When we hear the phrase ‘a blast from the past,’ it usually means that the person speaking has had a positive memory from their past. This inspires employees to do better and feel better overall.
We can’t go back in time and change what’s happened, but we can take inspiration from the things that have made us feel good in the past and use that inspiration when we’re exposed to those things again. In this article, the author is talking about how people tend to get sentimental about the past and how this can be problematic. If you want to appeal to older consumers, try using nostalgia marketing. This involves using past memories and experiences to connect with your customers on an emotional level.
In this article, we explore the idea of nostalgia marketing and offer advice on how to make the most of it.
Why Nostalgia is So Powerful
Nostalgia was originally described by Swiss doctor Johannes Hoffer in 1688 as a “neurological disease of essentially demonic cause” to describe Swiss mercenaries who were homesick. At the time, military physicians attributed this phenomenon to “damage” to the soldiers’ ear drums and brain cells by the sound of cowbells in the Alps.
During the 19th and 20th centuries, nostalgia was commonly classified as either an “immigrant psychosis,” a form of “melancholia,” or a “mentally repressive compulsive disorder.”
Nostalgia is a feeling that is shared by people all over the world, regardless of their age. Seven year old children are just as likely to feel nostalgia as adults are. Other than making you feel good, nostalgia can also have some positive effects on your health.
” The researchers found that nostalgia can have a positive effect on people, making them more generous and tolerant. When couples share nostalgic memories, they feel closer and look happier. When it’s cold outside, or in a cold room, people use nostalgia to make themselves feel emotionally warmer.
He explained that people usually feel nostalgia at least once a week, and that it usually makes them feel better. Nostalgia is often triggered during periods of stress or during life transitions in order to help people cope. Dr. Clay Routledge, a Professor of Psychology at North Dakota State University, discovered that people who were exposed to popular songs, along with the lyrics, were more likely to say that they felt “loved” and that “life is worth living” than a control group.
Nostalgia can be a very powerful tool for marketers because it can create an emotional connection with an audience. It can be a powerful marketing tool when used correctly.
Some brands are using older versions of their logos and designs, which they call “retro” or “throwback”. Nike releases retro versions of their sneakers annually. These retro sneakers quickly become a collector’s item for fans and sneaker enthusiasts. These sneakers have a modern look but are inspired by classic sneakers from the 70s, 80s, or 90s.
Starting in 2009, Pepsi introduced it’s “Throwback” soda line that used real pure cane sugar as its main sweetener, which hadn’t been done since the 1980’s. Pepsi and Mountain Dew also released retro packaging and mascots for their Throwback series.
In 2012, the Miller Lite brand sales had been declining for three years straight and they needed to make a change. After making several changes to their design, they decided to bring back their 1975 design by partnering with the movie Anchorman 2. The movie is set in the late 1970s, which was when Miller Lite was most popular. A year later, the company released both a new product and a new promotion. The new promotion used the company’s iconic white can design, and it revitalized the brand.
Who Can Use Nostalgia Marketing?
some people think that a corporation must have existed during the time periods that its advertisements evoke for consumers. This, however, is not the case at all. Everybody can utilise this marketing method, regardless of the size or age of their business.
Although it will require some effort and planning, this method can be used by almost any company – even a startup that is only a year old – to make consumers feel good about themselves and buy products that they associate with positive memories.
The marketing effort must make people feel good about themselves. You can refer to it as a “throwback,” which is a term that professional athletes often use to describe the wearing of old uniforms. Alternatively, you can refer to it as “retro,” which means appearing more modern and contemporary while still honoring the past.
An effective marketing strategy is the key to making nostalgic marketing work for your organization.
Why Is Nostalgia Marketing So Effective?
Nostalgia marketing is becoming more popular among businesses because it is an effective way to promote their products and services. And the reason is that Nostalgia Marketing simply works. When people are reminded of a pleasant memory from their past, they will respond more positively to advertisements and items.
One of the reasons why this marketing strategy is successful is that it is able to tap into a customer’s need for reassurance and belonging. People are driven to do better in their lives when they receive something positive in exchange for viewing an advertisement. Some of the results of this marketing strategy are:
- Counteracts boredom, loneliness, and anxiety
- Makes people feel warm inside and feel good again
- Helps them feel warmer on a cold day
- May help people cope with difficult life transitions
- People become more tolerant of outsiders
- May influence people to be more generous with strangers
- Helps people deal with stressful moments
What causes these outcomes to take place? Advertising effectively creates a strong emotional connection between brands and consumers. Advertising efforts that evoke strong emotions in consumers are more successful than those that don’t.
This is the most effective method for marketing to millennials.
Nostalgia Marketing Today
Nostalgia is all about giving us the feeling of “wow, blast from the past!”
At the moment, the 1990s are the decade that brands are focusing on, as people who grew up in that decade are now at an age where they are making a lot of buying decisions. This generation refers to people who are now adults, who have finished school and have extra money to spend. Companies want to target this group because they have money to spend. There is a strong demand among millennials for products and entertainment from the 1990s.
Many companies are looking for ways to take people’s nostalgia for their childhood and teen years and use it to their advantage. Sometimes, the customers even come to you. When Coca-Cola decided to bring back its Surge brand, it saw an opportunity to appeal to people who were nostalgic for the drink from the 90’s. A group of customers raised money to buy a billboard near Coke’s headquarters in an effort to bring back a soda that was popular roughly 20 years ago. Coke is now selling its product exclusively on Amazon for around $30 per 12 pack!
Why Is This Marketing Strategy Important Now?
This is a great question, and you only need to look at how the current pandemic is going to understand why it’s effective. Many people are tired of being told what to do and having their personal freedoms taken away. They respond positively because they’re transported back to a time before they had to worry about those issues.
There was an 88% increase in mentions of nostalgic keywords when the COVID lockout was implemented.
The old movies and television shows make them feel better. The article is about how old TV shows and songs can remind people of their youth. Lockdowns and other issues related to the pandemic have helped people overcome burnout. Nostalgia marketing gives people the opportunity to look back on their youth with fondness and happiness.
Nostalgia marketing is about creating a connection to positive memories from the past in order to make people feel good in the present. It’s similar to bringing comfort food to someone who has experienced something terrible. For example, having problems in relationships.
Nostalgic advertising is designed to evoke positive emotions and memories in viewers, providing them with a sense of comfort. That feeling helps them spend more. When people see ads that make them feel good, they’re more likely to buy the products advertised.
Now is an important time for businesses to invest in this type of marketing campaign. The more the consumer is happy with the product, the more likely they are to buy it.
Nostalgia Marketing Tips
This marketing strategy can be beneficial to organizations of any age. If you are a new firm trying to grow, you can still benefit from nostalgia marketing as long as you follow certain guidelines.
Do Your Research
You should think about who your buyers are and how old they are when you create your marketing strategy. To appeal to customers, find out what is important to them and develop your advertisements using images and themes from the appropriate decade.
Don’t Forget The Details
Make sure that the music, colors, fonts, and images in your advertisements match the time period that you are promoting. For instance, using a font or color palette from the 1920s in a 1960s retro advertisement wouldn’t make sense. Instead, make use of the options from the 1960s.
Be Creative
If you can’t get the rights to any other TV shows or personalities, get creative and use unique features from that era in your marketing strategy. An example of this would be the types of clothes that were popular during that time.
Tell Your History
Telling the story of how your organization got started can be helpful. It is likely that somebody else has experienced a similar business situation and will reminisce about it at some point in the future. You shouldn’t be afraid to show your more compassionate side at work.
Nostalgia & Social Media
Nostalgia can be a powerful tool for creating new content, as well as for sharing old content on social media platforms. An example would be creating an industry specific music video, but instead of modern music, it would be in the style of 1940’s jazz. An infographic illustrating the changes your company has experienced over the years would be a great way to show how far you’ve come. It doesn’t matter what sort of content you use, you have to think about how you’ll share events from the past as well as creating new content from it.
If you want to find content from the past, one place you can look is in your company’s archives. You could share an old training video from the 80’s on social media for “Throwback Thursday”. You could improve that video by creating a new one with current team members and new guidelines. Wouldn’t it be more interesting to have a non-traditional safety video?
It’s no secret that visuals should be the main focus of all content and social media posts – just scroll through any of your social media accounts and you’ll see.
But, there’s actually evidence that backs this claim up. Pictures are processed much more quickly by the brain than words. Since visual content is easy to share on social media, it is more likely to be shared by your audiences, resulting in increased engagement. Because nostalgia often involves visual images like photos and videos, it is a perfect match.
Here’s a few more important tips to make sure your nostalgia marketing stays on the right track:
Nostalgia Do’s
- Nostalgic content is best created by the people who lived in the time or geographical region you are recalling. As an American, it wouldn’t make sense for me to write a post about growing up in Canada. It would make much more sense to have someone who lived the experience write that article.
- Utilize current events, holidays, and trends to build content as a flashback. Christmas is a great holiday to use nostalgia since it can easily take us back to our childhoods. So, a pretty effective piece of content could be ‘15 Toys From the 90’s That Every Kid Wanted.’
- Consider your audience and create content surrounding their elementary and high school years, ages 6-16. Also, consider ‘parental nostalgia’, which is nostalgia parents have for their children’s childhoods.
Nostalgia Don’ts
- It has to fit your niche or else it will seem like “newsjacking” – which is when brands take something trending and try to build content around it. Newsjacking isn’t effective because it comes across as cheesy and forced.
- It needs to be unique to your company; don’t copy what’s already been done. What works for one brand may not fit with yours.
- Do your research – time and laws have changed, so don’t bring up memories some people might find offensive.
