Themes of Advertising Campaigns

Unique Selling Proposition

The concept of the unique selling proposition (USP) was developed by Rosser Reeves, former chair of the Ted Bates agency. Reeves noted three characteristics of unique selling propositions:

• Each advertisement must make a proposition to the consumer. Not just words, not just product puffery, not just show-window advertising. Each advertisement must say to each reader: “Buy this product and you will get this benefit.”
• The proposition must be one that the competition either cannot or does not offer. It must be unique either in the brand or in the claim.
• The proposition must be strong enough to move the mass millions, that is, pull over new customers to your brand

Reeves said the attribute claim or benefit that forms the basis of the USP should dominate the ad and be emphasized through repetitive advertising.For Reeves’s approach to work, there must be a truly unique product or service attribute, benefit, or inherent advantage that can be used in the claim. Advertisers must also consider whether the unique selling proposition affords them a sustainable competitive advantage that competitors cannot easily copy.

The ads shown above focus on the color and built aspects of the product indicating its USP.

Creating a Brand Image

In many product and service categories, competing brands are so similar that it is very difficult to find or create a unique attribute or benefit to use as the major selling idea. The creative strategy used to sell these products is based on the development of a strong, memorable identity for the brand through image advertising. Image advertising has become increasingly popular and is used as the main selling idea for a variety of products and services, including soft drinks, liquor, cigarettes, cars, airlines, financial services, perfume/colognes, and clothing.

Telecom services are difficult to differentiate when most service providers offer similar rates and services. To create a brand identity in heavily competitive telecom service industry Airtel developed the unique campaign focused on relationships and friendships which could distinctly alter the brand image of the company.

Finding the Inherent Drama

Another approach to determining the major selling idea is finding the inherent drama or characteristic of the product that makes the consumer purchase it.The inherent drama approach expresses the advertising philosophy of Leo Burnett, founder of the Leo Burnett agency in Chicago. Burnett said inherent-drama “is often hard to find but it is always there, and once found it is the most interesting and believable of all advertising appeals.”Some of the more famous ads developed by his agency using the inherent-drama approach are for McDonald’s, Maytag appliances, Kellogg cereals, and Hallmark cards.

Positioning

The concept of positioning as a basis for advertising strategy was introduced by Jack Trout and Al Ries in the early 1970s and has become a popular basis of creative development. The basic idea is that advertising is used to establish or “position” the product or service in a particular place in the consumer’s mind. Positioning

is done for companies as well as for brands. For example, the ad shown in below is part of a campaign designed to reinforce 3M’s image and position as an innovative company.