Guitar brand Fender is relying on its rich brand history to reach younger consumers amid a rise in people picking up the guitar during the Covid-19 pandemic.
A study by YouGov last year revealed that 7% of the U.S. population ages 13-64—about 16 million people—started learning to play the guitar between May 2019 and June 2021; 62% of that group cited Covid-19 and the ensuing lockdowns as the reason for picking up the instrument.
“There’s a big opportunity to introduce or reintroduce some of these models to a whole new generation who may never have experienced them before,” Fender chief marketing officer Evan Jones told Adweek. “You may have heard the music of the artists who have used them in the past, but maybe haven’t had a chance to necessarily get the full depth of the brand story.
“Our approach with this campaign is to think about it on a global scale across every and all consumer touch points that we have access to, to both engage and excite people who’ve been with the brand for many years but also stoke the imagination, and hopefully the creativity, of people who’ve only recently joined.”
With people picking up guitars at home, the brand has worked to bring a social aspect to their jam sessions. Fender launched a TikTok account last September and has 1.8 million followers, with content such as a series on players receiving their first Fender guitars.
Fender also saw growth in the past couple of years in its Fender Play app, which teaches new players how to play the instrument. Once strictly marketing to trades and hardcore music players, the brand has leaned into consumer-facing campaigns over the last several years.
“What we’ve learned, and we’ve seen this over the years, is even when things are challenging from a market standpoint, the needed desire that people have to express themselves really doesn’t change,” Jones said. “If anything, sometimes it picks up and in this case, what we are as committed to as ever is continuing to innovate on the product side.”
The brand knows the guitar collector who is an aficionado and is chomping at the bit for a retro release will always be a key consumer, but it also wants to reach the new generation to showcase guitars and bass such as the ’51 Telecaster or the ’61 Stratocaster.
The maker of guitars and basses is re-releasing a series of its classic products, and promoting them with a 360 creative campaign. Created with creative agency McGarrah Jessee, the campaign is headlined by a 60-second clip along with experiential and print components. Fender said this is its most expansive campaign to date.
“From a storytelling standpoint, it gives us the opportunity to talk about our role in music and culture at scale,” said Fender svp of content and creative Alanna Strauss. “With a wide audience and how music is constantly evolving, it both reflects what’s going on in culture and inspires what’s going to happen in culture. Bringing back this guitar and building off the legacy shows the guitar’s role has never changed. It’s a vehicle to communicate yourself, but what gets communicated in music is always evolving.”
Phone a legend
The 60-second spot is narrated by revered guitarist, singer and songwriter Patti Smith over clips of the history behind some of Fender’s products and the iconic classic moments when they were used. The clip notes how music is constantly changing, but one constant is the need to create and play music. The clip closes with the line “Unchanged to change it all.”
McGarrah Jessee toyed around with the creative in its early stages and used a poem from Smith as the audio backdrop. Fender was interested in the concept and reached out to Smith directly to participate. She liked the idea, doing the voiceover and playing the guitar in the ad at Electric Ladyland studio in New York.
“It turned out pretty epic,” said McGarrah Jessee CCO Tim Roan. “If you look at all the images, we were able to pull through a great representation of 70 years of music. It turned into something pretty special and big.”
The campaign will have paid support across social channels, guitar trade print and digital.
Covering all basses
In addition to the ad, Fender is bringing the guitars to the people. There will be a pop-up at Austin City Limits with a performance by Black Pumas guitarist Adrian Quesada’s solo act, Boleros Psicodélicos, a direct-to-vinyl recording booth along with the opportunity to purchase the ‘51 Telecaster guitar at its original $229.90 price.
“We’re leveraging the momentum of music lovers and everyone being in town to celebrate music, and then to celebrate the release of these guitars,” Strauss said. “It felt like such harmony for the campaign.”
A second experiential pop-up in one of Tokyo’s most avant-garde neighborhoods will feature the ‘57 Stratocaster at its original $274.50 price.
The brand will also debut its first full-page print ad in the Sunday edition of The New York Times on Oct. 16. Fender has also taken out full-page ads in the Austin American Statesman on Oct. 12, 13, 14, and 16 to support the pop-up event at ACL. It featured artists such as Brothers Osborne, James Bay and Jeff Beck in the campaign.
Living off brand authenticity
Founded in 1946, Fender has its long history as the ace in the hole. It’s had some of the largest artists such as Smith, Jimi Hendrix and platinum-selling artist H.E.R. use the instrument, which builds the brand’s credibility.
“Authentic connections is something that so many brands are always fighting to create and establish,” Jones said. “And honestly, if I compare this to my time at Nike, we used to always talk about amplifying the voice of the athlete, and certainly Nike has an authentic relationship with athletes.
“But that in some way pales in comparison to what the Fender brand has built over 75 years, if you think back to all the investment it’s put into perfecting the art and science of crafting all these instruments that can be used to help artists find their voice and express themselves.”
