I was on the tube yesterday when I spotted this interesting ad for online retailer dixons.co.uk:
Created by M&C Saatchi the ad is a brave attempt to run the gauntlet of the 'refreshingly honest' approach to brand advertising. In one fell swoop Dixons have admitted that their staff are not the best trained, that their shops are not the most aesthetically pleasing and that their sales advice is somewhat sub-standard. They admitted all of this because they're hoping that the message of their ad, 'we're not the best but we are the cheapest', is what will stick in consumers' heads when they reach the final stages of the product purchase cycle.
In many ways this is a twist on the classic Avis ad: 'we're number two ... so we try harder'. The agency behind that advert, DDB, hit upon the idea when they asked the beautifully blunt question, 'why does anyone want to rent a car from you?'. The answer that spawned the legendary advertising campaign was that Avis couldn't begin to compete on price so they had to compete on service; they tried harder.
A similar question has clearly been asked of Dixons. Why would anyone buy anything from you? Conversely, of course, they can't hope to compete against Harrods and Selfridges on service but they can certainly compete on price. 'We try harder' for Dixons is simply 'we are cheaper'.
With the country still feeling the effects of the recent recession it is absolutely right that dixons.co.uk is staking its claim to low prices instead of great service but a major stumbling block of this strategy is the question of whether it is too late for the site to establish itself as a major low-price retailer. The cut-price consumer electronics marketplace has a number of major incumbents: Amazon, Dabs and even eBay are all established players in this crowded and competitive market and consumers are already well versed in the 'try and buy elsewhere' purchasing philosophy.
To bet a brand's reputation on a campaign like this is commendable but very risky. Personally, I have a feeling that Dixons no longer has the clout or the brand recognition to make sure that 'the last place you want to go' is a call to action and not an untimely epitaph.
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Dixons: ‘The last place you want to go’
I was on the tube yesterday when I spotted this interesting ad for online retailer dixons.co.uk:
Created by M&C Saatchi the ad is a brave attempt to run the gauntlet of the 'refreshingly honest' approach to brand advertising. In one fell swoop Dixons have admitted that their staff are not the best trained, that their shops are not the most aesthetically pleasing and that their sales advice is somewhat sub-standard. They admitted all of this because they're hoping that the message of their ad, 'we're not the best but we are the cheapest', is what will stick in consumers' heads when they reach the final stages of the product purchase cycle.
In many ways this is a twist on the classic Avis ad: 'we're number two ... so we try harder'. The agency behind that advert, DDB, hit upon the idea when they asked the beautifully blunt question, 'why does anyone want to rent a car from you?'. The answer that spawned the legendary advertising campaign was that Avis couldn't begin to compete on price so they had to compete on service; they tried harder.
A similar question has clearly been asked of Dixons. Why would anyone buy anything from you? Conversely, of course, they can't hope to compete against Harrods and Selfridges on service but they can certainly compete on price. 'We try harder' for Dixons is simply 'we are cheaper'.
With the country still feeling the effects of the recent recession it is absolutely right that dixons.co.uk is staking its claim to low prices instead of great service but a major stumbling block of this strategy is the question of whether it is too late for the site to establish itself as a major low-price retailer. The cut-price consumer electronics marketplace has a number of major incumbents: Amazon, Dabs and even eBay are all established players in this crowded and competitive market and consumers are already well versed in the 'try and buy elsewhere' purchasing philosophy.
To bet a brand's reputation on a campaign like this is commendable but very risky. Personally, I have a feeling that Dixons no longer has the clout or the brand recognition to make sure that 'the last place you want to go' is a call to action and not an untimely epitaph.
Related posts