Few things say good writing — and bad writing — quite like company taglines.
Writing simply, memorably, and powerfully in a handful of words is among the great writing achievements. And not easy.
With this in mind, I posed a question to my good friend Josh Rowe. He’s the marketing director at Harvard Innovation Labs.
Josh built a remarkable marketing career at several companies since our days as running buddies and fellow steeplechasers at the University of Portland in Oregon in the late ‘80s-early ‘90s.
He’s brewed tasty marketing sauce at Nike, New Balance, Nix Biosensors, and Tracksmith. After a company I worked for came up with a two-word tagline that left me bewildered — what does it mean? — I sent him a text: “Name your three best company taglines.”
I knew which one would top his list: “Just Do It.”
How do you beat that? Simple, powerful, motivational. Timeless.
He got right back to me, naming three off the top of his head. Here’s Josh’s top three:
Just Do It—The Nike classic.
The Ultimate Driving Machine—From BMW. It resonates, even though Josh says he’s not a BMW guy.
When It Absolutely, Positively Has To Be There—From FedEx back in the day. Josh texted: “They don’t use this anymore, but I think it really established them as the best delivery company when something is really important.”
Here’s what he likes so much about them:
—They’re clear.
—They’re memorable.
—They’re straight to the point.
—You get it without explanation.
We tossed around some other memorable taglines that fit those guidelines.
—Think Different (Apple)
—The Breakfast of Champions (Wheaties)
—Can You Hear Me Now? Good. (Verizon)
—Where’s the Beef? (Wendy’s)
—It Takes a Licking and Keeps on Ticking (Timex)
—Don’t Leave Home Without It (American Express)
These are just a few of the millions of company taglines. It highlights that writing copy is incredibly hard.
It takes thought and intellectual curiosity, not to mention a deep understand of the words, their power, and how they fuel our imaginations and motivations.
It can be agonizing. It can keep you awake at night. (At least it keeps me awake.) You need clear thinking, creativity, and a sense of giving the audience what it wants while understanding branding and giving your company an identity that stands out in a crowded marketplace.
Many try. Few succeed.