Before we talk about advertising strategy, take 5 minutes out to look at these ad campaigns. They’re ad campaigns I ran to grow my old company. I’ll be referencing them as examples throughout this eCoaching session.
Next week you’ll learn all about “SWTE” Limited. My first “pure online” start-up, just after I sold “Sleeping With The Enemy”. This start-up turned out to be a $1.7 million dollar flop, take a quick look at the advertising for SWTE.
Our advertising creative was not what let us down. The SWTE concept and product itself, were game changers.
The advertising creative was brilliant.
We trashed $1.7 million because of how we positioned the product in the minds of our target consumer. We got “our positioning” wrong. I’ll talk more about positioning later
This session’s about advertising strategy, it was Sleeping With The Enemy’s advertising strategy that grew that brand nationally. To become known throughout the world. A good advertising strategy alone however cannot do that for a business. Which was the case with SWTE’s failure.
The way we positioned “Sleeping With The Enemy”, our brand name, and the fact we were the first to market with “a” unique style of backpacker accommodation culminated into a “big” success.
None of it would have fallen into place,
a) Had I not known what was in the mind of consumers, from day one.
b) Had I not listened to them “week-to-week”, from day one, until selling the business.
c) Had I not created advertising strategies with a view to position the brand in ways that made my existing customers want to be associated with us (our brand), after our advertising strategies had played out.
Remember I told you we were not advertising accommodation, we advertised people cocktails. Even though invoices read accommodation.
In much the same way nightclubs do.
For a consumer purchasing a bed in one of our properties (minimum 6 weeks stay), it was a high involvement & emotional purchase.
You’ll remember my post,
...”Consumer Involvement Theory”.
I recommended you focus on the outcome consumers desire, when purchasing highly involved, emotional offers. In your advertising.
You cannot get more involved or emotional, than spending $1200+ (over 8 weeks) on a bed in a share-home, with 35 other people from all over the world.
I suggested the use of emotionally charged images, video and music in ads. This will usually give consumers the detail needed for them to justify spending the money.
Planning an Advertising Strategy...
An advertising strategy can be based around a brand, company, or a product, strategy is how we get the consumer’s attention?
How do we get a consumer’s attention?
A good ad should always start, and help spread the marketing story. And tie into the marketing plan.
To achieve this we must first understand the product, service and brand being advertised, how it’s perceived in the mind of consumers.
We must be clear on how we intend “a brand” to be perceived, after an advertising strategy has played out. Do we want how the brand is perceived today, to remain the same after our advertising strategy has run its course. Or, do we want it to be something different all together?
Before we can create an advertising strategy we must fully understand exactly what’s going on in the mind of a (typical) consumer.
“Not”, what we think consumers already think.
Often, the worst way to find out what consumers think of a brand is to ask the business owner, or CEO.
A good way to find out is to list all of the characteristics existing customers exhibit (collectively). Add to this list additional characteristics you or the business owner wants new customers (attracted by this advertising strategy) to exhibit.
Then find yourself an individual who doesn’t know the product, service, or brand, whose personality exhibits many of the same characteristics in the list. Offer to pay them for a day of market research. I prefer not tell them it’s my brand we’re researching. Introduce them to your current ads, sales process and products. Get their opinion on everything.
I like to use a rating system (1 to 5) with a clearly defined key of what each of the 5 scores mean, in each section of a questionnaire. Take plenty of notes!
Not only will you get to see the truth, through the eyes of an ideal prospect, this individual becomes “the person” you’re communicating with when creating your new advertising strategy. Much easier to be creative when focused on one person you know, as long as they’re representative of your "dead-center" consumer group.
Your advertising strategy will be designed to have your brand perceived the way you want it to be, in the mind of this particular consumer. It’s very important this person exhibits as many characteristics as your ideal consumer would.
Achieve this with your dead center prospect, it’s likely you will achieve it with the majority of your target market. With so much riding on this, you really need to understand this person!
“How did they” relate to your product, service, or brand, when first introduced to it? How involved were they when purchasing it? (Consumer Involvement Theory).
What would motivate them to purchase your product, or service. If it’s cheaper? Or, if you had a better range? Maybe if it’s more convenient to buy, if that’s the case, “why?”
Establishing a 360 degree view of your market place, knowing how your average consumer thinks and feels, pertaining to what it is you’re advertising. The brand, product or service.
Spend as much time inside their mind as possible. Learn their prejudices and biases, what influences their purchasing decisions? If you do this honestly, without prejudice, you will identify the most significant opportunities around what is to be advertised.
Remember also, what you learn will always be changing.
Every time we set about creating a new advertising strategy at Sleeping With The Enemy I would call a recruitment agency, one that specialized in backpacker labour. I would send them a list of personal characteristics I wanted in a casual employee for a day for market research. I insisted on someone who had recently arrived in the country, who “had-not” yet secured longer term accommodation. My “dead-center” target consumer.
I hired them for one day.
I spent the day sitting with them in a neutral location going over backpacker magazines, surfing the Internet and helping them look for a place to live, longer term than just for a few nights. I paid them a full day's wage and caught public transport with them, around to view different accommodation options, including “Sleeping With The Enemy”. They did not know I owned the company..
Whilst spending the day with them I flushed out every problem they encountered with the entire buying process. I witnessed many negative experiences they encountered on the day, through their eyes. I also witnessed the positives.
I spent this day climbing into the mind of my typical consumer. Doing so always flushed out a great advertising strategy.
It Gave Me Clarity on What I Wanted Our Advertising Strategy to Accomplish.
You’ll have noticed our ads with “a tub of margarine” with other condiments spread throughout the margarine, and a “cake-of-soap” with pubic hair on it.
Our advertising objective was to encourage an emotional connection between the brand and memories our prospects had of their student living days, just past, back in England.
Our target market were university graduates from England, on one year travel sabbaticals before they returned home to start their career.
Our advertising objective was to convince this tribe that our product would deliver them better highs than student living, without the lows. Pressure of study and grades.
Every student in these homes was on an overseas holiday, their studies behind them (just).
Although technically no longer students, in the minds of these consumers, they were still students (on holiday). A very important insight when constructing an advertising strategy.
Our advertising creative was designed with one goal in mind:
“Get our target market to react enough to our ads that they visit our website, to learn more.”
Our product was student living on holidays. Houses full of 30+ other ex-students from England on annual sabbatical (just like them), all within walking distance to the Sydney CBD. One of the most exciting cities in the world.
Our properties were occupied by a mix of 50/50 girls-to-guys, a “minimum 4 week stay” meant everybody got to know each other really, really well. Say-no-more.
Be Interested. Not Interesting!
Simon U Ford
Engage Smarter!
P.S. As explained in this eMail (above), there is no better way than spending a day picking the brains of a "dead center" prospect when it comes to putting together an advertising brief targeting them.
The Internet (via social media) has become a massive database that stores communication between, buyers, and sellers.
Buyers and buyers.
Sellers and sellers.
Commentators and experts alike.
Each conversation leaves a data footprint you can access (and monitor) day-to-day, in real time.
By spending 10 minutes a day monitoring these conversations, you’ll always know what's in the mind of your prospects. Use this competitive advantage to construct advertising strategies to get their attention, and earn trust.