I am a marketing communications professional from Baltimore, Maryland. I currently work for The Sutter Group, a communications design firm just outside of Washington, DC in Maryland. The Sutter Group does integrated brand communications, brand development, identity development, advertising, Web design, graphic design, marketing strategy and environmental graphics. Visit us at http://www.sutter-group.com.
Hi all -My colleague Christina recently passed along a story she ran across on NPR about the up and coming marketing vehicle called Word of Mouth Marketing. It's actually been around since the dawn of time, but I call it up and coming because it is actually making its way into actual marketing plans now. Heck, there's even an association: The Word of Mouth Marketing Association! Here's the link to their Web site: www.womma.org.
And here's some Georgetown U students that were just "wordofmouthed!"
I think this is going to be a vital form of viral marketing, especially in an age where consumers are increasingly resistant to many forms of traditional advertising. What do you think?
I always say that to create great marketing, you must have guts. You must be able to throw caution to the wind and forgo safety. Here's a great example.
Starting soon, Saturn will be stocking their showrooms with brand new Honda Accords and Toyota Camrys, two of America's best selling cars in history. Dealers there will offer free test drives of each of these cars, and allow consumers to compare them with the Saturn Aura to pick which one they like best.
THAT'S guts on the part of both their agency and their marketing department. For me the consumer, it sounds like Saturn is pretty darn sure their car can compete head-to-head and win. I'm SURE this move will sell lots of cars.
Definition: Someone who is so fiercely brand loyal that they feel the need to constantly boast about how one brand is better than the other. This person is likely to get heated when they run into someone that doesn't share their brand preference.
Here's an example: Today I was going by the mail room at my office and saw that someone was sending their Netflix movie back in the outgoing mail. Me personally, I love Blockbuster Total Access. It's essentially the same as Netflix, but you have the option of returning and renting in store as well. It's Netflix, improved. I love it. I love it so much, I have become a brand evangelist, telling all about my love for the brand. But when I saw the Netflix envelope, my first reaction was to look in and see who it was so I could go ask them why the hell they weren't Blockbuster customers!!! I'm the same way with Subaru and Porsche...I am a brand defender (TM)!!!!!
I like to think that we have turned many a regular consumer into brand defenders over the last 19 years. We look forward to creating many more for years to come.
Just a quick recap of some consumer research that I just read from The Kelsey Group about the media consumption habits of consumers - pretty compelling stuff:
Nearly six in 10 Web users (59%) have watched online video ads
Of 296 respondents who had viewed a video ad: 43% said they then clicked on a Web site 22% requested more information 18% went to a store 15% made a purchase 11% forwarded the video to a friend 9% signed up for a product or trial 3% ordered a subscription 45% took no action
Good stuff - it just goes to show you that online video works. Why? Kelsey hypothesizes (and I agree wholeheartedly) it's because consumers who consciously click to view are motivated, and they are one click away from making contact or responding to the ad. Televisions viewers, on the other hand, are usually sitting on the couch and unlikely to make a move before they forget about the ads.
Here's one of the favorite online ads I've ever seen:
This is a huge issue for me. I own a car that makes a lot of its power by a turbo charger, which means that I have to put premium fuel in my car (for anyone curious, my pride and joy is pictured below). Right now, in Anne Arundel County Maryland, premium fuel is going for right around $3.50 a gallon. I was bitter. And then I read THIS article. Even more bitter.
Why then, did I also just read THIS? Now I'm not a genius, but it sounds to me like the oil companies are hitting it filthy rich while the rest of us Americans are pinching pennies to pay for our trip to work every day. It just doesn't seem like good PR. Now that some car companies are making high-powered hybrids, or at least have them in development, I'm seriously thinking about it....Garret
Did you guys see this? I knew it was coming, but I didn't know it would be front page news on most of the major networks.
I have to applaud their courage in coming up with a striking, somewhat polarizing name - I think it probably is a name that received a lot of attention and did (for better or for worse) resonate with the target audience. And it certainly makes a statement in a sea of energy drinks with hardcore names, although none are as hard as COCAINE: Monster, Amp, Vault, Jolt, Red Bull, Rockstar, etc...
But in the end, you had to know that the FDA was going to take issue with a product, marketed to the Nation's youth, with the same name of an illicit drug.
Flash animation intros used to be the cool thing to do - back in the early 1990s when the Internet was invented. You'd see them everywhere, on sites from a law practice to a musical group. And, even though you'd see them everywhere, you still watched them until the very end because they were new and cool.
Times are different now. It's over a decade later, and the Internet has changed a bit. Everyone's using it, and they're not as patient as they used to be. Hungry for information, today's Internet user doesn't have time to sit and wait for Flash animation to load - especially a lame slide show that drags on for 30+ seconds and tells you nothing important. It's even worse if it's not programmed with a cookie and you have to be subjected to it EVERY time you come to a site.
I'm seeing too many of these lately, and as an Internet user (not a marketer) I'm sick of it. I started to wonder how many people in the year 2007 are watching Flash intro animations, and how many are hastily hitting the "skip intro" button. I did a little bit of secondary consumer research and found that Flash intro animations are among the top things that consumers hate most about Web sites. Another source says that the "skip intro" button may just be the most clicked button on the entire Internet.
So why are they still being used? WHY? My guess is that they're done by Internet chop shops that love to do these intricate designs to make some money. They're certainly not doing what's in their clients' best interest by making a site that will actually work. What they've created is one annoying Web site. Yuck.
I think as consumers, we should take a stand. I encourage you to send an email to the Webmaster or the management of the next Web site you see with an animated intro telling them just how annoyed you are by their flagrant use of Flash. Better yet, copy and past the URL of this blog into the email, and let this blog do the talking for you. It'll save you some time. And I KNOW how important your time is.
In scouring today's news I read Wendy Davis from Media Post's blog regarding presidential hopeful Barack Obama and the recent snafu surrounding his Myspace page.
In case you don't want to read it, or don't have time, here's the cliffs notes: Guy supports Obama. Guy makes a Myspace page devoted to Obama. Obama loves it. Obama page gets lots of hits and friends and has great support. Guy spends too much of his time on the site, keeping up with supporters. Guy wants a bit of compensation for his effort. Obama takes over the site. Guy is ticked. Guy gets no money. It's a great read, and yet another great example of why it pays to be in touch, even if you're America's next president. Shouldn't one of his staffers have started this page the minute he started on the campaign trail instead of a friend of Obama's?
