It would hardly be surprising these days that brands all too often censor themselves for fear of retribution, whether it’s from big organisations or demanding consumers who occasionally are all too quick in the days of social media to make snap judgements, criticise companies online and potentially cause real damage to a brand’s reputation.
No doubt there are all sorts of good ideas that have ended up in the bin because marketing departments are worried about potential backlash – backlash that sometimes is completely unwarranted.
But it seems that brands are starting to fight back, keen to get their message out there no matter what potential consequences are on the horizon. Oatly, a milk alternative product made from oats, is one of these striving to stick to their brand message, no matter what.
The Swedish milk producer was recently sued by the dairy industry in Sweden back in 2014, with group LRF Mjolk saying that Oatly’s marketing and advertising campaigns suggest that cow’s milk is in fact unhealthy.
According to The Futures Centre, the slogans that Oatly used that caused so much offence were “designed for humans”, “Wow no cow!” and “No milk. No soy. No badness”. But ironically, even though Oatly lost the court case, all the controversy actually had the knock-on effect of making people more aware of milk alternatives and ultimately more supportive of Oatly and its products.
Interestingly, European and Asian sales rose by 37 per cent, while Sweden saw sales increase by 45 per cent… all of which has helped to contribute to a $41 million profit for Oatly in 2015.
And now it seems that there’s no stopping Oatly, which has now brought another controversial ad campaign to UK shores as part of a £700,000 advertising strategy that will see out-of-home content showcased around London underground stations including Kings Cross, Shoreditch, Oxford Circus, Peckham and Brixton.
The message? “It’s like milk, but made for humans.” According to The Drum, the campaign is being supported by both print media and podcast sponsorship, as well as video on demand. It’s hoped that the campaign will convince people in the UK to swap cow’s milk for a plant-based oat drink instead… and based on past performance, it looks like it stands a real chance of success.
Michael Lee, creative and strategic director for international markets with Oatly, was quoted by the news source as saying: “Some consider our messaging to be controversial. We disagree. It’s fact because our oat drinks actually are made for humans, rather than for baby cows. Although we lost a lawsuit from the Swedish dairy industry in 2015, we still believe in the line, it’s still the truth, which is why you’re seeing it across the UK.”