180LA introduced its new “Hold True” tagline for Miller Lite earlier this month in a continuation of the “Spelled Different, Because it’s Brewed Different” campaign TBWA\Chiat\Day launched for the brand back in March of 2016.
Miller Lite moved its business from TBWA to 180LA the following month without a review, and the latter agency effectively picked up where its predecessor left off with a series of spots that launched this past September.
The problem? Fold7 seems to have introduced the same tagline in a campaign for Irish hard cider brand Magners last June. And someone at Magners noticed.
The brand tweeted out the following message to Miller Lite minutes ago:
@MillerLite Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery they say… ? #HoldTrue pic.twitter.com/Z1ZLeNeDcS
— Magners (@MagnersUK) March 30, 2017
We should note that the visual on the left does not seem to have appeared in previous Magners work. Here’s the Fold7 spot from the summer.
One of our British contacts describes Magners as a “cheap but popular” cider brand, noting that its pre-“Hold True” campaigns ran with the tagline “Earn It.” In recent years, Magners has seen increased competition from upscale brands like Rekorderlig, Bulmers and Carlberg, because lots of the young folks are into cider.
So, was this an honest mistake?
We’ve reached out to 180LA but have yet to receive a response. Updates if we get them.