#OrchidsandOnions: Cooking, cars and Catzavelos... some basic marketing lessons

Screen grab from the ad.

So, no outright Onions today, just two interesting Orchids and one marketing and reputation management warning (in case none of you saw that, anyway).

First up is the new Checkers TV ad for its “meal in a box,” which promises that you, too, can “cook like a Master Chef” every day.

We see a man in his kitchen, unpacking his “meal in a box” and, as he does so, the scene behind and around him transforms into a restaurant. Suddenly, a ‘master chef’ appears. (At this point, let me declare, I am not a great fan of cooking shows, although I do love food… so I did not recognise the man.)

He offers advice as the meal comes together in delicious high-definition. And that is the promise of the box: not just the ingredients, but also the instructions and advice so you look like the expert. In no time at all (it seems) the meal gets made and looks really good.

The man in the kitchen looks up to where his ghost helper was – and he’s gone.

Checkers to launch Ready to Chef meal kits

20 Aug 2018

Apart from the fact the ad showcases the product perfectly, it is also another example of how Checkers has consistently set the bar high when it comes to visual images of food. They’ve done it in the past with their meat, their cheeses and their wines. It’s so real, you can almost taste it.

And if that’s not what the marketing people describe as a “call to action” (get down to the shop and buy it), then I don’t know what is.

So, another food-related Orchid for Checkers.

It’s no wonder that, these days, Checkers has usurped the place of Woollies as somewhere you go for high-class food…

These two pics of tweets – the first from BMW US, and then a follow-up from Audi US – take my fancy because I love comparative and humorous advertising, especially when a brand takes a nudge at a competitor. That’s why BMW’s iconic “Beats the Bends” ad from the 1990s was so appealing.

#OrchidsandOnions: Nothing beats this Benz... or the hope that sport can one day unite us

Brendan Seery  12 Jun 2018

Comparative advertising is not only frowned on in this country, it is outlawed and many a campaign has had to be pulled after complaints for a competitor, which feels another brand has besmirched its reputation. Sigh…

What happened in these tweets was that BMW decided to showcase its new M4 in front of a spectacular light display. The Audi social media clevers quickly noticed that the lights formed a series of inter-locking rings… just like the Audi logo. So they dropped their take – a subtle “when you see it” message.

Sparks fly for this #M4 in exclusive Yas Marina Blue. Image by @jinphotos. #MMondays pic.twitter.com/05bohy4Inj

— BMW USA (@BMWUSA) August 20, 2018

In case you had your head in the sand the whole of last week, the calamitous collapse of businesses related to the “beach racist”, Adam Catzavelos, was a warning about the power of social media.

Too soon, South Africa? #AdamCatzavelos challenge is already a meme

Andy Walker  23 Aug 2018

Just looking at it from a marketing perspective, I can think of few other examples where the outrage of a social media community had done such damage so quickly.

Moral of the story – apart from ‘stay in Europe if you hate black people’ – is be extremely careful about anything you post on social media.