Do You Offer Your Customers Too Many Choices?
Our February Pen & Paper Marketing Newsletter talks about why you shouldn’t offer your customers too many choices. You may think you’re doing them a favor - but you’re not. This concept isn’t new and I certainly don’t claim it as my own. I was inspired by my own experiences and a couple of recent reads.
The book Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to be Persuasive , by Noah J. Goldstein, Steve J. Martin and Robert B. Cialdini (author of Influence), talks about how Procter & Gamble reduced the Head & Shoulders shampoo line from 26 to 15 versions and saw their sales increase by 10 percent. Their customers were previously overwhelmed.
The 4-Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss, has a chapter titled “The Art of Undecision: Fewer Options = More Revenue”, in which he talks about direct marketer Joseph Sugarman. Apparently Sugarman was once asked to design an advertisement for a watch line. The manufacturer wanted to showcase nine watches, Sugarman suggested featuring just one. After the client insisted on the nine-watch ad, Sugarman offered to test both options in The Wall Street Journal. They found that the one-watch advertisement outsold the multi-watch promotion by 6-to-1*.
Both of these stories, along with my own recent shopping experiences had me thinking about the importance of a simple product offering. Your customers have enough decisions to make - let’s not make their lives more complicated.
* The 4-Hour Work Week referenced “Joseph Sugarman, Advertising Secrets of the Written Word (DelStart Books, 1998)”.
How Marketing and Advertising Have Changed
Here’s a fun little video I found on YouTube about the “History of Marketing”, created by Scholz & Friends, a German ad agency.
It’s true that the game has changed. Splashy television ads, jingles and mass marketing techniques won’t save a product or brand anymore - we need to find creative ways to engage our customers and take a more personal approach with our marketing.
Don’t Distract from Your Message - a Westminster Dog Show Lesson
The popular Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show took place earlier this week. This show is all about the dogs. However, it can be easy to become distracted by the movements, gestures and clothing of some of the dogs’ handlers. The Wall Street Journal interviewed long-time dog handler Valerie Nunes-Atkinson, who had this to say about showing dogs:
“In the ring you want to showcase the dog’s get up and go,” she continued. “Some people have what we call ‘the claw’ — they have an arm that swings out — or they do weird things with their legs that may cause undue attention to be placed on the handler instead of the dog.”
When you think about it, the same thing can happen in professional settings. Maybe you’re not in the show ring, but are instead on a sales call, in a work meeting, or at a networking event. Your reason for being there is to showcase your service or project (your dog)- not you. Like a dog handler, you are there to guide and improve the chances of your project or services being accepted. You are not there to draw attention to your hairstyle, perfume/cologne, finger nails, cuff links, gestures, or outfit.
It’s good to have your own personal image, but be careful to not let it distract from your message. Know who your audience is and what style of clothing, attitude and mannerisms are acceptable. When you encourage others to focus on your message, and not your apperance - you improve your chances of walking away a winner.
Southwest Airlines’ Marketing Gets Personal & Hits the Streets
The San Diego Business Journal mentioned that a crew of 200 Southwest Airlines marketing employees will be in downtown San Diego for an annual meeting tomorrow - they plan to hit the streets and hand out 40 roundtrip airline tickets and other free goodies.
What an excellent idea. Those 40 tickets will give them miles of PR coverage and create tons of goodwill with folks in San Diego. Who doesn’t like the idea of receiving a free airline ticket - just for being there?! Once again, Southwest Airlines proves that they know how to have fun and get personal with their customers.
5 Reasons Why the Snuggie Blanket is Making Money in This Economy
Advertising Age and ABC News recently talked about the marketing success of the Snuggie - the blanket with sleeves. Since September, they’ve sold over 4 million units. It’s wonderful to see a business experiencing sales success in a rather somber economy.
Here are 5 reasons why the Snuggie is doing so well..
1. It’s Cold Out
The first and obvious reason for the success of this blanket is that it is darned cold right now throughout much of the country. Most folks are sitting in front of their TVs at night trying to stay warm. Gee, wouldn’t it be nice to be able to read your book or sit at the computer while still snuggling up in a blanket? Snuggie to the rescue!
2. They’ll Spend Money to Save Money
Heating bills are expensive. As Americans try to save money on energy costs, they’re willing to spend a little to keep the thermostat down. The $19.95 + shipping/handling they spend on the Snuggie is just a fraction of the cost of many monthly heating bills.
3. Folks Are Staying Home
As Americans minimize their travel and entertainment budgets, folks are spending more time at home. If they’re home, it’s likely they’re watching more TV and seeing more Snuggie ads and thinking, “hmmmm, that Snuggie looks pretty comfy”.
4. Cheaper Ad Space = Bigger Ad Presence
After the lousy retail season, many regular advertisers are trying to save money and are pulling back on ad spending. Allstar Marketing Group, the creator of the Snuggie, was able to cash in on this advertising retreat by receiving cheaper ad space during primetime hours. This meant, more people saw the Snuggie.
5. Quirky Ads = Memorable Product
Let’s face it, the Snuggie isn’t going to win any fashion awards. But, that’s what’s making it so memorable too. Those goofy ads have inspired numerous YouTube spoofs, a Facebook fan group, and mentions on Jay Leno and Ellen. Not all mentions are positive, but they continue to bring awareness to this funny blanket with sleeves.
As with most DRTV products, the shelf life of the Snuggie will likely be limited. It won’t be long before knock-off products are available at every discount store - cutting into Snuggie profits. But, for now, the creators of the Snuggie are rolling up their sleeves (sorry – I had to use that line somewhere in this post!) and making a bundle of money.
Prepare a Quick and Positive Elevator Pitch
My last post talked about my experience at a recent networking event. On my way to this event, I practiced how I would introduce myself – also known as an elevator pitch. I’ve been revising my elevator pitch for years now and have it down to about two to three sentences. But, I always like to practice before each event so I don’t find myself rambling or fumbling for words.
Prepare a Quick, Informative Introduction
After making a few rounds that evening, I noticed that a number of people appeared to be caught off guard when asked to talk about themselves. They didn’t seem to have a well-thought-out answer to the unavoidable “so what do you do?” question. Many talked for ten minutes or more (without a break!), trying to describe their business. After five minutes I would start to zone out; after eight minutes, I’d start plotting ways to escape. They were throwing too much information at me. I wanted to hear the CliffsNotes and instead they were giving me the entire 500-page novel.
Focus on the Positive
I also talked to a couple of folks who were newly unemployed. When asked the “what do you do?” question, both gave answers that sounded something like, “I used to be a Marketing Director for XYZ Corporation and then I got laid off.” Ugh. What a sad, uncomfortable ending to their elevator pitch. The rest of the night, I thought of them as ‘The Laid-Off Guys’. It’s never fun to be let go and your confidence can take a major hit. But, you need to look beyond that when networking.
Had they thought through their pitch – being the Marketing people that they were – they would have focused on their positive features & benefits. Just like a product or brand. They could have shared their years of experience in marketing and the exciting projects they’ve worked on. Then, they could have mentioned that they were looking for new opportunities. They didn’t need to lie about their situation, they just needed to alter it a bit so the focus wasn’t on their being unemployed. A positive spin would have made a big difference in how their situation was perceived.
Practice, Tweak & Practice Some More
Just spending a half-hour thinking about “your story” and practicing your pitch can give you the confidence to make a positive impression during any networking situation. If you approach each event with a compelling story in your pocket and a positive attitude, you’ll not only enjoy yourself more, but more importantly, you’ll make a memorable impression on others.
Be Careful When Talking About Competitors
A list serve I belong to had an interesting exchange yesterday. One of the members posted a “visit our booth” message for an upcoming meeting. Another member, a competitor, responded by questioning the ethics of the previous promotional message - saying her company would never post such an blatant advertisement.
Her judgmental remark prompted an avalanche of angry responses. People who never posted before came out of the woodwork in defense of the first company. Suddenly the first company became the protected underdog, attacked by a threatened, petty competitor.
Yikes! Was the second woman right about the first post being too promotional? Perhaps. Most list serves are concerned about spam and advertisements, so her comment was not unfounded. But, being right didn’t earn her any points. She had to do a lot of back pedaling to pull herself and her company out of that PR bind.
This exchange was a perfect example of why you should avoid saying anything negative about your competition. When you verbally attack your competitors, you place people on the defensive. Customers suddenly become loyal, friends crawl out of the sand, and you become the bad guy.
This does not mean you should hide from your competition. Far from it. It simply means you do more harm than good when you directly attack a competitor in front of potential customers. Your goal should be to stand tall and proud. Focus on what you do right and how you can help them. When the conversation stays positive - people feel good about working with you.
Be Consistent with Your Branding
Let’s face it - as humans, we’re most comfortable when things remain the same. As marketers, we need to remember this. We have a tendency to become bored with the “same old things” like our logos, websites, brochures, signs, and other branding elements. We assume everyone else is sick and tired of seeing these things too. So we dabble and change things - and eventually our customers become confused about who we really are.
But, we need to be careful. When most people think of their favorite things - be it musicians, restaurants, friends, TV shows, authors, etc. - what they like most is consistency. They come to expect a familiar experience. They want to know that they can go back to those people/products/businesses and start where they left off last time.
When you visit a Target store - what color do you think of? Red. I’ll bet there are marketers in that organization and employees too, who would love to see a new color scheme. But as a customer, I like the red. It’s familiar and I always know who works there. Red is Target.
One of my local grocery stores just went through a major rebranding. Their familiar red and blue colors changed to yellow. Their logo changed, the employee shirt colors changed, the bags changed - everything has been rebranded. It caught me off guard. Overtime I’ll get used to it. But, if they change it again in 2 months I’ll be even more confused. They’ll need to be consistent with their new branding.
So when you change your branding, your name, your graphics, your story, or your products - make sure you think it through. Don’t just do it half way. Do it all the way and make a pledge to be consistent. Or, better yet, stick with what you have right now. Spend less time worrying about changing your look and more time thinking of ways to consistently be the best.
UPS and FedEx Advertisements Target DHL Customers
On November 10th, it was announced that DHL would halt all express deliveries in the U.S. After losing nearly $10 billion since trying to compete with UPS and FedEx, DHL decided to close its U.S. division.
The closing of DHL’s US operations is unfortunate for many of their customers and employees. However, as with most things – as one door closes, another opens. And the door has opened for UPS and FedEx to gain (or bring back) new customers.
As DHL’s news was announced, you can bet that UPS and FedEx were frantically working to create new marketing campaigns targeting DHL customers. This competition became obvious when I paged through yesterday’s Wall Street Journal. Only two days after the announcement, FedEx and UPS had full-page ads that spoke to DHL customers.
UPS Ad Goes for a Personal Approach
The UPS advertisement shows an overhead, close-up of an executive wooden desk. On the desk, sits a strategically placed UPS envelope and a signed letter from their President with the salutation “Dear DHL Customer”. The ad is large, so the letter is easy to read. It assures DHL customers that UPS can help ease the transition of switching carriers. It also introduces a new Welcome Center site designed to help DHL customers get started using UPS. On the top corner of the desk, rests a cup of coffee. This ad oozes of hominess. You feel like you’re observing a brief moment in time, just after the President signed this letter and is reviewing it one last time before mailing it off.
FedEx Ad Uses Humor & Focuses on Satisfaction Ranking
The FedEx ad is a stark contrast to the folksy feel of the UPS ad. The entire page is purple with white text. The ad shows the number 5 and 11 in large type. Below the number 5 is the text “Consecutive mornings you’ll hit snooze at least four times”. The text below the number 11 reads, “Consecutive years that FedEx has been number one in customer satisfaction in the express delivery business.” Being number one for 11 years is a big deal. They should be proud. The ad continues to tell the reader that FedEx provides excellent customer service and a full portfolio of shipping options.
My Overall Impression
I use both UPS and FedEx and have no loyalties to one company over the other. Both provide great service. But, from where I was sitting that day – UPS won the ad battle and nailed their messaging. Their advertisement had a warm, personal message that spoke directly to worried DHL customers. UPS addressed their concerns and offered immediate assistance with their Welcome Center. You felt like these words were coming directly from the President (great visuals). People are worried about the state of our economy. When businesses they trust take a financial hit – the worry bar is raised. UPS recognized this and used their ad to reassure.
The FedEx ad was less personal. They had a great message about their award winning customer service, but it was lost a bit under the comment about hitting the snooze button. They appeared to be going for a funnier, edgier message. Their ad still spoke to you – especially if you hit the snooze button - but it didn’t give me the same personal feeling that the UPS ad offered.
For me, the personal approach won. But, these advertisements are just a small piece of the overall sales and marketing strategies that UPS and FedEx will launch over the coming months. It will be interesting to see how this battle for DHL customers plays out.
Holiday Cards Help Businesses During Tough Economic Times
A recent Washington Post.com Small Business Blog written by Sharon McLoone Boosting Business Relationships with Holiday Cards discusses why businesses should continue to send holiday cards - especially during tough economic times.
I couldn’t agree more. Many businesses may see holiday cards as an easy item to cut from the budget. “It’s just a card”, right? Wrong.
A representative from Hallmark Cards presented the following findings in this article:
The company has conducted research that found at least half of customers who received holiday cards from businesses say they are more likely to continue doing business with that company versus another one.
Now more than ever, companies should be embracing their customers, thanking them for their business and reminding them that they are still here - ready to help.
