Getting Hooked

by Richard Reeve on November 20, 2008

in @CCSeed

Fish Hooks - A Variety

@CCSeed:

I spent yesterday focused on branding and taglines while attending a seminar at the Support Center for Non-Profit Management in NYC (the tweet stream with some useful notes is here).  A lot of information got served up and I had more than enough to chew upon for the rest of the day. But the most poignant moments came talking and walking toward Madison Square Garden with my friend Kate Conroy, Executive Director of NYMACC.  On the multiple billboards decorating that outdoor public space it became clear that the tagline had one purpose: to be a memorable hook.

One definition of a brand is the sum total of the thoughts your audience has about you, your product or your service.  And this specific aspect of branding called the tagline becomes a most useful tool in crafting and shaping those perceptions. In our information overloaded society, how are you even going to claim any space in the minds of your constituents unless you set the hook, and set it hard?

I posted recently about hooks in social media, so my mind is already leaning that direction, but the concern I have about the approach my non-profit colleagues were taking was the attempt, perhaps unknowingly, to make a tag line a condensed mission statement.

Much of the work I engage in with social media space has been mindful of the challenges of personal branding.  If you haven’t had a look, check out this offering on the subject from Chris Brogan.  To that end, yesterday on Chris’ blog, my friend Alasdair Munn commented on how people identify with brands, and craft their own identities by the brands they choose to associate with.  On one level then, branding is the the effort to shape what I wish you to think about me.  Now that sounds like a huge psychological hang up, why would I care what anybody thinks about me.  So let me come at it from this angle.  Does the story I tell paint the image of how I want to be thought of?  More important than any of that though: does how my brand intersects with you shape how you think about yourself.  That’s where the gold is.

(image CC via Wikipedia)

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  • I'm beginning to think that for nonprofits/service industries the tag line is not meant to be a distillation of the mission, but rather of the values. Distilled into their essence;
    Kate Conroy; candor, levity, results.
    NYMACC; arts, community, access.
  • Interesting feedback on this one from a variety of perspectives. What stands out for me in the context of social media and personal branding: each action in this public arena is shaping what someone else is thinking about you. Never do you have a handle on who your efforts are influencing or in what way. Consistency of messaging with frequent repetition of key points essential to define the frame you wish folks to intersect with.
  • To answer your question--YES!

    Since I deal mainly from the alcoholic beverages arena, I'll slant my response from there.

    All marketers are competing for a potential customer's "share-of-mind." As Mike above put it, to position a product in the consumer's mind, one must...

    "...hits a consumers “solution” button becomes desirable. It explains why Health, Wealth & Romance products sell so well."

    The other reason these products sell well is that the marketers are using the rule of the "7 Deadly Sins."

    In the alcohol business--or any business--you market to these to see results.

    For instance, Patrón tequila's "Simply Perfect" campaign is vague enough for anyone to come to their own conclusions about what one thinks is "perfect." No matter what it is, though, the idea that if you drink Patrón, YOU are perfect makes this campaign a success because...

    We ALL want to belong to something. We want what the wealthy are drinking (envy, pride). If we drink Patrón, we will be perceived--or perceive ourselves--as being "perfect," whatever that is.

    Automobiles, perfume, alcohol, jewelry, and many other items are presented with young girls to display them. Ever wonder why?

    Sex sells! (Lust) If you drive that car, wear that cologne, drink that booze, or wear that watch, you'll be perceived as sexy, and maybe even perceive yourself as sexy. On the other hand...

    If you eat that organic catsup, subscribe to that organic newsletter, or make only organic margaritas (there is such a drink!), then you could be perceived--and perceive yourself to be--enviromentally friendly, healthy, or "green."

    Pick your target market, get to know them, and market accordingly, but be careful. You may also be shaping their perception of themselves!
  • kim (lunasoul)
    Funny, as I sat down with my morning coffee (early eve for you), I had planned on writing you on this very subject before having seen your tweet on Twitter. I shall proceed as if I hadn't seen it.

    Hello Richard,
    Morning coffee in hand, the misty cold dawn crowing at my window, I find myself lured to your site for some crackling warmth. The images and words that you have crafted together there both stimulate and soothe me. I feel welcomed. I feel safe. I learn things. I think. I laugh. I'm intrigued by your stories, your dreams, your encounters with nature. I see we have many similar interests. I see what you've done (and are doing) and am inspired to do more.

    To me, your/my humanity and authenticity are paramount.
  • Mike
    I think most would agree that branding is in fact the "selling position" of whatever the item, thing or person. That said, there are terrific products of every sort, badly branded and for the most part unknown. By comparison there are truly terrible products, well branded that sell like hotcakes.

    It's never about the real product or someone's IQ. It's how it's branded or presented, period. I know some extremely high IQ people who can't present themselves to save their life and I also know some average street wise folks who have amazing emotional intelligence talents are can present and sell very well across all demographics.

    Just like great content is lost when presented badly, good products, no matter what they are, never see the light of day when not properly positioned in the mind of the consumer.

    As simple as it sounds, any product that hits a consumers "solution" button becomes desirable. It explains why Health, Wealth & Romance products sell so well. There is a huge "starving crowd" waiting to be sold. Some are so desperate to find a weight loss product they will & do buy just about anything, even the ones that are branded terribly. A large enough starving crowd can float some very so-so products.

    While it is about branding, well branded in too tight a niche market may speak to so few, it's a business case that no longer makes sense. But then, proper due diligence in one's marketing will reveal that long before too much effort is expended.

    I close with this thought. If as I've read here, the branding is actually how a product is perceived then I ask this: What becomes of a new product. A product with no consumer opinion or history. It's being introduced for the first time ever. Not the latest greatest or newly improved but rather a FIRST time product. I would have to think, a FIRST time product would go through an extensive marketing process. A lengthy test period with actual consumers to gauge their initial reactions. Thus being able to put a proper branding campaign together prior to launch.
  • Never underestimate the power of flattery! Thanks Richard for the shout out. Alasdair articulated it nicely above and inspires this tag line: "Richard Reeve, he rocks!"

    Our very serious workshop taught me that a tag line is often helped by humor, analogy, and contemporary idiom. Rock on!
  • Very well put. I like the way you think. In fact I like the way you articulate the way you think.

    One of your gifts is delivering content in a way that is accessible and understood by both the converted and the unconverted, or rather the initiated and the uninitiated.
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