cebuana lhuillier's brand positioning - outside of the realm of possibilities

this was one of the comments left in the cbox. it's an interesting point. it was a comment coming from the analysis i had made on the cebuana lhuillier print ad. on the left. read the the analysis here : http://the-wawam-file.blogspot.com/search/label/cebuana%20lhuillier

this is the comment:

Nick : I find that your analysis of the pawnshop ad was way off target. The objective of an ad campaign can be to change perception and not just reinforce current perception.

we like to thank Nick for giving his views.

-------------

changing perception is a legitimate advertising objective. in some cases it's even a very smart thing to do. but that works best if there is a need to change it and most specially if the existing perception is a barrier to purchase.

the other part and this is most applicable here is the question of believability. i find the positioning of lhuillier as a dream enabler, like an educational plan, as just too much on the extreme, too far off from reality that it becomes unbelievable. pawnshops is a place of last resort people go to to save themselves from a dire situation, turning that image around to making it like a dream enabler is just too much for the audience to accept and leap into.

also, i do not think its existing brand image is a barrier. people have come to accept pawnshops as the place to go to for last resort for dire situations. that's like a given to the whole category. the keys to usage or patronage is really accessibility, fairness and low interest rates.

no other pawnshop advertises. so positioning lhuillier in any of these would give it a competitive advantage. i also think the most sensible competitive set for lhuillier are other pawnshops and not other products like educational plans. positioning lhuillier as a dream enabler effectively positions itself against these types of products.

sarah geronimo print ad design for cebuana lhuillier - christmas in july!

it was the design layout of the print ad that first caught my attention. while i am familiar with sarah geronimo, i am not a fan. here's what made me stop flipping the page of the newspaper that made me read the whole ad - wow, lhuillier released a CHRISTMAS print ad in the middle of july!

the ad had a "christmasy" feel to it - it had a red background, there were gold stars hanging on the background, gold swirls on the background and all of it making it look like it was on a christmas tree motif. then the font style of the headline, the letter "P" for "pasko" (christmas)and finally, the large white christmas ball hanging beside the brand name, cebuana lhuillier. it's a christmas print ad!

it turns out the large white christmas ball i think is their logo, the letter "C" that looks like a diamond ring but within the context of the whole ad, it initially looked like a giant christmas ball to me.

is it just me or anyone else saw that too?

cebuana lhuillier pawnshop's sarah geronimo print ad - the mystery of the unsaid

pawnshops is one of the most frequent target of ad agencies who want to win advertising awards. these ad agencies would convince pawnshops to allow them to create ads for them for the sole purpose of having a wham bang creative ad to get the ad agency to win advertising awards.

that's what i thought what this print ad was. but, i changed my mind about that after reading the ad.

double click the image for a larger view

first, it uses sarah geronimo, one of the country's top recording artists, a tv celebrity and now breaking into the movies. the client must have paid several millions of pesos to get sarah and her mom to appear in this print ad and that does not make it a one shot deal which is normally the case for ads just meant to showcase an ad agency's creativity to win awards.


and then, i read the copy and look at the whole concept. it's a true blue endorser advertising campaign ad, so this is not the one shot deal that ad agencies do with small clients to get ad awards under their belt.


what is a pawnshop? what do filipino consumers use it for?


to filipino consumers, a pawnshop is a place of last resort - when we run out of cash and there is no one else to go to. the pawnshop is the place to go out of desperation. accessibility, high value assessment and low interest rates are the most important considerations in choosing a pawnshop. i would say accessibility is probably the most important consideration. you don't want to spend money for transport fare to go to your pawnshop. to begin with the reason you need a pawnship is because you don't have money.

and that is what confuses me with this cebuana lhuillier print ad. the ad positions the brand as a positive enabler of dreams when a pawnshop is really a savior of last resort, it's where we go when we want quick loans. the headline, "Pangarap ay abot-kamay" (dreams are close at hand) and the body copy talks as if it's like an education where we know having one enables us to have a brighter future. it's also not an educational plan where the parents save up today for the future - it's all positive and forward looking. pawnshops have a negative aura to it, it's a last resort place. it's a lifeline to get us out of a hole we are stuck in, not a ladder we place on a wall to climb towards a positive goal.

the other weakness of this print ad is it's not a stand alone ad. there is a gap in the logic flow in the ad. there is a disconnect on the role of the mom of sarah. it is not explained in this print ad what was it that cebuana lhuiller is praising her for in connection to helping sarah achieve her dreams. there is a tv version of this ad campaign and this print ad assumes the print ad reader has seen the tv ad. the tv ad has the complete story but this one does not.

an ad version should be a stand alone ad - with the complete thought and sale in it. the assumption should always be this is the only medium by which the target will see this ad campaign. having an ad in print that is imcomplete in thought is a WAWAM!

next on WAWAM! is the tv spot.