In 2025 brands have to do… betterer
The word ‘better’ seems to be a favourite in the advertising world. But when almost every brand starts to use it, promoting themselves as ‘better’, does it start to lose all meaning? Matt Lawton, CMO of Five by Five Global, explores.
Is there any clearer indication of creative stagnation than seeing the number of brands promoting themselves as ‘better’?
In boardrooms around the world, strategists have no doubt been pitching how everything ‘ladders up’ to ‘better’ for a long time now. But since when did ‘better’ go unchallenged in a brief let alone make it through an internal review! I don’t know when it started but, just like that better car you just bought, once you see it, you see it everywhere. Emirates – Fly Better might be the longest standing example. It’s so broad, it’s boring. It’s so trite, it’s triggering… at least for me!
But whether it’s aviation, retail, financial services or consumer products, we’re led to believe there’s an entire echelon of goods and services that are superior in ways they’re too lazy to substantiate or describe explicitly in a compelling and distinctive way.
Spot on, Matt. “Better” is often the go-to catchphrase for brands – or marketers – who lack the insight or ability to uncover or articulate something truly distinctive. At US+US, we have a chat group ‘dedicated’ to the misuse of “better” in branding and marketing – and it’s very, very full.
It’s good to see that some agencies who ultimately guide many brand campaigns are actually doing a better job of explaining why its better and the factors that sit within “better”. Hats off to the The Growth Distillery.
I can’t believe it’s not better 😉