Addy Award winning print advertisement.
WD-40 is an American household staple. Founded in 1953, it is a company with rich history rooted in America. The product itself has a nostalgic, heirloom quality.
Challenge
Create a national advertising campaign for WD-40 to build brand awareness and encourage consumers to look for the product in stores or ask for it by name. WD-40 is already in the majority of American households. It may be used regularly, or it may have been forgotten in the back of a garage cabinet, replaced by a newer, better advertised competitor which does not hold the reputation of quality and tradition that WD-40 does.
Solution
This campaign is designed to conjure feelings of nostalgia for the history of America as well as WD-40. This advertisement functions as a reminder of this history, which dates back to 1953. Each ad reads, “Finest Quality Since 1953.” The copy on each print ad changes slightly according to each image. The advertisement also invites viewers to visit WD-40.com so that they can get more information, subscribe to social media and MMS alerts. The Twitter page is appropriate for WD-40 so that followers can keep up with company happenings and product uses. The background image is a sepia picture of machinery with a halftone similar to the advertisements. Everyday there is a “Use of the Day” tweet with the tag #WD40. The tag allows Tweeps to search all WD40 tweets. The splash page will appear before the existing home page of WD40.com, emphasized the new campaign look. It will allow visitors to quickly make the connection between the prints ads. It includes a link social media and coupons via MMS alert. The MMS alerts function as scannable coupons. Users subscribe to the alerts and periodically receive these coupons. For example, a user receives an instant 20% off coupon. When they go to the store, all they need to do is present the clerk with their phone which is then scanned to subtract the discount.