JWT’s AnxietyIndex is designed as a place to discuss how brands and consumers are responding to the global recession. With daily content updates, AnxietyIndex.com includes contributions from around JWT’s network, offering a truly global perspective.
Earlier this year we wrote about the misguided “Your Singapore” campaign, which was successful in attracting foreigners (the direct target) but agitated local anxieties. By contrast, the ongoing “Pure Michigan” campaign, aimed at stimulating domestic tourism, has additionally served to boost Michiganders’ morale. Seeing so many positive things being promoted helps fight off the darkness among locals. It’s become a “rallying cry” for the state.
Michigan often gets tagged as a Rust Belt state, and Detroit is frequently used as the prime example of urban decay, or outright industrial/manufacturing decline. There’s some truth to this, but there’s much more to this state. “Pure Michigan” shows the beauty and stunning diversity of the state in an emotionally compelling way and gives clear, relevant reasons why people should spend time here or even locate a business to the state. Watch a few of these TV spots; if they don’t even slightly stir some emotions, you should see a cardiologist.
We’ve written about two brands (Heineken and the sports channel Eurosport France) that have created campaigns based around the anxiety felt by soccer fans when they miss important games. With the 2010 World Cup, anxiety in this part of the world centered on the fact that the games were scheduled during working hours: 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. local time. Starbucks saw an opportunity, presenting itself as a solution that would allow people to watch the match and work at the same time. No guilt or stress over hiding from the boss. The other idea: to position a coffee drink as a beer alternative for watching these workday games.
Starbucks gave the World Cup a business breakfast touch. It installed 71 big flat-screen TVs in select branches and boosted its Wi-Fi so that the added online traffic wouldn’t cause problems. People would be able to work as fast as in their offices, but with a richer experience. There were also some World Cup breakfast specials and socially focused promotions (e.g., buy two, get one free). The stores seemed to be buzzing with people, and, more important, many customers (mostly male) started seeing Starbucks differently, as a new place to meet up with friends.
In an arid, hot region, the prospect of a warmer globe is frightening, and our latest AnxietyIndex survey in the UAE found the impact of global warming is now among the drivers of anxiety here. But despite several educational initiatives from the government, consumers haven’t become significantly more green. There’s plenty of room for improvement: The World Resources Institute puts the UAE second only to Qatar in its ranking of countries by per-capita carbon emissions, reflecting years of an oil-rich economy growing at a very fast pace.
The World Wildlife Fund and the Emirates Wildlife Society are behind a visually compelling TV campaign to raise awareness about the link between the UAE’s carbon footprint and consumer behavior. A 2-minute-plus spot encourages people to “be wise about what you buy,” largely by purchasing more local products. “Choosing imported beef, for example, results in a cascade of environmental costs,” the narrator warns, then outlines what some of those are. The ad uses Visual Fluency (one of our trends for 2010) to draw viewers in, with animated newspaper cutouts illustrating the points.
The campaign seems like a good way to start dialing up existing anxiety and motivate behavioral change. It will be interesting to see whether local brands, which haven’t engaged in any real green initiatives so far, take up the cause.
Playing off an anxiety-provoking crisis is a tricky act for a marketer to carry off. Last week we spotlighted how the U.K.’s Nectar is managing this in the wake of the country’s austerity measures, and we looked at how Dawn detergent may see a boost from the BP spill (messaging spotlights how it’s used to clean oil from wildlife). Now two marketers have come under fire for making light of BP’s tainted image.
The effort from Spirit Airlines, a discount carrier that has run cheeky promotions in the past, is insensitive but deliberately so. To promote discounts to Spirit’s coastal destinations, the airline’s home page showed a series of tan, oil-marinated bikini-clad women with copy urging travelers: “Check out the oil on our beaches.” Their sunscreen? A green and yellow bottle of “Best Protection.” Not surprisingly, the reaction has been negative, with people calling the campaign “tasteless” and “offensive.”
Meanwhile, a New Orleans tourism campaign attempted to use anti-BP humor to allay tourist fears about the nearing Gulf spill. TV and print ads used the slogan “This isn’t the first time New Orleans survived the British” with an image of the French Quarter statue of Andrew Jackson, which marks his Battle of New Orleans victory over the British during the War of 1812. BP itself had supplied the funds for the $5 million campaign, part of a larger donation to the state of Louisiana.
“We thought, with all the grief, we would try to turn things a bit lighter and more tongue in cheek,” the president of the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau explained to The Telegraph. But the ad was pulled after The Guardian noted that BP had in effect funded the “anti-British” campaign. Again we see BP making an effort, but no one seems willing to take it seriously, even a recipient of its funds. It’s too bad the slogan was retired—it might be the only amusing (and hopeful) message to emerge from the entire mess thus far.
Australia’s “No Leave, No Life” campaign aims to drive domestic tourism by emphasizing that it’s healthy to take advantage of vacation days (there’s been a trend toward stockpiling annual leave) and that traveling domestically helps to stimulate our economy. “A little bit of leave,” one poster says, “not only helps us out, it gives you the chance to recharge the batteries and reunite with friends and family.” Touring Australia is positioned as a means to “really win the work/life battle.” The work ran in outdoor and print, and the initial outdoor media seemed to follow people on their route to work.
Since the campaign leverages a confrontational tone and a negative insight centering on the overwhelming “work/life battle” we all face, the most likely response is arguably heightened anxiety. Many commuters may be left feeling that they in fact have “no life,” especially given that achieving a work-life balance requires an overall approach—it’s a lifestyle, not a matter of simply taking three or four days off out of 365.
What this campaign does execute well, however, is the digital strategy. A series of Webisodes where actor/TV presenter Ernie Dingo surprises nominated “hard workers” by taking them away for a break effectively communicates how Australian holidays are both inspiring and accessible.
The recent best in show at FAB International’s Food and Beverage Creative Excellence Awards, Tropicana’s “Arctic Sun” commercial shows how the brand addressed a key source of anxiety in the Arctic, tied to its positioning “Brighter mornings make brighter days.” One of the major external sources of happiness for humans is light, and while people in Arctic locations adapt to the circumstances, one of their major stresses is living in full darkness in mid-winter. So Tropicana brought light to Inuvik, in northern Canada, after 31 consecutive days of darkness. A Tropicana team lit up the town with a giant artificial sun, enabling its residents to experience a sunny day–an excellent idea that touches people’s hearts to create an emotional link with the brand.
A Pepsi promotion in Mexico that seemed designed to address consumer anxiety ended up causing some angst instead. The major causes of anxiety in Mexico, a country beaten down by regular economic crises, are uncertainty about future income, job loss and rising food prices. (For more on anxiety in Mexico, click here to download our AnxietyIndex Mexico report.) In the states of Puebla and Veracruz—where poverty rates are high and families regularly struggle to buy the basics—Pepsi distributors launched a promotion in which people could redeem two specially marked bottle caps at small corner stores for an egg (yes, a fresh egg).
The “Now Pepsi is worth an egg” campaign, which ran during April and part of May, was supported with TV, press and, of course, posters outside the corner stores. Problems began to surface when shopkeepers would not redeem the Pepsi caps, even those that displayed the promotional materials outside. Consumers started blaming Pepsi, though the point-of-sale materials stated that Pepsi was not responsible for the availability of eggs.
The idea of demonstrating the brand’s empathy and solidarity with struggling consumers, and helping them in a real way, was a good one. But Pepsi distributors failed to fully consider the logistics behind the idea. Once a brand launches a promotion, it has to deliver an immaculate implementation, strengthen it, ensure the participation of partners, put monitoring and control programs in place, provide a call center for consumers and so on. In this case, something that could have been historical became hysterical.
Among Singaporeans, there’s a long-running anxiety about the rising number of foreigners settling in the country, giving its natives the sense that they’re being denied the best opportunities and that the local culture is being diluted. Planning for country brands needs to consider this type of “citizen anxiety” as an important input. But a new tourism campaign from Singapore has only aggravated this anxiety.
The campaign, “Your Singapore,” is centered on a new destination site that aims to help people create their own experience of Singapore. Television and events in the U.S., U.K. and other key markets carry the same message. What’s most interesting about the campaign is the polarized reaction to it. Foreigners (the direct target) love the new direction. But many Singaporeans see it as another sign that their country is being handed over to foreigners to enjoy as they see fit (this is how one blogger expresses it).
While citizens aren’t necessarily the direct target of country campaigns, they see themselves as stakeholders of the brand and will inevitably project their anxieties against its behavior. Country brands should be rooted in a vision that galvanizes citizens and makes them feel proud of the country.
Last year, Israeli radio station 99fm was relaunched and rebranded as a green channel, eco99fm. The objective was to promote awareness of issues such as carbon emissions, water pollution, endangered wildlife and recycling. The effort seems to be more than greenwash. In addition to offering useful tips on solar energy, eco-gardening, greening the kitchen and water efficiency, the station produces talk programs covering global green topics, news and so on. Eco99fm has also initiated campaigns to promote its goals, such as partnering with the Environment Protection Ministry for the One Less Plastic Bag campaign, which urged shoppers to reduce their use of plastic bags.
Israelis are constantly anxious about geopolitical tension, complex internal political issues and the possibility of war, and eco99fm has become the one station providing content that’s out of the ordinary yet surprisingly normal. It deals with global issues from a lens outside the local bubble, conveying a sense of belonging to the global village for a country that’s becoming more concerned about issues beyond the Middle East.
Tapping into the desire for normalcy has proved a big success: After years of mixed results, the rebranded station has achieved a 60 percent increase in ratings.
Recently I noticed more policemen than usual on my weekend visit to the popular local market and got a little worried. The next day I read that many parts of Delhi were under police surveillance, as a terror attack was expected from the Pakistan-based group LeT. I walked with more uneasiness that day into another crowded market. The next morning, the media implied that with the bombing attempt in Times Square, the incident had been deflected from Delhi. Whether true or not, this episode brought to light our complete lack of faith in India’s law enforcers—a case of a ruptured brand.
The perception of Indian police has been hardened by the media’s focus on their incompetence—they’re shown to mostly arrive once the damage is done, and they’re ill-equipped to prevent it even if they are tipped off, since the assailants have more sophisticated tools and technology. It’s ironic but true that a heightened police presence creates uneasiness and anxiety more than comfort and security. It’s a muted sign that a terror attack might be expected.
We urgently need a return of faith, a turnaround in the Indian police brand—more positive PR, even a TV series or movie inspired by real life. Watching or reading about law enforcers averting deadly attacks and acting heroically or being publicly honored would help to alleviate some of Indians’ security-related anxiety.
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