There is a great underlying power in a ‘promise’. Marketing and Advertising in its essence boils down to a promise that we make and how best we deliver on that promise, every time. That in turn builds the perception and customer loyalty. The gap where things tend not to work in order is the root intent and many a times creating a mirage. For e.g. the claims by every other entity for being No.1 where no one is actually informed about against what is it No.1 and on what parameters. We see this day in day out, don’t we? Many a times the real picture is masqueraded with a lot of hooks which later on is realised to be unfruitful by consumers of various products.
I see marketing like a game of ‘Jenga’. Each block needs careful attention, in this case – for the consumer to unmask the messaging. To me, Brand is a living thing and Marketing supplies oxygen.
Today I will talk about five essential aspects of ‘showing’ what we tell. Some may be old gold approaches but still works really well.
Under commit and Over deliver
This is the first main mantra I learnt way back in year 2000 and till date, the essence of this means deeply to me. What we commit forms the basis of what expectations we need to fulfill. I have come across many instances where the commitments go simply overboard or maybe it is not the best commitment. Making a commitment is also an art and needs to be dealt with care. The mantra that has worked for me all these years is under commit and over deliver. Best part- applies well in both professional and personal life.
Understand the Mindshare before Marketshare
Be it any business, one needs to also pay deeper attention to the dynamic consumer mindspace. Where is your consumer and what will make him spend loyally are the two questions that needs to be answered every time, with a combination of mind and heart.
Differentiating between Features and Benefits
It may be not that difficult to answer this, however, many a times the consumer may get confused if it is not 100% clear and simple. The mental block that may occur with marketers here is ‘what I understand, the consumer will understand’ which, may not be true every time. Take Volvo for example; the Swedish car maker has a steel roll cage in its cars. This is a great feature, but it is meaningless. The meaning comes from the salespeople showing customers that the roll cage will keep the people in the car safe – more so than other cars lacking the same feature.
Try Making it Tangible
One of the most important things any marketing professional can do is make the abstract concrete. A benefit prospects can interact with has a lot more impact than something abstract. For example, if a product makes the warehouse operate with greater efficiency, instead of talking about efficiency – one of the most abstract business concepts – put it in real dollars; for example, the increased efficiency cuts warehouse costs by 20%
Don’t tease too much
To me, Time is the mother of all metrics. Focus and attention need time. However, any initiative in marketing and advertising if teased too much in terms of bringing it to the audience, may not yield the potential impact.
I love relating a lot of things to Jenga, because it is both a constructive and fun game. Leaving you with a question- What other games you can think of when you think of marketing and consumer journey?
Ankoor believes in the power of Energy and Energize while bringing to the table a pedigree of 23 years with a rare combination experience across the spectrum of media - print, digital, mobile, event productions & successful pilot projects. Worked across functions - ad operations, business operations, content, strategy, sales, events, media planning & buying. Ankoor has been part of six Sigma Green Belt project and also worked in cross functional roles with - conglomerates and start-ups. Ankoor has been part of the core pilot team of launching International IPs such as ad:tech, iMedia Summits and TechCrunch events in India. Ankoor has directed and enabled the winning of multiple pitches while actively involved in overall and tactical strategy. Trained from Dale Carnegie in Mentoring, Ankoor is a knowledge manager, avid writer with more than 50 published articles: speaker and jury in multiple forums including reputed B-Schools. Most recently Ankoor has been onboarded on the Advisory Board -Marketing Department at ISBR Business School. Ankoor is POSH Certified and has been selected to be part of core Committee for POSH at 2 organizations during his work tenure till now. Ankoor is also a Tabla player and wishes to sky-dive more often.
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