The “Hear what you want” commercial for Beats by Dre’s new Studio Wireless Headphones featuring Kevin Garnett is definitely up there with my favourite “Powerade ION4 Olympics” and “The World is Just Awesome- Discovery” commercials. When you watch this commercial you instantly feel connected with Garnett, the 37 year old Brooklyn Nets basketball player who has been deemed too old to continue on playing basketball. Seeing Garnett shut out all the negative comments and noise through the Studio Wireless Headphones and a good song is relatable to all consumers. We all have had a time where we have put on a good song to make us focused and forget about everything else.

I agree with Nathania that this commercial targets consumers’ affective attitude of empathy towards Garnett. Personally, I related with him. There have been numerous times where I’ve plugged myself in with headphones and a good song to shut out all the hectic noises of the world to concentrate, focus, and gather my thoughts.

In addition I also agree that Kevin Garnett is an excellent aspirational figure for the Studio Wireless Headphones. Nathania shared in her blog that  consumer’s purchasing behaviour is affected by empathy and understanding. However, I think Beats also chose Garnett because he is an athlete and athletes are associated with listening to music. We constantly see athletes listening to music before a game to help them focus on the exertions they are engaged in. Also music and general performance have a positive relationship called disassociation, where an individual detaches themselves from a particular activity. If Beats had chosen a different aspirational figure, say, a musician, I feel that the commercial would be less powerful and effective for their product.

“Tough, Brave, and Relentless” – David Gianatasio, AdFreak

Additional Sources:

http://www.seriouspowerlifting.com/4231/articles/listening-to-music-increases-athletic-performance

Pizza Hut, Panago, Papa John’s, Naked Pizza, oh right, Domino’s, I know what that is. Let’s face it, there is nothing special about their pizza, in fact it is kind of tasteless. This being said, after more than 50 years of doing business, Domino’s is agreeing with their customers that their product sucks too. It is a courageous thing for a company to do, but the leadership team of Domino’s knew that something had to change if Domino’s was to stay as a real competitor in the Pizza industry.

Therefore, the company decided to change Domino’s entire brand focus and image. The era of the original “Domino’s in 30 minutes or less”, which ensured that the pizza got to customers quickly regardless of quality was thrown out the window. Domino’s new direction was about listening and reacting to customer’s honest feedback using social media and direct advertising, which lead to the Pizza Turnaround campaign.

Take a look at the Pizza Turnaround campaign for yourself.

Domino’s risky strategy of and re-making and re-baking the pizza has really paid off. As of September 2010, the company has become the 4^th largest e-tailer in the market. Russell Weiner, Chief Marketing Officer of Domino’s, says that changes happened overnight as they were, ”two days away from running out of pepperoni”. Moreover, the campaign has really allowed Domino’s to be transparent through their approach of asking customers to post their feedback, whether positive or negative on various social media channels. The leaders of Domino’s have fixed the problem through their Pizza Turnaround. However, their newest challenge is how to continue on being a success through innovation and listening to their customers.

Watch the Bloomberg episode here.