C'mon, You can Trust Me!

"TRUST ME." How many times have you been asked to give someone your trust? Companies ask you for it all the time -- either implicitly or explicitly. And what is amazing is how often we grant that trust without considering what we're doing. But, things have been changing, and for awhile now the skeptic in each of us is beginning to wonder, "Is my trust misplaced?"

I recently had the chance to interview author Michael Maslansky of the new book The Language of Trust: Selling Ideas in a World of Skeptics. His book is based on a decade of quantitative and qualitative research with thousands of individuals. In it, the book illustrates why it is harder than ever to trust -- especially given recent examples in the media including Tiger Woods, Toyota, banks, politicians, BP, and countless CEOs. Maslansky states that whatever the message, the public assumes that there is an underlying agenda and that companies are regularly putting their own interests in front of the customer's.

Maslansky offers some new, contrarian rules to communications (e.g. the truth is NOT enough), and some new principles for credible communication (problems don't sell as much as solutions). But more than those lists, I think what I found the most interesting were why today's consumers were more skeptical than ever. The fundamental truth he offered was that we have been promised more than what has been delivered -- too many times. As more sophisticated consumers, we have more information available to us today and can easily see behind the curtain to how the magic really works -- and we're not impressed. And more than anything, we no longer have to trust what we're being told. We can source check anyone and anything.

The book offers some great advice and weaves into it a sense of accountability that I found refreshing. The podcast expands of some of the stories in the book and gives you a feel of the genuine nature of Maslansky's purpose for writing the book.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Branding Disconnect Makes Tote Garbage

Last week I attended an event where I got another tote bag from a well-meaning sponsor. Aside from the fact that we now suffer from an influx of coffee mugs, water bottles, and toe bags (much like we did five years ago with frisbees and mousepads), I was struck by the incredible poor positioning by the company.

REI (Recreational Equipment, Inc) has a longstanding reputation in the Pacific Northwest as being a purveyor of contemporary outdoor equipment and merchandise. From your high-tech sleeping bag, nordic-rated tent, to even a campfire espresso machine, REI regularly impresses customers with the latest and greatest for the outdoor enthusiast. So WHY, please tell me WHY, did they choose to put their orginating date on their bag. AND WHY did they choose a tote bag to convey that message?

Marketers -- we have to stop being stupid and stop choosing the easy way. How does a generic tote-bag further the brand or position of REI? How does putting the only message on the bag your company's origination date reinforcing the image of contemporary -- and even high-tech -- equipment?

The next time your company has the privilege to reach out to a group of people when you sponsor their event, make that thing you give them useful and relevant to your brand. As well, ensure that it reinforces your position in the market as not only the best choice, but the ONLY REASONABLE choice.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Stop the Interruptions!

Parenting is teaching me a lot about marketing, and how much we as marketers have yet to learn about interrupting our audiences.

Let me set the stage for you:

• I walk into the house, arms burdened with several bags of heavy groceries. My eight year old son instantly starts to tell me of the Lego spaceship he has just created and wants me to come see it.
• I have my hand in the toilet, scrubbing and cleaning and my twelve year old daughter asks me if I can log her on to the computer so she can play a game.
• It is Sunday morning and I am luxuriating in a few precious, extra hours of sleep and one of my kids comes in, wakes me up, and asks if I want to answer the phone (I guess it's ringing).

In each instance -- now as much by habit as by deliberate effort to teach them the importance of time and place -- I say something like, "Hmm, what am I doing right now? Is this the right time to ask me about this? Can this wait until I am done?"

I think we as marketers are doing the same types of things to our target audiences.

This quarter while teaching MBA marketing at Seattle University, I emphasized the importance of ensuring our customer communications meet five critically important criteria in order to be truly effective:

1. The message being sent must be the right message.
2. The message must be delivered at the right time.
3. The message must be delivered to the right place.
4. The message must be delivered through the right medium.
5. The message must be delivered to the right person.

In my day job, I tell my own staff the importance of paying attention to these same criteria. It's all to easy to put up another poster, to send out another mailing, or to broadcast another commercial. The challenge for us as marketers is to figure out when our audience is most receptive to our message, and make sure we deliver it in a stand-out way.

Case in point, I remember consulting with a healthcare system that wanted to increase the number of appointments by women for free breast cancer screenings. They had a brochure set to deliver this message. Jokingly, I mentioned that I don't think women are thinking of the health of their breasts when they just come home from work and open the mail. The challenge for us was to think about when women were thinking about their bodies and find a way to introduce our message then and there in a stand-out way. We came up with the idea of shower kits with soaps, a razor, lotions, and a waterproof card on how to do a self exam while in the shower.

Now I am not saying that commercials, direct mail, and posters are bad. They have their place. But the vast majority of these materials are just visual wallpaper to our brains. We must move beyond what's easy to what's effective.

Do you have examples of when you thought through your communications and instead of interrupting your audience you met them in a powerful, integrated, stand-up way?

-- David Kinard, PCM

Play the iPhone Music and Market Your Cause

This is what I love about the human ability -- or drive -- to take a product and transform it into something else. This video, which shows a new app for the iPhone, allows you to blow across the iPhone's speaker and a tone much like a flute emits from the speaker. With a few well-placed fingers, you've got yourself a musical instrument.

So, what does this have to do with your cause or nonprofit? Tons.

First, if you're a struggling music society or arts center, why not have a concert done wholly with technology, not traditional instruments. Not only is this idea fresh and unique, it's buzz worthy and therefore sponsor worthy. A communtiy fundraiser added to the concert and WHAMMO, you've got an instant evening of fun.

The point IS NOT that you need to use the iPhone in your next awareness or communications program. The point IS that you can begin to think about the unusual and find ways to incoporate that into what you do. The public has learned to treat your calls for help as ever present, and never urgent. Masses are looking for somethign to surprise them (not shock them) and give them a moment's respit from the frenzy of their world.

So, put this idea to action by scheduling a brainstorming meeting with your staff and invite a few people who have nothing to do with your organization. Get the sales manager from a local car dealership, get a mail carrier or the UPS delivery person, aks a chef from a nearby restaurant, and how about the kid that works behind the counter at Best Buy. Have them come for a session on how to think about what you do and how to communicate it in different ways. Harvest the low hanging fruit from the ideas and have fun.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Obama's Social Media Strategy: Lessons Learned from the Campaign Trail

A new report has just been released from Agency Giant Edelman.

Says the report:

By examining the social media success of Obama’s campaign and understanding the ways that advocacy groups are incorporating these lessons into their own engagement programs, businesses can learn what is required to remain relevant in this new environment by retooling their communications efforts to successfully leverage social media.

Aside from a bit of a run on there, the report basically says that remaining relevant in this new environment requries a retooling of communications programs. Leveraging social media is a must -- even if your organization is just starting to figure it out.

Key to understanding the leverage points for Obama's campaign and his subsequent presidency is this guiding principle noted in the report (the bolding is my annotation):

Obama is already converting the President’s bully pulpit into a social pulpit, delivering a message that is designed to be taken up and spread by others, with the tools and techniques learned during his campaign. Instead of relying on the traditional one-way, top-down approach to communications, the incoming administration is harnessing the power of public engagement to influence the conversation across various spheres of cross-influence.

What is key here is that the entire communications platform is designed to be used by others. It's not managed, not controlled, but created with the expectation and hope that it will be used in a wide variety of other channels and by a wide variety of other people.

As you think through your own organization's communications programs, are you relying on top-down channels and mediums to deliver your important messages? Is your communications platform designed for public engagement or one-way only delivery?

What organizations do you see as doing a good job at this?

NOTE: I'll be interviewing Lois Kelly, author of Beyond Buzz, and blogger at Foghound, tomorrow (Wednesday, 1/28) at 9 a.m. PST on my weekly radio show Marketing News Radio. You can listen LIVE and even CALL IN with your questions. Go to http://www.wsradio.com. We'll be discussing social media from the perspective of not why you should be using it, but how.

-- David Kinard, PCM

The Right Tool for the Job

Likely the one greatest challenge plaguing many companies today is how do they measure the effectiveness of their marketing efforts. One great tool for evaluation, originally developed by George Black, is the CAST system. This analysis model can be applied to any marketing effort, including ads, newsletters, press releases and more. The benefit of evaluating your marketing communications through this tool is an increased awareness of what works, what doesn’t and if you’re using the right tool for the job.

The CAST system evaluates the following measurements by using a simple three option metric: High, Medium, and Low.
• Impact or Impression
• Size of Audience and Reach
• Cost per Contact
• Sales Lead Development
• Message Control
• Timing Control
• Repetitive Contact
• Reaction Speed
• Credibility
• Closing the Sale

You can use the CAST system to determine which of your efforts are actually providing a maximized return on your investment. Plus, it also helps you to identify areas of your marketing and communications that may need further integration with one another for increased effectiveness.

There is a bottom-line benefit to using this type of analysis tool in evaluating your marketing efforts. All too often, our marketing efforts are out-of-date and we don’t know it, or we spending our limited funds on efforts that are not cost effective. By taking the time to assess your marketing efforts and make any necessary adaptations, you help to ensure success.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Rule of 7

One thing you learn from being in marketing for any length of time is that there are lots of formulas and rules for doing most anything. Marketers are great at coming up with six easy steps for this, 10 rules for that, and a dynamic 4-part matrix for thinking about anything else.

One of those rule sets I've always like was the Rule of 7. It basically says that if you want your prospect to take action and buy what you're selling, you need to connect with him or her a minimum of seven times in an 18-month period. Then and only then can you reasonably expect the prospect to fully understand what your product benefits are, and take action.

While I've never been able to find any study or research data to suggest that the Rule of 7 is correct, I do like the spirit behind it. In a world where it is said that the average consumer is bombarded by more than 3,000 marketing messages every day, it's easy to see why we need repeat exposures of our messages to gain memorability and traction with our audiences. It also suggests that there is something to be gained with time. Eighteen months is a long time in a marketers world, but it is short in terms of the quality of relationship between people.

I think there are three key take aways from this rule:

1. Think long term. Building a meaningful relationship with a prospect that fosters awareness, remembrance, and positive action takes time. When you approach your marketing communications with an 18-month timeline, they move from hard sell to intimacy. It causes you to think about quality and depth.

2. Frequency of contact is important. When you think of a family member and staying in touch with them, is seven times over a year and a half enough to keep them top of mind? I might suggest that seven is too little, but it depends on the relationship type. Regardless of the ratio of time and contacts, what is important is that you remain on the radar screen of your prospects. This means frequent and relevant communications.

3. Think dialogue, not monologue. This is an obvious point in a Web-enabled, socially-empowered, and technologically-linked marketplace. If those seven communications are just you talking, then there is no relationship being developed, no intimacy being gained, and no relevancy being learned. Make sure that your communications are both monologue and dialogue -- with emphasis on two-way conversations.

-- David Kinard, PCM