AUTUMN 2016_PROMOTING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PRINT MEDIA THROUGHOUT EUROPE
WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?
How print feeds the appetite for food marketing
BEST FRIENDS FOREVER How print inspires loyalty, devotion and commitment HOT OFF THE PRESSES Create topical print campaigns with fast turnaround ads THE 360-DEGREE REVOLUTION We explore how print is working with virtual reality THE LIONS THAT ROARED The best print campaigns from this year’s Cannes festival
Seize the moment Tactical or ‘real-time’ ads are traditionally the preserve of digital media, but with new printing technology and shorter lead times, brands can now take advantage of print’s deeper engagement levels to run last-minute ads that can have an effect for years — By David Benady it took mindshare norway just three hours
to create an amusing tactical newspaper ad responding to criticism of its client SAS. By acting swiftly, the agency turned a negative story into a piece of positive PR for the airline. The episode began when a local professor, Victor Norman, made disparaging remarks about customer service on SAS. He joked on stage at an event that he liked flying on SAS to experience their poor service levels. News reports of this comment created a stir in the Norwegian media and upset SAS employees. Two days later, the professor apologised for the comments in an interview with the daily business paper Dagens Naeringsliv. SAS, together with its creative agency Los & Co and media agency Mindshare, swung into action. Within three hours of the interview going live on the paper’s website, Mindshare had negotiated a full-page spot in the next day’s paper, to coincide with the print edition of the interview. The response from SAS was to run
some pictures of smiling SAS employees with the line (in English) “Dear Victor Norman. No hard feelings.” The paper overcame any fears about a conflict between editorial and advertising, and ran the ad. The press ad received plenty of positive attention in the media, especially in the business sector. “It was a good example of what you can do with a quick turnaround,” says Per Christian Worren, client adviser for SAS at MindShare Norway. “It was a tiny effort really, but we spent a few hours to align everyone and produce what we needed. We use print in several places like that because it is more of a statement when you go in a newspaper, rather than keeping within the limitations of what we can do with banners.” A tactical game Press advertising has traditionally been seen as ‘slow’ old media, while digital has been the place for real-time advertising – the type that responds to unfolding events whether on social media or through banner advertising. But new
22_ PRINT POWER | www.printpower.eu
PP12_22-25_Tactical ads_UK v2.indd 2
03/10/2016 10:56
/ TACTICAL ADVERTISING
Tusen takk for at du er en lojal og god kunde av oss. Vi lover å gjøre alt vi kan for at du og alle andre skal få gode reiseopplevelser med oss også i fremtiden.
“We use print in several places because it is more of a statement when you go in a newspaper” Per Christian Worren, client adviser for SAS at MindShare Norway www.printpower.eu | PRINT POWER _23
PP12_22-25_Tactical ads_UK v2.indd 3
03/10/2016 10:56
digital printing technology and shorter print lead times has allowed newspapers to run fast-turnaround ads hooked on the latest news stories. This is boosting the effectiveness of press ads by giving them a topical flavour, which amplifies their messages. Consumers are accustomed to seeing the same messages repeated over months, but by acting outside of campaigns, brands are finding ways to stand out and grab the attention of audiences. Tactical press campaigns are on the rise across Europe. In the UK, news stories with a positive flavour have served as hooks for quick response ads. When rank outsiders Leicester City upset expectations by winning the 2015/16 Premier League football title, the media described the event as a ‘fairytale’, given that the team were on the brink of relegation only 12 months previously. This good news story inspired a number of tactical ads by brands in newspapers the day after. Walkers, the Leicester-based snack brand owned by PepsiCo, was quick to act. The brand has built a strong association with football over the past 30 years and its brand ambassador Gary Lineker is a former Leicester City and England player. Lineker, who presents the BBC’s Match of the Day football show, had declared earlier in the season that he would strip to his underpants on TV if Leicester won the Premier League. So, the day after the team won the title, Walkers took out a full-page ad in The Sun newspaper showing Lineker’s face superimposed on a muscular body, dressed only in his underwear. Football has proved one of the most popular areas for tactical ads. Before last summer’s Euro 2016 tournament began in France, an eye-catching series of timely images helped French charity AIDES promote safe sex with the help of couples painted in different countries’ flags alongside the slogan ‘Make Love, Not War’. And if the best ads are often the simplest, when it comes to tactical campaigns, that’s all the more true. In 2012 Helsinki-based agency Hasan & partners were tasked with creating an ad to recognize the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to the European Union in 2012. They caught the eye of readers across Europe with a CND symbol in
Quick off the mark Clockwise from above: Captain Morgan rum features Leicester’s Wes Morgan in a timely ad; Gary LIneker advertises Walkers (renamed ‘Winners’ for the ad); GroupM’s Steve Goodman
Previous page: SAS’s ‘Victor Norman’ campaign
the colours of the EU flag, and the slogan “Congratulations to all 503,179,000 Nobel Peace Prize winners.” Grab your chance Of course tactical campaigns must, by their nature, be used sparingly. Their power derives from their topicality and the strength of association with the event concerned. Brands must seize the moment when it arises and agencies must be agile enough to spring into action as soon as an opportunity comes up. Media buyer Steve Goodman, Managing Director for print trading at GroupM in the UK, says: “You can get very tactical copy running in the next day’s paper cheaply and, if it’s planned well, in an environment that helps amplify the brand message. It is a great opportunity for advertisers and I’ve often been surprised why they don’t take more advantage of that.” He says it takes no more effort to
create tactical press ads than realtime ads through digital channels, as creatives still need to be briefed and the ad designed. Goodman believes that newspaper publishers should do more to promote tactical advertising in their papers. “If they know what’s coming up, they could encourage advertisers to create copy around it or help advertisers develop the text,” he says. “Most publishers have significant solutions departments, which tend to concentrate on the bigger opportunities. As a sideline, they could come up with more tactical opportunities that could be taken up by their creative agencies.” Deadlines vary according to the section of the paper where an ad may run, but if tactical ads can be sent over to the newspapers by close of play, they can make the next day’s print run. As for cost, Goodman doesn’t believe that they are necessarily more expensive. “If anything,” he says, “the publishers need to encourage more tactical advertising. I really hope they make it favourable to help that happen, because a lot of advertisers have gone out of their way to use the product in a different way and the publishers should try and encourage that.” Tactical press ads allow brands to grab the reader’s attention by forging a connection with the events that make the news. Expect to see more in the years to come.
24_ PRINT POWER | www.printpower.eu
PP12_22-25_Tactical ads_UK v2.indd 4
03/10/2016 10:56
/ TACTICAL ADVERTISING
“Tactical ads are a great opportunity for advertisers and I’ve often been surprised why they don’t take more advantage of them” Steve Goodman, Managing Director for print trading at GroupM www.printpower.eu | PRINT POWER _25
PP12_22-25_Tactical ads_UK v2.indd 5
03/10/2016 10:56