Take Aim at Your Audience
December 18, 2008 by OA Group · Leave a Comment
A phrase I hear countless companies say in regard to advertising is, “I know I am wasting half of my marketing budget, the problem is that I don’t know which half!” This is a common dilemma that is directly related to where, when and how you are distributing your brand.
A research report was just released by Advertising Age that revealed that the automotive industry would be much better served by transitioning away from television towards radio. This case study is key in understanding domain expertise. If automakers migrate away from television to radio they could be able to dramatically cut their collective marketing budgets while still hitting their target audience; thus increasing their advertising ROI.
If you feel that your marketing dollars are being wasted on the wrong mediums, don’t get frustrated… GET FOCUSED!
The Right Way to Make Your Brand Disruptive
December 8, 2008 by OA Group · Leave a Comment
The most common question I’m asked by clients is: where should I be marketing my business to drive results? The funny thing is that the answer is never the same for that particular question. Your tactical advertising plan needs to be in line with your product strong suits. A good rule of thumb is:
If your advertisements are annoying to their audience, they are being distributed on the wrong medium.
For example, if you are running social networking ads that constantly get complaints, you probably shouldn’t be placing your banner ads on sites like Facebook or Myspace. Every business has its sweet spot, the key is being able to recognize how to become ‘disruptive’ without becoming annoying.
Let’s compare two ‘disruptive’ advertising mechanisms: Product Samples vs. Internet Pop Ups. Both of these marketing tools ‘disrupt’ the user experience, the key difference is that giving away product samples help to establish brand loyalty while pop up ads simply annoy viewers and many times drive them to competing companies.
Every business sector has a specific medium in which their advertisements should be placed, below are some of the best pairings I’ve witnessed with clients:
- Car Dealerships – Newspaper and TV
- Legal Counsel – Yellowpages
- Consumer Electronics – Search Engine Marketing
- Movie Studios – Online Video Pre-Roll Commercials
- Business to Business Enterprises – Blogging
So remember to keep on disrupting your audience (it’s the only way to get their attention), however make sure that you are building strong and positive relationships with consumers as opposed to simply throwing an ad in front of their face.
Become Different
November 6, 2008 by OA Group · Leave a Comment
If you are in the advertising industry, the past few years have offered some great examples of effective branding. I’m talking, of course, about the presidential election and the lessons it has taught the marketing sector. Regardless your political viewpoint, the race between President-elect Obama and Senator Mccain has been a prime illustration of how to establish market dominance. Let’s look back at the race the same way we would review a client case study.
The Problem
A new market participant (Obama) was looking to enter a industry (presidency) that no other peer (African American) has been successful in (winning).
Solution
Develop a hyper-focused marketing message, offering a solution to a wide range of audiences. The message will be distributed with a multi-platform approach, including: TV, Internet, Social Media, PR, ‘Guerilla’ marketing, along with several other mediums.
Result
Ubiquitous brand awareness and expert positioning, resulting in making history.
In reviewing the marketing campaign, one key component stuck out to me:
Obama never wavered in his message of ‘change’. While Mccain altered the focus of his campaign several times, resulting in a lackluster apeal to the nation. If you are looking to establish consumer awareness for your brand it is vital that you stay consistent with your message.
In case you doubt this hypothesis, look at the following phrases:
- Just Do It
- The Ultimate Driving Machine
- I’m Lovin’ It
I didn’t have to say: Nike, BMW, and McDonalds; because the simple mention of their slogans (message) conjured not only their names, but also the way you feel about the company. This is the way it works in my mind:
Just Do It > Nike > Athleticism
Ultimate Driving Machine > BMW > Luxury & Performance
I’m Lovin’ It > McDonalds > Fast Food
How have these brands implanted these pavlovian responses in my mind?They have ‘pushed’ their message to me across a variety of mediums for decades, and this is the key: they have never wavered from the message.
Traditional vs. Digital
October 28, 2008 by OA Group · 1 Comment
There has been an ongoing debate for the past decade regarding which marketing medium provided advertisers with the best return on investment: traditional vs. digital. Traditional media buying would include: television, radio, newspaper, et al. Digital marketing includes: search engine marketing, banner ads, rich media and the newcomer streaming media. The truth of the matter is that I’ve seen both mechanism generate great and terrible results, it’s my experience that everything boils down to execution ultimately. However I want to briefly discuss each option.
Traditional Media
Traditional marketing has been around for ages and is thus a well established marketing machine. It has been attacked lately with the advent of TiVo and Satellite radio, however it remains a bastion of brand safe advertising distribution. There is very little fraud in traditional media, which enables a fairly worry free environment for clients. With the positives in mind it is also important to understand the drawbacks:
- Archaic analytic reporting;
- High level of risk;
- Lack of control.
- It is cost prohibitive for small businesses.
Digital Marketing
Digital, or online, advertising has been the fastest growing industry in the past decade and has birthed global corporate giants like Google and Yahoo! It addresses many of the negatives of traditional marketing, such as:
- Full analytics reporting, you know exactly when and where your ads have been displayed.
- With performance based campaigns, there is little to no risk at stake.
- You have full control over the campaign.
- Companies of any size can advertise online, due to little to no minimum advertising buys.
It may sound like I am one sided in this debate, and it is true, I believe very strongly in the power of digital marketing; however it is also paramount to remember that the key to a successful marketing campaign is matching the right message to the right audience. Contact us and we can help create a marketing plan that matches your needs.
What’s Your Marketing Risk IQ?
October 23, 2008 by OA Group · 1 Comment
What's Your Marketing Risk IQ?
Marketing is a risk intensive endeavor, there is a wide ranging risk vs. reward matrix which can bring even the most innovative experts to their knees. So why am I telling you this? It’s because I want to describe the OAG marketing mechanisms and illustrate how they each minimize risk while simultaneously maximizing the reward. Below is a basic walk-through of each service:
1. BlogSpur
The BlogSpur service is a multi-faceted social media marketing service produces long term results with minimal risk. The OAG Social Media and Search Engine Specialists dramatically increase a brand’s online web presence through blog postings and social media syndication. The fees are minimal compared to hiring a blogger and the service produces industry leading results.
2. AdSpur
AdSpur is a performance based marketing service. This means there is little to no risk for you as an advertiser. You only pay when you receive an order, lead or visitor.
If you are looking for your company to receive online or offline press exposure, a strong PR push is required. This does have a higher risk compared to the BlogSpur and AdSpur services since the fees are higher and there are no guaranteed results. However the rewards are potentially exponential. Several companies such as Facebook and YouTube built their businesses purely on a solid public relations and press outreach strategy.
In the current economic condition of the nation, it is key to make every penny of your marketing dollar count, so choose wisely and let us help you create a marketing solution that fits your situation.
Movement Marketing
October 1, 2008 by OA Group · Leave a Comment
I walked with my wife and in-laws this weekend at the Susan G. Komen “Walk for the Cure”. After the walk we were ushered into a parking lot lined up with the walk’s sponsors. Fortune 500 companies such as AT&T and Starbucks along with regional companies. I wanted to talk in this post about the difference between embracing a movement compared to simply throwing money to a cause.
The powerhouse regional gym called BodyWorks had created Breast Cancer giveaways along with providing activities for kids and families. Needless to say, their booth was crowded to overflowing. Compare that with Best Buy who had a very large booth with had nothing that was relevant to the event. It doesn’t take a marketing degree to know that BodyWorks made a strong brand impression on a large percentage of the thousands of attendees. And not only did Best Buy not make a positive impression, they most likely damaged their brand’s perception since anyone walking by their booth would see them as a large impersonal company that is simply attempting to “buy” their way into a non-profit event.
This example has illustrated clearly to me the importance of having a clear regional strategy if you are in the retail industry. Best Buy has been getting extremely negative press lately (coverage), and if this weekend was an accurate depiction of their market plan, it’s clear they need to make some changes.
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