Nutter Butter, a 55-year-old brand, successfully engaged a younger audience by embracing absurdist, meme-style humor. This risky strategy, while potentially alienating some, is effective for generating deep brand love because it requires taking a bold, creative stand.
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A brand's history is a valuable asset. The most powerful ideas for future growth are often rooted in the brand's 'archaeology.' Reviving timeless concepts, like the Pepsi Taste Challenge, and making them culturally relevant today is often more effective than chasing novelty.
To connect with Gen Z, Coach shifted its brand positioning from simply being an affordable luxury good to being a tool for self-expression. This move addresses a core tension for this generation: the desire to express their true selves while navigating the pressures of constant social media visibility.
Enduring 'stay-up' brands don't need to fundamentally reinvent their core product. Instead, they should focus on creating opportunities for consumers to 'reappraise' the brand in a current context. The goal is to make the familiar feel fresh and relevant again, connecting it to modern culture.
When stretching an iconic brand like Tim Hortons with celebrity partnerships, the leadership team proceeds "eyes wide open," accepting that not every customer will approve. This prevents analysis paralysis and allows the brand to evolve without being held captive by the need for universal consensus.
Molson Coors revitalized its Coors Banquet brand by doubling down on its authentic, 150-year-old Western identity. This strategy resonated with a younger, legal-drinking-age Gen Z audience seeking authenticity, proving that heritage can bridge generational divides.
In a saturated social feed, generic ads fail. Small businesses can win by being creative, funny, or controversial. Their advantage over large corporations is speed and agility, as they can post bold ideas without the layers of legal and board approval that stifle creativity.
Brands, particularly in B2B, are often too serious and miss the power of humor. Laughter releases bonding hormones like oxytocin, creating an instant connection with an audience. It's a universal language that can dissolve conflict and make a brand more human and memorable.
Strict adherence to brand cohesion often stifles creativity and results in subjective boardroom debates. Brands achieve more by focusing on creating relevant, timely content that resonates with their audience, even if it occasionally breaks established stylistic guidelines.
A brand that tries to please everyone is memorable to no one. To build a truly strong brand, you must be willing to be disliked by some. Intentionally defining who your customer is *not* and creating polarizing content sharpens your identity, fostering a passionate community among those who love what you stand for.
Frito-Lay's Flamin' Hot brand moves beyond simple influencer marketing by studying and collaborating with obsessed subcultures. This approach informs not only marketing campaigns, like a song with Megan Thee Stallion, but also its core product innovation pipeline, making marketing a byproduct of deep cultural integration.
