Category: Clutter Free Marketing

Neither Harvey Dent Nor Eliot Spitzer

Neither Harvey Dent Nor Eliot Spitzer

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Yesterday, brand Husband (also my blog stringer) called in a tip from our Georgetown neighborhood that a van with Aaron Eckhart’s photo on it, and campaign signs reading “I Believe in Harvey Dent”. He suggested I check out the faux campaign website.

Harvey Dent

I then mentioned this to the Catch Up Lady who clued me in to the elaborate online program surrounding Harvey Dent’s campaign that has been tiding over moviegoers for months. I am not conversant enough with Dark Knight mythology to recognize that Harvey Dent is Gotham’s crusader DA, but Husband knew immediately that this van was all about Batman. So like, the commercials for Oceanic Air that led to a website priming the enthusiast audience for the return of Lost, Harvey Dent street teams are popping up in neighborhoods in big cities all over the country, building buzz among insiders on the grassroots level – and confusing the heck out of a lot of other people in the meantime as I Watch Stuff amusingly chronicled in NY.  This will be clutter to many, but powerful for the core few.

TwofaceMaybe the Batman movie will get a boost out of this week’s news of Client 9. After becoming the supervillain Two Face, Harvey Dent, the former crusader against police corruption flips a coin to decide whether to do evil or fight it. Maybe that’s how the former Governor of New York was setting his daily agenda too. To quote Harvey’s campaign platform “Too many cops have become criminals themselves.”

Meatball Marketing

Meatball Marketing

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I’ll admit it. I have not yet read Meatball Sundae by Seth Godin. Frankly, I haven’t read a whole book with a title other than some variation of “How not to screw up your kid” for quite a while. I know I will read Meatball Sundae, however, because I am so sold on the concept of the book, Seth’s easily digested writing style, and by the fantastic marketing that has surrounded it.

For “something completely different”, check out Jackie Huba’s Meatball Sundae video review/demonstration live from Amy’s Ice Cream in Austin Texas, John Moore from Brand Autopsy’s Seth Godin-Action Figure pull quote art slides and the piece de resistance, Seth’s very own Will it Blend? video.

Give It Away, Now

Give It Away, Now

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“What we keep we lose, and only what we give remains our own” was stitched on a banner that I saw every day on my way into elementary school. At that point, it was more of a moral compass. More recently, I’ve seen it turn into sound business advice.

Harbor LightsThere is no greater assignment of personal equity than to give a product or experience as a gift. On an early date with my husband, I gave him my favorite album – thereby assigning my “VeeDub equity” to it. Always a risk – he could hate it, and the value of “VeeDub equity” could have decreased in his eyes.

Similarly, giving a customer a little piece of your brand to give away themselves (an experience invitation, a sample, a coupon, a badge, etc) is a great litmus test. Your customer will do one of 3 things, which will allow you to know how to invest in them in the future:

Ignore it – Either you chose an unappealing representation of the brand to share with them or they were never going to be an enthusiast. This individual is not one you should continue to invest in disproportionately.

Keep it for themselves – This means that they enjoy your brand, but will not share because they either do not feel like it reflects positively on their own brand equity or they do not feel comfortable sharing with others. These folks are not hubs. Continue to value their patronage, but they are not evangelists in the making.

Pass the brand along – They feel like sharing your brand reflects back positively on them and they are willing to assign their personal equity to it. Embrace these people. They are going to be a higher ROI investment than any other acquisition channel. Give them the tools & education to become evangelists.

G2: Buying Eyes for Good

G2: Buying Eyes for Good

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G2Yesterday morning, while watching the Mike & Mike Show on ESPN, I saw an interesting event that G2 was hosting in collaboration with the Super Bowl.  It was an actual (punny)bowling event with who I assume must be football stars.  I was flipping channels and barely paying attention, but I heard one of the Mikes say that for every visitor to www.drinkG2.com, a $1 donation would be made to the United Way.

Honestly, I had no idea what G2 was, but was multitasking and it only took a second for me to hit the site so, in a Pavlovian response, I instantly typed in the address.  Not only did $1 get donated to United Way (there is $100k max, it appears), but in just a few moments, I learned that G2 is the “light” version of Gatorade with only 25 calories.  Shockingly enough, that’s a value proposition that interests me and I just might buy the product.

So, for $1 that went to a good cause anyway, Gatorade bought my awareness and I am now officially “likely” to try.  Pretty good deal.  This has been used in other campaigns and, while it is a blatant eyeball purchase, it works and doesn’t create waste.  This is a great opportunity for charities & brands to partner in a mutually beneficial way and charities should not be afraid to make the first move.  Think about the brands that your likely donors or activisits would appreciate, and approach them!

Marketing Environmentalism Quick Hits

Marketing Environmentalism Quick Hits

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The Today show featured some marketing envorinmentalism – one school’s great results of holding a “catalog cancelling challenge“.  You can join the clutter-free ranks at catalogchoice.org. 

While catalogs take a long time to decompose yet are only “good” for a limited time, it appears that viral video can live forever.  Just for fun, I started searching for some of the videos that Cole & Weber United produced for me in 2005 and they are still out there.  You can still enjoy Mitch Ferrence’s dance lessons, air guitar instruction, and Mark’s ditties – my favorites are “Thanks in Advance” and “Bracketman: A March Tragedy”.