Business Thoughts, Rants and Observations, Stuff I Like

being worldly (and people are people)

small world

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“Change your thoughts and you change your world.”

Norman Vincent Peale

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This is about marketing communications <and good advertising>. And this is also about the globe, or let’s say, the people around the world and the interesting fact that often, more often then we may think, we are pretty similar with regard to our quirks.

First. Let me say that any time a marketer can actually do something that may suggest that people are people, wherever they are, people like it.

Uh oh.

That may sound contrary to marketing 101 <and marketing experts> in that most everyone invest a lot of energy expounding on ‘individualism’, personalization, and ‘treating everyone one-by-one’ and, well, you name it when it comes to making people feel distinct and special.

In fact. This rhetoric has gone to such an extreme that it seems like everyone suggests that ‘mass’ anything is bad.

This is wrong.

Well. Not wrong all the time, but in point of fact, we often like to know that our quirks are not just ours. We often like to know that while being ‘individual’ we aren’t so weird that, well, we aren’t weird.

Embarrassing? Sure. Weird? Nope.

It’s nice to smile and say ‘hey, I do that too.’

*** note: Byron Sharp and Ehrenberg Bass have a lot of smart high falutin’ theories along these lines in How Brands Grow which is a smart companion to this piece today.

Second. I actually have an olderTV ad where they figured out a way to suggest exactly what I just described.

Chevrolet.

singingin-the-car dog This is the one that suggests people in cars all around the world terrorize their fellow travelers with their singing.

Ah.

Singing in the car.

I imagine I have never really thought about it, but why wouldn’t everyone anywhere make a fool out of themselves … uhm … have silly fun … singing in the car.

Now I know <and I have Chevy to thank>.

Chevy suggested that the Chevy Cruze is ‘loved in 119 countries’ and have attempted, fairly well, to showcase that it is loved by not focusing on the cars, but on those who are in the cars — and the fact that maybe we’re not so different after all.

Chevrolet Cruze TV Spot, ‘New World’: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lWZIO6j-MQ

Is this a spectacular tv execution?

Of course not.

It is excellent not because people will be talking about it or it will become a viral sensation <although you could do a very fun viral campaign similar to what Pharrell did with his Happy song … Happy every hour>, but instead because people see themselves in it. It may not make me buy a Cruze <it will not>, but that does not make it an ineffective piece of communications.

It is good. And well done.

And I find it funny to know that people in their countries are just as ‘weird’ as I am as well as pretty much everyone I know.

Sometimes a great insight to develop great communications is NOT about ‘being different’ or ‘unique’ but rather in ‘we are not so different.’

Well. advertising talk to people hugh

That last sentence would drive a shitload of strategy thinkers to some heavy drinking <and lots of angst> and begin questioning their career. Strategy, or developing a good insight, is not some formula that anyone can pull out of some magical bag, or do, insights are called insights because someone sees something “in” that matters. Please note I didn’t suggest disruption or anything grandiose. All I suggested was that an insight is about having the sight to see something within life or people to highlight.

And not everyone has good eyesight.

In the end?

I say “well done Chevy.”

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May 22, 2023 by Bruce

Written by Bruce

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being worldly (and people are people)

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being worldly (and people are people)

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