We all know the jingle, it's been the anthem of Australian winters since the 1980s:
"Cold, cold, cold, flu,
And there's people depending on you,
Soldier on, soldier on, soldier on with Codral, soldier on,
SOLDIER ON,
Soldier on with Codral, soldier on,
SOLDIER ON,
You know you're winning the fight when things aren't going right,
Soldier on with Codral,
SOLDIER ON!
Soldier on with Codral, soldier onnnnnnnnnn!”
While it's a happy jingle, there has always been a sniff of recklessness in the messaging (and don't get me started on the lack of subject-verb agreement in line two).
To point this out, ‘back in the day’ (i.e. 3 months ago) would have resulted in you being labelled a stiff old nag. "It's just a song, chill out!" would have been the standard stock response.
There have been many revisions over the years, with some adverts not even featuring the song. The “Soldier On” motto has remained the same though, and the imagery of sickly humans, popping pills then heading out to infect others hasn’t shifted.
The song has also lasted the test of time in the minds of many, and since it’s been churning through mine, I’m going to pull focus on it. Even without hearing it, when I see a box of Codral, the tune pings into my brain, like an anthem to the working masses.
However, with COVID-19, the anti-soldier-on-kill-joys have finally been vindicated. Everyone, from Scomo, P!nk, and your work colleagues are pleading with anyone showing symptoms of a cold or flu to stay-the-hell-at-home!
So, what does Codral do now?
Their call-to-action is iconic. Soldier on with Codral, soldier on, dammit! It sits up there with the "All beef patty, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onion, on a sesame seed bun".
Is it enough for them to keep the messaging as is, but change the imagery? Instead of having the plagued storming into our communal spaces, could we have them sitting in front of their computer at home (fitted out with PJ pants, a cuppa tea and box of Codral by their side)?
No. Changing the imagery alone wouldn't penetrate the consumers' consciousness.
The visual is only one of many angles that the consumer would interact with Codral's branding. They need to change the narrative. But would this make ‘Soldier On’ redundant?
Their current message tells us that we can suffocate the symptoms of the cold and flu and trudge on with our duties, like good little soldiers.
They're not claiming to heal us, although their imagery does infer that once you pop a Codral, you’re no longer infectious. Their scripting tells us that life doesn't need to come to a sudden halt should we find ourselves afflicted with the dreaded lurgy.
Is this still relevant if we're now being told that coughing our way through the streets, and office corridors is downright dastardly?
Yes, I think it is.
While COVID-19 and the flu can knock you down (temporarily and permanently), the cold, and COVID-19 can often just slow you down, but not stop you. A heavy head, cough, and snotty nose is often more inconvenient than debilitating. It’s those that choose to valiantly endure the cold and mild COVID-19 symptoms, who pose the most risk to their community. From now onwards, wherever you sit on the sickness scale, you must stay at home, no excuses.
Pre COVID-19, the separation between work and the home was very clearly defined. Those lines have now been blurred. Those who used to insist that working from home was a 'cop-out' are most likely working from home themselves now.
We have been forced by the global retraction into our homes to make the very best of this invidious position we find ourselves in. Our homes are now respected, not only as alternate workspaces but as legitimate full-time offices.
It's even possible that some of the hard-nosed "real work only happens outside of the home" sorts have now gained an appreciation of exactly how much energy goes into running a functioning home and family. With credit to COVID-19, they've had direct experience of exactly what happens while they’ve been labouring away in their assigned workspaces.
Codral had already started integrating domestic duties with the “heading out to work” imagery into their contemporary advertising. Now, they just need to extract the workers from the offices, construction sites and community spaces and funnel them into domestic confines.
It is, therefore, a viable proposition that Codral can keep its "Soldier On" messaging, but there needs to be a compromise to reflect the shift in society's attitude towards what this soldiering on entails. We need new visuals, revised messaging and at least a token of recognition that Codral comes into second place after a decent period of rest and healing.
To punch home their shift in approach, maybe they could revive their original anthem, and drill a new message into our jingle loving brains. It’d stick harder and faster than any unsung script. I'm not a lyricist (as you’ll soon find out). However, I think my revised, clunky, version of their original anthem might go some way to embracing our healthier attitude to where and how we must now "soldier on".
Cold, Cold, COVID, Flu,
And there are people depending on you,
Just stay at home, get some rest, then soldier on with Codral soldier on,
SOLDIER ON,
Work from home with Codral, work from home,
WORK FROM HOME,
You know you're doing what's right when others are outta sight,
Soldier on with Codral,
SOLDIER ON!
Work from home with Codral, work from hommmmeee!
Whaddya think of that then troops?