Asda brings back the pocket tap as it kicks off ‘new chapter’ on 50th anniversary

The “feel good” TV ad aims to celebrate what people love about shopping with the retailer. Created by VCCP, it focuses on Asda’s value range, colleagues and the “unique Asda personality”.

It will be supported by a new look for Asda advertising both in stores and in print. The supermarket’s green and white logo has been changed to introduce the yellow “Spark” of its parent Walmart, a rebrand that was announced in February.

The new strapline “Save Money. Live Better”, used by Walmart, is also being adopted in the UK.

Barry Williams, Asda’s chief customer officer, says: “Being part of Walmart allows us to do more to save people money and adopting their mission to Save Money. Live Better feels like the natural step on for our brand and I believe it will really resonate with our customers.”

A digital campaign will encourage customers to share their stories of shopping at Asda using the #pockettap line. There will also be experiential campaigns building around Asda’s 50th anniversary in July, as well as other key events such as “Back to School” and Halloween.

Williams adds: “Since we opened the doors of our first Asda 50 years ago, we have always been famous for offering great value to our customers – and doing it with a bit of personality. The industry has changed massively over the past two years and we wanted to get back to showcasing the fun and customer focus, which makes Asda special, in our advertising and stores.”

The campaign is part of Asda’s strategy to “redefine value” through a focus on everyday low prices rather than promotions and dedicated loyalty schemes. It follows on from Asda research which found that while disposable income is increasing, consumers are still being cautious about spending and prefer to invest in treats rather than having to pay more for essential items.

Asda will hope the new brand campaign and branding refresh can help boost sales, which fell by 3.9% at stores open for more than a year in the first quarter. The latest figures from Kantar Worldpanel have Asda as the worst performing of the big four supermarkets.

Asda’s Williams told Marketing Week in May that there would be a “shift” in its approach to marketing to communicating with the customer rather than talking to the other supermarkets.

All of the big four have suffered sales declines as shoppers increasingly turn to the discounters, online and convenience shopping.