The Mercedes Chicken Ad: When Viral Marketing Ruffles Luxury Feathers

When Mercedes-Benz released their "Chicken" advertisement featuring chickens dancing to Diana Ross while demonstrating their Magic Body Control suspension system in 2013, they created more than just a viral moment - they sparked a fascinating case study in automotive marketing, competitor response, and brand positioning.

 The Creative Concept and Its Impact

 Created by German agency Jung von Matt/Neckar, the advertisement took a unique approach to demonstrating Mercedes' sophisticated suspension technology. By showing chickens maintaining perfectly stable heads while their bodies moved to music, the ad created an entertaining parallel to how the Magic Body Control system works in Mercedes vehicles.

 The numbers speak for themselves:

- Over 26 million views across social media platforms
- Winner of Auto Express's "Best Car Ad of the Year" with 51% of reader votes
- Generated significant organic social media buzz and discussion

 The Criticism: Entertainment vs. Value Proposition

 Despite its viral success, the advertisement faced several legitimate criticisms:

 1. Product Information Gap: The ad prioritized entertainment over clearly explaining the technology's benefits to drivers. While viewers remembered the dancing chickens, the meaning behind this was lost on some, who struggled to connect this to the actual value of the suspension system. Personally, to me, it was clever and cheeky and more related to their value proposition than the Jaguar advertisement.

 2. Brand Alignment Concerns: Critics argued that the whimsical nature of dancing chickens didn't align with Mercedes' prestigious brand image. The luxury automotive sector typically emphasizes sophistication and engineering excellence - elements that some felt were overshadowed by the advertisement's playful approach. Again, we might be splitting hairs here and bordering on being snobbish with this line of thinking.

 3. Originality Concerns: The concept wasn't entirely new, as FujiFilm had previously used chicken head stability to demonstrate their camera stabilization technology. This raised questions about creative integrity in advertising. This to me is the biggest issue though some might argue that it’s similar to using say a fast-running animal to demonstrate speed, which is quite common. Chickens in this case, is rarely used in that context.

 The Jaguar Response: A Lesson in Competitive Marketing

Ironically, Jaguar came up with its own ad to show a Jaguar eating the chicken. Their response ad, showing a jaguar eating the chicken and promoting "cat-like reflexes," achieved approximately 2 million views - significantly less than Mercedes' original. Jaguar's attempt to capitalize on Mercedes' viral moment provides interesting insights into competitive marketing dynamics.

This disparity in engagement highlights an important marketing principle: derivative content, even when clever, rarely achieves the same impact as the original. Ironically, Jaguar's response may have actually reinforced Mercedes' market position by drawing more attention to the original campaign.

 Critical Lessons for Brands

 1. Balance Entertainment with Brand Messaging

- Viral potential shouldn't overshadow core brand values
- Complex features need clear, compelling value communication
- Entertainment should enhance, not replace, product understanding

2. Brand Consistency Matters

- Even successful viral content needs to align with brand positioning
- Luxury brands can maintain their sophisticated image without losing their creativity and sense of humour
- Innovation in advertising shouldn't compromise brand identity

 3. Competitive Responses

 - Response campaigns need strong independent value propositions
- Timing and execution are crucial for competitive marketing
- Simply riding on a competitor's success rarely yields equal results

 4. Ethics and PR

- Mercedes' transparency about animal welfare (the chickens were well-cared for and even laid eggs during filming) added positive PR
value
- Ethical considerations can enhance campaign success
- Behind-the-scenes positivity can create additional marketing opportunities

 Conclusion

The Mercedes "Chicken" advertisement represents both the opportunities and challenges of viral marketing in the luxury sector. While it achieved remarkable reach and engagement, it also raises important questions about brand alignment and value proposition communication.

 For marketers, this case study demonstrates that viral success alone doesn't guarantee effective brand communication. The key lies in finding the sweet spot between entertainment value and brand message - a balance that becomes increasingly crucial as brands compete for attention in the digital age.

 The campaign's legacy serves as a reminder that even highly successful viral content should be evaluated against broader brand strategy goals. As the consumer industry continues to evolve, maintaining this balance between innovation in marketing and brand consistency will become ever more critical for success.

Curious about the Mercedes chicken ad versus the Fujifilm ad? Watch them here for yourself:

-  Mercedes

- FujiFilm

Mad About Marketing Consulting

Advisor for C-Suites to work with you and your teams to maximize your marketing potential with strategic transformation for better business and marketing outcomes.

Citations:

• https://digitalsynopsis.com/advertising/mercedes-benz-chicken-magic-body-control/

• https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/mercedes-chicken-crowned-best-car-ad-year-auto-express/1303871

• https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15368820/mercedes-benz-chicken-magic-body-control-commercial-a-pluckin-rip-off-the-ad-section/

• https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/mercedes-benzs-chicken-ad-dancing-feathers-stability-yash-dixit-9mk3f

• https://blogs.ubc.ca/ian0623/2013/10/10/mercedes-benz-magic-body-control/

• https://www.branding.news/2020/11/05/tbt-whats-the-resemblance-between-a-mercedes-car-and-a-chicken/

• https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/mercedes-uses-disco-chickens-prove-driving-comfort/1213633

• https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/mercedes-benz-new-campaign-demonstrates-chickens-steady-head/articleshow/23768861.cms

• https://www.cars.com/articles/jaguar-spoofs-mercedes-chicken-ad-1420663037124/

Who rules - Preference or Performance Marketing?

Companies who are still keeping two separate team strategies between performance and preference marketing are setting themselves up for longer term failure

Such companies are failing to connect the dots between full funnel marketing and over simplifying the consumer decision making process and mindset.

This is especially in the digital ad space where borders are blurred or non-existent and privacy settings no longer allow for precision targeting the way we desire.

Preference and performance simply should go hand in hand as end day, we don’t simply blow marketing dollars for the sake of it. What’s awareness to someone is consideration to another and conversion to someone else, depending on the decision making journey your customer sits in relation to the product or service and your company.

This is certainly not that new, when I went through the Google certification course back in 2019 but am still surprised that some are only talking about this in recent years.

What’s more shocking is the way some companies are still insisting on measuring marketing returns on investment by not having attribution beyond vanity impressions, page views and clicks on pretext that it’s just for awareness. On the other end of the spectrum is insisting that if a certain ad doesn’t result in immediate conversion, then it’s a failed campaign on pretext it’s for performance.

Whatever happened to looking at the funnel, who you really are trying to target, where in the decision making funnel they are at, how compelling is whatever you are offering, and ensure you are connecting the dots on your messaging in different formats, in order to determine the right metrics to measure at each touchpoint?

Example – this week, you have an ad talking about how xx product will help solve xx issue that customers face today. A few days later, you have another ad referring to the same product promoted on a site that your target customers frequent. A few days later, you serve up another ad that has a tactical offer with a buy by xx date.

Companies who know who they are targeting and who are responding to their ads versus those who aren’t, will create segmented lists that differentiate the two. They will use one for remarketing with differentiated messaging to help catch their target customers along the funnel with the above messaging and offer so they maximize their media budget. This process should ideally be automated.

Another critical thing to do is to try to get target customers to sign up and start a relationship with you, by giving them reason to of course through insights, tips or deals that matter to them, especially critical with the sunsetting of cookies.

This goes hand in hand with understanding their digital footprint so you have a multi-dimensional view of your target customers as real people with interests, preferences and needs, beyond outdated attributes like age.

All in all, companies need to invest in the full funnel and have different measurements for each stage of the funnel.

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Mad About Marketing Consulting 

Ally for CMOs, Heads of Marketing and C-Suites to work with you and your marketing teams to maximize your marketing potential with strategic transformation for better business and marketing outcomes.