Crowning Achievement, But Details Are a Royal Pain
An old Gaelic ditty goes something like: “… one ‘l’ or two ‘l’ ending in ‘y’, it all means the same to an Irishman’s eye; but if you knock the ‘l’ out of Kelly, surely he’ll knock the ‘l’ out of you.” Poetry intended to press upon us the sanctity of one’s name and the importance of getting it right.
A name is a priceless personal possession, yet we are permitted to use it at no cost. When we do so it commands attention, a fact not lost on clever promotion people. None has mastered the personalization technique more effectively than Crown Royal Canadian Whisky.
The brand recently mailed consumers an actual bottle label, personalized with their own name followed by: “The Ultimate Connoisseur.” Affixing this label to their own bottle, consumers could effectively create a limited edition. They were invited to order additional labels free. These could be personalized with the name of a friend followed by a relevant custom slogan: “The Ultimate Sport,” or “The Ultimate Dad,” for instance. The suggestion was that you could pay special friends the “ultimate tribute” by buying them a bottle of fine hooch and labeling it in their honor.
It’s hardly a profound premise – especially the part about the mailing coming to you from, hold your breath, the “Society of the Crown.” It is, nevertheless, a powerful promotion idea.
First of all (hats off to Crown Royal), it’s free! Really free – no hidden charges, no return postage. Plus, extra order forms are included with an invitation to photocopy more, up to 36 labels total. What a refreshing offer in today’s banal, low-rent promotional environment!
Secondly, it is a low-cost way to add real value to a brand. The ingredients are mere ink on paper, and there’s no need to slow production lines for special packing.
Thirdly, it’s competitively smart, because spirits marketers consider their labels sacred works of art, and are loath to futz with them, so this is likely to remain a unique offering in the industry.
Lastly, this image promotion not only pays off the brand’s “ultimate good taste” advertising platform, it drives sales. You can’t give personalized bottles without buying them, can you?
But no cigar: In an otherwise deliciously designed promotion campaign, this one had a sour overtone. At least that’s how it came off to Jeffrey McElnea, distinguished honcho of the Einson Freeman agency, proud bearer of a Scottish ancestry, and provider of the sample for this review. Mr. McElnea is not Mr. Mcelnea, as was inscribed on his personal Crown Royal label. Bloody Truth is, when you use a person’s name, you’d better spell it right – especially if you want him to believe that he is a member in good standing of your hallowed society!
We can only presume that this erratum affected all the Mc’s and Mac’s in the Crown Royal database. Could it have been a Freudian oversight by a Canadian whisky in the subconscious knowledge that people of Scottish and Irish heritage are more likely to be hardcore users of indigenous whiskey? We choose to think not. Does it reflect a marketing community raised on Macintosh computers? Mmm, possibly.
Oh, and one other thing. Like so many others, this promotion invokes the “allow four to six weeks” clause, which seems to have become accepted copycat promotion practice. Wake up promotion people! Your public no longer waits a month for anything, even custom-upholstered sofas. In our instant gratification society, we damn well better be able to get our custom whisky labels printed overnight!
Disconnect of the month A Canon TV spot starring Andre Agassi in vintage western drag, serving bright yellow tennis balls on sepia-toned streets of Laredo. Beautiful, extravagant film work that slams home the product’s benefit: You won’t miss out on high-speed photo opportunities with Canon. So why puncture that mood with an urgently worded :05 voiceover inviting viewers to hurry and enter a (huh?) Super Bowl sweepstakes? A weak promotion tag can just ruin a nice piece of advertising. If you have a strong offer, put it in their face with pride. Otherwise, keep it to yourself.
