The use of recognisable characters in advertising is a well known technique, and has proven to be a very successful way to connect with an audience. We all remember the charismatic Marlboro Cowboy, Tony the Tiger, or the Michelin Man. They were engaging and iconic; yet, by virtue of the medium and the era they were born in, they were often one dimensional. They failed to establish real relationships with people as they weren’t necessarily able to break out of the TV ad.

But the opportunities created by the new media world means that a whole new generation of advertising characters is emerging, developing stronger, truly interactive relationships with consumers. Today's characters can live beyond the TV spot and enable brands to really harness the possibilities and benefits of social media.

This character created by Old Spice, inventively named ‘Old Spice Guy’, became incredibly popular in a very short period of time. After just a few days of the launch of his first advert, almost everyone in the US had heard or talked about "The man your man could smell like".

The commercial went viral and was a hit on video sharing websites, but what made him stand out and shoot him directly to stardom, was the fact that he began interacting with his audience in real time, in real life. To everyone’s surprise and amusement "The man your man could smell like", started to post videos responding directly to questions from fans and celebrities.

The social response campaign managed to raise sales by 107%, and the original TV spot has been seen more than 31,000,000 times on YouTube… and he provided new inspiration for hundreds for last year's Halloween costumes.

Old Spice Social Case Study from Digital Buzz on Vimeo.

  

 

Aleksandr Orlov – Compare the Market

Aleksandr Orlov is the founder of Comparethemeerkat.com, a website that allows visitors to compare meerkats; and which receives more than 2 million hits per month.

The character is extremely popular, and so is his life outside the TV screen. He has more than 22,000 followers on Twitter, and 700,000 facebook fans. In October 2010 Orlov's "autobiography" was released, to become a bestseller, and Aleksandr had his first television interview on the ITV show, Daybreak. Recent adverts feature other members of the Orlov family and the town of Meerkovo, and a detailed explanation about his life and family can be found on Wikipedia.

Overall sales have more than doubled year on year as a result of the meerkat campaign.

 

 

The Hilfigers

For the latest fall-winter season, Tommy Hilfiger developed an innovative campaign, ‘Meet the Hilfigers’, featuring 15 members of this very fashionable and good-looking family.

Starting with the name, this campaign screams social media and consumer interaction. This multi-channel, multi-disciplinary marketing campaign was developed to engage consumers in the lives of fictional characters; and the biography of each member of the family can be found on the company's website. People will immediately identify with one character, and try to copy their style, which can easily be done by clicking through the characters on the website, and choosing to buy what they are wearing.

Social media has been tackled in a number of ways, some of the characters have their own facebook and twitter pages, whiles others are part of online features such as ‘Chloe's closet’, ‘Morgan’s Must-Haves’, and ‘Bernard’s Books’.

 

 

30 days to win Julia back – Hotmail

Last September Hotmail Spain launched a new marketing campaign to communicate the changes implemented in the new Hotmail accounts.

The message of the campaign "we change so that you like us better" was brought to life by two characters, Alejandro and Julia, a real couple with real problems in their relationship. Alejandro decided to change to win Julia back, and with the help of the audience and Hotmail, that is exactly what he did.

For 30 days, Alejandro brought to life the ideas that hundreds of fans posted him on facebook, twitter, and of course, via e-mail. The development of the whole story could be followed on his blog, where he posted videos of the various actions that he carried out, including a video of the final kiss at the end of the campaign.

Hotmail knew that interaction between the brand and the audience was good, but they realised that what people really wanted were real people with real stories behind them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jacques D’azur – Stella Artois

In support of their sponsorship of the Cannes Film Festival, Stella Artois reprised their character Jacques D’Azur, who first appeared online last year.

This time around Stella gave drinkers the opportunity to take his place in a very real sense by offering the chance to play the role of Jacques in a biographical film, and to appear on the red carpet at the prestigious festival.

Drinkers submitted audition tapes online, and after selecting a short list of 200 finalists via both online voting results (top 100 favorite submissions) and a distinguished panel of judges (100 finalists based on creativity and acting skills), Gustavo Alvarez, from Buenos Aires, was selected for the role.

After filming his part in the Jacques d’Azur biopic, Gustavo will travel to the French Riviera to attend the short film's May 20 premiere, to be followed by a party at ‘Chez Jacques’ – Stella Artois’ sophisticated, invitation-only lounge at the Carlton Hotel’s exclusive beachfront property in Cannes.

 

Advertising will always use characters to help consumers engage with their brand – they are emotive and provide a relevant connection for millions.  And it’s these successful characters outlined above that provide great examples of how characters are now much more than our favourite TV characters.  New technologies, new media channels and creative marketers mean that we have many more inventive ad characters to look forward to.

By Robin Lauffer, Head of Planning, The Bank