Ad Age Top 15 List Shows What Makes Great Slogan
Nike, Avis Stress Company Culture. Coke, M&M Push Product Quality..
Aug 18, 2008 Carroll Trosclair
American advertising agencies have been developing great business slogans for decades, but despite attempts to systemize the methology, the work may still be more art than science. Inspiration, accidents and amateurs can still play major roles.
For proof of that, just walk into any agency and asks the folks to deliver a company slogan the next day. They probably don’t have a proven slogan templet.
Casual Observation Inspired "Just Do It."
Company legend says that Nike’s "Just do it" was inspired by a casual observation of Nike executive culture during an agency-client meeting. It is now considered one of history’s greatest company slogans.
Even an informal Internet study shows there is little agency agreement on what makes a great slogan. Just determining the essential ingredients is still a mystery.
History's greatest ad slogans have very little in common to guide slogan writers. Here are the five slogans that Advertising Age lists as the best of the 20th Century.
- DeBeers: "Diamonds are forever"
- Nike: "Just do it"
- Coca Cola: "The pause that refreshes"
- Miller Lite: "Tastes great, less filling"
- Avis: "We try harder"
Only M&M Slogan Mentions Name
Most of them do have one thing in common: They do not mention the product or company name. Only one of Ad Age’s top 15 slogans does mention the name: That’s "M&Ms melt in your mouth, not in your hand." It made the Ad Age honorable mention list.
Some other characteristics of the Top 15:
1. They’re brief. It makes them easier to remember. Five of the Top 15 are only three words: Four of them are four words. M&M’s is the longest with nine words.
2. They’re not extremely clever or funny. It’s even difficult to say which of the top 15 are really clever. Wendy’s "Where’s the beef?" probably evoked the most laughter. However, much of that humor may have evolved from the characters in the commercial.
Avis Took Best Shot with "We Try Harder."
3. Some of them sell by highlighting a characteristic about the product or company, even if it does not mention the name.
- "Diamonds are forever" focuses on one of the most valuable characteristics of diamonds.
- "Tastes great, less filling." The slogan made lite beers acceptable.
- "Good to the last drop." That’s what every coffee should be.
- "Look, Ma, no cavities!" Crest addressed a common parental fear.
- "When it rains, it pours." The slogan says Morton’s salt does not stick.
- "We try harder." It was Avis’ best shot against bigger Hertz.
- "We bring good things to life." General Electric uses six words to cover everything it sells.
On the other hand, "Just do it" has been amazingly successful for Nike although it does not appear to sell anything and has no reference to Nike products.
GE Pride: "We Bring Good Things to Life"
4. A company slogan, in contrast to a product slogan, probably has to evoke pride and/or confidence among company stakeholders. Employees must help spread the word. "We bring good things to life" can certainly evoke pride among employees.
5. To work, a slogan probably has to reflect the culture of the company. Surely, there are Nike employees who go home and say to their procastnating sons: "Just do it!"
6. The words of a great slogan usually flow easily. They have a natural but hard-to-define ring to them, often without rhyme or alliteration. The U.S. Government’s World War II slogan, "Loose Lips Sink Ships" is the only one in the Ad Age Top 15 with any rhyme. None of them have any alliteration.
The lesson in all this is that there is no sure way to produce a great ad slogan. To do so probably requires a thorough understanding of the product and company; some brainstorming by a group of imaginative open-minded people; some consumer testing; and a budget that will drill the words into the target audiences with Nike and Coke-style aggressiveness.
What do you think about this article?
More in Business & Finance
Latest Articles