A few little words – why straplines matter
This entry was posted on Thursday, September 10th, 2009 at 2:36 PM
I spotted one of the most ill-considered company straplines I think I’ve ever seen the other day. I was on my way into Kingston when I noticed the logo on the van in front of me.‘National Clamps’, the jolly, bright yellow logo proclaimed.
But it was the line that cut through the logo that made me snort with derision. Written in a soft script typeface, to give it that human touch, was the phrase ‘We Care’. ‘National Clamps – We Care’? Do me a favour.Are we really supposed to believe that the burly blokes who clamp our cars actually care? And that they give two hoots when they charge us extortionate fees to release them? I think not.
This strapline is wrong on so many levels. It reads like something that was scribbled on the back of a fag packet without any thought. It says nothing about the company (well, actually it does. But not what they intended I’m sure). Worst of all, it’s downright antagonistic!
I suspect they decided they needed to get away from their industry’s poor public image. However, just saying the words ‘we care’ really isn’t going to do it. You have to live your strapline for it to count.
Of course National Clamps isn’t the only company to get it wrong. It’s a big mistake and a lost opportunity.
Straplines comprise so few words yet they count for so much. Along with your logo, your company strapline is part of your corporate identity. So it should reflect your culture, values, and expertise. It should express your company’s personality. It needs to be distinctive and memorable – for the right reasons of course.
Since you’re likely to be stuck with it for some years you need to invest time and careful consideration into getting it right. Try it out on a few people before you go live to check their reaction. Make sure it gets the response you want before you unleash it.
It takes time to come up with a strapline that encapsulates the essence of your company in a few words. Sometimes as long as it takes to write the copy for an average sized website in fact. OK, there may be the odd light bulb moment, but not that often. That’s because the words that make up the best straplines aren’t just plucked out of thin air.
Companies with great straplines, the ones that have embedded themselves into our psyche, will have defined exactly what they want to convey. They will have discussed, researched, and sampled. And, yes, some will have paid a lot of money for them.
Here are some examples of the best ones:
Every little helps – Tesco. It’s also one of those lines that’s become part of our vocabulary
You shop, we drop – Tesco again for its online shopping service. I really love this one.
We’re number two, so we try harder – Avis Car Rentals. I love the boldness of this line.
Reassuringly expensive – Stella Artois. No longer used but a classic nonetheless.
Vorsprung Durch Technik - Audi. And you don’t even have to know what it means!
Just Do It – Nike. A strapline that’s so well-known it doesn’t need the company name to support it.
I also like Marks & Spencer’s strapline – Your M&S.
According to an article on Telegraph.co.uk in November 2006:
‘The “Your M&S” strapline was designed to work on three levels. It was intended to remind shareholders that they own the company, it was designed to perk up staff and it was designed to tell customers that the company will start to sell products that they want to buy.’
Here’s a good article on creating straplines and slogans for particular products and services.
Don’t fall into the National Clamps trap. Spend some time with your strapline and create something that really represents your company.
I’ll give the last line to a strapline I spotted years ago in New York. It still makes me giggle. It was on the side of a furniture company’s van and it read:
“A cheap chair for your cheap ass.’
Only in New York!
TweetWhy bad business writing is like a cheap sandwich | VW Blue Motion ad makes me green with envy – a great illustration of clear, simple, but creative copy
September 10th, 2009 at 2:55 PM
Nice article. I think my all-time favourite bad strapline was the one that Barclays came up with a few years ago: “Wealth. What’s it to you?”
To me it reads like it’s implying: “We took a losing punt on US subprime with your wealth: What’s it to you?”
If you’re interested in more of my thoughts on good and bad straplines, come on over to http://www.daccreative.co.uk/goodcopybadcopy/?s=strapline
September 10th, 2009 at 3:20 PM
Couldn’t agree more Elaine. A strapline is an integral part of the brand and should fit with its personality, tone of voice, values and corporate identity. It’s no good saying one thing and doing another. Your customers will soon find you out!
September 10th, 2009 at 8:02 PM
Thanks for your comments Clare and Annie.
Clare – I so agree with you about that Barclay’s campaign. It was the one with Samuel L wasn’t it? It was SO aggressive! Will definitely look at your blog.
Annie – well said! Unfortunately so many companies don’t live up to their straplines though. They just think
we won’t notice.
September 14th, 2009 at 10:32 AM
Great article. So many companies get caught up with the strapline issue and then come up with this kind of rubbish. I love the 80s style logo as well.
Wouldn’t it be great if companies had to use a real strapline that summed up their services? Like in a Jim Carey movie? So Natwest would be: “Not so different afer all. We’re pretty crap like all the other banks.” Comet would be: “we live electrical but we can’t interact with humans so don’t speak to us please.” “Red Bull gives you wings. Not true. But it will make you fat and hyper .”
Whaddya think?
September 21st, 2009 at 4:22 PM
What a fab article. So funny and very true. It reminded me of this letter that someone is ‘supposed’ to have sent to Proctor & Gamble about the slogan for their Always products – ‘Have a happy period’! Either way, it’s hilarious. http://www.snopes.com/humor/letters/always.asp – enjoy.
September 21st, 2009 at 4:32 PM
Thanks Leda! I love the ‘letter’ – thanks for posting the link.
September 25th, 2009 at 3:43 PM
“We care.”
And the first thing that pops into my mind is: About what?
It’s one of those things that probably sounded good to some committee, but nobody bothered asking “Yeah, but what does it mean, and how does it connect with our business?”
September 25th, 2009 at 3:53 PM
Thanks for your comment Roy. I know! Mad isn’t it? Absolutely no thought gone into it whatsoever but they are by no means the only offenders.
People who complain about the fees people charge to write straplines don’t appreciate the research, thought, time, effort that goes into getting something meaningful that reflects the business.
Ho hum.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:39 AM
My current favourite is BMW’s …. “We Make Joy.”
Elaine, you might enjoy a book I’m reading – ‘Make it Stick’ by Chip and Dan Heath. It refers to ideas that ‘stick’ – citing proverbs as an example. “A bird in the hand…” apparently has been around since 570 BC and has variants in just every language on the planet. It then compares them to waffle churned out by your average marketing company – and demonstrates how utterly forgettable the majority are.
Their advice is that marketers need to be ‘masters of exclusion’ and strip an idea down to its core. Nicely demonstrated by your examples.
October 9th, 2009 at 12:57 PM
Couldn’t agree more, great post. A strapline needs to represent your business, and put across something of what you do and Tesco’s “Every little help” is genius. Putting across the message “Quality Customer Experience” in a language that the consumer can understand
October 12th, 2009 at 7:34 AM
Elaine, I love this topic. One of the best straplines I can remember is BMW’s in South Africa some 10 years ago. After a Mercedes Benz handled a corner badly on the treacherous Chapmans Peak Drive in Cape Town and ended on the rocks hundereds of meters below, BMW came back with “BMW…….beats the Bends”. Fabulous use of words and what impact!!!
Lesley
December 14th, 2009 at 7:52 PM
[...] first time I ended up on Elaine’s blog, I found myself giggling about her article “A few little words – why straplines matter.” I knew immediately from the context what she was talking about, but for this American reader, [...]
November 19th, 2010 at 4:49 PM
Having just read your piece about straplines and in particular the reference to the clamping advert and the strapline “we care”.
I think if you contemplate the issue a little longer, you can actually begin to change your mind.
Maybe it wasn’t meant to be a catchy feel good or endearing strapline. In fact arguably, it could be an example of some of the best marketing you’ve seen lately.
The line “we care” has so incensed you into feeling it as inappropriate and uncaring, its actually got you angry enough to write about it on the internet and assist the company whoever they are to free social marketing. I’m sure they would probably say if asked, “it was meant to be provocative and force readers to think twice about where they park and what can happen if they are careless in their parking strategy.” I’ll bet you’ve spoken and argued about this little sign for weeks and months and all the time spreading their words.
For my mind and opinion, it’s meant to arouse and infuriate and create the reaction you’ve actually experienced., but isn’t that just clever psychological marketing, while sticking two fingers up?
November 23rd, 2010 at 11:17 AM
Hi Paul
Thanks for your comment. It’s an interesting point but I doubt very much it was that clever! It didn’t ‘incense’ me as such – it just convinced me that too many companies don’t think their straplines through. It also gave me chance to show some really good ones.