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    George Foreman as an Accessory.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    I was reading today about a New Year’s resolution type of promotion by the people who bring you the George Forman Grill.  It’s not George Foreman, by the way. (He sold out at the right time.) The promotion gives away $2,500 a couple of times a year to a person who loses the most weight using the George Foreman grill. 

    Weight Watchers and others in the weigh loss space will tell you this is the time of year to push weight loss, as many diets start after the new year, so for George Foreman it makes sense to do this now.  I refer to this as the pent up demand approach.  What smart about the promotion though, is that the grill is not a weight loss product or program – it’s a weight loss accessory. Something one can buy, unlike a Jenny Craig membership or elliptical machine, that is not a direct part of the weigh loss solution; rather it is part of a behavior change that encourages weight loss. Dieting is perhaps the most common and futile exercise known to man. But behavior change, that’s different.

    Grill your food rather than fry it and you are taking a baby step. And it’s not an onerous step, unless the food tastes bad.

    Advertised weight loss programs are pregnant with negative overtones. Villainously so believe some consumers.  Dieters need to feel in control. And accessorizing is a smart way to go. Peace.

    Well, well, wellness.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    There are all sorts of ad agency segments: pharma, direct response, B2B, digital, CPG, financial, ethnic, entertainment and even a small shop that focuses on baby boomers (AgencyFive0).  What there doesn’t seem to be is an agency segment that focuses on the healthy. 

    I am hip deep in the science of health these days and though not a conspiracy peddler there are a great many people who believe a degree of collusion exists in businesses that make money off of disease. (Enough on that, I watch too much television.)  

    What I am comfortable talking about is the fact that healthcare is 17-18% of U.S. GDP and a lot of money is changing hands when it comes to medicating, treating and surgically repairing patients.  Don’t hold me to this exact data point, but about 20% of medial costs go to prevention and 80% to treatment.  That’s wrong. And that’s why there are pharma agencies.  Were we to flip that equation, there would be more wellness care and wellness-focused ad shops.  It’s a segment that is unique, growing and discrete — and a segment whose time has come. McTrust me.  Peace.

     

    Advertising Flotsam

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    Nicholas Kristof is a funny dude.  In his Op-Ed piece in The NY Times today he suggested the Second Amendment (Don’t run away, it’s not one of those type of posts), affirms our “right to bear a musket.” His reference to period and  context got me thinking about advertising and spam. (Sad, I know.) Advertising used to be expensive. If you wanted to reach your custies and prospects you had to produce an ad, which cost money. Then you had to buy media, even more money. You also needed expert middle men to create the ad –either an agency or someone at the media company (“hack,” gesundheit) – also expensive.

    But today?  Today, everyone can make ads. For pennies. Google AdWords. Constant Contact (email). Sponsored Tweets. Facebook. And other internet-enabled options that have created a veritable Spamapalooza.  Even before DIY advertising was common, ads weren’t that great. But now? Oye.

    In this environment is an opportunity. An opportunity to break through the sea of flotsam adverting and spam — with messages that shine. The media is not the message, the message is the message. Find a voice, find your story (brand strategy), understand it and stick to it. Speak to your targets as if you are speaking to your targets – and take off that white shirt with the gravy stain on the stomach. As the kids might say “represent.”  Peace.   

    Instagram’s Smart Decision.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    instagram

    Here’s the thing, everybody and her mother thinks Instagram’s decision to change its privacy policy, claiming all photos posted to the platform are now the property of Instagram and available for sale, is a bad idea.  The early naysayers are protesting by shutting down their accounts.  Are those people Instagram lovers or, as I once wrote on a brief “tech grumpies?”

    In my world, where I try to look at things in the obverse to gain perspective, this might actually be a strong move for Instagram. Akin to new Coke.  The people that really love Instagram will weigh in, not shut down.  If the platform is worth saving, and I suspect it is, the masses will help with the solution. New Coke was one of the best things to happen to old Coke and this move by Facebook (recent purchaser of Instagram) will likely end up being the same – though I’m not sure Fothcbook is this devious. More likely they are stepping on their you knows. Hee hee.

    Monetization is not the enemy. Lack of outside perspective is.  In 6-9 months, Instagram will have a new monetization plan in place, whereby some of the photos on the platform will be available for sale, others not, and all will be well. This is the word of the future. Peace!

     

    Decisions, decisions.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    When it comes to advertising and marketing, one of my favorite quotes is “Just when you think you know something about this business, someone comes along to prove you wrong.”  Sure, as we move forward through our careers we accumulated a lot of knowledge and experience, but there are always questions that come up in meetings, that defy answers.  CEOs of advertising and marketing shops, dudettes and dude paid the big bucks, admit things cone up all the time for which they don’t have answers.  That’s what keeps us on our toes.

    The best we can do as decision-makers is to rely on our instincts, on our body of work and make an informed decision. One of my mentors always had an answer in meetings. And he believed it. The switch was always on or off. His opinions flowed, with grace, logic and conviction.  Was he always right? No. And he rode that wave to great career heights. Until a decision or two, while with billion dollar companies, were deemed wrong.  Hiccups.

    So long as we surround ourselves with smart people, so long as we understand that we do not know everything, so long as we have humor and don’t believe ourselves the smartest person in the room, logical, informed marketing decisions will be good ones.  Add a little poetry and they can be great ones.  Decisions beat inaction and hand wringing every time. Peace.

    Benefit Shoveling.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    Most marketers speak in tongues.  What does that mean?  They shovel benefits by the pound. The reason the word “narrative” is so commonly used in ad and digital circles today is because a narrative, by its nature, puts the shovel down.  A narrative is a story with beginning, middle and end. If a good story it will have a message, a moral and funnel the reader toward a conclusion. 

    Over this past week, I heard myself talking about teachable moments. Or learnable moments.  A learnable moment is when the light goes off in the listener’s brain.  When the listener hasn’t been wallpapered with benefit statements, and comes to their own conclusion.  Learnable moments stick with consumers, it sticks. If the marketer is the teacher, they get the credit. Trust ensues. As does a smidgen of loyalty.

    As a kid in the business I wrote an article for Adweek (never submitted) that suggested print ads are only read if they show something you have never seen, tell something you didn’t know, or shared something truly beautiful. Narratives that accomplish these objectives can be powerful selling tools.  A narrative that doesn’t pass this litmus not so much — but it still has a better chance as a brand building device than does a shovel filled with benefits. Peace.

     

    Lincoln Motor Carpy (sic).

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    0

    I just read a print ad for the new Lincoln Motor Company (New?) and I’m perplexed. The first part of the message is a call to non-action. It reads “Does the world need another luxury car? Not really.” Okay, so that’s out of the way. (And, with global carbon dioxide levels up 41%, I must agree.)

    The next message suggests that the Lincoln brand was created not to meet the need of consumers but rather to suit Edsel Ford. The word Edsel is synonymous with utter failure BTW, but maybe the ad will change all that. The first Lincoln was created by Edsel Ford as an intrepid vacation auto — to please his own personal sensibility.  

    Then the copy moves on to share some historical firsts, e.g., a shifter not on the column, push button transmission (always good to talk about the past when positioning for the future) and then discusses “engineered humanity” that puts the driver first. Huh?    

    Finally there is some buried discussion about the new MKZ and a strong finish about concierge service — as if our heads weren’t spinning enough.

    The tidy little bow at the end is “Call it luxury. Call it engineering humanity. We’re calling it the Lincoln Motor Company. A completely reinvented wheel, with you at its center.”  

    Wheel as the company metaphor…really?  Ah, the craft. Peace.

    Life and Taxes.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    I do not agree with some people (David Brooks for instance) who believe closing tax loopholes and raising tax rates will squelch growth.  The economic theory makes sense but it doesn’t take into consideration human nature. Capitalists — and we’re all capitalists to a degree — like the positive side of the ledger sheet. It sets us a tingle. If the harsh reality sets in that loop holes are reduced and higher taxes legislated, capitalists will go through the 5 stages of grieving, then start to focus on da monies. There may be some hiring stasis, sell-offs and contraction, but the prize will always be new earnings.  And revival will follow. Our taste for growth is just too strong.

    Everyone should ask how we are spending the country’s money. Everyone should ask where we send our money overseas. Secessionists have the right to want to secede. That’s freedom.  But don’t confuse freedom and capitalism.  I am no economist, but in this land whether the currency is wampum, beaver pelts, greenbacks or stock shares, the trading rules may change, but growth is the vitality that moves us forward. There is nothing more natural than growth.  Peace!  

     

     

    Flip the marketing.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    0


    Not sure if you have heard of the new educational term “flipping the classroom,” but it’s really talking hold in middle and high schools. To flip the classroom means to do the homework prior to the class – then use the class to bring the lesson to life, to model or prove what was learned in the homework.  Many flipped classrooms use video in their homework.

    Citrix is using this technique for its webinars.  See the email above. It’s a little daring, but I think it’s right.   Recently, a business exec talked about how his company provides reading before meetings to make them more valuable.  There’s something to this. Let’s try to use it in our jobs.  Peace!

    Creative by the pound.

    By
    Steve Poppe
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    0

    Paul Ottellini is stepping down as Intel’s CEO in May. Implicit in the announcement was the notion that his leadership did not evolve or lead Intel into the mobile device age. It seems Intel is no longer inside the hand candy owned by nearly every man, woman and child in America and the ROW (rest of world). This announcement and an article on the transformation of education thanks to MOOCS (massive open online courses) got me thinking about the fate of ad agencies and whether they are evolving with the times.  

    Let’s face it, it’s sad but true, outside of the third world humanity’s purpose on planet earth is “buy stuff.”   That’s why we go to school, work and pay taxes.  Advertising used to be about pushing product and product preference on would-be consumers, but today consumers are wound up and ready to buy, so marketers aren’t as much interested in creating demand as they are in predisposing consumers toward their products.  The web is the big pre-disposer. Broadcast and print are still great tools, yet these days they’re mere sign posts. The real selling takes place after the ad. Agencies that sell creative by the pound are not seeing this — the total picture. It’s great to have top reputation for creativity, though it is better to have a full understanding of modern marketing: brand planning, lifecycle, loyalty, aftercare, twitch points, insouciance, and timing. Honestly, not many shops have this view. 

    Great creative is a price of entry for ad agencies but the web has changed marketing. Moving the desks around, being media-agnostic and practicing all sorts of other marko-babble are not going to fix the profitability and value of the ad agency business. It needs a new box.

    Mr. Ottellini didn’t change the box. IPG’s Michael Roth isn’t going to do it. Tom Bedacarre would like to. Carl Johnson-ish. We need a savant. Peace!  

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