Marketing should be all about adding increasing levels of value to the lives of customers and other constituents over time. The value delivered then increases the value of the brand through more frequent and more profitable interactions and exchanges.
Unfortunately, that's not how people view the field of marketing. And it's the industry's fault, since people's negative perceptions are shaped by the choices and behaviors of most marketers; choices like this one (from AAF SmartBrief):
"The operator of nearly 350 Hardee's franchises in the U.S. says it will not run, in the markets in which it operates, humorous ads for the quick-service restaurant chain's biscuit holes that use terms like, A-hole, B-hole, sweet balls and 'bisticals' and is calling for Hardee's parent, CKE, to pull the ads from all of its markets. Boddie-Noell Enterprises, which claims to be Hardee's biggest U.S. franchisee, aired its concerns in response to a complaint from the Parents Television Council that the ads were 'brainless' and 'racy.' According to this article, Hardee's issued a statement that said there are no plans to pull the ads."
So you tell me: Lazy, uniformed, uncaring, or something else?
Posted July 25, 2009
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I'd vote for the "something else."
The commercial actually is quite funny. Is it pandering to a particular audience? Yes. Will it move me to go eat in a Hardee's? No. But I don't think it's aimed towards me.
They're obviously trying to position themselves with their perceived (current) audience. If they've made a mistake, let the market decide.
Look around at the influence of current media - television and film. Johnny Knoxville was only the beginning.
No, they're not uncaring or uninformed. Just joining the crowd.
Begs the question - what if the campaign is successful?
My guess - we'll be seeing more of this...and not just for Hardee's...
Posted by: Jeff | July 26, 2009 at 08:26 AM
Great points Jeff. It's an interesting development. Tasteless, sophomoric humor has always existed. But when did marketers decide that it made sense to associate their brands -- which includes their products, services, employees, etc. -- with it and why? Did they see it as their easiest, smartest, or least expensive choice for gaining attention and desire with their audience?
Posted by: Tom Asacker | July 26, 2009 at 09:12 AM
To answer your second question first, I think they think it's the smartest choice.
You're looking at "advertising" as having a unique and genuine purpose. But it's at odds with companies like Hardee's, and their agencies, who see advertising purely as entertainment. I have no doubt they're hoping this will go viral - and it probably will. And so will the Hardee's name.
When did they decide to do this? I'm not the smartest man in the room so can't exactly say - but they're just holding up a mirror to our current culture. What is that culture? Just head on over to the movie listings in your local paper.
Advertising isn't being run by Madison Avenue anymore. It's owned and operated by Hollywood and YouTube...
Posted by: Jeff | July 26, 2009 at 10:22 AM
Perhaps some would see my view on this as a bit cockeyed, but first of all I don't perceive fast food chains as really being about family and quality of life in the first place. By and large, they serve terribly unhealthy food in oversized portions, and they use things like playgrounds and free toys in kids' meals to nudge us into buying and eating our way to increasing obesity and myocardial infarctions.
It has been obvious for quite a while that Hardee's has been aiming its marketing at males, using everything from risque ads with scantily dressed females to basically promosing bragging rights if you can down one of their half a gazillion calorie burgers.
So am I complaining about this latest marketing tactic on the part of Hardee's and their ad firm? Not really. They obviously intend to market heavily to a segment of the population and they're creating ads that they see as on-target for that group. If that's the direction they want to go, it's their risk to take and their choice. Personally, I think the ads are humorous and I, too, see the possibility of the ads going viral.
If "families" feel offended and start steering clear of the local Hardee's drive through as a retaliatory gesture, my life won't be profoundly or painfully affected by it. From a marketing and branding perspective, however, I see this ad campaign fitting in pretty well with the direction Hardee's has been taking for years. Maybe they understand what "branding" really is and they're content with the possibility of losing business outside a certain slice of the population. There are enough fast food restaurants in this country to feed everyone -- families included. So if they want to specifically fight for a larger chunk of the business from a narrow segment of the population, good luck to them.
Posted by: Dan Gunter | July 26, 2009 at 06:02 PM
I hear you Dan. And trust me: I don't have any problem with using humor to connect with people. However, I'd advise using it in a way that connects with ALL people associated with the brand; e.g. owners, employees, etc.
Posted by: Tom Asacker | July 27, 2009 at 08:06 AM
I certainly can't speak to how this little campaign is going over internally for them, but given the group they *seem* to have identified as their target market, they aren't likely to get much complaining from the latter bunch -- a lot of serious laughs, perhaps. Of course I do find the great modern internet already well in motion here:
Hardee's largest franchisee balks over what they see as tasteless advertising and THAT gets out to the media. Result... every news story I see about the matter on the web has -- lo and behold -- a link to the commercials on YouTube. Oops. By complaining, they're already driving it to go viral.
I imagine the latest buzzword among the ad folks that created these spots might just be "serendipity."
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. LOL.
Posted by: Dan Gunter | July 27, 2009 at 07:10 PM