Last week my wife attended a focus group held by the folks putting on the production of Billy Elliot in Chicago. Much of the focus of this focus group was on the advertising—TV, radio, print. They were trying to get a better sense about what was—and wasn’t—working in their ads. My wife, under no duress from me, reported that the unanimous consensus among the group was that the advertising, filled with mostly dancing and rave reviews by critics, was desperately lacking . . . a tagline. Some of the participants even used that actual term. The consensus was that the advertising failed to give any real hint or glimpse or indication about what the musical was actually about, which is, of course, what a tagline would do. If you run into any of these Billy Elliot folks, please send them my way. I’d be glad to help out.

“Matters” is among the most overused words in tagline land. The most visible recent use of the word is in the tagline Chase What Matters for Chase Bank, which at least avoids playing on the word’s two meanings—”is important” and “the subject of concern, discussion, etc.” This particular play has been used to death as a newsletter heading, print ad headline and tagline for decades by hundreds, if not thousands, of organizations.

The good news is that, with the introduction of Northwestern  Memorial Hospital’s new tagline, we should, by all rights, be able to put this word to bed for good.

Their tagline is . . . Everything Matters.

Now that someone has expressed this sentiment out loud, what else is there to say? That about covers it. Any more specific statement about what matters becomes merely a subset.

Of course, as a tagline, I happen to think Everything Matters fails completely. It is yet another copout tagline, like Rush University Medical Center’s It’s How Medicine Should Be.These lines conveniently avoid having the brand be about something in particular. At some point, a statement becomes so sweeping as to become meaningless.

The bigger problem is that, if everything matters, then nothing matters. To say a particular thing matters implies that it is MORE important than something else. It is a way of prioritizing. But if everything matters, how do we distinguish between or rank which things matter more and which matter less? If I go to the hospital, I hope that they recognize the skill of their surgeons matters more than the decor in their lobby. By proclaiming that everything matters, it raises the question of whether the Northwestern folks are clear about what REALLY matters, versus what just sort of matters. What do they focus their gaze upon? Anything? If they’re looking at everything with equal intensity or concern, I’m not going anywhere near that place. If they’re trying to say they pay attention to details, or that they take every patient’s medical situation seriously, or that they, while they attend to medical treatment, they also consider the patient’s overall experience in the hospital important, why not simply say one of those things?

I find it interesting that many brands lately seem to be varying the traditional placement of their tagline in print ads. Lately I’ve seen . . .

Taglines sitting above the logo rather than to the side or below it;

Taglines used as a headline or heading of some sort;

URLs that don’t include the name of the company, but, rather, consist of a tagline;

Taglines as the last line of the body copy, but not highlighted in any way;

Taglines of a sort that vary according to the particular topic of the ad, or which product or service is featured in the ad;

A few brands, like Geico, with two or more taglines punctuating two or more distinct ad campaigns, but not used in print ads.

I see this, for the most part, as a healthy sign, because it indicates that, while many brands continue to recognize the value of the tagline, they are exploring less traditional placements or treatments, in order to freshen or make the tagline more visible. Some of these are more successful than others, but the exercise is a useful one.

Let me know if you’ve seen any other variations in the way taglines are positioned or treated.

That’s the tagline for Kemp’s Dairy. I admire it, because they kept it simple, and staked their claim clearly and with a touch of charm. It may or may not be true that “it’s the cows” that, the line implies, make their products better. And their products may or may not BE better. It doesn’t matter. I will remember and like Kemp’s because their brand isn’t afraid to be human and friendly.

One gripe, though. And this is a gripe aimed not just at Kemp’s, but at many/most businesses with websites. Why would you put the tagline on your truck or your print ad or your storefront, and NOT on your website. Why are websites somehow seen as inappropriate environments for taglines by so many brands? I find it baffling. Somebody, please, help me understand the thinking.