Who doesn’t love an ad or product that “takes you back”, makes you remember, and makes you reflect on the times that were?
Nostalgia marketing is not a new concept; many companies have been successfully using nostalgia marketing for years: Pepsi Throwback series, McDonald’s McRib sandwich, bringing back Furbies in 2012, NFL and MLB, apparel, Coca-Cola glass bottles, cars, Nintendo…
There are many reasons why nostalgia marketing works:
- This kind of marketing does a fantastic job of bringing back memories for the older crowd but also appeals to a younger generation because retro is cool.
- Nostalgia commonly brings up positive memories of better times.
- It is very cost effective-you have already done the creative once before and you know what works!
- It does not have to be product specific; a company can use nostalgia purely to grab attention whether or not it has anything to do with the product (check out Microsoft’s new campaign).
- A company can use successful past campaigns, hand picking the ones that worked the best!
- Many times a company will not have to market the product very hard. Friends and fans will share, post, and re-post about the product, completing most of the work!
- You can play “hard to get” and customers will wait for your product to re-appear.
Nostalgia plays off of a customer’s emotions and memories. Emotions create strong branding and brand recognition; emotional attachment is a huge plus and will ultimately increase sales and create life time customers.
Which nostalgia campaigns are your favorite? Why do these campaigns appeal to you? Please share below!
~Melissa~
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