula, Martin and I talked about this at Cannes a couple of years back.
I wrote about this even further back.
But when you see a 17 YEAR OLD develop a long-term, sustainable idea that not only shows real understanding of a specific audience, but how to use creativity to enable them to deal with the challenges and issues they face – rather than simply communicating the problem to more people – you have to ask whether all the processes, practices and tools our industry is seemingly obsessed with adopting and celebrating are helping us get better at what we do or moving us further away from the very thing we were once brilliant at, highly valued for and incredibly effective in helping drive business and brands forward.
Filed under: 2025, A Bit Of Inspiration, Advertising, Apathy, Attitude & Aptitude, Brands, Collaboration, Communication Strategy, Creative Development, Creativity, Culture, Emotion, Empathy, Experience, Fulfillment, Love, Music, My Childhood, Pearl Jam, Relationships, Relevance, Resonance, Respect
Following on from yesterday’s post about Duran Duran, we have another musical post.
Except this isn’t about exploitation and re-definition, this is more a ‘blast from the past’.
I know this is going to make me sound old – it will also make me sounds a total hypocrite given I’ve always loved music for its melody, rhythm and vibe rather than its lyrics – but I got sent this clip of a crowd at a Pearl Jam gig from a few years ago and I love it.
OK, so part of it is because I like Pearl Jam.
Another part is because I have always loved the song they’re performing – Black – which is on what I consider their finest album, Ten.
God, that album is magnificent. I remember being blown away when I first heard it – probably in the Tap and Tumbler, around the corner from Rock City where anyone going to Friday Rock Night would head before a night of head-banging.
But whereas back then, my favorite song was ‘Alive’ … the lyrics of Black pulled me in over the years.
“I know someday you’ll have a beautiful life
I know you’ll be a star in somebody else’s sky
But why, why, why can’t it be
Oh, can’t it be mine?”
Maybe it’s because I became more of a sentimental, romantic fool … but I find them so beautiful. And as I said, I’ve never really been a lyrics guy … hell, I can’t even remember lyrics to songs I wrote back in the Bangkok Shakes/Virgin Records days. But those … oh I fell in love with them, probably the first time I saw Pearl Jam live [1992] and heard the crowd sing them, like in the video above.
For someone who is not religious, when I hear a crowd sing, it becomes very spiritual for me. A transcendence into something I can’t quite explain. A feeling of deep connection with those around me with a deep belief we’re creating something special together. It’s why I also love pentecostal music … except, like most music for me, it has little to do with the words, and more the vibe and emotion.
But ‘Black’ is different …
Probably because it reflects a specific time in my life where I was balancing joy and pain in equal measure. Coming into a time of my life of freedom and exploration but also deeply aware of a darkness that was seemingly trying to engulf all that was important in my life. With that in mind, I can’t think of a more perfect band to create the soundtrack to your life like Pearl Jam.
And while watching that clip does take me back to those times, it is superseded by a general feeling of joy. Watching the crowd not just witness something special, but being an active participant in the moment. Acting like their own instrument. A crowd infected by audience members scattered all around who show and lead the way for them to form an impromptu orchestra of vocal harmony and cacophony. It’s fucking beautiful … amplified by the fact there’s few camera phones. Not experiencing the moment through a screen. But a total connection and presence.
Hey, I’m as guilty as the next person for videoing and photographing gigs … it’s a way to capture a significant moment you can enjoy for years. But I do wonder if it is ever quite as significant as you would get just being there, lost in nothing but the sounds and emotions you’re all creating and feeling together.
It’s why I find it interesting more and more artists are saying their concerts are ‘smartphone free zones’. Not because – like in the 80’s – they had sold the photographic rights to concert images to a 3rd party, but because when an audience looks at them through the screen, they feel there’s a barrier between them and the energy they get back from the crowd.
As I’ve written before – both here and here – it’s a two-way street.
And while some may say, “it’s not my job to make the band feel good because I’ve paid them money to make me feel good” they’re missing the point.
Because while it’s true money ensures you receive a certain level of passion, consideration, commitment and effort from the artist in their performance … the more you contribute to the experience, the more you all get out of it.
It’s why the best creative work isn’t made for clients who dictate and judge, but those who appreciate they play an important and integral role in creating the conditions for it to go – and get to – magical places.
In the creative journey, there is no room for passengers.
And yet, too many carry energy vampires and toxic stowaways.
The sooner clients get this, procurement departments get this, marketing practice ‘guru’s’ get this, media agencies get this and ad agencies get this … the sooner we will all be able to create moments that deeply connect to rather than just shout and bore.
It’s down to us.
It won’t happen by itself.
So what happens next is down to all of us.
One by one. Job by job. Meeting by meeting.
It won’t be easy, but my god … it will be worth it.