A very astute client made an observation the other day. We were talking about marketing to moms and she said “I think we have to remember that a mom is so much more that just that, you have to talk to her as a woman.” Very smart observation indeed.
Sometimes marketers get so wrapped up in their product and their “core target” that they forget to look at the bigger picture. And, while being a mom might be the most important thing in your target’s life right now (let’s call her Sally), it is not all that Sally is about. She’s also a businesswoman, a gardener, someone who’s interested in the arts and dining out, a kayaker, snowboarder or even a collector of antique lunchboxes.
That’s why it’s so important to understand the benefits of the products and services you’re trying to market, not just the attributes. Sure, Sally is happy that you offer something she needs, but if you can tell her why it is a benefit to her in context of the bigger picture that is her life, you’re more likely to win her over.
Electrolux is doing a nice job with that. Busy working mom Kellie Ripa can be even more amazing than she is while having fun entertaining friends, making cookies, doing laundry and spending some quality time with her children all because she uses Electrolux appliances. Their website even has Kelly’s playlists that link to iTunes to “help you get your groove on” while at the gym, entertaining or hanging with the kids.
They don’t talk about load capacity or how many cycles a machine has. We can read that in the product specs online or at the store. What they do very nicely is imply that the benefit of buying their appliances is that you will have time to do the things you want to do in your busy life without being a slave to your oven, washer or dryer.
Now those are benefits a lot of moms could groove on.
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advertising,
marketing to moms,
product benefits
The question goes something like this:
“Oh, dear, oh, dear, oh, my….(much hand-wringing)….
What in the world will creatives do with new media, social networking, conversation-based marketing, and the fading dreams of producing multi-million dollar TV spots and print campaigns?”
Well, the answer goes something like this:
Some are scared. Some are confused. But the good ones, the smart ones, are into it. Really.
You see, good creatives like a challenge. They like to find ways to reach people. They like figuring out how to craft an effective message, one that gets attention and creates buzz. They enjoy making something new and different.
In a way, new media makes our jobs somewhat easier.
Remember how we creatives are always saying that single-minded messages are the most powerful? That you really need to focus, do away with all that extraneous stuff that just mucks up ads? Well, guess what – new media FORCES clients to be more single-minded in each message. You just can’t do a PPC or a tweet with a laundry list of bullet points, now can you?
Good creative is just as important as it ever was, maybe more so. After all, when you have to engage people immediately and you want them to respond, you’ve got to show them something they enjoy, are interested in or want to see. Sure, it’s a creative challenge. And that’s just what us creatives like.
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new media
Here are some worthwhile events to consider. We’ll be there – either speaking or attending.
May 12th: “Telling Your Story” at Ann Arbor Spark. For details and to register go here. Rhonda Huie, re:group’s creative director is a panelist.
May 12th: ‘Salute to Women’s Leadership” Noon Luncheon at Washtenaw Community College, Morris Lawrence Building. Susan Martin, president of Eastern Michigan university is the featured guest speaker. The event honors, Lisa Hesse, Ann Mattson and Ellie Serras. For more information contact carey.jernigan@regroup.us.
May 21st: Atlanta Franchise Alliance. Networking with about 75-100 like-minded franchise types, at the PaperMill Grill, Atlanta, Georgia, from 5-7PM. re:group is your host. No. charge. For more information contact carey.jernigan@regroup.us.
June 2nd: Southeast Michigan Women’s Franchise Network, topic:“Innovation”. Sponsored by re:group and featuring panels Linda Girard, Pure Visibilty; Kevin Ward, uRefer; and Linda Daichendt, Strategic Growth Concepts.
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awards,
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franchising,
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creative,
event,
events,
franchise,
marketing,
social,
women,
women's marketing
It’s sad to see a leadership brand, slide out of the limelight. I was speaking with someone this morning about Hoover’s, A D&B Company. After decades we had stopped our paid subscription. In the course of our discussion, we both agreed that while recent mergers, and acquisitions had been great financial decisions, however they did not do much to support the Hoover’s brand. Just added to the confusion.
Somehow in the midst of those changes, they lost sight of the changing needs of their customers and of the competitive landscape. Lost focus. They tried to become all things to all customers. Information is rapidly becoming a commodity, without a value proposition and point of distinction the Hoover’s brand is simply a logo (a rather dated one at that.)
Today it is not action which kills a brand, it’s inaction. Like all living things, if your brand is not reviewed, fed and nurtured, it will fail to thrive. Hoover’s has wilted, but with great deal of rapid strategic effort it may have the ability to make a comeback or it could disappear in the blink of an eye.
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branding,
general Tags:
aging brands,
brand,
commodity brands
Your name is not your brand. Neither is your logo, or your uniform.
It seems that outside the marketing world, people think that a company or product name is, in itself, the brand. In fact, it’s not. A name does not represent a brand all by itself – it’s only one element of the overall brand architecture. A brand is the representation of an idea to consumers, partners, employees, press and the general public, while the name only acts as the introduction, or title, of the idea. The name puts a face on the product and makes an initial impression. Think about what you what you associate with Apple:
Savvy, cool, innovative, techie, creative, useful, popular…
The word apple alone would not normally evoke the words above. The words that you associate with Apple as a company is the work of branding. It takes a mix of elements like products, product design, promotion, advertising, packaging, merchandising and more to create those associations. While the name is important it does not mean anything without the branding efforts behind it.
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branding,
naming
So, a bunch of us re:group folks just spent about 45 minutes waiting in line in the rain and sleet to get free ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day. Jan got Cherry Garcia, Kendra chose Strawberry Cheesecake, Katie picked low fat Chocolate Fudge Brownie frozen yogurt (like she needs low fat? geez…!), Ashley and Sharon got Half Baked and I selected the Mint Chocolate Chunk.
The re:group team lines up for Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's
Sure, we’re suckers for anything free, especially when it’s as amazing as Ben & Jerry’s. But, for us marketing folks, it’s the idea behind the event that really makes this special.
For those of you who don’t know, Free Cone Day started 30 years ago when Ben & Jerry (the guys) decided to thank their customers for being loyal fans of their ice cream. Every since that tasty event, Scoop Shops spend one day each year passing out free cones to anyone willing to stand in line for it.
Aside from being a great way to get people to sample their product, it’s also a highly visible demonstration of what’s at the core of their brand. Ben & Jerry’s has a three part mission statement, giving equal value to social, economic and product initiatives. At the heart of the mission is the idea that all three parts must thrive equally in a way that creates deep respect for individuals both inside and outside of the company, and that they must support the communities of which they are a part. Everything that Ben & Jerry’s does is held to these standards and evaluated in relation to this mission.
So why does Free Cone Day make so much sense? Because there’s nothing contrived, conjured or concocted in Ben & Jerry’s display of gratitude to their customers. If you’ve been to a Free Cone Day you’ve probably witnessed how excited the staff is to be scooping non-stop all day and how much fun they’re having making people happy.
Sure, it’s an opportunity to make a big PR splash and to get folks to try the products. But, it’s much, much more than that. It continues to be a way for local franchise owners, staff and corporate operations to live their brand, to demonstrate that Ben & Jerry’s cares about their community and to bring a little euphoria to people’s lives.
You just can’t get much better than that.
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branding,
franchising,
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Ben & Jerry's,
brand essence,
Free Cone Day,
marketing your brand
In 1975, Frederick Brooks, Jr. wrote The Mythical Man-Month. In the book, he refuted the common notion that a given task could be completed in less time if only more labor could be brought to bear against it. If a man-month is the number of hours that a human being can spend on a task in thirty days, then surely having more man-months would allow a task to be completed in less time.
Brooks writes that, unless a task can be partitioned among workers with no communication (like picking cotton), the application of more effort has less effect on the schedule than one might think. Simply put, there are projects that, no matter how many people you throw at them, just cannot be completed in less time. In one memorable example, he pointed out that you can’t have a baby in less than nine months by assigning three women to the task.
While Brook’s essays were based on observations about software engineering, the principles are applicable to other fields – even marketing, advertising and brand communications.
Our world works at lightning speed. With iPhones and Blackberrys we’re never disconnected. The expectation is that every communication will be answered in moments, and every project has an “I need it yesterday” deadline.
But at what point do we need to slow down, take a breath and admit that sometimes it takes a little time to do the best work? That throwing a bunch of people on the project does not make up for lack of time? And that sometimes in order to get the desired results, you have to follow a process and not cut corners for the sake of getting it done faster.
Certainly it’s important to be flexible, nimble, and responsive. But isn’t it time we all slowed down for just a moment and gave ourselves time to think?
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advertising,
general Tags:
deadlines,
project management,
timelines
