This is the third article in our Make It Memorable Marketing series in which Mischa staffers share their favorite marketing campaigns, and how they can be applied to your business. Be sure to Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn to get updates on all the articles, as well as innovative marketing tips for small and mid-size businesses.
There is a subtle magic to marketing. It’s not quite eye of newt and toe of toad, but it’s close. Like concocting a special potion, marketing campaigns succeed best when there’s a recipe. Here are three companies that I think have it down pat — and a few insider secrets on how you can mirror their success!
1. Target. Two seconds into a Target commercial, you know it’s a Target commercial. Bright colors, bold designs, catchy tunes and the trademark bull’s-eye symbol identify the brand before the company even mentions its name. Summer Up, Target’s latest commercial, offers viewers a free download of the wildly contagious Ula Ula song that plays during the spot. When was the last time your customers beat down your door to hear a tune from a commercial? (Target is also one of Christina’s picks!)
What We Can Learn From It: Identify your brand and stick with what works! Play to your “target” audience and make yourself immediately recognizable.
2. Progressive. Flo is quirky and cute, equal parts sister, best friend and girl next door. Progressive has identified a spokesperson with whom the average, everyday customer can relate. (And marketing peeps like her, too, as she’s also mentioned in Betsy’s picks!) Whether she’s bringing an umbrella to a sexy stranger on the side of the road or hanging with the minions from Despicable Me 2 (genius cross-marketing in itself!), Flo represents the best the company has to offer.
What We Can Learn From It: A stuffy old guy in a suit isn’t going to sell your brand. Create a mascot and make your audience fall in love with him/her/it. (Have you met our mascot, Mischa?)
3. Go Daddy. Attractive female spokespeople in “interesting” situations are Go Daddy’s hook. Like them or hate them, their tagline, “See what happens next at GoDaddy.com,” convinces their audience to get off the couch and in front of a computer screen. It’s brilliant. Marketing is all about conversions and Go Daddy has found a way to get people to act.
What We Can Learn From It: Getting your message across is not enough. Sometimes you’ll have to utilize tricky tactics as a vehicle to turn your spectators into active participants.
Marketing really is like making a magic potion. Choose the wrong ingredients and the whole thing blows up in your face, leaving you with no eyebrows and a rapidly swelling nose. You’ll need a dash of brand identification, a clever spokesperson and a willingness to think outside the traditional conversion box.
Mischa Communications can help you find the right recipe for your potion. Give us a call at 202-596-7804 or drop us a line at info@mischacommunications.com, and let us help you make some marketing magic!