Marketers are catching on to this renewed wave of nostalgia once again with brands like Fender, Pabst Blue Ribbon and McDonald’s (with the chain’s new Happy Meals for adults) tapping into the trend. While nostalgia marketing is far from new — marketers and agency execs say there have been waves of brands tapping into the trend for decades — there’s a sense that the trend is once again more popular. 

“Nostalgia happens in marketing when we either don’t have a vision for the future, or don’t like what the future looks like,” said Rob Schwartz, chairman of TBWA NY Group. “It’s a bit of the latter. Things seem a bit grim with Inflation and war and stressful U.S. elections. Nostalgia can be fun. But soon enough a brand has to talk about now and next.”

Trevor Guthrie, co-founder of Giant Spoon, echoed that sentiment, noting media and brands tapping into the nostalgia trend, such as Shopify using the voice of AOL’s “You’ve Got Mail,” are doing so as consumers are unsettled due to the current climate.

“We’re witnessing a resurgence of marketing that taps into nostalgia because consumers are looking for a sort of escape from our current reality,” said Guthrie. “People are longing for what once was: a simpler time filled with familiarity and safety. And brands should be taking note. This isn’t a fleeting trend that we’ll be wistful about; it’s an economy that’s here to stay.”

For marketers and agency execs, leaning into the trend can allow brands to feel “more accessible and increase the magnetism of brands” as there’s almost a “mental shorthand” with recognizable bits of nostalgia, noted Will Sandwick, chief data officer at Wunderman Thompson. “It’s an opportunity for brands to be more inspiring to more people.”

The “collective experience of 2020 reinforced a desire to return to simple things,” as Gavin Lester, CCO at Zambezi noted when asked about the overall consumer mood leading to nostalgia in marketing. That said, “Discovering doesn’t always mean looking forward; finding inspiration happens in all directions, and not everything is worth leaving behind.”

Though some brand exes will see a renewed wave of nostalgia marketing as an easy way to get consumer attention, some caution doing so as not all people will feel the same way about looking to the past.

“Genuine nostalgia (and vintage items) is a flex,” said Jamil Buie, director of business development, at Campbell Ewald. “Paying a premium for an aesthetic or a feeling runs counter to a consumer that might be forced to sell their vintage Big E Levis or Jordans to make …read more

Source:: Digiday