Brands give retro ad campaigns a digital update

Brands are giving classic campaigns a new outing on digital platforms, reports Matt Jacobs. Wendy's used its 1984 "Where's the beef?" tagline for a Twitter and Facebook campaign; Coke revived its "Hilltop" campaign and its polar bear characters; and the "Got Milk?" campaign has been updated with Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and mobile tie-ins. "With the advent of these new digital channels, brands have been able to breathe new life into their old-school marketing campaigns," Jacobs writes. Well, I think this is smart. First, there is a love affair with nostalgia at the moment--it always happens in a down economy. Also, many of these ads are targeted to Gen Y, most of whom are seeing these great ideas for the first time. The older demographic is seeing them again for the first time--but in a new format and with some new twists. Genius. They pass them along to their friends with longing comments about the glory days. I'm sure the market research showed these ideas and their "creative" were still relevant and appealing. Read the article and see the ads at iMedia Connection.