Article: Virgin Mobile Spurs Hispanics to Leave 'Normal' Behind

The Virgin companies, with their smart and upbeat marketing, have long inspired admiration in me. It's interesting now to see how they are approaching the arena of Latino marketing. In this article, ClickZ's Pamela Parker takes a look at how Virgin Mobile is jumping on the bandwagon of providers who are looking to market their "pay as you go" cell phone plans to Latinos. Their tactic is to position those who use pre-paid plans as more interesting, innovative and "not normal", while communicating that those who have "traditional" contract cell phone plans are boring, mainstream and "normal". The campaign slogan: "no seas normal" ("don't be normal").

Normal, here, is bad. Not normal is good.

While this campaign is in line with the "defy the norm" spirit of the Virgin brands, I'm not sure how it will work with the Latino market. Virgin Mobile has set up a web site in support of the "don't be normal campaign" at www.noseasnormal.com. I'd be interested to hear your comments about the campaign, and predictions on its effectiveness, if you are so inclined to leave them.

My personal opinion: I like the comical skits they use to show normal as uncool and not normal as defiant and fresh. But I was put off by the lengthy and redundant text intro you get when you access the site. Interesting campaign indeed, and the humor is very Virgin (perhaps a bit too British?), and not at all like what we've seen in other Latino campaigns. That though, could be a good thing. We'll have to wait and see.

Virgin Mobile Spurs Hispanics to Leave 'Normal' Behind
Pamela Parker | ClickZ News | June 22, 2005

If being normal means signing a conventional wireless contract, Virgin Mobile USA is urging U.S. Hispanics to steer clear. This is the pay-as-you-go carrier's first integrated campaign aimed at the fast-growing minority group.

Virgin's Hispanic marketing agency, Miami-based La Comunidad, developed both online and offline creative for the Spanish-language effort.

The just-launched interactive aspect of the "No Soy Normal," or "I'm Not Normal," campaign consists of a video-driven Web site, at noseasnormal.com, which the company hopes will go viral. The site takes users through a series of scenarios in which they can choose the fate of the characters, by selecting whether to be normal or not be normal. If they choose to be out of the ordinary, they're rewarded with some surreal, but humorous, outcomes.

"The overall campaign attempts to show people that it's OK to be unconventional and it's OK to be, in effect, not normal," Bob Stohrer, VP of brand and communications at Virgin Mobile USA, told ClickZ News. "Normal, for us, at least the way we look at normal, is that normal equals contract plans. We're asking people to rethink that a bit."

In one "not normal" scenario on the site, a male character points at a small, yapping dog, and causes it to fly away and disappear, as if by magic. When the dog's owner, an attractive woman, comes looking for the canine, he offers to help her look for it and they end up going for a drink. Choosing to be normal ends the storyline's progression and sends the main character back to his desk in a windowless office.

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Comments

[MediaHoney]

The campaign is drab. Needs more sabor!!!!!!!!!

[enrique]

don't confuse drab for smart. The TV ads cut through on latino network and are a weird INTELLIGENT laugh for a change. Lets have more like this.

[Melania]

I also think this campaign is smart. It will appeal to a sector of the Hispanic community that other advertisers ignore.

[nana]

no seas "burro" the campaign is well done para el mercado latino moderno. No more Familia Amor y Leche.
The ad with the "burro" man and his girlfriend is my favorite.