Sour Patch Kids Cultural Consultation February 2012 Project brief Our client would like us to review 5 of their American generated TVCs and advise if the creative and sense of humour would be suitable for the UK target audience. Please see below detailed information about the product, the campaign, objectives, preferred media and target audience. The product The Sour Patch brand (part of the Kraft group) is a popular sweet & sour candy available in the US and Canadian markets. (Please visit their website http://www.sourpatch.com/). They will be launching their brand for the first time in the UK in September 2012. The campaign ‘Sour Patch Kids’ Starring the little characters/candy icons that make pranks on people, the campaign reflects the product slogan ‘sour, sweet, gone’, which also refers to the taste of the candy; at first they’re sour, then they’re sweet, and then they’re gone. The pranks that the candy characters do to people can be shocking at first (reflecting the sourness of the situation), but then the candy character expresses ‘goodwill’ by either hugging the person, drawing a heart, etc. (reflecting the sweetness of the candy), and then they go! For this specific project, the client is interested to see if the following TVCs will work for the UK market (more questions to follow specifically for each ad) 1. Paintball: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yU4EiFQb9w 2. Cyclist: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB9yGZKoTjg 3. Lineup: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zrS0JorZ3s 4. Tollbooth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJlDBmoD3pw 5. Hair out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5I-­‐ImwKKy8 Media: The client is considering cinema and online Target audience/market: Youth 16 – 24 yrs old (total 8 mil./2,5 mil. are trend setters that Client would like to target), characteristics: mischievous, cheeky Market: UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland). Objective: The objective of this consultation -­‐ To assess if we need to localise the American English accent to UK English accent/s -­‐ To assess the suitability of the concept for the local target audience Considerations: At the moment, the only website available is the American site – it hasn’t been adapted (yet) for the UK market. We don’t have information whether the call to action at the end of the ads will refer to the US URL or UK URL. Questions Your task is to read the brief carefully, visit the brand’s website, look at the TVCs and answer the following questions in as much detail as possible. (you can answer with ‘yes’ and ‘no’ as long as you explain your answer clearly with examples). Please use the same font size and the colour blue. 1-­‐ CONCEPTUAL CONSIDERATIONS -­‐ How do you think the ads will be generally perceived in your market; is the sense of humour understood and appropriate for the target audience? Is there any element of the ads that could be offensive? The first four adverts are likely to be perceived as humorous and light, with a clear connection to the tagline/concept. The sense of humor is practical/slapstick and the scenarios are common enough for UK audiences to relate to immediately. The situational humor is appropriate for the target audience and will raise a smile. The fifth advert is very different in tone and content, using a sexual scenario that may cause offence with some audience members. The relation between the sweets and the female genitals is not likely to be considered appropriate or tasteful by many audience members, although it may appeal to younger males with a purile, laddish sense of humor. -­‐ Is the line ‘sour, sweet, gone’ and/or overall sentiment of the message similar to any campaign you’ve come across within the past year? Please give examples/research online to support your answer. Similar to Haribo Tangfastics with ‘happy world of Haribo’ tagline, which features ‘kids in control’, in cinema and online http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qc8vxx6J5Xw http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IeThZXXLT0&feature=related http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrGJ0vO_NXs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jicQr-­‐Rufhk Also has parallels with humorous Ben & Jerry’s ‘nuts about fair trade’ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdZUB5Ilkbs 2-­‐ LINGUISTIC CONSIDERATIONS -­‐ If the ads are running online and in cinemas, would you recommend keeping them in American accents? Or do you think it is important to adapt them into changed English accent/s? It’s important to adapt to a UK accent. The scenarios and locations are generic, so the adaptation will be easy to execute in dubbing and the benefits are as follows: clearer identification between protagonist in film and consumer; stronger connection between brand identity and consumer; comfort level of audience is not challenged – it will be perceived as a British advert for British people, with no sense of foreignness and the detachment that may evoke. -­‐ Would it matter if it were 'English' accent as opposed to Irish or Scottish or Welsh? No it wouldn’t matter if it were an English accent, as long as that accent is home counties/middle England. Within England itself, there are regional variations in both the accent and the vernacular, each of which contains cultural signifiers and connotations that connect with stereotypes within the UK. As a general rule, Scottish and Irish accents portray trust and warmth, and Welsh accents are humorous – although a great deal depends on the gender, cadence and tone of the voiceover artist. -­‐ Would your answers to the above be affected if the end-­‐frame's ‘call to action’ referred to an American website, where the same ads existed in American accent? Probably not, mainly due to the fact that UK web users are accustomed to .com URLs and to international advertising. It is likely to be more of a problem for online users who have seen the UK-­‐voiced ads and then immediately click-­‐through to the US versions – the difference is more obvious and more disruptive to their perception of the brand as ‘for UK’. Less of a problem for cinema audiences, where more time may elapse between seeing advert at start of film and going to US website. -­‐ Are there any remarks regarding the script/copy in general – are the expressions/words used suitable for UK market or do they need to be tweaked? 1. Paintball – no remarks. 2. Cyclist – no remarks. 3. Paintball – no remarks. 4. Tollbooth – no remarks. 5. The Sourest Patch – not consistent with other adverts in style and tone. 3-­‐ VISUAL CONSIDERATIONS -­‐ Are the visuals relevant to the UK market? Or are they ‘too American’? Is there any element that we need to change/tweak in the visuals (this could be anything from driving on the wrong side of the road, signs, symbols, etc.) 1. Paintball – no remarks. 2. Cyclist – no remarks. 3. Paintball – general remark: this is clearly a US police uniform. 4. Tollbooth – general remark: this is clearly a US car/number plate. 5. The Sourest Patch – not consistent with other adverts in style and tone. -­‐ Do you foresee any challenges for adding subtitles in terms of length of ad or visuals? None. 4-­‐ LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS -­‐ Is there any local law that requires us to add subtitles on the ads? (Welsh for example?) Even if not, do you advise us to add subtitles in TA’s local language/s? None. No. It’s not standard practice. In some cinemas, there may be a requirement for assisted moviegoing, for example closed caption, open caption and descriptive video. -­‐ Is there a possibility that the ads will not pass Clearcast's approval system? Why? Any advise on how to solve this? Possible issue with sexual content of 5 under ‘taste and decency’ BCAP code. This may not be a concern with cinema advertising, given the targeted nature of the advert (16-­‐24 year olds) and the likely audience (over 15s). There may be an issue using this advert online as the reach is so much wider and indiscriminate. Recommend not using this as part of campaign as it’s also inconsistent in style and tone. See http://www.clearcast.co.uk/ and http://bcap.org.uk/The-­‐Codes/BCAP-­‐Code/BCAP-­‐TV-­‐Code.aspx 5-­‐ COMPETITION -­‐ Which brand -­‐ in your opinion -­‐ can be Sour Patch's main competition in the UK? Please support answer with pictures and links Haribo. Well-­‐established, well-­‐know, well-­‐loved brand, with wide-­‐reaching cinema advertising and TV advertising presence for flagship products product. Only bear-­‐shaped product is Gold Bears – not sour. http://www.haribo.com/planet/uk/startseite.php For further Haribo TV advertising, see http://www.haribo.com/planet/uk/info/frameset_marken.php Competition in particular: 1. Haribo Tangfastics http://www.tellyads.com/show_movie.php?filename=TA11004 2. Sour Cherries 3. Sour Strawbs 4. Super Sour Monsters 5. Fizzy Cola -­‐ Can you give us an overview on the style of recent ads targeting the TA? Mainly from the same product/category? (very briefly) Common use of humor and quirky/original concepting. Common use of illustrations and multimedia blend of digital and live action. M&Ms chocolate snacks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfjcLZnAyws McVities biscuits http://adsoftheworld.com/media/tv/mcvities_quirks_falling Pot Noodle snack meal http://adsoftheworld.com/media/tv/pot_noodle_wag -­‐ Are the ads (or sense of humour) similar to any other existing brand targeting the same audience? http://adsoftheworld.com/media/tv/pear_drop_turn_the_air_pear_barrel http://adsoftheworld.com/media/tv/vimto_waltzers For future note, British humor is often characterized by self-­‐deprecation, irony and poking fun at stereotypes or figures of fun. The practical, slapstick humor in the Sour Patch ads (apart from 5.) appeals at a generic level but for more effective brand identity development, a more subtle and culturally tailored approach may be even more successful. See also Innocent Smoothies below: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt7PRxUpYbw&feature=plcp&context=C36b3c64UDO
EgsToPDskL1HUaBmy9Hs6N5D18yJbIq http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt7PRxUpYbw&feature=plcp&context=C36b3c64UDO
EgsToPDskL1HUaBmy9Hs6N5D18yJbIq