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.

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.

“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?

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