A wise man once said that if you have history then you are dead. But if you have heritage then you’ve got a story to tell…
For the purposes of this article, we’re going to consign the word ‘history’ to the wastepaper basket of, well, history. We will instead concentrate on the value of ‘heritage’. And when it comes to telling the story of a brand’s heritage then the most valuable (or lethal?) tool in the hands of the digital marketer can be that ill-defined term - nostalgia.
Nostalgia can drum up feelings of warmth, reflection, retrospection and even sadness when used well. At Christmas, we are subjected to more of it than we can sometimes bear but still it comes, because when used well it reinforces a brand’s value proposition deep within the emotional psyche of the consumer.
Take Coca-Cola’s re-run of the classic ‘Holidays are Coming’ Xmas TV spot. Relaunched in primetime this week it has invoked those early annual feelings of festive cheer. Cheer that is, until the world woke up to a supposed tweak to this year’s re-run. To much shock and horror, Santa failed to wink at the end of the advert, drawing howls of protest from the blogosphere. It was only when Coke rather wryly told their audience that Santa has never winked in any version of the advert that the world went quiet…
So where does that leave the world’s favourite fizzy drink? Well, responding in very timely fashion to the ‘demands’ of the consumer, a new version is being rushed to the small screen in early December, complete with Santa wink.
Nostalgia in the right hands is a powerful thing. So powerful, it can fool an audience into believing something that never existed. For automotive companies, the ability to create feelings of nostalgia for a car marque’s heritage and past products is as essential as making Santa wink.
However, caution must be exercised. Cars – perhaps more than any other product outside of fashion – can tip easily from heritage and nostalgia into pastiche and retro cliché. And that’s a dangerous slip for the car makers and their agencies. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, a short-lived craze for designing cars that were inspired purely by a retrospective admiration for models of the past led to some terrible products coming to market. Anyone remember the American Graffiti-esque Chrysler PT Cruiser?
Done right, though, nostalgia will take the consumer with them – explaining and amplifying worthwhile and salient parts of the brand or the consumer’s past. Last year we had the chance to witness first-hand what it’s like to turn the nostalgia button up to 11 when we worked with Land Rover to help them celebrate the end of production of their iconic Defender model.
Along with the Mini, the Defender is arguably the most celebrated piece of British automotive design. Loved and revered by fanatical owners the world over, it has a place in the heart of the widest possible range of drivers – from farmers to aristocrats, from soldiers to film crews.
And that, perhaps, was the secret to the success of their ‘Year of Defender’ campaign. The ability to look into the past through a nostalgic lens was reinforced by the undeniable authenticity of the product. Nostalgia at its best, you see, is truthful. It shines a light on the thing that resonates most strongly because it is true.
So if you’re feeling truly nostalgic this Christmas, tell someone. It works.
By Matthew Franey, CEO at Foxtrot Papa
PrivSec Conferences will bring together leading speakers and experts from privacy and security to deliver compelling content via solo presentations, panel discussions, debates, roundtables and workshops.
For more information on upcoming events, visit the website.
comments powered by Disqus