On Friday, January 30, I will once again join Crystal Faulkner and Tom Cooney on their "BusinessWise" radio show between 5-5:30 on Greater Cincinnati's WNKU/89.7-FM.
We'll be discussing "How to Watch the Super Bowl Ads," with lessons for those of us who don't have $3 million to spend on a 30-second spot.
You can listen live or check the podcasts at www.WNKU.org.
January 28, 2009
January 26, 2009
How to Watch the Super Bowl Ads - follow-up
Today's Advertising Age e-newsletter featured an article titled, "Yes, the Super Bowl is Well Worth $3M a Spot." AdAge is not without its biases, but to their credit, they cite some specific data in support of their case. Registration may be required to view the article, so I've excerpted some highlights below:
In the 2008 Super Bowl, Hyundai purchased 2 third-quarter spots to promote the launch of its new luxury car, the Genesis. They recorded 300,000 visits to their branded website during the game, and their VP-Marketing notes that they were able to begin a relationship and close sales with many of these visitors. (I can't recall what that ad looked like, can you? Credit Hyundai for focusing on behavioral change, not just the memorability of the ad.)
GoDaddy founder and CEO Bob Parsons largely credits the Super Bowl for moving GoDaddy's global share of new domain registration from 16% to 46% in the last 3 years. They closely track site visitors before and after the ads run. They've also benefited from PR surrounding their racy spots.
E-Trade notes that its "talking baby" spot (still running a year later) resulted in a 32% growth rate in newly opened and funded accounts in the week following the game.
Notably, the article includes not a word on the opposing point of view - those advertisers for whom the Super Bowl investment did not pay out (dot-coms, anyone?). So the title of the article is unfortunate, and probably wholly incorrect.
But the emphasis on measurement is spot-on. As brand stewards, we have to ask not only if we're seeing any return on our investments, but whether we're seeing the best return among all possible options. Web traffic, favorable consumer surveys, ad views on YouTube - all of these are worthless unless they create a meaningful business result. If everyone at the water cooler is buzzing about your talking baby ad, but nobody's buying, your ad has failed and that baby should be fired.
Again, the purpose of advertising is to motivate, not to entertain. To the extent that we remember this, we'll all make much better use of our budgets and investments.
In the 2008 Super Bowl, Hyundai purchased 2 third-quarter spots to promote the launch of its new luxury car, the Genesis. They recorded 300,000 visits to their branded website during the game, and their VP-Marketing notes that they were able to begin a relationship and close sales with many of these visitors. (I can't recall what that ad looked like, can you? Credit Hyundai for focusing on behavioral change, not just the memorability of the ad.)
GoDaddy founder and CEO Bob Parsons largely credits the Super Bowl for moving GoDaddy's global share of new domain registration from 16% to 46% in the last 3 years. They closely track site visitors before and after the ads run. They've also benefited from PR surrounding their racy spots.
E-Trade notes that its "talking baby" spot (still running a year later) resulted in a 32% growth rate in newly opened and funded accounts in the week following the game.
Notably, the article includes not a word on the opposing point of view - those advertisers for whom the Super Bowl investment did not pay out (dot-coms, anyone?). So the title of the article is unfortunate, and probably wholly incorrect.
But the emphasis on measurement is spot-on. As brand stewards, we have to ask not only if we're seeing any return on our investments, but whether we're seeing the best return among all possible options. Web traffic, favorable consumer surveys, ad views on YouTube - all of these are worthless unless they create a meaningful business result. If everyone at the water cooler is buzzing about your talking baby ad, but nobody's buying, your ad has failed and that baby should be fired.
Again, the purpose of advertising is to motivate, not to entertain. To the extent that we remember this, we'll all make much better use of our budgets and investments.
January 23, 2009
How to Watch the Super Bowl Ads
It's right around the corner: The annual media onslaught that accompanies the Super Bowl.
I'm not taking about the coverage of the game. I'm talking about the coverage of the advertising. Before the Super Bowl, industry rags will be awash with reports of who the big advertisers are, what we can expect from them, and how much they spent. After the game, consumers and industry experts alike will weigh in on the spots they liked best.
You should not be concerned with any of it.
The Super Bowl advertising hype is perhaps the greatest example in the business world of flawed thinking on a grand scale. The ads have come to be seen as an extension of the game itself, as a form of entertainment. And that's exactly the problem.
It's a catch-22 for the Super Bowl advertisers. If the ads don't entertain, they disappoint. If they do entertain, that doesn't mean they actually work – and all that money goes straight down the rat-hole.
Of course, if you're reading this, then I'm reasonably certain that you're not advertising during the Super Bowl. But that doesn't mean you can't learn some valuable lessons for your business and your brand from the whole extravaganza. Here are three things to keep in mind during the big game:
Awareness is a lousy marketing objective. Every year, certain Super Bowl advertisers attempt to justify their multi-million dollar expenditures with the “increased awareness” argument: “Now everybody will know our name!”
Big deal. Charles Manson has great awareness. But I’m not about to buy anything he’s selling.
Remember all the dot-coms who advertised in Super Bowl a decade ago? I didn’t think so. While their awareness shot up overnight, most of them could not compel consumers to take 10 seconds to visit their websites.
It is not awareness that you seek to create; it is action. This leads us to our second reminder…
The purpose of advertising is to motivate, not to entertain. The day after the Super Bowl, survey results will be released, in which consumers will be asked things like: Which ads were most entertaining? Most creative? Most memorable? “Edgiest”?
The correct answers to these questions are, respectively: “Doesn’t matter”, “doesn’t matter,” “doesn’t matter,” and “no, really… it doesn’t matter.”
To the best of this writer’s knowledge, in the entire history of marketing, there has never been a proven relationship between an advertisement's entertainment value and its motivational value. Likeability has never been correlated to effectiveness.
Call me a stick in the mud, but I don't care how funny an ad is. I only care if it works. Hold your marketing to the same standard. You don’t have enough money in your budget to get into the entertainment business. That’s what the game is for.
Be an "armchair advertiser." Instead of looking for laughs, watch the ads critically. Put yourself in the shoes of the advertiser and try to figure out why they made the choices they made.
Ask: What is the brand trying to say or accomplish? Who are they speaking to? What exactly do they want them to do? Are they successful in achieving their objectives?
Look for signs of persuasion. Making a funny ad is actually pretty easy. Making an ad that motivates people to do something is significantly more difficult. That usually requires an articulation or demonstration of product superiority, consumer benefits and compelling reasons to believe. A few brands are at the level where they have different uses for their ad budgets, but these are the exceptions, not the rule.
So watch the Super Bowl ads. Enjoy them, even. But don't learn the wrong lessons. Forget the fanfare, the "fan favorite" polls, the precocious animals and Bud Light's seemingly endless parade of lame gags. Instead, focus on the stuff that really matters in advertising: Motivating consumers to give your brand a shot.
A version of this post appeared in the January 23, 2009, issue of the Business Courier of Cincinnati, in the column "That Branding Thing."
Find out more about smart branding at www.ThreeDeuce.com.
I'm not taking about the coverage of the game. I'm talking about the coverage of the advertising. Before the Super Bowl, industry rags will be awash with reports of who the big advertisers are, what we can expect from them, and how much they spent. After the game, consumers and industry experts alike will weigh in on the spots they liked best.
You should not be concerned with any of it.
The Super Bowl advertising hype is perhaps the greatest example in the business world of flawed thinking on a grand scale. The ads have come to be seen as an extension of the game itself, as a form of entertainment. And that's exactly the problem.
It's a catch-22 for the Super Bowl advertisers. If the ads don't entertain, they disappoint. If they do entertain, that doesn't mean they actually work – and all that money goes straight down the rat-hole.
Of course, if you're reading this, then I'm reasonably certain that you're not advertising during the Super Bowl. But that doesn't mean you can't learn some valuable lessons for your business and your brand from the whole extravaganza. Here are three things to keep in mind during the big game:
Awareness is a lousy marketing objective. Every year, certain Super Bowl advertisers attempt to justify their multi-million dollar expenditures with the “increased awareness” argument: “Now everybody will know our name!”
Big deal. Charles Manson has great awareness. But I’m not about to buy anything he’s selling.
Remember all the dot-coms who advertised in Super Bowl a decade ago? I didn’t think so. While their awareness shot up overnight, most of them could not compel consumers to take 10 seconds to visit their websites.
It is not awareness that you seek to create; it is action. This leads us to our second reminder…
The purpose of advertising is to motivate, not to entertain. The day after the Super Bowl, survey results will be released, in which consumers will be asked things like: Which ads were most entertaining? Most creative? Most memorable? “Edgiest”?
The correct answers to these questions are, respectively: “Doesn’t matter”, “doesn’t matter,” “doesn’t matter,” and “no, really… it doesn’t matter.”
To the best of this writer’s knowledge, in the entire history of marketing, there has never been a proven relationship between an advertisement's entertainment value and its motivational value. Likeability has never been correlated to effectiveness.
Call me a stick in the mud, but I don't care how funny an ad is. I only care if it works. Hold your marketing to the same standard. You don’t have enough money in your budget to get into the entertainment business. That’s what the game is for.
Be an "armchair advertiser." Instead of looking for laughs, watch the ads critically. Put yourself in the shoes of the advertiser and try to figure out why they made the choices they made.
Ask: What is the brand trying to say or accomplish? Who are they speaking to? What exactly do they want them to do? Are they successful in achieving their objectives?
Look for signs of persuasion. Making a funny ad is actually pretty easy. Making an ad that motivates people to do something is significantly more difficult. That usually requires an articulation or demonstration of product superiority, consumer benefits and compelling reasons to believe. A few brands are at the level where they have different uses for their ad budgets, but these are the exceptions, not the rule.
So watch the Super Bowl ads. Enjoy them, even. But don't learn the wrong lessons. Forget the fanfare, the "fan favorite" polls, the precocious animals and Bud Light's seemingly endless parade of lame gags. Instead, focus on the stuff that really matters in advertising: Motivating consumers to give your brand a shot.
A version of this post appeared in the January 23, 2009, issue of the Business Courier of Cincinnati, in the column "That Branding Thing."
Find out more about smart branding at www.ThreeDeuce.com.
January 20, 2009
Networking - The Good, the Bad...
There are more tools than ever available to networkers these days, and as a by-product of the economy, a greater-than-usual number of people in the market (including job-seekers, consultants and salespeople).
With more people doing more networking, there are more opportunities for people to get it both right and wrong. I'm interested in hearing from others in three areas:
Foundations – What are the principles, characteristics or hallmarks of good networking and strong networks?
Best Practices – What has worked for you in building and maintaining strong networks? What tips and tactics would you recommend to a novice networker?
Horror Stories – What are the worst practices you've seen (or engaged in yourself)? Or tell us about the Worst Networker Ever.
Please respond either in the "comments" section or directly to me at matthew@threedeuce.com in an email entitled "Networking." I may use some responses in a series of blogs and articles, and will respect the anonymity of all respondents, unless you say otherwise.
With more people doing more networking, there are more opportunities for people to get it both right and wrong. I'm interested in hearing from others in three areas:
Foundations – What are the principles, characteristics or hallmarks of good networking and strong networks?
Best Practices – What has worked for you in building and maintaining strong networks? What tips and tactics would you recommend to a novice networker?
Horror Stories – What are the worst practices you've seen (or engaged in yourself)? Or tell us about the Worst Networker Ever.
Please respond either in the "comments" section or directly to me at matthew@threedeuce.com in an email entitled "Networking." I may use some responses in a series of blogs and articles, and will respect the anonymity of all respondents, unless you say otherwise.
January 19, 2009
The Morris Institute for Human Values
I just crossed paths again with Tom Morris, author of a number of books including "If Aristotle Ran General Motors" and "True Success." Mr. Morris has conducted perhaps the deepest exploration of values and philosophical principles within the business world. His website, www.MorrisInstitute.com, is full of interesting and useful nuggets. Give it a look.
January 16, 2009
More Resolutions
I've come across two articles recently that I thought were worth sharing.
The first is "Four Actions to Survive the Recession and Emerge Triumphant," by Rosabeth Moss Kanter at the Harvard Business Blog. There are lots of these kinds of lists floating around, but her advice differs from most:
1) Move while others are distracted.
2) Announce and own a grand concept.
3) Get rid of things that have outlived their usefulness.
4) Concentrate on helping your users, clients or customers succeed.
The second is "Business Resolutions" by Neutron LLC. I find Neutron's monthly branding emails to be among the most valuable I receive, as they do simplicity like few others do. This post lists 10 business/branding problems and their corresponding resolutions, each of which links to additional information on the topic.
Happy reading.
The first is "Four Actions to Survive the Recession and Emerge Triumphant," by Rosabeth Moss Kanter at the Harvard Business Blog. There are lots of these kinds of lists floating around, but her advice differs from most:
1) Move while others are distracted.
2) Announce and own a grand concept.
3) Get rid of things that have outlived their usefulness.
4) Concentrate on helping your users, clients or customers succeed.
The second is "Business Resolutions" by Neutron LLC. I find Neutron's monthly branding emails to be among the most valuable I receive, as they do simplicity like few others do. This post lists 10 business/branding problems and their corresponding resolutions, each of which links to additional information on the topic.
Happy reading.
January 7, 2009
"Does the Free Market Corrode Moral Character?"
The John Templeton Foundation asks this question of 13 different respected thinkers here. Their responses are fascinating, no matter what your personal take on the question.
"Does the free market corrode moral character?" is question #4 in their series of "Big questions." The others are worth checking out as well.
"Does the free market corrode moral character?" is question #4 in their series of "Big questions." The others are worth checking out as well.
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