NORTHERN PLANNER

Two of the ads a I remember from when I was a lad are these……. 

 

Times have changed of course.

The first was catnip to a teenage club tennis player who hated the rules and the stuffy heirarchy.

The second I remember just because the whole campaign was so distinctive and the line was so memorable. A modern version would work on my wife – a devoted mother. 

Both are very different because they have very different contexts.

The Nike ad was all about creating a new frame of reference for young people frustrated with modern tennis, and probably encouraging more to get into it, rather than be put off by a compalacent world for grown ups. In short, rebellion.

While Persil is about reliability and showing you care. Persil doesn't wash whiter, Persil Mum's wash whiter because they're the kind of Mum's who care that little bit more. Smart in a low interest category – don't talk about yourself and find a relevant wider enthusiasm.

The basic rules remain the same of course, build fame, build distinctive memory structures, tap into stuff folks really care about, or could care about, that no one else does.

Which shows that a great place to start in any strategy is behavioural reinforcement.

FInd the credible line between what the brand cares about and what the customers care about.

Then figure out if you need to inspire folks to get there, like Nike, or simply celebrate what they're already doing, like Persil.

Which in turn, means the quickest way to unlock strategy is often to find something to admire about your audience.

That can be a challenge for agency folks who are not a representative sample of most target audiences, but when learn how to admire them, you can understand how to get others to admire them too. 

Which then brings scale to your idea.

When you get the world at large to admire your customers for a distinctive reason, they want to join in, or at least it gives them a new frame of referenc for the brand, which builds penetration, which reaches light buyers, which sustains growth.

This is behavioural reinforcement, a simple recognition of the loving sacrifice that connect most Mums.

 

This reinforces a relatively new British attitude that values savviness around money, we feel good about getting a deal, when it's not that long ago that we hated feeling 'cheap'.

 

This reflects changing British attitudes to homes, that are less an investment these days and more a cocoon.

 

And this reflects the growing sense of independence and confidence in British Generation Y women.

 

Behavioural reinforcement doesn't get talked about much these days, but it's at the core of some great, effective work.

As Persil and Nike show, times change, some things stay the same.