Posts tagged ‘Advertising’
Marketing From The Navel
I often get asked about our strange name. Many times I even get blank stares when I explain the term “navel-gazing”. However, I chose the name of my company and my book very carefully, and it wasn’t just because I wanted to make people giggle (OK, it was partly that).
For those who know me, they know I have worked with dozens of companies all over the world. Through my experiences, I have seen both amazing successes and giant failures (and been involved in both). Throughout these experiences, I identified a pattern. For a while, I couldn’t put it into words. I tried “Honest Marketing” or “Transparent Marketing”, but none of those really fit.
I finally realized that each of the companies who were successful marketed from the inside out, where the ones who failed miserably were the ones who marketed from the outside in. In other words, the companies who succeeded developed their internal tools, processes, and culture and used marketing tactics to simply communicate what they had already become. THe companies that failed wanted their communications to reflect an image of what they wish they were or what the customer wanted them to be – they wanted to put lipstick on the pig.
There are many who come to Navel Marketing for our social media marketing services. Without fail, however, they have missed many of the steps it takes to create a company worth talking about. So we start at the beginning. We start by creating a cause, identifying what truly makes them unique, and creating a culture that reflects their vision (for a complete list of steps to create a “buzz-worthy” company, see the Navel Model). Once these steps are completed, the tactics are the easy part.
I have seen a lot written lately about what constitutes a true “social media marketer”. I even wrote about this fact a month or so ago myself. Many base it on their knowledge of the tools or their proprensity to approach marketing as a conversation. However, it is my belief that they are all still lacking core component – what are you going to converse about? What about you is worth talking about?
Whether you use social media, advertising, public relations, direct response, or any other form of marketing, it all starts with strategy. It all starts with creating a company worth talking about. Once you’ve done that, the rest falls into place.
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An Ad Campaign I Actually Like
There has been much written on the effectiveness of the Mac vs. PC campaign. Both critics and supporters alike have lauded the campaign for its effectiveness in highlighting the differences between the two products. It is entertaining, informative, and hip.
Enter Whopper Freakout. While I am not particularly a huge fan of fast food, this ad campaign did an incredible job of showcasing impassioned fans of the Burger King Whopper. Part reality show, part testimonial, this campaign does a great job of exhibiting real customers in a situation where their favorite burger is taken away from them.
In an interesting twist, the producer of the campaign has begun switching the Whopper with burgers from various competitors. This solicits even more passionate pleas. Some customers can be heard shouting things like “I hate Wendy’s!”. The agency who executed this campaign has even implemented a new media campaign by creating a microsite at whopperfreakout.com and have even posted extended versions of the hidden camera segments on YouTube.
It’s real, it’s raw, and it’s passionate. It also ties the viewer into an online community. That is the way that advertising was meant to be done. Kudos to Burger King.
Creativity in Advertising
Despite the constant cry that advertising effectiveness is dying, creativity is still critical in driving someone to notice and read your message. I am a huge fan of the online liquidator Woot. For those of you unfamiliar with Woot, they sell one product per day and when it’s gone, it’s gone. Occasionally, they will have a “Woot Off” where they will try and blow out all of their extra inventory by selling several products in a day or there is always their 2 for Tuesdays where you can get two of the same product for one price. What has really endeared me to Woot, however, is the blog they write for each product they sell.
I was just reading their blog this morning promoting the Mark of Fitness Wristwatch Blood Pressure Monitor. The blog is a story right out of a fairy tale involving a medevel village, an angry mob, and a child born with the “Mark of Fitness”. I couldn’t stop laughing. It would be great if this were only once in a great while, but this is an every day occurrence. It is this snarky commentary combined with great prices on random items that has created a rabid following for Woot.
Seth Godin does a good job of pointing out how creativity helps “to find the right people in the right frame of mind at the right moment”. His example is even a paid search ad by Woot that shows up when you do a Google search on the stock symbol for Google (GOOG).
Woot has created a following by delivering a great product, but it keeps people coming back because it is more than a place to buy cheap stuff. It is the hilarity of the experience that keeps me checking it every day.
Advertising is Not Dead!
How many times have you heard that from a word-of-mouth marketer? We tend to take aim at advertising and shoot holes through advertisers and their campaigns. The reality is that the big kid is typically the easiest target.
Advertising is definitely waning in its effectiveness, especially the irrelevant creativity we see today. In addition, advertising fits perfectly the quote by Abraham Maslow who said, “To a man who only has a hammer, every problems tends to look like a nail.” Almost every problem you take to an advertising agency will be solved with advertising.
Where is advertising effective, then? Al Ries one of the grandfathers of modern marketing – tends to think advertising is effective as a reminder of a brand you are already familiar with and a poor tool for introducing a new brand. I also believe advertising works well for event based marketing – meaning there is a time and a place you are announcing. My friend and fellow word-of-mouth marketer, Justin Foster, points out a few other areas where he thinks advertising can be effective.
Word-of-mouth marketers tend to carry the banner of transparency and authenticity. That is why blogging and podcasting have become such a staple of that world. However, can advertising be transparent and authentic? Think of Dove’s “real women” campaign. I must admit, I am one of those who likes watching the Superbowl for its commercials, however, that was the commercial that stuck out the most to me because I have 4 daughters and that is how I want them to see themselves.
The rebuttal from most buzz marketers will be that there is no conversation in advertising; that it’s only a one-way communication. However, can you couple advertising with a conversation technology to create interaction? Can advertising evolve into an effective tool in a social networking society? YouTube has shown us some possibilities and there are new technologies popping up like Firebrand that treat commercials as the creative content that they are, not as just an interruption. With Firebrand, advertising becomes the destination not the speed bump.
I believe that advertising does have a time and place. I believe that the agencies that learn how to adapt this medium to the new reality and couple it with conversation will find a way to create great results. Advertising simply gives you an audience. However, its effectiveness has been on the decline because companies do a poor job of engaging that audience.
Marketing Doesn’t Happen in Campaigns!
We have been trained by our universities, advertising agencies, and corporate America to think about marketing in terms of campaigns. We need a “spring promotion” or a “Christmas sale”.
It’s amazing how many companies have approached me asking if I can implement a campaign that will give them word of mouth among their customers. Collectively, we believe that, like an ad campaign, marketing can be turned on and turned off at will. Unfortunately, consumers are like children – they often don’t do what they are told.
Marketing doesn’t happen in campaigns. Word of mouth doesn’t happen in campaigns. The choice to implement a word of mouth strategy means a fundamental, long-term shift in the way you do business. It means, first, producing a product or service worth talking about, delivering a premium and unique customer experience, and then helping your customer base tell other people about it. It is not a strategy that bumps up your quarterly earnings reports, but increases your long-term profitability and brand.
Stephen Covey’s analogy of the goose and the golden egg is especially applicable. You take care of the goose (your customer) and it will take care of the golden eggs for you. If your goose is sick, it may take a little while to nurse it back to health before it is well on its way to becoming an egg producer for you.
Just ask Fisher’s Document Systems if 2006 was easy for them. They almost completely turned over their sales department. They completely overhauled how they service their customers. They even went back to having a live person answer the phone. Add it all together and it equals a significant increase in not only revenue, but bottom line profit.
That is what word of mouth “marketing” can do for you. It only works if you are willing to fundamentally change how you think about your customers and how you do business. It only works if you give people something to talk about.
