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| Jane Genova |
Nostalgia marketing, which leverages emotional associations with the past for sales, branding and building community, is going gangbusters.
After a recent sales decline because of inflation, McDonald’s, perhaps predictably, launched a nostalgia initiative. This kind of marketing, which dates back a century to Coca-Cola’s mastery of vintage symbolism, has also made an impact for such brands as Nintendo, Apple, Lego, Toys “R” Us, Nike, Disney and Cadbury.
The Three Key Drivers
Part of what is driving nostalgia’s increased popularity, as marketing agency Creative Brief reports, is the yearning for the simplicity of the pre-smartphone era, when the world was analogue.
No, this does not represent a wave of Luddism. Instead, points out Marlynn Wel in Psychology Today, it is “technostalgia,” or the longing for the technology of the past and the lifestyles embedded in it. Probably staging rotary phones in a design studio will get clients’ attention.
The ongoing disruptions of the 21st century are a second driver of this trend. For example, knowledge workers are increasingly encountering unknowns about the long-term marketability of their services. In the past, that was a known entity. The MBA had been the ticket. The investment in it paid off. That is not the current reality—and neither are myriad other investments made for supposed career mobility.
There is also the almost desperate urge to belong, to be a part of something. Nostalgia is a communal state of being. Many Boomers remember exactly where they were when the news came that John F. Kennedy had been shot. Over and over again they have shared that experience. Research headed by Jacob Juhu, published in the journal Emotion, found that nostalgia fosters social connectedness. Smart businesses host special events which evoke memories of the past.
Five Risks
But the nostalgia marketing strategy comes with perils. Here are five of those risks:
No Sales. A campaign will probably generate buzz. However, it might not convert into sales. Embedded in the format, there has to be 1) a sales situation and 2) push devices directing customers toward the check-out. The latter could include incentives like discounting, urgency, fear of missing out and highlighting unique benefits.
Shade Thrown on Innovation. “Beware” is the watch word for businesses and non-profits which need to be branded “innovative” in their attitude toward technology. This is the era of Gen AI. Research by Jianning Dang, published in the Journal of Personal Social Psychology, found that nostalgia can inhibit the response to innovative technology. The first line of the study’s abstract reads: “While technology is moving forward, people are looking back to the past.”
Pain. Amid the pleasurable feelings of popping back into a more familiar time, there can be pain. The risk is that a special event celebrating the end of World War II could bring sadness, halting the customer’s journey to purchasing, tarnishing the brand and bringing a sense of alienation from community.
The term “nostalgia,” coined by physician Johannes Hofer in the 17th century, represented the joining of two Greek words “nostros” (homecoming) and “algia” (pain). Originally nostalgia had been diagnosed as a depressive illness. Soldiers on the battlefield were diagnosed with that mental condition if they were distracted with reflections about their past lives at home. Also, recall that the iconic nostalgia campaign for the Kodak Carousel pitched by Don Draper on “Mad Men” cited pain.
Falling Flat/Irritating. Also, some attempts at recapturing the ethos of another time can fall flat or even elicit negative reactions. A typical example was posting JFK’s signature 1960 campaign ad during the 2024 Super Bowl. In many circles, that did not go well.
Moving Forward Meme. But where nostalgia could encounter the harshest headwinds is if the Harris – Walz ticket makes it to the finish line. The meme for that ticket is moving forward, in contrast to the backward gazing of Trump – Vance. A number of years ago, Donald Trump gained attention and enough influence to win the White House by positioning and packaging an America that had once been great and the promise to make it great again. Currently that is not resonating.
Therefore, on a grassroots level reaching back into the past might not be welcome. The new wisdom of crowds could become, yes, let’s seize opportunity in the present and not look back. The Democratic Party is investing a record amount of money in that opportunity messaging. Master fundraiser for Harris – Walz law firm Paul, Weiss chair Brad Karp estimates Election 2024 will be the most expensive in history.
Emotion as Powerhouse Tool
Despite risks, nostalgia will continue to be part of the marketing mix. It goes directly to the heart. Two studies by market researcher Greenbook found that 82 percent of consumer buying decisions were shaped by emotional needs. Actually, in this blog post, I counseled the Harris campaign to embrace some nostalgia.
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Jane Genova provides results-driven content and intuitive coaching ([email protected], https://janegenovaintuitivecareercoaching.blogspot.com/)
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