It's A Race To The Finish

As this year's edition of the Tour de France is entering its final week, it's time for my annual non-poetic rambling on the Tour as marketing metaphor (though I know most of you have them committed to memory and posted on your refrigerator, if you want to catch up on my previous entries, you can see them here and here).

Probably the number one thing I find myself explaining to the non-fan is that, though the Tour de France is indeed a three week race around France concluding in Paris, it is also a series of 20 or 21 individual races called stages. And the ultimate winner of the Tour isn't the rider who wins the most stages, but rather the cyclist who completes all the stages in the shortest elapsed time.

As it meanders around France, each Tour also features three distinct stage types: flat stages, mountain stages, and time trials. Flat stages generally go from point A to point B, allow the cyclists to stay together as a pack, and most often favor the rider who excels as a sprinter (one who has explosive power and the ability to go really, really fast to blow ahead of everyone else at the finish). Mountain stages, obviously, take place in the Pyrenees and the Alps, and favor the cyclist who's proficient at climbing and, secondarily, descending those same steep hills. Finally, time trials feature riders racing alone against the clock and are often won by the cyclist who can generate the most consistent speed and aerodynamic position for the duration of the stage. In addition, there are races within each stage, awarding points or time bonuses for the first rider to reach a certain point or plateau on the course.

It's not unusual to see a sprinter win several stages, yet be nowhere near the podium (first, second, or third place) at the end of the race. Converesly, it can often happen that the rider who wears yellow on the Champs Élysées (the yellow jersey indicating the leader of the race) does so without ever winning a stage. Hence, the sprinter who wins today's stage by five milliseconds or the climber who wins by five minutes may win the day but, at the end of the race, they're forgotten behind the Tour de France champion, the cyclist who can both climb and time trial to ultimately reach Paris in the least elapsed time.

I bring all this up, because over the years, I've encountered an untold number of clients I could call "sprinters." And, given that their primary objection goes something like, "We spent big bucks to advertise on the radio for three weeks and it didn't do anything. Why should we advertise more?" the comparison to the sprinter or climber who might win a stage or two but not contend for the overall title is fairly apropos.

When it comes to advertising, anyone can "win a stage," in that you can spend money on a radio flight, newspaper ad, direct mail piece, or email blast, and make one big splash. But when your customer reaches the finish line and decides to act on his or her need, will your business still be in the race? Will that message you sent out six months ago still resonate in his buying decision? If you've only advertised, in any form, once, then the answer is likely "no!"

As a general guideline, remember the Rule of Seven, which says that you need to make at least seven impressions on a potential customer before they act on your message and buy your goods or service. When you consider the noise most consumers "hear" these days, from email, banner ads, mobile app ads, TV, radio, direct mail, and more, as well as the fact that most prospects likely aren't sitting around waiting for your ad, following the Rule of Seven is even more important.

Another crucial factor in following the Rule of Seven is to remember that, like the Tour-winning bicyclist who excels in every discipline, you need to advertise in more than just one medium. An email blast may work in the short term, but too many of the same messages may get tuned out, or filtered to spam, by your potential customers (especially if you buy an email list!). Instead, vary your message by adding another tool or two to your marketing tool box, be it radio, TV, direct mail, email, or even social media like blogs (information marketing), Twitter, Facebook, and now, Google+.

Finally, remember that successful marketing is a race to the finish that's won by a well executed, 12 month plan. Advertising only "when you have the time" means your customers may not have your business top of mind when it's time for them to buy. Yes, it takes time but, a consistent marketing plan will build a solid base of impressions (and trust) with your customers and prospective customers. And that can keep your business rolling all year.

Just as you need to be a well rounded cyclist in every stage to win the Tour de France, it takes a diversified, year long marketing plan to crank out your message to your customers through every stage of the year. If you stop pedaling a bicycle, ultimately the bike stops rolling. And if you stop peddling your business, sales stop rolling in. Hence, think of your marketing and advertising as a race that's always running. Anything else will just leave you spinning your wheels.

What You Can Learn From A Bottle Opener

When I was but a wee non-poet, my Mom would take me along to visit her Aunt Jo (my Great Aunt). Though it seems like we went over there all the time, it was probably once a week at best and, since my older brothers were busy doing whatever they were doing, I usually had to go with my Mom. While spending time with a widow in her 70's wasn't my idea of fun when I was a golf-obsessed kid, Aunt Jo had a cool backyard with lots of things to keep me occupied and, every now and again, I'd stumble onto something golf-related in the house or garage that belonged to her late husband, my Great Uncle Ray. When she passed away, I remember going to her house with my Mom to help one of Aunt Jo's daughters clear out her things, and it was then I came upon the bottle opener pictured above.

A bottle opener with a golf ball for a handle! I thought that was the coolest thing I'd ever seen, and so did all my friends. However, after the newness wore off, I found at that age, I didn't have many bottles that needed opening and so, into a drawer it went. Every now and again, it would make occasional forays out of the drawer when I'd stumble upon it while looking for something else, though I would usually just twirl it around my finger or enjoy the way it felt in my hand. That is, until I got old enough to drink beer (which I didn't start until I was of legal drinking age and aware of what drinking responsibly meant, oh yes I did! And no Dad, I did not get into your vodka while you were and Mom were out! It's 3/4 full, just like it was last night, see?…Well, how should I know why it tastes watery? Maybe there was condensation or maybe you just used too much ice! Oh yeah? Well you can't ground me cause I'm 46!). Suddenly I could use my golf ball bottle opener for its' intended purpose and, compared to all my friends, I had a cool and unique bottle opener that no one else had.

To this day, I still have that bottle opener, meaning it's something I've owned and carried around with me for coming on 40 years. I like the way it feels in my hand (I freely admit that, when it comes to the tactile sense for me, form often triumphs over function) and I consider it my little piece of family history. That it belonged to my Great Uncle Ray, who helped my Dad secure the job where he would work for 46 years until his retirement and who also taught my oldest brother Ray (his namesake) to play golf, only strengthens my attachment to this little piece of steel and rubber.

So, what does my odd emotional attachment with a bottle opener have to do with your marketing and advertising? The answer is, making an connection, like I have with my beloved bottle opener, is what you should strive for with your marketing efforts.

If you're unsure if your advertising is connecting, ask yourself these questions: What do you think will resonate more with a consumer: an ad spewing features or a message they can connect and identify with? Is your goal to sell or to connect? Do your Twitter and Facebook posts create interaction with your customers, or are you simply using them as another outlet to send out a sales message? Do your marketing messages show the solutions you offer or just sell your product?

Fortunately, marketing that makes a connection isn't that difficult. Talk to your customers. Use your marketing and advertising as a means to show solutions, not push product. Interact and build relationships through your social media. Post blog entries that pull the curtain back on your business. Remember that one ad may not make a connection with your target audience, but a balanced marketing program that makes multiple impressions with your customers, will.

Once you engage your consumers, your marketing job becomes that much easier. And, remember, if your marketing and advertising isn't making a connection with your customers and your sales aren't flowing, maybe you just need a new bottle opener...

Of Bikes And Butt Advertising

If you've looked around He's Not A Poet, you may have noticed me occasionally waxing non-poetic on bicycling and pro bike racing. And now that the 2010 Tour de France is almost upon us, it's time for my annual post on what pro cycling can teach us about advertising (OK, this is only the second year I've done it but, after this it will be a yearly post, deal?).

To review, the Tour de France is essentially one giant, rolling advertising vehicle. Everything has an official sponsor, from the official drink to the official timekeeper, to the podium girls who present the flowers and trophies to each day's jersey winners. Even the towns that host the start and end of each day's stage pay to show off their civic attractions to the world. And just like in Nascar, pro bike riders and their bikes are covered in logos. How much you pay for sponsorship dictates where your name goes and how big it is. Smaller sponsors get a logo on the jersey and maybe on the bike. The name sponsors get their name on the team and, most importantly, the jerseys and the butt of the shorts...

The "Butt Sponsor" is valuable position to have, since most bike race stages feature a breakaway of some sort with some riders going ahead of the pack, and much of the TV coverage of those riders is shot from the TV motorcycle that stays behind the lead riders, transmitting images of their butts. Thus, since advertising is all about impressions, if your rider gets out in a breakaway, there are more chances for your brand to be seen repeatedly by the millions who watch the Tour. Even if a rider or team has no chance to win the overall race, just having a rider lead or even win a day's stage can generate enough exposure for a given brand to justify the expense of the sponsorship. And that's why, for the companies who sponsor the Tour de France and its' riders and teams, this race is essentially the Super Bowl of cycling, a once a year opportunity to market your brand to the biggest target audience possible.

So what does any of this have to do with your advertising? Well, though you may not be a cycling fan, or even French, odds are your company has a chance to be a butt advertiser, or one opportunity where you can drop a big hunk of your advertising budget to make a really big splash. The question is, is that opportunity worth it? Will the money you spend in July translate to business in November? Is your brand strong enough that one big, butt advertising opportunity will create enough impressions to generate a return all year round? Or, should you let that big opportunity ride away and instead concentrate your ad money on a 12-month marketing plan that will keep your sales rolling throughout the year? Just as every bike rider and team has different strengths and weaknesses, every business has different marketing needs. So remember, a butt advertising opportunity can make a big impression but, it won't do you any good if it's not still turning your sales wheels at the end of the race...

Why Consistency Is Sometimes More Important Than Creativity

Ralph Waldo Emerson said that "Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds." While that may be true, in advertising, we call being consistent a campaign. That is, a cohesive, organized series of ads with a single idea or theme featuring a consistent look, feel, and tone throughout all the media utilized. And, while I've always been an advocate of creativity in advertising, too much creativity can kill an advertiser's consistency.

For example, consider the case of one local hospital system. (In the name of full disclosure, I feel compelled to mention the hospital in question is where I was born. And yes, I know you're asking, "Why would they still be trying to advertise? After your birth, they'll never have such a significant event there ever again!" Quite frankly, I'm a bit baffled myself!) While they've mounted a consistent campaign over a short period of time, their long-term campaign message has been all over the map.

Let me first state that health care advertising is both easy and difficult. On one hand, it's easy because you're selling a service that essentially requires image advertising. This most often takes the form of shots of dedicated doctors, cancer survivors, newborn babies, triumphant moments of rehabilitation, and cutting edge medical technology. And, for those very reasons, it's also difficult, because it's tough to reinvent the marketing wheel for a service that isn't top of mind for most people. Which is why the hospital campaign I reference here sticks out.

A couple years ago, said hospital rolled out a campaign featuring TV, outdoor, and radio. The theme was "joyful medicine" and featured doctors, nurses, and hospital staff dancing to The Hustle. The fact that most of these people couldn't dance and several were morbidly obese (not the image you want to project for a health care facility) was secondary to just how completely off the mark these ads were. One would be hard pressed to have faith in a disco dancing doctor (he'll beat brain cancer in his white coat by day, then put on his John Travolta white suit and boogie the night away!) and needless to say, it didn't instill a lot of confidence in their medical prowess.

In less than a year, the disco dancing doctors were dead and the hospital moved to a campaign emphasizing "joyous healing." This campaign featured those warm, fuzzy traditional healthcare marketing messages and overall, wasn't too bad. And, though 180° removed from its' booty-shaking predecessor, it did at least manage to retain some elements that carried over from the old to the new message and helped connect the dots between the two campaigns.

Had they stuck with that direction, I likely wouldn't be writing this post. Instead, our message hopping hospital turned yet another direction with their current campaign. This one features doctors and nurses joining hands in prayer around an operating table, nurses praying with patients, an a cappella female's voice singing a weepy, faith-themed song, and pushes the viewer to a prayer-themed website, with the hospital's name and logo a secondary image. Once you go to the website, you find another theme, "We believe in the power of prayer." The website also offers one the chance to see and read testimonials from others on how prayer helped heal them, as well as the opportunity to post your own message and ask for prayers yourself. The website also serves as a social media portal, offering visitors a chance to follow the hospital on Facebook and Twitter.

However, to add another symptom to our current medical marketing malaise, said hospital is also running a more traditional TV healthcare spot, highlighting their laser scalpel and using yet another tagline (this one an established, powerful, easy to remember play on the facility's name). This leaves us with two completely different messages from the same facility, at the same time, which just isn't the best way to spend your ad dollars.

While a prayer/faith centric campaign will likely play big to many Oklahomans, and the prayer-themed website name has a cute, memorable little rhyme, by throwing away whatever impressions they made with their previous campaign efforts, our consistency-challenged care facility effectively starts from scratch with their new message (which offers the hospital's name and unique selling point only as a secondary element). And, though I certainly have issues with basing a healthcare facility's primary marketing message around prayer, my larger issue is the two wildly divergent themes running simultaneously (What's gonna cure me? The Lord or the laser?) and the lack of consistency in their overall marketing message over the years.

So what have this hapless hospital's advertising mishaps shown us? First, too much creativity isn't always a good thing. That the dancing doctors went away so fast speaks to the fact that someone's cute idea failed miserably. Further, that they've thrown most of their eggs in the poetic, prayer-themed website basket shows they're running with a cute little rhyme and idea and spending less time and money placing the larger emphasis selling the hospital on its' own merits which, in a competitive field, likely won't work either. And finally, that they've swung so wildly with their message over the last few years means a lot of money has been thrown away on overly creative concepts that didn't work and whatever impressions they did make with consumers were wasted. Add in that they're essentially running two campaigns with two themes at the same time now, and they're only creating more confusion.

Now consider your own advertising message. Has it been consistent so that your customers (and potential new customers) know what to expect from both your company and your marketing? Has it been cohesive and organized so that all your media, be it print, TV, radio, direct mail, and web, works together to complement the other, insuring you offer one, unified message that will make a positive impression with the end user? Finally, does the theme of your campaign emphasize the best points of your business? If you answered "no" to any of those questions, then it might be time to get a second opinion on the health of your advertising!