Is simplicity the way of the future? I think it could well be. I do think it is a big trend to watch out for an embrace.
After years of excess and conspicuous consumption, the economic crisis has forced a rethink in so many areas. And one theme for me seems to be that simplicity is the thing that is emerging. It is a natural reaction to excess, complexity and concerns about what we eat, use and do to our bodies and the environment we live in.
Some of this trend is fuelled by the need for organizations to find ways to cut costs too, ironically.
Many hotels, airlines and other service industries are taking out various features and items to reduce costs. In fact some hotels are prepared to lose stars from their ratings in order to strip back some of the features. Hotel chains like Travelodge are doing well on the basis of offering nothing more than a good night's sleep. They do not have complex services and features but focus on making sure that people have a good night sleep. Nothing more and nothing less. Focusing on one core and simple thing. People may get used to, and like paying less for getting the key thing: good comfortable night sleep. This is simplicity and ensuring you focus not on all the ancillary offerings, but the simple thing people need.
The increased awareness of the dangers of chemicals and the junk in the environment that is leading to increased incidence of things like eczema and skin issues is also leading to more simple and perceived safer products. We are seeing, for example, rapid growth of brands like “Simple” in the UK that tells a story of just a few key ingredients that are all you need to get the results you want. We are also seeing the growth of pharmacy brands promising to exclude preservatives and other chemicals to be just simple but effective.
When you start getting press releases from PR agencies to your blog does that mean that you have "arrived", or does it just mean that clients and agencies are (finally) understanding that bloggers can get a message out quite fast and quite wide at relatively low cost. Ensuring that the story or angle being pushed can get coverage and also make sure then that it gets picked up in search more?
In recent weeks, I have noticed that I am starting to get more releases and stories from PR agencies. This may also (of course) just mean that someone has created a list of blogs by topic and is selling the lists and so does not mean very much at all!
Or (as in the case of the one I am about to comment on), is a message that may get longer life and a more diverse coverage than in traditional media - especially as part of the material is a bit "rough" to digest..
One of the recent releases I got was from Shiny Red PR for their client Pfizer, which is encouraging people not to buy prescription drugs online - warning that many may be dangerous and harmful by containing things like rat poison. At the heart of the campaign is a stomach churning ad that shows a man pulling a dead rat out of his mouth. The ad has been limited to very late night TV on limited channels in the UK due to its content.
It also struck me that this is also why targeting blogs works when you have something that may have viral potential due to its graphic and controversial nature, and where mainstream media would not want to show it in peak times.
The ad itself is not pleasant, and possibly a bit obvious versus subtle but it is very well made and has convinced me that buying prescription drugs offline is to be avoided should I ever toy with the idea.
But interesting thought on how and when to use bloggers. I have also received many releases about brands doing every day things, and not yet found a hook or reason that has sparked me enough to blog about it. And so maybe another learning is that to engage bloggers, versus spam them is to have a story or some hook that gives a good reason to write about your brand. And it is not likely to be just to say how lovely it is, as paid media can do that where you control everything.
You also need to accept that bloggers may not write what you want them to...(or is bad publicity better than none?!)
Being on holiday in the USA a month or so ago, meant watching more TV than I usually do when there on business. Something really struck me about the nature of US advertising that felt to me like it has got more pronounced, and has made the difference with UK advertising more pronounced than ever.In the UK, advertising (especially on TV) tends to be optimistic, positive, light-hearted and upbeat. There is a high emphasis on entertaining to sell. Ads tend to be funny, show slices of life and even tend towards story telling.USA ads seemed to be getting much more scary that I remember them. They seemed more problem / solution orientated. The alternative brands to those being advertised being positioned as being more risky, more flawed and even more dangerous. The ad breaks felt to be more full of threats and gloom. The ads make life seem so much more fraught. It seemed to be playing on fears is the dominant ad approach.
As I wrote this posting originally in the last few breaks I had seen on the TV:
· seen jealous boyfriends kick down a terrified woman’s door who was saved because of her security alarm.
· been warned about the dust left behind by feather dusters, and how my family could suffer allergies unless I switch to some other product
· been told if I have been taking a certain drug I could suffer tendon problems and should contact some lawyers to join suing the company
· been told that as I am ageing I am risking getting a heart attack and better start taking daily aspirin doses
· been told I should chose a line of diabetes monitoring products as they are designed and made in the USA, implying other countries cannot be trusted
I was wondering if it has always been so? Has the style of commercial that convinces American consumers to make brand choices based on creating fears and uncertainty reflecting the times the country is going through - so mirroring society?
The UK is by no means going through the most positive of times, but seems being copy is trying to be more cheerful and entertaining and focusing on the positives is the ad industry weapon of choice. Is this a cultural thing? Or just me over concluding?
One way to stand out and connect is by being topical and taking advantage of events. One event that happens twice a year and so can be planned for is the clock change. Here are how a number of manufacturers try and use events like the clock change to sell.
Radox viral ad about taking time to yourself. Using a Eastenders man in a suggestive ad to attract and target women. This viral video was re-posted many times by people on YouTube, Twitter and other social media sites.
Watch ad on YouTube: click here or on the blog posting:
I am constantly reminded that if you want to create communication that people remember is for your brand then you need to make sure that it is fully integrated into the story of the communication.
So much so that you cannot tell the story of the ad (for example) without having the product or service integral to the communication.
This is one of the easiest and most basic mistakes that we all make. As consumers we know that we have seen ads, especially on TV, that we talk about but never sure what brand and product it is actually advertising. We have all done the "did you see the ad where the x did z etc". Often they are ads that we have really LIKED, but as we cannot remember what they are for, then not very good.
I was reading recently a book by Martin Lindstrom called "buy.ology" and in it he also talks about how key this is as we look at new communication forms. Some examples that struck me where:
American Idol sponsorship. This show is the biggest TV show in the USA and has 3 sponsors who invest a lot of money to do that.
One of them, Coke, has found that awareness that they sponsor the show is huge and has driven some brand image positively. As part of their deal, they intertwined the brand into the fabric of the show. So the space the contestants are interviewed in has the coke brand code colour and the judges have a red glass with coke brand on it and they often sip while giving feedback. Cingular also does well as to be able to vote by text message you have to be a Cingular user and so that is part of the story of the show, voting by text is for Cingular users only. Ford just runs some ads and competitions, and awareness is almost nil. By integrating the Coke brand through the show even though subtly in relative terms it became part of the story of the show.
James Bond Movies. Other than Austin Martin cars that have been used forever, almost no-one remembers the zillions of products placed in the films as the producers got over the top and lined up products and products in the films. But as they were just slotted in gratuitously and added little to the story and the plot, again they had little impact and few recalled them.
One brand that I was thinking of that was waved into the story and key to the plot was "Central Perk" coffee shop in Friends. I know that if you asked people what the coffee shop in the series was everyone could tell you. But it does not exist as a real brand of course.
The key is you need to add to and be part of the story in communication to be remembered and for good branding. It sounds really simple but ends up being harder to do than we expect as we get carried away by the momentum of a creative idea.
Do you have examples where brands do this well? Email me at gary@bembridge.co.uk if you do, or leave a comment on the blog
