Last
modified April
22, 2008
Persuasive
Marketing
Part 1
Remember
your parents' or grandparents' response when you begged
for that one “perfect” baseball bat, pair of
hip shoes or cool sweater that you HAD to have? You asserted, “I
HAVE to have that!” They responded with, “You
don’t have to have it, you want it.” Does that
conversation seem familiar? What a lesson in persuasive
marketing! We can all think of a time when marketing created
an urgency of need rather than want by tapping into our
emotions.
Effective
marketing is ultimately, persuasive marketing. Marketers
want to gain your trust, provide you with important information
and evoke emotion that motivates you to purchase. The following
is the foundation of a marketing program that persuades
potential customers to purchase your products or services:
Establish
Credibility
The source of information must be above all, credible. Straight forward and
clear information from reliable sources establishes credibility and helps
readers to believe the marketing message.
Credibility
of the source of information is key for persuasive marketing
to be successful.
Create
Effective Content and Message
The message is based on a positioning statement, planned strategy and evidence
to support the message. This is the traditional approach used for marketing
writing and communications. The message content and information address the
cerebral cortex of the brain to persuade.
A
good marketing message provides persuasive data which
allows readers to analyze and compare information. Readers
usually then determine some decisions or perception (about
the product or service), while storing the information.
Appeal
to Emotions
Whether it is cultural, psychological, sociological, economical or historical,
persuasive marketing must stimulate psychological associations for potential
customers. When someone’s emotion is piqued, you have their attention.
In the world of marketing, emotions are many times the final decision maker
and thus rule purchases.
In
order to appeal to a potential customer’s emotion,
the marketing message must click with the customer and
allow them to create positive associations with your
product or service.
This
article will be continued in the next edition of the marketing
minute, same marketing time, same public relations channel.
\Stay STRONG in
a Weak Market
News
of economic stress has flowed throughout the media yet
dare we say the “R” word? Well, it is well
known that the business world is carefully watching economics
and key trends worldwide. Marketers take note…don’t
turn a blind eye…now is the time to stay STRONG!
One
person cannot change the economic conditions of the entire
world, state, or even a city. But one person can control
his or her response to negative economic trends. What can
be perceived by many as a time to cut back, an economic
downturn can be the perfect time to make a big impact.
Marketing
can make a fantastic impact during uncertain times…the
key is to keep marketing strong. Contrary to instinct perhaps
to “cut” programs, this is the best time to
move forward with well planned and purposeful marketing
strategies. It is essential to be smart with your marketing
dollars and use them to make an impact.
Keep
your marketing (and sales) strong for the long haul during
unsure times with the following tips:
Strategize
and plan marketing carefully.
Take
the time to assess the market and be aware of trends.
Changes in consumer spending can be just that.. shifts…not
all spending stops. What do consumers want? Provide what
your customers will buy….follow trends. If people
are spending less each time they shop, perhaps repackaging
your product in smaller quantities may be helpful for
customers. Now is the time to LISTEN to your customers
and RESPOND.
Resist
the temptation to discount prices unless it is a well
thought out strategy designed to drive traffic for a
specific event or promotion. Deep discounting is one
marketing strategy that can result in a death spiral
for business.
Offer
something new and different. Appeal to your customer
by providing what they want or need. For example, when
fuel is expensive consumers will most likely look for
fuel-efficient economy cars or when the housing market
is falling, consumers may be more inclined to look for
ways to fix their homes rather than buy new ones. Or,
consider the 1980’s when airlines created miles-based
incentives for travel that changed the industry.
No
budget cut backs for marketing! Economic slow downs are
not the time for a company to stop their marketing or
advertising efforts! If a business does not continue
with strong marketing, how will they survive the difficult
times? How will new customers find them? Customers need
to be assured you are the best choice and are in business
for the long haul– no matter the economic conditions.
Go
for it! A downturn is a great time to take advantage
of decreased “noise” or less advertising.
Stand out during this time when other less savvy businesses
make a knee-jerk reaction and cut back their advertising
and marketing. You may get a bigger bang for your buck
and get noticed when competition softens.
History
reveals that for marketers who dug in and properly strategized,
success was their reward. Now is the time to create a
stronger future for your business. During the 1980-82
recession CNN and MTV were founded.
Will
your marketing be STRONG?
Are you ready to succeed?
It
May Not Be So Easy To Be “Green”
Fears
of global warming, increased pollution tainting the earth’s
resources and a growing number of environmental issues
are capturing the attention of the world.
Mintel,
a market research company reported that approximately 12%
of the U.S. population can be identified as “True
Greens,” or consumers who search for and consistently
purchase green products. An additional 68% of the population
could be considered “Light Greens,” consumers
who buy green product some of the time. Mintel’s
study results reveal environmentally-conscious consumers.
There may be opportunities for marketers to create touch
points with their potential customers and ultimately increase
their bottom line by utilizing green marketing, if planned
correctly.
Green
marketing is a hot trend that is expected to grow as awareness
of and concern for environmental issues escalate. Unfortunately
there are a number of issues marketers must be aware of
prior to embarking on a full-throttle green marketing campaign.
Just as with all endeavors, a bit of research will help
marketers decide if, how, or even when a green marketing
strategy is right for their company.
According
to the American
Marketing Association, green marketing, also known
as ecological marketing or environmental marketing, is
the marketing of products that are presumed to be environmentally
safe, or that improve, or at least minimize negative effects
on the physical environment. This type of marketing could
impact the way in which a product is packaged, processed,
modified or advertised. Determining an exact definition
of green marketing is not a simple task; currently there
are varying social, environmental and retail definitions
attached to this term.
Companies
must avoid “greenwashing,” a marketing technique
in which a company claims environmental responsibility,
yet has little actually accomplished. Organizations that
claim to be green without truly implementing their commitment
to the environment will be mistrusted.
This
lack of agreement amongst marketers, regulators, environmental
activists and others regarding regulations and interpretations
of the current Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rulings on
the marketing green products is of great concern. In fact,
the FTC recently issued warnings to companies taking liberty
with environmental-friendly claims in advertising without
making a positive environmental impact.
To
add to the uncertainty, green consumers are becoming more
confused about what actually qualifies a company or product
to be considered environmentally friendly. Public skepticism
about companies claiming to be environmentally friendly,
and especially skepticism within the niche target market
consisting of consumers most interested in environmental
issues, must be addressed.
A
perfect storm is brewing for marketers to create a marketing
fiasco for their companies if they do not do their homework.
The merging of increased public expectations for companies
to be green, and a lack of agreement regarding green marketing
standards by consumers, corporations and marketing professionals
make it imperative for more businesses to learn about and
understand green marketing. The first step may be in expressing
an interest and providing links for consumers to learn
more. An honest and well-planned effort with input from
consumers may provide an even stronger environmental marketing
program that benefits the earth and the bottom line.
Market
Your Message
“Information
overload” sounds all too familiar in our society.
In fact, Basex, a business research firm, has projected
that information overload will be the “problem of
the year” in 2008. Basex studies office workers and
professionals and specifically how their work is accomplished
with technology, and has concluded that this particular
problem will compromise American productivity up to $650
billion in unnecessary interruptions.
From
multiple forms of communications being used simultaneously,
to different views on one topic getting sent instantaneously
to a single consumer, the information bombardment competes
to grab the attention of your target market too. In fact,
sitting at a computer for even an hour can be overwhelming
with a number of messages being transmitted in a matter
of minutes.
According
to an article from the New York Times Technology page entitled, “Bits,”* the
lost productivity is due to workers grappling with the
growing tide of e-mail, instant messages, cell phone calls,
wikis, blogs and the like.”
As humans
we see the stress in this overload, yet as marketers we
must be aware of the competition. Marketing experts know
the fierce rivalry to get the market’s attention.
Standing out amongst the clutter of messages is getting
more challenging than ever.
It is
imperative for marketers to be selective in creating their
marketing messages. Create a message that gets attention
and stands out from the information clutter. Sounds simple,
but how?
Yes, there are many contributing factors to creating a break away message,
but the following are a few basic ideas to help create a break away targeted
piece of information.
Create
a message that evokes emotion (humor, amazement, etc).
Relate to your target market on a human level.
Offer
a valuable discount.
Include
worthwhile and relevant information to your target market.
Provide an incentive for readers to forward your message.
Clearly
state a call to action. Even if the sales process for
your product or service is lengthy, provide a call to
action that starts the process, such as visiting your
company web site.
Support
your call to action visually.
Offer
premium services or special offers to the message recipient.
Make
your message visually appealing. Make it pop and stand
out. It may be simply using more white space than any
other message.
Standing
out from this information overload to net your target market’s
attention is the first step. Getting and keeping their
business is next.
*Steve
Lohr. (December 20, 2007). Is Information Overload a $650
Billion Drag on the Economy?
