| BIG BRAND TECHNIQUES
Mud on my Face, and a Marketing Revelation
What a $19 jar of charcoal scrub taught me
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Last summer, in Boston for a few days on vacation, I wandered into a local mall. I ended up in a store I had shopped in before at a different location. It specializes in soaps and bath-type products that look handmade, and have very basic packaging.
Here's what happened. It's a little embarrassing, actually, because I know a lot about marketing and how it works, and I still fell for this approach.
The Marketing Process Begins
When I entered the store, I was approached by a salesperson who asked if I needed help with anything. I deflected her offer, and continued to peruse the products. She asked if I'd visited the store before, and I said yes. (She established a connection).
I looked around at their soaps, which I had purchased before, but I didn't see anything that looked appealing. Then I moved to the other side of the store, and the salesperson asked me if I was familiar with their skin care line. I said no, I wasn't.
For the sake of the story, here's an important detail. I'm in my forties, and my skin still gets oily. I even get the occasional pimple, much to my annoyance.
The salesperson asked me about my skin type. (Establishing a connection again). I told her about my oily skin, and she offered two solutions. One was a skin treatment with lavender that smelled great, but probably wouldn't help me. The other was a treatment made with charcoal, which would absorb the oil on my face and clear my skin right up. (Established a connection once again, and made a promise).
So I bought it. It was jet black, and I couldn't wait to try it.
You Know Where this is Going, Don't You?
 I returned to my hotel room with its snowy white towels. I splashed some water on my face, and proceeded to smear the scrub all over my skin. I rinsed it off, and looked up at my grey-streaked face in the mirror. I looked like a corpse!
So I rinsed some more, and finally grabbed a towel to dry my face. I managed to get it all off, and - once I finished rinsing out the hotel towel with soap and water since I'd left it all grey - I had to laugh.
I spent nearly $20 on a jar of charcoal paste to smear on my face. How did that happen?
It happened because that salesperson had been well trained to make a connection with everyone who wandered in to her store.
The salesperson: - Established my level of familiarity with the products when she asked me if I'd been there before.
- Asked me what my specific problems were.
- Offered two solutions, one of which was clearly better.
By the time she offered me those products, I felt like it was a personalized recommendation. I was sold!
So sold that I sauntered back to my hotel and soiled a snowy-white towel, made myself look dead and - by the way - still get the occasional pimple.
These are great lessons for all of us. If you get the connection with your audience right, you can even sell a jar of charcoal!
I'll be back again in two weeks. And join me on the brand-new Big Brand System blog. I'll be looking for your comments!
 PAMELA WILSONBig Brand System
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DESIGN SCHOOL
Be Obvious with your Emphasis
When you design anything - whether it's a web page, flyer, or ad - there must be a dominant element if you want it to look right.
Here are three covers to an imaginary book. Two of them work well, and the other is not as compelling. Can you see which one doesn't work as well? Take a minute to view all three, and decide for yourself.
In the first and last examples, one of the elements dominates. In the first example, it's the monkey graphic. In the last example, it's the title.
In the middle example, both elements are equal in importance. Neither one dominates, and this makes the cover look a little boring and bland.
How can you use the concept of visual dominance in your business marketing? Do your marketing materials have a clear emphasis?
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 What's Bugging You?What's most confusing to you about design and marketing? Send me your question, and I'll cover it in a future issue of the Big Brand System newsletter. Send your question. |
