3foldComm

The popularity of Mad Men and Boardwalk Empire show us nostalgia sells. From Ray Charles’ resurrection of old school Pepsi pitches to classic high-fashion photo shoots in Vogue magazine  to re-imagined conspiracy theories by Stephen King, turn on any media channel and it looks like a nonstop nostalgia sale and America is buying — big time.

The holiday season is no stranger to reminiscing down the nostalgia trail. A personal connection to history is certainly enough to bring in purchasers (especially those that lived during that period in time) and that can bring in a whole range of emotions. From simple sights, sounds and smells to longing for a Red Ryder BB gun, the holidays have a hold on our attention using nostalgia as a big hook.

“For many, holidays bring back memories of simpler times along with the sense of the security of childhood or the carefree feelings of being young, with fewer of the worries and stress that accompany responsibilities. Most often, holidays remind us of people who have played important roles in our lives and the activities we shared with them,” notes nostalgia expert Krystine Batcho, PhD, in an American Psychological Association article.

“During difficult times, attention to our past can strengthen us by reminding us of how we survived challenges, loss, injury, failure or misfortune in the past. When we are sad or discouraged, it can be uplifting to remember that we are still the person who had been happy, strong and productive at times in our past,” she adds.

These current economic conditions make people look back at times we perceive as “simpler” and less stressful, making nostalgia a powerful marketing tool. Even new generations are getting on the nostalgia train as the millennial generation is now just old enough to get nostalgic clicking back to the 90s.

Kate Loveland, a PhD candidate at Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business, uncovered a bond between a sense of nostalgia and a social need to belong. When we start establishing our lives away from our family, people have more pressure to belong to a group — triggering the social self.  We find comfort through products that take us back to a simpler, more comfortable time.

Marketing goes beyond a flashy headline and strategic pricing. It seems the slice of history hits a certain tone in peoples buying behaviors. Whether they were there or not, the romance lingers enough for people to invest. The sports market has embraced this philosophy seeing successful interest in “throwback” uniform looks from decades past to the point they are even rolling out “retro” looks for franchises less than a decade old.

“From the very beginning, I could sense that there were these great moments in history, especially in sports history, that really resonate with people emotionally,” said Ryan Vesler, founder of nostalgic clothing manufacturer Homage, in a recent article in Business News Daily. “They remember where they were watching the game or whom they were with. I think those moments are special to people.”

Like an old pick-up truck on the superhighway, the retro trend may soon be in our rear-view as something new and shiny will take its place. That is until we feel the need for something nostalgic to calm our souls. In the meantime, click here for a classic sci-fi wind-up toy…Klaatu Barada Nikto!

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Actions speak louder than words.

Sure, if you’ve got a spare $3 million of walking around cash, go ahead and buy that 30-second Super Bowl spot. But, for brands looking to make a more meaningful impact with the marketing budgets, a little kindness goes a long way. Do-gooder marketing is more than a trend, though, it’s a proven revenue generator. With the current state of the economy and the general hardships of day-to-day life, brands are discovering that consumers welcome a good deed–regardless of the source. Just remember, it’s not about random acts, it’s about branded acts. In order to reap the benefits, these do-gooder initiatives must be consistently delivered and heart-felt.

A couple obligatory stats:

• 71% of people “make it a point to buy brands from companies whose values are similar to my own.” (Source: Young & Rubicam, August 2010.)
• 87% of UK consumers expect companies to consider societal interests equal to business interests, while 78% of Indian, 77% of Chinese and 80% of Brazilian consumers prefer brands that support good causes. (Source: Edelman, November 2010.)

Some brilliant examples of branded acts of kindness:

• TOMS Shoes was founded on a simple premise: With every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need.
• Thousands of lucky commuters in Boston got free rides on the metro system compliments of Dunkin’ Donuts.
• Besides its successful Refresh Project, Pepsi launched their ‘Be Social’ vending machines where everyone who purchased a soda from these machines had an opportunity to gift a soda.  Although not free, the ability to craft a video message and send a ‘branded act of kindness’ was a nice extra.
• Denny’s offered free Grand Slam breakfasts of pancakes eggs bacon and sausage and drew two million people into its 1600 restaurants in North America and Puerto Rico. Consumers also received a coupon booklet good for additional free items. The chain estimates the $5 million cost of the promo yielded much more than 47 million hits to its website and $50 million in media value.
• Dutch airline KLM ran an experimental campaign called How Happiness Spreads, where it employed a “Surprise Team” to give passengers tailored, unexpected gifts at the airport. Partnering with location-based game Foursquare, as soon as someone checked-in at a KLM Foursquare location within its network of airports the Surprise Team went online to find more background information about the person, decided upon a suitable gift and gave it them before they flew.
• Spain-based airline Spanair surprised passengers on one of its late Christmas Eve flights. As the passengers waited to pick up their luggage at the carousel, the airline sent out personalized presents to everyone who was onboard as a way of celebrating the holiday.
• Ciroc Vodka launched a campaign in New York in association with rapper Sean Combs and NYC DOT. The Safe Rides Program saw Ciroc staff teams distribute pre-paid gift cards to consumers that could be redeemed for taxi rides.
• Staples performed free PC tune-ups at its 1,500 stores. Customers received a full system analysis report a list of services performed and suggestions for further improvements to their PC’s performance.
• FedEx Office Print and Ship Centers provided free resume printing for job seekers is now seeing a halo effect among its own employees.
• Every weekday since 2004, a vintage Checker Cab decked out in HSBC branding provides free rides to bank patrons across Manhattan. Johnnie the cab driver approaches customers as they leave the bank and offers them a lift.
• Washington based eco-conscious restaurant chain Sweetgreen employs a street team to perform ‘Random Acts of Sweetness’ for its customers. Previous acts include covering people’s bike seats when it rains, or leaving gift certificates for drivers who’ve received parking tickets.
• Canadian division of orange juice brand Tropicana, brought a 36-foot wide helium balloon ‘sun’ to Inuvik, an Arctic Town 200km north of the Arctic Circle whose 3,500 residents face 31 days of darkness in winter.

When planning your branded acts of kindness campaign, remember:

• Be compassionate and human.
• Be genuine and honest.
• Be generous…whether to a few or a lot of people.
• Be personal…but not stalker-personal.
• Encourage sharing and the pay-it-forward idea with those you reward.
• Let your ambassadors give life to your campaign.
• Have meaning.
• Be consistent, but not overly frequent…keep it special.
• Don’t sell.
• Keep it about the customer, not you.

What are some good branded acts of kindness you’ve seen? How about some you’d like to see?

(Image source: http://www.toms.com)

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You get 2.7 seconds to get your message across. True at least for the average under-20…and for anyone who has re-trained their brains by using technology. Attention span is the new barrier to marketing success – no hearts and minds will be won if you can’t capture their attention fast.

This idea became even more clear during a discussion by Peter Shankman (@skydiver), founder of Help a Reporter Out - HARO at a recent SPRA luncheon. Speaking about the future of social media in PR and marketing campaigns, his talk highlighted this easy-to-overlook point: emerging generations are used to getting their information in small bursts – 140 characters (micro-blogs like Twitter) or 160 characters (text messaging), which take 2.7 seconds to read.

Too many businesses and organizations have a tendency to over-share and wax poetic about their topics of interest (I know I’m guilty). However, maintaining marketing relevancy demands a new approach.

Relevancy = value, thoughtfulness, and brevity. (And, of course, a kick butt strategy for reaching the appropriate audiences.)

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The first time I can remember feeling jealous of another girl’s clothing was probably in sixth grade when Rachel Fox came to school wearing a long sleeved flower print body suit with Guess denim shorts. She looked hot, and she knew it. The boys knew it too. Since then, I’ve gone through my fair share of trends thanks to classmates, roommates, and office mates influencing my fashion choices. (Patent leather Airwalks in 1995? Yeah, don’t remind me.)

As a woman, I care about what other women think about me more than what men think of me. I’m happily married to a guy that thinks I look great in sweatpants, and tells me so frequently. That also means he doesn’t understand that when I whine and whimper inside the closet every few weeks about “nothing to wear” it’s usually because I’m dressing to compete with all the other women who look fabulous.

It’s easier to admit my own insecurities knowing I’m not the only woman in the world with them. In an article last week by Sean Silverthorne with Harvard Business School, researchers discovered that seventy percent of all actions on social networking sites are related to viewing pictures or viewing other people’s profiles. While men use social networking sites to look at women they know and don’t know, women are not looking at pictures or profiles of men. They are looking at women they already know.

To me, this discovery only solidifies my theory that social media is changing the future of marketing because it gives women an easy avenue to see, read, and hear about the things their female friends love. For good and for bad, women depend on each other to discover the latest fashions, the best new movies, and the most delicious recipes. We even influence each other’s choices of where to volunteer and donate our money. We share these things to help one another out and—let’s just admit it—to compete with each other. What does this mean for brands, and the agencies who represent them?

We must identify the Megan Fox’s of our world. And we must put them to use.

Ask yourself: who is your brand champion? Who are the women talking loudly with large networks? One brand who is doing a great job engaging customers is Red Robin, who uses their receipts to ask patrons to fill out an online survey. Those people are invited to tell recommend the chain to their friends using Facebook. About 20 percent of those asked will make the recommendation to friends. (Read more about their tactics here.)

Red Robin does two things that more brands need to follow. They remind people to tell their friends about the restaurant, and they give them easy tools to make that recommendation happen.  The great thing is you don’t have to be a huge corporation to follow Red Robin’s lead. Nonprofits can offer free raffle tickets during events for patrons who have tweeted about the event. Small businesses can email online surveys to people who drop their business card at the counter. Other companies may choose to include a reminder tag on eblasts. So, get busy. Put your brand advocates to use! If you’re not sure how- we’re here. Give us a call.

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