Big Name Supermarkets Come Out Top In Ad Survey
Sainsbury’s and Mark & Spencer topped Propeller’s latest Ads That Make News Survey after drafting some of Britain’s best known celebrities to front their advertising campaigns.
According to the survey, Sainsbury’s was the top brand in terms of press coverage of its advertising in the fourth quarter of 2001 thanks to Essex boy Jamie Oliver and his pucker tucker.
Propeller’s director, Nick Fitzherbert, said: “The old advertising standby of using celebrities continues to be popular and certainly gives Sainsbury’s the edge when it comes to making news. It has to be said, though that not all news about ads is good and some of Sainsbury’s stories have focussed on indications that Jamie Oliver is less popular in the north than the south and others revealed that his wife shops in a competing store.”
Mark & Spencer made it into second place in terms of headline grabbing adverts after hiring a raft of big names to help it bounce back from its high profile but apparently unsuccessful “Naked Lady On A Hill Top” promotion. The retail chain’s “Christmas Celebrity” campaign also received a boost with rumours that the Beckhams might jump on the M&S celebrity bandwagon.
Tesco came third in terms of press coverage of its ads during the fourth quarter of 2001 as a result of complaints from other stores about its low pricing claims. However, Elton John singing the praises of Royal Mail and reports that Madonna received a £10m fee for the use of her Ray of Light song in Microsoft’s Windows XP campaign also proved the effectiveness of using celebrities in ads. Royal Mail took fourth place and Microsoft made it in to sixth position.
Finally Dronco Abrasives proved that money is not necessarily the key to getting your ads noticed. The Manchester-based company caused controversy with an ad that ran during the England – Germany World Cup qualifying game that referred to the Germans as “Krauts.” The ASA ruled that “Kraut” was an acceptable term and Dronco Abrasives received a wide range of coverage in the national media.
Propeller Marketing Communications: 0207 636 6300 www.propellergroup.com
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