Why Best Buy is introducing its first spokesman

As consumers become more tech-savvy, Best Buy is eager to keep up with them and reverse its sales declines. The retailer is debuting a new tagline, its first spokesman and an updated look as it strives to be more of a “tech discovery” partner for shoppers than its former role as go-to expert. In time for the back-to-school shopping season, new ads began airing last week under the “Imagine That” campaign. “Tech is so pervasive it is in every aspect of our lives that some of the sparkle of technology has gotten lost a little bit,” said Jennie Weber, Best Buy’s chief marketing officer. “This was a perfect opportunity to really reimagine the brand and talk about the role we can play in [consumers’] lives in improving the shopping experience and bringing the sparkle back to technology.” Part of that sparkle arrives in the form of a hologram as the chain introduces ‘Gram,’ a “spokeshologram” who is starring in a series of TV ads for back-to-school. Three 30-second ads are currently airing with a fourth planned for this week and a fifth for September. Each spot concludes with the “Imagine that” tagline shown in text. More from Ad Age: The top 5 creative campaigns to know about now Weber said this is the first time Best Buy has a spokesperson, and that the role will function as an important and flexible marketing tool. The Minneapolis-based chain is also adding more colors beyond its typical blue, white and yellow. Magenta and teal will appear in some marketing as the brand tries to add warmth to its offerings, Weber said. Several ads will highlight vendor partners including Lenovo and Intel. “We can humanize the technology in a unique way by leveraging a ‘spokeshologram,’” she said, noting that having a spokesperson will also enable Best Buy to “drive brand cues” through its advertising. Best Buy created the campaign internally. An unnamed agency partner handled media buying, a spokeswoman said. 40 under 40 entries are open The final deadline for nominations is Aug. 2 Enter here The shift comes as Best Buy tries to spur sales following an uptick in home office shopping during the pandemic. Revenue fell more than 6.5% to $8.85 billion in its recent fiscal first quarter, after falling more than 6% in fiscal 2024 and 10% in fiscal 2023. “The mix of macro factors continued to create a challenging sales environment for our category during the quarter and our sales were slightly softer than our expectations,” said CEO Corie Barry in a statement in May. “We will continue to navigate the environment while remaining focused and energized about our purpose to Enrich Lives through Technology.”

Why Best Buy is introducing its first spokesman

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