CharlieMoger.com

Who’s thumb do we trust as a rule of thumb?

When you’re right you’re right. When you’re wrong, you might be right. Trust a rule of thumb and you’re more likely wrong. The fact is, there’s only one measure that matters and it has nothing at all to do with thumbs.

If a book of hard-fast rules of marketing and advertising existed, don’t you think everyone would be using it by now? One book. Every answer. Take the Bible. It’s a widely trusted source of principled thought. But, not everyone trusts it. David Ogilvy’s timeless Ogilvy on Advertising is about as close as you’ll come to an advertising bible. But, even he says says don’t always follow the rules.

The simple rule is, there are no rules. But, that’s too big to accept or comprehend. So, instead, we seek out some pattern that gives us a sense order or reason for why things are as they are. Then, brilliant marketing experts use those made-up rules to make up reasons for why we should do this or that in advertising. It’s a train wreck of thought in the making because it lacks the right tracks.

It’s more of a guideline, really

When I hear someone starts spouting off a hard-fast advertising rule of this or that, I wanna slug them. It’s only worse when that voice is my own. Rules are for schools, governments, and bureaucracies. The only reason I can think of for a rule of thumb is to establish a baseline which advertising defies in order to become effective.

Defying rules makes advertising better because it surprises Broca–the gatekeeper of our conscious thought, as my partner Roy H. Williams explains in his book, The Wizard of Ads: Turning Words into Magic and Dreamers into Millionaires. Ideas that upset patterns of thinking elicit a response in our mind that, if spoken, would sound like this: “huh?” Lighting fast our logical left brain laterals the idea over to the abstract right to make sense of it. And, just like that, what was unknown penetrates conscious thought. Bam: your idea is on the radar.

Mission accomplished. Almost.

Showing up on radar is one thing. It’s not even a particularly difficult accomplishment. Showing up and staying on gets tricky. It’s where those rules-driven trains of thought run out of track.

How much what you’re saying matters to the person hearing it determines your staying power. Be compelling, be remembered. Prompt an emotional response, prompt action. The idea is the train. How much it matters is the track.

Internet videos can’t be longer than 2:00

It’s our internet video rule of thumb around here. After years of watching viewing metrics, I’ve noticed attention spans drop off at about two minutes; by three you’re talking to yourself. So, we keep them shorter.

Then, I saw this:

Moments from Everynone on Vimeo.

4:12 is longer than 2:00

Moments is twice the length viewers typically sit through. But, it’s setting view records because it’s compelling. It’s relatable. It touches you. It moves you. The touchy-feelies among us shed a tear. If it ended with a Kodak logo, you’d think of similar pictures in your life. If it ended with an insurance logo, you’d think about everyone you love.

Whatever came at the end would have enormous attached meaning because here’s what happens in your head: the left brain sees it and says, “huh?” The right sees it and says, “oh wow man–that means THIS.” And, the Left says “oh, I get it.” Because it mattered, meaning is attached.

Therein lies your advertising challenge: does it matter? Does it lay tracks for a train your mind can’t miss? Or, does it stick to rules of thumb that matter only to you and the ad guy who made them up? Advertising only gets a thumbs-up only when it matters to your customers.

Tell your story in a way that matters. Get measurable results every time. No thumbs about it.

Paid vs. earned: secrets of better advertising ROI

Social media solutions are peddled the same way as quick weight loss programs. And, we buy into both for the same reason: we want to believe there’s a quick, instant, easy way to get a better return on our advertising investment. Sure you can. Just like you can get buff without workouts and responsible eating. As one who’s been (and still going) through the fitness mill, I find it particularly satisfying to see a universal truth of the gym proven in advertising: you gotta workout to work it off.

Social media’s Kool-Aid sweet treat is seductive. Who wouldn’t want the viral impact of the Coke Zero-Mentos campaign, or sex appeal of Old Spice’s shower guy ads. But, is it really more cost-effective to earn exposure instead of just paying for it?

While social media’s viral engagement may occasionally generate miraculous results, experience proves it can’t predictably deliver the round-house reach punch of paid media. Evidence is mounting that earned media’s cost-efficiency is best realized as a compliment to paid media; paid drives the eyeballs, social earns engagement.

Co-created engagement

Ray-Ban, Levis, Activision, and Nike are some of the examples used in this discussion where even the largest social media efforts still require paid support to initiate the wave of earned distribution. What does this have to do with your advertising? Invest time to watch this round table on the topic.

Push with paid, pull with earned

You don’t have to be Activision or Nike to apply these same principles. But, you do have to think ahead to synchronize your advertising and social media messaging. Here are five ways you can leverage better results from both:

Synchronize messaging. Populate your blog with content tied to your advertising message: when putting specific products on sale, create authentic consumer-centric stories about them on your blog. Speak to your customers’ WHY.
Be engaged. Customers will give you their spark, you must provide the fuel. Monitor comments on your blog to isolate points of interest and pour gas on the fire: join the conversation, add information. You will be communicate with greater connectedness and cement a deeper relationship.
Take a stand. Shamelessly take a stand for what you believe. Yes, you will hack off some people. But, you will define yourself clearly to those who agree. Being liked is nice. Being loved is better. My partner Tom Wanek illustrates this point brilliantly in his book Currencies that buy Credibility. Read the chapter about Patagonia. Where do you draw the line?
Invite participation. This one is tricky. New Coke is a cautionary tale of what happens when customers are asked what they would like in a new product. Don’t go there. Customers only know about what they already know. Instead, ask how they use your product in unexpected ways, how it has made their life better, why they gladly pay for it. “What do you like about….” If you have done the first three things listed here, you will get answers.
Expose yourself. Put a face on your company. Whether you use pictures, Flip videos, or professionally produced videos, bring customers behind the curtain to see who you are. People do business with people. Be personable. Be real. Be available.

Please pass on the Kool-aid

There’s no denying the benefits of earned media. But, it’s only part of the equation. Paid and earned media is like diet and exercise. You build muscle with exercise. You shape up with diet. Paid media is the exercise. Social media is the diet. The work best when you work them together. Just another one of those pesky universal truths.

By the way, the difficult truth about universal truths is, they’re universal. Which brings us to another one: you get what you pay for. How much do you suppose this cost?

Absent without apology

You may have noticed a lapse in posts here at adMISSIONs. A funny thing happened along the way from May to today: summer break. I consciously chose to set posting here aside for the season. I spent time instead generating posts in the memories of my children because this summer demanded special attention. This is how I spent my summer vacation.

Philmont

My son will be 17 in a few months. Accompanying him on a two-week, once-in-a-lifetime trip to New Mexico’s Philmont Scout Ranch trumped every other card on my table. There’s something beyond words in the experience of having the boy you’ve raised cheering you on to the 12,441 foot summit of Mount Baldy; the last 50 yards took nearly an hour. Those fourteen days with my son will be among the most precious memories I’ll have of him the rest of my life. John must have loved it because two weeks after coming home, he packed his trunk and headed off to Boy Scout summer camp in Oklahoma.

Camp Grammy

My children take turns every summer in Utah visiting my mom. We call it Camp Grammy because she pulls together side-trips and activities with each of them in mind. Only Kate and Zuzu made the trip this summer. John and I had New Mexico. Stella had DECATS–a gifted and talented summer program. And, then she answered the call of the sea….

Stella the Sailor

From painter to rudder, Stella spent two weeks sailing to briny deep of Clear Lake at Camp Casa Mare. Her near-daily dispatches became the highlight of our mail call.

Camp Apple for dad

Just before leaving for Philmont, I began having trouble with my MacBookPro. Disc searches were slowing, strange error messages were popping up. I thought it might be a too-full hard-drive. I returned from my trip to discover something far more disastrous: a failing drive. Two weeks of plucking off survivors, replacing and rebuilding the drive took me way off course. So much for quiet months of summer.

Road trips and board games

We got in some day trips, splashed in the pool, and spent time around board games. Among our trips was a run to see the chainsaw art created on Galveston Island from the oaks fallen by Hurricane Ike. It was hotter than hell that day, but a fun time in the end. Parents will understand that better than I can explain.

Shifting gears

This may be the last summer of us all together. With John’s 17th birthday coming in December, his thoughts are shifting to college, cash, and cars. Kate is similarly shifting into high school mode preparing for her freshman year at Saint Agnes. Both of them are already talking about summer jobs next year. So, time with them this summer took first priority. Even so, I wish there had been a way to have had more of it. We’re about two weeks from uniforms, lunchboxes, and early rising.

Life is often better remembered than experienced. This summer, I made sure we all had enough experiences to remember for many summers to come. Thanks for understanding.

How effective are your ads at chasing off customers?

Good advertising chases off customers. How much do you care if penny-pinching, nit-picking, deal-shoppers are offended by your message? Inflict them on your competitors. Your core customers, the ones who stick with you, will love you sending the weasels packing.

“This is Alabama. We speak English,” says the tv ad for gubernatorial candidate Tim James. “If you want to live here, learn it.”

Predictable shock waves rolled across the national consciousness when his ad first ran. How dare he say that? How narrow-minded. How exclusionary! How brilliant.

Discrimination is the mark of good advertising

Shock and awe is political advertising’s stock and trade. A deeper look reveals a profitable lesson for you: political advertising is to marketing what poetry is to literature: it evokes a response, inspires action, and does so with the greatest possible economy. It has to.

Mr. James is talking about more than language. He’s evoking an attitude of “them” and “us,” of “in” and “out.” He’s hoisting a banner to rally voters who prize Alabama’s culture. Isn’t he being discriminatory? You bet. That’s the point. If you don’t like what he’s selling, you’re not his voter. You probably wouldn’t be anyway.

Good advertising disqualify the unqualified. The slight downside: most people don’t like being disqualified. But, those who do qualify will find greater affinity with you. Congratulations. You’ve created an in-group.

Taking a stand demands nerve and backbone

I’m not saying Tim James is right or wrong. Voters will make that determination. Advertising isn’t a forum for debate any more than it’s a tool for education. It’s a mix of carrot and stick created for one purpose: move you into action.

James has nothing to lose. The June 1st runoff is coming fast. Bradley Byrne, a former State Senator, is the front runner among all candidates–on both sides. It’s put up or shut up time in the race. And, James has gone all-in on a message that’s generated over a million YouTube views its first week. Want to see it?

Profit from these political ad principles

Before you watch his ad at the bottom of this story, consider how these five principles of political advertising would impact your marketing:

It’s not what they’re selling, it’s how they’re doing it

Political ads take a stand, build a case, call for choice. What part of that is bad? If you can’t describe in five words or less why you’re running an ad, don’t. Case in point: Martha Coakley’s horrible everything-for-everyone ad. Running ads without a clear purpose is like taking a road trip without a map. Burn gas. Get nowhere.
Speak in plain language your answer to questions asked

Politicians speak to what voters care about. James Carville’s “it’s the economy, stupid” credo echoed in every Clinton ad, making Bush’s bland message of consistency and experience look flaccid by comparison. Forget what’s important to you. Advertise what matters to customers.
Express what you oppose in balance with what you support

Polite doesn’t sell. Don’t be rude. Be direct. Draw the line. “We’re not the cheapest. Neither are our customers,” draws a line. “Our customers appreciate our work. They know how expensive cheap service can be.” Say it with swagger and be noticed. It worked for Scott Brown. Even more so for LBJ. His Daisy spot crushed Goldwater in one minute.
Keep it fresh, but keep on message: be one thing

What is the one thing that draws customers to you? Promote that. Put it in every ad. The family occupying The White House rode there on one word. A campaign uses many messages, but it revolves around one idea. What’s yours?
When an ad breaks from the pack, ride it hard and far

Create multiple ads, variations on your theme. Rotate them. But, when one really rings the bell, ring it loudly. Reagan’s Morning in America still resonates today. When you land on something that moves people, stay with it.

Political advertising has to move the needle quickly. Shouldn’t yours? You can’t charge half a magnet any more than you can create ads that please everyone. Magnets can only attract to the extent they repel. Same goes for your ads. Say who you are. Say it shamelessly. You’ll offend countless people who wouldn’t have done business with you anyway. But, the ones who do will love you for it.

You can’t win big without first taking risks

Will you offend someone? Hope so. Will you get calls complaining about your ads? Only if you do it right. Will you win the hearts, minds (and wallets) of those who connect with your message? As a noteworthy politician often says, “You betcha.”

Because you scrolled this far down, I’m going to share a rare jewel with you. It defies description, but demosntrates how far we’ve come as a culture. What you’re about to see actually generated lift in polls. What response do you suppose this ad would generate today:

[Originally published 1 May 2010]

UPDATE: James lost in the Republican Primary of seven candidates. He missed making the runoff by one-tenth of a point.