Well, after a long hiatus, I’ve decided that I shouldn’t totally lose my blogger cred before I even have an actual job. So I’m back. I’m sure you all missed me.
I’m motivated to write today by something near and dear to my heart (yes, other than potential employment) – the Chicago Cubs. I noticed today that the Cubs have unveiled a new ad campaign for 2010, so we’ll do a little IDEAWOLF Compare-and-Contrast between this year’s campaign, from DraftFCB Chicago, and last year’s award-winning effort from Chicago boutique Jones.
Before I get to that, though, I just want to say for the record that I’m really glad that over the last several years the Cubs have actually commissioned some quality advertising. They’ve never really needed to, since they’re the hottest ticket in town. Not even decades of losing could prevent the Cubs from selling out season after season. (The White Sox, on the other hand, have been calling on local agencies for print, TV, and radio work for over a decade.) But I’m sick of the poorly produced Dean Richards-narrated PSAs about taking public transportation to Wrigley and practically needed a change of pants when I first saw the slick screen-print style posters and marquee banners from Jones in 2008.
The player-themed posters from Jones breathed a little attitude into a brand often associated with the phrase “loveable losers.” Meanwhile, the majority of the traditional print work featured messages written into an altered version of the famous Wrigley Field marquee – instantly recognizable to any Chicagoan. In an interesting twist, these ads seemed to be directed at business professional, likely in an effort to sell box seats for the purposes of client entertainment.
The outdoor boards for 2009, which were recognized for several honors, including a feature in the Comm Arts Advertising Annual, are brilliantly art directed. Like previous Jones work, they center around the Wrigley Field marquee. But this time the target is the general public. And while I’m not a fan of ads selling the ballpark itself (since they cater to the martini-drinking yuppies and bluetooth-wielding bros that go to Wrigley ‘for the experience,’ sit oblivious in the bleachers and give all Cubs fans a bad name), Jones founder and creative director Scott Maney effectively captured the essence of Cubdom with enough wit to make each ad interesting. Lines like “Home of coming back from meetings with a sunburn” and “Home of the reason you put up with winter” (not pictured here, but you can find them on CA) ring true with any Cubs fan.
Contrast that with this season’s campaign from Draft.
“Will you be here when?” Right off the bat, I really like that headline. Honestly, it should be the tagline of the entire campaign since, unlike the previous campaigns, it doesn’t avoid the fact that the Cubs haven’t won a championship in over 100 years. It faces it head on and takes the same positive spin that every true Cubs fan rationalizes in their own heart – especially the old ones. “I want to be there when it happens.” I’ve heard my grandpa, and even my dad, say this time after time. Shoot, I say and think it all the time. Along those same lines, I’ve also seen a billboard for this campaign that says this year is “year one.” I like the sentiment, but the execution is off.
Not a big fan of the tagline, though. “It’s a way of life.” At one time or another, every sports franchise in the country has used this tagline. (And I believe several Zombie baseball teams have also used the similar “It’s a way of death” line to promote their team.) Of course, the Jones ads don’t feature a tagline. But that’s beside the point.
This campaign also borrows an iconic Cubs image – this time it’s the white ‘W’ flag flown above the scoreboard after every win. It’s a good concept, but Draft doesn’t quite use the flag as well as Jones uses the marquee. And that’s without even considering the superior retouching and manipulation in the Jones ads.
And despite my affinity for the first Draft headline, I think overall Jones ventures farther from the expected and the stereotypical, which I will grant is not easy to do in a sports world already dominated by stereotypes.
Everyone in sports loves an underdog. And in this crosstown advertising battle, the smaller Jones (with under 50 employees) scores a decisive victory over the larger DraftFCB (close to 300 employees).
Go Cubs go!
Tags: Chicago Cubs, DraftFCB, Ideawolf compare-contrast, Jones, Wrigley Field
April 10, 2010 at 1:08 am |
I also like the will you be here when — using the W flag in the ads is a good idea, especially since it’s not going to be flown much at Wrigley this year.
The “It’s a way of life” is awful. Tom Ricketts is such a chad.
April 14, 2010 at 10:46 am |
I love both the seasons ads…I dont think I can pick one as my favorite. They use what is the “Chicago Cubs” and what makes them the “Cubs” perfect. Using the marquee and then the W flag in the ads makes me think what will be next. Im going to guess they will try and use the scoreboard or the ivy.