What’s New In Marketing This Week — Marketing News February 2nd Week 2022
From top Super Bowl LVI ads to changes (structural or not) within Coca-Cola, Pepsi & other companies, new things in marketing this week were more grounded compared to earlier weeks.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t learn a ton from them.
Because while marketing redefines itself every week in completely new ways, subtle changes to traditional ways also play a profound role in that redefinition.
The power of nostalgia — General Motors’ Super Bowl LVI ad
First up in Marketing News February 2nd week, General Motors Super Bowl ad utilizes the power of nostalgia.
Those of you who are familiar with the Austin Powers franchise will vividly remember Dr. Evil and his signature look & behavior.
In this amusing ad, Dr. EV-il had just taken over GM. Before he can move on to his diabolical plan to take over the world, his team reminds him of global warming — the new #1 evil in the world.
The ad works because nostalgia, humor, and familiar characters can add powerful emotions to any content. Think of any Marvel Cinematic Universe movie in recent times. Even a cameo from Abomination (a lesser-known character who last appeared ~15 years ago) can get viewers excited because they have seen him before. The bigger team-ups like Avengers or Spiderman- Far from home are on another level — as you can see from box office results.
The recent Jurassic Park Dominion trailer also capitalizes on the power of nostalgia.
Who is GM targeting?
Jurassic Park or MCU uses older characters — but they also keep the newer ones to ensure younger audiences can relate. That was not the case in this ad.
Austin Powers last came out in 2002 (20 years ago). GM is obviously going for audiences who can remember those movies. Those audiences are likely in their mid-30s (at least) now.
GM also showed a baby (mini-me) inside the car to indicate these are baby-friendly cars. So we can conclude this ad is for viewers in their mid-30s who might be new parents as well.
It makes sense to target that age group as the percentage of car owners increases after the age of 35.
Marketing News February 2nd Week – Coca-Cola’s marketing & innovation overhaul is bearing fruit
Last year, Coca-Cola made some uniform global changes to its marketing & innovation strategy.
The new marketing model focuses on the seamless integration of big ideas amplified by media and data. The model included appointing a global marketing network partner — to manage synergy in creative, media, data, & MarTech — , a complementary media partner, a roster of approved agencies, and lastly, a common data & tech platform to connect Coca-Cola marketing teams across the globe.
Under this model, the real magic platform with the campaign “One Coke away from each other” was launched. Additionally, the Coca-Cola logo was slightly revamped to emulate the shape of the iconic Coke bottle.
Coca-Cola’s CEO James Quincey said,
“Our network marketing model, with global category teams and local operating units, is allowing us to focus on end-to-end consumer experiences that are data-driven and always on,”
What this change can lead to
It makes sense to add common data platforms for all marketing teams across the globe. It also does to have a common partner to oversee strategies.
However, centralization often leads to bureaucracy and stifles innovation. It can also lead to the loss of local flavors.
Time will tell if Coca-Cola will be able to make the most of the synergy or not.
As of now, the new platform, logo, and campaign seem to be pushing the right buttons! The “Real Magic” platform is also a smart & inclusive one as it is relevant for both a US-focused campaign with gamers and a subcontinental musical show like Coke Studio.
On another side of the coin, PepsiCo aims to be a better data company with higher marketing ROI
The PepsiCo group, with brands including Pepsi, Walkers, and Quaker, reported a 4.5% drop in its annual operating profit for 2021 in Europe.
The group cited the high increase in commodity costs, and higher advertising & marketing expenses in Q4 as primary reasons for such drop.
PepsiCo Chairman & CEO Ramon Laguarta emphasized the importance of having strong brands to keep the brands relevant despite rising prices. The CEO said that marketing is an essential part of the company’s growth plan as consumers can continue seeing the value in PepsiCo’s product even when prices increase.
“Strategically we want to continue with these kind of investments, being very rational in the way we invest A&M [advertising and marketing], but understanding that a company like ours, the core competency is building brands,”
What this means
As the bottom line is getting affected, PepsiCo is likely to be more analytical in spending on advertising. We hope they can find ways to do so without affecting their creativity.
Given they have just had one successful and creative campaign in the form of “Better with Pepsi”, it would be a pity to see them dialing down on innovation.
Read more: 4 Best Advertisements of 2021 (And What We can Learn From Them)
However, that shouldn’t be the case if their increased data-centricity brings them closer to what consumers want, how they consume their products and new ways of reaching them.
Back to Super Bowl, Uber Eats pressing the accelerator on non-food item deliveries- Last of Marketing News February 2nd Week
Uber Eats is making big strides in the world of non-food item delivery.
Two weeks ago, we saw Uber Eats’ Australian Open campaign where users could choose how an ad would end. The underlying message was simple — Uber Eats was venturing outside food delivery.
Read More: Uber Eats Lets You Choose Your Preferred Ending In New Advertisement
This week on Marketing News February 2nd Week, Uber Eats is back on another side of the world to promote the same message.
The ad, titled “Uber Don’t Eats”, shows celebrities getting confused when they get non-food items from Uber “Eats”.
If it comes with Uber Eats, should they eat it?
With this simple question and hilarious execution (loved Gwyenth Paltrow’s part), Uber Eats drives the message home.
What this means
Uber Eats is taking strong steps towards establishing its footprint in non-food delivery. They used the biggest platforms with a creative message to start establishing their authority & presence.
It means trouble for their competition. Uber Eats shows they understand the power of branding. They know that with seemingly similar services, it’s often branding that works as a differentiator.
This also shows that none of these food delivery companies envisioned that they’d venture outside food delivery so soon. If they did, they probably wouldn’t keep “Eats” or “Food” in their names.
To summarize Marketing News February 2nd Week
The last three weeks showed us future-oriented innovation — new ways of doing things.
This week, we are back to the basics. Super Bowl advertisement, a proven media, is back with humor, celebrity presence, and nostalgia. Strategic changes are taking place in the houses of two of the biggest companies in the world.
But what’s interesting is if we look a little bit deeper. Both the drinks giants are talking about the increased use need for data in marketing. GM is promoting electric vehicles using nostalgia. Uber Eats is pushing a service that didn’t exist on this scale even five years ago.
While the vehicle remains familiar, the content shows how the marketing world is changing.
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