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| BENCHMARK 2: It should
recall the brand name |
Ideally the brand name should be included
in the line. 'My goodness, my Guinness!' thus works, as
does 'Aah, Bisto!'. On the other hand, 'Once driven, forever
smitten' does not easily invoke the word Vauxhall, nor does
'All it leaves behind is other non-bios' scream out Fairy
Ultra. This, by the way, is possibly the worst endline in
the history of advertising! It certainly gets my vote. It's
a brand manager at P&G speaking to a brand manager at
the competition and it means it doesn't leave a nasty residue
in the wash -- the laundry equivalent of 'no bathtub ring'.
No 'housewife' could possibly understand it.
What's the point of running an advertisement
in which the brand name is not clear? Yet millions of pounds
are wasted in this way. If the brand name isn't in the strapline,
it had better be firmly suggested. Nike dares to run commercials
that sign off only with their visual logo -- the 'swoosh'
-- like a tick mark or check mark, as the Americans say.
The word Nike is unspoken and does not appear. This use
of semiotics is immensely powerful when it works, because
it forces the viewer to say the brand name. |
 |
| Rhymes
- with brand name |
| One of the best techniques
for bringing in the brand name is to make the strapline rhyme
with it. Here are some lines we've selected from the AdSlogans.com
database. See how well it works if the brand name is the rhyming
word. |
|
|
|
City Link: |
City
Linking, smart thinking. |
|
|
| Granada: |
Ads work harder in the
new Granada. |
|
|
| Haig
Scotch: |
Don't be vague. Ask for
Haig. |
|
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| Kia-Ora: |
We all adore a Kia-Ora. |
|
|
| Natwest
Bank: |
To save and invest, talk
to Natwest. |
|
|
| Nicotinell: |
It needn't be hell with
Nicotinell. |
|
|
| Quavers: |
The flavour of a Quaver
is never known to waver. |
|
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| Radio
Rentals: |
Stay contented, get Radio
Rented. |
|
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| Teletext: |
Don't get vexed. Ask Teletext. |
|
|
| Thomas
Cook: |
Don't just book it, Thomas
Cook it. |
|
|
|
| Rhymes
- brand name mention |
| A fall-back position
is to use a rhyme and mention the brand name without it actually
rhyming. Not so effective, perhaps? |
|
|
| Mars: |
A Mars a day helps you
work, rest and play. |
|
|
| Viakal: |
It's the Viakal fizz that
does the bizz! (1992) |
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| Andrews
Antacid: |
It's the Andrews fizz that
does the bizz. (1996) |
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| Milk: |
Milk's gotta lotta bottle. |
|
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| Oraldene: |
Soothe it away the Oraldene
way. |
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| Flanders,
Belgium: |
Savour the flavour of Belgium. |
|
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|
| Note
how the competitive edge is lost when the brand name is
not the rhyme. It could easily be 'An apple a day helps
you work, rest and play,' or 'Savour the flavour of a Quaver'.
But the idea of 'To save and invest, talk to Alliance and
Leicester' does not threaten NatWest. A&L in fact uses:
'You get a smarter investor at the Alliance & Leicester,'
which in turn wouldn't work as: 'You get a smarter investor
at Barclays.' |
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