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Posts Tagged ‘advertising’

Advertisers Vs. Consumers- How Consumers Have Changed and How Marketers Must Adapt

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

I was looking for client commericals on YouTube today and stumbled across this bit of food for thought. It cleverly addresses the fundamental communication problems with advertisers and consumers and the unpleasant aftermath that can result.

The days of advertising are behind us. Not that we should abandon our glossy ads, slick television spots and fun radio promotions. It’s just that advertising is a one-way conversation. These efforts should be part of an overall marketing plan that helps us develop two-way communication with our audience.

Today’s audiences need to be engaged and feel like they have an advocate. We have to reach them on their terms, where they spend their time. But it’s not enough just to be there.

We have to relate to them, understand them and offer them something relevant, whether it’s content, goods, or services.

Most importantly, we have to have a dialogue with them–make it easy for them to contact us and leave feedback. (Don’t fear bad feedback. That’s what really helps us grow into the business our audience wants us to be.) And then we need to address each comment, complaint and request. That’s the only way we’ll create brand ambassadors who are happy to sing our praises.

Tags: advertising, BusinessVoice, commercials, communication, dialogue, marketing, marketing plans
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You’re Unbelievable!

Wednesday, July 22nd, 2009

It was a great song in the early 90’s, and it could be a nice compliment, but it’s the last thing you want someone to say about your marketing message.

Marcia Yudkin agrees. In this morning’s “The Marketing Minute, ” she expresses her disbelief over an advertiser’s magazine ad copy.

“Oh, come on!”

That was my reaction on reading this, in the second paragraph of a full-page magazine ad: “[Company name] is virtually the only franchise brand committed to providing genuinely nutritious and delicious products.”

This couldn’t be true, I thought.

When you make a preposterous claim, it taints everything else you say. Am I willing to let that statement pass and believe that this company’s food is low-calorie, gluten-free and full of probiotics? No.

In marketing, it can be worse to say something unbelievable than something untrue.

If you have a claim that’s hard to believe, simply saying it doesn’t convince. You must either explain how it’s true, provide third-party proof or back-pedal it to a more believable statement.

Don’t expect weasel words like “virtually” to bail you out with a skeptical reader.

To check my instinctive response, before writing this piece I searched Google for “healthy food franchise.” As I’d suspected, dozens of companies show up in that category.

“One of America’s fastest growing new brands” (so they say) is rapidly shooting itself in the foot.

For starters, who places an ad with 2 paragraphs of copy? Very few people are going to read that. And by very few, I mean only people whose flights have been sitting on the tarmac for 3 hours. After they’ve run out of things to read and their cell phones have died.

Marcia’s right. When you say something that while true, may be hard to believe, you have to do more than say it. You have to PROVE it. State facts and verifiable truths and you will position your business as a trustworthy, reliable company. And instead of pigeon-holing yourself into the same category as your competitors, focus on a unique aspect of your business, and build your brand and marketing messages around that. It’s the best way to differentiate yourself.

Tags: advertising, differentiate, marketing
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Communicating With Your Customers

Monday, May 4th, 2009

A recent study by Mindset Media reveals that personality is a more effective predictor for media consumption behavior than traditional demographic signifiers like age, gender and income.

As reported by Beth Snyder Bulik for AdAge, Mindset surveyed over 5,000 people using 21 elements of personality including leadership, openness, perfectionism and dynamism, as well as traditional demographics. The findings were interesting. See the full article here.

What happens after you’ve combined traditional demographic data and personality indicators to determine your marketing direction? You spend a lot of your marketing budget trying to get consumers to call, click or visit. But what happens to your marketing messages after that?

That’s where Point-Of-Entry Marketing comes in.

A point of entry is any portal through which people access your business or organization, such as your telephone, your website, and your front door. Point-Of-Entry Marketing picks up where your mass marketing leaves off and provides a smooth transition into your business or organization.

No matter what demographic or personality profile your customers fit into, you can reach them with your most important messages at a time when they are ready to buy – when they’ve called you, visited your website, or come to your location.

And the best part is, it’s cost-effective because you already own the medium. You don’t have to buy air time on your phone lines; there are never any competitors’ messages playing in your lobby or your store; and no one else can put their sale information on your website.

Learn more about Point-Of-Entry Marketing here.

Tags: advertising, budget marketing, low cost media, marketing, marketing on a budget, media, messages on hold, music on hold, newspaper, on hold music, radio, telephone, television
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Words Not To Live By: Once Powerful Words Now Meaningless

Monday, April 20th, 2009

There are many words floating around out there that no longer have any meaning. At first mention, they seemed visionary, powerful and capable of generating very specific emotions. Now, they sound hollow, meaningless, and they cause our eyes to glaze over.

If you are going to use them in your marketing, make sure your message is clear, valid and appropriate to your audience. Just because you’re packaging an offer that will save people money, doesn’t mean you have to pitch it as a “recession special.” Give the message an emotional appeal instead, and relate to the struggles your audience is facing. Real dialogue will have a much bigger impact than throwing out buzz words like “stimulus.”

And if you can, use these words in positive speech. I probably wouldn’t mind hearing the word recession so much if someone would tell me how we’re going to get out of it.

Recession

Slowdown

Stimulus

Bailout

Economy

Layoffs

Unemployment

Crisis

Downturn

What words are you tired of hearing? How would you use these words to give them new life?

Tags: advertising, business, economy, marketing, words
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Marketing Goes To The Dogs

Thursday, February 26th, 2009

You’ve see them in designer pet bags, their diamond studded collars glinting in the sun. They were on their way to see their masseuse at Noon and have a play date at the Treat Bar at 3:30.

What has happened to man’s best friend?! We’ve overly sissified our pets!

But there’s hope for the furry droolers. Alpo’s new campaign takes dog owners back to the days when a ratty tennis ball and a pile of dirt were the only things a dog needed to be happy. Check out the spot here: Quick, get that dog some Alpo! The website is cute too, complete with a “Fido or Fifi” test, and a menu of what dogs would cook if they could. And Alpo sweetens the deal with a buy one-get one free coupon for your four-legged friend’s next meal.

So dogs get their ”dogness” back, and their humans get a reminder to un-froufrou their own lives, which isn’t a bad idea at all in this economy.

What can you do to un-froufrou? How will you get back to basics?

Tags: advertising, commercials, economy
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Don’t Be A Greenwasher

Friday, July 18th, 2008

In a recent article and marketing tip we cautioned against greenwashing, the practice of overstating a product’s or company’s positive impact on the environment. Here’s more on the subject from a piece in the New York Times:

“With everyone from oil companies to dishwasher makers to banks trotting out their environmental credentials, complaints about greenwashing, or misleading consumers about a product’s environmental benefits, have risen.

The Advertising Standards Authority, an industry-financed group that monitors ad content in Britain, said it had received 561 complaints from consumers about green claims in 410 ads in 2007, up from 117 complaints about 83 ads the year before.

As regulators work out their response, bloggers and other Internet critics have already started to expose what they see as greenwash advertising.

According to Mike Lawrence, executive vice president for corporate responsibility at Cone, a brand strategy agency in Boston, the problem occurs when marketers make exaggerated claims about a product’s attributes, which may be fine when selling toothpaste or vacations. Most people probably know that the toothpaste will not actually make their teeth sparkle or help them get a date.

But when a company says its product will improve the environment, consumers can sense if the claim is puffed up, Mr. Lawrence said. “This can really backfire with environmental advertising,” he said.

To address this problem, agencies are advising marketers to avoid vague and unsubstantiated claims — the kind that bloggers and other critics are quick to pounce on. Instead, they suggest pointing to a specific step the advertiser has taken or asking consumers to take a small but concrete action.

For example, Procter & Gamble, which makes laundry detergent, has been running a campaign in Britain that urges consumers to conserve energy by washing clothing at 86 degrees Fahrenheit rather than at higher temperatures.”

Tags: advertising, branding, environment, marketing plans
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New Technologies Make Broadcast Channels A Tough Sell

Friday, May 9th, 2008

People who own DVRs (Digital Video Recorders) and access television programming online watch fewer commercials. A lot fewer, according to an Adweek article by Brian Morrissey:

“The TV industry often touts the fact that DVR owners watch more TV than those with only ‘live’ programming. Yet DVR viewers frequently skip the commercials. Over 50 percent of respondents said they ‘always’ fast-forward through commercials, and another 36 percent said they skip them at least three-quarters of the time. Fully 85 percent of respondents said they watch fewer commercials since they got their DVRs.”

Traditional radio is struggling with the same problem. Satellite radio and music services, along with the iPod and similar devices, have made it much easier for listeners to actively avoid, not just radio advertising, but its programming as well.

These examples serve as another argument for intensifying the focus of your marketing messages on existing customers. Concentrate your marketing efforts on an audience that’s more open to what you have to say, not those trying to avoid your message. Those folks already in your database don’t need to be convinced that you’re a fine, upstanding company. They already know it.

Chances are good, though, they don’t know everything you can do for them. So work to educate them about all that you offer with the intent of increasing customer share, not market share. You can do this easily with On Hold Messaging, TeleGreeting and Point-Of-Purchase Audio. These tools allow you to communicate cost-effectively with your captive audiences – those that can’t change channels or fast forward: your callers on hold and the shoppers in your store.

Tags: advertising, marketing plans, radio, technology, television
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Buckeye Chose Jerry

Monday, March 24th, 2008

BusinessVoice President Jerry Brown is featured as a satisfied customer in Buckeye TeleSystem’s new “We Chose Buckeye” campaign. Check out Jerry’s TV spot, his billboard, and his web ad.

Jerry is taking full advantage of his new celebrity. He’s signed on to appear on next season’s “Dancing With The Stars,” he’s already penning his tell-all autobiography, and he’s launching his own line of popcorn and spaghetti sauce.

Tags: advertising, BusinessVoice, Jerry Brown, television, Web
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Livin’ The High Life

Monday, March 17th, 2008

After 105 years, Miller Brewing Company is breathing new life into their original bubbly pilsner. The Milwaukee brewer recently launched Miller High Life Extras, a points-based loyalty program that rewards those who are “livin’ the high life.”

It’s simple. Just buy a specially marked 12 or 30-pack of Miller High Life, or Miller High Life Light, if you’re watching your figure. Each bottle or can is worth 10 points, which then can be redeemed with the click of a button at MillerHighLife.com. Proving once again that loyalty and enjoyment go hand-in-hand.

First put on the market in 1903, Miller High Life, also known as “The Champagne of Beers,” is Miller Brewing’s oldest and perhaps most dormant brand in the family. But over the last few years, High Life has more than doubled their advertising budget and enlisted the help of a quirky, down-to-earth delivery truck driver. And it’s produced results: shipments increased to just over 5 million barrels by the end of 2007.

With the huge push behind Miller High Life Extras, one can’t help but remember the enormous (and still ongoing) success of the 1996 launch of PepsiCo’s “Pepsi Points” promotion strategy.

While the Miller Merchandise doesn’t include multimedia prizes like MP3s, the rewards range from High Life screen savers (60 points) to branded fire pits (31,000 points). In between there’s a wardrobe to be earned, like deliveryman shirts and baseball caps. Unlike previous efforts in the beer industry, this promotion is running for a full-year. Maybe even longer.

Miller has done a phenomenal job in utilizing multiple facets of the marketing mix to revitalize an aging brand. The TV spots combined with the new loyalty program are hitting on two important consumer behavior points. Whereas advertising typically provides consumers a reason to buy, sales promotions offer consumers an incentive to buy. And a tangible giveaway, like a Miller High Life-branded fire pit, is a pretty good incentive. Consumers who may not have ever yearned to “live the high life” may want to at least try the brand now. And those who have a fiery brand loyalty to the bargain brew will be compelled to buy more, and buy often.

Miller High Life–aged 105 years and positioned as common sense in a bottle. But will consumers buy into it?

Tags: advertising, branding, marketing, rewards, sales
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Tires, Berets And Kimonos, Oh My!

Friday, March 7th, 2008

I saw a commercial the other morning that really made me laugh. It’s a Titan Tire commercial, which if you you would like to have a hearty chuckle, you can view here. Just click on the “kimono” link.

It was funny to me because of the recent state America’s relationship to all things foreign. Funnier still was seeing rugged cowboy types accessorizing a lasso with a beret and pairing a pitchfork with a silky kimono.

I thought it expertly and humorously isolated what’s different about American manufactured products.

But it wasn’t particularly funny to an editor at Indiana State University’s student newspaper, The Statesman. Her reaction to the commerical was markedly different than mine. Read her editorial here.

This editorial offended a member of the the Terre Haute community, so much so that he responded with a letter to the editor defending the family that was attacked in the Opinions column and highlighting the lack of journalistic integrity on the part of the editor.

My point is two-fold. Firstly, what’s funny to some people may not be funny to other people; so un-funny that, as in this case, it is received as offensive and malignant. The lesson? Be cautious in your advertising, but don’t be afraid to push the envelope. If you’re too cautious, people may not have a negative reaction to your efforts, but they may not react at all.

Secondly, I came across this information only because I was searching the Internet high and low for a way to share this commercial with you. In the course of my search, I came across the editorial. Then I came across the response to it. Only then did I locate the commercial. The lesson? You can find almost anything on the Internet. Be smart about what you put out there, and about how you handle criticisms about what you put out there.

Tags: advertising, branding, humor, television, Web, word-of-mouth
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