Game changers are strategies and concepts that help change the outcome for organizations. As the most visible, and in many cases the most effective strategy, Promotions can produce fantastic results without having to make major changes to your products, services or key personnel.
A successful promotional strategy requires some brand preparation, the development of some new and compelling messaging, and the creation of subsequent promotional tactics. These efforts all aim to communicate with, and serve, the end user.
Note: In order for a promotional strategy to truly be a game changer there needs to be some risk involved. Risk usually requires buy-in, encouragement and vision from senior management so you first must sell a great promotional idea internally before you can move on to developing the offer for your customer.
Effective promotional strategies are not standard discounts or special offers. Game changing campaigns stand in contrast to the typical norms of communication and that is why they are memorable and produce better results.
Here are three (3) game changing promotional strategies:
- Align your Brand with a Larger Purpose. Unilever’s Dove brand launched the Campaign for Real Beauty in 2004 and they aligned the brand with female self-esteem and image causes. The campaign exposed the industry’s tactics of make-up and Photoshop to make female models look more attractive. P&G followed this theme up in 2014 with the Like a Girl campaign for their Always brand, they took a clever attack-approach on the prevalent stereotypes associated with how girls do things differently than boys. By aligning a product with a larger purpose your brand endears itself to the target audience while building new experiences, user-generated content, and fresh messaging for all your marketing mediums and platforms.
- Go head-to-head with the Market Leader. Smaller organizations exist because they’re able to offer something to a smaller audience that the market leader isn’t able to fulfill. Going up against a market leader can help a company gain legitimacy as they continue to carve out their brand’s niche. Pepsi launched the Taste Challenge vs. the behemoth Coke brand and made such a buzz that Coke launched a sweeter New Coke in 1985; a beverage which was, of course, a flop. Rap artist, 50 Cent, created buzz and some wild publicity by calling out other, even more popular, mainstream rap artists, saying they were selling out or being soft and not being true to the spirit of their music style or brand of music. This strategy is more controversial but when done in good taste it can be an effective way to give your brand a credibility boost.
- Be more than memorable. Promotional strategies that dare to be different are the ones that actually do make a difference. It took courage for management to approve spending millions of dollars on a pink bunny who bangs a drum that “keeps going and going” (Energizer batteries). Old Spice turned heads with their “Old Spice Guy ads” using a new continuous motion technique and witty writing to pull off a wildly popular campaign. They were running unique ads for years prior but finally broke through with their “smell like a man” campaign. Apple spent a million dollars on the production of their Macintosh launch commercial in 1984—a campaign that didn’t promote a computer, but rather an ideal. They were, of course, a new company going up against Big Blue (IBM). Never be afraid to be different and bold especially when your strategy is on brand.
There are many other strategies, some of which require a more elaborate effort like re-branding or repositioning a company; however, tactics can always change or be tweaked. The real driver behind game changing efforts are strategies that dictate the tactics (not the other way around) and move consumers to a new level of loyalty… that’s what an unforgettable promotional campaign does.
Have the courage to be different! Have a great week!
– Braden