The general sensation that politicians are disconnected from reality gets even more pronounced during a downturn, often contributing to anxiety. Several years ago an infamous incident showed Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero’s disconnect from everyday life: During a TV debate with citizens, a man asked him how much a coffee costs, and Zapatero answered “80 cents,” 40 cents under the actual price. “Zapateros’ coffee” became a classic media buzzword, indicating how out of touch politicians are with their countrymen.
Earlier this year, as Spain’s consumers continued to grapple with high unemployment and other effects of the downturn, JWT created an 80 cent “ZP’s coffee” promotion for Dunkin’ Coffee. Since this low price had existed only in the optimistic mind of the prime minister (nicknamed ZP), we made it real, demonstrating that a “better world” can exist! With only point-of-sale marketing—copy read “This month, have a coffee with a different frame of mind”—the “ZP coffee” got significant media coverage. This simple way of leveraging a catchphrase put a smile on people’s faces and transmitted the brand’s connection with its customers’ needs.
In a downturn, sampling can transform from a call to buy into a generous gift from brands. A few weeks ago, so-called DanceBag parties were organized in several clubs around Spain; they were publicized through Facebook. More than 50,000 revelers left discos with free samples from brands including Axe, Trident, Bic and Smint.
In Spain, the downturn has not yet slowed, and the economy is still under a dark cloud. Brands are feeling this lack of oxygen, and new campaigns are few and generally conservative. One area where we’re seeing some activity is brand stores. This trend is being accelerated by the real estate crisis, which has created lots of cheap opportunities. Finally brands are playing with shops as experience spaces for consumers.
In Spain, television ad spending has dropped since the downturn. So with TV ad time not as profitable as it once was, the government has made the decision to wipe out advertising on the two public TV channels starting in September, to emphasize a clearer “public service” orientation. There will be no more ads on the Televisión Española (TVE) network, and new taxes on private channels and telecom companies will support public TV budgets.
