Celebrating Icons

The 1960s. A great decade (not least of which because it was the decade I was born in). A decade of firsts, and some giant leaps. 1961 saw the first man in space, and the ‘birth’ of the Dulux dog. Aaah, the Dulux dog.

Yes, this fantastic icon celebrates 50 years this year. It first appeared on our screens in 1961, 14 dogs had played the role until it was taken off air in 1996. Interestingly, Dulux had been making paint for 40 years before using the sheepdog. And it was this affectionately named Dulux dog which was credited with much of the company’s success.

Spot an Old English sheepdog on a poster and Dulux instantly springs to mind.  That’s powerful branding, and a great icon. Who would have thought this lovely breed of dog (or any other for that matter) would be chosen to promote paint. A brave call.

I would have loved to have been in the creative session that gave birth to using a dog as an icon for paint. I wonder if there was any resistance? (Probably)  Or a unanimous decision? (most definitely) I bet there was some fun with the auditions (or should I say dog-ditions). Interestingly legendary trainer, Barbara “walkies” Woodhouse trained one of the most famous dogs, wonderfully named Fernville Lord Digby.

The ad currently running on our screens to celebrate the 50 years shows the icon at its best. As the latest Dulux dog (or should I say Old English sheepdog – who else calls it a Dulux dog?) runs happily along to the tune from the Littlest Hobo.

“Maybe tomorrow” as the tune goes ….

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrdudnKxYvk]

Yes tomorrow. What will we be looking back on as icons tomorrow? When I regress to my younger years, I think warmly of the Honey Monster, the aliens from Smash. In 50 years time I wonder which of our current icons will we be looking back on with a smile on our faces. What would make it for you? I suspect that the meerkats will make it into my list.

The 60s were an age of mass advertising, with the growing popularity of TV and the birth of many of the icons we now remember fondly.  This is in contrast to our present digital age of multimedia platforms, digital, personalization and data driven marketing.  Will this have a bearing on the icons we will remember in 50 years time?

I’m fast forwarding 50 years and thinking that Dulux will know so much about me by then, they’ll probably send a hologram of the Dulux dog (or even the real thing, a descendant of Fernville Lord Digby) carrying a tin of paint in its mouth. A tin of paint that will be the perfect shade for my lounge which I’ll be painting in a hint of fuschia pink because Dulux just happen to know the colour of the settee I’ve bought! Hey, and if I’m really lucky the dog will apply the paint too …. Now that’s the future I like the sound of …

Bookmark and Share

Karen Lambert is an experienced strategic marketer and Managing Director at Happy Creative, a full service marketing agency based in Blackpool, Lancashire. To learn more or contact us please go to www.happy-creative.co.uk

Share this:
Celebrating Icons
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. By using this website you agree to our Data Protection Policy.
Read more

Professional Brand Audit

Free professional brand audit. Receive a grade for your
branding performance, as well as implementable steps and actions.

ENQUIRE NOW

Please enter your email to subscribe to the Happy blog

REQUEST A CALLBACK

Paid Social Campaigns

Paid social media can be a brilliantly effective yet low cost form of lead generation, and it’s a great way to extend your reach, drive website traffic and generate likes and shares.

We’ll take care of setting up and managing your paid social media accounts, ensuring your spend is carefully targeted. Then we’ll provide clear, transparent reporting so you can keep refining the strategy to make your ad spend even more effective.

More about Paid Social Campaigns

Social Media

All the tweets and posts in the world won’t help generate leads unless there’s some strategic thinking behind what you’re doing.

We’ll help define the right social media strategy for you, so that you’re on the right platforms, saying the right things to the right people at the right time to generate the right leads.

More about Social Media

Design & Brand Building

Marketing is bit like those huge, swirling flocks of starlings you see from time to time. Individually your brochure, email, ad, meme or gif may not change the world.

But when you join them together and ensure they’re all heading in the same direction, you have the power to stop people in their tracks.

We design communications that help build a consistent brand and convert more leads to sales.

More about Design & Brand Building

Websites

Your website can generate leads in so many ways. Informed content. Strong calls to action. A simple, natural journey from ‘Hi there!’ to ‘Buy now’.

Yet websites are never ‘done’. They need to keep evolving to keep pace with your customers’ expectations, so we’ll be with you for the long haul to keep tweaking, refining and growing your site – and to deliver the PPC campaigns that help drive traffic towards it.

Because when your website keeps working to understand and speak to your audience, you’ve got more chance of converting.

More about Websites

PR & Content

There’s a knack to ensuring your business is seen in the right places at the right time. We’ll build your PR profile across the mix of channels that’s right for you (from press to social media to events) and use our contacts to spread the word.

So when your customers are ready to buy, it’ll be your brand they think of first.

More about PR & Content

Claim your happy offer

    Claim your happy offer

      Claim your happy offer

        Claim your happy offer

          Claim your happy offer

            What would make you happy today?