Nothing But The Same Old Story (And That's Why We Love It!)

This week's post comes courtesy of my colleague Anne Tannam, guest contributor and Brand Manager at Islandbridge.

Recently I was chatting with my colleague (and sometimes brother) about Guinness' 'Made of More' and Smirnoff's 'We're Open' ad campaigns, and his reactions to both.

These ad campaigns celebrate inclusivity and integrity, focussing on individuals who see beyond the restrictive norms of society to our common humanity. In one of their ads, Smirnoff uses the example of Chris Fonseca, an amazing dance teacher, who happens to be deaf, and John Hammond, a music scout, who heard no colour in music.

What's The Story?

With such similar content and messaging (seeing beyond our differences to the bonds of real community), he was surprised how different his response was to both. In the case of 'Made Of More', he felt a strong emotional response to the story. However his reaction to 'We're Open' was more a critical evaluation of the ad and how well it worked.

Simply put, he watched the Guinness ad heart first and the Smirnoff ad head first.

There are many possible factors at play here that may predispose his preferences, one being personal taste, another being tribal (we are Irish and the black stuff flows through our collective veins), but I got to thinking about how we connect with brands through story and though we like some variation to add a bit of spice to the relationship, ultimately, we are looking to hear the same story over and over again, to reassure us that the rules of engagement have not changed and that our shared values remain the same.

A Brand New Old Story

So I had a look online at older Guinness ad campaigns and discovered that Guinness has been telling this story for years and years. The characters and backdrops may change but the values stay the same.  It's a magical story of an individual who dares to think differently, live differently, love differently, and how community is built when we celebrate those ordinary, heroic traits in all of us. It's a universal story and if Guinness were a Pixar film, theirs would be A Bug's Life and Flik the hero.

I asked myself the same question about Smirnoff and what story they were telling and in the end concluded that the ad is less about telling a great story, and more about asserting an attitude, an attitude that is of great value and substance but struggles to reach the heart the way a great story does.

When a brand consistently stays true to its story, it frees up its audience to enter the story and respond, not just as consumers, but as fellow travellers on life's adventures. And of course, in that state of emotional openness, we are much more likely to be persuaded to buy whatever product is on offer. We're got to live in the real world after all!

Over To You

What has been your response to the Guinness and Smirnoff ad campaigns or what other brand stories have you responded to recently? We'd love to hear from you.

Anne works alongside Gerard and the team at Islandbridge Brand Development to help our clients develop a brand framework within which they can build new relationships and strengthen existing ones to gain competitive edge and grow their business. 

A Big McMór Mistake For Irish Food Producers

This weeks' post comes courtesy of my colleague Anne Tannam, guest contributor and Brand Manager at Islandbridge.

For the last few weeks, Dublin city has been awash with advertisements for the Big McMór burger.

It's much the same advertisement that was used last summer but this time around, there's no mention of the word 'artisan'. 

In September last year, McDonalds, having fallen foul of the Food Safety Authority, was forced to remove that misleading tag, but the image still promises us a gourmet experience, with the best and freshest of local produce.

Mór Irish Than The Irish Themselves

Two well-known Irish food brands, Ballymaloe and Charleville (the latter, ironically, not produced in Ireland) are featured in the ad. For the McDonald's brand, they are the perfect accompaniment to their product, giving it the much coveted 'Irish' flavour and the promise of good food prepared with care and attention (I'm smiling as I write this, having spent a summer, many moons ago, working in McDonalds, cheerfully lashing layers of ingredients into burger buns!).

In Too Much Of A McFlurry

Commercially, it's understandable why both Ballymaloe and Charleville were caught up in the flurry to promote their product and increase sales. From a brand perspective however, it's a disaster. McDonalds is all about fast food, the faster the better. Great Irish food producers are all about slow food, 'the good things in life take time' food. Ballymaloe in particular, comes from the home of the Slow Food Movement  in Ireland, and McDonalds is the antithesis of what the movement stands for.

Mór Is Less

My fridge generally contains at least two Ballymaloe products and I regularly buy Charleville cheese. The reality is that now, both brands are somewhat diminished in my eyes and feel 'less' Irish to me than they did before I knew they were key ingredients in the McMór. Brand is all about the story and for McDonalds, being perceived as being somehow Irish is a happy ever after ending for them. For Irish Food Producers however, being perceived as 'Fast Food' is a chapter they may wish they hadn't written.

Over To You

What's your view on this? Can you think of any other Irish food brands that are playing loose and easy with their brand story or even better, Irish food brands that are getting the story just right? We'd love to hear from you.

Anne works alongside Gerard and the team at Islandbridge Brand Development to help our clients develop a brand framework within which they can build new relationships and strengthen existing ones to gain competitive edge and grow their business. 

I Have Called You By Your Name And You Are Mine

A guest post from Anne Tannam, Brand Manager at Islandbridge:

Recently my youngest daughter Sian, just turned eighteen, was queuing for a drink at the Longitude Music Festival. Armed with name and photo identification, she asked for her beer of choice. The barman took her identification and studied it very carefully for what seemed like a long time. My daughter was ready to hotly defend her real age when the barman looked up at her, smiled and said 'Do you know we have a bottle of Coke here with your name on it?'

Yes, I'm Talking To You

That story, along with the empty Coke bottle proudly bearing her name, came home with Sian and it once again illustrated the power of a great brand to reach out to its customers and make them feel special. No matter what age we are or how sophisticated and grown up we become, when someone calls us by our name, we feel special, known, understood. And more likely and willing to engage with the person or company who takes the time and trouble to learn it.

Of course, with an unusual name like 'Sian' that teachers and peers have been misspelling and mispronouncing since she was very small, Sian's excitement at seeing her name right there and spelt correctly may not be a typical response but I suspect that for most of us, seeing our name boldly displayed across a bottle of Coke will at least bring a smile to our lips. And more importantly, from a marketing perspective, more likely to dig into our pockets and buy the drink.

Share The Love With....

Like all powerful brands, it's not enough to simply reach out to individuals. A great and enduring brand must also help create its own tribe, loyal and true to the brand and each other. So what Coke have done is not just put people's names on their bottles; they've created a reason for people to talk to one another, given people a reason to buy a Coke for each other. My daughter and her friends have all bought coke bottles bearing the names of siblings, parents and friends. Whatever shop they enter, they quickly scan the coke bottles to see if there is a familiar name looking out at them.

Over To You

Very few businesses have the budget to put customer's names on their products (nor does it always make business sense) but there are many other ways to build your brand and make your customers feel acknowledged and understood.

• Have a look at the messages currently on your website. Are the messages primarily about how great and wonderful your business is or are they about the problems your customer faces and how you can help them?
• Whether by email, phone or face to face, make sure you address your customer in a personable and genuine manner. Does your customer always get your full and undivided attention?
• Through forums, blogs or simply a call for feedback, invite your customers to share their experiences and stories with you and each other. How easy do you make it for customers to spread the good news?

What other ways can you show your customers that you know and understand them? Please leave a comment. We'd love to hear from you.