Overly Friendly Emails and other marketing pet peeves

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Overly Friendly Emails and Other Marketing Pet Peeves"
The Indicator from Planet Money
Release Date: March 31, 2025

In the March 31, 2025 episode of The Indicator from Planet Money, hosted by Adrian Ma and Darian Woods, the discussion centers around three major pet peeves in modern advertising: the ubiquitous "cool friend" tone, the overuse of generational labels, and the censorship of women's health-related advertisements on digital platforms. Esteemed guests, including brand strategist Joe Burns and advertising legend Sir John Hegarty, join the hosts to delve into these issues, offering insights and potential solutions for brands striving to stand out in a saturated market.

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1. The Rise of the "Cool Friend" Tone in Branding

The Onset of a Trend

The episode opens with Joe Burns recounting an experience with J.Crew, where he received an unusually enthusiastic and personalized email:

“Best news ever. Your order has arrived. We hope you really, really love it!!!” ([00:33]).

Adrian Ma comments on the discomfort such a personal tone can evoke, especially when it seems incongruent with the brand's established image.

Sir John Hegarty's Perspective

Sir John Hegarty, co-founder of the advertising agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty, explains the genesis of the "cool friend" branding strategy:

“They're trying to make it feel that they're just relatable. They're your friend, but slightly cooler. The coolest one of your friends is what they want to be.” ([01:19]).

He critiques the saturation of this approach, arguing that its widespread adoption has diluted its effectiveness:

“This tone of voice has become so pervasive. It's kind of become the new generic and it's lost its cool edge because every brand starts to speak like that.” ([04:44]).

Impact of Social Media

The hosts highlight how social media platforms, particularly Twitter, have accelerated this trend. Wendy's, for example, became notorious for its snarky and confrontational tweets, which initially garnered attention but eventually contributed to the homogenization of brand voices.

“Wendy's would tweet back, you're probably raising the property value. Tbh.” ([04:24]).

Joe Burns posits that while this tone boosts social media engagement through shares and likes, it may not effectively attract new customers beyond those already engaged with the brand.

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2. The Problem with Generational Labels

Generational Stereotypes in Marketing

Sir John Hegarty takes a critical stance on the use of generational labels such as Gen X, Gen Y, Millennials, and Gen Z in marketing strategies:

“This whole Gen X or a Gen Y or a Millennial, you know, is just marketing nonsense because it excludes. It doesn't include.” ([05:46]).

Katie Keating echoes this sentiment, describing these labels as "horoscopes for marketers," emphasizing that they reduce diverse populations to simplistic stereotypes rather than acknowledging the nuanced behaviors and preferences of individuals.

“They are lazy. They aren't about thinking about, how do I create a product that people admire and has value in it?” ([06:32]).

Consequences for Brands and Shareholders

Joe Burns highlights the business implications, suggesting that relying on generational stereotypes can alienate potential customers and ultimately harm shareholder interests:

“Once you exclude, you're failing, ultimately your shareholders.” ([06:04]).

By pigeonholing consumers into generational boxes, brands may miss opportunities to innovate and connect authentically with a broader audience.

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3. Censorship and Double Standards in Advertising Women's Health Products

Gatekeeping by Digital Platforms

Katie Keating, creative director at the ad agency Fancy, voices her frustration with how major digital platforms like Meta, Google, and TikTok restrict advertising content related to women's bodies and health:

“They won't allow brands to talk about women's bodies in a straightforward way.” ([07:11]).

She criticizes the euphemistic language imposed by these platforms, such as replacing "sex" with "seggs" or "vagina" with "down there," arguing that this reinforces stigma and shame around women's health topics.

Double Standards in Advertising

Katie points out the glaring inconsistency in how male and female health products are treated:

“If you think about all the erectile dysfunction ads that are, you know, everywhere, all the time... but women just can't. We just can't do that for ads.” ([07:52]).

This double standard not only hampers the visibility of important women's health issues but also perpetuates harmful societal norms.

Calls for Accountability

The episode notes that six women's health-related companies in the UK and Europe have recently called for an investigation by the European Commission into discriminatory practices by these digital platforms, highlighting the growing concern and demand for equitable advertising policies.

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4. Conclusion: Advocating for Distinctive and Inclusive Branding

Drawing from the discussions, the episode underscores the importance of brands maintaining distinctive voices and avoiding conformity to fleeting trends. Sir John Hegarty advocates for brands to embrace uniqueness akin to the diversity found in nature:

“Look at a forest. Are all the trees the same? Are all the plants the same? Nature understands. It wants variety.” ([09:36]).

Adrian Ma and Joe Burns conclude by suggesting that brands should strive to differentiate themselves authentically rather than adhering to generic strategies that compromise their unique identity.

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Notable Quotes:

• Joe Burns on generational labels:
  “Generational labels are just horoscopes for marketers.” ([06:32])

• Sir John Hegarty on brand voice saturation:
  “This tone of voice has become so pervasive. It's kind of become the new generic and it's lost its cool edge because every brand starts to speak like that.” ([04:44])

• Katie Keating on platform censorship:
  “They won't allow brands to talk about women's bodies in a straightforward way.” ([07:11])

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This episode provides a critical examination of prevalent marketing strategies, urging brands to foster genuine connections and prioritize inclusivity over superficial trends. By addressing these pet peeves, The Indicator from Planet Money offers valuable insights for marketers and consumers alike, advocating for a more thoughtful and respectful advertising landscape.

Transcript

[Adrian Ma]

This podcast discusses Google and Meadow, which are financial supporters of npr.

[Darian Woods]

Npr.

[Joe Burns]

So the other day, Adrian, I bought some extremely ordinary pants that were plain navy chinos from J.

[Adrian Ma]

Crew as opposed to unusual pants.

[Joe Burns]

They were not going to win any awards for novelty.

[Adrian Ma]

Okay, so you were in the market for some classic, you know, preppy American clothes at reasonable prices.

[Joe Burns]

Yeah. J. Crew's slogan is heritage made modern. And so it surprised me that when my order arrived, I got this email subject line, best news ever. Your order has arrived.

[Adrian Ma]

Psst.

[Joe Burns]

Check your mailbox, doorstep, wherever. And there are three exclamation marks here. We hope you really, really love it.

[Adrian Ma]

Wow, that's like uncomfortably personal tone to take from, like, a marketing email.

[Joe Burns]

It would make sense if it was, like, selling ice cream or something, but it was just kind of incongruous to what I thought the brand was about.

[Sir John Hegarty]

This is something that I've been calling your cool friend tm.

[Joe Burns]

So brand strategist Joe Burns thinks J. Crew is part of a wider plague.

[Sir John Hegarty]

It's a tone of voice, a type of personality that more and more brands are adopting. They're trying to make it feel that, you know, they're just relatable. They're your friend, but slightly cooler. The coolest one of your friends is what they want to be.

[Adrian Ma]

Your cool friend tm. Well, this is the indicator from Planet Money. We're your cool friends. I'm Adrian Ma.

[Joe Burns]

And I'm Darian Woods. Also your friend. Questionable, though, whether I'm cool. The pervasiveness of your cool friend TM is starting to grind Joe Burns gears. And maybe yours, too. That's why today on the show, we are looking at three pet peeves in advertising.

[Adrian Ma]

Our guests will vent and come up with some new ideas after the break.

[Henry Kissinger]

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[Katie Keating]

This message comes from Capital One. With the Venture X card, earn unlimited double miles on everything you buy, plus get premium benefits at a collection of hotels when booking through Capital One Travel. What's in your wallet? Terms apply [e-mail] this message comes from Capital One.

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[Joe Burns]

So advertising rant number one. Every brand speaking like it's your cool best friend. Joe Burns is the strategy lead at the ad agency. Quality meets creative.

[Sir John Hegarty]

You go back 10 years, you'd have brands like Old Spice being this kind of crazy dude on a horse.

[Katie Keating]

Look at your man. Now back to me. Now back at your man. Now back to me.

[Sir John Hegarty]

Sadly, he isn't me or you'd have one of my favorite brands, the Economist. You know, they had this really austere tone of voice with, you know, it kind of sounded like a NBA grad who's read a dozen books before breakfast. Good evening.

[Henry Kissinger]

Good evening. It's Henry Kissinger.

[Adrian Ma]

Ready for a good chat.

[Sir John Hegarty]

You know, brands used to have a tone of voice that was designed to be distinctive and to cut through and to be really noticeable to consumers.

[Adrian Ma]

Yeah. And then came social media and the rise of your cool best friend. Tm.

[Sir John Hegarty]

All of this, I think, started off with the likes of Wendy's. So Wendy's on Twitter were one of the first brands to really employ this tone.

[Adrian Ma]

Around 2017, Wendy's ditched its polite corporate voice on Twitter and kind of went off the rails. It roasted customers and started talking trash to McDonald's in the comments.

[Joe Burns]

Yeah. So like a customer would tweet, is it shameful to be eating Wendy's food while sitting in a McDonald's parking lot? And Wendy's would tweet back, you're probably raising the property value. Tbh.

[Adrian Ma]

Is this cool or is this just kind of like snarky is snarky and cool. Now, Joe, he says he isn't criticizing the pioneers of this voice, but what.

[Sir John Hegarty]

I do feel like is that this tone of voice has become so pervasive. It's kind of become the new generic and it's lost its cool edge because every brand starts to speak like that.

[Adrian Ma]

Joe thinks this kind of witty tone became popular with brands because it boosts its ability to get shares and likes and reposts on social media.

[Sir John Hegarty]

What does immediately, very well, it tends to be that relatable tone of voice. The problem there is you're already talking to an audience who's engaged with your brand. But there isn't necessarily the data that backs up that that tone of voice is going to also work for new customers too.

[Joe Burns]

Well, thank you, Joe Burns. And next we have our second marketing gripe. This One is from a legend inside the advertising industry, Sir John Hegarty.

[Sir John Hegarty]

My marketing.

[Katie Keating]

Well, I have a number of marketing gripes, actually.

[Adrian Ma]

He co founded the advertising agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty. They've worked on everyone from Levi's to Nike to Ikea.

[Joe Burns]

And among his many marketing gripes, generational labels.

[Katie Keating]

This whole Gen X or a Gen Y or a Millennial, you know, is just marketing nonsense because it excludes. It doesn't include. And I think once you exclude, you're failing, ultimately your shareholders.

[Joe Burns]

In fact, John doesn't think there is such a thing as a Gen Z or a baby boomer. He says this is just a marketing invention.

[Adrian Ma]

So he does not believe that we should think of Gen Z people as digital natives who can't focus or millennials as burnt out and unable to buy a house. We're talking about billions of people, after all. So, you know, these are just stereotypes, he says, not market research.

[Joe Burns]

I've seen you've written that generational labels are just horoscopes for marketers.

[Katie Keating]

They are, they are. They're just an excuse. They're lazy. They aren't about thinking about, how do I create a product that people admire and has value in it?

[Joe Burns]

And now for our final marketing frustration. Our guest Katie Keating is creative director at an ad agency called Fancy. And for her, this is more than a bugbear. She feels really strongly about the advertising gatekeepers at digital platforms like Meta, Google and TikTok. She says they won't allow brands to talk about women's bodies in a straightforward way.

[Darian Woods]

This kind of algo speak has started to show up lately where brands will have to, instead of saying sex, they have to spell it S, E, GG, S or segs. Or instead of saying vagina, they say down there. And all of these things that will ultimately just tell women and culture at large that these things really should be censored and should be kept in the dark and are kind of shameful and shouldn't be talked about. But they really are normal aspects of everyday life for women.

[Joe Burns]

And what really irks Katie is that she thinks there are double standards for men.

[Darian Woods]

I mean, if you think about all the, like, erectile dysfunction ads that are, you know, everywhere, all the time, all at once, just being like, super direct and women just can't. We just can't do that for ads.

[Adrian Ma]

We asked Meta, Google and TikTok for comment. They all said they allow for ads for a wide variety of women's health products, but they also had policies to avoid sexualized content and none of them want pornography to be advertised.

[Darian Woods]

I think that that's actually very valid and we don't really want to have that. I think that there has to be a way then to have human beings review the work and make sure that it's not offensive in that way, that it's not a piece of dangerous content. I think the problem becomes when we are told that women's bodies and women's health is dangerous and that I think that in of itself is actually what's dangerous.

[Joe Burns]

This year, six women health related companies in the UK and Europe called for an investigation by the European Commission into the digital platforms for this alleged discrimination.

[Adrian Ma]

And to some extent this issue is about tech companies taking an easy path following what all other digital platforms do. It's it's really kind of a herding behavior that is a theme across all of the three marketing pet peeves we've heard today. Whether it's shadow banning women's sexual health products or adopting a your cool friend brand voice or using generational labels, Sir John Hegarty is an evangelist for blazing a different path.

[Katie Keating]

Look at a forest. Are all the trees the same? Are all the plants the same? Nature understands. It wants variety. It makes you look again, it makes you see. And it has a functional value. It's in the same way a brand is. So what great brands try and do is say no, this is different from everybody else.

[Joe Burns]

So maybe your dweebish friend might be the next thing. What do you think Adrian?

[Adrian Ma]

You've hit on a pioneering marketing concept.

[Joe Burns]

I can certainly play to type there.

[Adrian Ma]

Darian woods, your dweebish friend.

[Joe Burns]

This episode was produced by Angel Carreras with engineering by Patrick Murray and Neil Rauch. It was fact teched by Sarah Juarez. Kate Kirkhannon edits the show and the indicator is a production of npr.

[Henry Kissinger]

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