Month: December 2018

One of Saturday Night Live’s most popular advertising parodies almost didn’t make it on the air.

The fake ad was for “Kotex Classic” — feminine pads described as “the original” and “your mother’s pad.”

Some historical context…for the men in the audience or those women too young to remember:

Sanitary pads were much bulkier back in the day. They were held in place with an elastic belt.

In a real magazine ad decades ago, Kotex pitched it’s “New Freedom” pad by touting “No belt. No bulge. No blushes.”

Fast forward to 2002 when the fake ad showed women wearing “Kotex Classic” pads under tight dresses, jeans and swimming suits. Lots of bulk. Big belts.

In the ad, a man (played by a young Tracy Morgan) checks out the women and says with admiration, “Them girls is old school.”

The ad ends with a narrator saying, “Kotex Classic: The next big thing.”

You can watch it here. 

It’s funny…

…if you get the joke.

But the males who dominated the SNL writers table didn’t get it.

So they passed on the parody…

…Until Tiny Fey, SNL’s first female head writer, lobbied for it.

She explained all that stuff I just told you about big, bulky, belted pads. Then the boys got it. And the parody made it on the air.

Tiny Fey tells that story today to demonstrate the need for diversity at the writers’ table.

The boys weren’t maliciously sexist when they rejected a female writer’s pitch, she said. They just didn’t have the perspective and experience to understand why this parody would resonate.

Reminds me of some marketers I know.

Like the marketer who says, “I don’t like getting commercial emails so I’m not going to use email for my business.”

Or the one who says, “Tele-prospecting annoys me so I’m not going to use that tactic.”

You may not like the joke. You may not get the joke.

But that’s not the important thing.

The important thing is this: Will your audience go for it? Will your message (and the channel through which you deliver it) resonate?

To answer, you may need to broaden your perspective. Put yourself in your audience’s shoes. Seek others’ opinions.

Sometimes the funniest jokes and the best marketing ideas fall flat for you — until your perspective broadens.

Tom
MarketVolt

p.s. Wondering how to improve your marketing content so it resonates with your audience and doesn’t fall flat? We can help you do that. Email me at tom@marketvolt.com to learn how we help businesses tune up their sales stories and marketing content. For no charge and no strings attached, I’ll review a marketing piece or the front page of your website and offer some suggestions. 

p.p.s. If you like these emails, please do me this favor: Forward this to someone who might also enjoy it and encourage them to sign up for future emails on our website at MarketVolt.com.

I keep seeing this television ad promoting “Tap to Pay With Visa.”

It touts a feature known as “contactless cards.”

You complete a transaction without sliding or inserting your card. Just tap the card on (or wave it over) a reader. No confirmation necessary. No signature required. Tap and you’re done. Card charged. Purchase completed.

In the ad, pro football player Eli Manning tricks rookie teammate Saquon Barkley to pay for Eli’s stuff.

The ad starts with Saquon showing Eli how easy it is to complete a purchase with Tap to Pay.

Then the scene switches to the grocery store. Eli is holding a bag of groceries. The cashier says, “$18.35”

Eli turns to Saquon and says, “Hey, how do you do that card thingee again? Is it like a wrist move?”

Saquon lays his card on the reader and says, “You just tap and pay.”

The card reader chimes. Card charged. Groceries purchased.

Eli taps Saquon on the shoulder, says, “Thanks, bro,” and strolls away from the checkout counter.

Silly rookie falls for the old tap-to-pay trick.

I think that ad sucks. Here’s why…

I was watching the ad recently with a friend.

His response was not “Ha ha! That’s funny.”

His response was not, “Oooh ah! That’s cool.”

His response was, “That’s scary.”

Hmmmmm. I don’t think Visa was going for “scary.”

Marketers need to consider prospects’ objections when they pitch products.

A widespread objection about contactless cards: They’re a security risk. Many fear that hackers and identity thieves can steal your card info when you walk by.

Contactless cards = unwanted charges.

That concern is so prevalent that businesses sell “secure sleeves” to protect those cards from thieves. Samsonite sells a three-pack at Office Depot for $4.99. Do you think Samsonite would be in this business if the concern was not widespread?

I know Eli manning is not a thief who hacks the rookie’s card.

But the story still stokes fears: Unsuspecting guy accrues charges on his card before he knows what hit him. This wouldn’t have happened if he had to confirm the charge or sign.

Visa was going for “contactless cards = cool and convenient!”

Visa got my friend thinking “contactless cards = unwanted charges.” Scary.

My point is not to rip contactless cards. I actually like the technology and think the security concerns are overblown.

My point is to deliver a marketing lesson. When you’re building a sales story, when you’re pitching a product, consider those objections. The objections may be out of line. That doesn’t mean you disregard them.

You may choose to answer the objections (lots of ways to do this; more on that in another email).

But whatever you do, don’t craft a sales story that fuels and objections and stokes fears.

Scary is good if you’re selling horror movies and Halloween masks. Scary doesn’t cut it for credit card companies.. 

Tom
MarketVolt

p.s. Wondering how to improve your sales story so it’s more cool and less scary? We can help you do that. Email tom@marketvolt.com to learn how we help businesses tune up their sales stories. For no charge and no strings attached, I’ll review a marketing piece or the front page of your website and offer some suggestions. 

p.p.s. If you like these emails, please do me this favor: Forward this to someone who might also enjoy it and encourage them to sign up for future emails on our website at MarketVolt.com.

Earlier this year, a new luxury shoe store opened in a Santa Monica mall.

The store, called Palessi, invited fashion writers and other influencers to its grand opening.

The fashionistas got first crack at the merchandise.

They paid up to $600 for the shoes…

…and then they celebrated.

One held up a pair and chirped, “I can tell it’s made with high-quality material.”

Another tried on a pair of “gold” high-tops and announced, “I would pay 400, 500. Yeah. People are gonna be like… ‘Uhhh! … where’d you get those? Those are amazing.’”

Then the interviewer revealed the truth…

“These are actually from Payless.”

Yeah…that “Payless.”

The one formerly known as “Payless Shoe Source.”

Fashionista with the $500 gold sneakers couldn’t believe it. “Shut up! Are you serious!? Wait…did I just pay too much?”

We laugh at the foolish fashionistas.

And we applaud Payless for the brilliant marketing gag (Here’s an Adweek article with videos from “Palessi’s” grand opening. Payless plans to turn excerpts into a series of ads that will run during this holiday season.)

But let’s dig a little deeper on that question: “Did I just pay too much?”

Somewhere in Santa Monica or on the Magnificent Mile in Chicago or on 5th Avenue in New York, a real luxury shoe boutique is selling shoes that look much like the ones Palessi was pedaling.

Someone is paying $500 for those shoes. She’ll go to a party next weekend and an admirer will will ask, “Where’d you get those!?”

The fancy-shoe-wearer will answer proudly. She’ll let anyone who’s listening know that she shops at that high-end boutique on that fancy street in that nice part of town.

And she’ll feel really good about herself.

You may call her a snob.

I call her a status-hound.

Here’s the marketing lesson: Self-esteem drives many buying decisions.

For many, status fuels self-esteem.

For others, being “smart” fuels self-esteem.

The real high-end boutique with the $500 shoes delivers status. And for those who want status, $500 is the right price to pay. In fact, the more you pay, the greater the status.

Payless delivers smarts. It’s for the shopper who doesn’t care as much about status. It’s for the shopper who feels better about themselves because they got decent quality, at a great price.

What drives your prospects and customers? A quest for status? A quest for smarts? Other emotional triggers (there are many)?

The more you know about what triggers your prospects and customers, the more effective your marketing, and the stronger your business. 

Tom
MarketVolt

p.s. If you like these emails, please do me this favor: Forward this to someone who might also enjoy it and encourage them to sign up for future emails on our website at MarketVolt.com.