You can't beat a good music track.
You can spend money on a trendy director.
Choose a spectacular location.
Cast a famous personality or two.
Use as much of the latest technical jiggery-wizardry as is possible and affordable.
All good.
But choose a piece of music for your ad that worms its way into the consumers subconscious and eats away at their resistance and Bob's your uncle.
Not those itchy, scratchy, bibbly-bobbly, woodchip, beat-box, indie dance-trance mixes by Smackwax or DJ Strobe and the like.
Or the drippy-dreamy, floaty-fire-ice, quasi-classical compositions that help cars drive more smoothly or fragrances smell more expensive.
Or indeed the jingle – that specially written musical eulogy into which both the brand name and product particulars are cleverly interwoven to provide the consumer with a subtly persuasive reason to purchase.
Um Bongo, Um Bongo, they drink it in the Congo for instance.
We buy any car
dot com, we buy any car
'dot com, we buy any car
'dot com, we buy any car
'dot com, we buy any car'
dot com, we buy any car
'dot com.
Etcetera.
The women at the wheel deserve a fairer deal, for bonzer car insurance deals, girls get on to Sheilas’ Wheels.
Or the much-loved, Do the Shake 'n Vac and put the freshness back.
No, although these are definitely fundamental to the visual communications they accompany and have doubtlessly contributed to the enduring memories that we all have of those brands, it's that piece of music that becomes the campaign in a more gloriously unassuming way that we examine here.
Or if not the entire campaign then at least the individual ad.
The music that personifies the brand, product or service.
That the concept could perhaps live without, but certainly not very happily.
That arrives attached to the original idea like placenta to a newborn, but that remains with it and sustains it as it grows.
And that eventually becomes the dominant partner, dictating campaign development and insisting upon long-term user recall.
Here, in no particular order is an incomplete, totally subjective and ridiculously inconsistent list of some all-time favourites.
Nimble.
The bird who flew like a bird. The song was ten times better than the loaf.
Hovis.
Czech bloke writes music that is more oldy-worldy English than an Uncle Joes Mint Ball.
Courage Best.
What's that? It's a jingle because it's got the brand name in the song? Gertcha!
Stella Artois.
Stella wouldnt be Stella without Giuseppe.
BA.
Malcolm Maclaren's finest hour after the Sex Pistols and Duck Rock.
Delta.
Dull film plus fab music equals half-decent commercial.
Cadbury.
Who would have thought Phil Collins would've ever got his credibility back?
Carling Black Label.
The music is the idea here.
Levis.
Different films, different tracks, but strangely, somehow fulfils the criteria.
Hamlet.
The guvnor.
