Seth Godin posted this list on his blog. Yours truly makes an appearance — feel free to log on and vote!
Category: Uncategorized
Worst Brand Extension Ever?
On the side of a Papa Murphy’s Pizza store in Northeast Portland is a banner that reads:
“Ask Us About Mortgage Solutions!”
Do they really believe that their customers will think, “Gee, they did such a good job on my medium thin-crust Pepperoni-and-Olive… I wonder if they can refinance my ARM?”
Well, no, actually. A closer look (I drove around the block and parked across the street) reveals the logo of Albina Community Bank at the very top of the banner — in smaller letters. The bank is a half a block down the street from the pizza store.
Unless they expect all of their prospects to pull over to take a closer look, that sign isn’t going to get the job done…
Headless Body in Topless Bar
The headline is the “commercial” for whatever comes next — news story or advertisement. Executed properly, it grabs the target consumers and insists that they pay attention.
From today’s Oregonian comes my favorite headline of the month:
“Hammer-Wielding Monks Clash at Holy Site”
Your Customers Will Tell You When It’s Time to Change — By Their Actions
I’ve been working with a customer in the medical field for a while now. A few months ago we stumbled on an ad for a particular procedure that worked better than anything else. I can measure response by click-throughs from our web site to theirs. The client can measure response by phone traffic, appointments, and sales.
And by any measure, this ad pulled better than anything else we’ve ever run. So we’ve been running it steadily for the past three months.
Recently my client wondered aloud whether it might be time to change the ad. Web clicks, phone calls and sales are all as strong as they’ve ever been.
“Leave it alone,” I said. “Your customers will tell you when it’s time to change — when they stop calling.”
If it’s your ad, you’ll be listening closer than anyone in the general public — and you’ll get bored with it long before your customers will.
But a ringing cash register is never boring.
Interesting Variation on the “Riches in Niches” Theme
…by Michael Fortin.
I can’t count the number of times I’ve heard business owners tell me that “everyone” is a customer. And sometimes (mattresses, tires) it might even be pretty close to true. But the Les Schwabs and Fred Meyers of the world are exceedingly rare — for most of us, there’s more money in dominating one segment.