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Clever marketing: how well-known brands discovered the true reasons behind consumer purchases through trial and error, and managed to persuade their customers to buy even more.
The reasons for purchasing are a closely guarded advertising secret. Despite the fact that both advertisers and agencies analyze motivations and constantly search for that elusive insight that drives people to prefer certain brands, finding the right strategy is achieved strictly through experimental methods.
TEFAL.
For a long time, Tefal believed that the main reason people bought non-stick frying pans was that cooking with them required no oil at all. However, it later became clear that the primary motivation for purchasing these pans was the fact that they are very easy to clean, as food does not stick to their surface. The content of the advertising campaign was changed, which significantly increased its effectiveness.
SNICKERS
In Russia, the first Snickers chocolate bars appeared in 1992 and were marketed as a snack that could replace a full meal. The former Soviet consumer struggled for a long time to accept that instead of soup, they could have a chocolate bar for lunch, and they bought Snickers as a “sweet treat for tea.” After the brand’s creative management was taken over by BBDO Moscow, Snickers was repositioned for teenagers, who generally love all things sweet and are not fond of soup.
Alka-Seltzer
After the Alka-Seltzer commercials in the 1960s started dropping not one, as before, but two tablets into a glass of water, sales of the medication doubled. This clever advertising move was devised by the agency Tinker&Partners.
There’s a similar story about a brilliant marketer who was the first to suggest in the shampoo instructions that it should be applied to the hair and rinsed out twice, which led to a doubling of sales.
Pepsi.
Pepsi was first advertised in Russia by Nikita Khrushchev. In 1959, at the American National Exhibition in Moscow, then-Vice President Richard Nixon, skillfully playing the role of host, offered Nikita Khrushchev a drink to try. A photo of the Soviet leader holding a cup with the Pepsi logo remained in newspapers and advertising magazines for a long time. That significant moment in the brand’s history is considered the “birthday” of Pepsi in Russia.
Timberland
The history of Timberland. In the early 1980s, Timberland was going through tough times. They were producing high-quality loafers that were priced lower than those of the industry leader, Topsiders. It seemed that a good product and a low price should have worked in their favor, but sales were poor. Then Timberland made a very simple decision: they raised their prices significantly above those offered by Topsiders. Sales skyrocketed. This supports the validity of David Ogilvy’s statement, “The higher the price, the more desirable the product becomes in the eyes of the buyer.”
Parliament
At one time, the tobacco brand Parliament took the same path. Initially, its prices were lower than its main competitor, Marlboro, and sales were quite modest, as they faced a multitude of low-cost competitors who didn’t appreciate the uniqueness of their exclusive filter. Then the brand left the market for a year and re-entered at a price higher than Marlboro, immediately positioning itself in the “premium” niche, where its distinctive filter was perfectly suited.
Woolworth
The founder of the largest chain of Woolworth stores and the inventor of grocery price tags and supermarkets discovered the right insight that allowed him to make millions, all while fainting from fear. A shy and stuttering young man from a village, at the age of 21, got a job as a sales assistant in a small shop. At that time, prices for goods displayed on the counter were not indicated. The seller would assess the buyer’s ability to pay “by eye” and state his price. The buyer would then either negotiate or leave. Poor Frank was completely unable to and very afraid of calling out to customers, promoting the products, and haggling. He was so scared that one day he even fainted right at work. As punishment, the shop owner left him to sell alone for an entire day, threatening that if the sales were lower than usual, he would be fired.
Before opening the store, Frank attached a tag with the lowest possible price to all the items (the precursor to the modern price tag). He laid out all the unsold merchandise, piled up in the warehouse, on a huge table, attaching a sign that read “Everything for five cents.” He placed the table near the window so that both the merchandise and the sign were visible from the street. Trembling with fear, he hid behind the counter and waited for customers.
All the goods were sold out within a few hours, and the revenue for the day was equal to that of a week. Customers, after holding the items in their hands and seeing the price marked on them, paid without haggling.
Frank left his employer, borrowed some money, and opened his own store. By 1919, the Woolworth empire consisted of a thousand stores, and Frank’s personal fortune was around 65 million.
“Guinness World Records”
The famous and best-selling (after the Bible) “Guinness World Records” is nothing more than a marketing gimmick conceived by Sir Hugh Beaver, the managing director of the Guinness brewing company. In 1954, during a dinner hosted by the Wexford company for hunters, Hugh Beaver got into an argument with one of the guests about which bird flies faster—the golden plover or the Scottish grouse. It was then that Beaver realized that all around the world, during such small gatherings over a pint of beer, real debates about “the best of the best” were taking place. He decided it was worth creating a book that would contain officially verified records in various fields.
A year was spent on research, and on August 27, 1955, the first 198-page book was ready. The success was overwhelming: it became a bestseller in the UK before Christmas, bringing in a nice profit for the beer brand.
Dewar’s
In London at the end of the 19th century, brandy, rum, and gin were very popular. As a result, promoting whiskey was not easy. The clever Thomas Dewar, one of the founders of the family brand, chose an unexpected strategy. He hired decoy customers to visit various pubs, demanding to be served Dewar’s whiskey. Naturally, it was not available, and they would leave. After several such visits, Dewar himself would show up at the bar and offer to sign a supply contract for the whiskey.
In 1892, Thomas Dewar set off on a round-the-world trip. Over the course of two years, he visited 26 countries, and the company began working with 32 agents, leading to the establishment of several export companies under the Dewar’s name. During this time, the company’s turnover increased tenfold. Tommy Dewar also wrote his famous book “A Walk Around the World.”
Camel.
One of the first brands in America to experiment with teaser advertising was the tobacco brand Camel in 1913. Believing that a camel was not only a memorable and striking image but also a great opportunity for advertising innovations, the specialists at the tobacco company RJR placed mysterious ads in the newspapers of nearly ninety American cities just days before the first shipment of cigarettes hit the market. “Camels” was the first of these ads. A few days later, another message appeared: “Camels are coming,” followed by “Tomorrow there will be more camels in the city than in Asia and Africa combined!” The next morning, frightened and intrigued Americans finally learned the whole truth. “Camel cigarettes are here!” proclaimed the final ad.
IKEA.
When the first IKEA stores opened in the U.S., having already gained recognition in Europe, furniture sales did not meet expectations. Research revealed that while Americans appreciated the simplicity of the design, they wanted the furniture to match the larger sizes of their homes. All that needed to be done was to increase the dimensions of the furniture.
Procter & Gamble
Victor Mills, a leading chemical engineer at Procter & Gamble, who was helping his daughter take care of her children, often found himself pulling wet diapers out from under his own grandchildren, washing and drying them. He certainly didn’t enjoy the process and wanted to find a way to make his life easier. That’s when the idea for a disposable “diaper” came to him—a foldable pad with high absorbency that was intended to be placed in specially shaped underwear. After several experiments with different materials, Mills developed a new product for P&G, which was launched under the Pampers brand, becoming a household name.
Chupa Chups
Usually, after children eat candy, their hands become sticky, and without thinking, they wipe them on their clothes. The lollipop (originally made of wood), which could be sucked on while holding it like a fork and not getting clothes dirty, was invented in 1958 by Enrique Bernat. The unique selling proposition of the product was that it could be enjoyed without making a mess on clothes and hands. At the same time, the first slogan for Chupa Chups appeared: “It’s round and long-lasting.” Consumers around the world appreciated this innovative lollipop, and for 52 years, they have continued to enjoy the fruity treat.
Nestlé
The original logo of the Nestlé company, founded in the 1860s, featured a nest with three chicks and their mother. For his first products, Henri Nestlé used the family coat of arms as a trademark. At that time, a traditional family was considered to consist of parents and three children. Later, closer to the mid-20th century, traditions changed, and so did the logo. Now, in the nest, there are traditionally only two chicks, as is common in Europe.
Marlboro
The Marlboro brand first appeared in 1924 and was positioned as the first ladies’ cigarettes. A distinctly feminine slogan was chosen: “Mild as May.” Hollywood star Mae West was invited to be the face of the brand. The packaging was also aimed at a female audience: the filter with a red stripe served a dual purpose: it concealed unsightly lipstick marks and protected women’s white teeth from yellowing. However, despite the efforts of advertising specialists, the product was not very appealing to women: cigarettes caused bad breath, yellowed teeth, and a painful dry cough. As a result, to survive in the market, the brand had to change its target audience two decades later.
To change the perception of filtered cigarettes as a “girl’s product,” Philip Morris enlisted one of the best American advertising specialists, Leo Burnett, who created the image of the “Marlboro Man.” The cowboy, embodying the American spirit, struck a chord with consumers. The posters evoked images of real American heroes—rugged men conquering the wild plains. They appealed to everyone—men and women, Black and Latino. In just one year, Marlboro’s sales skyrocketed, reaching the fourth position in the ranking of all tobacco products sold.
In addition, Marlboro began to be sold in the now-standard “Flip-top” packaging—a hard cardboard box with a flip lid. This packaging had both practical benefits (the cigarettes didn’t get crushed) and significant marketing value—now, smokers had to show off the pack to those around them every time they were about to light up, as it was inconvenient to open the “flip-top” from their pocket.
De Beers
It is known that consumers do not buy a product, but rather a solution to their problems. This is how the South African diamond company De Beers offered men a solution to all their issues with the opposite sex, building a brilliant advertising campaign on this insight.
In 1948, Harry Oppenheimer, the head of De Beers, traveled to New York to meet with representatives from the advertising agency N. W. Ayer. He went there with a firm intention to change people’s perceptions of diamonds: the goal was to transform this stone from a mere trinket for the wealthy into an everyday item that ordinary people couldn’t live without. Advertising posters featuring glamorous actresses with rings on their fingers and earrings in their ears replaced black-and-white posters showcasing diamonds with slogans like “Relieves headaches since 1888,” “Think about it. Divorce is more expensive,” and “No, your wife didn’t pay for this ad (But she told us which newspapers you read)” among others. In this way, De Beers proved that luxury could be sold to women through their men.
Red Bull
When the drink was launched on the broad market (Europe, USA), its main competitors included Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Molson, Labatt, and Anheuser-Busch. The concept was similar for all of them — they provided a tonic and stimulating effect, while the energy drink Jolt Cola contained, among other things, double the caffeine compared to Red Bull.
Then Dietrich Mateschitz took a risky step: he artificially doubled the price compared to competitors, reduced the size of the can, which resembled a battery, and began placing the cans in stores not in the beverage sections, but in any other sections (note this the next time you go to the store — you can find Red Bull cans alongside other energy drinks even in the deli section, including the alcohol section).
In addition, Red Bull boxes were distributed for free to students on university campuses. At student parties, Red Bull was a hit, as it quickly became apparent, by a fortunate coincidence, that it mixed perfectly with vodka. This is how the new and very popular cocktail Vodka Red Bull was born.
ARIEL.
It is said that the so-called casual Fridays, when employees can deviate from the strict dress code typical in large companies and swap their formal suits for casual attire, were invented by P&G for marketing purposes. In the 1980s, the world’s largest company, P&G, was a leader in the laundry detergent market in the U.S. However, despite high advertising activity, its market share was not growing. The company then conducted research to assess the clothing care market. It turned out that detergent was used in 65% of cases, while dry cleaning accounted for 35%. Furthermore, the company discovered that 70% of laundry detergent consumers were employed and wore suits 5 out of 7 days a week, which they sent to the dry cleaners.
Furthermore, joint research by P&G and Levi Strauss Jeans showed that employees in casual clothing are more creative and work much more efficiently than those who wear suits. So what did they do? P&G introduced a policy allowing employees to wear casual clothes on Fridays. This news received extensive media coverage thanks to the efforts of both companies, and many corporations followed their example. The market for laundry detergents grew by 20%.