• by Aaron Baar , September 10, 2015

When consumers buy a product or service, they expect it to work, and to work well. But when it comes to wireless service, that isn’t always the case.

Verizon is launching a new ad campaign centered around the idea that its “most reliable network” is one of the things that just works. Using the line “Better matters,” the campaign asserts that consumers should have confidence in their wireless network, and that confidence should make a difference. 

“‘Better’ is how we differentiate in the marketplace,” company representative Robert Varettoni tells Marketing Daily. “The messaging is grounded in the reliability of our network, which we’ve engineered from the ground up and which will continue to be Verizon’s cornerstone. This campaign taps into something everyone can identify with: when something isn’t built well, you know it.”

The campaign launches this week with a new television spot (from agency Wieden+Kennedy) that presents the idea in a playful, humorous manner. The commercial begins with a girl getting ready to play with a ride-on toy, when a wheel suddenly falls off. Following quick cuts depict a young man adjusting a rear-view mirror only to have it break off in his hand, a robotic vacuum repeatedly bumping into a table, bookshelves falling over and wheels falling off a suitcase, and other daily mishaps.

A voiceover says: “Nobody ever says, ‘Made from the finest pressboard,’ or ‘Built to last … for three weeks.’ But when something isn’t made well, you find out sooner or later.” As the voiceover (by actress Catherine Keener) gets increasingly frustrated, the pace of the commercial speeds up: “If something is important, it shouldn’t break, jam, crack, tear, snap, fall apart, act up or only work in one corner of your house! If it matters, it should just work, right?” The spot then explains that Verizon’s network is the “best and most-reliable” network, “because it matters.”

“Our intention in all our advertising is to remind people, in an industry filled with competing network claims, that the network you choose makes all the difference,” Varettoni says. “Thematically, we will use simple, playful and entertaining metaphors to explain why these products and services matter.”

The attitude will resonate throughout Verizon’s marketing and advertising (including a newly redesigned logo), including work for its new data packages (S, M, L and XL), its NFL Mobile app and other exclusive offerings and content (some of which will be showcased in the company’s #WhyNotWednesday social promotion, which has depicted exclusive behind the scenes looks at the VMAs and NFL).

“We believe these new products, services and experiences are the best, and that they will allow us to grow in a competitive marketplace,” Varettoni says, adding that the campaign will include print, online and outdoor advertising as well.