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Post 1

You’ve heard of System1; the damnably excellent ad testing service?

Well, this is ‘SystemNone’…
Zero tech, zero budget, just training and a creative gut.


Today, in Creative Commerce's first ever run of the ‘Machine’, we’re ‘testing’ the new Irn-Bru ad from Lucky Generals.

Right, basics;
three things a brand needs for big business-effects;
People got to know you exist (fame).
People got to recognise you (fluency).
People got to like you (feeling).


So, let’s run this through our trademarked SystemNone Machine:
Beep, BoiNg, beeP.

1. Does this ad remind people that IRN-BRU exists?
Yes. It does a top job. BUT it’s not going to be a famous ad that’s massively talked about in the pub instead of football and sex (although the ‘I’m not wearing pants’ might be – and may even become a new Granny trait).

It’s no Cadbury’s Gorilla. And that’s a problem, because fame is rocket fuel: famous ads are 2x more likely to drive profit, penetration, and share (System1 & IPA).

The missing ingredient here is a Fluent Device – the reusable asset brains cling to. Think Honey Monster, Meerkats, GoCompare opera guy, or Snickers’ “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry.” Orlando Wood and the IPA (Institute of Practitioners in Advertising) found Fluent Device campaigns are 73% more likely to deliver big profit gains.
Side note: when I worked on Irn-Bru, I pitched a young Scottish lass with a giant orange beard… with singing cats in it. She’d down a can and be irrepressibly Bruey. That’s a device. A “consistent tone” isn’t.

2. Is it recognisably Irn-Bru?
Hell yes. The can dominates frame one (and half the others), the shop glows orange, we’ve got a ginger Scottish kid, and the famous strapline: Made in Scotland from Girders. (Full disclosure: I created their last platform, 'Phenomenal', which ran for 19 years before this. Fair play—it’s still one of the most ownable lines in UK ads.)

So, good job, they’re working really hard at everything in the ad being Irn-Bruey. Perhaps though it still shows the brand is maybe missing a couple of distinctive assets – a typeface? A musical sting?

3. Is it likeable?
Definitely. It’s packed with laughs, passion, and a whiff of heartache. Why’s that important (over all else!!)? Because emotion doubles effectiveness. The right brain processes emotional campaigns better than rational ones— potentially worth 3% market share growth over 3 years (Binet & Field).

The machine’s spitting its results, out of 5, now:
4.1 STAR POINTS (indicates long-term growth).
4.4 SPIKE RATING (predicts short-term sales potential.
5 FLUENCY RATING (measures brand recognition/attribution)

What will the guys with the tech say?
“My bet? System One’s official test will rate it slightly higher: 4.5 STAR, 4.7 SPIKE, 5/5 FLUENCY.
I rate it lower because I’m stricter on fluent devices and emotional punch. But credit where due: the agency's taken effectiveness seriously. Perhaps explaining why they won the account.
So, I raise a glass:
Effectiveness score: 4+ stars.

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