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Pigs, dogs and bulls put friendly face on commerce
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Business English: Pigs, dogs and bulls put friendly face on commerce
Do you have a company doughboy on your desk? Or maybe a brightly coloured plastic clown?While most companies are content to let smart graphics and a logo provide their public face, many go one step further and give themselves a mascot - a character that embodies the brand and its values.
Churchill, the UK insurance company, is known for its eponymous dog, a hound who utters "Oh yes" in a trustworthy Yorkshire accent, originally voiced by comedian Bob Mortimer. The bulldog was chosen after a competition was held to find a character to differentiate the company from Winston Churchill.
"At first it was a real dog," explains Christopher Watney, Churchill's head of brand. "But he refused to hold a phone in his mouth. So we moved to a puppet, then eventually CGI [computer-generated imagery]." According to Mr Watney, staff love the dog: "He's a great mascot to rally round and helps people see the brand as approachable."
The dog, Mr Watney believes, may help to explain why recruitment responses for a call centre near Peterborough "were dramatically higher when we advertised as Churchill rather than RBS [the parent company]".
At Michelin, its pneumatic mascot Bibendum is so highly regarded that in 1998 the company published a book celebrating his centenary. Indeed, so well embedded is the character that he has been used as a subject for a number of critically acclaimed artists. One of them, Fabrice Hybert, says of the Michelin Man: "Bibendum is my favourite character he is transport itself."
Even in areas as staid as finance there are mascots of sorts. Merrill Lynch's bull is more of an icon of Wall Street than a mascot, says Eileen Lynch, managing director of corporate marketing: "It is meant to represent the qualities the firm stands for - strength, optimism and a sense of bullishness."
Another company that has wholeheartedly embraced its mascot is cleaning products company New Pig, based in Pennsylvania, whose character Sparky the Pig lies at the heart of the company's identity. Even though New Pig is a business-to-business company, Keith Eldred, a corporate project manager, says customers seem to dig the pig. "A lot of them identify the company with the mascot - more so than the logo," he says. And no wonder: the company does not have a catalogue, it has a pigalog.
"People are people," says Mr Eldred. "In our business, products are so serious - Sparky just adds a little fun and colour."
Mr Eldred adds that many critics had warned against such porcine company values when the business started, citing concerns including trivialisation and possible religious issues. But, he believes, "the positives far outweigh the negatives".
Rob Opie, director of the Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising in London's Notting Hill, says that corporate mascots are a good thing. "They're very much part of our lives," he says. "Especially if you loved them as a child, they may make you feel good about working for the company." For most mascots, he says, the key is to ensure that they enhance the business's image so employees don't balk at the thought of working for a company symbolised by a clown or an overweight tyre man.
So, are there any downsides? Perhaps a couple. First, mascots can date horribly. One example is Robertson's Golly, who gradually metamorphosed from fun jam guy to racial slur.
And once your mascot has embedded itself in the collective consciousness, as with the case of Bibendum's portrayal in paintings, anyone can take an interest in it. While the attentions of edgy artists may be flattering, the corporate image can easily be subverted by activists or internet pranksters.
Moreover, these characters can amplify negative publicity. Churchill's image came under attack when the dog appeared to swear in a television advertisement. He did not, but the fuss generated was perhaps a measure of the mascot's success.
In fact, the dog has far surpassed his original goal of differentiating the company from Churchill the leader. Mr Watney says consumer research suggests schoolchildren are more familiar with the dog than Britain's wartime prime minister. Oh yes.
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The Financial Times, 26.09.2008
© 2008 The Financial Times,
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Börsen- und Finanzmarktdaten:
Bereitstellung der Kurs- und Marktinformationen erfolgt durch die Interactive Data Managed Solutions AG. Es wird keine Haftung für die Richtigkeit der Angaben übernommen!
Über FTD.de | Impressum | Datenschutz | Disclaimer | Mediadaten | E-Mail an FTD | Sitemap | Hilfe | Archiv
Mit ICRA gekennzeichnet
VW | Siemens | Apple | Gold | MBA | Business English | IQ-Test | Gehaltsrechner | Festgeld-Vergleich | Erbschaftssteuer
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