Not long ago, a bus slowly passed by me, and a handsome man with two red chili peppers shaped like mustaches on the corner of his mouth on the bus advertisement caught my eye, instantly arousing my strong curiosity: "Is this a chili advertisement?" After 0.1 seconds of searching, a big advertisement slogan suddenly came into my sight: "The spiciness is still from the male fragrance," I was immediately struck dumb! Seeing this advertisement slogan, I think the first reaction of ordinary people should be the same as mine: "Which company is playing with concepts again? This concept is too exaggerated. I've heard that cows and sheep can be male, but I've never heard that chilies can be male!" Then comes the feeling of "dislike" naturally arises, or one just laughs it off, with a bit of mockery in the laughter!
From the perspective of the six major tasks carried by an advertising slogan, this slogan indeed excels in one or two aspects. It is indeed concise, catchy, and easy to remember! However, attracting attention and being remembered cannot truly evoke people's goodwill and purchasing desire. Just like Sister Furong, she is indeed eye-catching and has been remembered by millions of netizens, but she lacks market appeal. I heard that her concert sold only seven tickets in total!
So what kind of advertising slogan can be considered successful or excellent?
In my opinion, a successful advertising slogan must accomplish the following six major tasks:
1. Clearly express the brand positioning (or the core selling point of the product).
2. Allow people to have beautiful associations (or directly give promises of benefits).
3. Not violate social customs or moral standards.
4. Have powerful and beautiful language.
5. Be short and precise.
6. Be catchy, easy to spread, and easy to remember.
Among these six major tasks, the first one is the basic criterion for determining whether an advertising slogan is qualified. I believe that an advertising slogan is merely a tool for brand communication, and it must serve the purpose of brand communication. What is the goal of brand communication? Ultimately, it is to establish a differentiated brand image and make your target audience recognize and be loyal to you! Therefore, the core of brand communication is to communicate the differentiated positioning of the brand. If this is not achieved in the communication process, all your communication work will be twice the effort for half the result, or even ineffective and counterproductive! So as one of the tools for brand communication, an advertising slogan must be faithful to the brand positioning (if it is a brand communication slogan, it must be based on brand positioning; if it is a product advertisement slogan, it should be based on the functional appeal of the product’s differentiation). First, clearly explain what your brand or product is, then beautify it, making it more powerful and attractive! If your brand or product really cannot find essential differentiated selling points, then emotional appeals must be sought to find differentiated emotional appeals. Regardless of whether there are essential differences in positioning, creativity must always adhere to the basic principle of brand positioning or the core selling point of the product.
Revisiting the aforementioned "The spiciness is still from the male fragrance," the most fatal mistake it commits is not explaining the brand positioning or the core selling point of the product (not a single word mentioned), only pursuing the gimmick of communication! At the same time, it violates the third task: not violating social customs or moral standards! "The spiciness is still from the male fragrance" completely goes against the public's cognitive habits, almost challenging common knowledge, resulting only in "dislike." Especially in today's market where consumers are well-versed in various product concepts, they will only think that the manufacturer is playing with concepts, thereby creating a negative impression of the brand. Once such an impression forms, it is extremely detrimental to product sales. If it weren't for writing this article, perhaps I would never have had any interest in knowing which brand this slogan belongs to. After browsing their website, I found that the brand's positioning is actually very prominent. The concept of "Southern-style chili sauce" proposed by the brand is actually very good, truly segmenting the chili sauce market. The difference in taste between the north and south is indisputable, and no brand in the chili sauce market has truly segmented the market based on this fact. However, under the current situation of significant population mobility between the north and south, this positioning can not only cater to southern palates but also evoke a sense of belonging, thus effectively conquering the "Southern-style chili sauce" niche market! The brand has such a wonderful positioning, but unfortunately, there is no trace of "Southern-style chili sauce" in its brand communication, and it is simply wasting money on publicity! Upon careful reflection, perhaps the brand manager ultimately did not intend to express the concept of gender in this "male" in the advertising slogan, but rather the "gong" in the brand name "Maode Gong," while deliberately letting consumers misunderstand, playing a gimmick to attract attention! However, I believe that this wordplay is not sophisticated.
Every word in commercial copywriting serves the purpose of brand communication and aims to establish a differentiated brand image. Wordplay that has no substantial effect on brand image communication is worthless, regardless of how cleverly it is used or how refined the words or rhetoric are! The tension, beauty of the language, and conciseness and preciseness of the words are all built upon doing the first task well. The last three tasks, I believe, should be basic common sense. Accomplishing these tasks allows the advertising slogan to move from being qualified to being excellent! Unfortunately, many brands today don't even meet the qualification criteria and want to jump straight to excellence. Or some brands completely prioritize incorrectly, focusing solely on the tension, beauty, catchiness, and attractiveness of the words while neglecting the original and ultimate task of the advertising slogan!
I suggest changing Maode Gong Chili Sauce's advertising slogan to: "Chili sauce is still fragrant in the Southern style!" At least it clarifies the brand characteristics!
Another popular milk advertising slogan:
"Cantonese style, Cantonese freshness, Cantonese popularity."
Clear and distinct selling points, forming a clear distinction from Mengniu and Yili. "Cantonese" indicates geographical advantages while rhyming with "more," showcasing excellent word technique. Kudos!