Why we love this
There's a handful of post-Oatly brands popping up that are taking that outspoken, playful and brave baton and running with it into new industries. And we love it.
(For a while there, brand voice felt like a dying art.)
And La Vie are one of those brands that are just killing it with their copy.
They've run lots of OOH campaigns that we've loved. But this one is our favourite because it's just so goddamn clever.
Steal this for your brand
One of the ideas we always come back to is from Byron Sharp's How Brands Grow where he basically says brands don't grow by making their existing fans love them more. They grow by reaching the people who aren't buying yet.
The light buyers, the occasional buyers, the almost-buyers who just haven't been seen a good enough reason to actually drop it in their basket yet...
So when you're writing copy and the goal is to help the brand scale (and, let's be honest, when is that not the goal?) then one of the smartest moves is to zoom out. To find ways to write copy that brings more people in without excluding your core customers.
And that's what La Vie are doing here.
The first three items on the list all speak to their core plant-based audience. And not just in a "calling all vegans!" way, but in a "hey, we get you and your beliefs" kind of way. It's really good.
But then that last line zooms out and brings in all the people who are on the fence about going plant-based. Or the people who say "I'd love to, but I love my sandwiches too much".
And just by doing that, this campaign redefines who La Vie is for. It's not just a plant-based brand. It's for anyone who wants a better planet and to enjoy their sandwiches.
(That's a subtle thing too. The human brain is primed to avoid losing something -- called loss aversion -- so La Vie saying "you don't have to lose anything" in this ad is wicked smart. It takes away an objection and does it with a wink and a smile.)
So before your next campaign, ask yourself: who does your category forget to talk to? How can you widen your circle to include them? That's how brands grow faster.