Green Bean Casserole Means Big Green for Campbells

My eating habits usually run to the natural. Normally, I am averse to almost anything that comes in a can as I prefer fresh vegetables and I usually stay away from fried foods. I feel better when I eat a balanced meal and as I get older, I realize more and more that natural grains, fruits and vegetables actually give me more energy.  Which makes the secret I am about to share very strange.

Those that know me well are already privy to the truth I am about to share. Every year they laugh at me and roll their eyes with disdain.  But I don't care....I can't help it.  I love green bean casserole.  There, the secret is out. But it doesn't just stop there. Not only do I eat it on Thanksgiving but I make sure to make enough so that I can have leftovers for breakfast  (yes, breakfast) for the next several days.  I know that's weird...but I'm OK with weird. 

This year, I decided to do a bit of digging into the history of the dish.  Like many great products, it turns out there is a great marketing story behind its success. Researchers at Campbell's Soup created the recipe to help housewives in the 1950's whip up a simple and somewhat nutritious meal with ingredients they would already have on hand.  Of course, they hoped it would also prompt additional sales of their mushroom soup.  Often giving customers new uses for a product can have amazing results.

In 1955, the Associated Press did a story on Thanksgiving and used the green bean casserole in the pictorial spread to balance the golds and oranges of the traditional foods. It caught on as a "simple to make" side dish that could also balance the colors of a holiday meal since little else on the table was green.  This use of publicity as a marketing strategy by Campbell's Soup was almost as genius as the recipe itself. 

This year, the marketing department at Campbell's Soup estimates that 30 million casseroles will be made and served this Thanksgiving. They also estimate that they sell well over $20 Million dollars worth of Mushroom soup to make it happen. 

Obviously, I'm not alone in my love for this Thanksgiving wonderfulness. 

Shameless Self Promotion

The other day I posted on Twitter about an upcoming Facebook Marketing workshop I was offering to a group of 35 small business owners.  Not only did it go really well, but the local news showed up to cover the story.  If you want to see me in action, click here. 

While it's always fun to see yourself on TV, promoting myself and my availability to do marketing workshops anywhere in the country, is not what this post is about.  Instead, I want to discuss something peculiar I noticed in the news piece.  They never once mentioned the group putting on the workshop.  It was a local non-profit organization that really could have used the publicity, yet no name or contact information was given.  They certainly asked for it, I gave them everything I had thinking the non-profit group could get some much needed publicity.

In talking with the director of the non-profit after the interview aired, she mentioned that this kind of behavior seems to be a trend in the media lately.  It certainly made me begin to contemplate "why?"  Probably, like everything in business today, its about the money.  TV stations, just like newspapers and radio stations, are having a harder time selling ad space since there is a serious decline in customers watching, reading, or listening.  Someone got smart and started saying "no" to free promotion via the media. 

Looks like the good old days of shameless self promotion just may be over!  Except of course in the blogging world....did I mention I am available to do speaking engagements anywhere in the country :)

Old Spice + New Marketing = Swagger

Because of this picture that a friend posted on Facebook, I found myself investigating the Old Spice website to learn more about this "Awesomeness" they are trying to enhance. 

Like most of the planet, I am a fan of the recent branding changes at Old Spice. Taking an old, worn out, "grandpa" brand and making it modern, fresh, and fun is seriously hard to do. Enhancing Awesomeness?  Excellent. This new product name and packaging concept had me cracking up.

Another thing that had me cracking up?  This t-shirt I found on their website.  For the people I know that love t-shirts & love pop culture (who doesn't, right?!?) this is a no brainer holiday gift! 

Why does all of this work?  Because Old Spice did 3 things that worked.  First, they started talking to their true target market. ("Ladies, does your man look like me?") Secondly, they stopped taking themselves too seriously and they produced a commerical that was seriously funny. Third, Old Spice found the perfect guy to be the new "face" of Old Spice. Good looking?  Yes, but more importantly he is far, far, far from being a "grandpa" image in our minds.  This forces us to begin to think about the product in a new way. 

These 3 things combined created the perfect "branding" storm that has me thinking they just might be able to pull off a product name like "Swagger!"

McDonalds Marketing is Hot!

I am not the biggest fan of McDonalds food but I do like the occasional order of french fries and my kids love the apple dippers and toys in the Happy Meals. That said, I am a big fan of this McDonalds advertising example.  This video shows some serious creativity and innovation in selling something that is available on almost every street corner. 

McDonalds, this is hot!

Stoned: An example of excellent small business branding!

So, I have been doing some work in my kids bathroom recently which prompted several trips to Home Depot and Lowe's.  On my multiple trips I got into the habit of checking out all of the contracting businesses work trucks for signs of any intelligent life (I mean business knowledge).  While most small contractors had signs of some nature on their vehicles, many were of extremely poor quality and most did not even clearly communicate what the business did.

And that's the lesson for today.  Branding is a means of communicating to potential customers.  In order for branding to be effective, customers have to understand what you are trying to tell them.  I refer to this as Branderstanding.  Most of the trucks I saw in the parking lots of the big box stores did not get this basic concept.

One did however, which is why they are showcased above.  They followed my small business branding guide of T.E.L.L. ing a story.  The T.E.L.L. method refers to:

• T = Title.  The name of your business should indicate what you do.  In this case, Butte Creek Stone gives us a bit of insight. 
• E = Explanation line. With 7 words or less, REALLY explain what you do.  This can be catchy or memorable but it can also just be straight to the point.  Above, the explanation line is "Granite Fabrication & Intallation"  Perfect, I won't be calling them to install my stone patio.
• L = Logo.  The visual element is an important part of the brand.  This example does not have a visual other than how they created the blocks to stack on top of each other, like stone might do. 
• L = Look & Feel.  This logo looks modern, clean, and tidy.  I get the impression they are professional (maybe more so that their competitors) and their attention to detail gives me the perception that they will also treat my project (if I had one) with considerate thought. 

With branding, you have to tell your story fast...often in a split second.  If a potential customer does not get what your are trying to tell them, they don't sit around and try and figure it out.  Nope, instead customers just move on to the next message being thrown at them.  The example above, while not perfect, was by far the best example I saw sitting in the parking lot. 

I will leave no stone unturned in my quest to bring you more!

Successful Ads? Think 3 T's

These kinds of post make my day.  As a teacher, I hope to ruin...I mean, enlighten, the brains that I am fortunate enough to have in my class.  It's not that I want to forever wreck television for them, it's that I really enjoy when a student begins to understand the influence that advertising has on them. 

This post (left on the Facebook group Marketingminded used in the marketing class I teach at California State University, Chico) was left by a student after a lecture on the basics of advertising.  The lesson began by me showing several different recent tv ads and then having the class decide what type of ad they were, as well as the tone that each ad was designed with.  One of my favorites (because it has an unusual tone for its type) is this example.  After several semsters of doing this excersize, it never fails that some of my students really start to see that advertising can have a profound effect on us as consumers.  

Small business owners can also learn from these foundational concepts I teach in my marketing class.  For one, understanding that tone can influence perceptions of consumers is key.  Typical tones include humor, fear, sex, and a general emotional appeal.  In addition to humor, (see example above) fear can be impactful as well.  See a good example of how to use fear here.  However, the trick with any type and tone decision is to match it up to the target market you are trying to communicate to.  Target market is critical to successful adveritsing and should be the first...and last "T" to take into consideration.

Unfortunatley, as I point out in the post above, there are many organizations that miss the mark with their target market. Here is an example of that!  I'm pretty sure this Swiffer ad is trying to target me, but this company is so off the mark that I would rather scrub my floor with a toothbrush than buy one of their mops. Probably not the effect they were going for...

The moral of the story? If you are about to embark on some advertising, which is never an inexpensive endeavor, focus on the 3 T's I have discussed here: Target market, type, & tone...and then to make sure your ad really cleans up, give your target market a second look! 

Bold Move Wins the Game

"Your Move, BMW," posts Audi, highlighting it's luxury line.

"Checkmate" responds the BMW dealership down the block, promoting its own luxury offering.

I know this is an old advertising war that made its way across the internet a few years ago but a student recently posted this picture to my class’s Facebook group (Marketing Minded) so I decided to look into it a bit further so I could use it for an upcoming lecture about promotion. If you aren’t familiar with this battle for attention, in 2009 an Audi dealer in Southern California put up a billboard that was in essence taunting the BMW dealership down the block.  A few weeks later, the BMW dealership countered the Audi message with its own billboard. While these dueling messages are an example of creative promotion and really quite entertaining, there was something else I found even more intriguing about their shenanigans.

And here it is….the Santa Monica BMW was just going to ignore the Audi ad.  It wasn’t until a small advertising company, called Juggernaut Advertising approached the BMW dealership with the “checkmate” billboard design proposal AND the billboard placement secured… just across the freeway from the Audi signage.  The BMW dealership loved the idea and went for it and the rest is marketing history.

The impressive part of this while story to me is the moxie that Juggernaut Advertising showed. Brilliant thinking is only half the battle…the ability to execute is critical.  This is true in sports, in politics, in business…and certainly in chess.  This little company proved that a bold move goes a long way towards winning the game.