One of my favorite travel magazines arrived in the mail recently. I started to glance through it while I ate lunch. Because of what I do for a living, I enjoy looking at the ads more than most people. A few ads got my attention for different reasons. Note that I will mention the advertiser by name if I love the work and am offering a compliment. If I am using a specific ad for, let’s just say a teachable moment, I will describe it, but not mention the destination.
Today, I saw an ad in a campaign that I had never seen before. It was from the Tennessee state tourism office. For years, Tennessee has been focused on building their brand on music. After all, every region of the state has rich music heritage, from mountain music in the east to Memphis blues in the west and Music City itself, Nashville, in the center. The ad was stunning in its simplicity. It featured a concert photo of a performer on stage seeming to make a connection with a fan in the audience. The image had a Photoshop effect applied so it wasn’t just another concert photo. It was artistic, with a deep red hue. Definitely attention-getting. Then I saw the headline: “Bring your ears to their knees.” The unique look and clever messaging made this ad effective.
Just a few pages later, there was a full-page ad for another destination. This ad featured the destination logo at the top, followed by a grid of small photos. The photos were decent quality. It was not a terrible layout. Below the photos was a paragraph of copy that started with “Visit __…” I’d share more of what it said, but honestly, that is as far as I got. There was no clever concept to the ad. No brand building. Nothing about that page made me think this destination is worth visiting, or even reading to the end of the ad.
Most people would just turn the page and move on to an article or a better ad. Not me. It made me think. To be more accurate, it made me sad and a bit nostalgic. It reminded me of something many of us probably heard every time report cards were issued at school — “not living up to his potential.” To be fair, those nuns who taught at my school were tough and they expected a lot from every student. That ad simply was not living up to its potential, and, as a result, suggests that the destination is doing the same.
Conclusion: Creativity moves the needle. It always has and it always will. It’s an undeniable fact of modern marketing and advertising. Strong brands win. Great advertising in support of strong brands (yes, there is a difference between advertising and branding, which could be the subject of another post) is the difference between success and failure.
