‘It’s hard to hurt a brand that people don’t like’

Woolworths is grappling with a marketing disaster after being accused of exploiting the Anzac Day centenary.

Veteran's Affairs Minister Michael Ronaldson asked Woolworths to take down the site. Source: Facebook

WAS it tacky and tasteless, or an honest mistake?

Woolworths and its advertising agency have come under fire over the 'Fresh in our Memories' Anzac website, which was last night taken down following a public outcry and massive social media backlash.

The campaign encouraged members of the public to share stories and pictures of loved ones affected by or lost to war on a website that then branded them with Woolworths logo and the phrase "Lest we Forget 1915-2015. Fresh in our memories."

The campaign caused uproar on social media. Source: Twitter

Veteran's Affairs Minister Michael Ronaldson said Woolworths had not been given permission to use in the campaign the word "Anzac", which is protected under Australian law.

Senator Ronaldson asked Woolworths to take down the website once he became aware of it on Tuesday night. "In this instance, permission was not sought by the campaign proponents, nor would it have been approved," he said.

"Immediately upon having this campaign brought to my attention, I contacted Woolworths and asked them to end it. I am pleased that the campaign has now been withdrawn."

News.com.au asked four advertising experts and Gruen Transfer panellists for their take on how it happened, and what it will mean for Woolworths.

SIIMON REYNOLDS

Advertising Guru

Siimon Reynolds says Woolworths has been treated unfairly. Source: Supplied

First of all, as it turns out, it's against the law to use the Anzac name in that way, and there's no way in a million years the agency would have done that if they'd known. They would be feeling terrible right now.

Secondly, I think Woolies and the agency have been really unfairly treated. Woolworths doesn't need to increase its brand status, and I'd imagine the only reason they did it was out of respect for the Anzacs.

Their mistake was using a bit of cleverness in the headline, and that was a mistake, but you've got to look at the intention — it's ludicrous to think Woolworths was trying to boost its brand somehow. Australian consumers forgive pretty fast. It will be forgotten in less than a week, particularly in a few days when they need to buy food.

How did it happen? It's an interesting question. I think a lot of what happens is advertising people get too close to what they're doing and forget about the public. But the question should have been asked. It's a sacred subject and it would have been best to stay clear of it, but it's easy to say that in hindsight.

DEE MADIGAN

Campaign Edge

Fresh food and dead diggers don't mix, says Dee Madigan. Source: News Limited

What's surprising is that someone ever thought it was a good idea. There's no way to stick your logo on a photo of an old digger and for it to be in any way beneficial for your company. Even if they were being altruistic and donating money to the RSL, it still looks bad, and quite rightly so.

Companies have a really bad habit of talking themselves into the fact that they're doing good for the community, when in fact they're often not. It shouldn't have gotten through.

The difference between VB and Woolworths is that digger agreed to be in the ad, whereas the dead guy in the photo didn't, and the VB ad is quite clearly asking for donations to Legacy. Fresh food and dead people just don't work, there's no logical brand association.

The effect on Woolies will be minimal — it's hard to hurt a brand that people don't particularly like anyway. It's probably more the agency that will be affected.

ADAM FERRIER

Cummins&Partners

Adam Ferrier says the impact will be minimal. Source: Supplied

My thoughts are that people love to get outraged at the moment and any excuse they can find to get outraged they will. To marketers, all of these things are just feedback that helps them understand what is and isn't in line with societal standards.

There won't be any lasting negative impact on the Woolies brand because of this. It will be a blip in the ocean of consumers' interaction with Woolworths — it'll be forgotten within a week.

With the proliferation of media channels, it's more incumbent on brands to produce content across all of their channels, and so they're looking at things that are happening every day and wondering if they can comment.

Just like anybody else using social media, they can make mistakes. They're going to get it wrong from time to time, and that's okay. It's how they respond.

CAROLYN MILLER

Communications Strategist

Carolyn Miller says someone will definitely be held accountable. Source: Supplied

When you're dealing with anything to do with war or veterans, it has to be with the utmost respect. I think if they'd left the logo off of it, they might have been okay. 'Fresh in our memories' is close to the line, but the logo is the thing that bugs me the most.

Obviously there have to be approval processes, but how big it is and whether it got signed off by the top brass no one will know. The agency has gone to ground. It's entirely possible this was meant to be a small thing that blew up.

Someone is definitely going to be held accountable, and while I do think they've done the wrong thing I actually pity them. To know a campaign you've been responsible for has caused this amount of offence would make your heart sink.

In the old days there used to be a much longer lead time to do creative work for traditional advertising. You might have had a couple of months to consider things, go through changes and revisions. Now there's so much pressure to be reactive and topical, and as a result steps get missed.

frank.chung@news.com.au

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