Grabbed myself a bit more Adwatch action in this week's Marketing magazine. And learning from those wise words mums the world over tell their kids - if you haven't got anything nice to say, don't say anything - I picked another ad I liked, rather than slag something off.
Although it is easy to be negative sometimes. And isn't there all that research suggesting that people who make negative comments are seen as clever (even when wrong). I guess the flip is that to be positive is to be seen as naive or sycophantic. Hey ho.
Anyway, my pick this time was the new Woolworth's campaign, mainly because it makes me laugh. Or it could be because it features puppets, as did my last Adwatch scribble (maybe there's a theme emerging - so you know what to do to get my attention!).
Here's the Adwatch version (click to see bigger), with my original below...
We all know that location is everything in retail, with range and price not unimportant considerations. But you’ve still got to ‘like’ shopping somewhere; to feel happy walking through the doors of the store. In no small part, this is an emotional decision. And possibly one of the biggest barriers Woolworth's has faced over recent years.
Being one step up the ladder from the ‘everything a pound’ shops isn’t the issue. We all love a bargain after all. For me, the problem is that Woolworth's has never seemed particularly comfortable with this role, instead looking back wistfully at its faded glory days as Britain’s favourite retailer. But people notice when a brand lacks confidence, and react accordingly: if you don’t like yourself, how can I like you?
Which is why, within the parameters of retail advertising, I think their new campaign works so well. By celebrating the truth of what it is (the home of reasonable quality products at reasonable prices, alongside a host of cheap and cheerful ‘guilty pleasures’), Woolies feels like a brand comfortable in its own skin for the first time in decades. The advertising is not big or clever, but it has Rolf Harris, Darth Vader burning toast, Basil Brush-esque puppets (for multi-generational appeal), and a kids TV sensibility, with gags turned up to 11. It’s fun, and leaves me feeling good about the brand (which I didn’t before).
And though I can’t see Woolworth's being my first choice for paint brushes, I did rather like the look of that Spiderman webshooter (for my son of course!). Which is the real insight: that though the fall-guy of the piece, more of us are like Wooly than Worth. And once through the doors, who knows what else I might pick up. You can’t ask for more than that.
