Branding Strategy Insider

Great Moments in Advertising: The First Jingle

The jingle had no definitive debut: its infiltration of the radio was more of an evolutionary process than a sudden innovation. Product advertisements with a musical tilt can be traced back to 1923, around the same time commercial radio came to the public. However, if one entity has the best claim to the first jingle it’s General Mills, who aired the world’s first singing commercial. The seminal radio bite, entitled "Have You Tried Wheaties?", was first released on the Christmas Eve of 1926. It featured four male singers, who were eventually christened "The Wheaties Quartet", singing the following lines:

Have you tried Wheaties?
They’re whole wheat with all of the bran.
Won’t you try Wheaties?
For wheat is the best food of man.

While the lyrics may appear hokey to modern day society, the advertisement was an absolute sensation to consumers at the time. In fact, it was such a success that it served to save the otherwise failing brand of cereal. In 1929, General Mills was seriously considering dropping Wheaties on the basis of poor sales. However, advertising manager Sam Gale pointed out that an astounding 30,000 of the 53,000 cases of cereal that General Mills sold were in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, the only location where “Have You Tried Wheaties?” was being aired at the time. Encouraged by the incredible results of this new method of advertising, General Mills changed tactics entirely. Instead of dropping the cereal, it purchased nationwide commercial time for the advertisement. The resultant climb in sales single-handedly saved the now über-popular cereal.

Sources: Ask the Expert, General Mills

Sponsored By: Brand Aid

Runaway Sloganeering

As I sit through all of the expensive commercials running during NFL games, I'm struck with the fact that the marketing world is mired in what can only be called, runaway sloganeering.

If you doubt this, take the following quiz. Here are some current multi-million dollar slogans for some very big national advertisers. See how many you can match up with a sponsoring company:

Your future made easier.
Your world delivered.
Yes you can.
Way of light.
Uncommon wisdom.
Always worth it.
Shift.
Today's the day.

I know what you're thinking. It's not fair to take a slogan out of context. They are just some ideas for a commercial or a print advertisement. That's the problem. If you think like that, you'll probably end up with just a cute but meaningless set of words. A good slogan should be a position or differentiating idea.

None on that list comes close to being that. What you're after are the likes of what I call "Hall of Fame slogans"--such as these, which I suspect you'll have little trouble with.

The 100 Most Influential U.S. Taglines Since 1948

Eric Swartz at Tagline Guru has compiled his list of The 100 Most Influential U.S. Taglines Since 1948. The criteria and methodology:

-More than 400 nominated U.S. taglines and jingles were sent to 100 advertising, marketing, and branding professionals on both the client and agency side.

-The survey was restricted to taglines and jingles created after 1948 (the advent of commercial broadcast TV).

-Informants were asked to rank their top 10 taglines and top 3 jingles based on the following branding criteria:

    * Longevity: Have they endured the test of time?
    * Equity: Have they become synonymous with a company or product?
    * Portability & Memorability: Have they exercised an influence on our culture, media, and language?
    * Originality: Have they broken new ground in the advertising industry?

-Nominated taglines and jingles were given a weighted ranking based on the number of votes they received and the rank they were assigned.

And the results…

1. Got milk? (1993) California Milk Processor Board
2. Don’t leave home without it. (1975) American Express
3. Just do it. (1988) Nike
4. Where’s the beef? (1984) Wendy’s
5. You’re in good hands with Allstate. (1956) Allstate Insurance
6. Think different. (1998) Apple Computer
7. We try harder. (1962) Avis
8. Tastes great, less filling. (1974) Miller Lite
9. Melts in your mouth, not in your hands. (1954) M&M Candies
10. Takes a licking and keeps on ticking. (1956) Timex

Top U.S. City Slogans and Nicknames

Recently, Eric Swartz, President of TaglineGuru released his company’s list of the top 50 U.S. city slogans and nicknames. Following are the top ten of each:

Slogans

1. Las Vegas, NV – What Happens Here, Stays Here.
2. Charlottesville, VA – So Very Virginia.
3. Atlantic City, NJ – Always Turned On.
4. Cleveland, OH – Cleveland Rocks!
5. Hershey, PA – The Sweetest Place on Earth.
6. Omaha, NE – Rare. Well Done.
7. Sante Fe, NM – The City Different.
8. Eagle Pass, TX – Where Yee-Ha Meets Olé.
9. San Diego, CA – City with Sol.
10. Peculiar, MO – Where the Odds Are With You.

Nicknames

1. New York City, NY – The Big Apple
2. Las Vegas, NV – Sin City
3. New Orleans, LA – The Big Easy
4. Detroit, MI – Motor City
5. Chicago, IL – The Windy City
6. Boston, MA – Beantown
7. San Francisco, CA – Baghdad by the Bay
8. Hollywood, CA – Tinseltown
9. Cleveland, OH – Mistake on the Lake
10. Los Angeles, CA – La-La Land

Join us for a related Place Branding and Tagline Development discussion here...

Branding and Cultural Differences

Marketers can get into trouble when they introduce their products to new countries if they don’t pay close attention to cultural differences.  A case in point: Gerber introduced baby food in jars in certain African markets.  The jars featured cute babies.  Sales were very disappointing.  When the problem was investigated, brand managers discovered why the baby food wasn’t selling.  As many people in Africa are illiterate, people generally expect labels to visually portray the contents of the package.  Cute babies were not very appetizing.

Other brands have encountered cultural problems as well:

Brand: Perdue Chicken
Slogan: ‘It takes a strong man to make a tender chicken’
Slogan in Spanish: ‘It takes an aroused man to make a chicken affectionate.’

Brand: Chevy Nova
Name: Nova
Name’s meaning in Spanish: ‘It doesn’t go.’

Brand: Schweppes Tonic Water
Name: Schweppes Tonic Water
Name’s translation in Italian: ‘Schweppes Toilet Water’

Brand: Coors Beer
Slogan: ‘Turn it loose’
Slogan in Spanish: ‘You  will suffer from diarrhea’

Make sure you understand the direct translation and the meaning of your brand’s name, slogan and advertising copy when taking a brand global. Be sure to tripple-check your sources.

Source: Brand Failures: The Truth About the 100 Biggest Branding Mistakes of All Time by Matt Haig, Kogan-Page, London (2003)