- Posted 10/2/08 at 3:52 AM
- branding
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Bail out or not, it's a good time to be in marketing
Say it outloud with me: “We are in a recession.” (And now’s the time for brand building, you better believe it.)
New York City—A place never thought to be vulnerable to earthquakes, but recently, with Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, J.P. Morgan’s rescue of Washington Mutual, the Fed’s stunning $85 billion bolstering of AIG, and now the battle in Congress over to bail-out or not… BG feels even more shakes coming, especially with rampant inflation affecting the cost of my pint of Häagen-Dazs Chocolate Peanut Butter like never before.
Starbuck’s slumping this past spring should have been our first clue that things were amuck. We are on shaky ground and the aftershocks will be felt miles and months away, whether we’re buying Hanes underwear in Target, tanking up another SUV-load of Gucci gear on Rodeo Drive, or shooting moose in the nooks and crannies of the U.S. It’s likely to be a very flat 2009. (Hell, if Sarah Palin can run for VP, I can play Ben Bernanke for the hour). Yet, as crazy as it may seem, all this means it’s a great time to be in marketing.
If we flip back through history, we see that previous downspins have provided big upsides. Yes, upsides, such as the birth of the iPod, dollar menus at fast food chains (okay, not so great for our obesity rates) and let’s not forget CBS soap operas, the genesis for entertainment as we know it today.
The truism: Plenty of brands have seen rocky times and come through stronger—with the right marketing. So what’s right during a crisis? Stick to your basics.
1. Be the leader. Do your part and build consumer confidence. Take a look at messaging and be reactionary. For instance, if you’re the recently rescued AIG, you immediately reflect on how your brand tagline, “Strength to Be There” may no longer work–and despite how brilliant those television spots might be…you shelve it.
2. Watch consumer’s behavior. Reward your customers/build loyalty/incentivize. Citibank’s Thank You “points” program is recession-proof and its sweepstakes promotion, “Thanks-A-Million,” couldn’t have been timed any better. Saying thank you always works. Even AIG licked its wounds long enough to take out a full-page ad in the trades and give thanks: “The support our customers and brokers have shown us this last week has been overwhelming… We Thank You.”
3. Spend smart. Whether we are talking about your 401K plan or a national rollout of McDonalds coffee bars, don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. Prioritize! Remember that cutting advertising and marketing may spruce up P&L sheets for the short term but eats away at market share long term.
Yes, we are in era of natural and financial disasters, and it is tough to know where solid ground lies–tread lightly.
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I totally agree. And nothing wrong about being patriotic.
Great insights…I don’t think the audience cares who wins the awards, they just want to see the “show” so they have something to talk about the next day…and BTW- the Chrysler commercial was my favorite! Anything that promotes America building something again is ok with me…I guess I’m just a sucker for patriotism…
Nice article! It makes a great deal of sense. These companies spend so much to attain new clients but rarely put forth the effort to keep their existing ones happy. Everything is an argument or an angle. I guess they think we will forget.
I ask this lovingly Steve: by any chance, are you wearing a tie and nursing a martini?
Looking at Obama’s overall rising star these past years (and especially thinking back to who even knew his name prior to 2004), he is a media genius indeed. Yet at the same time, just as he’s not a Muslim (although 24% of the public still thinks he is), he’s also not the political Messiah his campaign painted him to be. In offering an opinion about this widening disparity between the myth and the man, which any Brand Girl is entitled to do, I simply pointed out some of his media missteps since taking office. Speculating that Obama might be a one-term prez unless he gets his media act and his policy act together—and playing nice with one another—is no more a diss than thinking Derek Jeter was playing kinda dirty when he faked getting hit by a pitch to get on base. That’s not dissing, and it’s not even playing party politics. It’s just stating the obvious.
And ’cause I can’t resist: when out with a girl, especially a bipartisan one, allow her a chance to take a full swing when at bat in a pennant battle of the minds. I’ll bet the house that she’ll get beyond first. And she won’t have to fake a thing either.
Funny piece but a faulty premise.
Obama is still a media genius. He’s controlling the debate and has accomplished more in his first two years than any President since FDR. Sure his approval numbers are down but we are in a the middle of a severe recession. Regan’s numbers were similar in 1982.
He has tried to be bipartisan but what does he get for it? The GOP even filibustered small business tax cuts (until two GOP senators who are retiring broke off yesterday). The public knows this. While they are anti-incumbent, they trust the GOP less than the Dems. And despite the GOP’s concerted efforts to block efforts to stimulate the economy (so they can hope to pick up more seats), the economy will turn around and the the POTUS’s appoval ratings wil improve with the rise in GDP.
And when out with boys, especially thoughtful ones, it’s probably not a good idea to diss Obama; not if you want to get to first base.