Do you remember the time?

Why advertisements use nostalgia.
When you take a close look at the commercials you may find two approaches:
1. The product is shown during its various evolutionary stages. This emphasizes that the product already exists for a long time and therfore communicates quality and reliability. One example is the new Toyota Corolla commercial:

2. The commercial reminds you of your own past experiences with the product. It shows all the good times you had with it and creates the feeling that you want to continue the "relationship" with the product when the new product is launched. A very good example for this point is the current Play Station 4 commercial, which is called "4 The Players since 1995". This commercial not only awakens people's experiences with the former Play Stations but also emphasizes the product's quality, as described in the first point.

The flaws of nostalgic advertising.
One major problem of nostalgic advertising is that some people may associate bad memories with the brand. By reminding them of these memories, the advertisement may create an aversion for the product which the people actually had already overcome.
Another disadvantage of nostalgia is if it creates an image of the past that most people can't identify with. For example when a commercial shows the 1950s very positively, many people may not be able to identify with that image because they suffered from the post-war era.

When an advertisement should not use nostalgia.
Nostalgic advertisements are not a good idea when the product's target audience is too young to have the memories that the advertisement is supposed to trigger. For example I have read on David's blog that he thinks that the Internet Explorer commercial is not good because he is of the opinion that the things people in the 90s did were ridiculous. The Internet Explorer commercial is therefore excluding everyone who was born later than the mid 90s.

Nostalgic advertising is also pointless for a completely new brand. If the advertisement would remind the audience of their past experiences, they might realize that the past was good enough and they don't actually need a new product/brand.

I always like it when advertisements use nostalgia. It makes me feel like I'm being a part of something bigger. Even though I never owned a Play Station myself, I can identify with the "4 The Players since 1995" commercial because many of my friends had one.

Of Harleys and Lomos

What do Harley-Davidson and lomography have in common? They both have a strong brand community. The Harley Owners Group was established in 1983 by Harley-Davidson and is supposed to satisfy the owners' needs for organized activities with other Harley-Davidson enthusiasts. The Harley Owners Group organizes for example the Posse Ride which is a touring rally. The Lomo community is all about analog photography. By joining the community, you can upload photos and videos on their website for free and also read the online magazine.

Brand communities make customers think more about the brand and get more involved. By giving customers the opportunity to share their photos with other people, they might get reinforced by other customers' feedback to take even more pictures. Moreover the photos of other customers may inspire people to buy a new gadget like a fisheye lens for their camera. Likewise in the Harley Owners Group the members can share their experiences with their Harleys with other members. They can meet people with the same hobby and become even more passionate about it.

What makes the Posse Ride so appealing to Harley owners is that they can meet other owners and share their Harley stories. It creates a feeling of belonging and is ultimately projected onto the brand itself. The most prominent thing that every participant in the Posse Ride has in common is that they own a Harley. Some participants may make new friends and therefore are thankful for the opportunity Harley-Davidson has given to them.
The Lomo community exists only online so I would say that the feeling of belonging is weaker. Nevertheless it reflects a certain way of living because analog photography is not a mainstream product. Nowadays people usually use digital photography or maybe apps for their smartphones that create a similar effect as an analog camera does. But the real analog photography is something special and valuable to the users.

The Lomo community has its roots on the lomography website. That means the brand has total control about everything they want to present to their customers. Harley-Davidson is different. The Posse Ride is for example hosted by Harley-Davidson dealers, not the company itself. That makes it less controllable and therefore more dangerous for the company if something goes wrong. I would suggest that Harley-Davidson should get more involved with the Posse Ride. It is a great opportunity to find out about customers' needs and the connection between the ride and the brand becomes even stronger.
Apart from the Posse Ride Harley-Davidson could also include an official forum on their website, just like Royal Enfield did. Like this the members would feel even more like a community where everyone helps each other. Another possibility is to hold events where non-owners can try a Harley-Davidson, following the example of Jeep.

A good product is only half the battle!

In June 2012, Microsoft introduced its new tablet to the world: the Surface.

After the press conference where the Surface was unveiled people wanted the Surface and they wanted it right now. The hype about the new Surface could be compared to any Apple release - so why wasn't it as successful as Apple's products?
The major problem was that Microsoft announced neither a price nor a release date for the Surface. In fact, it took them four months to reveal this information. At that time the hype had already subsided and critics had enough time to find flaws about the Surface so that fewer people wanted it than expected.

Once the Surface was on the market, customers had yet to overcome another hurdle: Microsoft decided to sell the Surface exclusively in Microsoft stores and through their own website. As there were only 20 Microsoft stores at that moment, there were only 20 places in the world where people could go and actually try out the new device. No one wants to buy a pig in a poke, especially when the product costs about $500.
Finally, the name of the new Microsoft tablet was very confusing. There has already been a showpiece called Surface in 2011. If a person searches the internet for a certain product and can't even find it directly because there are several products with the same name, it leads to the person loosing interest in the product.

The "old" Microsoft Surface.

Clearly, Microsoft did a good job with the Surface. It is a nice tablet and real competitor for Apple's iPad. Last month, Microsoft announced the release of a new version of the Surface and hopefully they learned from their mistakes and do it better this time.

Help the polar bears!

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) is running the Global Arctic Program right now to protect the animals in the Arctic region which are threatened by melting ice due to climate change. Their website contains all the relevant and up-to-date information on this topic by providing articles, videos and blog posts. Some of the blog posts also contain webinars that provide very detailed information, for example about the conservation of polar bears. Using webinars helps the reader gain knowledge about the threatened Arctic and makes it therefore more likely that the reader supports WWF’s actions. Moreover teachers might find the webinars informative and use them in the classroom which might sensitize the students for the Arctic and WWF.

Everything on the WWF website can be shared on Twitter, Facebook, Google+ or via email. The fact that the share buttons are right next to the articles, photos and videos makes it very convenient and chances are higher that people share the content.

The WWF US Arctic Field Program even has its own Facebook page. You can “like” this page and then read all the daily postings on your wall. As many people use Facebook on a daily basis, it is very important to use this channel of communication. It ensures that people, who are interested in the program, get the relevant information promptly and do not have to visit WWF’s website first. Moreover this Facebook page contains only information on the Arctic and not on all of WWF’s programs so that it becomes more appealing for people who are interested in this specific topic. It incorporates not only news about the Arctic but also photos and games. In one of the games you can test your Polar Bear IQ and save virtual polar bears by answering 10 questions. Such games heighten the awareness of the problem and what WWF is doing to fight it. After the quiz, there is also a link to WWF’s gift shop where you can make a symbolic adoption by buying a stuffed animal and an adoption certificate. Moreover you get a Polar Bear Badge that you can share on Facebook, Twitter or Google+. This helps spread the word for the Arctic Field campaign and heightens awareness even more.

One major sponsor of the campaign is Coca-Cola. They created a website for European countries where you can learn more about the Arctic, donate money and also download goodies like wallpapers or Facebook profile pictures. Coca-Cola fits well as a sponsor because their icon is a polar bear and they also create familiarity. There are several videos on Youtube about the Coca-Cola-WWF cooperation. These are very emotional and create the need to change something about the situation.