No matter your political stance, when you hear the name Barack Obama your mind invariably turns a number of different thoughts. Maybe it’s hope, maybe it’s worry, maybe racial struggle, maybe anger, or national pride, or any number of really loaded subjects.
I doubt, however, that you think immediately of rheumatoid arthritis.
The good people over at Bristol-Myers Squibb hope they can change that. They have co-opted the president’s inspiring catch phrase to move their prescription medication Orencia. Check out the commercial:
In a world where the public hadn’t already associated that phrase with a battery of emotions and events Orencia would have a perfectly suitable motto with “Oh, yes I can”. But would the creative team working for Bristol Meyers have even ended up in the same place if the expression wasn’t already a part of the national (perhaps global) zeitgeist? I doubt it.
Pharmaceuticals aren’t the only people who have made ham-fisted adoptions of the president’s turn of phrase: Www.yeswecan.org takes you to a public education charity in Mobile Alabama (not to be confused with another southern public school charity www.yeswecanbirmingham.org). Yes we can is also the name of a group that organizes national children’s asthma programs.
An argument can be made that “yes we can” is a powerful slogan, regardless of it’s associations with Barak Obama. On the other hand 2009, isn’t the first year we’re seeing the slogan’s use, just the first it’s gained so much cultural currency.
In 2004 president bush was campaigning on the “Yes we can” bus tour. But that didn’t really stick in American minds, despite Bush’s re-election. We already knew Bush, what he stood for and what he had planned. His image was established and rebranding him with new slogans wasn’t necessary.
Only now that we have undergone the epic, historic election of Barack Obama does the phrase have real sticking power. “Yes we can” is inextricably linked to the cultural hugeness that is the Obama event, and the guys in marketing know it.
I imagine in the next few years we are going to see a lot of "change" and "hope" based brands coming out of the woodwork. Ultimately it's a pretty lazy attempt at cultural relevance. There's a grave difference between being inspired by the spirit of a nation and awkwardly co-opting the jingoism of an image savvy president.
But then again... if you can't steal from the government, who can you steal from?
kevin allen jr
In addition to opinions on advertising, I possess a chair, a small table, a lamp, and an antler.
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- Kevin Allen Jr.
- Montclair, NJ, United States
- Art director, game designer, photographer, seeker out of wild adventure.
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7 comments:
Well, the one thing you don't mention is this brand orencia has been running that commercial with that slogan for over a year... So who stole from who? I am surprised that big pharma isn't suing the obamas for stealing their slogan.
After a bit of digging it indeed turns out that Orencia held the trademark for their "Oh, yes I can" slogan since 2007, well before Obama's early January 2008 speech. The phrase's origin is actually from a 1972 United Farm Workers slogan coined by César Chávez.
That said, I stand by my thinking that Obama's use of the phrase –even if it is after the fact– is going to provide all the stickyness that the slogan has. Aside from some medical professionals and sufferers of the disease I can't imagine Orencia's staid and standard marketing is going to turn any heads (let alone stick in them). By maintaining the slogan the brand gets to cash in on the of-the-moment motto.
If BMS wanted to distance themselves from the political connoation (and they might given the companies extensive republican campaign contributions) it wouldn't be particularly difficult. Pharma companies re-brand drugs all the time, usually without much fanfare.
But why get off a winning horse? ...Even if it's not your jockey that's driving it to the finish line.
Agreed. Looks like this pharma company used it first. Bash pharma fine - but get facts in order first. Dont be "one of those people"
Wow, chuck. I don't know if Kevin's an idiot or not (actually, I do -- I've met him in person), but I *do* know you're a tool.
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