Curiously, we thought that, despite repeated efforts to educate
consumers about the positive attributes of aerosol products and
the fact that aerosols products haven’t contained CFCs for almost
40 years, we’ve failed to significantly change public perception.
The conversation quickly moved to why this was true and after
some debate, the answer presented itself clearly. Instead of defending
the aerosol product form, we needed to start promoting the positive
attributes.
Some readers may recall a now little-remembered tech device
from online retailing giant Amazon.com called the Fire Phone.
The Amazon Fire Phone flamed out within a year of its launch
and quickly became a case study for a major tech launch failure
and lead to a $170 million write-off for Amazon. Subsequent
Consumers don’t want to know that aerosol products don’t contain CFCs,
they want to know that their loved ones won’t get the Zika virus while
having a family gathering on a warm summer evening. Consumers want
to know how we can make their lives better.
to the Fire Phone failure, Amazon went on to launch countless
successful products and services such as the Fire Stick, the
Kindle, Amazon Prime, etc. In the marketing materials for these
subsequent new products, Amazon never mentions the failed Fire
Phone. Imagine reading an ad for the Amazon Kindle that stated
“Not at all like the Fire Phone!” The very notion is comical.
In the aerosol products industry, we still insist on focusing on
negatives. For example, decades ago, CFCs were shown to be
harmful to the environment. The aerosol industry removed CFCs
from aerosol products and yet, with every can that sits on the
store shelf with a “No CFCs” logo, we remind consumers of our
own product flop. The “No CFC” logo is our Fire Phone.
It’s probably safe to say that every reader of this article remembers
the “Got Milk” campaign that launched in the mid 1990s.
Celebrities with milk moustaches appeared on billboards and in
magazines and there were countless television commercials all
designed to promote milk. All of these playful ads actively touted
milk without ever attempting to defend it. Since defending the
product was not a campaign objective, it’s no surprise that the
very simple and neutral slogan “Got Milk” was selected over something
more defensive like “Milk isn’t that Fattening.”
Readers may also remember the “Pork: The Other White Meat”
campaign. Again, it’s probably not surprising that it was chosen
over something like “Bacon: It’s Not that Bad for You.” These
“alternate campaign names” show that actively promoting is very
different than actively defending.
Something far more positive
At that WAIB board meeting two years ago, the question asked
was how do we move away from defending the product form and move
towards promoting the solutions that aerosol products afford consumers?
How do we move from “Aerosols: They Aren’t Harmful” to
something far more positive? The answer quickly became obvious;
we needed to start a promotional campaign.
The Board immediately got busy researching possible campaign
and social media partners who could translate a vision to a plan.
Ultimately, as we worked with our partners, the Make More Magic
campaign and the associated tagline, The Wonder of Aerosol Products,
took shape.
The Make More Magic campaign that so many are starting to see
and hear about was not born in an instant. During the two years
that followed that original decision to actively promote aerosol
products, a leadership team formed and then, a steering committee.
The task before these teams was to clearly define the problem
and then work with our partners to shape the path forward.
These teams were made up of industry leaders, business owners
and thought leaders. Marketers joined with manufacturers. A
cross section of the industry came together and worked tirelessly,
sometimes meeting with the campaign and social media partners
more than once per week. These thought leaders were connected
with experts who understood the vision and converted it from an
idea to the Make More Magic campaign that is today a living and
developing thing.
The Make More Magic campaign went live the week of Oct. 9,
2017 and today, anyone can log onto the Make More Magic website
Continued on page 43
December 2017 Spray 27