Orchids and Onions: A well-timed pit-stop ad hits the mark

It’s Lemming Time again… those few weeks of the year when we “relax” by joining hundreds of thousands of others on crowded, dangerous roads, heading for our festive season holidays.

And we all know how frustrating that can sometimes be. The heat, the glare, the whine (of the little ones in the back and their perpetual “Are we there yet?” feedback loop) – it can take a lot out of you.

That’s why stopping every now and then to rest and recharge is such a vital and life-saving part of the annual highway trek.

The latest Engen-Wimpy ad captures that feeling of relief (however temporary). Everybody’s mood lightens along with their bladders, I suppose, and then they reconnect, in a good way, over drinks and food, Wimpy-style.

The ad puts Engen and Wimpy top of mind as a reliable oasis you can pull into … and even if travellers don’t factor that into their plans before they hit the road, having seen the ad, they will be drawn to the Engen One-Stops out on the highway.

It’s a nice slice-of-life piece of advertising and it works for both brands. So a Double Orchid to Engen and Wimpy.

Talking about roads, I am in two minds about the admittedly clever marketing stunt pulled this week with the supposed “pop up” drive-in bar on William Nicol Drive in Johannesburg.

It certainly got people talking – and it got them angry.

That was the intention because when the set-up was revealed as a stunt to raise awareness of drunken driving, many had already vented their rage on social media; media outlets had written stories on it and even the Johannesburg Metro cops, who were not in on the scam, were pledging to bust the place and shut it down.

The “One on Nicol” fake pub was the brainchild of Riverbed Advertising, on behalf of the Association for Alcohol Responsibility and Education (aware.org.za).

The clever punchline was along the lines of “If you can get that angry about this, why can’t you get as angry about drinking and driving?”

Excellent point, and great copy. That alone deserves an Orchid.

However, the broader picture does worry me. This is the second, let’s-stoke-public-outrage promotion in recent months.

The previous one was a scam about animal abuse on behalf of the SPCA and made people very, very angry. Their anger didn’t abate even after the stunt was revealed to have been pulled for the purest of emotions.

These activations, while clever, are another form of “fake news”.

People are easily fooled and I fear, one day, some of those fooled might burn down a place before they find out it is a con.

I’d be interested in what you think – drop me a line: brendans@ citizen.co.za.

I love people who put together social media promotions because they are often way out of touch with reality.

This week, an ad for Ford’s Ecosport SUV kept on popping up on my social media feeds.

There were different aspects of the car punted in different executions, but one particularly irritated me because it was based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the product. That is not a good start for any marketing effort.

The Ecosport ad promised that, because the vehicle comes with “keyless start”, you will “never again lose your keys on the beach”.

OK, clever Ford social media people. If there is not a key, then how does the vehicle start? Through magic?

It starts because there is an electronic box, known as a key fob, which allows the system to start. And you can lose that as easily as any key.

In reality, you may even be worse off. Some of these keyless systems allow you to get out of the vehicle, with its engine running, walk away thinking you have locked it, while the engine still runs and the doors are unlocked.

Anyone can then climb into your car and drive off, which they could not do if you had the old-fashioned key with you.

What worries me about this ad, though, is not that the social media “clevers” put it together, but that it was signed off by someone higher up the Ford food chain, who apparently has as little product knowledge as the clevers.

Maybe they can all share the Onion…

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