Do teasers set your brand up for failure?

Recently a few NZ brands have been spending large on teaser advertising. Designed to create suspense, intrigue and of course hype - the teaser is a difficult and risky move. With social media making "buzz" a bigger part of product launches, brands hope to generate extra momentum by making their teaser a talking point. 

One of the biggest teaser campaigns we've seen in NZ was BNZ's Good with Money campaign. The advertiser was kept anonymous for a month before the bank was revealed. Almost everyone had an opinion on who was behind the billboards and TV ads. From an earned media point of view it was a success, it even inspired a Twitter troll and spawned multiple news articles. After the reveal BNZ's chief marketing officer Craig Herbison said  

"...it wasn't undertaken to tease anything about the bank. It was about starting a conversation." 

So with that in mind BNZ views the teaser campaign as a success.   

What's harder to gauge is what happened after the reveal. Were consumers pleasantly surprised or disappointed that a bank was behind the campaign? Has BNZ been able to live up to expectations and continue money conversations now that the advertising hype has faded? And the big question - would the money invested in the teasers been better spent on branded advertising? 

While the entertainment and technology industries use teasers successfully on the whole teaser campaigns can set a brand up for failure. The question has to be asked - is it really worth the wait? 

A teaser campaign requires a substantial investment in promoting the unknown. The theory being that the mystery and excitement created attracts a greater level of interest in your news. This is the approach Domino's NZ is taking - with their CEO fronting a national TV campaign to hype up tomorrow's announcement of a "game changer"... 

Teasing your fantastic new product's arrival is one thing but claiming you are revealing a "game changer" is a bold statement. It can't just be a game changer in the eyes of Domino's management or Domino's staff, it has to mean a game changer to the NZ public.

You can pretty safely rule out 'world peace' and 'a cure for cancer' as Domino's "game changer" and a wise bet is it's pizza related. So given these assumptions, will Domino's announcement really constitute a "game changer" for anyone outside their own company? And if you over promise and under deliver, have you done more damage than good in the end? Are you setting your brand up to disappoint your toughest critics - the public?


Twitter already seems a little skeptical of Domino's Game Changer... 

Can't sleep too excited wondering how Domino's Pizzas are going to change the game. #gamechanger
— Toby Manhire (@toby_etc) March 8, 2013

I suspect that Dominos Pizza interpretation of a "game changer" is different to everyone elses
— Wendy Smith (@wendlesnz) March 10, 2013

Given that the hashtag #gamechanger also includes tweets about the news that a child was cured of HIV, it's use by Dominos seems a little silly. 

While my expectations of Dominos' #gamechanger are low, I am interested to see whether consumers feel excited or disappointed when all is revealed. Consumers are pretty savvy and if they feel like Domino's is making a big deal over nothing it may just back fire. 

What do you think? Should brand's create teasers or are they just marketing gimmicks? 

NZ Post QR Code Coffee Cups

It took me a few minutes to realise my takeaway coffee wasn't in it's usual branded cup. On closer inspection I saw it had been taken over by NZ Post's "First Page" campaign...

 

"First pages are the very beginning. The initial, tentative step of an epic journey. The gateway to another way of thinking, or the portal to a brave new world."

~ Introduction on NZ Post's readwritegrow.co.nz

The campaign include the opening lines from a range of books such as Suzanne Collin's "Hunger Games" and Andre Agassi's autobiography "Open". A QR Code allows the reader access the full first page and then links to book sellers who stock the actual book.

It's a clever idea that caught my eye and makes good use of the contextual environment the audience will view the ad in. It's literally in your face for the time it takes to drink the coffee and you're more likely to scan a QR code on a coffee cup than if you were walking past a billboard or flicking through a magazine. It will be interesting to see if QR codes ever become widely used in New Zealand. According to QRStuff.com - New Zealander's QR code is on the rise but still sits at a measily 0.8% of the population. Wisely NZ Post accounted for this by also including a written weblink on the cup.

Do you scan QR Codes or ignore them?

Nu Zealund Ad Humour

This cheeky billboard from Ace car rentals made me smile... 

Thanks to Amy (@hellomisspotter) for spotting this gem! 

Supermarket wars heat up

The NZ supermarket wars have stepped up a notch with Pak'n'Save releasing this TV spot directly comparing shopping prices between one of it's own stores and Countdown.

As many people will know, supermarkets in NZ are part of a duopoly with the three chain owned by two corporations Countdown (Progressive) and Pak'n'Save and New World (Foodstuffs). 

Pak'n'Save's 'Stickman' advertising has always been controversial. Last year offending vegetarians with "meat week" and recently poking fun at Lance Armstrong's doping confessions. This bold ad takes things to a new level and is the first direct mention of the competition. 

It will be interesting to see how Countdown respond to this attack in the coming weeks!



On a side note - I don't think the mix of animation and real life footage works well. And the girl's voice is a bit random until you later realise it's an interview.  

What do you think? Does comparative advertising improve your impression of a brand or detract?

Telling Tales - Stories from Semi Permanent Wellington

I'd heard great things about Semi Permanent Auckland so when a one-day Wellington conference was announced it was the perfect opportunity to see what all the fuss was about. Secretly I was a little concerned that I would stand out amongst all the proper creative types. Heading along with three super talented graphic designers I did feel like a bit of an impostor.

Upon arrival I half expected a left brain - right brain quiz at the door. Luckily there weren't any admittance tests and I wasn't outted as the only marketer in the room. Semi Permanent Wellington turned out to be well worth the hype and far more relevant to marketing than I'd expected. In fact, the only point I felt out of place was when Jon DRPNZ, Wellington based street artist, used crime scene tape to connect the negative space between a few confused volunteers. I don't think I was alone in this feeling though!

So here's some of the wisdom I gleaned from just a couple of the Semi Permanent speakers (and attendees) - hopefully it will encourage you to attend in 2013...