I’ll be back!
Friends and readers, though I originally hoped to continue posting while I pursue an MBA, sadly that has not been the case thanks to the mercilous University of Georgia professors, as I am inundated with coursework on an ongoing basis. However, I will be back in the hopefully-not-so-distant-future, when time and energy permits. Thanks for stopping by and please check back!
Be Proud of Yourself
Today I’m writing about a story I heard on NPR, a short conversation between two garbage workers in New York city. Their dialogue is part of the network’s ‘StoryCorps’ series, in which conversations between people are recorded in a booth and catalogued in the Library of Congress.
In the story, two career-long garbage men, Angelo Bruno and Eddie Nieves, discuss their deep friendship that emerged after years of being partners on a garbage truck, clearing 14 tons of garbage from the streets of New York each day. Within the dialogue, there is a story about motivating others that I wanted to retell.
Angelo describes his first day on the job, many years before, when he was paired with on old-timer and veteran named Gordie. He describes how Gordie took him aside at the top of the first street and said “Angelo, take a look at this street. You see all the trash laying everywhere, all over the sidewalks and the street?” Angelo then describes how he didn’t think much of it and started to go about his work. Then at the end of the street, Gordie said to him “Angelo, get out of the truck. Look back.” So he did. “Nice and clean, right? People can walk on the sidewalk, guys can make deliveries. Be proud of yourself.”
We often think of leadership qualities being tied somehow to people who are educated and have status, but here is a man, who probably did not even attend college, who is a garbage man by profession, and he gives one of the finest examples of motivational leadership I’ve seen. He paints a vivid picture to Angelo of why he is important and why his contribution matters, and he ends with the zinger “be proud of yourself”. It’s no wonder that Angelo went on to retire with valuable friendships and a feeling of real worth. This story reminds me how important it is to take just a little bit of time to do the small things that will have lasting and positive consequences for others.
A Coke and a Smile
A funny thing happened in my office today. Maybe it was the 98 degree ‘Hotlanta’ heat. Maybe it was the additional fact that the office air conditioning system seems to be ‘underperforming’ today. But here is how it unfolded.
At the end of a mini test project for an upcoming event, I happened to have a number of bottles of classic Coca-Cola on my desk. You know, the neat little 8 oz. glass bottles they still sell for those of us who prefer our Coke the classic way, not in a can or plastic bottle. I decided to walk around the office and ‘gift’ these away personally one at a time to my co-workers.
Surprisingly, each time I handed someone a bottle, their faces lit up and they flashed a truly genuine smile. The gift of Coke was not only appreciated, but for a moment it brought true HAPPINESS to each person.
I began to think about what a powerful concept that is. For decades, Coke has built its entire brand on the idea of happiness. The fact that it still, after so many years, elicits such an immediate response – in the form of a pure outburst of emotion – is a real testament to the power potential of a brand.
So it’s clear – Coke owns ‘happiness’ in the minds of people. What feeling or emotion does your brand own? Is there a feeling or an emotion that you can connect your brand to? How would you do it, if you haven’t done so already?
Coke turned ‘Mean’ Joe Green into a happy man. What can your brand do for people?
This week’s remarkable blog posts
Content Rules: One Key Element That Can Set Your Content Apart > MarketingProfs
MarketingProfs Chief Marketing Officer Ann Handley argues that creating content alone isn’t enough. To set yourself apart you need to explore “the unexpected, the unfamiliar, and occasionally the oddball and fun.” I quite agree.
Ben Franklin’s MBA Oath > Harvard Business Review Blog
Benjamin Franklin was a real smart guy. Here’s more proof.
Guy Walks Across America in Less than 2 Minutes, Gains More than 1.2MM Views > ConversationAgent
Valeria Maltoni takes a look at a remarkable video parsed from 2,770 still photos from digital footage and wonders whether Levi’s strategy of targeted engagement will help move the needle at the register.
Survey: 0% of Internet Users Would Pay for Twitter > HubSpot Blog
The most amazing part of this story is that 100% of 1,981 Americans surveyed actually agreed on something.
How to Nurture The Great Unknown Leads > B2B Marketing Insider
Michael Brenner’s B2B Marketing Insider blog is chock full of good, resourceful info for B2B marketers. This blog post examines strategies for helping to convert prospects ‘hiding’ behind inaccurate contact details.
Color Quiz: Name that Brand!
Color can be a powerful conveyor of messages for any brand. In modern history, certain brands have successfully used color to help create a distinct and memorable image in the mind of the consumer. Marc Gobé, author of the book Emotional Branding, states that “properly chosen colors define your brand logo, products, window displays, and so on, and encourage better recall of your brand, as well as a more accurate understanding of what your brand represents.”
In the Slidecast below, each of the 20 slides represents one famous brand, using only color along with the brand’s category in an attempt to convey the identity. How many can you accurately name? The first one is easy. Use the comments to let us know how you did.
5 Remarkable Brand Comebacks
We’ve heard a lot about Old Spice recently, and how a clear vision along with a bit of creativity can help breathe new life into a struggling brand that has seen better days. Here are five that have, to one degree or another, managed to climb out of the branding abyss and reclaim the hearts and minds of customers.
Apple Computer
Yes, today’s jewel of the technology world was not always on such stable footing like it is now, following the great success of the iPod, iPhone and now the iPad. Back in 1985, founder Steve Jobs was ousted and the company began a downward spiral until around 1997, when Jobs was brought back as interim CEO. Oddly enough, a $150 million investment from Microsoft helped the company chart a new course, streamlining their product lines and offering exciting new innovations that have repeatedly set the mark for all others to imitate. Today, the Apple brand is one of the most revered in the world, in any industry.
Lacoste
The brand that brought together tennis and crocodiles is one of the world’s most recognizable, but can you believe it was once owned by General Mills? Founded in 1933 by René Lacoste, the company expanded for decades, was sold to General Mills in 1969, and reached the height of popularity in the 1980s when it became the signature “preppy” brand. While it may be hard to imagine one company marketing Cheerios and high-end apparel at the same time, General Mills ownership continued until 1992. By then the brand had been rebranded as Izod and had taken a dive in popularity so the company sold it back to the French, who let it languish in the U.S. for the next 10 years. In 2002, a serious rebranding effort was begun under former Levi Strauss executive Robert Siegel, who has managed to bring luster in the form of luxury back to the old brand, making it popular with young people once again.
Continental Airlines
While Southwest Airlines gets all of the the attention, Continental has quietly taken its place among the airline industry’s leaders in customer satisfaction. Not bad for a company that has faced a great deal of trouble in the past due to management mistakes – notably taking their eye off the ball where their customers were concerned and letting quality levels drop. In 1994, the company hired new CEO Gordon Bethune who promptly created the “Go Forward Plan” which repaired trust and greatly improved employee morale. Since then Continental has managed to remain relatively stable in a very turbulent industry.
Ford Motor Co.
While this choice may be premature, Ford has emerged from the bailout debacle as the one U.S. automaker that many seem to agree doesn’t suck, possibly because it is the only one of the three that managed to avoid a government-funded bankruptcy last year. Under its new leadership, Ford is cutting back brands and focusing on smaller cars, turning away from the Sports Utility vehicles that have long dominated the U.S. market. While the company is not expected to turn a profit until next year, recent models have created a good amount of buzz. It remains to be seen whether this iconic American brand can ride the wave and return to its former greatness, but many signs indicate it has made a good start.
Pabst Blue Ribbon
This classic working class brew may never again reach its pinnacle of 18 million barrels sold in 1977. But though sales steadily declined after that high-water mark (less than 1 million barrels in 2001), the beer has found a home, settling nicely into its new niche with urban hipsters who like the brand’s mix of authenticity and cheap price. Sales have steadily increased in recent years, and though Pabst is merely a blip next to some of the major brands on our list, its impact on American pop culture can’t be denied.
What are some brands that you would add to this list?
Giving an Old Product Some Spice
If you’re anything like me, you have may walked around whistling the Old Spice theme now and then during the last week. This is an odd new twist considering the long-winded history of this classically stodgy brand. As a kid, I recall seeing bottles of Old Spice after shave in my parent’s medicine cabinet. As a teenager and young adult, I remember thinking of Old Spice as a has-been product, one that I would never ever use.
Old Spice as a brand has been around for a long time – since about 1937, when it was originally introduced as a woman’s fragrance known as Early American Old Spice. Then in 1938, Old Spice for men was introduced. In the decades that followed, Old Spice would become a household name in fragrance products, branded on a nautical theme with sailing ships being central to its branding. By the time Procter & Gamble purchased Old Spice from its original founders the Shulton Company in 1990, it was a tired old brand in need of a new lease on life.
P&G has made a number of changes over the last 20 years including the branding, packaging and product lines. In 2006, it brought in Wieden & Kennedy to freshen the image of Old Spice in the minds of young people within its Gen Y target market. One Wieden copywriter explained “if you put Nikes on your feet, you’re making a statement. If you’re using Old Spice, you’re not. Procter wanted to see if they could change that.” In early 2007, the agency unveiled its first work and it was immediately clear that a new Old Spice era was born. The creatives at Wieden infused a self-awareness approach that referenced the brand’s history and heritage while making it fun and appealing to a younger generation.
More recently, during the 2010 Super Bowl in February, P&G with the help of Wieden introduced its latest character, the Old Spice Man played by former pro football player and struggling actor Isaiah Mustafa. The successful TV spots led up to the latest phenomenon — a social media extravaganza that included the creation of 186 YouTube videos, or near real-time ‘responses’ in only two days, with Mustafa starring in all of them wearing only a towel.
With an estimated 37 million views on YouTube in a matter of days, this recent effort is already widely talked about as the gold-standard of all social media campaigns. More than that, it’s an indication of how an old brand that had seemed to run its course can turn things around, virtually forcing a new generation of customers to give it a look. While P&G executives have not yet released any figures, there are indications that sales of Old Spice products have seen a boost because of the campaign.
What is the lesson here for marketers of mature products that perhaps could use a brand tune-up? We often hear doubts about certain low interest products and whether or not it is possible for marketers of such products to engage customers. After all, who would want to engage with a vacuum cleaner, or a blender? Or a deodorant for that matter?
But the Old Spice scenario gives hope to these marketers, whether your goal is to invoke feelings of joy, comfort, safety or prestige. If you are creative and able to infuse some emotion into your campaigns, anything is possible.
What are you doing to engage your customers and invoke feelings in them that are relevant to your brand?
SILVER FISH HAND CATCH!!!
5 Easy Steps to Add 100,000 Twitter Followers
1) Open a Twitter account (Verified, if possible)
2) Quit your job (secretly, don’t tell your boss yet)
3) Find a new job (don’t tell anyone!)
4) Arrange for a prime time TV special to broadcast your new job announcement live*
5) Announce that you will answer questions regarding your decision on Twitter
*Depending on who you are, this step may be difficult
This week’s remarkable blog posts
Morning People Better Positioned for Career Success > The View from Harvard Business
Some scientific proof that the early bird really does catch the worm.
A Simple B2B Marketing Framework > Everything Technology Marketing
Holger Schulze examines existing B2B marketing frameworks and takes this general concept a step further by creating a simple framework that “depicts the hierarchy of B2B marketing strategy and tactics”.
How to build customer loyalty by screwing up > Entrepreneur Corner
Jason Cohen explains how a new company/customer etiquette has emerged, and why small startups are especially suited for exploiting it.
Attention please: How you help brands change our world > Simon Mainwaring
Ex-Nike/Wieden creative discusses how brands are wisely commanding attention by contributing to causes that are meaningful to consumers.
How Reframers Unleash Innovation in Their Companies (And Beyond) > Harvard Business Review Blog
Interesting post that examines how a select group of smart leaders, or ‘Reframers’, are conjuring up disruptive business model innovations that rewrite the rules of the game.
Demand Generation and Inbound Marketing – Is There Really a Difference? > New Sales Economy Blog
As the article explains, if you’ve ever wondered what the difference is between demand generation and inbound marketing, this post is for you.
3 Simple Ways to Make Your Marketing Smile : )
A smile is the ultimate ice breaker. There is no simpler way to instantly create a feeling of good will between yourself and the person who is on the receiving end. A smile says “I’m happy to see you. Let’s connect.”
Your marketing should smile when touching a customer. It’s a sign that you are interested in your customer’s happiness. Coca-Cola gets this. The world’s #1 brand, with a product that is nothing more than bubble water, sugar and a few natural flavors, has been making people smile for 120 years.
A study showed that 86% of people are more likely to talk to strangers if they are smiling. What if your marketing is perceived to be smiling? Will it make a customer more likely to talk to engage in a dialogue with you?
How do you make your marketing smile? Here are 3 simple things you can do.
1) Encourage your employees to be themselves
People are funny. And I mean ha-ha funny. They like to laugh and have fun with others. Corporate branding guidelines often have a way of stifling people’s ability to inject a little personality into their professional manner. From email signatures to telephone demeanor and social media approach, there are many ways for companies to encourage their staff members to show a pulse.
2) Give corporate social media accounts a personal flavor
Company Twitter and Facebook accounts can smile if they feel like there is a real person behind them. Encourage your staff, and in particular your CEO and other high-level team members, to tweet, blog and post – and do it with feeling. Treat your company Twitter account as if it’s a living breathing person with a sense of humor and a desire to illicit smiles from followers.
3) Don’t let the brand police spoil the fun
I recall working on an event years ago for a very large corporation. They wanted a baseball theme, but their strict adherence to the corporate brand guidelines prevented us from creating environmental graphics that were fun for those attending (baseball and Helvetica really don’t mix). Loosen up. Don’t let the brand get in the way of your ability to smile. If your branding guidelines don’t give you any room to relax every once in a while and inject a little fun into the conversation, perhaps they need a little rethinking.
