Make your creative really work for you...

Say it, say it again, and then say it a few more times.

Posted on July 8, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

Advertising and promotional effectiveness can be dramatically reduced by a failure to observe the simple rule of graphic continuity. What this rule says is your ads, point of sale (POS) materials, etc. will be more effective if you use the same elements/theme long enough to have an impact. A potential customer must see your ad numerous times before he will actually take action on it. During these repeated impressions, he is building familiarity (and comfort) with your product/message.

Action comes after a comfort level is built. People buy brands with which they have a level of trust. Advertising often does not actually sell a product as much as it builds trust in a product. That trust comes from familiarity through seeing repeated advertisements and promotions on a brand. This familiarity through these repeated impressions creates credibility for the product. Increasing the number of impressions should enhance this effect by building on the familiarity, assuming of course the message is appropriate for the target audience and product.

By using the same image or design or theme over and over, you make more impressions on your customer and have a better chance of impacting him in a positive way. The classic modern example of the use of graphic continuity is Absolut Vodka. For years their ads all used the same layout and theme. You knew it was an Absolut ad the moment you saw it, even though they were varied in style. It was the same design and same theme, but the execution varied enough to keep it interesting. Even though they have changed the theme in recent years the policy of continuity remains. They take “sameness” and use it to their great advantage.

Conversely, it is possible to fragment and weaken your impressions when dissimilar or disconnected messages are generated over several promotions or advertisements. Absolut’s advertising would not have been nearly as effective, if they had come out with all new creative periodically. This continuity is what “builds” impressions and makes your promotional dollar stronger and far more effective.

Money is tight and every dollar must count. Make those slim budgets work harder by emphasizing continuity.

Part 2

Tales of the Cocktail

Posted on July 8, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

Today, July 8, 2009, Tales of the Cocktail kicks off. This annual event set in summertime (hot and damp) New Orleans is beginning to draw significant tourist numbers to the city during what is otherwise an off season.

One of our clients, Sazerac Company, Inc, based in New Orleans, plays a major role in the event. This year, among other things, they will announce the re-introduction of a new "old" product. Can't reveal that yet but will be doing so shortly on Twitter (@lanecasteix) as they make the announcement later today.

Herbsaint Absinthe is back.

Posted on July 8, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

At a Tales of the Cocktail event in New Orleans today, Sazerac Company, Inc. announced that Herbsaint Absinthe is coming back.

It took a while to come to fruition, and it isn't all the way there yet, as some packaging elements are still in production, but Herbsaint Absinthe is coming back in its ORIGINAL recipe form.

Yes, I said the "ORIGINAL RECIPE" - from 1936!

It is being presented at Tales of the Cocktail in New Orleans on Saturday July 11 at the Royal Ballroom Salon C or the Hotel Monteleone 12:30pm to 2:00, where sample tasting is available for free.

Unfortunately, final roll-out will not be until the fall, probably October. So, get in line for one of the first bottles.

The new/old Herbsaint Absinthe comes just in time; I am almost out. My wife has been using it in spinach dishes a lot lately, leaving me precious little for my Sazerac Cocktails.

The label is really a new/old version of the original 1936 label. The arrangement of the elements was largely driven by a strong desire to replicate the original package and government ruling as the design went through several submissions for COLA approval before they relented and finally approved it. Other elements are also true to the original package to the extent possible. The old metal screw cap is gone however, in favor of a cork finish - won't miss that!

Anyway, nice to have the original back.

The Future of Advertising

Posted on July 9, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

I wrote about the rise of content marketing a while back. The tempo of the change from interruption marketing to content marketing continues increasing unabated. I came across this article about small businesses taking advantage of digital marketing, specifically content marketing where the message is the entertainment. There are some very good videos in the article that help make the point. Well worth the watch, especially the Post-It Notes ad, which doesn't really even mention the product.

Can money be made using content marketing? You bet, and Dell computers proved it. Once others figure out the formula you will see many more success stories like Dell's.

Those who are early adopters will move into the lead. This is truly a case of "you-snooze-you-looze"! But you had better get it right, because getting it wrong will cost you. Here is an excellent article on wineries and social media. Some get it but many do not. The comments section of this article is where much of the meat of the discussion is taking place, so read it all. You will be rewarded.

And lastly, content marketing is not free or even cheap. Done right it is very expensive in terms of time (labor) spent against a successful execution. Most business owners do not have the understanding to make it work much less the extra hours available that are needed to execute a campaign successfully. It is a commitment of the first order! That means a hire within the company or an digital marketing agency.

Herbsaint Absinthe Tasting at Tales of the Cocktail

Posted on July 13, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

I spent an enjoyable afternoon down in the French Quarter with my bride this past Saturday. The main reason was to visit the Herbsaint Absinthe tasting, which was part of the 2009 Tales of the Cocktail, at the Hotel Monteleone.

We began with lunch at the Acme Oyster House where we had charbroiled oysters and a fried shrimp po-boy. Fantastic way to start an afternoon in the French Quarter!

After lunch we walked over to the Hotel Monteleone for the Herbsaint Absinthe tasting. Monique Bush, the art director on the Herbsaint project, and Keith Maresma, the Herbsaint account executive, joined us there, where we met Kevin Richards, the Herbsaint brand manager.

Since we at SPAR had spent the last several months working on the retro Herbsaint Absinthe package, we were finally getting a chance to taste it! Even though the current Herbsaint recipe, developed after absinthe was banned in the U.S. back in the thirties, is supposed to be a good substitute for the original absinthe recipe, I was sure the original would be different. I was not disappointed.

I have never found fault with the non-absinthe version of Herbsaint, but then I only used it in making Sazerac Cocktails, and my wife uses it a lot in spinach dishes, where it works very well for a kind of faux Oysters Bienville.

My objective was to taste the two side-by-side, which is not an easy task, considering the strong flavor and fairly high proof. One must cleanse the mouth with water between sips.

My first impression before tasting was the nose. The absinthe version of Herbsaint definitely had a more fragrant nose, sweet and a bit flowery. The non-absinthe formula paled by comparison. The bouquet was noticeably weaker.

Next came the taste. I began with the non-absinthe version and found the taste strong and flavorful though not overpowering of liquorish as one might expect. I suspect cutting it with a little spring water and the liquorish-like flavor will come through stronger. The high alcohol content does take a toll on the taste buds and almost overwhelms the flavors of the liqueur.

After a shot of spring water to cleanse the mouth, I sipped the absinthe version. Its richer flavor profile came through immediately. It was obviously the tastier of the two.

I am no absinthe tasting expert but I can tell you which one I preferred and can't wait until Herbsaint Absinthe will be released for sale in October. Besides, I am almost out of my current bottle. Maybe I can prevail on the brand manager for a pre-release sample bottle?

Make your creative really work for you, Part 2

Posted on July 14, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

Part 1

Let’s face it, creative, including art and photography, can be expensive. Get as many miles out of it as you can. Not only does this enhance the effectiveness of your advertising dollar through an increased number of impressions, but it can also reduce the cost of your advertising and promotions.

Use your creative in different applications. This stretches the cost over many more units. You will tire of it loooooonnnnng before your customer will. And it will be effective loooonnnng after you are tired of it, because your customer will not see it nearly as much as you will. He will need to see it about six times before it will make enough of an impression on him to act. Give the creative time to be effective before you dash off and change it.

George Lois, a famous art director in New York, was called to task by one of his clients. “George, it is time to change the creative. It is getting old.” George smiled and replied that the first ad had not yet run. The client had only been seeing numerous layouts and variations on the theme for approval purposes. Sure he was tired of it, but the campaign had not had a chance to make ANY impressions on his customers. Give it a chance to be effective before you change it. When you are getting sick of your ad is about when it is becoming effective with your customers. Changing the creative too soon damages graphic continuity and weakens the effectiveness of your efforts.

You paid for it, get its full benefit.

"You gotta have a concept, man!"

Posted on July 23, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

The person who said that demonstrated a clear understanding of what makes advertising work most effectively,

Effective advertising and design are built around a concept. Anyone can throw together some elements and call it an ad, but it takes a solid concept behind that ad for successful message delivery. Sadly, that is lacking in most advertising and graphic design these days.

What is a concept? It is a theme around which all else is built. You may call it a vision of the brand, what that brand strives to be for its consumers, or more importantly, what the brand ought to be for its customers.

The best concepts often result from a team effort. The most effective team is usually made up of art directors who are capable of verbalizing concepts and copywriters who can visualize graphically. In other words, the art director needs to be able to verbalize what he sees in his head, and the copywriter needs to be able to see with his mind’s eye what he is verbalizing. In advertising this is cross-functional teamwork of the highest order. Such a mentally-connected team can explore many solutions very quickly by bouncing ideas off each other then developing the most promising. The end result is a concept that is truly creative, memorable, builds a brand, and sells product. And isn’t that what advertising is all about?

During the golden age of advertising (1960s and ‘70s), this process reached its peak. Art director / copywriter teams turned conceptualizing into a high art form. The Volkswagen ads of this period epitomized this. With two words, “Think small,” and a simple shot of a Volkswagen with TONS of white space, the creative team at Doyle, Dane, and Burnbach conveyed an incredible amount of information with an economy of words and graphics. “Think small,” said many things to many people, even to those not even remotely interested in buying a Volkswagen. That is effective utilization of a concept!

Today, with all the advances in technology and communications, the brand concept is often driven by the customer. A savvy brand owner or manager is listening to what their customers are saying about their brand and participating in that conversation, not to control or manipulate it, but to learn from them and relate to them.

Without an overarching concept, everything attempted by way of promoting a brand becomes discordant and less effective than it could be. It may be selling, but it isn’t brand building. Customers need to make an emotional connection with the products they use. Without the concept, it is difficult if not impossible to make that connection.

Building Sales is Not the Same as Brand Building

Any increase in sales is good, and when that is accomplished a brand is built. Right?

Posted on July 31, 2009 | Permalink

By Lane Casteix

Sales building is just that – increasing sales. Brand building, on the other hand, is the creation of a brand, including creating its identity, establishing its position in the marketplace, and most importantly, connecting emotionally with its consumer.

Increased sales is really a by-product of that process.

A real “brand” is known and trusted by its loyal customers (has an identity and a position in the marketplace). That loyalty is built on satisfying some emotional need(s) in its customers. At a very minimum that emotional need is a sense of familiarity and comfort with what a customer perceives as a brand with credibility. Faced with a shelf full of brands the consumer is most likely to choose the brand he is connected to emotionally. “That is MY brand.” If there is no emotional connection with any of the brands, the consumer is next most likely to choose a brand he has seen or heard of promoted or advertised somewhere. “That brand is familiar to me and therefore has credibility.” If nothing else, advertising should be able to do that much for a brand. But I believe it takes more than just familiarity to build a brand.

Advertising and promotions build familiarity, and while that may build sales, unless the consumer makes that emotional connection (“That is MY brand.”), then he can easily be lost to any brand that does make an emotional connection. One must never assume that sales building will automatically result in a loyal consumer franchise. If loyalty is built simply on price or special promotions with no underpinning of meeting and satisfying an emotional need, the position is highly vulnerable to anyone who comes into the market with a lower price or with a flashier promotion. If, however, the position is built on satisfying an emotional need, the position is far more secure. Competition must then convince YOUR customer that his product can fill that need better than your product can, and that is a lot harder to do than just selling it for less.

Just about everything we buy says something about us and what we believe. Our cars (or trucks) are an extension of our identity. They say something about who we are and what we believe. And though we are often speaking to others with our purchase, (“I am driving this so he/she will think I am cool, smart, tough, successful, etc.”), we are really mainly concerned with speaking to the one who counts – us (“I am driving this because I think I am cool, smart, tough, successful, etc.”). Car and truck manufacturers are generally quite good at tapping into this primordial need with their marketing and advertising.

Do you use a certain bath soap because it cleans, makes you smell good, and is inexpensive? Lots of soaps clean, make you smell good and are inexpensive, but you chose that one for some reason, and that reason may not even be clearly understood by you. You bought it because of some emotional attachment – “It was the one Mom used when I was a kid”, or “I like the fragrance” (fragrance can be pretty emotional) or it may be the most popular soap sold and “I want to fit in”, or it may not be the most popular and “I want to be different”.

Tide claims it gets clothes whiter because it contains bleach. Cheer claims it keeps colors from fading. If we bought soap powders because of their unique selling point (USP), then we would all have two kinds of soap powders in our laundry rooms; Tide for whites and Cheer for colors. But it isn’t that simple is it?

A friend of mine teaching marketing at a local university once did a blind taste test of beers in class. One of the students favored an expensive import. “I can spot my brand by taste anywhere and anytime!” he boasted. In the blind taste test he picked another brand over his imported favorite every time, a discount brand no less. When confronted with the results, he admitted he liked it better than “his” brand. When the bell rang the remaining beers were offered to the class to take home. The student in question grabbed the expensive imported brand instead of the one he had just admitted, in front of the class, tasted better. When asked why by the professor, his reply was simply, “This is MY brand.”

Think about what brands you buy and why you buy them. And be honest with yourself and look beyond the obvious, like the USP. I bet you will find some emotional attachment to your favorite brands; some need that you believe that product fills in your life.

Sales can often be built fairly rapidly by a number of different means. Brand building is making an emotional connection with your customer and is often a much slower process, but the results last longer and are more secure.

Find an emotional need and fill it.