June 2008 - Posts - Devil's Advocate - Blogs

Knock me down with a feather! - Brussels makes a good point

In tune with British public opinion, as a matter of principle I'm apt to disagree with anything that emanates from Brussels' colour-blind committees. However, I have to admit, I believe they've got it right in demanding a minimum point-size for text printed on packaging. ........................................................................................................................................................................ The EC is proposing that no type for mandatory info should be less than 3mm in size. In old money, that's the equivalent of about 12-point body. While most product managers are in their 20s (and have yet to succumb to hypermetropia), the majority of consumers are not (and many have). As it is, about half the population needs specs, and half of them can't read small type. ........................................................................................................................................................................ We all interpret the 'small print' as the stuff they have to put there but don't want us to read. It's such a blatant covert tactic (if you'll excuse the oxymoron) that I'm rather amazed nothing has been done about it before now. And how can the FSA seriously justify the hoo-hah? (Extra waste packaging, they say.) In this day and age, surely any food producer worth its salt wants to be honest with its consumers? ........................................................................................................................................................................ As all marketers know, bigger equals more readership, so smaller must mean the opposite. You won't find many logos set in 5-point type, and the hacks who sell their words daily go to press at nothing less than 10. It seems Brussels has a point.

Posted Jun 26 2008, 11:53 AM by Ian Moore with no comments

You're in the Army now

I read last week that advertisers - the Army being the example cited - may be censured for painting an incomplete picture of the product or service on offer. The Army, it seems, along with promises of a first-class training, a useful trade, and the chance to see the world, would also be obliged to mention that it might be the last job you ever do. Now, call me thick, but on two counts I did have to pick myself up from the floor thoroughly shell-shocked. ................................................................................................................................. For one - and surely I hardly need mention this - isn't the primary role of a soldier to put him or herself into the line of enemy (or in some cases, friendly) fire? Otherwise one may as well become an aid worker (although I'm not convinced that sounds any safer, these days). So it would be rather stating the obvious to run a recruitment campaign on this basis... and surely not misleading to anyone but the most recently arrived Martian to take for granted that the audience knew the implications of taking the Queen's shilling. ................................................................................................................................ Secondly, and more salient from a marketing perspective, is the naive understanding it shows of the motivation of an advertiser. Why would anyone stump up the cash for an ad that positively unsells their product? (Okay, some people do this unwittingly, but that's another story!) Of course, we all get taught in Kommunications Kindergarten that our messages must be legal, decent, honest and truthful... but nowhere did I come across a requirement to write a comprehensive essay detailing all the pros, cons, benefits and risks. It would be the stuff sleeping draughts are made of. ................................................................................................................................ In some parts of the world firms are obliged to state the odds of winning if you take part in one of their sales promotions. (Not a bad idea, as it flushes out the paper tigers.) But imagine if organisations were forced to include in their advertising your chances of not surviving the product experience. 'Go green. Cycle to work. It's 50% more dangerous than driving.' 'Take up golf - you're only 300% more likely to be struck by lightning.' 'Used Car. Nail. Positive death-trap.' ................................................................................................................................ While we'd all enjoy the imposition of such regulations upon prospective politicians and standing Government ministers, to expect marketers to shell out for so-called 'balanced' advertising is incomprehensible. I suspect throughout the million-odd years or whatever it is that Homo sapiens has been around, there's been an unwavering tradition to use benefits in order to sell. There's also a long-established principle of caveat emptor. It's the real world.

Posted Jun 23 2008, 10:45 AM by Ian Moore with 1 comment(s)

Look out Manchester - here we come again!

The impending drinks crunch in Scotland could soon make the recent Bluenose exodus to Manchester something of a weekly affair, and no need for the Old Firm to join the Premier League in the process. Have you heard about the Scottish Government's proposals to limit sales of evil alcohol north of the border? (Probably not, if a recent report on regional news coverage is anything to go by.) Allow me to enlighten you, before the kilt-clad booze-cruise hordes arrive at a supermarket near you. .................................................................................................................................................................. Unless Big Bruss steps in with its anti-competitive size 12s, it seems Wee 'Eck is determined to implement a regime of minimum pricing for drinks products in the off trade. That could mean a brand like White Lightning going up by 75% overnight. (What I'd like to know is who gets the extra margin?) (Or should I re-phrase that as Tesco?) On which note Tesco Value Lager would need to increase by 32%, Strongbow by 27% and McEwan's Export Premium by 35%. ................................................................................................................................................... The idea is that products that contribute to binge drinking and antisocial behaviour will become less popular by dint of their unpopular price tags. Curiously, Buckie - uniquely named and shamed as a troublemaker of a tonic by several former Government ministers - is apparently already sufficiently expensive, and doesn't fall foul of the new regulations (to be). They'll be dancing in the streets of Buckfast/Andover/Raith etc. ........................................................................................................................................ Other plans include the banning of 3-for-2 type offers (three cheers!), alcohol-only checkouts, and an increase in the minimum age for purchase of alcohol to 21. There'll also be a 'social responsibility fee' for some retailers, to fund the adverse consequences of a market from which they currently only profit (at the yob-ridden community's expense). ..................................................................................................................................... Received wisdom has it that these ideas have got the proverbial snowball's chance of becoming law... but that would be to underestimate the political skills of a regime that is actually doing things that voters approve of. From an SP perspective, I can't help thinking the SNP's siren call could herald the return of a golden era of proper marketing, when brands once again sell on the merits of their proposition... no longer how cheaply they get you pished. (For translation, ask your nearest Scotsman.)

Posted Jun 18 2008, 06:44 PM by Ian Moore with no comments

Don't panic - advertising works

In the early eighties I worked on a brand which - whenever we advertised - consistently saw sales rise by 75% almost overnight. This convinced me that marketing messages can and do break through, and impact significantly upon behaviour. This week we've seen a similar example, as the media - perhaps bored of causing runs on banks - have amused themselves by causing panic at the pumps, by mentioning the prospect of... panic at the pumps. No surprise, really - it's how we get kids to eat their greens ("Don't you dare eat that spinach") - and, if I recall correctly, explained by the NLP theory of the embedded command. Just touch that subconscious hair-trigger with the right (or wrong) word, and you'll have your customer worrying about how your product's going to kill them, instead of calmly buying it. Ogilvy cited a claim that 'Our salt contains no arsenic' as a good (bad) example of sending out an inappropriate message. I find it curious that Sainsbury advertise at the shelf-edge products that they sell at the same price as Tesco. While I understand the logic - and I've gone into print myself in the past to say they needed to do something about their expensive image - at an emotional level I reckon this particular tactic is a bit of an own goal. Certainly I find myself thinking things like 'Is that the best they can do versus Tesco?' (achieve the same price) or 'Oh, Tesco stock this, too' (a store I also shop at occasionally). It seems to raise more questions than it answers, and gets the word Tesco going round in my head, without any negative connotations (which surely is the objective of comparative advertising?).

Posted Jun 15 2008, 04:23 PM by Ian Moore with no comments

Wooden Spoon for Fulfilment

We've been keeping Duerrs sales up, north of the border, for several years now, and I was pleased recently to spot across the breakfast bar that increasingly rare commodity, the on-pack premium offer. Tucked inconspicuously under the marmalade lid was an SLP for a 'Golden Jam Spoon'. Curiosity got the better of me, and I sent off my £2.99, then sat back and waited. Around about a week later (full marks for turnaround), a suspiciously knobbly jiffy bag arrived, crooked labels back and front, addressed to me. I was trying to remember what bit of climbing gear I'd forgotten I'd ordered when out tumbled a rather garishly golden Duerrs-branded spoon that looked like Uri Geller had been up his tricks. Bent double, and then back again, its kinked stem sits remarkably well on the side of a jamjar - so no need to lie it down and make a sticky splodge on the tablecloth. Every B&B should have one. (An idea, perhaps, for the overs?) In the few days between ordering and receiving my spoon, the supermarket's low-loader had arrived with our weekly online shop. 'Thought we'd try some new jams and stuff.' A selection of tall, thin jars with exotic superfillings like cherry and blueberry, brands I'd never heard of. Staggeringly, they've gone down a storm with the kids and grown-ups alike, and - guess what? - the Duerrs spoon works really well for reaching right down inside them (the tall jars, not the kids). Wooden spoon? Well - accompanying the Duerrs spoon inside its bog-standard jiffy bag was a selection of zilch. Yes - or rather no - fresh air only. No coupons, no leaflet, not even a comp slip. No nice little gift-box (just a bit of protective poly). No nothing. What a great opportunity to keep the Mt Difficulty crew brand-loyal to Duerrs... to introduce us to new products in the range... to incentivise us to get out there and buy some more. It's a hard world and a fast-moving one. There's a war going on out there, and every week the consumer's loyalty runs the gauntlet of enemy fire. Sales Promotion is a shield one shouldn't leave behind.

Posted Jun 11 2008, 02:27 PM by Ian Moore with 1 comment(s)

Logo Nogo

A backhanded compliment this week for the marketing industry, as Big Gov unveils its plans to banish logos from cigarette packaging. "Point of sale advertising works," they declare, "But we want to hear everyone's views first." Well, mine - for what it's worth - is this: of course it does. Just ask your nearest shopkeeper. As usual in cases like this I'm thinking 'Are we supposed to be surprised, delighted, relieved, by the uncovering of this great revelation?' Of course, good advertising, design, promotion, works. We couldn't possibly have been pulling the wool over all those clients' eyes for all these decades if it was all just one great job-creation scheme. Good marketing sells! On which note, surely here's an opportunity for some opportunistic *** manufacturer to beat the rush to 'No Logo' ciggies. May as well be first into the market with plain type. And how about a new brand name while they're at it? Since the visual aspect will be diminished, the sound of the word will play a bigger part in persuading the unfortunate smoker it's a good idea to head for that early grave. So we need a nicely concrete name that's easy to remember (a graphic word) and which carries the best possible connotations. Maybe a shorter tube of tobacco, too. Elf Cigarettes, perhaps?

Posted Jun 10 2008, 10:52 AM by Ian Moore with no comments

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Devil's Advocate

June 2008 - Posts

Knock me down with a feather! - Brussels makes a good point

You're in the Army now

Look out Manchester - here we come again!

Don't panic - advertising works

Wooden Spoon for Fulfilment

Logo Nogo

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