After reading the Sunday papers yesterday, I thought I’d critique a few press ads from the Sun-Herald Life Magazine (published 8 Nov 2009). An interesting mix of fun, wrong and the downright odd!
The “Lets Make Our Brand Cool To Appeal To Young People” Approach
Advertiser: Blackberry 
Headline: Love Hanging Out
So Blackberry wants to broaden it’s target audience from the boardroom to the classroom. It’s a worthy strategy to increase sales and market share; however I can’t help thinking if your dad or mum has a Blackberry for work purposes, why would a teenager or twenty-something want one too! The accepted wisdom is that young people choose their labels/brands/causes/etc. so they can be different from their parents (I know I did). In my view Blackbery would have more success launching a spin-off phone (like ‘Blueberry’ or some other cool name) to appeal to younger audiences. The creative is pretty ordinary too, and why are they even advertising in a newspaper as it’s well documented most people under 35 yrs don’t read papers? Everything about this campaign seems wrong.
The “Quirky Picture Attracts Attention” Approach
Advertiser: Oxfam
Headline: Doing good never goes out of fashion.
A goat with an afro, sunnies and bling around it’s neck – what a great visual to stop you flicking over the page! Coupled with a smart headline that doesn’t play the ‘guilt trip’ on the reader as some charity/cause ads are prone to do. I particularly liked the call to action with its line “be a clever kid” (geddit?) and the SMS word being “Goat”. Hope they got heaps of responses.
The “Reinforce the TVC” Print Approach
Advertiser: Yellow Pages 
Headline: Some things need fixing faster.
Yellow Pages has a long history of creating integrated advertising, and this latest campaign is another good example of this approach. The TVC shows the owner of this garden statue dealing with a plumbing problem by using his Yellow Pages. The message is repeated in this print ad, that works even if you haven’t seen the TVC. Kudos also for showing a laptop and mobile phone that signals these are methods to access the YP database.
P.S. The TVC closing scene is pure fun, when you realise the cause of the neighbour’s broken window!
The “Let’s Be Relevant to Students Doing Exams” Approach
Advertiser: Kellogg’s Sultana Bran 
Headline: Sultana Brain
This product has been on our grocery shelves for eons (well as long as I can remember anyway). It’s well known health benefits, especially as a source of fibre, over- shadowed the fact it doesn’t taste as good as it’s sugar-laden competitors. Now the manufacturer claims it is an excellent breakfast for students wanting to be at their peak for exams. An ideal message for the end of year exam period, particularly the HSC. Although the pack shot visual is uninspiring, it works with the clever headline that converts “Bran” into “Brain” that says SB does much more than keep you regular. This ad would appeal to parents who want to give their child every chance to do well in exams.
The “Be Different For The Sake Of It” Approach
Advertiser: Dyson 
Headline: N/A
The layout is different as there is no headline. Instead the copy is the headline – prominently placed inside the product and goes on and on about the problem of fans with blades and why the Dyson “no-fan fan” is better. Seems to me they missed a great opportunity for a product demonstration as it’s a unique design and seems quite revolutionary. Took me a while to understand what they were banging on about. The copy is too wordy; it should have simply said “Look no blades – for quieter, more efficient airflow”.
Posted by mktgbytes 
