Meerkats Get Organized for the New Year

Happy New Year! That is, if you discount the weather, and the pandemic, and the bills…

January is an odd time for advertising, with a post-Christmas hangover meaning few big new campaigns. Those which do launch often focus on life improvements – getting finances or health in order, or starting positive new habits. And while these are admirable goals, they often aren’t ones that leave viewers feeling particularly positive. It’s all too easy for advertisers to come across as finger-wagging or patronising when they start getting into life advice.

So it’s great to see an advert which uses the impulse to get your life in order at this time of year and makes something entertaining out of it. Price comparison site comparethemarket.com are no strangers to Ad Of The Week, as their recurring meerkat characters Sergei and Aleksandr are the UK’s most successful Fluent Devices of the 21st century. Sergei has even lent his name to their app, Autosergei, which has been the focus of several ads a year since its launch in 2018.

In the new ad, Sergei finds getting his bills in order so easy that he gets into an organising frenzy, sorting out all his various activities. When he considers himself finished, the lazy Aleksandr has other ideas. It’s not the most compelling of storylines but it doesn’t need to be – people like seeing these characters, their antics, and the shots of Sergei dancing to MC Hammer make viewers happy too.

The ad scored 4.6-Stars – not the highest we’ve ever seen from the brand but still an excellent rating for a financial services ad. It also hit exceptional levels of short-term Spike and Brand Fluency – highly relevant since the ad is clearly designed to hit a certain mood in a certain time frame. Ultimately it’s another example of how investing in Fluent Device characters stands a brand in good stead – they can be far more effective at delivering messages which are less inherently exciting or emotional.