Over the last 2 weeks, Jaguar has been making the headlines with their…controversial rebrand launch. Watch the ad that caused a ripple effect of wild conversations.
After the dust settled and we gathered more information, we wanted to share with you our take on where Jaguar hits and misses with their rebrand and why the power of customer centricity is critical to any marketing plan.
What Is Customer Centricity?
First, what is customer centricity? Customer centricity is when a company or brand prioritizes what its target customers want, need, and desire over their own priorities. They ask questions like:
- What pain points are my target customers experiencing?
- Is there a solution that they are currently using that isn’t working to meet 100% of their needs?
- How are they communicating their primary pain points?
- Does our solution solve their pain points at a price they are willing to pay (and at which we’ll be profitable)?
- What does our target audience care about in this economy, environment, culture, situation, etc.?
When you are a customer-centric brand, you base every single decision you make in the company around what would best serve your customers.
So why do we bring up customer centricity around the newest Jaguar campaign? Because it’s the biggest shift we’ve seen in their customer base since the UK brand’s founding in the fall of 1922.
The Jaguar Campaign
So what happened with Jaguar and their newest campaign?
On November 19, 2024, Jaguar released its Copy Nothing campaign that featured zero cars. As a high-end British carmaker, Jaguar is expected to exude luxury, sophistication, and you guessed it – snazzy cars. But their campaign included neither a big reveal nor a single second of footage of a car driving, offroading, or even parked for that matter.
Before we dive into what we think about this campaign, let’s go over the facts.
Their target audience is primarily made up of upper-middle-class professionals and executives – those who can afford and want to drive a luxury vehicle. Their audience is predominantly male. Jaguar has tried to create offers that will attract younger generations (i.e. Millennials) since 2015 (Jaguar).
The luxury car market is seeing growth with a compound annual growth rate of 7.7% from 2024 to 2033 (The Business Research Company). However, Jaguar’s partner company Tata Motors Ltd has been seeing a steady decline in its stock since August of this year. Maybe this rebrand is a way to jumpstart its growth again. Time will only tell.
Now, with the prevalence of electric vehicles (EV), it does seem that Jaguar needed to differentiate itself enough so it didn’t look like the rest of vehicle manufacturers designing EVs. But let’s break it down even further.
Our Thoughts On “Copy Nothing”
Here is where we believe Jaguar missed opportunities with the launch of their Copy Nothing campaign:
- They pushed the limits of what their brand was known for – ignoring what their brand has been known for over the last century. And more importantly, they didn’t connect the dots about how “Copy Nothing” has been a part of their DNA for years. For someone familiar with Jaguar, this seemed very incongruous with the brand.
- Jaguar neglected to feature or even hint at their offer – cars – in their new campaign (at least first). This left many of its audience confused about what the ad campaign was even about. End game? The Internet lit up with conversations about Jaguar but without any clarity for its current or potential new customers.
This was one take we read:
- They wanted to appeal to everyone, not their target market. In their official launch video, they even mentioned how it’s hard to get attention anymore so they had to do something different.
Now, time will only tell what this campaign will do. Maybe they wanted to get fresh eyes on their brand and get free press? Well, they succeeded in that – especially before their big launch of its Jaguar Type 00 in two trendy shades, Miami Pink and London Blue.
But the bottom line is they disenfranchised their target market to get eyeballs on their brand. And neglecting to consider what your target audience actually wants is a big no-no in our books.
On the other hand, Jaguar may have some insights that the upcoming generations (Millennials, Gen Z, and so on) may not care for the branding that’s worked for them over the last hundred years. Now, does this mean that just anyone and everyone can do this? No. They’re Jaguar.
How To Successfully Rebrand Your Business
Now, the one thing they did well is get eyeballs on their brand. And we want to make sure that we set you up for success! So check out what to know about rebranding your business.
Never Forget Who Your Target Customer Is
Your target customer should be at the center of every single decision you make. How is this going to affect them? Will this drive them to make a buying decision quicker? Does this solve their problem or pain point? Will this solution transform their lives for the better?
Everything should come back to them.
Your customer.
And Jaguar, we feel, missed the mark by trying to appeal to everyone. On the other hand, their intention may be to go after a different audience. Regardless, they haven’t been a part of the regular conversation like Tesla, Kia, or BMW with their EVs.
Don’t Follow Trends Unless It Aligns With Your Brand Or You’re Willing To Risk Losing Business
Trends are killing brands – especially when they choose a trend that either lands them in hot water or makes the brand out to be like everyone else.
As a brand, you need to put on those blinders and do what feels authentic to you. That means if doing some flashy campaign feels disingenuous, don’t do it.
If everyone is telling you that you need to be on social media, but email marketing is serving you perfectly well, don’t waste your time on social media.
I’m not saying this to avoid trying anything new. But what I am saying is to try marketing ideas that still feel in line with your brand.
Now, I will say that if you’re trying to do a complete 180 on your business and are willing to grind it out for the next 6-12 months, go for it. But don’t expect immediate gratification when you launch a massive change in a rebrand.
Know Who & What Your Brand Is Before Marketing
Before you start marketing, you need to know a couple of things:
- Who you are
- What value you offer
- Who you target
- What message resonates
When you know all of these things (and have them well documented), it makes it so much easier to come up with new ideas, vet ideas, and refine how you communicate to your audience.
Identify Your Value & Stick With It
You know your value, but do you know how to communicate your value? As a brand, you should start by defining your value and how your target audience actually defines it. You may be surprised at how different the language is.
Then after you define it, stick with it.
Sure, you can experiment and test the words, but you need to know the value at its core.
Changing Your Logo Won’t Fix All Your Problems
Lastly, changing your logo will not fix all your problems. In fact, it may even show you all the areas that you need to improve.
We highly recommend you start with your brand messaging first. Begin by describing your brand, your value, and your offer first. Then move on to how you visually communicate your message.
If you need help, we’ve created our proprietary Fundamentals Package where we define and document your brand messaging, voice, customers, and marketing objectives in a comprehensive package. And now, you can access it through either a done-for-you or a guided practice. Explore what this could do for your business here.
Cover The Fundamentals To Successfully Rebrand
Vince Lombardi said it best,
“Excellency is achieved by the mastery of the fundamentals.”
That’s why we’ve crafted the Fundamentals Package to craft the most important items you need to market your business and sell your offer effectively. Explore how you can create a launch pad for energizing transformation here.
