*cue 90210 theme song*

I was born and raised in the 80’s, living off of Growing Pains, Who’s the Boss, Degrassi (the Original) and Fruit Loop cereal. As the 90’s rolled around, I found a show that I related to and one that was completely different than the teen shows I had watched in the past (Saved By the Bell), one that had gorgeous actors playing roles that dealt with real-life situations and being all but the age of ten, I became an instant fangirl.

Beverly Hills 90210 was my TV candy, it was my “do not call, write or visit” hour that I spent bonding with my sister and the gang from the Peach Pit. Of course we all had our favorites, myself being team Brenda and Dylan (which I still root for today), like a true hardcore fan I collected everything, from the Barbie dolls, the Topps cards (remember those?), right down to giving myself bangs.

The original 90210 was one of those shows that still linger in the hearts of fans today as we grew up alongside the actors. Spending an entire decade having Andrea moments of wanting to be Brandon’s girlfriend, waiting to see who Kelly would eventually choose, would it be bad boy Dylan? Or boy scout Brandon? and for those of us who where fans of Brenda, longing for her return.

As you can see, even though I am now 30, long past the years of 90210, and even giggle at some of the episodes I have revisited, I am still a fan, perhaps it is due to the amount of weekly time spent devoted to the show, or maybe it is because I am still in love with Dylan, either way my fangirl still lives within.

Old Navy, a clothing company, has never grabbed my attention as they have with their recent commercials, tapping into my childhood memories for marketing their back to school clothes. In 30 second ad’s I time travel back to the 90’s reliving my West Beverly moments.

Using the “back to school” theme, they parody the endless love Andrea had for Brandon and the triangle between Kelly, Dylan and Brandon, even almost using the exact line from the episode in the 90’s, except Kelly said, “I choose me”, instead of “jeans“.

This is a fantastic form of Marketing and is exactly what other businesses can use as an example of how to reach out to their targeted audience, by either focusing on something that is familiar or by tapping into emotion, which Old Navy has done both.

Like I said, I am 30 now, and that means those who watched the show way back when, are in their 30’s too, with their own families now and kids who are going back to school. Therefore, marketing to parents through memories will up the ante for them to choose your business when the competition level is high, especially when everything is “back to school” now. Who ever thought of this campaign over at Old Navy, I tip my hat to you, for this is exactly what businesses need to be doing, it is advertising done right and as a Social Media society, we have embarked more so on the psychological level of wanting businesses to target us through familiarity and treat us like they understand us as humans and not guinea pigs.

Old Navy not only marketed to the right audience, but they made the effort to learn what that audience loved and therefore the audience is more likely to be receptive to their products.

Marketing today is truly about give and take and if your business is willing to give time, effort and spend money on humanizing your campaign’s, those humans will be willing to take the time to talk about you with their friends and then take their friends (or in this case kids) to spend their hard earned dollars on your company.

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Erin Ryan is a writer for various blogs and a Social Media Promotional Director who has a keen understanding of the power of Social Media for business and fervently stays up-to-date with the Social Media Industry. Erin enjoys teaching and helping people and businesses on how to use and connect through Social Media. You can connect with Erin on Twitter.

Read more Social Media Tips on TheErinRyan Blog.