Sustainable times / BMW is recycling old ads at a time when more Americans are thinking about sustainability (a 2018 Mintel survey showed 62% of US residents believed other countries would describe Americans as wasteful), and also as higher interest rates and rising new-car prices are pushing more Americans to the second-hand market.
These factors, along with a host of others, perhaps explain BMW’s motives for pushing its certified, pre-owned cars.
Using recycled ads creates a pleasing and memorable symmetry with the subject of the campaign, catching viewers’ attention with something novel and unexpected.
The execution also saves the advertiser considerable sums of money. While there is no fixed figure for production costs, in this article WCRS chief executive Matt Edwards suggests the ideal is somewhere around 12.5% of the total campaign costs.
Something old, something new / BMW is not the first brand to spot the potential in recycling old ads. Geico, the insurer, is running its old ads as part of a competition where viewers vote for their favourite to win an appearance in a new spot. Meanwhile, in 2018 Honda (working with creative agency RPA) promoted its second-hand vehicles by purchasing old ads from brands in different sectors, and then giving those ads a new voiceover.
For sure, this is a conceit with limited shelf-life but it’s a versatile idea that could be used by many different types of brand and one that chimes with the broader concern around sustainability.
