How Brands Use Nostalgia To Boost Sales and Increase Brand Awareness

Bryan Karas

November 20, 2018

John Cena, the pro wrestler turned Hollywood movie star, has done a lot of things during his long career. Most recently, Cena teamed up with Skyy Vodka to create a new campaign about what it’s really like to be American – diversity, inclusion etc.

In one of the videos, Cena seduces the audience as he performs a heartwarming version of the Backstreet Boys hit music video I Want it That Way.

So you have John Cena and boy bands…but what’s really going on here? Nostalgia in advertising…

When a consumer sees a piece of content (or an ad) that brings back good memories – childhood, teen years, college – it makes them feel good. Simply put, nostalgia turns negative emotions (daily stress from responsibilities, a hard day at work, someone taking the last slice of pizza, etc) into positive emotions.

Music, cars, toys, video games and movies all bring back positive nostalgia…want a great example? Look at almost anything Buzzfeed puts out…

And if you’re on a budget, Chubbies, the out there clothing company, created an amazing – but very cheap – video titled “Goldeneye on Alcatraz.” Capitalizing on the Millennial love for the old school N64 James Bond game…

To make nostalgia in advertising work, you need to know your audience. Clearly Skyy Vodka is going after Millennials who grew up with boy bands like N*SYNC and the Backstreet Boys.

Keep in mind that nostalgia doesn’t always transfer over to other generational demographics. Boy bands won’t really resonate with Baby Boomers…but ABBA might!

Also, be careful when targeting immigrant populations. Although some marketers may be able to find something that resonates with a particular immigrant market, it may have negative consequences if that individual has become deeply rooted in U.S. culture and feels that the brand negates their progress.

“Market research tells us that in most cases nostalgia must be infused with other emotional and rational brand attributes and benefits to effectively activate consumer purchasing. Multi-dimensional branding is usually most effective when it comes to nostalgia marketing.”

Nostalgia in advertising works really, really well – but make sure it’s not the sole pillar of your brand’s identity.

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