Retro Marketing and a Down Economy

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I was reading an article a while ago on an airplane about Retro Marketing, using old labels and old designs to help rebrand and sell more product based on old packaging and sparking emotions of safety and when you had a stable economy or protection from your parents supporting you because you were a kid, and I was thinking about some companies that could have completely tried this and possibly succeeded by bringing back their old campaigns.

Some examples of companies that are using Retro Marketing from the article were the major cereal companies with their products in Target department stores, as well as either Coke or Pepsi which rebranded their cans or bottles to be like the ones from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s.

The article has said that they all did see an increase in their sales in the stores where they were selling the old designed boxes, but then again, if you are around my age, we tend to love these vintage designs and buy them because they remind us of our childhood, not because of safety and security like the article said but to show off to our friends and to remember how fun it was to eat these cereals when we were younger.

Now, you could argue that the campaign worked, but it was for a different reason than feeling secure with mom and dad, it was all about having something that reminded us of our childhood and was just really cool to have. Then again, maybe we liked being reminded of Mom and Dad because we didn’t have to support ourselves or rely on ourselves as much.

Anyways, regardless of anything, the Retro Marketing campaigns worked, at least according to the article and when I went to Target to check out the cereal boxes, I ended up buying them too because they were just really cool so they did seem to work on people in my age range which was exactly what the article had said would work.

For some reason I remembered that article last night and thought of one of the largest iconic commercials we had growing up. The Energizer Bunny.

I haven’t seen the Energizer bunny for a long time, but everyone remembers the commercials and the tag lines about it keeps going and going and going and the bunny banging on it’s drum. This is a perfect message for a downed economy and if Retro Marketing works, why not give it a try?

Not only does a battery that lasts have a great message for people looking to expand their spend and their dollar, but it also competes with the Duracell Battery commercials which are all about trust and security. Energizer could easily compete on the our battery lasts side with their Energizer Bunny commercials and then also move into the life of it on medical devices, flashlights, etc… and completely compete on the security part of the long life of their batteries as well.

Now before you think I am bashing Duracell, think again, they have me sold on their batteries and I always end up going with Duracell before energizer, unless there is a sale so I completely fall sucker to their commercials and became mostly brand loyal, however Energizer could completely combat this since they have an iconic retro character to work with that would be easily recognizable to a large part of the population, at least in the USA where these commercials always ran.

If Energizer Batteries needed a way to rebrand and wanted to try something different than running new commercials, etc… running a Retro Marketing campaign with their Energizer Bunny could be a great way to get their sales to start to boost again.

Bring back the commercials we all knew, add in security and trust to the commercials and then go to the commercials that made the Energizer Bunny famous and an American Marketing Icon.

I love the idea of Retro Marketing and think it is brilliant for the cereal companies to work with it since we all remember the old cereal boxes and most of us stop and stare at them and usually smile when we see them in the stores. I think Energizer could definitely get a boost in sales, especially with merchandise if they would bring back the Energizer Bunny and then compete on safety with their competitors.

What do you think?

I was reading an article a while ago on an airplane about Retro Marketing, using old labels and old designs to help rebrand and sell more product based on old packaging and sparking emotions of safety and when you had a stable economy or protection from your parents supporting you because you were a kid, and I was thinking about some companies that could have completely tried this and possibly succeeded by bringing back their old campaigns.

Some examples of companies that are using Retro Marketing from the article were the major cereal companies with their products in Target department stores, as well as either Coke or Pepsi which rebranded their cans or bottles to be like the ones from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s.

The article has said that they all did see an increase in their sales in the stores where they were selling the old designed boxes, but then again, if you are around my age, we tend to love these vintage designs and buy them because they remind us of our childhood, not because of safety and security like the article said but to show off to our friends and to remember how fun it was to eat these cereals when we were younger.

Now, you could argue that the campaign worked, but it was for a different reason than feeling secure with mom and dad, it was all about having something that reminded us of our childhood and was just really cool to have. Then again, maybe we liked being reminded of Mom and Dad because we didn’t have to support ourselves or rely on ourselves as much.

Anyways, regardless of anything, the Retro Marketing campaigns worked, at least according to the article and when I went to Target to check out the cereal boxes, I ended up buying them too because they were just really cool so they did seem to work on people in my age range which was exactly what the article had said would work.

For some reason I remembered that article last night and thought of one of the largest iconic commercials we had growing up. The Energizer Bunny.

I haven’t seen the Energizer bunny for a long time, but everyone remembers the commercials and the tag lines about it keeps going and going and going and the bunny banging on it’s drum. This is a perfect message for a downed economy and if Retro Marketing works, why not give it a try?

Not only does a battery that lasts have a great message for people looking to expand their spend and their dollar, but it also competes with the Duracell Battery commercials which are all about trust and security. Energizer could easily compete on the our battery lasts side with their Energizer Bunny commercials and then also move into the life of it on medical devices, flashlights, etc… and completely compete on the security part of the long life of their batteries as well.

Now before you think I am bashing Duracell, think again, they have me sold on their batteries and I always end up going with Duracell before energizer, unless there is a sale so I completely fall sucker to their commercials and became mostly brand loyal, however Energizer could completely combat this since they have an iconic retro character to work with that would be easily recognizable to a large part of the population, at least in the USA where these commercials always ran.

If Energizer Batteries needed a way to rebrand and wanted to try something different than running new commercials, etc… running a Retro Marketing campaign with their Energizer Bunny could be a great way to get their sales to start to boost again.

Bring back the commercials we all knew, add in security and trust to the commercials and then go to the commercials that made the Energizer Bunny famous and an American Marketing Icon.

I love the idea of Retro Marketing and think it is brilliant for the cereal companies to work with it since we all remember the old cereal boxes and most of us stop and stare at them and usually smile when we see them in the stores. I think Energizer could definitely get a boost in sales, especially with merchandise if they would bring back the Energizer Bunny and then compete on safety with their competitors.

What do you think?

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2 thoughts on “Retro Marketing and a Down Economy”

  1. I love retro marketing too, but then I’ve always been a sucker for vintage ads in general (I collect them and have some classics hanging in my house). I don’t know that I disagree w/ the theory that they spark emotions of safety and security amidst an unstable economy.

    I think they’re right, on a subconscious level, but on a conscious level I agree with you. Most people just like them for novelty purposes, not realizing WHY they find it novel or why they’re drawn to it other than that they “like” it. It’s the brain chemistry behind why they like it, that I think the author of the article you read, may have been referring to.

    In any case, I’ve been paying attention to the number of companies who have been rebranding with old logos/designs/campaigns myself, over the last year or two. My local phone company did it. Chatelaine magazine (maybe only Canadian?) did it. I think Rice Krispies did it, even if only for a limited time promotion.

    I saw Apple Jacks cereal in my grocery store a few weeks ago, for the first time in years any my husband was compelled to buy it, out of nostalgia for his childhood (we got it home and found it wasn’t nearly as good as we remembered! LOL).

    I am not sure how effective these retro nostalgia campaigns are in the grand scheme of things (i.e. long term, brand building, attracting/growing new markets, etc.) but for a short term lift, I can definitely see why they are effective and I for one really enjoy them on a personal level.

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts Adam! I’m enjoying keeping up w/ them when I can. 🙂

    1. I actually agree that it does help with the security, etc… and spark emotions for people, but for our generation, we tend to really like the vintage stuff as well which is part of it. Then again, I see some people around our age range buying stuff from before we were born as well. I saw Trix Boxes that were around even before I was and I ended up almost buying them. I love vintage and think that the emotions are the main closing point for the consumers subconscious and to get their interest, but also the fact that we like vintage in general also plays a huge factor and that we are a generation that was hit very hard by the recession.

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