Walkers Crisps and Gary Lineker go together as well as salt and vinegar...

Walkers Crisps' latest promotional campaign (published 08 May 2015) is so good you'll want to share it, but they're relying on the fact that you still won't share your crisps! The strength of their brand proposition relies on their consistent ability to deliver good quality, moreish snacks, in a range of traditional flavours as well as delivering new innovations in taste and texture that customers want to keep to themselves. And they've been doing this since 1995 with the ex-England and Spurs football player and now sports broadcaster, Gary Lineker OBE as their brand ambassador. 

The link between crisps and football may seem tenuous but Lineker kicked off his career with Leicester City, which is where Henry Walker, a butcher, founded the company in 1948. He had to diversify to keep his workers busy when meat was scarce in post-war Britain; thankfully potatoes were not rationed and our favourite crisps brand was born. But this is not the only reason for using the ex-footballer to sell their wares... he was football's Mr Nice Guy and was never cautioned for foul play, nor did he receive a yellow or red card. It is this belief in his character that has connected him to the Walkers brand so successfully for so long. It is only the lure of a packet of Walkers that can make him a tiny bit nasty, leading to a multitude of creative ideas that are still paying dividends.

The latest creative idea sees Lineker eating his lunch on a bench and refusing to share his packet of crisps with his colleague. Revenge comes when the co-worker scrunches up his baguette and throws crumbs over Gary who is immediately caught in a pigeon scrum. The campaign is focused on a sales promotion 'Win a free lunch' where 1 in 6 packs will win customers a free lunch up to the value of £4 from selected outlets. The advert is supported by digital and in-store marketing materials. Walkers also encourages customers to join the conversation using the hashtag #CantHelpButSmile.

Walkers haven't changed their creative idea for 20 years but by using a consistently popular brand ambassador who fits well with their brand values and continually evolving the idea into new formats and story lines, they have kept their place as UK market leader and developed a strong and endearing brand personality embodied by Gary Lineker. You can watch the ad below.

 

You can read more about Walkers in this Superbrands Case Study here.

Waitrose, don't you know people are laughing at you?

Yet again, Waitrose is the butt of online jokes and viral posts about their extremely middle to upper class take on an 'Essentials' range. And it's hardly surprising when a basketful of Essential range items in this supermarket could include tinned artichoke hearts, bumper packs of avocadoes and rosemary and sea salt focaccia. It's like every night is dinner at Downton Abbey.

It's hardly the first time the joke has been on Waitrose. The Facebook page 'Overheard in Waitrose' posts amusing quotes such as this one heard in the Harborne branch: "this is disgusting, they've run out of fresh lemongrass and dried lemongrass is just the worse." With 342,693 likes (14/10/2014) and press representation, and probably a high level of shares, this is another example of how the word of mouth buzz about Waitrose is that of amusement.

In 2012, Waitrose's twitter campaign, 'Why I shop at Waitrose...' was hijacked by jokers who instead of talking about the quality of the food wrote quips such as "I shop at Waitrose because Clarissa's pony just will not eat ASDA value straw." Waitrose's management did respond to the tweets with:

Waitrose @waitrose: "Thanks for all the genuine and funny waitrosereasons tweets.We always like to hear what you think and enjoyed reading most of them."

They can take a joke (just about) but who wants to be the brand that is always mocked? And why put yourself in the firing lane repeatedly? Brands need to know who their target market is and how they should be positioning themselves, but sister organisation John Lewis manages to promote itself effectively without its campaigns being hijacked or its product ranges ridiculed.

This is not about whispering in the playground. Social media is accessible to read by customers, competitors and brands themselves. There is no excuse not to know what the buzz is about you. Social media monitoring and environmental scanning is time consuming but an essential part of the marketing planning process. Addictomatic is just one free tool that shows you the buzz about any brand online: http://addictomatic.com/topic/waitrose. You can examine instantly what customers think about you or your competitors and if you're not getting it right, you can adjust the tone or approach to your communications or your use of the marketing mix.

Be proud of what your brand values are Waitrose, and laugh at yourself if you wish - it is a British trait after all, but don't be a running joke if you have no control over the punchline.

When we discovered that Hello Kitty is not a kitty...

My children discovered the joys of dressing cute pliant kittens in dresses during our summer holiday so it was with horror that I returned to discover the shocking news that Hello Kitty, that ubiquitous over-branded merchandising phenomenon that they adore, is not in fact a kitty at all, but a young British girl who lives outside London! It was the biggest branding story of the year! We recently lost the hamster so I was well-prepared for the big talk ahead of me. I sat my daughters down (5 and 7 - old enough to understand but not to reason why) and broke the news to them. "Don't be so silly Mummy, she has whiskers," they both told me. This was taking me towards a discussion that bordered on bodily changes and sex education which I am trying to avoid like the plague so I accepted their proclamation and eye-rolling and made a hasty retreat. Hello Kitty may be a little girl in the eyes of her creators, but it don't mean a thing in our household.

But in fact, there is a good reason for the humanisation of this popular character, I am reliably informed by BBC Newsbeat that Hello Kitty was designed to appeal to Japanese women in the 1970s who were obsessed with Britain and their image of the typical British childhood. The storytelling behind the character enabled the manufacturers to create a strong brand and heritage that appealed to its initial target market and to new markets as they continued with the process of internationalisation, presumably through extensive licensing opportunities. Global markets may be confused about Kitty's biology but her styling is in line with Japanese approaches to art, animation and cartoons.

Giving a back story to a brand by giving it human or animal characteristics can be a successful strategy. The long-running Jack Daniels outdoor ads, often seen on tube platforms, create emotional resonance as you read about his traditional approach to distilling and creating the unique taste of the drink. I have no idea if he was real or not... I don't want to Google it because it would spoil my enjoyment of the ads.

Finding out what animal or human characteristics customers would apply to your brand can also be a revealing approach. In a market research study, we asked customers to think of an animal that would best describe our client... animals like sloth, cheetah or lion quickly tell you all you need to know.

Whether you are personifying or 'animalifying' your brand, fleshing out its bones leads to a better understanding of how to promote it to customers, how to direct sell it to clients or distributors, how to place your advertising, and how to build a strong, sustainable global heritage. Whether your customers accept your version is another story!

Sugary sweet advertising leaves a bad taste in mum's mouth

We’re all well aware for the need to tackle obesity – the effect of being significantly overweight is being borne out by the massive increase in cases of type 2 diabetes, which has been in the news a lot recently.  Children as well as adults are less active and eat more calorific and sugar-laden snacks than their bodies allow and the damage lasts a lifetime.  The issue is so critical that the government is looking to legislate to force consumers and the industry alike to be more responsible.

Filling time on a wet school strike day last week, I treated my children to a trip to the cinema.  As it was teatime when we went, I took water for them to drink and a few nibbles such as little sandwiches, yogurt and some raisins.  I also had a small chocolate bar each for them as an extra treat. 

On arrival at the cinema, we duly queued up to collect our tickets.  Us Brits are so very good at queuing aren’t we?  We moan and about it and tut a lot but do it diligently.  I have to confess I did a lot of tutting when I realised there is only one type of queue.  Whether you want or need snacks or not, you are forced to queue up with young children next to the aisles with big family-sized packets of sweets and pop corn trays advertised in bright, inviting colours.  So here we go, my 5 year old then questions the idea of having those sweets too albeit less dramatically than I feared fortunately.

The promotion went further when the young man behind the counter enquired if I wanted any popcorn, snacks or drinks.  My 8 year old is now joining in the argument about wanting M&Ms.  I am not against treating my children but I resent having to discuss it with my children when I have already set the boundaries for this cinema trip – besides a family sized bag of chocolates is too large for two small children. 

Advertising and promotion is of course an important tool whether you’re raising awareness, generating interest, creating desire (there was a lot of that happening with my two at the time) and galvanising action (i.e. sales) and removing all such promotion regarding treats would perhaps harm profits but a responsible marketer gives customers a choice and a queue just for ticket collection would have negated any of these problems and ensured my post-purchase customer experience was a positive one.  

My message to cinemas in this case would be to take action before the government does.

Are you a mug or something?

As soon as England were knocked out of the World Cup, somewhat inevitably, supermarkets and other outlets discounted all the England merchandising hoping to recoup some of the now-wasted investment. Prices of mugs, teddies and even the ubiquitous flag all hit rock bottom, just as our national team have done in their dismal qualifying games.

On a visit to a supermarket on Saturday, the merchandising is still there and it seems they can’t give it away. The displays are shunted to a sorry corner but are nonetheless re-marketed as “summer essentials” – a marketer somewhere is hoping that we’ll want a St George’s flag to adorn the BBQ scene so I guess they’re pinning their hopes that we do actually get a BBQ summer then? Or perhaps they’re anticipating future demand that we will stock up for 2018 – after all, Roy said we’d be ready by then so get a bargain now!

As well as lots of merchandising going spare, one souvenir manufacturer even had to contend with a horrific marketing gaffe by mixing up the most powerful man in the world and England’s Chris Smalling. Trying to sell 2,000 mugs emblazoned with the faces of England's World Cup flops would usually be a hard task, but the hilarious mistake has apparently caught the public’s imagination.

It seems the mug with Barack Obama’s face as a defender is proving popular as a novelty item, with the BBC reporting a quarter have been sold to people in the US and that there are "not many left".

Thankfully for the poor newbie who made the mistake, and the naughtier manager who obviously didn’t proof it properly, it seems they have unconsciously tapped into something Americans perhaps love about us – our sense of humour. Marketers have long-since known that those across the Pond love our accents, the royal family and our straight-talking brashness (thanks to Simon Cowell’s brand) and now it seems they love our humour, however unintentional it was on this occasion.

International marketing has many facets – the main one is ensuring you understand and respect cultural differences. If only marketers here had thought a bit harder:-

· Postman Pat had problems in Japan – the cartoon character is drawn with three fingers – a sign he is a member of the Japanese mafia (Jakusa).

· Honda introduced their new car "Fitta" into Nordic countries in 2001. If they had taken the time to undertake some cross cultural marketing research they may have discovered that "fitta" was an old word used in vulgar language to refer to a woman's genitals in Swedish, Norwegian and Danish. In the end they renamed it "Honda Jazz".


Our message to the poor soul who made the error – don’t worry. A) it could have been worse – Chris Smalling’s picture could have been put on the USA team’s mugs and B) a certain future on the US comedy circuit awaits you should your apprenticeship not work out for some reason.

Look into my eyes and trust me

"Look straight ahead into the flashing light. Keep your eye focused straight ahead… not much longer.  Great we’re all done." And so it was that, last week, I got laser eye surgery at London Vision Clinic. In about 20 minutes, my 20 years of glasses and contact lenses were history.

The procedure was quick and painless and so is the recovery and it’s just a pity it took me two years to pluck up the courage to have it done.  The decision making process was long but very straightforward due to the fact I have spent the better part of my marketing career in the healthcare industry and know my way around.  The information search was as routine as the surgery - I knew which clinics had the best reputation and I checked out the top surgeons (some I knew of anyway) and so I was confident in my choice.  What took the time was courage development!

So what about those who don’t have that knowledge?  How do they evaluate the alternatives?  All surgery has risks and for so-called elective procedures these must be more carefully evaluated especially for more radical cosmetic procedures such as liposuction.  Rates of cosmetic surgery in the UK are high – nips and tucks are booming business.  There is a plethora of procedures and a vast range of clinics to choose from.

The advertising is similar, the positive website reviews don’t vary too much, the before and after pictures are mainstream so does it come down to deciding which surgeon is the best?  Well that was what clinched it for me – but apparently a third of those opting for cosmetic surgery are flocking to clinics abroad for cut-price procedures and a suntan too.  That’s a great holiday to have if all goes well, but it often doesn’t and cosmetic tourists return home with poor results as well as jet lag and duty free.

The price dictating the quality of the surgery has got to be a bad idea.  I am all for bargain hunting on the high street but getting smoked salmon from Aldi is hardly what we’re talking about here. 

The post-purchase evaluation for me is overwhelmingly positive and none of the associated risks materialised.  I have paid a bit more than others with the same result but you can’t put a price on peace of mind.

Britain's Got Talent & Brand Loyalty - it's a yes from us!

Yet again, the Britain’s Got Talent final is nearly upon us. Now in its eighth series, we're about to feast on all that is talented and British (and Spanish, Canadian and French)! Together with other popular culture shows such as the X-Factor, I'm a Celebrity, The Voice and Big Brother, how does BGT manage to stay around? Viewing figures may ebb and flow and Big Brother even changed channels but we still switch on every Saturday night. You could say there’s nothing else on and nothing better to do but we can stream TV programmes and films to our heart’s content! 

So if it’s not inertia, it must come down to loyalty.

So how do we generate sustainable brand loyalty? Here are our top 5 tips:

1. Tap in! Tap into your target audience’s needs and, crucially, try to “own it”. BGT creates family entertainment that you can watch while eating your Saturday night takeaway. It’s mostly inoffensive, suitable for all ages and has no direct competitors on the other side. Create a unique offering that suits your target market and delight them; they'll come back for more.
2. Keep on innovating, don’t settle: to be successful a brand has to change and adapt but it doesn't have to be top flight all of the time. Any brand, regardless of resources can focus on ensuring design, communications, packaging or customer care are delivered in a way that is superior compared to others. Make sure that you are outperforming on the factors that are most important to your customers.
3. Get engaged with your customers! One thing that often sets top brands apart from the followers is the ability to communicate and engage with their audiences. BGT has a great app that replicates the big red buzzer and can be used during the programme. It doesn't matter how you engage with your customers – whether it’s through apps, social media, or shaking a bucket at the village fete – just make sure it suits your organisation and your objectives.
4. Remember your long-term faithful customers: after 8 series, BGT has to consider its original fans as well as find new ones (some who may have been too young to watch previous programmes). These original fans are the ones who complain about changes in format or the competition's rules - it's not what they signed up for but they may like the spin-off shows which gives them more of the auditions they love! Remember, if you only offer superior deals to new customers, your existing customers will complain with their feet. Generate genuine loyalty by looking after your existing customers and hopefully they'll spread the love to new fans too.
5. Use your personalities! For BGT, it’s a carefully selected team of judges. For other organisations, it could be inspiring or entertaining figureheads, social media with a face (we love First Capital Connect’s customer service Twitter feed) or even a celebrity endorsement in your communications. Nobody loves a faceless grey organisation; show off your individualism and unique selling points!

So if you want your brand to be more than just a one-trick pony, with a sustainable base of fans, use your talents wisely! 

Ann & Cheryl

Get in and get on with it!

As well questions such as “how much should I write” or “what should I write about” or “when do I have to write it by”, one of the additional questions I get at assessment time is how do I get on in marketing? 

So, in the spirit of a bit of careers advice, herewith my top 10 tips:-

1. Bigger isn’t always better: many believe (incorrectly in my view) that you must work for a big big brand with a massive budget to be viewed as successful.  Whilst that may work for some, in the earlier days of a marketing career in particular, marketing roles in big corporations tend to be pretty routine and lack exposure to marketing strategies.  Smaller firms may give more accessibility and scope to progress.  One of the best marketing roles I had was where I grew the role from nothing into a department, brilliant experience.

2. Know your balance from your breakeven:  finance stuff can be scary and a little boring let’s be honest here.  However, having some idea about numbers is a good thing for marketers.  We get dissed by the finance manager if we perpetually look blank at finance related questions.  If you are not keen on numbers, find someone who is to talk you through the basics of budgeting at least.

3. Make a new friend: in connection with the above, the finance manager (who you are now trying to impress with your knowledge) should be your friend not foe.  Work hard to get to know him or her so that they don’t roll their eyes at your budget.  Get them on side and keep them there.

4. Network: there are some events where you can do this externally and keep your eyes open to opportunities, but networking indoors with people from different levels in the organisation is equally valuable especially when restructuring or redundancies are being considered.  If you’ve been noticed by other managers, that could help.

5. Keep up: keep up to date and stay there.  Your marketing knowledge is a tool that needs to be used and sharpened.  Get to know the latest developments and do this continuously as marketing constantly evolves and change and so should you.

6. Quality not quantity: just because you are first to arrive and last to leave doesn’t make you the next top marketer.  You are likely to be wasting time as no-one can be that effective from 7am til 7pm so focus on what you are doing, not how long you can do it for.  Use time away from the office more productively by doing a course, reading, or attending events rather than pecking away at your pc looking busy.

7. Try mentoring: many in the profession who’ve been around a while are happy to give advice and give your career the once over.  Professional bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Marketing run a mentoring scheme to help you take the next steps.  Don’t ask, don’t get is what my mother used to say!

8. Act professionally: you will get noticed for the wrong reasons if you don’t fit in.  Whilst I am firmly against the idea of everyone being the same (this is marketing after all!), if you stick out like a sore thumb then you won’t get that break.  If it’s a “suited and booted” company then that’s what you should be.  Many larger corporates are like that so if you insist on wearing your beach attire you need to rethink your choice of organisation, or your wardrobe....

9. Enjoy it:  There’s very little point if you don’t.  There are lots of facets to marketing:  branding, communications, planning, design, research etc etc so there’s no reason to get stuck in a rut.  Find what you like to do and move from a job into a role.

10. It’s not about the money:  well it is, of course.  We all need it to function but if you don’t think it’s enough then look around to compare your role with an equivalent one.  Set out what you do and why you’re worth more.  Pick your moment to discuss it properly with your manager.  It may be a “no”, or a “not yet” but ask for a plan as to how you can achieve a higher salary.

So in summary, get the right cultural fit for you, learn new skills including financial ones, pick up hints and tips from those around you who can help, look the part, be professional particularly when it comes to asking for a salary increase and enjoy it.  

I don't care what it's called... just give me the drugs!

Woke up today feeling dire (cough cough) so I instantly reached for the medicine cabinet to find anything resembling Nurofen. In our house, we call anything that fixes headaches, fevers and pains Nurofen but the reality is that it's only my husband who will cough up a few quid for the real deal. I am a bargain shopper and am totally sold on Tesco's copycat ibuprofen tablets for 32p! They do the same, they look the same, they taste the same, but I save about £1.40.

Once a drug patent expires and the pharmaceuticals company has recouped the cost of R&D, other manufacturers have the right to manufacture and market a generic drug like ibuprofen under their own brand name like Anadin Ultra or without a brand name like Tesco's own label version. Sometimes the inactive ingredients may vary making one better or easier to absorb than another but in most cases, there is no difference at all.

So why do customers still pay more for an expensive version of the same drug just to contribute to the manufacturer's marketing and profit margin? It can be down to education - not knowing that the formulations have the same efficacy. It could be because those customers are not price sensitive. It's probably because they believe and trust the advertising claims and that they like the brand, its values and its packaging. And it can also be about heuristics: I always buy this brand and I have confidence in it. You can also think about when that purchase is made... in a relaxed shopping situation where you can browse the list of ingredients and make a price comparison, or running into the chemist to grab a solution to your blinding migraine - in that case, an instant decision may be made on which packet you trust to cure you the quickest. Regardless of the generic competition, Nurofen is still the fastest growing analgesic brand globally and leads the pack in the UK, Australia and New Zealand - the drugs work and so does the branding.

Are you at a crossroads with your brand?  Can a model help you decide which road to take?

Before I look at that, what does developing a brand actually mean?

The American Marketing Association defines a brand as the "name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's goods or service as distinct from those of other sellers”.  In order to do effectively you’re going to have a clear idea of what needs to be done so perhaps there is a model that can help you.

 The above model is by De Pelsmacker et al (2004).  Essentially the model seeks to reflect the different elements you need to get right or address to build your brand in your market place. 

Most of us would agree that it’s a good reflection of the need to be different; innovate to stay ahead of the game; add value particularly where others don’t; be about quality offerings (look at John Lewis) and, once again, look to them for management and employee support and finally communication is vital if you are to get this across to your market.

However for the model to be really useful, it needs some evaluation in there, hence my addition of the traffic lights.  By evaluating each of the elements carefully and scoring your brand’s performance you could see where you need to stop and think (red), tread carefully and evaluate further (amber) and yes it’s ok for now (green).

Assessing your brand

Let’s take each factor in turn and you score them out of 10.

·         Innovation – perhaps you once lead the field and regularly innovated either the products, the processes, technology or all of those things.  Do you do that now?  How do you compare to the rest of the market?

·         Differentiation – this is difficult to do in a competitive market so how do you differ from the rest?  What do you do that’s new, different and better than the others?  Do you communicate it effectively?  Starbucks’ heritage is a key differentiator but how really different is the brand compared to Costa Coffee?

·         Communication – has your brand got a tightly blended communications strategy?  Does it have momentum and reaches key stakeholders in the community and not just your customers?  Is there consistency in your messages?

·         Quality – how high is the quality of the finished product?  If your brand is in for the long haul and strong growth is important, then it needs to be a high quality product.  Children’s toys manufacturers have to adhere to high quality standards to meet legislative requirements.  Hornby toys also has a strong heritage and enduring quality.  Will your brand be around in 50+ years?

·         Management and employee support – are you a John Lewis?  Probably not but what is the culture of your business?  How well your brand performs internally is as important.  How do you score?  Are there management silos or an open, creative environment?  Do you have brand ambassadors or are they saboteurs?

·         Added value – many brands score well on product extensions which makes them nice and stretchy.  However does it really offer customers something more?  Does it have a loyalty scheme?  Is the quality of the merchandising high?

Nearly finished the journey now and it’s time to score each out of 10. 

4 or less? It’s a red light – stop and think carefully about where to go next. 

5-7 points?  On your marks, it’s amber. 

8 or more? Green for go.

Not wanting to continue too far along the road analogy (but sorry I just did) but it doesn’t happen overnight and building the brand is a continuous process so like every model you use to do market analysis, you should refresh it regularly and watch for upcoming hazards on the way.

Ann Prayle