“Just Do It” — The Most Over-Rated Tag Line Ever.

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There are a lot of great tag lines out there. In fact, you could argue that some of the best tag lines in marketing have helped shape entire brands.

“We Try Harder,” which was introduced by Doyle Dane Bernbach on behalf of Avis in 1962, helped frame that brand in the mind of the consumer by positioning it against Hertz, the #1 brand in that category.

One of the all time best tag lines was introduced just a few years ago (and recently dropped!): “Can You Hear Me Now?” This tag line for Verizon was absolutely brilliant. Every time cell phone users uttered “Can you hear me now?” into a cell phone, they were reminded of Verizon and their promise that their network was bigger, better and clearer.

A few other memorable tag lines include:

• “When It Absolutely, Positively Has To Be There Overnight” for Federal Express

• “Got Milk?” for the California Milk Processor Board

• “Just When You Thought It Was Safe To Go Back In The Water” for Jaws II (Note: That’s actually not a tag line, it’s a slogan. But who cares? It’s terrific!)

Now we get to “Just Do It” which is absolutely, positively (thanks FedEx) the most over-rated tag line ever. Why? Because most great tag lines differentiate their products, frame the brand in the mind of the consumer, and drive home the core essence of the product.

The only thing “Just Do It” does is fall flat on its face.

That’s not to say that “Just Do It” wasn’t surrounded by a terrific ad campaign for Nike — it was. But the tag line alone is so overblown and over-rated, it’s almost an insult to the other brilliant tag lines out there. “Can You Hear Me Now?” works on so many levels for Verizon, it’s mind-boggling. Even something like “With A Name Like Smuckers, It Has To Be Good” sells the brand and has a personality to it. But “Just Do It” is flat, boring and, if it weren’t for a gazillion dollar ad campaign to support it, completely unmemorable.

Send me your favorite tag lines. Or, better still, disagree with my point-of-view. But something tells me that when you give it some thought, you’ll end up agreeing with me — “Just Do It” is the most over-rated tag line ever.

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Time Thursday, September 11th, 2008, 5:36 pm   |   CategoryGeneral Marketing  |  RssRSS feed |  CommentRespond  |  TrackbackTrackback

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  • http://www.beckermultimedia.com/ Robert Becker

    Is “Just Do It” a tag line, a slogan or a motto? The 60 Second Marketer assumes it is a tag line, but it is not..

    Becker Multimedia’s motto is “Reach what you cannot!” This phrase, borrowed from Nikos Kazantzakis, expresses the ethical core of our business.

    As such it is parallels Nike’s “Just Do It.” Nike is using the voice of the warrior to signal to its customers the kind of company that it is, the kind of commitments that it has. Not what it sells.

    “With a name like Nike it has to be good.” Puh -leeze! Nike literally means victory.. The motto is very good, and that is why people resonate with it.

  • http://www.alantaadblog.com Alex Van Winkle

    Ah how the future allows us to project what the times were like. At the time the “just do it” campaign came out the world was full of indecision. The market was in the pits the jobs were scarce and we were all victims of paralysis by analysis. Where marketers were still stuck with the USP (unique selling point) way of doing things, Weiden came out with the “Just Do It” line that drove down into our deeper psyche. The brilliance behind the line and the event in advertising is that it was one of the first American brand planning home runs. While the British has used brand planning to build fantastic campaigns like British Airways. The method had not been used much in the us. The focus was not on a product attribute but on how the product related to the target audience.

  • http://www.bouvierkelly.com Michael Turner

    The 60 Second Marketer insists that a line must differentiate and frame the brand, not noticing how brilliantly “Just Do It,” does just that. When Weiden came up with the line, they were trying to position Nike as the shoe for people who are truly serious about fitness—not shopping for hip hop accessories. The line does what it set out to do, quite memorably. It’s been so successful that, when Nike tried to throw it away several years ago, the new line, “I Can,” fell flat and the old line was resurrected.

    You mention another line that is worthy of comment because it fell victim to its longevity. Being an oldster, I remember when the line “With a name like Smuckers, it has to be good” entered the ad landscape in the sixties. It was originally a witty, self-deprecating line meaning something like “Our name is so ugly (rhymes with ‘yuckers’), we have to make an extra-tasty jam just to get people to consider buying it.” Today, the current agency wields the line in a thoroughly pedestrian way, saying in effect “Our name stands for quality.” Yechh.

  • http://www.60SecondMarketer.com Jamie Turner

    Great thoughts and comments, guys. Bob, I like your comment that “Just Do It” is an aspirational motto. Alex, your comment that the line was one of the first to successfully tap into deep emotions is right on target. And Mike, I’m in 100% agreement with you that the new use of the Smuckers tag line is abysmal.

    I’d be curious if you guys have other suggestions on the best and the most over-rated tag lines out there. It would be fun to have a post later this week with your additional tag lines. Alternatively, you could be a guest blogger on the topic.

    Shoot us a comment back with more comments and thoughts. Or, better still, be a guest blogger.

  • http://e-mail-marketing-plan.com Jim Spence

    Friday I was searching for Blogs related to email topics but more specifically to express email marketing. I found your blog and find it intersting.

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