Comments on: Same same, but different

By: Johnathan

Johnathan — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 20:37:55 +0000

Being the same but different is often a necessary evil. Industries are grouped by their similarities, while individuals are separated by their differences.

Any one who looks at an ad will have one of the following responses:

It looks like…
It sounds like…
It reminds me of…
It feels like…

The response obviously depends on the person and what factors are acting on that person. (i.e. mood, time, context of the ad, etc). So even though when the ads are looked at side by side you can see that the same design cliches are present, the ads are still targeting different buyers. One should also keep in mind that ideas become cliches because so many people are able to understand the cliche.

By: Julia

Julia — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 13:57:50 +0000

Aren’t all cars really the same, though? Instead of changing the ads to make me THINK your car is different, shouldn’t they just make a car with more outstanding features? The ads shouldn’t have to invent the way I’m supposed to perceive the car. The car should have an obvious personality that the ads merely help to convey.

By: Mirko

Mirko — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 15:20:57 +0000

I agree, being afraid to take risk is the main reason why clients won’t do something too different.

By: Mirko

Mirko — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 13:18:08 +0000

I agree with you with the lack of conclusion, I’ll try to update my post later on or write another blog post.

By: Mirko

Mirko — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 11:39:02 +0000

LOL, thanks for that comment, funny.

By: Alex Charchar

Alex Charchar — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 10:53:14 +0000

I think because the car industry is one where, for the most part, a lot of it does comes down to “same same, but different” (great phrase!) there are few willing to take a risk and do something completely different and out there..

you mentioned the ads that a lot of bloggers list in an effort to hit digg or something similiar.. the reason those ads are so great is because they are so far out of the norm, no? As designers we appreciate them so much because they’re daring.. I’m willing to be that those types of ads are designed for more camaigns than we see.. then marketing, accounting or PR get involved and say “different different, not same”

By: Gareth

Gareth — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:09:59 +0000

This is a good post with a valid point but doesn’t seem to come to a conclusion. It feels like a great start to a post in how adverts could *really* be different, maybe looking at case studies of successful adverts? We’ve seen how to be the same with your examples of car adverts but what I really want to know is how to be different!?

Interesting post anyhow, cheers.

By: Tracey Grady

Tracey Grady — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 08:39:47 +0000

There’s a lot of money involved in advertising, and the agencies want to get the biggest ROI possible for their clients, which explains why there isn’t more risk-taking.

I noticed “same same but different” turn up in an advertising slogan just a few days ago. It was only a matter of time before the phrase took off globally.

By: Rob

Rob — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 07:10:06 +0000

Nice post! I totally agree. I would have said the same thing, but different. :p

By: Anca

Anca — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 06:48:20 +0000

Ads these days are really terrible. Makes me sad to look at billboards and see the same approach of advertising over and over again. Especially when the concept it’s really stupid, to begin with.

Advertising industry needs more intelligent creatives, and to listen less to the clients’ art direction.