A recent directive for my creative marketing class is to identify direct response types of marketing. I've come across a couple in the last few days.
RBC Student Banking
The biggest bank in Canada invites students to open a 'no limit banking for students' account and those who choose to can enter to win a Vespa. The Vespa is the grand prize and secondary prizes are a Sony Bravia TV and a Playstation. What makes this a little different than many other contests is that the bank has made it very easy to find a nearest branch to the school, all information derived from a print ad. Users can text their school name to 12345, upon which the nearest RBC branch is returned.
Great - students can see where the nearest branch is and then visit - free banking awaiting them.
Great - RBC now has your phone information and can target a marketing campaign around that newly acquired information.
http://www.rbcp2p.com/freeride/
Of course, students can view information about the promotion and can enter the contest from the above link.
Fire up the Vespa and hone your PS3 skills...
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Monday, September 29, 2008
Archetypes in Business
Archetypal Selling Propositions
So, as we saw from the previous post, an archetype is defined by:
a very typical example of a certain person or thing : the book is a perfect archetype of the genre.
• an original that has been imitated : the archetype of faith is Abraham.
• a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology : mythological archetypes of good and evil.
Companies and causes alike have utilized animals in their corporate communication strategies and many have centered advertising around things like bears, squirrels and dogs. In this post, I'll discuss how three organizations have at some time in their histories have used friendly bears to connect with consumers.
Coke Bears
The Coke Bear campaign was introduced back in 1993 as it introduced the 'Always Coca-Cola' campaign. It had been a dramatic shift for Coke, as it used the computer generated polar bears to show the playful side of the brand. Between the parent bears and the bear cub, no words were spoken; only little grunts that the bears let out - assuming to be displays of affection. The campaign grew to the 1994 winter Olympics where the bears slid down the luge and slid off a ski jump. The campaign was a big success during that period of time for Coke.
Check it out:
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ccmphtml/colahist.html
Smokey the Bear
Moving on to a constant usage of the mountain dweller, Smokey the bear has been part of the longest running ad campaign Ad Council history.
http://www.adcouncil.org/default.aspx?id=129
Smokey began telling Americans that "ONLY YOU can prevent forest fires." He became the 'poster bear' for the United States Forest Service back in 1944 and has remained the symbolic spokesperson for the organization ever since. According to the USDA forest service "95% of the people surveyed could finish the sentence when given the first words."
http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/centennial/smokey.shtml
Smokey represents a recurrent symbol in North American culture and with all of his character updates since the mid 40's, still evokes strong feelings and associations.
The A&W Root Bear ("Rootie")
What would a discussion be about archetypal
bears without discussing the Great A&W Root Bear? He first came on to the scene back in 1975 when the company needed a lift - interesting that again, a bear was the chosen messenger. Canadians are familiar with associations that come with the bear - like Tubas, tunes and Orange. He became so popular in their marketing strategy that the American A&W chain made the Great Root Bear their mascot as well. The bear remains as perhaps the largest influencing archetypal selling proposition the company employs; he is infused everywhere in advertising and messaging. Again, like Coke's polar bears and the Forest Service's Smokey, Rootie is a great example of how an organization has used a recurring symbol to position its marketing communication efforts.
While Coke used the polar bears as a temporary movement in its advertising, the U.S. Forest Service and A&W have used their bears to promote the brand and thus, are strongly associated with people in society. Kraft has also featured bears on the front of its peanut butter jars for decades and is wildly associated with the product. Perhaps its the playfulness or the raw message that is elicited from the bear's presence that makes the message so powerful. Smokey was created after a forest fire in New Mexico left 'Smokey' clinging for life up a tall tree. People resonate with stories like this - characters bring a certain touch to everyday life that humans sometimes fail to do. Regardless, archetypes will continue to reach us on a daily basis, keep an eye out as you open the fridge, watch TV or drive down the street... Smokey may be watching you.
So, as we saw from the previous post, an archetype is defined by:
a very typical example of a certain person or thing : the book is a perfect archetype of the genre.
• an original that has been imitated : the archetype of faith is Abraham.
• a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology : mythological archetypes of good and evil.
Companies and causes alike have utilized animals in their corporate communication strategies and many have centered advertising around things like bears, squirrels and dogs. In this post, I'll discuss how three organizations have at some time in their histories have used friendly bears to connect with consumers.
Coke Bears
The Coke Bear campaign was introduced back in 1993 as it introduced the 'Always Coca-Cola' campaign. It had been a dramatic shift for Coke, as it used the computer generated polar bears to show the playful side of the brand. Between the parent bears and the bear cub, no words were spoken; only little grunts that the bears let out - assuming to be displays of affection. The campaign grew to the 1994 winter Olympics where the bears slid down the luge and slid off a ski jump. The campaign was a big success during that period of time for Coke.
Check it out:
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/ccmphtml/colahist.html
Smokey the Bear
Moving on to a constant usage of the mountain dweller, Smokey the bear has been part of the longest running ad campaign Ad Council history.
http://www.adcouncil.org/default.aspx?id=129
Smokey began telling Americans that "ONLY YOU can prevent forest fires." He became the 'poster bear' for the United States Forest Service back in 1944 and has remained the symbolic spokesperson for the organization ever since. According to the USDA forest service "95% of the people surveyed could finish the sentence when given the first words."
http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/centennial/smokey.shtml
Smokey represents a recurrent symbol in North American culture and with all of his character updates since the mid 40's, still evokes strong feelings and associations.
The A&W Root Bear ("Rootie")
What would a discussion be about archetypal
bears without discussing the Great A&W Root Bear? He first came on to the scene back in 1975 when the company needed a lift - interesting that again, a bear was the chosen messenger. Canadians are familiar with associations that come with the bear - like Tubas, tunes and Orange. He became so popular in their marketing strategy that the American A&W chain made the Great Root Bear their mascot as well. The bear remains as perhaps the largest influencing archetypal selling proposition the company employs; he is infused everywhere in advertising and messaging. Again, like Coke's polar bears and the Forest Service's Smokey, Rootie is a great example of how an organization has used a recurring symbol to position its marketing communication efforts.While Coke used the polar bears as a temporary movement in its advertising, the U.S. Forest Service and A&W have used their bears to promote the brand and thus, are strongly associated with people in society. Kraft has also featured bears on the front of its peanut butter jars for decades and is wildly associated with the product. Perhaps its the playfulness or the raw message that is elicited from the bear's presence that makes the message so powerful. Smokey was created after a forest fire in New Mexico left 'Smokey' clinging for life up a tall tree. People resonate with stories like this - characters bring a certain touch to everyday life that humans sometimes fail to do. Regardless, archetypes will continue to reach us on a daily basis, keep an eye out as you open the fridge, watch TV or drive down the street... Smokey may be watching you.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Archetypes...what are they?
archetype |ˈärk(i)ˌtīp|
noun
a very typical example of a certain person or thing : the book is a perfect archetype of the genre. See note at model .
• an original that has been imitated : the archetype of faith is Abraham.
• a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology : mythological archetypes of good and evil.
• Psychoanalysis (in Jungian psychology) a primitive mental image inherited from the earliest human ancestors, and supposed to be present in the collective unconscious.
source: Mac Dictionary
content comment coming soon.....
noun
a very typical example of a certain person or thing : the book is a perfect archetype of the genre. See note at model .
• an original that has been imitated : the archetype of faith is Abraham.
• a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art, or mythology : mythological archetypes of good and evil.
• Psychoanalysis (in Jungian psychology) a primitive mental image inherited from the earliest human ancestors, and supposed to be present in the collective unconscious.
source: Mac Dictionary
content comment coming soon.....
Monday, September 22, 2008
Groundswell - winning in a world transformed by social technologies
Groundswell – Winning in a world transformed by social technologies; a book by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, part of Forrester Research.
Empirically defined by the authors, Groundswell is a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like corporations .
Groundswell seeks to educate readers about the impact that blogs, community forums and wiki’s can have on the increasingly technology savvy consumer base. Strategic thrusts to the book are detailed in three major categories; Understanding the Groundswell, Tapping the Groundswell and How the Groundswell Transforms. More than ever, people have the desire to communicate and connect, albeit through increasingly varied mediums.
Understanding the Groundswell
In the first section of Groundswell, Li and Bernoff introduce how social technologies, organized by collective groups of people, can threaten companies that conduct unsatisfactory business practices. Naturally, the opposite may occur; people can create bonds to tout a company’s products and services. Either way, the key to this movement is that it is here, now. There is no denying the groundswell impact, it will impact organizational decision-making and must be recognized.
The key to understanding the Groundswell is through the Social Technographics Profile, in Figure 1 - a tool that the authors have created to analyze demographic groups to base decision-making activities.
Overall societal segments are shown between the ladder rungs, a large segment of the population chooses not to participate within the groundswell movement – yet many are clearly engaged in multiple segments. Figure 2 explains how specific demographic information can be applied to the model for further understanding and action. The example shows levels at which certain Alpha moms are engaged in the groundswell. These mothers are more apt to participate in forums as critics and spectators. They love to respond to published data (critics) while enjoying community forum content at a greater rate than the population (spectators) and organizations can tailor its online marketing strategy accordingly.
Tapping the Groundswell
The second part of the book introduces a planning process for companies to create a groundswell approach to its business. The authors have created the POST acronym; People, Objectives, Strategy and Technology. The POST process begins by analyzing demographics through the social technographics profile, and then outlines certain objectives for successful participation.
‘Objectives’ refer to five ways that a company can interact with groundswell customers:
- Listening – companies must listen to what customers are saying to gain better understanding
- Talking – Through social interactive tools (blogs, forums, communities), begin spreading messages to customers
- Energizing – Determine who the most energetic users are and leverage their enthusiasm for the brand; essentially making them brand evangelists
- Supporting – Help customers support each other; an example is Dell’s user generated support forums – people have a natural affinit y to help
- Embracing – After companies have succeeded in the first four steps, engage customers in product development through active feedback principles
Figure 3 provides examples pertaining to the five objectives.
Note the emphasis on interaction between customers in each functional area. This is what makes the groundswell such an important focal point and can represent a real opportunity for successful organizational strategy.
How the Groundswell Transforms
After all of the preceding activities and effective, thorough market research has been conducted, organizations can begin implementing programs that seek to test their particular market and segment. Consider Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty in 2004; Unilever initially marketed through traditional media and gave away small, yet increasingly creative control by allowing teams on The Apprentice to devise brand ads. However, the campaign really picked up speed as it went online, taking small steps with identifiable metrics to test the effects of groundswell investments (ads like Evolution). Throughout the process, senior executives recognized the importance of the initiative and had the courage to stay the directed course.
In summary, successful companies that choose to enter the groundswell should focus on the three following directives; steps that in Dove’s case, proved to be extremely successful :
- Take small steps that have big impact – using the Internet to promote campaigns became viral successes – the Evolution video has been viewed over 7.5 million times
- Have a vision and a plan – Li and Bernoff recommend success to be measured in years. Dove took two years after starting the Campaign for Real Beauty to introduce Evolution
- Build leaders into the plan – senior executive support is crucial for a campaign to get off the ground and their continued support enables people the ability to learn and adapt to change in the operating environment
In addition to customer-focused promotions, companies are increasingly using the groundswell to speak with employees. Best Buy created Blue Shirt Nation in 2006 as a way to connect employees throughout the organization – a place where they can post thoughts about daily activities and potential areas of opportunity. Employees benefit by actually being heard; functional knowledge is communicated through programs centered on employee mentorship to enhance emotional attachment at Best Buy.
Final Groundswell Recommendations
Li and Bernoff note that the future of the groundswell will continue to flourish thanks to inexpensive barriers to entry coupled with the natural propensity of people who are seeking to connect with others. Final advice from the authors is asserted in seven recommendations:
1. Be willing to talk with many people – the groundswell is a personal activity
2. Be a good listener – listen to customers and employees alike
3. Be patient – buy in takes time
4. Be opportunistic – act when the time is right
5. Be flexible – adjust constantly
6. Be collaborative – seek out like minded people to overcome resistance
7. Be humble – the groundswell is powerful, engage carefully
My Thoughts to Groundswell
Significant Implications
Due to the heavy, groundbreaking nature of the book, I felt it necessary to include significant amounts of content for those to learn from and consider. Indeed, there is plenty of material to process, all of which can have an impact on an organization now and into the future. Resulting data can be extremely useful for marketers to tailor effective marketing strategies around. The social technographics tool, perhaps the star of the book, has been made available for researchers to access:
http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/profile_tool.html
Access to Brand Evangelists
Beginning in the social technographics section and continuing through to energizing the groundswell, Li and Bernoff came across LUGNET (http://www.lugnet.com/) – a community where adult Lego fans are actively engaged in promoting the brand, providing feedback to the company (in terms of design and usability) and speaking passionately about their hobby. The company has 25 Lego ‘ambassadors’ of which are competitively earned and represent adult fans from around the world. The site is user generated and truly exhibits how innovation in design coupled with customer responsiveness can attract and retain lifelong users – true brand evangelists.
Because evangelists are truly enthusiastic about the brand, marketers can make them part of their communication strategy. These people can become an integral part of a segment and can essentially make them category captains. According to Li and Bernoff, adult fans for Lego, represent $50 million (5 – 10%) in annual sales. Targeted segments such as this need to be monitored and listened to – after ensuring they represent an integral part to their online and offline strategy. Following, the five objectives (listening, talking, energizing, supporting and embracing) from the POST process will guide marketers to win, if implemented correctly.
Groundswell is a book that, in my opinion, created a new lens in which to view the increasingly powerful social technology sphere. The concepts are timely and powerful.
Citations
1. Li and Bernoff, Groundswell - Winning in a word transformed by social technologies. Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business Press, 2008.
2. Li and Bernoff, Groundswell - Winning in a word transformed by social technologies. Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business Press - page 202, 2008.
Empirically defined by the authors, Groundswell is a social trend in which people use technologies to get the things they need from each other, rather than from traditional institutions like corporations .
Groundswell seeks to educate readers about the impact that blogs, community forums and wiki’s can have on the increasingly technology savvy consumer base. Strategic thrusts to the book are detailed in three major categories; Understanding the Groundswell, Tapping the Groundswell and How the Groundswell Transforms. More than ever, people have the desire to communicate and connect, albeit through increasingly varied mediums.
Understanding the Groundswell
In the first section of Groundswell, Li and Bernoff introduce how social technologies, organized by collective groups of people, can threaten companies that conduct unsatisfactory business practices. Naturally, the opposite may occur; people can create bonds to tout a company’s products and services. Either way, the key to this movement is that it is here, now. There is no denying the groundswell impact, it will impact organizational decision-making and must be recognized.
The key to understanding the Groundswell is through the Social Technographics Profile, in Figure 1 - a tool that the authors have created to analyze demographic groups to base decision-making activities.
Overall societal segments are shown between the ladder rungs, a large segment of the population chooses not to participate within the groundswell movement – yet many are clearly engaged in multiple segments. Figure 2 explains how specific demographic information can be applied to the model for further understanding and action. The example shows levels at which certain Alpha moms are engaged in the groundswell. These mothers are more apt to participate in forums as critics and spectators. They love to respond to published data (critics) while enjoying community forum content at a greater rate than the population (spectators) and organizations can tailor its online marketing strategy accordingly.
Tapping the Groundswell
The second part of the book introduces a planning process for companies to create a groundswell approach to its business. The authors have created the POST acronym; People, Objectives, Strategy and Technology. The POST process begins by analyzing demographics through the social technographics profile, and then outlines certain objectives for successful participation.‘Objectives’ refer to five ways that a company can interact with groundswell customers:
- Listening – companies must listen to what customers are saying to gain better understanding
- Talking – Through social interactive tools (blogs, forums, communities), begin spreading messages to customers
- Energizing – Determine who the most energetic users are and leverage their enthusiasm for the brand; essentially making them brand evangelists
- Supporting – Help customers support each other; an example is Dell’s user generated support forums – people have a natural affinit y to help
- Embracing – After companies have succeeded in the first four steps, engage customers in product development through active feedback principles
Note the emphasis on interaction between customers in each functional area. This is what makes the groundswell such an important focal point and can represent a real opportunity for successful organizational strategy.
How the Groundswell Transforms
After all of the preceding activities and effective, thorough market research has been conducted, organizations can begin implementing programs that seek to test their particular market and segment. Consider Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty in 2004; Unilever initially marketed through traditional media and gave away small, yet increasingly creative control by allowing teams on The Apprentice to devise brand ads. However, the campaign really picked up speed as it went online, taking small steps with identifiable metrics to test the effects of groundswell investments (ads like Evolution). Throughout the process, senior executives recognized the importance of the initiative and had the courage to stay the directed course.
In summary, successful companies that choose to enter the groundswell should focus on the three following directives; steps that in Dove’s case, proved to be extremely successful :
- Take small steps that have big impact – using the Internet to promote campaigns became viral successes – the Evolution video has been viewed over 7.5 million times
- Have a vision and a plan – Li and Bernoff recommend success to be measured in years. Dove took two years after starting the Campaign for Real Beauty to introduce Evolution
- Build leaders into the plan – senior executive support is crucial for a campaign to get off the ground and their continued support enables people the ability to learn and adapt to change in the operating environment
In addition to customer-focused promotions, companies are increasingly using the groundswell to speak with employees. Best Buy created Blue Shirt Nation in 2006 as a way to connect employees throughout the organization – a place where they can post thoughts about daily activities and potential areas of opportunity. Employees benefit by actually being heard; functional knowledge is communicated through programs centered on employee mentorship to enhance emotional attachment at Best Buy.
Final Groundswell Recommendations
Li and Bernoff note that the future of the groundswell will continue to flourish thanks to inexpensive barriers to entry coupled with the natural propensity of people who are seeking to connect with others. Final advice from the authors is asserted in seven recommendations:
1. Be willing to talk with many people – the groundswell is a personal activity
2. Be a good listener – listen to customers and employees alike
3. Be patient – buy in takes time
4. Be opportunistic – act when the time is right
5. Be flexible – adjust constantly
6. Be collaborative – seek out like minded people to overcome resistance
7. Be humble – the groundswell is powerful, engage carefully
My Thoughts to Groundswell
Significant Implications
Due to the heavy, groundbreaking nature of the book, I felt it necessary to include significant amounts of content for those to learn from and consider. Indeed, there is plenty of material to process, all of which can have an impact on an organization now and into the future. Resulting data can be extremely useful for marketers to tailor effective marketing strategies around. The social technographics tool, perhaps the star of the book, has been made available for researchers to access:
http://www.forrester.com/Groundswell/profile_tool.html
Access to Brand Evangelists
Beginning in the social technographics section and continuing through to energizing the groundswell, Li and Bernoff came across LUGNET (http://www.lugnet.com/) – a community where adult Lego fans are actively engaged in promoting the brand, providing feedback to the company (in terms of design and usability) and speaking passionately about their hobby. The company has 25 Lego ‘ambassadors’ of which are competitively earned and represent adult fans from around the world. The site is user generated and truly exhibits how innovation in design coupled with customer responsiveness can attract and retain lifelong users – true brand evangelists.
Because evangelists are truly enthusiastic about the brand, marketers can make them part of their communication strategy. These people can become an integral part of a segment and can essentially make them category captains. According to Li and Bernoff, adult fans for Lego, represent $50 million (5 – 10%) in annual sales. Targeted segments such as this need to be monitored and listened to – after ensuring they represent an integral part to their online and offline strategy. Following, the five objectives (listening, talking, energizing, supporting and embracing) from the POST process will guide marketers to win, if implemented correctly.
Groundswell is a book that, in my opinion, created a new lens in which to view the increasingly powerful social technology sphere. The concepts are timely and powerful.
Citations
1. Li and Bernoff, Groundswell - Winning in a word transformed by social technologies. Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business Press, 2008.
2. Li and Bernoff, Groundswell - Winning in a word transformed by social technologies. Boston, Massachusetts: Harvard Business Press - page 202, 2008.
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