Posts tagged campaign
advertising beer
May 4th
“his piñatas fight back.” – the most interesting man in the world
Cinco de Mayo brings out the beer advertising and my annual rant about beer advertising. And how bland it is … not bad … just bland.
Bland. I continue to think once a year all the beer company marketing people sit around a massive table (probably all drinking some fancy schmancy sparkling water because they are too high falutin to actually drink beer) and look at a reel of available ads and decide to divvy up the most blandly innocuous <and possibly mildly amusing if it’s not silly or immature humor> among each other.
Note: specific execution doesn’t matter because they can just insert any beer bottle/can in any of them and it would work <note completed>.
Ok.
The dog fetching beer commercial? Nice (and funny) but Alex from Stroh’s in mid 80’s was the first, and best, beer fetching dog <and multiple dogs have followed in Alex’s paw steps>: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upZ6EbaHigE
Then Budweiser wastes an awesome mashup song of Cult “she sells sanctuary” and FloRida with a pedantic ‘people having fun’ video <and having a Bud of course>. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ku0IOv78Yg
Ok. Some exceptions.
I have already written about Heineken.
And Coors. Well. How about … Coors is close. It seems like they are really clear on who they are (character and tone) and Sam Elliot’s voice over is a perfect choice but I feel like they could add some “grit” to their character. It may be bland but at least it is a reflection of what Coors is … well … at their core.
And, of course, dos equis (visit my post http://brucemctague.com/stay-thirsty-my-friends if you want a more complete review).
They are the current standard bearer for ‘what could be’ in the good advertising category.
Now. I am not sure anyone drinks the crap but everyone knows and loves the advertising campaign. The new cinco de mayo radio execution is priceless.
Absolutely frickin’ priceless.
You have to believe at some point the writing will become so absurd that the campaign loses its charm but somehow some way they keep the level of the writing very very high.
This year’s cinco de mayo?
The line for his cinco de may party starts on ocho de February.
His guacamole inspired the term ‘holy guacamole.’
He has 3 black books just for women named Juanita.
His 10 gallon hat holds approximately 13 gallons.
His refried beans are fried once.
His piñatas fight back.
Old cinco de mayo radio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqjFpDF3NhU
Older cinco de mayo radio:
It is said the sun comes up later on the 6th of May, in case his Cinco parties run long.
The Mayans prophecized his birth.
Even lucha libres remove their masks in his presence.
He once taught a German Shepard to bark in Spanish.
He serves sizzling fajita platters barehanded.
Bulls flat-out refuse to fight him.
I admit. I cannot figure out how the beer industry <at least in America> consistently showcases bland insipid work.
But thanks to Dos Equis we have some hope for better.
when down is up
Feb 13th
Ok.
Some times I believe economists and marketing people take the same voodoo math classes (assuming they actually take math). What do mean? Somehow through voodoo math they can both show everyone that down is up. No shit. Really. Down isn’t down … it is really up (if only my bank balance could implement that math). 
Examples.
Unemployment is down this month (but its still up versus a year ago).
Sales are down (but it’s up versus the rest of the category).
WTF.
So let me stick with business.
Let’s be clear.
When is down, well, up?
(Answer to that question)
NEVER.
Down is down.
Down is bad.
Down is never the objective.
If i hear one more time “… well Mr. Giraffeney, it’s a tough economy right now. The category is trending downward at 11%, but we are only down 5%. So we are doing well in a tough category. In fact … <insert pregnant pause here> … we are actually up when you look it that way.”
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm …
(Mr. Giraffeney after a minute or so) “So our sales are down … but not really down? I love it!”
What a load of bullshit.
To me negative is down.
And bad (because it isn’t up).
To be fair it is easy to talk your way into the down but not really down rabbit hole of economic unreality (in fact … I say hanging my head sheepishly … I have done it myself years ago).
It is extremely easy to justify ‘down but not down’ by saying if people aren’t spending, it must be ok that they are not spending with us. And that if times are tight than that must be the reason they don’t value our brand as much (or any brand).
Anyway.
It may be easy to fall into this double speak but it is bullshit.
Here is something to chew on.
Business is out there. People are buying stuff. and there are plenty of people buying stuff.
Yeah. Even today.
Plenty of companies are gaining market share and there are a boatload of profitable companies (flush with cash by the way). And there are a lot of companies with increased sales.
We have an extremely robustly sized eceonomy out there my friends.
I say all this because it can be easy to justify doing what you are doing a variety of ways … and saying down isn’t really down is a way a lot of people do so.
Stop. Just stop.
Up is attainable.
You may just have to be a little smarter to get it.
“Smarter” almost always resides in appealing to consumer needs without losing sight of the fact you have to make money … profit. You cannot (and should not) discount your way to success. That path is a very slippery slope not only from consumer attitudes perspective (defining how they value you) but it is also puts a massive strain on profitability (which impacts the organization like a bad ripple effect).
You have to be smart and insightful with how you talk with people you want to buy your stuff. Maybe you need to seek a new role, or a differently defined role, that is more vital and easier for consumers to rationalize. And, god forbid, tell the truth & have something worth paying for.
Here is a fact.
People will spend against need – real or perceived.
They also search for value, but that doesn’t mean people will not spend premiums for quality. Or spend more money for a perceived need (which is actually a “want” instead if I was going to be technical with myself).
Look at SUVs, Starbucks, Apple and Whole Foods markets.
All doing quite well thank you very much.
This is simply finding growth under pressure.
Persistent sales stagnation is most likely a reflection of how people perceive needing what you have to offer more likely than it is “the economy.”
(sorry to burst anyone’s excuse bubble with that).
Businesses need to face the fact that the economy’s growth is going to be minimal at best …with the risk of another sharp downturn very real … and quit whining and go out and find a way to grow.
Businesses must not stop their quest for growth even in ‘bad times’ nor should they stop their quest under the guise that ‘well we were down .. but not really.’
Here is one thing I can promise you about growth companies.
In every case, there are a group of people (and I mean both business side people and advertising/marketing agency people) behind that company & brand that see things not just as they are, but as they could be.
And then they go out and get it.
No excuses.
So.
I guess I wrote this to warn people about people who stand up and say “we had a good year … we are not down as much as everyone else or the category.”
Down is never up.
And, by the way, up is attainable.
Even today.
jeep & robert frost
Jan 24th
Ok.
It is very difficult in the car advertising business to make your advertising stand out.
Car manufacturers spend zillions of dollars (ok … only billions of dollars) and it is difficult to find something truly new and relevant and interesting to say.
So sometimes you just have to find a different way of saying the same thing and hopefully it stands out.
Jeep Wrangler Arctic just did it (for me at least).
In the television ad I saw I heard a poem I sort of recognized … and I couldn’t figure out who the voice was who was saying it (but it sounded dated).
The poem (and words used in the ad)?
“Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening”
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
The author? Robert Frost.
Holy cow.
Some copywriter dug around in his/her literary mental archive and saw these words and said “shit … I bet if we put some amazing footage of a Jeep Wrangler (Arctic to be specific) driving through some impossible snow underneath these words … well … it would be the shizzle.”
Then he/she thought some more and said …
“Oh. No. Let’s do better. Let’s use Robert himself.” (thought bubble attached: hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm … I wonder if there is a recording of Robert Frost reading it?)
Holy shit (instead of ‘cow’ this time). Yes. There is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfOxdZfo0gs&feature=related
And then they edited it to make this Jeep ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHeG8J5b1U4&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL3F36F72A7E0D8CB7
(by the way … if you stay on the link and let the next Jeep Compass ad run it is a great border collie ad)
Ok.
Is it brilliant advertising? Maybe not.
It is a brilliant creative way to say what you want to say? You bet.
It is an incredibly creative way of saying something that almost every ‘rough ‘n tumble’ car manufacturer has said.
Will most people know it is Robert Frost? Hell no.
But it sounds cool and tough and timeless and the words are relevant and if you do know it is Robert Frost … well … it make you feel like you are a smart Jeep owner.
Anyway.
Here is the entire Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening poem:
Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.
My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.
He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.
The woods are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.
Good stuff Jeep.
Oh. I have read a couple of commentaries on this advertising where some people were getting in a tizzy (a technical term) on using Robert Frost to sell Jeep Wranglers. Geez people … get over it. Get a life. It is a smart idea. And it’s not like they are using his poem (and voice) to sell feminine wipes or erectile dysfunction drugs (not that there is anything wrong with either of those). This was artfully and thoughtfully done.
Once again. Well done Jeep.
facts and creation
Jan 23rd
“Without the hard little bits of marble which are called ‘facts’ or ‘data’ one cannot compose a mosaic; what matters, however, are not so much the individual bits, but the successive patterns into which you arrange them, then break them up and rearrange them.” - The Act of Creation
I find it tragic to watch bright, energetic youth become lethargic and uninspired in the workplace.
Yes. Tragic. Because it is such a waste of not only mindpower but, well, will power. And it is also tragic to the work company because lethargy does not lead to ideas/ideation/creative thinking.
To me? The real problem lies with the older folk (in manager positions) who seem to lack a comprehensive relevant view of learning. Or maybe better said … they have an archaic way of viewing the way it should be done.
There are a lot of leaders (management whatever you want to call them) who appear to be guilty of classifying learning as being a difficult and frustrating experience.
This is in combination with the fact they also tend to have odd views on ‘how to make it fun.’ Oh. And to complete that thought … they have a belief that they have to ‘make it fun’ because learning is difficult/frustrating. Therefore it is a flawed belief system.
Look.
Creative thinking and innovation does not arise out of a vacuum but must be supported by a culture that encourages people to experiment. To experiment with facts, with ideas and products. With the hard little bits of marble as it were.
Original thinking and new ideas has to be nurtured and rearranged in successive patterns … not destroyed and scattered.
We can all encourage creativity by helping young people learn to assess the bits of marble and take intellectual risks in their work & ideation. Does this have to be “made” fun? Nope. And it is, frankly, silly to think it has to be.
Instead this is like providing a spark to combustible matter. I am not suggesting it should be painful but rather fun is slightly less relevant than providing the inspiration to learn and become engaged.
Ultimately I don’t believe management should teach people how to create ideas.
The goal should be to prepare young people to be competent and original in their thinking.
Do that and they will create mosaics like you have never seen before.
Oh.
And in successive patterns.
(by the way … that is a good thing)
2011 best tv ads
Jan 1st
So.
It is the end of the year … but .. at the end of November (I think) AdWeek magazine (the people magazine of the advertising industry) published their top 10 television ads of 2011.
As Adweek states … it doesn’t seem that long ago that we were watching the “super bowl ads” and assessing the good and the bad.
and, at the end of the year. we now we see that 2 of the ads, the Chrysler Eminem execution and the VW Darth Vader execution, made their top ten list (and, I guess, my top 10).
About their top 10. All of the spots in the top 10 are strategically sound, often insightful to the audience it was developed for and flawlessly executed. As usual the greatest of the great are defined by nuances (which I will attempt to identify) and interestingly some of the best advertising comes in commodity-like categories (milk, communication). Oh. And they are all very different – using different techniques (albeit ones we have seen before) but using them in ways that bring the story to life.
Their list celebrates work across a wide variety of products, themes, styles, and geographies. You’ve got candy bars and zombies, cats with thumbs, film-directing bears and proud fathers.
Here is the list (10 to 1) as decided on by AdWeek (and I agree with most).
http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/10-best-commercials-2011-136663?page=1
SNICKERS • Focus Group – this was 10th on the list … it may have been in my top 5. Finding different ways to showcase candy innovations is tough. They did it. It would be disturbing if it wasn’t so funny … and incredibly well executed (poorly executed and this would have made the worst 5 list).
NISSAN LEAF • Gas Powered Everything – This is vivid demonstration at its best. And using a dental drill to ease into the closing thought? Brilliant.
CRAVENDALE • Cats With Thumbs – there are so many charming & relevant aspects to this execution you almost have to watch it a couple of times to get it all (and it is worth every viewing). I am not sure milk advertising could ever be as creative as this ever again. Damn those Brits can do some funny good smart stuff.
DEEP SILVER • Dead Island Trailer – I am not a gamer but boy I would be tempted to become one. I personally would have chosen Gears of War/Into Dust with Hope Sandoval/Mazzy Star soundtrack (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5AVJXw–IQ) but this execution is an excellent use of reversing footage and music. Disturbing. But good.
CANAL+ • The Bear – The close with “why not me?” …. Brilliant. What an ending. French advertising at its best.
TALKTALK • Homes Within Homes – This probably wouldn’t have made my top 10 but it is beautifully done. And effectively communicates what it needs to communicate.
GOOGLE CHROME • Dear Sophie – Ok. This is proof that while you may use celebrities (Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber lent star power to the campaign in other executions) to build a business nothing works better than the simplest tugging of heart strings – a young father using Google tools to fill a digital scrapbook with notes, images, and videos of his young daughter … which he intends to share with her “someday.” For anyone who doesn’t think the web is personal you have no heart.
CHRYSLER • Born of Fire – It could have been called “Imported from Detroit” and that would have sealed the deal on this but they also took the in-your-face Eminem ‘lose yourself’ song and paraphrased the lyrics in a voice over and … well … this is car advertising at its best. I was not only proud to be an American but, dammit, I found something to like about Detroit.
CHIPOTLE • Back to the Start – Communicating a environmental philosophy in a meaningful way is … well .. tough. Here? It’s the music. Using Coldplay’s “The Scientist” but sung by Willie Nelson. The song is lyrically perfect. Yeah. I am probably biased because it is music-driven … but Adweek chose it not me.
Their number one?
VOLKSWAGEN • The Force – nothing more to say about this one. I have written about it before. It’s brilliant. It’s the kind of ad I wish I had done.
Just wanted to share because its fun.
global latin American
Dec 29th
Every once in awhile you come across some magazine advertising that makes you actually stop and look (rare … I know). It isn’t annoying, smelly (those damn cosmetic ads), condescending, impossible to figure out what they were trying to say (or why they did it) or have some random half naked model in it.
I saw one. In the Economist. This is about Itaú, a Brazilian global bank, and its advertising campaign.
I would imagine that most North Americans have no idea who Itau is. In 2010 it was listed as Latin America’s largest bank and was, for the second year in a row, ranked as one of the world’s 10 largest financial institutions. The bank operates 5,000 branches and nearly 30,000 ATMs, with 108,000 employees throughout the Americas, Asia and Europe.
It is one of the region’s most international banks, with Itaú-Unibanco branches in New York, Tokyo and Grand Cayman; Banco Itaú Europa branches in Lisbon, Madeira and London; and Itaú BBA offices in Shanghai and Nassau. It also offers retail banking in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay.
But.
The advertising campaign.
It is a wonderful strategic decision to leverage its roots, its current customers, its growth focus and its global feel. All in one ad campaign.
“I am a Global Latin American” is a brilliant use of what Latin American professionals are doing outside the region.
And I love the tagline … “The Global Latin American Bank” (mostly because I sense the majority of people don’t necessarily think of Latin American as global … in any sense of a definition).
And it’s a pretty cool print campaign (well art directed and written).
The full-page ads feature some leading Latins declaring why they consider themselves a “Global Latin American”:
Argentine Polo star and Ralph Lauren model Nacho Figueras.
Brazilian actress Alice Braga (Alice is best known in US for her role in “I Am Legend”).
Brazilian Artist Vik Muniz (full name … Vicente José de Oliveira Muniz … makes me wish I had been born in Brazil or Spain ).
Argentine ballerina Paloma Herrera (one of the premier ballet dancers in the world – named as one of the 30 artists most likely to change the world of culture).
The copy is personal and, while humble, certainly ends with a sense of accomplishment. It is one of the best use of celebrities I have seen in awhile.
And the ads were created by one of the world’s hottest ad agencies – Africa (they do some nice stuff).
I also like the campaign because despite the fact Itaú has been listed as one of the 100 most valuable brands in the world (ranking first among Brazilian banks ) by Millward Brown BrandZ rankings, it is a nice natural evolution of a thoughtful multi-year brand management effort. This stage in the effort seems to focus on increasing the type of awareness they desire (strong local but strong global). It is nicer stuff than simply saying “I have a shitload of deposits and ATMs.”
I sometimes believe larger institutions waste advertising dollars talking about themselves and it all blends together.
This ad campaign certainly looks & feels different.
And it makes them look different.
Well done Itau (and africa).
you know you have done something right
Dec 5th
so.
You often know you have done something right if you have pissed someone off.
Ok. That was extreme.
How about not everyone. Just some people.
Really? (you say).
Yup.
Great ideas and thoughts tend to be polarizing.
Now.
Let me be clear.
Some ideas are polarizing because they are just, well, stupid & bad.
That is why I opened this with “often.”
What made me decide to write about this is because a pretty good Axe deodorant commercial was banned. And if you would have told me I would have typed “pretty good Axe commercial” a year ago I would have laughed out loud.
I have found most of their advertising banal, juvenile, simplistic to the point of being mindless and pointless.
However.
I cannot argue with the fact Axe knows exactly who their target customer is and what makes that customer tick.
And I also admit I love the focus. Too often companies want to be everything to everyone … and even if they do make a choice they don’t make the hard decisions in their communication to go for the jugular with that target customer.
Axe is about late teen/young 20’s guys.
Axe is about what matters to these guys is girls. Oh. And not just any girls but good looking girls (you may not get them but you certainly want them).
And recently some Christians took offense to how Axe approached that thinking and figured out a way to get the commercial banned.
In my eyes?
Any time Christians (or any group driven by a philosophical stance for that matter) gets your commercial pulled you have probably done something right.
Here is the Axe ad:
Angels will Fall: http://fashionetc.com/news/beauty/3620-axe-deodorant-ad-ban-christians?utm_source=outbrain&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=launch
Being polarizing at its best means you are not just reacting subjectively or spontaneously but rather the thinking is anchored in some kind of truth. Sure. The truth may be demonstrated in some vivid or extreme terms … but it is a truth.
Axe?
Young men want to have beautiful women attracted to them.
Even more of a truth?
Average looking young men want extremely beautiful women attracted to them.
Even more of a truth?
Average looking young men want extremely beautiful women SO attracted to them that they don’t have to be overt and take a chance of getting turned down and have the women come to them.
That is what Axe has anchored their over the top vivid metaphorical advertising on.
Should it be banned for its metaphor? No. In fact it is silly to do so (although Axe has to be ecstatic for all the free public relations they are getting).
Should Axe be lauded for using this metaphor? Yes.
It is good advertising.
It is actually smart advertising (beyond the fact it is actually entertaining advertising).
And my sense it is effective advertising (what young man doesn’t want to think beautiful angels will fall from the sky for them).
Look.
Doing something marketwise that gets banned (and actually knowing you have done something right versus just something that was stupid and should have been banned) has to begin with a mature, realistic, insightful and rational perspective.
By definition, oppositional thinking means you are aware of some existing premise or position and that you are thinking in comparative and contrasting terms.
Great communication captures the distinct individuality of the brand/product/person and often challenges or pokes playfully at the conventional belief. And, yet, through vivid metaphors encourages fresh and evocative/provocative expression.
Sometimes this is called be ‘smartfully disruptive.’
Sometimes it is just called being smart.
Expressively being disruptive, or taking the status quo and making it absurd, is just good ole plain smart oppositional thinking. And with Axe they have used great target insight in that it combines a challenge to authority or ‘the way it’s always been’ tradition.
It’s a beautiful use of skewering the high-minded and the rigid and/or self-righteous (which young men in particular love to do).
As a guy named von Oech said in his book, Whack on the Side of the Head, said …
“Sacred cows make great steaks.”
As I said upfront … I have never been a big fan of Axe marketing but this idea is brilliant.
And it is EXTREMELY well produced.
Oh.
And it must be working because I just heard that Axe deodorant is in the top 5 (#4 I believe) items most often shoplifted from grocery stores. Now that, my friends, is advertising creating demand.
VW
Nov 16th
Ok.
VW has always done some really nice advertising. They remain one of the few companies who really has understood that what differentiates them is their product’s brand character and not really their features (or the lack thereof).
What I mean by that is while they will talk about a sometimes quirky appearance or how much gas mileage a VW owner can get from their product (a feature) … a feature, by the way, that everyone is talking about so it is all kind of a blur to everyone watching … they decide to talk about their features within what seems to be a very well defined brand character.
In other words they highlight a feature but do it in such a charming brand personality driven way that it becomes distinct.
And entertaining.
And fun to watch.
And, frankly, just makes you feel darn good about a VW.
If you own a VW you end up saying “hey, did you see that VW tv commercial?” (and feel great that it is your ‘brand’).
And if you don’t own a VW you actually chuckle and get what they were really trying to say (and maybe the next time you are in the market for a car you may take a look at a VW for no other particular reason then you feel good when you think VW).
The most recent example of what I have seen that speaks to gas mileage but does it in a very VW way. In fact it was this tv commercial that made me decide to write this post. Very well done. Clever. And VW to its core.
Vamanos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsTqGa2gd0E
And, of course, the VW Darth Vader tv commercial is spectacularly charming.
And it is the penultimate example of how do differentiate based on brand character.
I struggle to envision how some agencies would even present an idea so brand character driven … let alone the fact that most of car manufacturers wouldn’t even produce it.
The advertising, even more than selling a car, is a reflection of the company and brand itself. Envision the fact that almost 50 seconds of the entire 1 minute commercial has nothing to do with the car itself. And, yet, the advertising is unequivocally associated with VW.
Darth VW: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R55e-uHQna0
And then a commercial that involves a slice of ordinary life which everyone can relate to.
Somehow in this commercial they covered pretty much any and every one who could possibly be considered in their potential demographic profile by finding something similar within everyone’s life … that moment when we sing to ourselves.
Rocket Man: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWy-LCGDsd8&NR=1
So.
Ever since Bill Bernbach infamously touted a VW Beetle in a print advertisement as a “Lemon” VW has maintained a sense of believability and charm and understanding that communicating product ‘truths’ within an honest brand character can create value in people’s minds.
Are VW’s REALLY better than other cars? Nope.
Is there another car brand that REALLY makes the same kind of self-image statement about its owner? Nope.
Others may make different statements (Jaguar, Porsche, Ford trucks, etc.) about their owners but not the same as a VW.
Good stuff.
Oh.
And you know how I know they understand their brand so well?
Doesn’t matter who their advertising agency is (DDB, Crispin, Deutsch) the advertising remains good.
That is a sign of a company that understands what is important.
hope, low prices & marketing (part 1)
Aug 22nd
ok.
Working in the marketing business I often find myself in some heated debates about whether advertising & marketing is “selling” (or it is often stated “oh, so you are in sales”).
Here is the answer.
It’s not sales. It may not even be selling (in the traditional sense).
Sure.
Ultimately marketing & advertising wants to “sell stuff” but the craft of communications itself is not about selling.
Or convincing.
Or persuading (in some weird and creepy way) someone to do something they don’t want to really do.
Is it about “persuading” in the sense I want someone to “choose me!” to be on their wallet team? Sure.
Is it about persuading someone through some trickery to buy or do something that is bad for them? Nope.
Because in the end It is really about attitudes (creating or aligning to a ‘truth’ – a real truth not a made up one) and behavior (understanding why someone does something they do and inserting a choice into their existing behavior … and sometimes modifying that behavior if you can truly offer something better for them as an alternative).
So marketing & advertising is really about informing so someone can make a choice – whatever is the best choice for them.
Therefore. Marketing & advertising is not in the selling business.
It is in the choice business.
And while choices have dollars & cents attached to them and features & benefits and all that truly functional crap … a person’s final choice preference is never any of those things.
A choice may be made based on them (that truly functional crap) but typically it is only made that way for lack of an alternative.
And that is why communicating “choice” is an art. Because communicating choice is about education and emotion and, well, hope.
Because the bottom line is that people want to make the choice that gives them the most hope.
Now.
That may sound hopelessly lofty but its not. In fact it is what marketing & advertsing & frankly just about any consumer business is all about.
We are in the hope business.
Hope of something (it doesn’t have to be some big audacious hope … sometimes it can just simply be some small glimmer of hope in an otherwise hopeless day).
Yes.
This is truth (and some businesses may cry & weep & gnash their teeth … I just wanted to type gnash).
People don’t really want cheaper prices.
People don’t really want better technology.
People don’t really want faster answers.
People don’t really want more time.
People don’t cooler features or more flashing widgets.
People even don’t really want more money at the end of the month.
None of that really matters to customers.
They want hope.
They want to know that they are going to be ok.
And they want to know that it can get better for themselves.
In a world where natural disasters wipe away lives in a second and leaders make decisions that take billions of dollars from hard working saving & investing people the only thing people can truly hold onto is a belief of something better.
Yet.
In our ROI-driven marketing world we not only seem content to pretend that a “faster, cheaper, better” is what people want but we also relentlessly pursue ineffective marketing communicatiosn initiatives expounding upon a litany of usefless features and functional doo-dads.
And we are wrong. Dead wrong.
People want hope.
In a lot of ways ‘the people’ are no different than you & I (because oddly enough we are people also).
They want to be listened to.
They don’t want to be lied to.
They don’t want you to talk over them.
They want you to validate their concerns.
They want their questions answered.
They don’t want you to ignore them.
They want you to inspire them.
They don’t want a sales pitch.
They don’t want you to be annoying.
They don’t want to hear about you.
They do want a distraction from real life.
They don’t want to be pressured.
They want to know that you have problems too.
They want a consistent partner.
They don’t want you to fake it.
They want truth in answers (the first time & every time).
They don’t want you to tell them what they want to hear.
They want to feel like you care.
They want you to hear what they aren’t saying.
And most importantly …
They want more than what they have (not materialistically but “happinesswise”)
They want more than what they expect (not just functionally but in life)
They want something better (not just functionally but in life)
They want optimism (based on truth not blarney).
So.
Enough of that.
People want hope.
(that is the common denominator in all the things I just typed)
And if you aren’t providing that in your marketing you … will …. not … be … successful.
Sure.
You can buy some sales and a “consumer relationship” with lowest prices & coupons and cool features and some functional widgetry but those people aren’t buying “you” they are buying the ‘feature of the day.”
In my words? You have bought a date not a relationship.
And you have missed an opportunity to be a hero. Instead you are a salesman.
You have missed an opportunity to have offered,and given, hope.
C’mon. be honest with yourself as you read this.
Think of all the times that were hoping that someone really cared about how bad you hurt inside. Or recognized the pain.
So ii guess if you really feel like you have to ‘sell’ … then sell hope.
Because as Hugh Macleod drew in his cartoon at the beginning of this post … if you can sell hope you can get someone to buy anything.
hope & marketing (part 2)
Aug 22nd
Ok. I had so much to write about in “hope, low process and selling” that I took this part and thinking and put it in its own lil post.
Here we go.
Fact.
Communicating choices with the intent to persuade someone to “choose me” is an inexact science.
In fact.
It is not a science at all (despite what ROI driven purchasing people suggest and desire).
Yes.
There is a discipline to crafting communications (c’mon … given the amount of time people have done things there is certainly a list of ‘trial & error’ learnings to use as benchmarks).
But.
Advertising iconic hero Bill Bernbach said: “I warn you against believing that advertising is a science. Artistry is what counts. The business is filled with great technicians, and unfortunately they talk the best game … but there’s one little problem. Advertising happens to be an art, not a science.”
And this dude, and his agency DDB, created some good shit (and still does).
So.
So, because being in the choice communication business (and selling hope) isn’t a science, the truth is (another fact) the more research conducted to “strengthen” choice communications (i.e., marketing & advertising) the more functional the communication has to be judged on … because that is the only thing research can quantitatively measure.
Emotion, or something you just feel in your gut, cannot be measured.
(note: there are some wacky research tools out there that attempt to do so but regardless of their best efforts no one I know can use ‘brain wave’ or ‘twitch muscle’ research to truly tell you what your gut tells you)
And (as noted in the previous ‘hope’ post) functional doesn’t win in the long run. Emotion or some higher order value wins.
Bottom line?
Two things lead to mediocrity and conformity in communications: research and rational benefits.
Interestingly this thought goes way beyond communications and advertising. It runs true in just about any transaction-based relationship (i.e., shopping).
Another fact.
Shopping isn’t simply a transaction. Shopping is an experience.
And I don’t necessarily mean experience in the “walking around and looking and touching” perspective. One expert said it best:
“We dream of shopping for beauty, truth and perfection, and if we do not shop for a perfect society, at least we shop for a perfect self.”
Yes. Correct. And, yes, again.
We shop and we make choices as an extension of ourselves – of who we are and what we want to be. That, at its most psychological Maslow-like level, is the pursuit for a perfect self.
Sound like a bunch of mumbo jumbo? Maybe sounds like it but it ain’t.
We talk transactions but we behave emotionally.
(how often has your head say “he is all wrong for me” and then you go ahead and let your heart tell you what to do?)
Anyway.
The same expert also suggested that she believes “the noblest aspect of shopping is finding a community, a discovery that usually happens at a place like a farmer’s market or a neighborhood store, where interaction among customers is fostered. Rallying for these public spaces rather than buying things, she argues, should be what we use shopping to achieve.”
Poetic words.
Maybe even sounds a little too lofty.
But its not. Because if you ignore the thought behind the words you simply fall back into the functional/rational zone of sameness (and then, I guess, it does become a science).
If it helps … simplistically she is suggesting creating spaces so that “birds of a feather can flock together” and be happy amongst others.
So why is all this important?
Well. If I want someone to ‘choose me’ I have to understand the challenges.
Understanding motivation for behavior is one thing (and a very very important thing).
Understanding HOW to communicate is another.
Bill Bernbach again: “Eighty-five percent of all ads don’t even get looked at. Think of it! You and I are the most extravagant people in the world. Who else is spending billions of dollars and getting absolutely nothing in return? We were worried about whether or not the American public loves us. They don’t even hate us. They just ignore us.”
So even if I am in the ‘selling hope’ business I have to deliver the message in a memorable, interesting and artful way if I want whatever I am marketing to be chosen.
Notice I used art in there.
Because, once again, it is not a science.
I cannot simply say “hey, look over here, I am selling some hope-on-a-rope.”
I gotta be creative and offer up some communication that stirs someone emotionally and lets them arrive at the benefit all by themselves. That is a powerful communications when that happens.
And there absolutely can be some discipline in the approach but the ultimate output is art.
A maddening art. I often call it the “glorious mistakes when we blunder into an incredible way to say what we want to say.”
Why a ‘glorious mistake’?
Well.
Often the most insightful communication is partly flawed. Likeable. Believable.
And I ended on believable because while communications is art … truth is just that – truth. No grey. Just truth. And that is ultimately what makes things believable.
Bob Levenson (hired by Bill Bernbach) may have said it best when he responded to a Time magazine contest in the 1960′s. Ad agencies were invited to create an advertisement in the public interest. He wrote a manifesto for the ad industry (see below). It conveys the honesty that the advertising/marketing profession is founded upon. And still should uphold as the beacon for everything every marketer (at any level) should do in the communications business.
Bottom line?
Share truth.
Sell hope.
And enjoy, share, and DO THIS OR DIE.
