World Cup Fever - Did You Tie Your Brand In?

Now that England have crashed and burned in the World Cup, and are already back in the country, you’ll probably notice that the number of World Cup related adverts drops off dramatically.  

Previously however, in the build up to and kick off of the tournament, you’d be hard pressed to avoid all the football related themes across just about every product imaginable: Every new TV advert tries to tie in with England’s world cup fortunes; Budweiser beer bottles get a design makeover; Pot Noodle brings out a ‘Brazilian Beach’ flavoured special; and KFC create a special Brazilian flavoured menu.  

You see, whenever there’s a big global event, or something which is going to catch the nation’s attention, brands want to piggyback on that momentum, and appear to be relevant to the current Zeitgeist. If you’ve got World Cup on your mind and you see a World Cup themed advert for Pringles, you’re much more likely to take notice of the advertising, and think that the product is relevant to you.  

It makes the product seem all that more useful, when it relates to something you care about.  

And now that England have been knocked out? Well, seeing England Football themed advertising about supporting the team and wishing them luck is probably going to really annoy you, if it hasn’t already. It brings up bad memories. And brands don’t want to be associated with bad memories. So, you’ll probably see advertising like this pulled wherever possible. Physical products are a bit stuck, but online, radio and TV ads will no doubt be pulled and edited to something different.  

There’s likely a whole host of print and TV adverts which you’ll never see, conceived in case England advanced through the group stages, and now shelved for another 4 years. And in countries like the USA, where the America ‘soccer’ team has stirred up a real interest and national spirit in the game, promoters will be frantically scrambling to create the same types of product placements and advertising which those in England are currently dumping.  

Smart companies and brands in the UK may well have already begun capitalising on England’s quick departure from the tournament. Now that there’s no football left to watch and you’re not interested in watching Wimbledon, what are you going to do with your time? - Enter My Company’s Product -  

So what’s the point? Why should I bother to theme my brand, my business and my products around key events and current affairs? What I sell is not relevant to that.  

Oh but it is.  

It doesn’t matter if your brand doesn’t tie in perfectly with the World Cup. What matters is that your brand appears relevant to the consumer. You want your company to be seen as being current, modern, and up to date. You get the times, and you’re not stuck in the past. Your brand is relevant and useful to your target audience, so they are more likely to embrace you. Theming your marketing and advertising around something current gives you that bit more personality, and makes you a bit more fun too.  

So if I’m copywriting for a company in Manchester and the summer looks like it will be one of traditional wet Manchester weather, I might theme the product around rain, so the customer can directly identify with it.  

Don’t think there’s any way you could tie in your product with a current event? Think again. With the right creative copywriter, there is always a way to link, however tenuously, your brand or product to a certain event. Check out my favourite mole catcher, Mr. Mole Man for example.  

Does mole catching in Shropshire tie in with the World Cup in Brazil? No. Absolutely not.  

Only, you can make it if you try. With a little imagination, and some creative writing, anything is possible. And that’s why I wrote Mr. Mole Man a blog about kids recreating the World Cup in their back garden, and being thwarted by mole hills. Or how if the moles had a World Cup, England would actually be successful.  

It’s a totally ridiculous blog, of course it is, but it’s entertaining, and it’s relevant. And right there, those two words, entertaining and relevant, have helped Mr. Mole Man’s brand get into the minds of his customers.  

For any type of the brand and product then, it’s important to be aware of the Zeitgeist.