The Reason: A marketers guide to engaging cliques

Schemas – Getting noticed in a crowded marketplace

I was talking about different ways to break through the clutter in a crowded marketplace this week in my marketing class.  I brought up the idea of schema disruption.  Quick background – schema theory was developed in the psychology realm and it focuses on how we structure information to organize knowledge and make assumptions.  Schemas are how we see the world.  A good example of this is stereotypes or expectations of social roles.  There are a bunch of images that come to your head when I say "parents of twins."  The usual response I get when I tell folks my twins are six months is – “your wife must be so tired.”  Not a fair response to dad, but this is a schema. Got it. Good.

 

Let’s look at an example from hip hop culture.  Back in the late 90s, the rap industry was cluttered. It was tough for new artists to break through and get noticed.  One of the few viable ways to get noticed was via a major label deal, which led to radio play, write-ups in hip hop magazines, and appearances on BET and MTV.  Then there was the underground circuit where you could get put on by mix tape DJ’s.  But, even that was becoming cluttered and it was tough for artists to stick out via that marketing channel.  The schema for the hip hop audience at the time was - rappers were tough and arbiters of cool.  50 Cent disrupted this schema by releasing a song called “How to Rob?,” where 50 detailed how he would rob notable hip hop celebrities.  The Reason “How to Rob” garnered massive amounts of attention was because it disrupted the schema of rappers being tough since there were no tangible repercussions from all the tough guys. His buzz was also kept alive because the song elicited responses from rappers mentioned in the song. It's free marketing when someone else is mentioning your name. 

 

So, one of the ways to gain attention for your brand in a crowded marketplace is to understand which schemas are relevant for your brand to disrupt.  It’s important to note that disrupting schemas does not change behavior, it just gets you noticed i.e. the "Initial Encounter" in Reason-speak. After you get noticed, you just need to make sure that first impresson is good enough to get you to a first date.

Competitive Strategy Insight from Mike Tyson

When on-boarding new clients, I apply two frameworks –  3C’s (Customer, Company, Competition) and The Reasoning.  The 3C’s helps me gain a better understanding of how clients see themselves, the competition, and their target audience.  The Reasoning, my framework,  ensures clients are delivering relevant messages at the right place and at the right time.  I pretty much have these frameworks down.  So, imagine my surprise last week when I was watching Oprah and Mike Tyson gave me a new way of looking at the 3rd C -- competition. Okay, let me stop there for a second.  For those that don’t know, I’m on paternity leave i.e. I find myself watching my fair share of daytime TV.  Back to business lessons from Iron Mike.

 

Tyson told Oprah he would watch videos of his opponents and ask his trainer– “How do I beat him?” Think about that for a second… “How do I beat him?”  If you’re a new entrant or a brand with limited market share, this is the single most important question you must answer.  The Reason -- It’s a liberating question because it helps you think outside the box.  This might be a leap, but I think this question forces you to look at the value chain for your industry i.e. how and why does your industry deliver value to your customer.   Once you look at all those pieces of the value chain separately, you begin seeing how your brand can beat its competition.  In other words, you can differentiate your brand from the competition.

 

Want to be competitive in your industry, answer the following questions:

1. Who is your competitor?  And, how will you beat him?
2. How will you apply The Reasoning to communicate your value proposition... btw, I can help you with this one

Pepsi We Inspire

Pepsi recently launched a digital community for African American women – PepsiWeInspire.com.  My first impression - smart move Pepsi.  The Reason –brands need to start having real conversations with customers instead of relying on media companies to piecemeal access to their target audience. 

 

Ok, let’s move past my first impression.  This site is all about Pepsi serving as a platform to connect African American women with inspirational stories.  Like my wife and I say to our kids when they’re crying with no tears… “we don’t believe you.”  And, neither will your target audience.  The story is just not believable.  Let me explain… the story you're communicating to your audience goes something like this – we’re developing an online space with celebrity endorsements to inspire you. 

 

Let me offer a voice of reason.  The story should go something like this… Pepsi signs a joint venture deal with [blackmomsclub.com, mommytoomag, or any of the other websites started by and for African American women] to further their mission of providing uplifting stories to African American women.  See how that sounds.  It’s an inspirational story.  The investment shows just that… you’re invested in the comunity.  And, your resources in tandem with one of these entrepreneurs will allow you to achieve your objectives  -- RELEVANT access to and believable connections with a database of users for targeted communications.

What Works?

What combination of your marketing activities increases the likelihood of a purchase? With more ways to reach customers and less money to do so, marketers must have insight into what impacts their customers.  Here’s one way to find out what works – create a Persona… a detailed description of your ideal customer.  Gather together your research and bring it to life by creating a narrative describing your ideal customer and how he interacts with your brand.

 

Here’s an excerpt from a persona The Reason built, sans narrative.

-Name: Paul

-Age: 21

-Occupation: Film student at NYU

-Operates a t-shirt line on the side

-Connected with every college DJ in town via myspace, facebook and sms

-Seen as the fun guy by his peers

 

The Reason I like Personas -- focuses you on what works for your customer while allowing you to throw the other stuff out i.e. you can be more precise when making budget cuts.  

What happens if you do nothing?

With budgets dwindling and innovation falling by the wayside, stop and think about what happens to your brand if you do nothing? 

I completely understand the need to reduce spending, but my fear is that doing nothing may leave customers feeling undervalued or neglected.  Not a risk you should be willing to take in this market – a market characterized by declining consumer confidence and rising consumer distrust and cynicism.   Brands need to give customers Reason to value your relationship.  Going back to The Reason’s dating analogy for marketing – if you’re not wooing your customer and earning their trust, you can bet someone else is.

I know what you're thinking... "I just don't have the budget."  I get it.  It’s obviously tough these days, but the key is to make sure every penny spent makes an Impact.  This, of course, relies on the credibility of your brand’s Insight into consumers’ lives.  Only when Insight is properly tapped and applied can you develop marketing strategies and initiatives (Ideas) that will yield the optimized ROI – stretching that dollar for the greatest Impact.  Furthermore, you should be committed to regularly measuring your Impact… and ready to tweak your initiatives based on evolving consumer Insight.

These are tough, tough times. As analogous as marketing may be to dating, you can't let emotions guide your decisions...  you gotta be Reason-able.

NAACP

The NAACP’s brand is simple and to the point - it is a civil rights organization. As the NAACP celebrated its 100-year anniversary last week, it seemed like mission accomplished as Pres. Obama, the first black president, served as keynote for the celebration.  As I listened to Pres. Obama, I wondered how tough it was for a civil rights organization to communicate its value proposition to a younger generation that doesn't see the same civil rights struggles.

Quick history… the NAACP was at its height in the 50s and 60s after the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Brown v. Board of Education case desegregated schools.  That's when the NAACP’s value was apparent – the issues they sought to resolve were evident and their impact was tangible.  Recently, the NAACP has expanded its mission to include social inequities ranging from racial profiling to the genocide in Darfur.  So, back to the value prop discussion – I think the challenge for the NAACP moving forward is ensuring their brand still delivers value.  Quite honestly, nowadays most people don't know when the NAACP has done a good job or is doing its job… how do we measure the NAACP's impact? What metrics are relevant?

NAACP needs to give Reason to their relevance:

1. Partner with BET or TV One. Fulfill an unmet need in the black community by creating a quality news program from an African-American point of view. Brand it NAACP News and update us on issues of importance to the black community and show us how you're helping to solve those issues – proceed to Step 2. 
2. Angel Investors.  Become angel investors to both nonprofit and for profit ventures in local communities.  Leverage your political clout to secure funds and disperse those funds in the community.  Then show us how you’re helping to solve our community’s issues (see Step 1) – Use metrics to tell us how you've helped local nonprofits find x mentors in different cities; how you've looked after x amount of children by investing in after-school programs; and how you've generated x number of jobs in the community by investing in minority-owned businesses.

Lessons from Eddie Murphy

Flipping through channels this weekend, I caught the tail-end of Dr. Dolittle, which was followed by Dr. Dolittle 2.  My wife joked that she couldn't believe this was the same dude that did Raw and Delirious.  Most husbands would say, “I know,”  and laugh it off. Not me, instead I found myself applying a little Reasoning … thinking how Eddie was the perfect case study on brand management for generational marketers.

Here's why... generational marketers are always faced with a strategic decision -- Do you grow and/or evolve with your consumers or do you stay with the same segment and wait for the next crop of consumers to grow into your segment?  Teen marketers are faced with this question all the time.  Eddie chose to grow up with his customer... realizing the same person watching his raunchy stand-up comedy would inevitably have a family and therefore need more family-friendly entertainment.

The questions for brand managers focused on Gen Y, X, tweens, etc. is: What do we do when our customers’ preferences and rituals change?  The Eddie Murphy playbook says to think about creative ways to extend your brand into platforms and channels that make sense as they grow up.   Case in point, I thought Hasbro parted ways with me back in elementary.  Nope, they showed back up in my life in '07 by extending their Transformers property into entertainment.

How can your brand be extended as customer rituals change and evolve?  Let's talk and we can take a look at The Reason’s playbook.

Billing meet Customer Service

Recently overpaid a bill.  Believe me, that doesn't happen too often.  The company sends back my check with a note essentially saying please send the correct amount and do it quick or else your payment will be late.  Really! Was that really the correct response?

A little Reason for you…  First, your billing should be interacting with customer service.  When this happens, you tend to move the focus away from your archaic billing systems and place the focus on creating pleasant customer experiences.  You've already made the sale, there's no reason to mess up now.  Second, pick up the phone ask the following questions:

1. Do you want a check for the difference?, or
2. Do you want to apply the credit to your future balance? 

That would have made me happy.  This isn't about going above and beyond, it's just remembering that all touchpoints should accommodate the customer and not organizational functions. 

Going above and beyond

You ever go some places expecting poor customer service?  Like Walmart, the DMV, or any government office, for that matter. After this morning, I’d add tow truck companies to that list. I had given someone a ride to pick up his car at a tow truck company’s impound yard and the experience definitely had me applying a little Reasoning …

Think Price Discrimination – not as bad as it might sound, it simply means charging different prices to different buyers. More importantly, it means you need to make sure you understand your customers; what they value and what they are willing to pay for that value.  In the case of the tow truck company, since your customer expects you not to have good customer service and assumes they will pay a lot for very little (read: getting screwed); you have a perfect opportunity for incremental revenue. Why not charge a premium to offer convenience and a customer-focused experience? Offer delivery of vehicle to the customer.  For the DMV, offer after-hours service with premier pricing.  Key to success is to position this approach as premier-level service vs. fee gouging. Could be tricky, but well worth the additional income … again, just make sure you know your consumer and how to create what they perceive as premium value.

 

Need some insight and ideas … give me a shout.

Reckitt Benckiser

According to Ad Age, Reckitt Benckiser has an identity problem.  If you’re reading this and thinking “Reckitt Who?” you’re probably not alone.  But, you have likely heard of many of the brands in their portfolio, such as French’s Mustard, Airwick, Lysol, Clearasil, to name a few. 

So, why does RB care if consumers don’t know their corporate brand?  And more importantly, why are they willing to spend precious marketing dollars to address this “problem”? This is known affectionately as ego-tripping.  Consumers don’t buy packaged goods because of the parent company. How often do you hear about consumer loyalty to P&G or Unilever? But, because of their perceived differentiated benefits, we all know about loyalty to product brands like Tide, Colgate, and Dettol(especially for my West Indian brethren).

A little Reason for you, RB -- instead of spending budget on increasing awareness of the parent company; seek out ways to deepen your relationship with consumers.  Focus your efforts and dollars on making sure your brands stay relevant and a part of their lives. Want specifics? I have some ideas… give me a shout.