Cobra – Here For You

Cobra’s “Here For You” campaign lives up to its name.

Cobra is proud to announce the launch of its brand-new brand positioning “Here For You”. This is no ordinary marketing campaign. Instead, it is a strategically developed and carefully curated positioning that cuts to the heart of what the Cobra brand is all about. It’s smart, savvy and heart-warming – and it’s likely to make you aware of your bathroom and kitchen moments, and love and appreciate them that much more.

Cobra has been an iconic brand for over 60 years. It’s a household name that we recognise and associate with exceptional style, quality and reliability. In countless ways, Cobra has been here for you – for those little, everyday moments – for over half a century. Here for the moments that feel mundane, like washing the dishes after supper; the moments that mean the world, like a bath drawn for you at the end of a long day; and even the moments that feel like the end of the world, like having a good post-break-up sob in the bathroom.

Every time you step in or out of your kitchen or bathroom, Cobra is here for you.

Here for You also incorporates other important elements, including a new virtual showroom and a unique, user-friendly brochure/magazine. Together with the campaign – and Cobra’s renowned products – all these assets and initiatives continue to show just how much Cobra lives up to its brand positioning.

In line with the brand positioning, renowned advertising agency TBWA developed a heart-warming and quirky campaign.

“Our thinking considered Cobra’s long heritage in South Africa and how it has continued to evolve alongside consumers,” says Mbalenhle Sekautu, Strategist at TBWA. “The brand truth about Cobra is that it has been part of consumers most significant and insignificant moments for years, and as result has become embedded in the fabric of South Africans’ lives.”

Familiar and Relatable

Rather than position Cobra as spotlessly clean and luxurious, as is so often the case among lifestyle brands, the TBWA team set about creating something real and relatable. The imagery is of people going about ordinary, daily tasks in funny and familiar ways. Imagine the mad scramble as every family member dashes to reach the bathroom first in the morning, the victory of successfully brushing your children’s teeth, or the relief at finally washing the last dish in a never-ending pile.

“We have focused on the small, everyday moments we all live through, the kind of moments where Cobra products are often present but go unnoticed,” the TBWA creative team explains. “By celebrating these moments in an exaggerated and entertaining way, we want to remind people that the little things do matter, even if they seem unimportant at the time.”

The Cobra team was immediately drawn to the concept. “Without realising it, we’ve been embodying ‘Here for You’ for years,” says Corrie Stride, Leader: Marketing at LIXIL Africa. “It’s how we think of our brand, how we understand it, and how we communicate it to the consumers, plumbers, interior designers and architects we count among our customers. We know that we truly are here for them. We always have been.”

Warm and Authentic

When TBWA presented the campaign to Cobra, the latter were crying with laugher – so much so that the TBWA team battled to keep a straight face. “We could tell that they’d really understood us,” Stride says. “They’d captured our brand with such warmth, authenticity and humour, we just knew we’d landed on an incredible approach. We also loved how the idea was in keeping with the original Cobra positioning that our customers will be familiar with, but that TBWA had brought it into 2021 in a new modern way.”

“The concept speaks to everybody in one way or another, Sekautu explains. “We believe our audiences will see themselves and their lives reflected. Even if you’ve never experienced the specific moment we’ve chosen to bring to life, you’ll recognise the human truth in it. The scenarios we’ve created also speak to Cobra’s many different customers, including consumers, architects and plumbers. There’s something for everyone.”

The Cobra campaign is multi-channelled, and will feature on television, radio, online, out of home and social media platforms. Look out for it wherever you consume your media and allow yourself to love your taps a little bit more.