Target ads star Kristen Wiig’s Target Lady—behind the marketing plans for loyalty program overhaul

The Target Lady—the crazy cashier played by Kristen Wiig on “Saturday Night Live”—is back, this time as the central character in a major marketing push from Target as it promotes its newly revamped loyalty program. Target’s campaign, launching today, is the first time the retailer is using the character in its ads. “You have audiences that resonate with the nostalgia of the character and remember her from SNL and for others, Kristen Wiig is incredibly relevant and exciting in terms of her standing as an actress and a performer,” said Lisa Roath, executive VP and chief marketing officer at Target. “We think it will have really broad appeal across all audiences.” Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs Multi-generational appeal is what Minneapolis-based Target is banking on as it seeks to attract shoppers from across the country to the new Target Circle program. Alongside the program’s debut, Target is running its Target Circle Week of deals and promotions from April 7 to 13. Announced last month, the new Target Circle introduces a paid membership and rebrands the Target RedCard credit card to the Target Circle Card. Target Circle 360 costs $49 for the first year for those who sign up by May 18, and is always $49 for those with a Target Circle Card. Target Circle 360 also has free same-day delivery for online orders exceeding $35 with Shipt, the delivery service Target bought in 2017. The model is similar to membership programs from Target rivals Amazon and Walmart. Target will also continue to offer its Target Circle free membership that includes personalized deals and perks. “The Target Circle launch is not just a top marketing priority, it’s a top enterprise priority,” said Roath, noting that Target Circle already has 100 million members. “This is where we’re putting the most energy and weight is marketing the Target Circle program,” she added. The new work was developed in-house with Target Creative in a final push from Todd Waterbury, the long-time Target chief creative officer who retired last month. The retailer also worked with Wiig and former “SNL” writer James Anderson and director Tom Kuntz. Essence handled media duties. The campaign includes 12 distinct spots running in 30-second, 15-second and 6-second iterations. It will run on linear TV around events such as March Madness, including both the women’s and men’s remaining games, and the CMT Music Awards, on social media channels such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and Pinterest, on digital video and on audio. Also read: Women’s March Madness is in marketing demand Ads target the different aspects of the program. For example, one highlights the new Target credit card, while another focuses on the paid membership. Wiig created the Target Lady character while at the Groundlings sketch comedy group and used it in her audition tape for SNL. Wiig, who left the “SNL” cast in 2012, is set to return as its host on Saturday, April 6. The updated Target Circle program debuts on Sunday, April 7. There is no official tie between the episode and the retailer, per Target. Value and humor Target has been focusing on new in-house labels such as Figmint, a kitchenware brand, and Dealworthy, which is price-focused to give more options to value-seeking customers. Neil Saunders, a retail analyst with GlobalData Retail, noted in a research note that “low prices have become much more important to Target shoppers and, over the past year, more of them have been switching to other retailers which have stronger opening price points.” Roath said that the redesigned loyalty program is the brand’s answer to feedback from customers around wanting to save money and that Target will continue to use humor as a way of connecting with consumers. “We want this to break through with consumers, what you’ll see from the brand is us tapping into culture, into humor in ways that we know our brand already resonates,” she said. For its most recent quarter, which included the crucial holiday selling season, Target reported a 1.6% rise in sales from a year earlier, to $31.5 billion; earnings rose 58% to $1.38 billion. Ad Age Creativity Bookmark our section covering the best in brand creativity every day Read more here

Target ads star Kristen Wiig’s Target Lady—behind the marketing plans for loyalty program overhaul

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