Keeping an advertising campaign fresh

Ally Bank's promotional objective over the last few years has been to drive home the point that they are not "banking as usual".  To keep their advertising from getting stale Ally's advertising has periodically changed tag lines.  


It started with "It's just the right thing to do".



Then came "Do you love your bank?"



And most recently "Stop accepting nonsense" (poor service, hidden fees, etc.).



Multiple tag lines.
One long lasting theme people can relate to.
Interesting, attention-keeping advertising.

Geico, Helzberg co-op advertising

Seemingly unrelated pair of companies team in TV ad

Perhaps you have already seen the television advertisement that blends both Geico Insurance and Helzberg Diamonds (a retail jewelry store chain).  At first nod, these seem like an odd duo to pair up in a promotional effort.  However, upon a bit deeper review, a connection between the firms comes into focus.

The Berkshire Hathaway connection
Both firms are part of the holdings of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway.

Properly done, joint advertising can make a great deal of sense by stretching promotional budgets in this time when companies are seeking greater productivity in operations, manufacturing, and now advertising.

Characteristics of potential co-op promotional partners
The cooperating firms:

• are not in the same industry (except for special circumstances like public service announcements, support of causes and events, etc.).
• seek similar customers.
• are willing to have the other's brand image "rub off" on to their own.

Note: video of the ad will be added when available.


Kohl's Happy ThankSaving... just a bit tacky

Happy ThankSaving ???

Thanksgiving traditions -- the Macy's Parade, NFL football, time and dinner with family, and giving thought to the blessings of life.

Now Kohl's is adding a new one... the Happy ThankSaving sale. 

A television, newspaper, social media and web campaign.

Surely their marketers can do better.

Humor without sacrificing customer image

To differentiate themselves from competition, two long-running television ad campaigns focus humor on things people dislike about their industries.

Some things about banking consumers dislike:

• hidden bank fees
• treating new customers better than current ones
• not giving all customers full information
• fine print

Some things about buying and owning stocks consumers dislike:

• impersonal service
• high fees
• feeling that best interest of investor is not broker's priority
• lack of information and support

So how do Ally Bank and Scottrade deal this such dislikes?  By using humor to highlight such common negative perceptions against their own brand positions.

Ally Bank Commercials




Scottrade commercials



One final thought... note that neither ad campaign used their customers as the butt of the joke (see the August 26, 2010 post). 

Why would anyone want to be like them?

It might be funny but who would want to be like these people?

It is an aspect in some advertising that has been bothersome for some time (refer to my October 10, 2008 blog entry) and I still don't get it.

Why do some companies portray their customers as clueless (or worse). If this is the way people who do business with a company are, why in the world would anyone seek to be like them?

If this is how Netflix customers are, I'd rather read a book!


Progressive has effectively used humor in other ads in their "Flo" campaign... but why make customers act like this?



The point is not to be too picky or lack a sense of humor. But does humor have to be at the expense of customer image?

The next blog post will give examples of advertising campaigns that effectively use humor without sacrificing customer dignity.

Proudly showing your age

Promoting the idea that a company is strong and stable by showing you've been around a long time.

Prudential's new ad campaign seeks to assure consumers of the company's strength and stability by highlighting how long the firm has been around.

Highlighting the changing logo:

Television advertisement

Marketing the start of a new year

Finding marketing opportunities in calendar events

The new year is only a half-day old but marketers have already begun integrating the start of 2010 into their marketing efforts in areas including pricing,

HTML e-mail featuring special pricing

Web site -- new product features

Television advertisement -- special event re: product

Wait 'til next time
Obviously it is too late to take advantage of New Year's Day 2010.... but the calendar has many other days that might become part of a successful marketing campaign.

Responding to competitor attack ads

AT&T counters Verizon's claims

Early in fall 2009, Verizon unveiled a new advertising effort attacking rival AT&T to complement its long running "Can you hear me now?" campaign.

Using coverage maps, Verizon's new campaign claimed AT&T's wireless 3G coverage paled in comparison to Verizon. Verizon hoped that a picture was indeed worth "a thousand words".

AT&T did not wait long to respond
However, it was a lawsuit petitioning the court to require Verizon to stop the ads. The request was declined.

If at first you don't succeed...
Immediately after their court defeat in November 2009, AT&T moved to counter Verizon's claims with an advertising campaign of their own. Since then, AT&T advertisements have been run across media. The ads had themes similar to the ads below.

Where things currently stand
There has been no slowdown at year end 2009 as the wireless giants continue to trade advertising punches. However, AT&T is not allowing Verizon to solely frame and control the messages put out to the public.

And in the meantime
Sprint and T-Mobile will be happy that Verizon and AT&T keep beating each other up.

Taking advertising for a drive

billboards + SUVs + word-of-mouth = new twist on advertising

For the last several years, "wrapped" buses have acted as moving billboards.

Now, companies are getting family vehicles into the act as well.

By selecting the drivers carefully, advertisers not only get roving promotion... they get product ambassadors who provide word-of-mouth about the advertised store or product to family, friends, acquaintances, and the otherwise curious.

Here's how it works:

Today Show, 12-23-09 -- Jenna Wolfe reporting

A viral - guerrilla marketing hybrid

T-Mobile's "dance" spread virally, impacted spectators

Definitions (adapted from Wikipedia)
Viral marketing refers to marketing techniques that use pre-existing social networks to produce increases in brand awareness or to achieve other marketing objectives through self-replicating viral processes by users spreading a message among their various reference groups and associations -- analogous to the spread of pathological and computer viruses. Viral promotions may take the form of video clips, interactive Flash games, advergames, ebooks, brandable software, images, or even text messages.

The concept of guerrilla marketing was invented as an unconventional system of promotions that relies on time, energy and imagination rather than a big marketing budget. Typically, guerrilla marketing campaigns are unexpected and unconventional; potentially interactive; and consumers are targeted in unexpected places.

How it's a hybrid promotion
Viral marketing: The T-Mobile video below was passed along to me by a family member, who had received it from a friend. Naturally, I watched the video since I received it from family... score one for T-Mobile!

Guerrilla marketing: As you watch the video, notice the reactions of the spectators. One can safely assume they talked about this to friends, co-workers and family for quite some time... score another for T-Mobile!

Three things that can be learned from this promotion:

1. Businesses have the opportunity to make promotions that are not "just the same old thing". Such promotions can often cut through the clutter of advertisements that consumers are bombarded by on a daily basis.
2. Fun can work... it does not always have to be about celebrities, sensualness or fear.
3. People are willing to be a "message emmissary" -- passing along to others what they find fun, cute, interesting, unusual, etc.
   

Can celebrity endorsements work?

Some still wonder if celebrities can really influence behavior.

Take a couple of minutes and watch the following two videos... then you decide.

NOTE: If you want to see something interesting, play both at the same time... starting the second video once Taylor Swift starts singing in the first.

Since celebrity endorsers represent a brand, selection and affiliation should be undertaken with great care. However, celebrities can/do influence consumer behavior.

Music can add the right note

Songs, jingles and melodies can catch your attention and stick in your brain.

Imagine a teacher leaving a high school classroom... the boys start rhythmically drumming their desks in unison.

What's going on? A disorderly mob? No... it was That's G.

Don't know what "That's G" is? Play the following video.

Need to set a tone in a commercial... consider including a song. Regions Bank wants to show how happy they make their customers.

How? Just listen.

Can jingles really help message retention? How much is a foot-long Subway?

Veterans Day promotions

Applebee's and Macy's approach national holiday differently.

Applebee's Veterans Day 2009 promotion

Applebee's Restaurants offered free entrees to all veterans and active military personnel on Veterans Day to show "sincere gratitude for your honorable service".

Macy's Veterans Day 2009 promotion

A traditional sale.

With the U.S. military at war in multiple theaters
++++Macy's promotion rings a bit shallow.
++++Applebee's promotion feels right.

Answering consumer questions

Starbucks does not leave consumers wondering why to buy new instant coffee

If anyone had doubts why to buy Starbucks' newly introduced instant coffee, they only needed to open the two-page advertising spreads in the October 23, 2009 editions of The New York Times (A24 & 25) and USA Today (8A & 9) to get some suggestions.

A formula for increasing sales during a recession

Competitors are hurting - how does Hyundai do it?

September 2009 sales statistics tell a grime story for U.S. auto sales... as soon as the summer federal auto bailout program ended, auto sales plummeted... except for Hyundai and Kia (which Hyundai has a significant ownership stake in).

Read it and weep
While September '09 auto sales declined for General Motors, Toyota,Honda, Chrysler, Nissan and Ford, Hyundai sales were up 27%.

How do they do it?

Hyundai has implemented a fundamental tenet of marketing -- an attractive product with high quality offered at a "good"(in the eyes of the customer) price = customer value. And if that value is judged significant enough, consumers will buy -- even in a down economy.

...........

This is not the only strategy option but it is the one Hyundai chose and is delivering on.

...................................

Two decades ago, Hyundai was a 'dirty' word in the U.S.

The introduction of the Hyundai brand in the U.S. was less than successful. A butt of jokes, quality issues negatively impacted the brand to the extent that Hyundai abandoned the U.S. auto market. After correcting quality flaws, Hyundai restarted U.S. sales... but had to offer 10 year warranties to induce consumers to buy a brand they remembered as inferior. While still offering the warranty, an increasing number of drivers are attracted to the combination of product, quality and price.

...............................................

Truth in advertising

Hyundai's current slogan describes it well: Hyundai Momentum

Instilling consumer confidence

Always remember -- consumers pick up cues about businesses from a variety of inputs.

Does this sign instill confidence that you want this repair shop to work on your car?

Profiting from local "super bowls"

Businesses need to maximize benefits from local happenings.

With the kick off of Super Bowl XLIII just a few hours away, the vast majority of game-related purchases of flat screen TVs, food and drink have been made.

But before sitting back and watching the game and commercials (or should that be commercials and the game?), a bit of marketing reflection is in order.

What's in it if your business is not a Pepsi, E-Trade or Budweiser?

How can a local business benefit from the Super Bowl if you don't sell chips, pizzas, drinks and television? It's pretty limited if it's only the real Super Bowl. Either you sell "game" items or you don't.

The wider lesson is what can be learned from the business of the Super Bowl.

What local events provide a "super bowl" for the customer base served by your business?

The area I reside in hosts:

• a street 3-on-3 basketball tournament that draws tens of thousands of players
• a 7 mile run with over 40,000 participants annually
• a wide range of events in the main city park - from concerts to fireworks, food-fests to theatre.
• events at the convention center
• sporting events of the local universities and high schools

These are just a few of the many events... most of which are smaller events targeting a tightly focused group of customers who share many traits -- a true target marketing opportunity.

Businesses should identify and benefit from events in their areas that offer mini-super bowls. Consider sponsorships, participation in as vendors, offering products for participants, special pricing, event ticket sales for a discount price when bought at your business, and so forth.

The opportunities for your business to benefit from a (local) super bowl are there. Consider taking them.

Why portray customers as clueless?

An objective of advertising is to endear a product to current and potential customers. Allowing them to "see" themselves in advertisements is a basic tenet of marketing. Such groups should be able to identify with the commercial... that the advertisement hits their situation so closely that it could be them in the ad.

A good classic example of this was the long running advertising campaign by Michelin Tire that ended several years ago. Perhaps you recall the advertisements (above right) where babies and tires were featured with the slogan "Because so much is riding on your tires." People "saw" their babies -- no matter how old -- in the advertisement . The message and images related to their lives. A part of them was identified in the ad.

Portraying customers as foolish to attract new customers... it does not make sense.
While humor is a powerful tool in advertising and promotion, care must be taken not to cross the line where humor goes from attracting to repulsing. For example, in television advertisements over the last two years (below), Holiday Inn uses their own customers as the butt of the joke... making them look silly. So the message is: see our customers... don't you want to be just like them?

What do customers see in your ads?

• Does it relate to them?
• Is it attractive to them?
• Do they want to be a part of it?

Quick response -- effective marketing

Moving in a timely manner can be the difference between success and failure.

Economic news was very bad this past week.

• The stock market dropped several hundred points one day mid-week.
• Top management of the U.S. "Big Three" automakers were on Capital Hill to stump for Federal funds to assist their firms (GM, Ford and Chrysler).
• Experts and newscasters tell how losses from sub-prime home loans and foreclosures in the residential house markets threaten the U.S. and world economies.
• The Federal Government is working on a taxpayer funded $700 billion (at a minimum) bailout of various financial entities in an attempt to shore up the U.S. economy.
  

Obviously, this news is causing much uncertainty and angst among consumers.

Such times call for timely marketing responses
The newspaper advertisement (above right) is an example of a thoughtful marketing response that addresses issues on customers' minds. However, a significant portion of this advertisement's effectiveness is due to when it was in the newspaper -- in the weekend editions of the week described at the beginning of this entry.

Displaying benefits in promotions -- part II

A May 2008 post on this blog discussed the benefits of directly tying a business's promotional theme to variables impacting customer lives and telling how your product, service and/or store can assist consumers in dealing with that issue.

Currently economic concerns -- ranging from high fuel prices to falling values for their homes -- are now on the minds of many U.S. consumers. Several examples of advertising that clearly address such concerns are currently on television. Each commercial's appeal is easy for customers to understand... you are in tight financial times and our product can save you money.

Here is one such television advertisement:

Ask yourself

1. What issues are your customers dealing with?
2. What concerns do they have?
3. Do I know even the answers to questions 1 & 2? If not, that's an item for future blog posting.
4. How can my marketing efforts be tailored to address those issues and concerns?