Marketers, it's true. you can dilute your brand value by creating a story. LG OLED TV is a lesson in what not to do.
I get it. In today's ultra competitive and very noisy marketplace brands are trying to create engaging content, not simple campaigns. I encourage this. I advise my clients to do this. In fact, I completely believe today's consumers (especially Millennials) fully demand this. However, the basic rules of marketing still apply, especially when your product is new and high end. The LG OLED TV is a solid example of marketers trying too hard to create a story when good old fashioned value propositioning is far better.
Some of you will remember its #superbowl50 ad - an overly intense ad starring Liam Neeson. It didn't explain anything about what made this TV so special, in fact it hardly explained that it WAS A TV. A casual observer would only gather that Liam Neeson, ever the bada*% spy-guy, is passing along some technology secret, but nothing about a new TV product. The ad plays more like a movie trailer than an ad. Yes, I understand that is sort of the point with Super Bowl ads - but wouldn't getting the attention of potential TV set buyers be a much bigger win? Ads that play like content or movie trailers can be a very good thing, something brands absolutely should strive for, but one very important thing must be in place first - the viewers/audience/consumers should be familiar with your product first.
This feels like a double-whammy of ineffectiveness given the category. For years TV makers have been churning out more impressive television sets - Crisp color contrast! Curved screens! 3D in your home! After a certain point average users tune out. It all starts to feel the same. Remember how the home electronics industry poured so much into 3D TV sets and they never really took off? Oh the home electronics industry does, I assure you. Ultimately their problem was this - after the novelty, what really is the value? Now that's the question for the LG OLED TV. To entice interest in a very high-end product, it must be very clear WHY it matters. LG OLED's earlier advertising focused more on that value - but one did a much better job of presenting value that mattered to the audience.
First to demonstrate how remarkable the TV is, the ad copy was all about the videographers, photographers and producers who "do everything" to get that shot. It loosely ties it all together at the end with a "do their work justice" tagline. But that doesn't really demonstrate value to the average guy or gal at home who might want to buy it. It feels more like an ad for industry folks at a trade show. On the other hand, LG OLED TV's Best Buy partnership ad starts to demonstrate why the people at home might/should care about this exciting new product. It may not be the most exciting ad ever, but it would be effective to drive awareness and interest. As a brand, they're a long ways from common recognition where "content advertising" works so well. (There's a reason why CPG companies are killing it on this front - of course it's creative genius, but it helps that Cheerios and Oreos aren't new to anyone).
Yes, in today's environment marketers have to work harder to get consumer attention but there always has to be relevance. There always has to be relatabilty. Today's consumers, especially #millennial consumers, are only interested in what is relevant to them. A high-end television set with cutting-edge technology needs to focus on why it's incredible for the consumer.
Go back to your roots, LG OLED TV. Experiment with the Best Buy ad theme. Show us why we will love your TV so much and never want to go back because right now, I'm not sure anyone is convinced.