Remember “Got Milk?” How about “Just Do It” or “Think Different”? All three of those ads were brand campaigns — marketing efforts that focus on the brand or concept itself rather than pushing a specific product. Here’s a look at what brand campaigns are, and what insights we can draw from well-known brand campaigns to apply to our own.
What Is a Branded Campaign?
An article on the topic of brand campaigns quoted a commenter called @content_grinder: “A brand campaign sells later. It doesn’t try to sell now.” This is a great (if partial) definition because it encapsulates both the branded campaign’s non-focus on product and the hoped-for longer-term resonance with consumers.
Brand campaigns are designed to give the brand — not necessarily its products — a lasting presence in people’s minds. They are a medium designed to generate brand awareness, and very little else. There’s not time for a longer message, realistically. The brand campaign’s about creating an impression.
What that impression consists of varies, of course, but most commonly brand campaigns communicate brand personality, values, or story. While the best-known branded campaigns — the ones that become embedded in our culture — come from billion-dollar corporations, a brand of any size can draw inspiration from them. The following brand campaigns offer insights worth applying to your brand’s branding campaigns.
Apple: Think Different
Apple’s “Think Different” brand campaign, which dropped in 1997, is a classic branded campaign, focusing not on products or services but on the brand’s personality, values, and story. “We’re not going to get a chance to get people to remember much about us,” co-founder Steve Jobs said at the time. “And so we have to be really clear on what we want them to know about us.” At a time when its competitors touted processor speeds, applications, and functionality, Apple wanted consumers to understand its values. And its core value, Jobs said, was the belief that people with passion can change the world for the better. “Think different,” he said, was a way of honoring those people.
The Insight: Rather than focusing on specific products, use your branding campaign to communicate the brand’s foundational values with authenticity and impact. Consumers will come away with a sense of who your brand is, and that will resonate longer and more deeply than the specs on any product.
California Milk Processor Board: Got Milk?
The 1990s “Got Milk?” campaign, sponsored by the California Milk Processor Board, tapped into pop culture is a great example of this.
In “Got Milk?” celebrities were photographed in a simple, often uncluttered setting, under the words “Got Milk?” and wearing a “milk mustache.” Sitcom stars, musicians, models, athletes, talk-show hosts, comedians, even animated characters posed for the campaign. Between 1993 and 2014, the series produced 70 TV spots and over 300 print ads. A little funny, a little bit sexy, and just a touch nostalgic, the campaign quickly went viral, inspiring dozens of parodies.
The Insight: Although the strength of this campaign was clearly the presence of celebrities, it reminds us that tapping into trends, icons, and cultural touchstones can be a powerful draw for consumers. We are drawn to things we already know and like. It’s also a solid endorsement for the series concept — once you saw a couple of “Got Milk?” ads, you noticed more and more of them. Repetition was the point, and it kept the campaign in consumers’ minds.
Anheuser-Busch: Whassup?
One of the best beer ads ever made first aired in late 1999 during Monday Night Football. Adapted from a short film, the premise was simple: a group of friends call each other on the phone while watching a game, asking each other “what’s up?” in a comical, drawn-out way: “Whassuuuuuup?” The word instantly became a pop-culture catchphrase and was a hit with the 21- to 27-year-old demographic — exactly the target audience Anheuser-Busch was aiming for. The fun, relatable concept — friends sharing an inside joke — gave the spot particular resonance, and the word went viral. It was referenced in a movie, political ads, comedy skits, and talk shows. Then-President Clinton said it in a speech.
The Insight: This ad did many things right, but ultimately, its success came down to understanding the target audience: its habits, hobbies, sense of humor. The brand forged a perfect connection with 20-something consumers by telling a story about friendship, fandom, and silly friend group humor in a memorable way, through re-creating a context — watching sports on TV — familiar to virtually everyone. The brand invited consumers to picture themselves in that context, and millions did.
Promobile Marketing is a dynamic experiential marketing firm based in New York City. For over a decade, Promobile has collaborated with a range of brands—from budding startups to major CPG brands—on immersive marketing campaigns. Want to discuss your next project? Reach out below.
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