Asda tells customers ‘don’t settle for less’ in new campaign

Asda is rolling out a new brand campaign urging consumers not to “settle for less” by shopping with its rivals.

The first 30-second ad of the ‘Don’t Compromise’ campaign, created by AMV BBDO, sees couple Katie and Simon being winched out of the mud by a mountain rescue helicopter, because they couldn’t decide between an adventure holiday in the mountains or a luxury spa, and so were forced to compromise.

All is not lost, however, as the couple end up enjoying an Asda plant-based feast with their rescue team. The ad is supporting the launch today (2 January) of Asda’s new Plant Based range of 48 vegan products. Starting at £1.50, the supermarket is pitching the range of smoky tofu burritos and ‘duckless’ spring rolls as the “most affordable” on the market.

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With the new campaign, Asda is attempting to show consumers that they do not need to compromise on quality, price, their values or their time. Chief customer officer, Andy Murray, explains that having “premium quality own-brand products and branded favourites” all under one roof means there is no need for customers to “settle for less”.

“This new ad campaign brings all of that to life, mixed with the playful personality our customers know and love,” he adds.

The retailer plans to launch a secondary value-focused campaign, designed to highlight the fact Asda has won the Grocer 33 mystery shopper price award for the cheapest core trolley for the past 22 years.

Asda’s vice president of creative and media, Eilidh Macaskill, explains that the campaign aims to convey the supermarket’s “playful and optimistic brand personality”, while also encouraging customers it is the home of “great value, high-quality products”.

Asda started putting the focus on quality over price back in August, when it launched a campaign in collaboration with Downton Abbey. The 30-second ad saw Mrs Patmore, played by actress Lesley Nicol, prepare a feast for a visit from the Royal family. The ad then switched back to the present day, with a voiceover saying: “With thousands of rollbacks, you don’t need to pay a king’s ransom.”

Speaking at the time, Macaskill underlined Asda’s aim to provide customers with “delicious, low-cost meal ideas that don’t compromise on quality”.

A similar tone has been adopted by discount rival Lidl, which in June went live with a new brand campaign positioning the supermarket as a destination for quality, not just low prices. Then speaking during the launch of the retailer’s Christmas campaign Lidl GB marketing director, Claire Farrant, stated that Lidl’s “focus on quality” ensures that shoppers “don’t have to compromise”.

Elsewhere, Tesco spent 2019 celebrating its centenary with its ‘100 years of great value’ campaign. Shortlisted as one of Marketing Week’s campaigns of 2019, Tesco brought back pop-culture figures from the past 100 years – including Mr Blobby and 90s fitness guru Mr Motivator – for a nostalgic campaign that focused on the supermarket’s place in shoppers’ lives over the decades.