Hi all -
We met with a prospect today that told us that her husband's mail "role" is to bring the mail in, while hers is to sit over the trash can and go through it, putting the good mail on the counter neatly, while throwing away the rest. It got me thinking...I wonder how many people do the same thing...that is, not even look at the direct mail that's getting sent to them. My guess is that a lot of people do just that. We're so trained nowadays that everything that get sent to us much be junk mail, that we're desensitized to the power of direct mail. I wish so many marketers hadn't ruined it for the legitimate ones....
Leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts on direct mail. Does it ever influence you? My guess is that most people will say no. However, I also have a sneaking suspicion that some consumers throw most of it away unless of course it is a piece of "junk" mail that advertises something that they are brand loyal to.
Later folks,
Garret
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
I Think You Should Add a Valve There Mr. Plumber
My mentor always used to say to clients, "You wouldn't tell a plumber how to do his job, would you?" To which the client invariably answered, "well, no, I don't know how to do a plumber's job." To clients that really trusted him he'd follow up with, "well then why are you trying to pretend you know how to do my job?"
Seems like a simple concept, right? Yet somehow, no matter who we're dealing with, there's always some member of upper management that thinks he/she is God's gift to advertising. And EVERYONE thinks they know enough to give their $.02 on what they think is right. The truth is, they usually only know enough to be dangerous to their company's marketing program. I'm not naming names by any means, but trust me, it is true and it's a reality many of us agency folk deal with all the time.
My only message with today's blog (other than an opportunity to rant) is that if you're going to hire an ad agency, make sure it's one you trust. And trust in them enough to do their job without telling them how to do it. It will lead to more effective and brand building marketing efforts for your company. Promise.
Garret Ohm
Seems like a simple concept, right? Yet somehow, no matter who we're dealing with, there's always some member of upper management that thinks he/she is God's gift to advertising. And EVERYONE thinks they know enough to give their $.02 on what they think is right. The truth is, they usually only know enough to be dangerous to their company's marketing program. I'm not naming names by any means, but trust me, it is true and it's a reality many of us agency folk deal with all the time.
My only message with today's blog (other than an opportunity to rant) is that if you're going to hire an ad agency, make sure it's one you trust. And trust in them enough to do their job without telling them how to do it. It will lead to more effective and brand building marketing efforts for your company. Promise.
Garret Ohm
Shopping For An Agency Based On Price
Hi all -
It's been a few days since I've written, but this is one theme that has come up in my daily routine a few times lately, so I thought I'd blab about it for a little bit. Over the past several weeks, our agency has been in countless pitch situations with clients big and small - some right here in Annapolis. Others as far away as Richmond Virginia and Rehoboth Delaware. Of these pitches, there have been a couple that have chosen which agency they went forward with based on cost ALONE. That's right, no other factors.
This bugs me. Advertising and marketing services is one of those things that just shouldn't be done by whoever lowballs a bid enough to win the business. It should be done by someone who knows and respects advertising and marketing principles, and that a client can trust do do the thing they do the absolute best.
Look at it this way. Let's say, for example, two agencies pitch a luxury car dealer. Agency A is a top-of-the-line advertising agency with 20 employees. Agency B is an upstart agency with 3 employees working out of a basement. Who do you think is going to be able to offer the lowest prices? The one with the lower overhead, right? Right. But who is going to do the best job? More than likely the agency that costs a little bit more money. But they happen to also be the agency with the most resources, the most talent, and the most expertise. But what if Mr. agency chooser decides he wants to save a litle money?
Well, do the math. If you choose the agency that's going to save you $4,000 a month in marketing expenses, but sell you an average of about 10 cars less per month (at about $1,000 profit), you're actually losing $6,000 per month. So in reality, the cheaper agency is the most expensive. Feel me?
And that's not to mention that it is nearly IMPOSSIBLE to compare apples to apples when it comes to advertising. That's what makes it so tough when I put together a proposal for a client. I am VERY thorough, and tend to define a project or account's scope as much as I can so that I can give an accurate price estimation. Well, Joe Schmo that runs a shop out of his basement may come in with a lower price but a poorly defined scope - this usually means that they'll win the business and fail to deliver in the end, or deliver an inferior marketing campaign. I've seen it happen a million times
I guess what I'm trying to say here is that we're not selling widgets in the advertising world. As such, our services can't be treated like a commodity. The best price isn't always the best value. So don't be penny wise and pound foolish.
Let me know what you think.
Garret K. Ohm
It's been a few days since I've written, but this is one theme that has come up in my daily routine a few times lately, so I thought I'd blab about it for a little bit. Over the past several weeks, our agency has been in countless pitch situations with clients big and small - some right here in Annapolis. Others as far away as Richmond Virginia and Rehoboth Delaware. Of these pitches, there have been a couple that have chosen which agency they went forward with based on cost ALONE. That's right, no other factors.
This bugs me. Advertising and marketing services is one of those things that just shouldn't be done by whoever lowballs a bid enough to win the business. It should be done by someone who knows and respects advertising and marketing principles, and that a client can trust do do the thing they do the absolute best.
Look at it this way. Let's say, for example, two agencies pitch a luxury car dealer. Agency A is a top-of-the-line advertising agency with 20 employees. Agency B is an upstart agency with 3 employees working out of a basement. Who do you think is going to be able to offer the lowest prices? The one with the lower overhead, right? Right. But who is going to do the best job? More than likely the agency that costs a little bit more money. But they happen to also be the agency with the most resources, the most talent, and the most expertise. But what if Mr. agency chooser decides he wants to save a litle money?
Well, do the math. If you choose the agency that's going to save you $4,000 a month in marketing expenses, but sell you an average of about 10 cars less per month (at about $1,000 profit), you're actually losing $6,000 per month. So in reality, the cheaper agency is the most expensive. Feel me?
And that's not to mention that it is nearly IMPOSSIBLE to compare apples to apples when it comes to advertising. That's what makes it so tough when I put together a proposal for a client. I am VERY thorough, and tend to define a project or account's scope as much as I can so that I can give an accurate price estimation. Well, Joe Schmo that runs a shop out of his basement may come in with a lower price but a poorly defined scope - this usually means that they'll win the business and fail to deliver in the end, or deliver an inferior marketing campaign. I've seen it happen a million times
I guess what I'm trying to say here is that we're not selling widgets in the advertising world. As such, our services can't be treated like a commodity. The best price isn't always the best value. So don't be penny wise and pound foolish.
Let me know what you think.
Garret K. Ohm
Sunday, May 21, 2006
"New. Improved." Right....
You know how they say most brilliant ideas come to you while you're in the shower? Well, I had one today. Ok, so maybe not brilliant, but certainly noteworthy. As I performed my routine as I normally do today, something struck me - as I usually do, I turned a normal everyday situation into a marketing discussion with myself.
Instead of my usual blank stares at the tile as the water rushes over me, today I found myself looking around at my surroundings. For the most part, there wasn't much interesting to look at [and no, that isn't me calling myself uninteresting to look at].
Let me paint the picture....behind me, there's some various shampoos - depending on how I'm feeling in a given day. Then, immediately to my left are the soaps (all bottled soaps, of course - who uses bar soaps anymore?). In front of me, right under the showerhead, are the shaving needs, including my Gillette Mach 3 Power razor. Yes, I shave in the shower. I should also add, that there are various product brands from various companies. While I do consider myself to be very brand loyal, soaps and shampoos are one area where I've never had much luck picking one brand that suits my fancy.
So, I started to read the labels of all the products in the shower with me. Like a ton of bricks, I realized that EVERY single product that I had in my shower had a label that proclaimed that it was NEW. Some were even marketed as NEW & IMPROVED. Not just one product. Every single one. There must have been six or seven different bottles in the shower, and evey last one was labeled that it was NEW. Sheesh.
So that got me thinking - were manufacturers truly putting so much money and effort into product development that they had a new product just about every couple of months? Or was this a clever marketing spin? I'm not sure, but I'm guessing it's the latter, but I can neither confirm nor deny. And I'm sure this is the type of thing that is kept well within the walls of companies like Johnson & Johnson and Proctor & Gamble. So I'll probably never know.
And another thing...are we as consumers really affected by buzz words like "New & Improved" or are we so used to seeing them that we're numb to their effects? Searching deep down within me, I'd have to say a bit of both. I think we as consumers are always looking for products and services that are better than what we have right now. We're inherently programmed to better ourselves in most cases. But at the same time, I buy these very same things all the time and I have to admit, I didn't notice until just today that ANY of these products were new and/or improved.
Craziness. So, if you're reading this, I promise to update this soon, to create my "new & improved" blog!
Garret K. Ohm
Instead of my usual blank stares at the tile as the water rushes over me, today I found myself looking around at my surroundings. For the most part, there wasn't much interesting to look at [and no, that isn't me calling myself uninteresting to look at].
Let me paint the picture....behind me, there's some various shampoos - depending on how I'm feeling in a given day. Then, immediately to my left are the soaps (all bottled soaps, of course - who uses bar soaps anymore?). In front of me, right under the showerhead, are the shaving needs, including my Gillette Mach 3 Power razor. Yes, I shave in the shower. I should also add, that there are various product brands from various companies. While I do consider myself to be very brand loyal, soaps and shampoos are one area where I've never had much luck picking one brand that suits my fancy.
So, I started to read the labels of all the products in the shower with me. Like a ton of bricks, I realized that EVERY single product that I had in my shower had a label that proclaimed that it was NEW. Some were even marketed as NEW & IMPROVED. Not just one product. Every single one. There must have been six or seven different bottles in the shower, and evey last one was labeled that it was NEW. Sheesh.
So that got me thinking - were manufacturers truly putting so much money and effort into product development that they had a new product just about every couple of months? Or was this a clever marketing spin? I'm not sure, but I'm guessing it's the latter, but I can neither confirm nor deny. And I'm sure this is the type of thing that is kept well within the walls of companies like Johnson & Johnson and Proctor & Gamble. So I'll probably never know.
And another thing...are we as consumers really affected by buzz words like "New & Improved" or are we so used to seeing them that we're numb to their effects? Searching deep down within me, I'd have to say a bit of both. I think we as consumers are always looking for products and services that are better than what we have right now. We're inherently programmed to better ourselves in most cases. But at the same time, I buy these very same things all the time and I have to admit, I didn't notice until just today that ANY of these products were new and/or improved.
Craziness. So, if you're reading this, I promise to update this soon, to create my "new & improved" blog!
Garret K. Ohm
Thursday, May 04, 2006
McDonalds RedBox
I had a really cool experience the other day that I had to tell everyone about, because it deals with a cool new service that I'm not sure everyone knows about. This might get a little long winded and maybe even tangential at times, but bear with me.
So let me start at the beginning. You'll need to know two things right off the bat - I didn't see Brokeback Mountain like everyone else in the entire free world. I also lost about 35lbs over the past two years, and no longer patronize establishments like McDonalds on an everyday basis. Well, I do from time to time, but I PROMISE, it's always because they have good salads.
Anyway, so a couple of weekends ago, my fiance gets it in her mind that she must see Brokeback Mountain all of a sudden, even though it hadn't really crossed her mind much before then. I, being the loving and supportive mate that I am, obliged despite the fact that I wasn't TOO thrilled about it. I mean, I'm not by any means homophobic, but I have to admit I had heard a few people say that to a heterosexual male, this might cause a liiiiitttle bit of discomfort. Not exactly my favorite way to spend a weekend night.
Tangent: I'm not trying to bash Blockbuster, because by all means it seems to be a pretty well run company with a solid business model. I've rented hundreds of movies from here over the past 10 years or more, and I'm still a member. But if there's one thing I can count on lately, its that they are going to be OUT of the movie that I want to rent. This really didn't start until they got rid of late fees. I'm almost positive that people just aren't bringing movies back on time now, so their inventory suffers. How do I know? Because I have definitely been guilty of keeping a two night rental for seven or more days!!!
So, of course, the night I go to rent Brokeback Mountain, they are OUT of it. What to do, what to do? She is dead set on seeing this movie tonight. I have a responsibility as a man to find what she wants. So I think about it for a bit and start to weigh my options. I could drive to another Blockbuster - the one in Fort Meade is only about 15 minutes away. But with the ridiculous prices in gas these days, the half hour total drive makes my wallet hurt!
Maybe I could just wait it out-Hope that by some stroke of luck, someone will bring that exact movie back while I wait. After much debate, I decide that I can't decide. Instead I call the (future) wife and ask her for an answer.
Without missing a beat, she says to me, "why don't you go to RedBox?" HUH? What exactly is this Redbox she speaks of. So I ask, "RedBox?" To which she replies, "you know, RedBox, at McDonalds." This is the first I had heard of it to be quite honest, but as soon as I learned more, I knew I would be hearing much, much more.
Basically, to break it down for you, RedBox (www.redbox.com) is (are?) these big, red.....boxes, at McDonalds locations. They are stocked full of newly released movies. What's cool about this, is that not only are there RedBox locations at almost every McDonalds (there are a bajillion), but the movies only cost $1. The only 'catch' is that you have to return them the next day. But even if you forget, it's only another $1. And if you never return it, you pay $15. Not bad, considering that's about the cost of a new DVD these days anyway.
I was blown away. Why even bother keeping my Blockbuster card?
So I took the movie home and reported back to the wife that I thought RedBox was better than sliced bread. She was more than pumped that she was the one that suggested that. We watched the movie, which I must say was not all it was cracked up to be. It was really, really slow. Painfully slow at times.
Anyway, the real genius behind this business model hit me as I went to return the movie the next day at ANOTHER McDonalds (yes, you can return them at any McDonalds). This time, the RedBox was INSIDE the McD's. Remember when I said I don't go into McDonalds much anymore? Well, here I was walking into a McDonalds on a Sunday afternoon, as unsuspecting as ever.
All of a sudden, IT HIT ME. No, not the marketing genius I had just witnessed. THE SMELL OF FRENCH FRIES. Ugh, I was torn. Do I continue on my way behind a curtain of self discipline, or do I give in and enjoy some fries. Luckily this time, I wasn't that hungry, so I was able to resist. But I wondered...how many other people just like me gave in to the temptation and ordered a McDonalds meal? My guess is LOTS.
After researching further, I realized that RedBox is actually owned by McDonalds. It all makes sense! Brilliant!
Well, that's about it for now. Oh, I forgot to mention. If, through some strange search engine search, the higher ups at RedBox find this post, and are looking for an ad agency in Maryland has you covered!
So let me start at the beginning. You'll need to know two things right off the bat - I didn't see Brokeback Mountain like everyone else in the entire free world. I also lost about 35lbs over the past two years, and no longer patronize establishments like McDonalds on an everyday basis. Well, I do from time to time, but I PROMISE, it's always because they have good salads.
Anyway, so a couple of weekends ago, my fiance gets it in her mind that she must see Brokeback Mountain all of a sudden, even though it hadn't really crossed her mind much before then. I, being the loving and supportive mate that I am, obliged despite the fact that I wasn't TOO thrilled about it. I mean, I'm not by any means homophobic, but I have to admit I had heard a few people say that to a heterosexual male, this might cause a liiiiitttle bit of discomfort. Not exactly my favorite way to spend a weekend night.
Tangent: I'm not trying to bash Blockbuster, because by all means it seems to be a pretty well run company with a solid business model. I've rented hundreds of movies from here over the past 10 years or more, and I'm still a member. But if there's one thing I can count on lately, its that they are going to be OUT of the movie that I want to rent. This really didn't start until they got rid of late fees. I'm almost positive that people just aren't bringing movies back on time now, so their inventory suffers. How do I know? Because I have definitely been guilty of keeping a two night rental for seven or more days!!!
So, of course, the night I go to rent Brokeback Mountain, they are OUT of it. What to do, what to do? She is dead set on seeing this movie tonight. I have a responsibility as a man to find what she wants. So I think about it for a bit and start to weigh my options. I could drive to another Blockbuster - the one in Fort Meade is only about 15 minutes away. But with the ridiculous prices in gas these days, the half hour total drive makes my wallet hurt!
Maybe I could just wait it out-Hope that by some stroke of luck, someone will bring that exact movie back while I wait. After much debate, I decide that I can't decide. Instead I call the (future) wife and ask her for an answer.
Without missing a beat, she says to me, "why don't you go to RedBox?" HUH? What exactly is this Redbox she speaks of. So I ask, "RedBox?" To which she replies, "you know, RedBox, at McDonalds." This is the first I had heard of it to be quite honest, but as soon as I learned more, I knew I would be hearing much, much more.
Basically, to break it down for you, RedBox (www.redbox.com) is (are?) these big, red.....boxes, at McDonalds locations. They are stocked full of newly released movies. What's cool about this, is that not only are there RedBox locations at almost every McDonalds (there are a bajillion), but the movies only cost $1. The only 'catch' is that you have to return them the next day. But even if you forget, it's only another $1. And if you never return it, you pay $15. Not bad, considering that's about the cost of a new DVD these days anyway.
I was blown away. Why even bother keeping my Blockbuster card?
So I took the movie home and reported back to the wife that I thought RedBox was better than sliced bread. She was more than pumped that she was the one that suggested that. We watched the movie, which I must say was not all it was cracked up to be. It was really, really slow. Painfully slow at times.
Anyway, the real genius behind this business model hit me as I went to return the movie the next day at ANOTHER McDonalds (yes, you can return them at any McDonalds). This time, the RedBox was INSIDE the McD's. Remember when I said I don't go into McDonalds much anymore? Well, here I was walking into a McDonalds on a Sunday afternoon, as unsuspecting as ever.
All of a sudden, IT HIT ME. No, not the marketing genius I had just witnessed. THE SMELL OF FRENCH FRIES. Ugh, I was torn. Do I continue on my way behind a curtain of self discipline, or do I give in and enjoy some fries. Luckily this time, I wasn't that hungry, so I was able to resist. But I wondered...how many other people just like me gave in to the temptation and ordered a McDonalds meal? My guess is LOTS.
After researching further, I realized that RedBox is actually owned by McDonalds. It all makes sense! Brilliant!
Well, that's about it for now. Oh, I forgot to mention. If, through some strange search engine search, the higher ups at RedBox find this post, and are looking for an ad agency in Maryland has you covered!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
