Heard the one about the guy who tells the doctor he’s a duck? Doc sends him off with a script for some serious anti-psychotics. Ker-boom. To put the punchline in consumer product marketing terms, the target consumer puts the product – the one you want them to buy – on their mental ‘nonsense pile’, with the thousands of other bits of information that don’t make sense to them, and as such don’t earn a place in their consciousness.
Point is, unless you’re selling a purely functional product like fly spray, telling your target markets/audiences/publics how you want them to perceive your product is futile without compelling supporting evidence. Because when the story we tell, the version of reality we espouse (but I really am a duck) is at odds with what is observed and interpreted by those to whom we espouse it (er, can’t see any feathers), it is nonsense. Meaningless. Trash. And pity the fool expecting the favour of lateral thinking – effortless for the end user, or else.
Alas, so is the fate of positioning efforts plied by product and brand custodians who overestimate the power of words and ignore the proven wisdom that actions speak louder. Who are convinced their product’s features (and perhaps a less ordinary CV) are the story and ignore the proven wisdom that benefits reign, no matter how positively fab the features. Who neglect Lewis’ theory of Awareness-Interest-Desire-Action. ‘Build it and they will buy.’ Au contraire.
Consider the fragrance sector. Ever seen an ad for the latest eau de parfum with the tagline ‘makes you smell good’, under a still shot of the bottle? After all, that’s a benefit to the user, and the bottle is so much prrrrdier than the others in the marketplace. Instead you’ve probably seen a close up of a beauty in broken doll pose, dabbing her photoshopped decolletage with the dropper. Or in the case of Gucci Guilty, half naked and interwined with Adonis. Forget notes of frangipani – we sell you a licence to indulge your naughty side.
Savvy marketers know products don’t sell. Stories do. A compelling promise of a life less stressful/more exciting or a self more beautiful/appealing/socially accepted does. And that story can rarely be told effectively by a product per se. That’s why it’s paramount to ‘Sell the story, then the product’. And ‘Show, don’t tell’.
We are constantly conceiving of ways to narrate, consistently over multiple campaigns, in ways that shape perceptions in specific message recipients and move them along the path from awareness, to action, and beyond (loyalty). And a single channel or campaign will not. A little bit of publicity here and the odd tweet there are a little like turning off the movie half way through and expecting the cinema-goers to write an accurate review of the film.
Tactics need to be strategically integrated and rolled out in a way that keeps the story audible, visible and relevant over time. And importantly, such tactics must be in addition to, not instead of, sales. Sure, traditional publicity (product placement in print, mainly) can cause an enquiries spike, but as a rule, marketing and public relations prepare a fertile environment for an equally strategic sales and account management process. The good news is that all this can be done far more economically now (and in some cases, faster) than ever before, thanks to tools afforded by Web 2.0 . Product marketers are leveraging ‘virtually free’ elements to create layers of meaning, for various sub-publics, to achieve a compound effect that ultimately shows in your bottom line.
But despite their real-time claims, no new fangled whatsit has the power to override consumer psychology or the rules of sociology. Which are ultimately the reason Doc doesn’t say ‘What a lovely surprise – I love ducks! You should come around to my place for a swim.’
Here are a few tactics we’ve used to great effect, to help publics believe in a compelling, unique story.
1. Partnering an established brand in a lateral industry (fashion/homewares) for a collaborative product or promotion.
2. Lifestyle photography to convey a lifestyle and supplement product stills. Think an inspiring location that breathes life into your story.
3. Enlisting a celebrity brand ambassador who already wields influence over key publics to represent the brand. Just don’t forget to leverage it. (See 2.)
4. Giveaways via top-ranking blogs frequented by targets. These are highly shareable on social networks, invite engagement via a submission and voting process, are easy to administer, and benefit from spreadable association with said influential blogger.
5. Blogger seeding. Like celebrities, top bloggers are camera-bait at relevant industry events (particularly fashion) and will often post shots of themselves with your product.
6. Search for the face of the product or brand (ties in with 2.) Again, highly shareable on social networks and able to be leveraged through different phases, from nominations to submission of images including the product (thus stimulating sales), through peer/social media voting, to a celebrity judging panel whose influence can be leveraged, to the announcement, which can spread like wildfire. Then there is the implementation, of behind the scenes at photo shoots… the love goes on.
7. In-store events. Don’t forget your distributors and/or retail partners are among your most important publics, far beyond sell-in.
