Just as everyone’s putting the final touches on their ‘09 marketing plans, I’d like to throw the proverbial wrench into the equation. I’m sure everyone’s got a nice chunk of their advertising budget set aside for print, a good bit for broadcast, maybe some for outdoor. Oh, and don’t forget the cool new(ish) kid on the block – online.
But what about those crazy ideas that come to you out-of-the-blue? The ones that don’t fit neatly into any of the categories mentioned above. These are often one-off type projects with limited impressions, but huge impact. These are the types of ideas Challenger Brands can thrive on, and we need to make sure these moments of genius come to fruition.
I’ve always been a big fan of planned spontaneity, and I think more marketing plans need to integrate the concept. Here’s what I propose: set aside a small amount of your budget (maybe 5-10%) every year for these “out-of-the-blue” projects. If by October nothing has been proposed that blows your socks off, then use the money to extend some other buy. Seems simple enough, but there’s probably a reason they don’t let creatives do the marketing plans.
And for inspiration, I’ve collected some examples of these nontraditional projects. Enjoy.
Being of the Millennial generation persuasion, when I tune in to watch my favorite TV shows, I usually do so by means of my PC’s DVR capabilities. The primary benefit of this technology is the ability to skip commercials. Maybe I shouldn’t admit to this given the field I’m working in, but how many times can a guy my age sit through a Viva Viagra ad before it becomes unbearable? Answer: once.
Anyway, sometimes I find myself multitasking during a prerecorded episode of Mythbusters or 30 Rock and because my focus is elsewhere, the commercials just don’t get skipped. Ironically, this is where I am most susceptible to television advertising, because it’s the simple messages that I notice peripherally that snap me out of the zone.
Such was the case when a commercial for Big Red came on. You know Big Red, right? Of course you do. It’s the Cinnamon Gum that promises long-lasting fresh breath. You probably know that because if you were alive in the 1980’s, you also remember this:
John Righetti, Vice President of Strategic Relationship Management for Butler Health System, joins Fitting Group as a guest blogger.
When we talk brand in communications and marketing, we have a tendency to talk about it in the context of graphic identity and advertising — either long-term image development or the paid stuff.
But what about media relations? Do we consider the role media relations can have in bolstering and supporting — even helping to establish — brand?
Media relations, as we know, is a really powerful tool because the voice is an external one. It’s not us saying it about ourselves, but an objective third party talking about us. So how do we convince external media to cover us in a way that establishes or reinforces our brand?
You don’t create a brand through advertising; you create a brand through behavior, reflected back at you through the eyes of others. I have been told I’m funny. In my manic moments, I have been known to be very funny – quick with a pithy one liner or a side-splitting story, poking fun at myself just as readily as at members of my family, friends or even strangers, mostly without harm or offense. In creative sessions at work, some of my ideas are shared just for the laugh because I know they will never, ever see the light of day.
But I’m not funny because I say I’m funny. You won’t see me describing myself as funny in any biographical sketch. It doesn’t mention ‘funny’ anywhere on my resume.
Over time, feedback from all kinds of people has reinforced this self-awareness of one of my dominant characteristics. If they were reflecting something I didn’t like and didn’t want to be known for, I would probably work hard to change it.
