London 2012

Here at Ubiquitous we like to talk about icons; we truly believe that the black cab is an icon and we go so far as to say so in our strapline, iconsonicons. But what is it we mean by this? What is it that makes something iconic and therefore worthy of more note than something that is simply famous? Having settled on this topic for the blog, I found myself challenged to define what I believe makes an icon; I felt it was more important to try to decide this for myself first, rather than simply look it up or Google famous icons. My conclusion is that, these days, we bestow the moniker too freely and that to truly be an icon, or be iconic, requires that you stand for a well-defined set of values, and that this standing has endured over time. Perhaps, therefore, death is one of the greatest catalysts to becoming an icon. If you are dead, you are not very well able to ruin your own reputation, and if the values that you represented are those which everyday people aspire to, such as glamour, strength or humanitarianism, even the fact that you may have ended your days in a drug-fuelled stupor fails to tarnish your image and, indeed, may even enhance it. It’s much easier to maintain your iconic status if you are dead; the photos of your life, your films or your achievements endure because people aspire to the values they represent and, over time, these values are bestowed upon you, regardless of whether you actually held them dear or not. Therefore, I conclude that it is much harder to become an icon if you are alive and even harder to maintain that status. It is much more likely that you have simply featured in famous images of your time and that these are representative of an important moment and therefore will pass into the hall of fame as being iconic. You may have achieved iconic status through your single-minded ambition to be one, or you may have achieved it unintentionally through the accomplishment of your goals. Some people do not aspire to fame, but it’s impossible to avoid it if you achieve, innocently or not, the status of icon. This summer in London we witnessed many memorable moments in which people were transformed into famous household names: their images of triumph, pain, disappointment and compassion representing iconic moments of the Olympic Games. Over time, will those individuals become as iconic as the images in which they feature? I think not. They may change career or they may fall from grace and we might forget them; nevertheless, the values of those moments, captured for all time in an iconic image, will endure. I have concluded that there are two more types of icon, which rely more heavily on reputation than imagery; these are brands and, by extension, services. Now I will say that the ‘services’ part is a bit woolly, but you will see what I mean in a moment. I think everyone will agree that there are some brands that stand out from the crowd, and this is not necessarily because they are market leaders, but because they have stood true to their values and have transcended the status as simple service provider to take a stake in popular culture. Virgin’s popularity as a brand in the eighties far outstripped its market size and it achieved this simply by challenging everything that our well-established long-haul airline market was built on, publically upsetting the applecart in the process. It has stood by these values ever since and people continue to love the brand for flying in the face of the establishment. Over time, if an iconic brand has embedded itself in social culture, it needs nothing more than a visual trigger to bring a clear set of values to mind: the Nike swoosh, the Apple logo, the shape of the Fiat 500, the golden arches. When all that a brand requires to maintain its presence are visual triggers then it has triumphantly connected with culture, has delivered on its promises and has won hearts and minds. It has become an icon of the values that it stands for and is so powerful that other brands want to be associated with it, as do people. Which brings me neatly back to the black taxi and my ruminations about why this service, which has in itself become a brand, is considered to be an icon of Great Britain. My conclusion is that the black cab itself stands for a well-defined set of values that transcend the trusted and knowledgeable service provided and that these deep-felt values have endured over the years. Yes, cabs are expensive and, yes, the iconic shape has changed (and will continue to do so), but this global reputation as the best cab service in the world and the vehicle’s status as London’s most iconic form of transport demonstrate that the icon which is the black cab is greater than the sum of its parts and represents values that are attractive to advertisers, whether they’re already icons or not. Icon: ‘a person or thing regarded as a representative symbol, or as worthy of veneration’ (OED) WATCH OUR LATEST VIDEO: The Black cab, 2012 Global Icon.

Crocs turned to taxi advertising, with an aim to get the shoppers of London to take a fresh look at their brand and witness how they have ‘evolved’ in their 10th Anniversary year. 10 joyfully outlandish Liveries with a ‘croc skin’ style were created for a one year campaign, illustrating how the brand has re-established itself as so much more than just the iconic clog.

As part of their attention grabbing strategy, Crocs included various promotional tools, to ensure their campaign was miles ahead on the road. From store locations and a Facebook link on their creative to discount incentives on the receipts, all the stops were pulled to achieve a successful edge.

PR elements were also incorporated into the campaign. Crocs chose to offer VIP journeys to their new pop up store and to hand out driver briefing sheets, giving the drivers the opportunity to be ‘brand ambassadors’. The sheets offered a solution to passenger questions and allowed the drivers to assist in the promotion of the product. An added encouragement for the drivers was also given in the form of a free pair of shoes and a set of sunglasses. Providing the drivers with knowledge and experience of the brand gave them an incentive to discuss the extensive range with their passengers and provide interested customers with the relevant information to entice them into store.

Michael Marshall-Clarke, European Marketing Director of Crocs “At Crocs we’re not afraid to break the mould or stand out in a crowd, so our unique crocodile taxi advertising fits well with this approach. In this, our 10th anniversary year, we believe through taxi advertising we will instantly capture the attention of a wide London audience and achieve fantastic, all-access visibility this summer and beyond.”

So far this has been an immensely exciting summer to be in London. Since the early days of June, when the Jubilee celebrations focused global attention on the capital, the energetic feeling has been building and enthusiasm for all things ‘London’ has been growing. Even the appalling weather and the gripes about Olympic transport and security have failed to truly dampen spirits. However, when you live and work in London it’s all too easy to get caught up in the every-day politics and inconveniences of being the host city and, unless you actually have tickets for the games, you’re probably amongst the working masses who think that the whole thing is a day-to-day hassle. But now that the event has actually started, the wind seems to have changed to one of positivity; finally we’ve caught up with the rest of the world and gotten ourselves all excited about the Games! This point was really brought home to me last week when I spoke to a friend recently returned from Singapore; he said that the enthusiasm for the London Olympics was immense there; people were genuinely excited that we are the host city. Similarly, friends in the US have expressed what a momentous time this is for London. In the run up to the Games it was all too easy to lose sight of the fact that the rest of the world waited for the opening ceremony with baited breath. Sure the tube is a nightmare, packed with tourists who don’t have a clue where they’re going, and we’ve all had to change our well established travel habits to avoid getting caught up in the hordes, but the Games are here now and it has been impossible not to get infected with the global enthusiasm that has welcomed the opening of London 2012. Most of us in the commercial world are hoping that when all’s said and done, 2012 will have been a success for business and a much needed boost for the British economy; some businesses of course, will have done better than others. If reports are to be believed, much of Outdoor has been bought by non-sponsors with some of the key packages remaining unsold. I regularly hear the rumour Ubiquitous has bucked the trend in this area, but honestly, we really didn’t know whether taxis would be a success or not. We just created our strategy and stuck to it. Back in February I wrote a piece in which I tentatively expressed hope that this year would be a good year for taxi advertising – all the signs were there and the pipeline was looking good, we had all our Operational ducks in a row, (more posting staff, bigger premises, more taxis etc.), but it was early days. Happily, and at the risk of appearing to blow the Ubiq trumpet, I can report that the rumours are true; demand for taxi advertising has been huge and 2012 has been a phenomenal success. Right now we have more than 30 different campaigns running, on close to 4,000 taxis, in London alone. Clearly the Olympics have boosted our revenue, but why were taxis snapped up so quickly and for almost the whole year, when other formats have struggled? My theory rests on a very public love for the medium. London is an iconic city, with national treasures that are globally recognised, be they modern day architectural wonders such as the Eye and Shard or long-established institutions such as the double decker bus and the Tube. It’s fair to say that the taxi is right up there with these much loved icons; in fact, over 70 of Londoners polled agree that the black taxi is the most iconic form of London transport. If you want to brand and ‘own’ a piece of London this year, taxi advertising presents a pretty convincing case for itself. With all the new digital technology in Outdoor, the mega-sites, renovated billboards, improved positioning, site and day part targeting etc. it’s easy to lose sight of a very simple principle: Outdoor’s appeal is in its capacity to build brands. Perhaps one of the best ways to do this is via the iconic London taxi (I would say that of course), but when all’s said and done, we really have seen a huge demand in taxi advertising from global brands, right across 2012 and perhaps the reason behind this is nothing more complicated than the simple fact that taxi advertising delivers against a set of core Outdoor benefits: iconic brand status, high impact creativity and excellent cover and frequency from following those madding crowds that the rest of us are so keen to avoid! Andrew Barnett