If you LOVE marketing—and I know you do, because if you follow me, you live and breathe for marketing genius that lands like a sack of cash—then watch Pepsi’s new Super Bowl commercial “The Choice.” And do it not as just a casual viewer, but as a strategist.
Essentially, Pepsi just stole Coke’s mascot and paired it with the single most successful advertising campaign they’ve ever run—the blind taste test.
In the commercial, the iconic polar bear, which was prominent in multiple Coca-Cola ads over the years, chooses Pepsi in a blind taste test. This rocks him to the core so much that he seeks a therapist—and mopes around in confusion until another polar bear hands him a Pepsi, as if to say, “It’s okay.” The ad then ends with a final jab at the Coldplay kiss cam scandal.
Here’s what’s great about the ad…
Most of the Super Bowl ads—and all ads, for that matter—focus way too much on being funny, not on actually selling the product. This ad SELLS the product as being the better choice than its #1 competitor, Coke, and does it in a funny, lighthearted way, without losing the plot.
Second, the ad not only attempts to convert the non-Pepsi drinker via cognitive dissonance, but also reaffirms to all the Pepsi drinkers how smart and cool they are for drinking Pepsi.
Don’t overlook this: Most of what we do as human beings is largely influenced by what other people think of us, not what WE independently believe. Peer pressure and the need to fit in are the biggest driving forces in steering our decisions. In fact, most of the beliefs we hold to be true are not our own, but what other people have told us are right.
Really sophisticated brand marketers know this.
Brand loyalty is an emotional decision driven by identity. You don’t wear a Rolex watch because you need to tell time any more than someone buys Apple products merely because the technology is “better.” Designer brands capitalize on this more effectively than nearly all other companies. “Who are you wearing?” is the question on the red carpet (and one I got asked when sitting in a bougie LA bar with Mr. Wonderful.) You get a sense of who a person is by the car they drive, the college they chose to attend, and the football team they root for.
You might think that Pepsi is attacking Coke, but I think they’re actually attacking the assumption about preference and habit. Perhaps it’s time to try Diet Pepsi (the zero-sugar product is featured) and give it a fair taste test… You might like it more. Are you SURE you like Coke that much? How can you be so sure if you’ve never validated your choice?
If you’re an MSP, one of the hardest things to do is get a prospective client to be open to exploring what they could be getting by working with you, vs. the incumbent IT guy or company.
Attacking the other MSP rarely works. The incumbent may be doing a good job. The prospect might not have any known IT issues or frustrations. If you attempt to point out their “foolishness” for working with someone other than you, you lose the argument.
No one wants to be lectured about their choices, especially by a company clearly attempting to “sell them something.”
The message shouldn’t be that they’re wrong for making the choices they make. It should be a demonstration—through testimonials, assessments, fair comparison, or guarantees—that perhaps it’s time to take a “closer look” and reassess what they’re really getting for their money.
Present that well, and you’ll open a lot more doors.
