He writes:
Remember positioning? Remember, before it became all about punch lines, marketers tried to articulate a unique selling proposition, a differentiating benefit or at least a point of view? Nah. Why would you remember that? Positioning is just sooooo analog, sooooo uncool, the client-pandering behavior depended upon by the calcified and unimaginative.
Like Nike. BMW. Southwest Airlines. Absolut.
You know, losers like that.
Cooked to order
Well, for the first time since Dave Thomas passed the scene, Wendy's has discovered a positioning. Or rediscovered one. Harking back to its "Hot 'n' Juicy" days of the '70s (and brief resurgence in the mid-'80s), Wendy's is reminding everybody that its burgers are cooked to order.
"I deserve a hot, juicy burger!" the protagonist shouts in one TV spot, because he's fed up with the assembly-line, heat-lamp-warmed servings of Wendy's competition.
Wow. I've had to see those commercials a few times and I've never gotten "cooked to order" from them. Individualistic, maybe, but that just seemed to be a me-too iteration of Burger King's "have it your way" mantra.
Maybe I just don't eat fast food often enough (e.g. more or less never) to realize that there was a difference. But I sure didn't take away "Only Wendy's burgers are cooked to order" from those spots.
Anyone else?
Bob Garfield is irrelevant and out-of-touch with the 21st century.
ReplyDeleteToad, you do yourself a disservice by titling this post: Bob Garfield is smarter than me.
Unless you intended for the line to be read with total sarcasm.
Total sarcasm and then some, HJ.
ReplyDeleteI find his reviews as laughable as you do and for him to claim that anyone other than a few account guys at Saatchi see a unique positioning in these Wendy's spots is absurd
Not to mention that the creatives on the campaign from Saatchi already discussed what their approach was before his review.
ReplyDelete(Link here.)
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