It?s a new year. As sleek calendars land on your desk, it?s time when the mind idly flips channels to think about time past, time present and time future. And then stumbles on to the matter of great timing.
Timing is held in high value by direct response advertisers. A very experienced colleague once told me the formula for great direct marketing consisted of L.O.C.T: Letter, Offer, Creative and Timing.
However, the principle of great timing applies equally strongly to the world of mainline advertising as well. Many great ads have used timing to significantly enhance impact, likeability and memorability ? in short, to tick more boxes than research guys can point a laser at.
Here are a few instances of great timing at work.
Timing works spectacularly when the advertising message blends in seamlessly with an important event in the target?s life. For example, the eye care brand that sends all its customers a birthday card, with the words ?Happy Birthday? written out like an eye chart. A smart reminder to get one?s eyes examined with each advancing year!
A pre-paid telecom card, designed for the sole purpose of saving you money when you travel abroad, took timing to another level, by taking over all advertising space at the visa application centre.
The message was hard to miss because it was highly relevant for the people who saw it ? all visa applicants were likely to travel abroad sooner or later. What better time to hit them with the message than when they were collecting/submitting their forms?
Any world sporting event will throw up great examples of timing. Every brand wants to ride on the phenomenal audience these events attract. Nike?s ?Write the Future? film for the World Cup 2010 is a great example of this kind of work. Another, subtler approach was equally compelling: Louis Vuitton?s single print ad featuring Zidane, Pele and Maradona playing foosball struck a chord with football lovers with its sense of history and sheer story telling. In both cases, the World Cup, which was on everybody?s mind was used to enhance the excitement of the message.
Closer home, all of us fondly remember Pepsi?s ?Nothing official about it? ? a witty ambush that used the World Cup cricket to enter our minds and hearts. It was all the more remarkable for its brazen irreverence and sheer surprise. The other World Cup idea that sticks in the head is the image of Jonty Rhodes, flying through the air to take an incredible catch. ?Must be Fevicol?, wonders a watcher!
Another unusual use of timing comes from the USA, where a brand of champagne realized that the Gulf War would one day, end. They planned for the day with a full page ad filled with white space and a simple message. It urged readers to tear the page into little pieces of confetti and throw it out of the window. It was time to celebrate!
The year ahead promises many exciting times. Can we look forward to some great timing as well?
The author is national creative director, Dentsu Communications