Facts or Stories?

Facts or Stories?

by | Jul 13, 2020 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo Sales Tips, Sound ADvice, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo

Is Advertising Rocket Science? 

You’ve heard the expression, “It’s not rocket science”, but when it comes to advertising is science a good thing or a bad thing? 

The word “Science” comes from the Latin word “Scientia” which means knowledge. 

If advertising was a science, you then would need to assume that you could sell your products or services by simply explaining the facts, figures, and specific evidence as to why your product or service was a better choice than your competitors’.

The truth is, nearly all purchasing decisions are made based on emotion, not logic or science. Note: Although few, there are exceptions to this rule.

In the 1980s, Apple’s advertising tried to persuade IT execs and big companies to switch to Macs by promoting and selling with facts and studies that proved the Mac was easier and less expensive to support. They failed. 

Apple turned the corner when they began to use the stories and testimonials from passionate IT “customers-turned-evangelists” to tell their stories of why they had switched to Apple.          

Humans are funny creatures. Our purchasing decisions are largely based on emotion and only rationalized with knowledge. Stubborn consumers who have preconceived notions about you or your competitors will ignore facts that are counter to their heartfelt beliefs and will seek facts that support their beliefs to justify their purchases.

Having one human tell others about the emotional experience of a certain product or company is far more powerful than stating facts! Humans respond positively to stories or testimonials from their peers who once felt the same as they do. 

Changing human minds is never an easy task. Over time, with a series of true and relevant testimonials from real customers, the perceptions non-customers have about your business can change, turning skeptics into loyal followers and even evangelists.

To receive the 14 Step Guide to Testimonial Advertising, click here and start converting non-believers into customers for your business.

And to get more Sound ADvice insight like this delivered to your inbox Wednesday mornings, fill out the Sound ADvice box below.

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Preachers, Teachers and Advertisers

Preachers, Teachers and Advertisers

by | Jun 30, 2020 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, Sound ADvice

Preachers, Teachers, and Advertising

The goal of every preacher, teacher, and advertiser is to grab the attention of the person they are speaking to and make sure that they not only hear the message but also understand and retain the message.

So, what can preachers and teachers teach advertisers about advertising? The answer is a lot if you pay attention to the formula preachers and teachers use to get the message across and make it stick!

Going back to the very early 1900s, though not taking credit for it, religious figure J. H. Jowett explained the process of preparing sermons, speaking to the crowd, and how to make sure the lesson was not only taught but understood. He said the three-part formula to help prepare sermons so the layperson could understand was this:

1. Tell them what you are going to tell them

2. Then tell them

3. Then tell them what you told them

Modern-day teachers have been taught and still use this same method. They know that if their students do not get the message in this fashion, three times in a seven-day window, they won’t retain what they’ve learned, and they’ll probably fail the test.

Research has proven that your advertising must follow a similar formula. If you want your customers and prospects to retain and remember your advertising message, they must hear your message three times in any given seven-day window. In advertising, this formula is known as a “frequency of three” and it’s one of the 6 Steps to Ads That Stick.

If you think about it, advertising really is a little bit of preaching and a little bit of teaching! Use this formula and your ads will have a better chance of sticking in the listener’s mind.

Click here to read the rest of the 6 Steps to Ads That Stick and make your ads stick in the minds of your prospects.
 
While this is generally true, and it’s a formula I have stuck with for years, when I joined WOWO radio in 2013, I discovered another factor in creating memorable advertising that has a real impact.  It has to do with some of the uniqueness of WOWO that I’ll share with you next time.
By the way, this weeks article is part of my weekly Sound ADvice business and marketing email newsletter than you can get free of charge when you fill out the box below.
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More Than Price

More Than Price

by | Jun 2, 2020 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, Sound ADvice, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo

Breaking the Tie

Being different is sometimes all that is needed to break the tie.

In a retail world that’s changing faster than the speed of sound, it continues to be more difficult to stand out among the crowd. Regardless if you own a retail store or you have a business in a service or professional category, it’s imperative that you have a clear and compelling reason for consumers to choose you over your competitors. 

At this very moment, people have a need or a want to buy the products or services you sell. Their next decision is the all-important one. Where will they choose to buy and why?

First, let’s be honest.  For a certain percentage of people, price is all that matters, and you may or may not even be in the conversation.  But when price isn’t the only criteria, that’s when you have a shot.  Will it come down to a relationship, an emotional connection created from strong advertising, or a past experience, good or bad?

If you can’t compete on price, what platform or strategy can you compete on?

The key is getting people to know you and your business and know about your business BEFORE they need the products or services you sell.

Developing your tiebreaker, a consistent business strategy you can use to differentiate your business in your advertising and marketing, can be a challenging task but well worth the effort. 

Once you’ve clearly established your competitive difference (strategy), your challenge is to develop a unique and memorable way to consistently highlight that competitive tiebreaker.

If you would like help in creating your unique difference, click here to receive Ten Tiebreaking Strategies as thought-starters for this important exercise. If you would like additional help, contact me. 

What I just shared with you is from my Sound Advice Business and Marketing Tips newsletter that you can receive free in your email in-box nearly every Wednesday.  Just fill out the Sound Advice box below.

 

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Consumers Crave Open & Honest Relationships

Consumers Crave Open & Honest Relationships

by | May 19, 2020 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo

Last month I was cleaning out my email inbox and found an article from 2018 from Mediapost that I had been saving for the future.

Today is the future.

As much as things have changed this year, I’m sure you’ll agree that somethings have changed very little.

The Mediapost story is titled Boomers Crave Open, Honest Marketing and when I first read the story, I thought, not just Baby Boomers, but everyone craves honesty in the advertising and marketing they are exposed to.

First, let me share some quotes from this 2018 article:

Target. Equifax. Cambridge Analytica. Our system of voting.
It seems every day a new report comes out explaining how a major company has failed to protect our personal data or attempted to monetize it in an exploitative way.

While senior users make up only a fraction of all internet traffic, they are very concerned about their privacy. A 2017 poll by AARP found that 78% cite privacy as a major concern, while 84% fear having their personal information hacked or stolen. The boomer market is fearful about information security.

In recent weeks, the concerns about internet security have hit people of all ages.  The video conferencing company Zoom was discovered to have lax security measures and yes there have been multiple more companies that have had data breaches over the past couple of years.

Healthcare providers and financial corporations are moving away from person-centered customer interactions, automating as much as possible to save money.  In reaction to this trend, we find many boomers and seniors attempting to eschew digital interactions because it makes them feel safer. With the news blaring the pitfalls of Facebook, online credit scams, and major privacy concerns, it’s no wonder that this is a trend. But the modern world makes it hard for boomers to escape the clutches of marketers.

Nearly every boomer and senior has adopted the ubiquitous “membership card” for local grocers and other stores. Maybe they’ve even signed up for emails about upcoming deals. After all, who doesn’t love a sale?

Yet each of these contacts provides a way for a retailer to collect data about consumer preferences and interactions. Even the simple act of having a Facebook account causes this to happen.

The Covid-19 pandemic and stay-at-home orders really made it impossible for everyone to avoid the web.  So what is the solution to give all consumers, not just Baby Boomers and Seniors, what they really want, which is open and honest relationships with the companies they do business with?

In a word, Transparency.

Here’s my challenge to you.

What can you do to over communicate the stuff that your customers might feel uneasy about?

If you are a service business, how about upfront price guarantees?

If you sell online, how about a big bold message that states how you will use or not use your customers information?

If you say, you do this stuff already, is it buried in a bunch of fine print or legal terms and conditions that no one reads anyway?

Change it.

We want to trust you.  Give us open and honest communication and transparency and in return we’ll give you our money.

Signed, the consumers of the world.

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The Timeless Truths in Marketing

The Timeless Truths in Marketing

by | Apr 28, 2020 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard

2020 is not the year we were expecting when we were making our resolutions a few months ago is it?

State after state has issued some form of stay-at-home order to protect their citizens from Covid-19.

While I just stated the obvious, I’m going to delve into the not so obvious.

The advertising and marketing principles that are timeless.

Some of you are wondering what to do with your ads.

Should I switch to a different medium?

Should I change up my message?

Should I just stop and wait until things return to normal?

Let’s take those three questions one at a time.

Should I switch to a different advertising medium?  If you are doing online marketing and it was working for you before then the answer is probably no, if it is working, continue.  If you were using billboards there are less cars on the roads so you are probably getting less viewers than you were promised.

Speaking of viewers, has TV viewing skyrocketed with everyone staying at home?  Yes, a month ago, at the end of March, both broadcast, over the air and cable viewing jumped 30%.  But then something else happened too that is still going on.  The TV series that were still in production for this season had to end their seasons early because the virus shut down the studios.  The real benefactor of all this extra screen time has been the streaming services like NetFlix and their competitors with little or no advertising.  That doesn’t help you out as an advertiser does it…

I will tell you that with the insider knowledge and data that I have access to, radio listenership is actually up.  Stations like mine, WOWO radio with their news and talk format have seen tremendous increases and a big portion of that increase is coming from the smart speakers we all got the past couple of years.  Alexa is becoming radio’s best friend.  Contact me and I can share with you the specifics on the increased listenership to WOWO radio and how we can get your business in front of thousands of consumers every week.

The next question is, Should I change up my message?  Probably but not in the way you are thinking.  If you think your ads need to say that your business has instituted safety measures, or you are now cleaning more than before, you are just like all the others advertising right now.  That is if it’s your main message.  You need a stronger message, one that tells consumers why they should give you their money and not give it to your competitor.

Here’s the Timeless Truth in Marketing that is really important right now. You need to follow Human Relationship Principles in your advertising.

Human Relationship Principles are the principles that we instinctively are drawn to because we are human.  We want to feel good about others, to trust others, to believe that the others are going to be honest and have a good heart.  Does your advertising and marketing reflect this type of message?  Or are your ads filled with gimmicks and cliches?

Four years ago I wrote about Human Relationship Principles in Marketing and I invite you to follow this link and read it again.  It’s timeless.

Now the last question. Should I just stop advertising and wait until things return to normal?  The answer is a qualified no. If you can afford to, keep advertising.  Many companies will stop.  This means your share of voice will increase, if you continue.  Here’s an example:  Six restaurants are all advertising and dividing up the audience 6 ways in proportion to the number of ads each place is airing.  What if 3 of those stop advertising?  Now instead of dividing the audience 6 ways, you are only carving it up into 3 and everyone who is still inviting listeners to eat their food, will win.  Meanwhile the ones that stopped advertising, have a good chance of going out of business since they stopped inviting people to spend their money with them.

These Timeless Truths about Marketing have been around not just for a few years or even decades.  They are centuries old and will be even more important as we adjust to what the rest of 2020 and this decade has in store for our way of life.

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