DDB Influences 02.17
February Edition.
In our second issue of 2017 we will look back and forth. Back on superbowl, we observe a change in the way brands communicate in 2017: Less cuteness, more activism. Also we will have a look forth as we share our thoughts on ‘Moonshots’ and how visionary brands trigger the peoples needs and expectations for future innovations.
SUPERBOWL 2017 — BRANDS GO POLITICS
Writer: Kim Vanessa Köhler
What do we know about Superbowl commercials?
Big, bigger, Superbowl. Typically Superbowl commercials are brand focused, but detached from any other running ad campaign. At the same time they are more exaggerated and louder than the usual brand communication. It seems like a festival for brands, where they can break free and let of steam.
Companies and agencies are using the immense attention of 111 million viewers to be the №1 topic at advertising magazines trying to catch the highest attention and the next award. Regarding the huge number of viewers, 30 seconds of advertising time this year costs 5 million USD — this is absurdity in their largest form. In the end Superbowl commercials are about entertainment, just as the whole Superbowl event itself is — and the audience expect. The Superbowl has got the meaning of a national holiday — furthermore whole North America is a big party.
How brands stand up these days?
In times of Brexit and Trump brands are much more political than ever before. It’s necessary to keep up conversations while politics in various countries are changing dramatically. (Only every fourth millennial, who was born after 1980 in the USA, UK or New Zealand, consider a democracy as appropriate according to a A Harvard study from 2016).
Even though brands can’t solve this problem through showing commercials with a political statement during Superbowl, but they are able to start conversations online and in the real world.
The following spots with a political message were the most successful ones, touching topics of immigration, gender diversity and inclusivity.
84 Lumber “The Journey Begins”
The emotional story puts Mexican immigration from a little girl and her escape to the USA in the spotlight. With TV channel FOX rejecting the first version for being too political. Afterwards the company cut the story to a more neutral one and lead the audience to their online presence to watch the whole story. This conduct was followed by protests in the USA.
See the entire journey:
Budweiser “Born the hard way”
The beer brand created a story about the life, challenges and thoughts of an immigrant to the US, staging it about two centuries ago. While the world is moving on, behavior towards immigrants is nearly unchanged for generations. In 2017 this topic gains importance and is highly relevante due to the policy change regarding immigration from the new US President.
Airbnb “We Accept”
Airbnb is fighting for diversity and acceptance of everyone. Regarding the brand’s core, this attributes fit perfectly. Additionally, CEO Brian Chesky gave free accomendations to refugees during Trump’s immigration ban. In parallel he could prove the brand’s commitment through this action.
Avocados from Mexico “#AvoSecrets”
Avocados from Mexico putted a serious topic into a funny and highly ironic frame. This ad is talking about how delicious avocados are. At the same time Mexico has got problems with punitive tariffs through political developments in the US.
What’s the influence?
Brands have been using “purpose” and culturally relevant topics as communication drivers before Superbowl 2017. Taking a large, socially relevant message to the Superbowl is still new — as it has the highest media value and attention. And thus making it a mainstream trend.
Next to the communication mania from the Superbowl, there are further brands that are using the current political situation in the USA. As another reaction to the immigration ban, the CEO of the coffee giant Starbucks wrote an open letter to his staff committing to hire over 10,000 refugees. Also Uber created a fund over 3 million USD to help drivers affected by the ban.
The question we should still be asking is: Are brands truly standing up for society, a better coexistence and our future? Or are they simply using political statements in order to chase higher image values?
It seems to be not just the right time, but necessary to take a stand — and that advertisers and agencies can fuel and inspire conversations on crucial topics and share our thoughts on political developments. In order to be more than just a marketing stunt, marketing communication needs to enable real discussions or actions to be truly relevant to the society.
By:
Kim Vanessa Köhler // Junior Strategist // DDB Hamburg
MOONSHOTS — BRANDS AIM FOR THE STARS
Writer: Frederick Braake
In 1972, Apollo 17 was the last manned mission that took humans to outer space. It took nearly three decades until the interest in human spaceflight sparked again. But this time the spark comes from ambitious entrepreneurs rather than scientific institutions.We take a look at how this pioneering spirit manifests itself in businesses which embrace and use it to their advantage and what we can learn from them.
Tesla is disrupting the automotive industry. Whenever there is talk about what the future of cars will look like the manufacturer from Palo Alto is mentioned as a shining example — regardless of wether we are speaking about electric mobility or autonomous driving.
Amazon has been disruptive in the same way: what began with retail — from the organization of the warehouses to the delivery process — carries on now in film entertainment with Amazon Originals (which production ‘Manchester by the sea’ won an Oscar recently). Amazon’s efforts sends shockwaves through the industries it engages in.
Both Tesla and Amazon are pioneers in their field but their charismatic founders are aiming for more. Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos are literally reaching for the stars. Bezos founded the space program Blue Origin in 2000 and just two years later Elon Musk started SpaceX which is planning to send tourists to space next year.
What’s the influence?
Through moonshots brands can attain the interpretational sovereignty over how people envision the future, thus achieving a competitive advantage.
Typically such projects as Blue Origin and SpaceX are called moonshots, a term derived from the Apollo 11 spaceflight project which sent the first people to the moon.
Nowadays the term is not limited to the context of spaceflight anymore. The term rather describes an ambitious and exploratory project that has little expectation of near-term profitability or benefit.
In recent past moonshots were closely associated with Google’s special technology lab Google X. The company defined a moonshot as a project or proposal that:
1. Addresses a huge problem
2. Proposes a radical solution
3. Uses breakthrough technology
Notable projects by Google X recently were the driverless car Waymo and the much talked about Google Glass.
Both projects gained a lot of public attention:
Waymo initiated the discussion about autonomous driving and the question of accountability.
Google Glass gave a first impression of what a future where devices merge with our bodies and our perception becomes constantly augmented could look and feel like.
Although the future of both projects is uncertain and Google’s parent company Alphabet just announced that it will reduce the investments for moonshot projects one thing is for certain: Moonshot projects give the public a glimpse into the future that big companies and entrepreneurs envision for us.
Moonshots help brands attain the interpretational sovereignty over how people envision the future. This sovereignity gives brands an edge over competitors. Because whoever arouses the future needs of the people will be the first to be able to satisfy these needs as well.
As an example we once again take a look at Amazon and at Amazon’s interpretation of the supermarket of the future:
Amazon Go is a supermarket that will work completely autonomously. People just check in with their smartphone and through technological solutions the store automatically tracks what and how much people are buying and then automatically withdraws the payable amount once the customer walks out of the store. No lines. No checkout.
Sounds too good to be true? Well it is…so far.
Even though it is not reality yet, what Amazon Go achieved is that it sparked the desire for fully automated shopping experiences in people.
And thus far Amazon is the only brand that has access to the technology that makes such a shopping experience possible. Competitors can either choose to come up with their own solutions for such stores or they can license Amazon’s technology. Either way Amazon wins.
Through their moonshot narrative Amazon turned their technological edge into a competitive one.
Brands can shape customer desires to their advantage by actively shaping the future narrative of their respective industry.
In the recent past especially automotive brands adopted this mindset — if only in their communication.
Concept cars have been a safe way for automakers to give a glimpse into the future. But they were usually only accessible for an expert audience at exhibitions or in the specialised press.
Given the rapid progress that is happening in the industry even German car manufacturers felt obliged to introduce a broader audience to their future plans.
For their 100th birthday BMW made their future vision for the car the central part of their communication.
The model ‘Vision Next 100’ will not ever be on sale in the future but it showed the public how BMW envisions the future car.
Audi is even bolder and takes the moonshot narrative literal in their communication: The new Audi TT is a machine that comes straight from outer space and in the commercial for the new R8 a retired astronaut is reenergised by sitting behind the wheel of the car.
Moonshots of our modern times are as ambitious and high aiming as their Apollo role-models. Brands are reaching for the stars in many ways — without necessarily going to space in every case.
By:
Frederick Braake // Junior Strategist // DDB Hamburg
