Wild Things

I just saw the trailer for the new Spike Jonze feature, Where the Wild Things Are.  Not only is it a promising first look at the adaptation of one of the best children’s books of all time, it’s an important reminder.

If you’re in marketing, advertising or sales, pay attention to the message at the end of the trailer.  Three title cards read:  In every one of us, there is HOPE / FEAR / ADVENTURE.  Not an incredibly novel statement, but a fundamentally important one.  If you can identify where your product, service or experience touches the most basic of human emotions, you’re on to something.

Visual Enticement

Zappos is the latest brand to hop on the data visualization bandwagon.  And I love it.  Here’s a screenshot of their new online map which shows who’s buying what, where.

No, it’s not useful on the surface.  But sure is a fun way to encourage discovery of new products.

Self-Segmentation

Michael Fassnacht wrote a strong piece for AdAge about the rise of self-segmentation in marketing.  His premise points to three cultural shifts that mitigate the impact of traditional consumer segmentation.  Paramount among these are that consumers are moving between segments.  And if consumers are dynamic, moving ever more easily between segments, the onus is on the brand to make itself accessible at all of the relevant possible points of discovery.  As Michael puts it:

It’s not surprising that two of the most successful product and retail companies, Apple and Amazon, are not masters of consumer segmentation but experts in building relevant products that consumers choose. Their marketing communication is segment-based but does not depend on pursuing an ever-increasing level of micro-segment-specific relevance. They are far more focused on building and communicating relevance relationships than in micro-segmenting consumers by any kind of attributes.

The rise of social networks has allowed for even greater fluidity among customer segments in both expression and discovery.  On Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, I connect to different groups with different interest (multiple forms of self-expression) and in those environments I am exposed to new conversations (which leads to discovery).  Through My Family connection on Facebook, I am now exposed to my Aunt Nancy’s ardent evangelism for Harley thanks to her new motorcycle.

The article provides 4 tips for encouraging consumer self-segmentation [excerpted here]:

1. Build correlation clusters between purchased products and services, and serve them up as recommendations (Amazon, Apple’s Genius feature).
2. Offer networking opportunity based on self-acclaimed interests (Facebook, LinkedIn).
3. Design and provide content or a deal-alert function that automatically informs consumers about something new or interesting in the “opted-in” interest domain of a consumer (Google Alert, Orbitz Fare Alert).
4. Enable sharing of consumer-generated content or feedback in the context of your brand (BlueCross’ “Power of the Human Voice” campaign).

The lesson here: in addition to consumer segmentation, marketing departments are going to have to work extra hard to make their brands more discoverable and accessible to consumers.  Consumers’ interests are ever-changing, they have infinite choice and now they have a say in your brand.

The new Green Economy

Last week, MediaPost ran an article about the double-digit increase in the home gardening sector.  This is a bright spot, but not altogether unexpected given the seismic cultural shifts toward self-sufficiency, consumer basics, and spending more time at home.

What is interesting is how quickly companies are jumping on this bandwagon.  Last night, Home Depot ran a primetime, network ad that featured all of the ways in which Home Depot can help you with your gardening.  Hedgeclippers, lawnmowers, fertilizer and, of course, vegetable plants.  What struck me was how much airtime the $3.49 container of tomato plants got.  It’s obviously not their big ticket item but it does reposition Home Depot to be in the consideration set for home gardeners.

This morning, MediaPost ran an article on Campbell’s Soup.  Campbell’s is running a promotion called “Help Grow Your Own Soup” (HGYOS), with the goal of growing one billion tomatoes.  They’re doing this by making their tomato seeds available to the public through a code-redemption promotion.  They are also raising money for agricultural education and helping create five community gardens.

This is a well-planned reinforcement of Campbell’s persona as a downhome brand, one that’s nourishing and good for families.  It also squarely re-establishes itself as an essential pantry basic so parents will keep stocking their pantries with Campbell’s, even when making those tough grocery budget decisions.  Nice work staying relevant, Campbell’s.

If these initiative work as I am expecting, be on the lookout for more Green marketing initiatives around home gardening.  I’m sure Target, K-Mart and food manufacturers will continue this trend throughout the spring.

Net Promoter Scores are Out

Surprise, surprise.  Apple has the second highest net promoter score.  This makes it the brand that general consumers recommend the most, according to Satmetrix.  The top ten includes:

The overall winners:

1. USAA
2. Apple
3. Amazon.com
4. Costco.com
5. Google
6. Facebook
7. Wikipedia
8. eBay
9.  Craigslist
10. Barnes & Noble (bn.com)

For more on the rankings, check out this Brand Week article.

Blatant Optimism, post 1

HBS ran a short article titled “Cheers to the American Consumer.” In it, author John Quelch details 6 qualities of the American consumer that provide hope for an economic recovery:  (relative) wealth, mobility, immigration, independence, recognition and technology.

This is a short article that makes its point in broad strokes.  Not much meat to chew on here, but it does provide a context for hope.

For months now I have been decrying the pessimism of the American media, business leaders and political leaders.  I am not buying into this “sky is falling attitude.”  Our capitalistic and innovative tendencies are too ferocious to allow it (unless, of course, we succumb to our own fear and doubt).  So, from here on out, I will be searching for articles that point out bright spots in the economy, areas of growth and change.  Auto industry: stop whining and build better, more responsible cars.  Airline industry: make flying fun again.  Department stores: offer a unique retail experience based on service and local tastes.  Credit cards: make responsibility part of your customer experience again and having a credit card a privilege, not a right.

With so many old business regimes and models falling by the wayside, we have the unique opportunity now to rebuild a stronger, more valuable, more enjoyable and more sustainable economy.  No excuses.

Segmenting Moms

1-800-Flowers has launched a new campaign, Spot-a-Mom. Working across a broad range of traditional and social media outlets, the company is encouraging everyone from their CEO to the (wo)man on the street to recognize the moms in their lives. What’s unique about this is that they are using Twitter and Facebook to segment the moms by interests and hobbies. Participants can then nominate the moms in their lives to be the 1-800-Flowers Mom of the Week.

Of course, this campaign is a lead-up to next month’s Mother’s Day. And the more that 1-800-Flowers can do to associate its brand with that holiday, the better for them. But at least they’re recognizing Moms in the process.

(tip to 1-800-Flowers: Don’t be so cheap. The $100 gift certificate for being the Mom of the week makes you look cheap).

Fast Company

A recent article in AdAge pointed out that Fast Company is actually growing in ad revenue and placement while nearly every other magazine is hurting. Kudos, Fast Company. Well-deserved. As the article’s author Larry Dobrow keenly observed: “Indeed, Fast Company is the only business publication, in print or anywhere else, that makes answering the question ‘Why does this matter?’ its defining purpose.”

And that’s why I’m adding Fast Company to my “Brands I Love” list. Because they made it so I actually like reading about business now.

The Newest Clothing Category

I was just putting away my laundry when I realized an entire new segment in men’s clothing had emerged and I hadn’t even noticed it.

One by one I was folding my underwear. Not the 100% cotton tighty whities and pinstriped boxers my Dad might have worn. Those wear out, tear, fade. No, these were synthetic blends in toxic colors and patterns, cut in all different styles. If I was marketing them, their brand characteristics would include “sporty,” “fun,” “youthful.” And that’s when it dawned on me. These aren’t underwear. These are man’s panties. Manties.

Men, we’ve been tricked again by those clever marketers and now we’re paying $25 bucks a pair. Ah, well. At least we can pretend we’re sporty, fun and youthful when we get dressed in the morning.

Farming Out Madison Avenue

Finally! Corporate America is wising up to the fact that Madison Avenue does not have all of the good ideas.

In what is surely a bellweather move, the CMOs of 10 major corporations (including H-P and Pepsi brand Doritos) have tentatively agreed to participate in a crowdsourcing contest for the next great ad. It’s nice to see the de-concentration of creative influence.

It’s also a bit bittersweet to someone else making a go of what was my MBA Lab to Market project (along with Craig Braun, Stephanie Herzberg & Tony Cusano), Wombat.

More details on the contest here: http://adage.com/cmostrategy/article?article_id=135422