Interrupt the consumers´ ordinary life with a surprise and they will love you

Last night I went to a catch up with PR people and journalists in Sydney and they had decided to meet at a pub that offered quirky bonuses to the drinks. I got a free manicure! If I go there on a Tuesday I get a free fortunetelling reading! Anything to attract the ladies... who will then attract the boys who buy the drinks...?

It is so easy for a brand to put a smile on someone´s face, and a thought in their head. Just do something different that will make consumers go nuts. We are all looking for an escape from the ordinary, something that takes us out of our uncomfort zone of daily trouble and creates a micro moment of bliss. Doing the dishes, pick up from day care, trouble with the boss, worries about the boyfriend... If your brand can cut through that rubbish you will be a hero. Media will find you interesting to report about, other brands will want to work with you and you will get as much love as you are sending out.

This little cupcake is just one example. A Swedish friend went to Amsterdam and found it, posted it all over Facebook and made his 580 friends smile.

The café across the street from where I live wrote on their black board the clever message that´s been all over Internet lately to create a cute vibe about the place. Don´t we all love this...:

It has been said that generation Y is a bunch of kids who needs constant entertainment, being restless and spoilt with impressions and information, everyone trying to give them a time of rest between childhood and adulthood. But I believe we all need some relief from the grown up life. At least I know all of my friends at Facebook, whether they are 22 or 52 are posting pictures from the cool hunter. I know we all love a laugh, some interruption in the grey. The consumer insight is not just about gen Y but about babyboomers, us gen Xers and tweens as well.

The brand that both catches my eye and touches my heart will win my love. Small gestures are big.

Looks will give you the job - so on with the makeup ladies...

An article in smh offers another piece of evidence of that people are irrational and subjective, judgemental and following subconscious signals rather than rational facts. Apparently make up (on women) makes you look and become more successful:

"It's not going to win awards for promoting gender equality, but a recent study suggests that women who wear makeup are seen to be more competent, amiable and trustworthy – and likely to get ahead in the workplace.

Funded by cosmetic giant Procter & Gamble but executed by independent researchers from Harvard and Boston Universities and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, a team of scientists and psychologists photographed 25 female subjects without makeup followed by three looks they called "natural, professional and glamorous". The photos were then shown in random order to two control groups: the first consisting of 149 men and women who saw the faces flashed on a screen for 250 milliseconds, and a second group of 119 people who were able to look at the images for as long as they wanted. Participants were then asked to rate each face according to how competent, attractive, likable and trustworthy they appeared.
'
"We found that cosmetics have a significant impact on how attractive a face appears, but also on how likable, trustworthy and competent they appear," said the study's lead author Nancy Etcoff, assistant clinical professor of psychology at Harvard University. "When flashed quickly, every cosmetic look significantly increased how attractive, competent, likable and trustworthy the faces appeared to the same faces without makeup. When people could look at the faces for as long as they wanted to, all makeup looks increased competence and attractiveness once again."

Though there have been multiple studies investigating how classic beauty is seen by others as an indicator of intelligence and that women feel more confident wearing makeup, it is the first time researchers have made a connection between cosmetic use and perceived capability. Etcoff, author of Survival Of The Prettiest: The Science Of Beauty, says the two are inextricably linked.

"We can hypothesise that greater perceived attractiveness and competence go together, that they are both indicators of social power," she added. "I have done brain imaging studies that suggest certain features of faces - symmetry, youthfulness and sexual dimorphism [the ways that female characteristics differ from those of males] – are considered attractive. The face is seen as an advertisement of health and fertility and a potential good mate or partner."

The study's authors, including Procter & Gamble scientist Dr Sarah Vickery, stress that their findings don't claim women have to wear makeup in order to appear capable, but rather that it's a tool they can use to create impressions and, in part, control the way others see them.

"At the end of the day a woman should be in control and do what she wants to do, project the image that she wants to project," agrees Australian cosmetic guru Napoleon Perdis. "There's a real feel-good factor associated with makeup and taking some time out to focus on yourself. But if it's not your thing then you shouldn't feel forced into wearing it to please or impress others."

There's also a word of warning for makeup enthusiasts say the experts, a secondary conclusion indicating that women who opt for a glamorous look over styles considered more professional or natural appear to be less trustworthy. Which only further serves to highlight the disparity in expectations placed on women in the workplace and greater society, according to Carina Garland, a gender and cultural studies lecturer at Sydney University.

"The responses to glamorous makeup versus more professional makeup show that fine line between the idea of a right and wrong kind of femininity. Which I think is unfair. It's quite interesting that men's competency in the workplace isn't critically questioned in the same way," she says. "The study isn't terrible, it's actually quite useful because it does tell us what the burden of femininity is really about. But rather than suggesting that women should invest in a good lipstick and some eye shadow, it should be the impetus to question why we attach these cultural values and meanings around women and makeup."

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/beauty/makeup-the-key-to-success-20111025-1mhik.html#ixzz1bq7PMiJC

Other research has shown that wearing designer clothes may give you a pay rise, and that tall people are considered smarter. Looks definitely matter. You won´t always get hired based on your competence...

What is missing in Digital strategy - Brands are just standing in the corner, they don´t woo or ask me to dance

A new report (Integrated Social Media: Sales Impact Study 2011, based on American research) from Ogilvy has identified five things you should know about social media:
1. Social media exposure is directly linked with increases in sales. Integrated social media (social content + one or more other channels) exposure is linked with significant increases in spend and consumption—for example, social media + PR exposure was associated with a 17% spend increase compared to the prior week without these.
2. Integration matters. Exposure to social content was most consistently effective when it was combined with exposure to other types of media channels.
3. Social media is a top driver of impact. Out of the 20 channels analyzed, social media was No. 1 or No. 2 in magnitude of impact on spend and consumption.
4. Social media exposure is directly linked with changes in brand perception. Social media by itself is particularly effective at rapidly impacting brand perception—exposure to social media generated the largest impact on brand perception over a short (one week) period of time.
5. Brand exposure in social media is low. Weekly social media exposure to brand mentions was relatively low (24% of panel) vs. television branded exposure (69% of panel),

What does this really mean? What they are saying is that when social media is combined with other types of marketing strategies it is really good for a brand. But is the exposure and sales then growing because of the other channels or because of the social media activity? Is the brand that thinks digitally also very good at creating TVC´s and getting publicity?

It can never be the tweet that attracts; it´s the person behind the account who reaches into the customer´s heart. It´s not the website in itself; it´s how a website is constructed that makes us stay there for a while.
I am of course a big believer in using digital channels to reach people. Saying anything else would be silly. People are today spending a lot of time online and on their mobiles, and whatever we read will stick. Naturally. So if we read on computers and phones, that´s where the brand should be seen. “Digital strategy” is about meeting the consumers where they are and when they are in the emotional state that matches the brand, and since we are on our devices, that´s where a brand should be too.

But the rules of influence will be the same as in traditional media, simply adapted to the digital space. The psychology of humans is the same. Our brains react and act in the same way.

No brand can ignore Facebook, Twitter or Foursquare. But most brands misunderstand the point. Many “build a site” and that´s it. They start some ridiculous activity trying to engage people. They hard sell their products on twitter and sure – as I said before – whatever we read will stick, and if we hear a brand name all the time this might lead to sales. But most likely it leads to annoyance and us pressing the “unlike” button.
I´m still waiting for the clever use of digital. I´m waiting for the research on how we react to brands. I´m waiting for measuring tools beyond how many Facebook fans a brand has. I´m waiting for brands to wow me.

At a party the other day I asked how many who use twitter. Response: 1 in 30. Everyone live their life on Facebook of course and we check each other in to all sorts of places – especially when doing something we want to brag about, like being up at 6 am to watch the symphony orchestra down Bondi Beach  - but we rarely talk brands.

Actually, when I checked us in on Sunday morning I would have loved to easily find the event and also get a present when checking in. What if I could check in and then walk up to a coffee stand and get a free cupcake when ordering my coffee? What if I could enter the draw to win a free subscription of Sydney Morning Herald (see, I mentioned the sponsor :)? When checking in, I am endorsing the brand, giving it space on my wall and it doesn´t feel as if I´m selling – why haven´t I met any brands using this fact? It´s like they all go to the dance, stand against the wall, but nobody asks me to dance...

Who has done research on how people react on digital branding? Who has done semiotic analysis of websites? Who knows what actually works and what doesn´t? Lots of money is today spent on digital, and marketing directors are nervously doing their best to be where it´s all happening – but is it money well spent? Who knows. Be smart. As owned and earned media, it´s cheap!

TV still dominates: “Sixty-nine percent of consumers noticed a TV ad for one of the five brands during a seven-day period, with TV ads representing 24% share of all touchpoints. The second most frequently noticed paid media touchpoint was OOH, specifically billboard advertisements. Thirty-six percent of consumers noticed a billboard ad for one of the five brands (7% share of the paid media touchpoints). Twenty-four percent of consumers encountered a social media touchpoint—defined as status updates, company brand pages, updates and feeds on Facebook and Twitter, online videos on YouTube and other venues, blogs, online ratings and reviews—during a seven-day period, representing 5% share of all touchpoints.”

Ogilvy ChatThreads Social Media Sales Impact Study 2011

View more documents from 360 Digital Influence, Ogilvy PR Worldwide

Jon Steel on what makes good strategic planning

I found this excellent post on http://invisibleinkdigital.com/ Thank you!!

"7 Points On Planning by Jon Steel of WPP

1. Be useful. The real value of a planner is problem solving and coming up with simple solutions. Cleverness is simply a means to an end.
2. Bring out the best in other people. Act as a catalyst for others by providing the conditions for informed creative thought.
3. Be a linchpin, not only between people but also between brands and the audience they connect with.
4. Have a deep understanding of human motivations and instincts.
5. Have an experience of real life. Get out of the office to experience the real world and understand the people you want to experience.
6. Create a working timetable both within and outside the office to best generate ideas and insights.
7. Whether analogue or digital, the main task of any planner is understanding basic human communication.

I love this and wish more agencies here in Australia dared to work this way. Like in any industry - or church, political party or sports team - people in a group tend to stick together, copy each other and fit in. They will create their own language and dress style, and they will do their best to protect their territory. Unfortunately this leads to lack of true insights about the real world, something that will weaken the work. Adland plays hard at the same bars. They read each others tweets and laugh at each others jokes.  They work hard at the same office until they can´t keep their eyes open, and definitely not go out and meet other people, outside the industry.

Yeah, I´m not much better. I do it too. If I don´t I´ll be cut out. Strangers, foreigners or people with the wrong kind of sneakers - you´re Fired!

To make it personal, I´ve got 14 years of experience (7 in agencies) in media and communication in Sweden, which one would think is useful (at least I get hunted for kick-ass jobs back home). But recruiters here in Australia look at me and say "but have you worked in Australia?" and I bring up my year of freelancing here and they nod - "yeah, now we´re talking... perhaps I can get an internship? You are after all a risk" (!)

Don´t take it as harsh critique. I love you all, and I´m the same, but I will always aim to improve and grow: Step out, take a breathe of fresh air, be daring. Say hello to the world, read something unexpected, spook myself out of the little comfort zone. Smile when others frown, ask myself itchy questions, get surprised. I´m not perfect, but I´d wish to be the best I can be.

Are you with me? :)

Challenge:
- seek insights in the real world (no focus groups with people from the Pyrmont office)
- hang out with people who work with other things (a different type of agency doesn´t count)
- read a magazine you´ve never read before
- step out of the office early and look at people around you, chat with the wait staff and someone who is 20 years younger or 20 years older than you

Campaigns that make us smile also make us buy

"Happiness" is a massive industry. Psychologists, coaches and shoe stores earn millions on helping people to smile. But what if it´s this easy... Take a smile, use it, and tadaaaa you feel better!

When you force your lips to smile and eye brows to rise to take in more light the hormone machine that is your body will start buzzing and tingling of joy. You will feel better, for no reason at all. Just because you´re in your natural state...

Being happy is our natural state. This is why you can´t ADD stuff to be happy. You can only reduce the blockages. A simple smile is the best detox. Another pair of shoes probably the worst...

The ad industry is many times helping us smile. More and more ads are tickling us with quirky characters and jokes, especially when targeting gen Y, trying to reach into the pockets of those who have lots to spend and a never ending range of alternatives to choose from. They wish to make the brand to be swept into the same emotional space as you are in when you are happy. Whatever we experience while laughing will be favored.Thumbs up.

Does it work for all types of brands? Probably not. Just like pictures of hot people will evoke our sense of "nowism" - wanting to spend and enjoy in the moment - and therefor are suitable for fast moving consumer brands, smiles may put people in such a happy state they can´t relate to for example diets or life insurance. I haven´t seen any research around this, but it should be considered.

If you are interested in this area, this article about how behavioural economics will change research is a gem: http://www.research-live.com/magazine/how-will-behavioural-economics-change-research?/4004762.article

Semiotics - can it make you more popular?

Did you know that on average shoppers take just five seconds to locate and select a given product, generally at a distance of from three-to-six feet? And that more than 60% of the shopping decision is made in the store? (Source: SDMIS Study, OgilvyAction)

This article (shorted) from Branding Strategy Insider about semiotics will help us understand a little more about how to package a product to make it popular in the shelf beauty contest:  

"COLORS
Visibility is measured by contrast and the physiological driver that creates contrast is color. Color is one of the brain’s three visual pathways and, since we process every object within view simultaneously, color is the mechanism that places emphasis on certain areas. In addition to enhancing on-shelf visibility, the appropriate use of color can increase brand recognition by some 80%, while also serving as an important brand identifier.

SHAPES
Memorable shapes also initiate a cognitive process of evaluation and brand preference. Shapes often determine the first impression of a product while metaphorically communicating key benefits and advantages.  In combination, color and shape combinations can signal quality, while enhancing perception.  For instance, symmetrical shapes pair well with passive colors… triangular and diamond shapes with active colors. Color /shape combinations can also communicate brand personality, so like color, the use of shape in brand identity and design plays a role well beyond on-shelf visibility.

SYMBOLS
Symbols are a nearly instantaneous means of communicating meaning – think about the Nike® swoosh, the CBS® eye, or the Starbucks® siren. Associations derived from symbols become imprinted in consumers’ minds through repeated exposure, and shoppers intuitively gravitate to familiar symbols to help them navigate the shelf.

WORDS
Research has shown that a package cluttered with claims fights for attention and creates shopper conflict. The best approach is to focus on a single competitive point of difference that distinguishes a brand from its’ competition. As previously discussed, colors, shapes and symbols all enhance on-shelf visibility, illicit an emotional reaction, and aid in the final purchasing decision. So it stands to reason, that the more words one adds to the design, the less the opportunity to use color, shapes and symbols effectively."

The article and tons of others around Internet tell us THAT semiotics matte, but doesn´t say much about HOW you are supposed to design the products. What does the colours and shapes mean? Which symbol to use for which message? What will changing the type from blue to red mean in terms of targeting and sales? Will Gen Y like green better? Should you use big shapes for beer and small for shirts? I don´t know. I would assume the cultural connotation always changes, and you need to do new research constantly to figure out how a specific market interpret a shape or a symbol in the time they live in. Influenced by other logos, events and phenomenon we will see "orange" differently.

I keep looking for general rules, perhaps meanings inbuilt in our DNA?. If you have an answer, please let me know!

Happy Birthday in Facebook times

Yesterday I turned 38 - yay - and Wow: celebrating a birthday in the Facebook era is interesting...

Over a hundred people posted on my wall or wrote me messages on my special day; old buddies I haven´t met in years sent me a micro thought from their part of the world, and made me realise how visable I am on Facebook. Gee, what I post on my wall might actually be read by all these 755 "friends", some I had a brief chat with 10 years ago or who I argued with on the editorial pages when I was a political writer back in Sweden. They are actually all there on Facebook even if I normally don´t talk to them directly. But on my birthday ministers of the government, old class mates from high school, cousins and past flings all unite. "Happy Birthday Carolin". Thanks...

Ah well. Social media... it feeds our need of attention, of feeling like we exist. It helps us find people who are just like us as individuals, but it also helps us fit in, guiding us in what other people like and think.

I was wondering whether a "happy birthday" is a possession or a non-materialistic value...? Deborah Roedder John at the University of Minnesota asked 250 kids between 8 and 18 what words and pictures that represented happiness, and she found that kids with low self esteem chose things, like clothes or an iPod, while kids with high self esteem chose activities and achievements.

Somehow the level of closeness with those who said "happy birthday" is so low it´s almost a Thing. But at the same time it´s built on a relationship I had with that person at 11, 17 or 26 year of age. During a lifetime you get time to meet a lot of people and I guess I´m kind of social... We have true moments with people, where we share and help each other grow, and all those are now captured on Facebook. I do feel joy receiving all these reminders of the people of my life because I care about them, and I do admit I feel an awkward sense of confidence in the numbers. Facebook, ah Facebook. What are you doing to us?

(Research found in Brandwashed by Martin Lindstrom. Awesome book! )

Pictures of hot ladies makes men want something NOW, and care less about the future

A picture says more than a thousand words, hey... In advertising this is of course a well known and well used fact. But do the art directors really know how our subconscious is affected by different visual messages?

Roger Dooley at Neuromarketing blog has found research suggesting that "male viewers are influenced by photos of attractive women, and their decisions skew toward the short-term and impulsive. Incorporating such images in marketing or point-of-sale materials has the potential to lift sales if the product itself has an appropriate reward. For example, I would think that sales of, say, apparel or grooming products would do better than, say, broccoli."

This means that when a guy looks at a hot chick he will feel a need of a quick reward, a kick of some kind. He won´t bother about the future, but be more eager to get some pleasure here and now.

According to Dooley, this should also mean that " photos of attractive women could be ineffective or even a negative when selling certain kinds of products to men. For example, products like life insurance and annuities both involve spending current money for a future (and, in the case of insurance, uncertain) payout. Priming male sales prospects with mating cues could be counter-productive by making the cash in their pocket seem more valuable compared to the future rewards."

So... when a bank pictures a gorgeous looking girl in their ad, that might actually mean that the guy will be less interested in something that is good for him long term, like a savings account. Instead it triggers him to go out and spend money on things that make him attractive to girls today!

This also means that for male targeting FMCG brands it´s even more important to have sexy women in their ads. It will make him want to enjoy himself in the moment!

Finally the online shopping can take off for real in Australia!

The online shopping revolution can begin for real: Australia Post is making it much easier to pick up the stuff you´ve bought through the computer! Yihaaa.

It´s always been a mystery to me how people can say it´s so easy and convenient to shop online when you actually need to go to the post office in your hood before 5 pm, stand in a line and then try to work yourself through the ugly carbon packaging with scissors and an aching head, afraid of ruining what you´ve just bought. Aaaah. Shopping off line is so much nicer - you get it delivered in a fancy bag and you get to own your item immediately. Bliss.

But things are changing. Press release from Australia Post on Monday, 10 October 2011

"Australia Post Managing Director and CEO Ahmed Fahour said Australia Post's response to the internet shopping boom includes new delivery options such as the ability for customers to collect parcels from an initial 100 extended hours locations across Australia and access parcel lockers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with customers receiving email and SMS notifications when their parcel arrives.

"These new measures are additions to existing parcel services and come in response to a 10.9 per cent increase in parcel volumes over the last financial year - a figure which can be directly linked to Australians taking up online shopping in record numbers," said Mr Fahour.

The new services providing customers with more flexibility and choice include:

Extended hours for parcel collection

• The ability for customers to have their parcel delivered to a location of their choice from an initial 100 parcel pick up locations across Australia which offer extended hours with many open weekends.
• New 24 hour access electronic parcel lockers will be trialled in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Customers can collect their items 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and will receive a SMS notification when their parcel is ready for collection.
• New parcel lockers for Post Office Box holders in 24 locations nation-wide by the end of November with more to come.
• Trial of new self-service machines for domestic parcels and Billpay at five initial retail outlets, with many more to be operating across the country by the end of the financial year.

Competitive pricing and home delivery service

• Australia Post/eBay low cost satchels and boxes priced at a low flat rate to anywhere in Australia no matter how remote or far away.
• A new international tracked parcel product called 'Pack and Track international' which is a significantly cheaper option. This product offers tracked delivery between the United States and Australia with more international destinations to be added in the future and is available online from today and in retail outlets early next year.
• To the door carding requiring our drivers to leave a card under the door, rather than the letterbox, to ensure customers who are at home receive their delivery.

Supporting consumers and Australian retailers get online

• 60 upgraded business hubs across Australia focusing on small to medium business activity, with the first to be opened in Mount Waverley (Victoria) in November, and 20 to be launched by the end of 2012.
• Australia Post, in association with our partner Mailplus, is offering free Express Post product pick up for new customers during October and November this year.
• An online label printing service, Click and Send, that makes it simple for customers to send parcels by allowing them to print labels, pay for postage online and organise courier pick up, all from the convenience of home or work.
• Our flagship concept store opening in Brisbane in December, which will have a dedicated online shopping area, 24/7 parcel pick up zone and vending machines with stamps and packaging.
• Helping Australian retailers with their online ordering and payments through our SecurePay business and our Shop In A Box product, which is available online shortly.

"We're listening to our customers. Australians are receiving more parcels than ever and many of our customers are rarely at home during the day and find it increasingly hard to get to a post office," said Mr Fahour.

Thank you Muster Fahrour.

In Sweden this happened perhaps ten years ago, but still impressed with the Aussie post for following the trends...

Focus on your consumer as an individual and she will focus on you - well done Philips!

I love when brands play on all our need to self-focus! Most people will be drawn in if you ask them questions about themselves, where they need to reflect and think - it makes them feel seen and important. If you want to be liked by someone, forget bragging about how wonderful you are; simply put the shine on the person who you wish to impress and she will think you are fantastic!

Philips is using this insight when asking "Are you a morning person?" First, they ask ME a direct question, second they ask what kind of person I am which gives me the feeling I´m going to find out things about myself and get personal help with an issue that´s bothering many. Very clever! From psfk:

"DDB Amsterdam and Phillips have put out the challenge to enjoy your mornings with their new Wake-Up Light. With light being nature’s most common method for ‘waking up’ in the animal kingdom, the Wake Up Challenge urges people to change the way they feel in the mornings by changing the way they wake up.



Users of the Facebook app are asked a series of questions about their wake up regime, the results presented in an archetypal video. Five-hundred lucky app users will be able to test-run Phillips’ new sunlight-simulator Wake-Up Light. 



www.facebook.com/philipshealthyliving

Most brands actually do the opposite; they spend most time presenting themselves, speaking about all their fantastic features and telling you that you should love them because others do. They don´t bother about the consumer´s unique needs and life challenges. They might bring out some data from Roy Morgan and think they know the "target" but only to know what to TELL them.

Philips has done the opposite, which is very refreshing. I really hope the results of this campaign will be so stunning they will be a wake up call for other brands :)

Women watch, men create

For marketers who wish to target women this may be useful: (from an article in Marketing Magazine online)

Forrester found in a study that women indexed high on personal and group conversations and loved sharing photos. On the flip side, men are creators, and they make up of 75% of people who contribute to Wikipedia.”

According to another study by comScore on Twitter habits, while men mainly post tweets and use the platform to consume news, women engage in conversations, and follow brands for bargains and deals.

Dr Rebecca Huntley, director of The Ipsos Mackay Report, an Australian social trends study, who has done many focus groups and research sessions with groups of women, say that while they are all connected, what they deem important differs vastly based on their life stages.

Women in their 20s feel that they are time-poor and desire to do everything before the ‘baby years’. They seek travel experiences and trust expert opinions and peer reviews.

In their 30s, women are who now new mothers juggle life both at work and at home and are a strong supporter of the iPad. Seen as a device that both entertains the kids and allows the opportunitiy for a quick escape during quiet time, the portable device also allows women in their 30s to access information on parenting, recipes and travel ideas quickly.

Women in their 40s often feel that they are neglected by marketers. While no longer young, these women do not feel old either and believe that the current market fails to speak to them. These women seek new value in their lives and will respond well to brands that address their unique life stage.

Of course, saying women born within the same decade are exactly the same is a bit simplistic, but when put together with other data and insights it completes a puzzle.

Promotion from awareness to brand love - Carlton Dry a true role model

As I was writing the other day, promotional marketing is a tricky space. Brands try to make consumers shop based on what kind of present they will get as a reward, and they allure us to give the brand attention based on contests where we can win amazing things. I often question whether this is effective long term. Are "promos" just a way to capture someone´s eye on the day, and will that person really change his behaviour based on what he can win in a competition? Do people really care about whether they get a t-shirt or a cap? Will this make them swap from their favourite to something new?

The latest campaign form Carlton Dry is interesting though (from Mumbrella, also Campaign Brief):

"Carlton Dry is offering tenants of five share houses around Australia the opportunity to live rent and bill free for a year through an on-pack promotion.   

The Shout A Share House promotion will see the winners awarded with up to $2,500 a month for rent, $200 a month in utility bills, Foxtel for 12 months, a wireless hifi system, unlimited music streaming, a Sony Bravia 40″ TV, Carlton Dry bar fridge and beer for a year.

Group marketing manager for Carlton Dry at Carlton United Breweries said: “Carlton Dry is all about enabling our drinkers to live for the moment. We’re giving five groups of Aussies the chance to live the dream rent free in luxury for a year. That cash injection, along with the beer, should help them have a pretty good 12-months, freeing up their funds so they can enjoy the fun things in life.”

Clever... I like this campaign, as it involves not just the winner, but the whole group of boys around him. It feels solid, as if it is built on true understanding of the consumers, hence respect them and love them. It´s not about giving them something short term, something cheap and something most cool guys will frown at... I still doubt that many guys will enter, because most times you buy that case of beer, hang out with mates and the carbon wrapping will be left in a bin somewhere, all wet and lonely... but the signal is sent with help of the picture, the message, the vibe. From promotional awareness to promotional branding - this is how!

It follows in the footsteps of another very successful campaign from Carlton Dry Lemon (from Marketing magazine):

"Carlton Dry was introducing a new variety of beer and needed a cheap way to get the word out. The catch cry FREE BEER has rarely failed before, and taking that concept to social media worked very well for Carlton Dry  Fusion Lemon.

Campaign: Carlton Dry Fusion Lemon – Facebook

Client: Carlton and United Breweries Australia

Promotional agency: Creative Activation (née CSM)

Social media agency: Additude

Background

Beer has seen an influx of new brewers, flavours and styles over the past few years, and there is fierce competition between brands for valuable shelf space.

Beer brand promotions have been innovative and usually through traditional media, but Carlton Dry wanted to try social media to test the hype around the medium. The brand charged Creative Activation to come up with a social media marketing solution for the launch of its new brand ‘Carlton Dry Fusion Lemon’. This led Creative Activation to Additude. At that time Australia was, and is still, behind the UK and US when it comes to social media marketing. The medium had been utilised in Australia by a few major brands such as Holden, NAB and Smirnoff, when Carlton Dry decided to give it a chance. The challenge was to come up with a concept that could convince Carlton Dry that this medium was effective.

Objectives

The objective was to reach and attract the 18- to 24-year-old market to sample the new product and to do it under the $75,000 budget. At the same time we needed the campaign to be ingenious with an Australian answer to social media marketing, not a simple import of a proven format from overseas. The objective of Carlton Dry was not just to get its already loyal drinking base to sample this new product, but to also create brand awareness at large within a six-week period at lightning speed.

Strategy

Taking a product to the consumer is expensive, but getting the consumer to the product is not. Carlton Dry knew it needed a compelling message that would speak to the young, unisex market it was targeting. The message it used was undeniably appealing: FREE BEER!

What was needed was an Australian concept that packed a punch and spread virally.

Facebook was the ideal choice for channel, as it had just over two million Australian users in the target group. Drinking beer is very social and ‘Shouting Your Mate’ is very Australian. So we developed a campaign where we took the core message (free real beer to the customer) and asked them to shout their mates. We also published on users’ Facebook walls whenever they printed a voucher. So, in effect, we had the customers advocating the product to their circle of friends.

Persuading the customer to be your advocate is great. But you need to create an initial pool of customers that have enough beer enthusiasts to spread the word. So we wanted to seed the campaign with an initial population banner advertisement within Facebook.

Carlton Dry’s audience responded, spreading the offer to an average of 3.5 friends each during the promotion period, but to an average of eight friends each during the first two weeks.

Execution

Using Facebook to spread the message and BWS as a retail partner, Carlton Dry began offering free beer to the ‘openly’ social target market through non-traditional media channels. As the new product was launched via Facebook – a first in Australia – Facebook users could shout each other a free Carlton Dry Fusion Lemon, by printing off a voucher and redeeming it at BWS.

So, in the blink of an eye, Facebook users began spreading the brand message by shouting their friends free beer. And, to drive the viral aspect, we added a permission-based wall post where the Facebook users were encouraged to publish on their personal wall that they had received a free Carlton Dry Fusion Lemon and they were shouting their friends.

In order to create a critical mass of initial Facebook users, we employed the Social Ad feature of Facebook that displays banner ads on Facebook pages and directs users to the Facebook campaign page when clicked. The banner ad was targeted to 18- to 24-year-old Facebook users and constantly regulated to achieve the best result. After running the campaign for a couple of weeks, we found that Facebook users in the target market are most active on Thursdays and between 10pm and 11pm on any given day. So we used the marketing intelligence gathered through this process to regulate when the banner ad campaign starts and stops within each day. We were able to communicate to the bulk of the target market exactly when they were using the social media platform.

The main challenge was to ensure under 18s were not exposed to and could not access any of the content. We built a special system that prevented the campaign content and all viral feeds generated by the campaign activity from being seen by Facebook users under 18.

The second challenge was to ensure we excluded Northern Territory and Northern Queensland residents from the promotion, due to lack of distribution.

Results

In a traditional product launch, samples would have been distributed in several nightclubs using promotional talent. This would have needed vast human resourcing to achieve the desired outcome of creating buzz about the product and getting enough trials. In addition, this would not have benefitted Carlton and United Breweries’ distribution partners and is costed at approximately $300,000.

The product message spread very quickly. The tonality of the creative, while direct, factual and product-centric, was perfectly in sync with the target demographic’s tongue-in-cheek wit. Carlton Dry’s audience responded, spreading the offer to an average of 3.5 friends each during the promotion period, but to an average of eight friends each during the first two weeks.

The clever regulation of banner ad display contributed to 14 million impressions to the target group through just $4500 media spend in six weeks. This did not include the impressions created by each user whenever they performed an activity on the campaign Facebook page. An activity was anything from requesting a free beer to printing a voucher or shouting a mate. The campaign provided 20,000 genuine trials, meaning 20,000 visits to around 600 BWS stores in the relevant catchments.

The campaign was awarded Best Small Budget Campaign ($75,000 and under) and Best Retail Channel Specific by the Australasian Promotional Marketing Association.

“We are always looking for differentiated ways to engage young adult drinkers in Australia. This sampling activity provided us with a chance to be innovative and creative across the entire value chain and the ability to incorporate a key retail partner in this activity was a key to its success,” says Vincent Ruiu, group marketing manager, Carlton Masterbrand.

People upset with the mobile shops

A new study shows that people aren´t very excited about shopping with their smart phones. They might be thrilled about the possibility, willing to giving it a go, but once in the process, it´s not as easy as it may sound... From Mobile Marketing magazine:

"39 per cent of smartphone shoppers are frustrated by the length of the process when buying via their mobile, and 38 per cent are irritated by the amount of information that needs to be entered, according to research just released by payment firm WorldPay. Other frustrations included websites not being mobile phone friendly (31 per cent), acceptance of preferred payment method (17 per cent), and no application being available for a retailer’s website (9 per cent)."

Story found in Brian Giesen´s paper: http://paper.li/bdgiesen/1317030940

So what is the learning for brands?

1. Don´t just do digital to "be digital" and follow a trend. Make sure the functionality is bringing you more business and don´t put people off. It doesn´t matter if you have a website, a twitter account and a mobile shop if those marketing points are of low quality and not respecting the good old psychological rules of marketing.

2. Branding is about the whole process, from product functionality, to service and packaging. How easy it is to pay is definitely rubbing off on your brand.

3. The fact that people get annoyed mean that they have expectations. We want to be able to shop on our phone - of course! And it´s supposed to be made quickly and with no hassle. To not have a shop on the mobile is probably even more annoying than it being complicated.

Play hard - but not impossible - to get if you wish to engage your consumers

I´m reading Dan Ariely´s book "The upside of irrationality" at the moment in which I get reminded about all the studies showing that people who are under huge pressure most likely will fail.

If you are under no pressure at all you´ll be lazy, and íf it´s too much you get all tense and stressed and mess up. The ideal is mid-weight pushing. When you need to focus to win, but still are in the magical space of feeling that you will manage - you have faith - you will succeed and perform your best.

When handling staff this means that you need to keep them alert but not terrified. When entering a relationship it means giving some love but not giving it all away too soon. When marketing it means engaging consumers by asking for something in return but not overloading them with duties. For example, don´t ask dudes to collect codes from 5 cases of beer that they will send it to maybe win a key ring. I´ve heard so many guys get frustrated and arrogant when it comes to silly promotional offers, and I´m super careful of creating promo strategies. Entering a promotional campaign has to be easy, give something valuable and have a graceful after life. Only nerds wear caps with beer brands on. Only desperate people spend hours to enter a competition where they might win something – no matter how huge. Only classy gadgets will be kept around, spreading the message again and again...

I´d love to find out how many entries a normal contest get. Do you know? I see posters everywhere, enticing me with trips to tropical islands or fancy toys – but who enters? Is there statistics around that?

My theory is that brands do the promotional campaigns out of habit. It´s just a part of the marketing mix that you can´t do without and it probably puts the product in the centre for a little while. Don´t spend more time figuring out which prizes to give away than figuring out the psychological mechanisms behind. Be clever!

Or am I wrong? Are the promotional shout-outs carefully crafted? I´m willing to be wowed.  

Messy hair and un-polished nails the new beauty trend - bc busy people don´t have time for manicure! Hah

Trendcentral.com has spotted a "anti beauty" trend... or more like a "anti fake beauty" trend. It´s not "natural beauty" but rather "I don´t f-ing care beauty" where models are sent out on the catwalk in flat hair and plain nails.  

"While the clothing-obsessed can’t get their hands on the statement-making pieces shown during Fashion Week until 2012, there’s no need to wait for spring to indulge in the upcoming season’s beauty trends. With looks so low-key—and in some instances, intentionally unfinished—don’t be surprised if you see them mimicked on the streets well before the winter thaw.

Wet Hot American Spring: While many hair fads have returned for another season—candy-colored tresses, ’60s beehives—one new trend emerged: damp locks. Stylists claimed a range of inspirations (Barbara Bach in The Spy Who Loved Me at BCBG Max Azria, beach babes at Vera Wang, gym rats at Alexander Wang), but the result often looked the same, with hair combed back and coated with enough product to make the models look like they skipped a blow-dry. It wasn’t all just wash-and-go; among the wet-haired rebels were the models at Marc Jacobs, where the Sweet Charity-inspired coifs included shiny wisps poking out from bandanas, and at Helmut Lang, where the knotted ponytails were damp-tipped.

Nude Awakening: Just as faces were left faux-natural, nails were often painted in barely-there nudes and milky beiges. Tommy Hilfiger, Tory Burch, Narciso Rodriguez, and VPL all featured fingertips clear of the nail art, rhinestones, and reverse-manicures that have become recent mainstays. Lacquer brands, such as Rococo Nail Apparel at Burberry, took note, introducing Nude Wardrobe, a series of skin tone-matching polishes. Occasionally, models were sent out polish-free altogether. At Christopher Kane, nail artist Sophy Robson just buffed fingertips, while Band of Outsiders didn’t even bother with a manicurist. Then again, CND’s Candice Manacchio showcased Lucite tips at both Joy Cioci and Joanna Mastroianni for those who can’t bear going so basic."

I see this trend here in Bondi Beach all the time, where the coolest kids run around with roots, messy hair and grungy clothes. They signal "we are so full of life and confidence we don´t need to wear fancy clothes and hair spray". They rock up on their cruisers (bikes) and look like they´ve just woken up and live fully, too busy and social to spend their days shopping and going to manicure. What they are telling us all is that it´s the insecure and boring people who look styled in the traditional way - while those who have passions (sing in a band, create their own t-shirts or just entertain their massive group of REAL friends) don´t have time or need to put on new nail polish. If they wear it, it´s black and falling off.

Of course, the casual style is styled as well... but the message is there. Tone down. Live life. Get off the computer.

 http://www.trendcentral.com/style/pretty-woman/

Edward de Bono and happy thinking - makes you smile

Today I will be watching an interview with Edward de Bono: http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-09-03/one-plus-one---friday-3-september/2248444 (20 min in...)

This is an AMAZING man. So cute, so clever, so quirky. Experiencing him at Cannes Lion was one of those Moments in life when you just... aaaah. The whole room of egos (yeah, you know the adland types :) were quiet, just stunned by this man. Like children.

Kevin Roberts from Saatchi & Saatchi pointed me to the direction of this tv interview (in his blog). He found a few interesting insights:

- At an everyday level, thinking can help to unravel the problems that make us miserable – become better thinkers and we’ll be happier people.

- Teaching creative thinking puts wayward young people on the right track (de Bono cites the outcomes 20 years after a UK school started teaching his approach to thinking) and reduces recidivism rates when taught in prisons. Happy thinkers are less likely to turn to crime.

So what is a "better thinker"? A "happy thinker?

In coaching, one of the greatest tools we use to put people on the right track, is "re-thinking". Many of us are unhappy because we focus our energy and mind space on the wrong parts of life; we dwell on disasters, pain, trouble and ugliness instead of all the blessings that are around us. We see what needs to be fixed more often than what´s working, and this fills the head up with more darkness than light - leaving us unhappy. Our job as coaches is to talk about what you wish to have, instead of what you´re missing, and about what you love instead of what you hate. Dwell on the fantasies and dreams and you´ll get a better future!

We also tend to think that we will be happy "when..." - when something happens to us, like getting the job, the boyfriend, a holiday - instead of seeking joy in NOW. This video explains:



Another blog post about de Bono: Why ad people sounds stupid: http://howwemove.blogspot.com/2011/06/why-ad-people-sound-stupid-and-edward.html