Creative Strategy: Planning and Development

Copyright © 2012 McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., All right reversedMcGraw-Hill/Irwin

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Creative Strategy:Planning and Development

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Old Spice Case History

• Around since 1938

• Men’s aftershave products

• Nautical and sailing ships theme

• At a time that men used only bars of soap

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Old Spice Case History - continued

• Proctor & Gamble did focus group research

• Men were using body washes

• Repositioned Old Spice towards 13-34 year olds

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Old Spice Case History - continued

• Old Spice faced tough competition from AXE

• Irreverent , risqué ads and suggestive taglines

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Old Spice Case History - continued

• Old Spice needed a BIG IDEA

• Positioning:

• “Help guys navigate the seas of manhood”

• Objective:

• Create ads that both men and women would enjoy

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Advertising Campaign for Old Spice Body Wash

Isaiah Mustafa:“The man your man could smell like”

Show TV commercials

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Advertising

• Communicates information

• Source of entertainment, fascination, fantasy and irritation

• Creates images and positions a brand in consumers' minds

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Campaign Theme Quiz

1. Breakfast of Champions

2. The ultimate driving machine

3. When you care enough to send the very best

1. Wheaties2. BMW3. Hallmark

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Advertising Creativity

Determining WHAT the advertising message will say Determining WHAT the advertising message will say

CreativeStrategyCreativeStrategy

CreativeTactics

CreativeTactics

Determining HOW the message strategy will be executed

Determining HOW the message strategy will be executed

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BIG IDEA

• Central theme of advertising campaign

• Translated into attention getting, distinctive and memorable messages

• That will break thru the clutter

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Altoids – “the curiously strong mint”

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Award Winning Creative

• Cannes Gold Lions – most prestigious advertising award

• Ad may be popular, but may not increase sales

• Alka-Seltzer…

- I can’t believe I ate the whole thing!

- Mama Mia! That’s a spicy meatball!

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What is Creativity?

• Ads are called “creative”

• People who develop ads are called “creatives”

• Advertising creativity is the ability to generate fresh, unique ideas that can be used as resolutions to communication problems

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Client and Agency Structure

Client Agency

Marketing Manager

AccountPlanning

Department

CreativeDepartment

Art Directorsand

Copy Writers• Conduct research

• Gather information about product and consumers

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Different Perspectives on Creativity

Managers(Marketing & Account)

Creatives

Only artistic value, originalityand awards count

It isn’t creativeif it doesn’t sell

Stick with what works

Try something

new

Need both perspectives – give client range of options!

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Determinants of Creativity

Divergence

Originality

Flexibility

Elaboration

Synthesis

Artistic Value

Relevance

Ad-to-consumer

Brand-to-consumer

surprising

differentideas

unexpected

blendunrelated

ideas

attractive colors

meaningfulcelebrities;

music

Brand has personal interest

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Creative Advertising for Absolut

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Guidelines for Creative Advertising• Product positioned simply and clearly

• With a clinching benefit

• With a Power Idea

• With a Brand Personality

• The advertising is unexpected

• Single-minded

• Rewards the prospect

• Is visually arresting

• With great craftsmanship

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The Creative Challenge

There are no rules:

A dozen creatives will come up with 12 different ideas!

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Residence Inn Takes a Creative Risk

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Creative vs. Hard-Sell Advertising

• “Suits” are rationalist salesmen who want to move product

• Want mostly selling points in ads

• “Poets” are proponents of creativity who want to move people emotionally

• Want to entertain and inspire

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Creative Personnel

Abstract

Less structured

Less organized

Unconventional

Intuitive

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Marketing / Account Managers

Logical

Profit Oriented

Business Background

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Four-Step Creative Process

Gather background information through research and study

Preparation

Getting away and letting ideas developIncubation

“Seeing the light” or solutionIllumination

Refining and polishing the idea and seeing if it is appropriateVerification

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Test Your Knowledge

A client manufactures maternity clothes for businesswomen, and it wants a new advertising campaign. Visits to obstetrician's offices to observe the clothes being worn and to maternity shops to see how they were selected could be a part of the _____ stage of the creative process.

A) Preparation

B) Verification

C) Revision

D) Illumination

E) Incubation

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Background Research

Read anything related to the

product or market

Listen to what people are

talking about

Use the product to become familiar with it

Ask everyone involved for information

Work in and learn about the

client’s business

Conduct studies of product,

service, audience

Watch the Mel Gibson movie: “What Women Want”

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Input Verification and Revision

•Evaluate ideas •Reject the inappropriate•Refine the remaining•Give ideas final expression

•Evaluate ideas •Reject the inappropriate•Refine the remaining•Give ideas final expression

ObjectiveObjective

•Focus groups•Use storyboards•Viewer reaction

•Focus groups•Use storyboards•Viewer reaction

TechniquesTechniques

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Storyboards and Animatics

Animaticisa videotape of storyboard with soundtrack

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Types of Research

• General Pre-Planning Input

• Books, trade publications

• Clipping services

• Market trends in Ad Age / Wall St Journal

• Product Specific Research

• Specific studies

• Qualitative research (attitude studies / focus groups)

• Problem detection research

• Ethnographic research (observe consumers at home)

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An Advertising Campaign

IntegratedIntegrated

InterrelatedInterrelated CoordinatedCoordinated

In Different Media

In Different Media

Over a Time Period

Over a Time Period

Marketing Communication

Activities

Marketing Communication

Activities

Centered on a Theme or IdeaCentered on a Theme or Idea

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Campaign Themes

American Express Don’t leave home without it

U.S. Army Be all that you can be

Apple Think different

Avis We try harder

McDonald’s I’m lovin’ it

DeBeer’s A diamond is forever

M&M’s Melt in your mouth; not in your hand

Las Vegas What happens here, stays here

Company or Brand Slogan / Tagline

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Test Your Knowledge

Advertising campaign themes:

A) Are always tactical in nature and design

B) Set the tone or direction for all of the individual ads that make up the campaign

C) Are typically designed by the client and implemented by the agency

D) Are usually used for ads that run in only one type of media vehicle

E) Are described by all of the above

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The Creative Brief

• Basic problem the advertising must address• Advertising and communications objectives• Target audience• Product positioning• Key benefits to communicate; reasons to

believe• Creative strategy statement• Supporting information and requirements;

tonality; creative considerations

Specifies elements of the creative strategy:

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Marketing Information Flow

Knowledge of vital

marketing information

Client gatekeepers(Brand manager)

Internal client decision to share

information with agency

Agency gatekeeper(Account manager)

Agency gatekeeperdecision on sharingclient info with staff

Creative staff

Art is created

Client/agency communication

Internal agency communication

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Search for a Major Selling Idea

Finding the Inherent Drama

Finding the Inherent Drama

Use a UniqueSelling PositionUse a Unique

Selling Position

Create a Brand Image

Create a Brand ImagePositioningPositioning

“The strongest thing you can

say about your product”

“The strongest thing you can

say about your product”

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The Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

Must be unique to brand; rivals can't or don't offer it

Must be unique to brand; rivals can't or don't offer it

UniqueUnique

Buy this product and get this benefit

Buy this product and get this benefit

BenefitBenefit

Promise must be strong enough to get consumers to buy it

Promise must be strong enough to get consumers to buy it

StrongStrong

Sustainable competitive advantage that competitors can’t copy

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Colgate’s Unique Selling Proposition

What is Colgate’s USP?

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Image Advertising

• For products that are difficult to differentiate on a functional or performance basis (whiskeys, fashion, cigarettes, beer)

• Build a sharply defined personality

bee-bee

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Positioning

• Establish a particular place in the customer’s mind for the product

• Good for multiple brands from the same company

“Gets out all kinds of stains”

“Keeps your colors colorful”

“Delivers an amazing scent experience”

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Inherent Drama

• Messages presented in an emotional way (Show Hallmark commercial)

• Focuses on benefits in a dramatic way(Show Zerex commercial)

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Test Your Knowledge

Which of the following is most often the basis of a marketer's creative strategy when the company has multiple brands competing in the same market?

A) Unique selling propositions

B) Brand image

C) Inherent drama

D) Transformational advertising

E) Positioning