Where to stick that insight?

Today's post comes in response to a devout Get On Strategy follower who asked what I thought of the new Corona spot.

Truth is, I caught this a week or so ago and made the deliberate decision not to blog about it. Why? Because I found it, in a word, dull. Perhaps you will agree - here it is:



But dull is no excuse, so here goes, Brian..

Corona has long been heralded the beach beer, enjoyed by party goers whilst soaking in the sun, sitting on the sand, lounging on a boat deck, or kicking back at a BBQ. It is not typically the beer sipped while snuggling next to the fire, at the ski chalet or watching snow pile up outside as excitement builds about the occasional grown up snow day.

In this spot, Corona attempts to change all that by inviting people to "find their beach" - whether that's on a rooftop overlooking the city lights or in some other unlikely place.

The spot resolves with a bronzed duo on a beach, clanging their bottles together with crystal blue water ahead and white sand beneath, seeming to suggest that drinking Corona will transport you (at least mentally) to the beach.

There's an insight here for sure, but I'm not sure it's one that ought to feed advertising or one that would have better served to drive some really smart product innovation?

Actually I am sure -- And there's more on that below.

First, I'll openly admit to not being a beer drinker, but I do have a basic understanding of what drives beer decisions. Light beers in clear bottles that go down easy infused with fresh lime juice have greater appeal when consumed under the sun than they possibly could on a crisp autumn night. There's something about change of season, or equally so, change of venue, that dictates what is and is not the right fit - if you can buy into the idea of "beer fitting."

Consider the customs of champagne flights and wine pairings. I'm told there are similarly structured events where high end ales and lagers are paired with hearty fare too. It makes perfect sense that alcohol would be complementary both to flavor and atmosphere. So, follow me with this 'beer fitting' logic, if you will.

What I'm saying is this. Yes, indeed, Corona is a beach beer. But no, I do not believe there's any such thing as drinking it and "finding your beach". When the leaves are cracking under my feet or the snow is falling outside or the fire is roaring, I don't want to slice up limes and drink light colored beer from a clear bottle. I want something darker, richer and more comforting.

If I were heading up Corona's marketing team and had enough data to validate this insight, I'd go in a completely different direction. I'd think about a new bottle design and a darker beer inside. ?

My new bottle would not be clear. The beer in it would not be called Corona. The bottle would probably have a label vs. print on bottle. The packaging and fonts would not be reminiscent of beach bars or tiki huts.

I'd get my new product "right", then go see what consumers have to say.

Imagine Corona having a hold on the summer / beach market and a beer capable of evoking a similar, seasonally appropriate feeling in Fall and Winter? That would be a home run.

But this effort is simply OFF STRATEGY.

BK is breakfast your way? Not quite.

Good morning, Burger King. I've been expecting you.

Having spent the better part of a year++ developing the launch strategy, positioning and marketing plan for Subway's breakfast program, today's topic is near and dear to my heart.

When it comes to QSR breakfast, I'm as tuned in as anyone would care to be. Tuned in enough to spot some holes in the new BK breakfast menu and this new spot that promotes it. Take a look..



Luckily for BK, it has a couple things going right when it comes to breakfast. Males are big breakfast eaters and consumers are less rigid about eating healthy at breakfast relative to other day parts. These facts make superfans and ginormous egg sandwiches two advantages.

Unfortunately, I believe there are a few problems.

First, "platters so big they'll block out the sun" are good in that they're large and filling; not so hot in the portability department, which becomes quite relevant when one considers the eating in the car and picking up en route to work dynamics that define most people's morning routines.

Second, there is a fundamental positioning issue. Some time ago, BK decided to position itself as the fast food place that lets you have it your way. Frankly, I'm not sure that's defendable (for BK) today, if ever it were. To let a customer have it his or her way, there need be more than just a willingness to hold the pickles.

I guess we've all gotten used to BK telling us we can have it our way with burgers, but the insincerity becomes abundantly clear with a new breakfast menu launch. Aside from letting me pick which item I want off the menu, what are they doing to let me have it my way? And if they are doing something, it's a point not made in this ad.

The biggest miss, in my opinion, is that there is virtually no food footage. New product names are sung, which makes them difficult to discern, and there's certainly no mention of ingredients. What's in that bowl? On that platter? Something sweet? Are those peppers? Onions? Sausage?

As viewers, we are left to guess what's on the rotating plates, which seem an obligatory inset, tucked in at the very end.

Breakfast is the most habitual of all day parts. This means if you want me to change my routine, you need to give me a really good reason. Start by making my mouth water.

Did I mention the spot is funny? Absolutely funny and spot on with casting, tone and manner sure to wake up the Superfans. But if history is any indication, BK needs to do more than get the same old people to roll out of bed and march through its doors.

BK is simply not serving up the RTB here, so I am left to call it OFF STRATEGY

Is your product worthy?

New spots out from everybody's favorite brand, Apple. Check 'em out below, then read on:





Steve Jobs essentially works off one golden insight - consumers get bored easily; continue to give them new tech toys that look cool(er), do cool(er) stuff and make their owners feel cool(er) and more gratified via gadgety badge equity.

In these new spots, we see (literally) how the iPod touch and nano have been upgraded, thereby making them, and their soon-to-be owners, cooler and more connected in numerous ways. The music is upbeat, the colors are sharp, the products are hero and, most interestingly, the talent is cheap - because it's virtually absent.

Save for the faces on the iPod touch screens, we never see any live bodies, nor hear any words exchanged, nor watch any interaction between people - just hands and fingers interacting with the product, demonstrating how it does its thing.

This sort of execution begs the question, if Apple can tell a compelling story, simply using product demo and get people racing to the stores, why can't most others?

The answer is equal parts brand equity, clean advertising (that is, advertising that doesn't compromise or screw up the former) and just plain great product.

They say nothing kills a bad product like great advertising, but I say nothing kills a bad product like a bad product - and nothing sells a great product like advertising that doesn't need to sell.

Frankly, Apple does all its "selling" through word of mouth, buzz, and general "cool" factor. People will buy, use, talk about and envy others who have its latest and greatest. For Apple, traditional advertising (TV commercials) simply needs to acknowledge what happens out there in the world on its own.

Case in point here, ON STRATEGY all the way around. But, we can't all be Apple.

Consumer need meet product solution.

Last night I saw a spot that made me stop and think "Wow. now, that's great."

Not the commercial itself, per se, but the product.

The spot was quick, clear, concise and to the point. Nothing too fancy. No confusing storyline. Nothing to get in the way of selling the product.

I wondered whether I ought to write about the commercial or the product. Or both, perhaps.

Fact is, there are two good lessons here. First, I should tell you about the product.

It's a new iPhone app from CHASE. It's smart and it's easy and it's something we all want and probably never thought we could have. Download the app and you'll never need to visit a bank again to deposit a check. You just load in your CHASE account information, then take a picture of the front and back of the check and viola - it's deposited virtually!

The insight here is all about convenience. Just about every retailer has an online buying option - for the exact same reason. Banks have been good about keeping pace, with online access to account information, online transfers, online bill pay, etc. But one thing you absolutely had to visit a branch for - until now - was to deposit a check. Sure, you could deposit it at an ATM, but that still involves finding one, walking or driving to it, and physically handing the check over. No more.

The second part of the learning has to do with the commercial. As I said, there's no bells and whistles and nothing sexy about this spot whatsoever. Which makes you wonder, why do we need that stuff in so many other commercials - just to get our attention? Fact is, sometimes an absolutely awesome "wow" product or service CAN sell itself, just by getting the message out there that it exists.

If product innovation occurs in RESPONSE to a consumer need - a real, legitimate consumer ask - the advertising doesn't need to oversell. In fact, advertising needs to be careful not to get in the way.

Which makes you wonder, if a product isn't created in response to a consumer need, why is it created? Rhetorical, but a good question.

This is both product and advertising ON STRATEGY.

Let's talk product.

We've talked a lot on here about advertising, but I had to dedicate today's post to what comes before advertising. Product innovation.



Yes, there's a strategy for that too.

This new phone called Kin is nothing if not fueled by consumer insight. That insight, of course, is that phones are no longer just for talking; they're about staying connected in all sorts of other ways.

Having worked on an innovation team, I've witnessed first hand how long it can take to go from insight to product. In fact, most of the insights never make it half that far. The majority are dismissed along the way for some reason or series of reasons, the common denominator of which typically involves lack of money, speed or resources.


The success of any new product is largely correlated with speed to market. If the insight that inspired the innovation is no longer relevant by the time the product launches, or if your competitor beats you to the punch, odds are your product launch will suffer.



If, on the other hand, you recognize an insight, acknowledge the risk, agree to take that risk, assign sufficient resources and prioritize launch within X time frame, you'll be well on your way.



Kin is a brilliant innovation because it's less about inventing new technology and more about repackaging, reorienting and repositioning what's already there. Sure, it can do some things other smartphones can't, but largely it's about making the link between two points of user behavior - capturing stuff and sharing stuff.



In a word, seamless.

Kin may have challenges in establishing a quick following, but at the relatively low price point, this should be a home run with the late-teen / early 20's crowd to which it's targeted.

ON STRATEGY.