The Swedish homeware behemoth aren’t stripping away zeros, they’re adding them on their latest billboard campaign.
Why, oh why? The answer is simple: you can’t put a price on emotion.
“BUT THEY HAVE” I’m hearing you say.
Correct, but that’s the whole point. The emotional cost in their campaign is so fractional that it reframes the customer’s thinking when it comes to value.
A lamp may cost ¢14.99, but that’s not the cost they’re trying to sell.
The cost they WANT to sell is how many times that lamp will bring comfort when you get in bed, how many late night readathons that lamp will provide ambience for, how many bedtime stories it will be the backdrop for…
Credit: Famous Campaigns
When you look at something in terms of the value it brings to your everyday life, the perceived cost of the product lowers significantly.
We don’t need data to back that up, we’ve all done it.
You buy a bike and it’s extortionate… but if you’re going to use it every Sunday to take in the beauty of your local canal, it’s worth every penny.
It’s basic psychology.
That’s what hits the spot in this clever campaign from IKEA.
THREE TAKEAWAYS
1. Emotion beats product features
2. Simplicity increases memorability
3. Great campaigns sell identity and feeling, not products