Leo Burnett has been an iconic name in the global advertising industry since 1935. This is the ad agency that created the famous Pillsbury doughboy, Tony the Tiger, which remains Kellogg’s mascot for its frosted flakes, and of course the famous Marlboro Man.
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Many healthcare professionals might blame Leo Burnett for encouraging the habit of smoking among people. But despite such criticism, the advertising campaign of Marlboro cigarettes will always remain a case study offering a classic example of the persuasive power of creativity.
Until the 1950s, Marlboro, one of the first filter cigarettes in the US market, was positioned as a woman’s cigarette with the tagline, “Mild as May.” But the brand’s sales stayed below expectations. To turn the tide on its market performance, its marketing team decided to reposition Marlboro as a man’s cigarette. It was easier said than done.
Even today, how many persuasion professionals would have dared to take up such an audacious communication challenge? Leo Burnett stepped forward to take up the task of repositioning a woman’s cigarette as a male preference. Not only did the ad agency successfully reposition Marlboro as a man’s cigarette brand, but in that process created one of the most iconic images of masculinity in a cowboy that came to be identified with it.
The glorious history of Leo Burnett, however, came to naught recently. A few weeks ago came the news of Leo Burnett merging with another group company and changing its name to Leo. A few months earlier, I had written in this column about the demise of the name J. Walter Thompson, one of the pioneers of the advertising industry. With such storied names of advertising vanishing from the scene, the question is: Is this the end of the persuasion business?
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Today, the most influential force in business is artificial intelligence (AI). Indeed, the ostensible reason given for the change of Leo Burnett’s name is to drive exponential creativity in the age of AI.
The emergence of AI has generated several new trends. One of these is that businesses are becoming more rational in their approach. This is evident in a growing belief that AI helps accurately estimate demand for products, enhance quality, manage supply chains efficiently and improve customer interfaces. AI can also analyse sales and price data to help businesses work out what sort of discounts can boost sales.
Of course, AI tools are also being used to create advertisements and engage consumers in relationships. Clearly, data and technology are assuming primacy. Where does this leave the art of persuasion based on creativity and emotions that was perfected by ad agencies like Leo Burnett?
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One look at the click-through rates (CTRs) of e-commerce websites, however, makes it clear that all is not well in the world of digital marketing. Over the years, CTRs have reduced to a hundredth of their original level—to a mere 0.35% in 2023. Even if the consumer clicks on a product tile and places it in his or her digital shopping cart, it need not translate to a sale.
According to recent figures, the cart abandonment rate is over 73%. Even if a product is bought, it may not be the end of the transaction. According to reports, 17% of the goods sold in the US in 2023 have been returned by their buyers.
On a rough estimate, only one in every 500 people who enter an e-commerce site ends up buying a product. These findings support the argument that with an abundance of choice in the digital world, the need for businesses to deploy the art of persuasion is actually going up.
It is in this context that one should take a deeper look at the 2024 report of Kantar Creative Effectiveness Awards. The report provides a bird’s-eye view of what drives effectiveness in the digital world and the best way to forge strong connections between brands and consumers online.
The report points out that it is not enough for persuasion stimuli to grab attention and stop an online consumer from scrolling further down the screen. More needs to be done. The report finds that digital ads which engage viewers emotionally are up to four times more likely to drive long-term brand equity and four times more likely to break through the clutter compared to those with weaker emotional hooks.
The report’s most interesting observation is that brands which used ‘creative catastrophizing’ went beyond grabbing attention and truly connected with consumers.
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The importance of creative hyperbole is well known to persuasion professionals. Vivid demonstrations and metaphors have served as a foundation for the art of persuasion. The Kantar report reaffirms that the good old strategies of creativity, creative hyperbole and emotional engagement are still relevant in today’s AI-led world.
Yes, it is true that names like JWT and Leo Burnett no longer adorn the name-boards of advertising agencies. Of course, traditional media vehicles like press and television have given way to social media. However, given the ever-increasing competition in the fast-paced digital world, the forces of creativity that once created powerful persuasion stimuli like the Marlboro Man are more relevant now than ever before.
The author is chief evangelist, Fractal Analytics.
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