This week the marketing world lost a beloved member. Gracing TV and print ads for almost 20 years, “Got Milk?” has earned a special place in our hearts. It is an iconic tagline accompanied by an equally iconic slew of celebrity endorsements.
Who can forget trying to imitate Alex Trebek’s milk mustache after seeing that print ad warning “Your bones may be in jeopardy”? Was that just me? Ok, how about Dennis Rodman’s? I think I’m going in the wrong direction here. But the point is that we will miss “Got Milk?” The fact that I can use it as a noun speaks to its importance.
The new tagline is shifting to health. It will now be “Milk Life” and focus on the protein benefits offered by an 8 oz glass, which differs from the classic campaign that focused on milk as a necessary part of enjoying other foods—cereal, peanut butter and jelly, cake.
What the ad campaign achieved is what all campaigns should strive for. In a day when ad campaigns seem to be getting more and more complicated (I’m looking at you, Old Spice), we could use a dose of some classic simplicity. The question is, what tagline will be the next “Got Milk?” What will be the next milk mustache?