20 Aug REASSURING.
REAL. RELAXED.

In times like these,
don’t we all want something a little friendly and familiar?

When we’re all just about over the 11 o’clock briefings, and with the number of cases on the inevitable rise – the idea of taking refuge somewhere, anywhere other than our makeshift ‘home-office’ is highly appealing.

No wonder then our love for video has ballooned. Yes, the Olympics have contributed to our screen time – but so has our diet of all forms of video – be that Youtube, Subscription binges or Free To Air frolics – when the going gets tough, the tough get to watching TV.

Over the last week or so we’ve seen the welcome return of fan favourites such as The Block, Masterchef and The Voice. When we can’t actually have friends drop by for a chat and a cuppa, we can let some old friends back into our lounges and relax amongst their easy going light entertainment.

This got me thinking – is it the same for brands? Are we more receptive and welcoming to the familiar than before? We’re certainly passed the cringeworthy rhetoric of ‘we’re in this together’ and the use of ‘unprecedented’ has mercifully ceased. In their wake, genuine expressions of inclusiveness and optimism have taken their place.

In particular the recent campaign from TELSTRA and the heartfelt work from QANTAS both feel welcome and warm. Now feels the time for brands to offer some respite from the fear and uncertainty we are submerged in. Those that do will take advantage of our need for some form of comfort and reassurance.

Not all need to be worthy, emotional tales of human endeavour. Not at all. There is definitely a role for comedy to relieve some of the angst – the key for both is to shine a way forward in an assured, relaxed, confident manner.

Much like any other form of stress, we move through phases – frustration and anger being some of the more extreme responses – but a tonic for all of these phases is to feel ‘safe’. I reckon some of the brands we’ve grown up with, those which are a subtle, yet familiar part of our lives, can each play a minor role in creating that feeling for us all. A welcome visitor to brighten the day.

 
NEVER. NOT. STAND OUT.
 

David Flanagan, Director of Content & Strategy, P2
flanners@p2.com.au