ANA Marketing Maestros

Happy Valentine's Day: How to Steal Your Customer's Heart Away

By: Irina Skaya

According to Jonathan Kranz of Kranz Communications, every sale is a kind of seduction where marketers make introductions, pursue relationships and hope for the perfect “happily ever after” ending —the sale. He said, “As in any love affair, we know that reason plays a subordinate role to emotion. To win a portion of our prospects’ bank account, we must win their hearts first.” 

Customer relations were always important, but in these days, it is especially important to go that ‘extra mile’ to satisfy and exceed the expectations of your customers. Companies that succeed are those that develop meaningful relationships with consumers. How do you win the hearts of consumers?

• Make them feel special: Consumers are tired of being talked to. Like at the initiation of any pursuit, you, the marketer must engage the consumer by having an open conversation with them and showing empathy with their consumers, not selling them your services.
• Them, not me: A first date really gone badly is probably one where the other person continuously talks about him/herself and asks zero questions about you. It’s the same kind of thing.  President and “2008 Marketer of the Year,” Barack Obama led a successful, “We, not me” marketing campaign.
• Make a commitment: Take a risk and make a guarantee. Especially in these tough economic times, you must give existing consumers another reason to continue using your product and new consumers to try it. You have to give them a certain level of security; by offering them, “Your money back, no questions asked,” you’re developing trust between you and the customer.

In the days of social media, dissatisfied customers spread the bad news fast and can negatively impact your business. That’s why it’s especially important now more than ever to always put your customers first and continue to exceed their expectations through satisfaction and engagement.

Consumers "Crash The Super Bowl"

By Irina Skaya

In my last blog, I talked about the value of being innovative and engaging consumers during the economic slowdown. What’s more ground-breaking and engaging than user-generated advertising? 

The two best-rated ads during Sunday’s Super Bowl were consumer-generated ads for Doritos.  Every marketing conference I attend, I hear of the importance of putting ourselves, marketers, into the shoes of consumers. Our products must reflect the needs of the consumers. Consumer insights are a key to creating ads. So why aren’t more marketers letting their own consumers create ads for their products? Won’t these ads engage more target consumers and be more relevant?

User-generated advertising is much more cost-effective; it’s basically free! Plus, there is a tremendous potential for PR. The other benefit of user-generated content is the possibility of discovering brand new advertising talent—advertisers are always seeking the next big creative genius. So why aren’t marketers embracing consumer-generated advertising as much as they should? 

Don't be afraid of not receiving high-quality ads. There are plenty of campaigns that have launched contests for consumer-generated advertising, and have received high-quality content. Consumers also like the opportunity to be creative because they feel they have some impact and some ownership. They put a lot of time and thought into what they are doing.  There's something to be said about an ad created by someone who really loves the product, versus what you get from someone who is paid.

Take a look at examples from HP, Apple, Converse, and of course Doritos. Below is one of the Doritos ads from this year’s Super Bowl.

Technorati tags: Super Bowl user-generated consumer-generated Doritos ad Apple HP Converse consumer engagement

BIG Ideas in a Shrinking Economy

By: Irina Skaya

Having BIG ideas and being creative is crucial more than ever in today's tough economic climate. Being innovative will make your company stand out from the competition. Everyone gathers around the water cooler to talk about creative ads no one talks about dull ads. Even in a recession, customers will spend money on things they like and enjoy. This means that marketers must work even harder to produce creative ads in order to engage consumers emotionally and want their products more.  Here are a few of my favorite creative ads from around the world to inspire you to think outside the box. If you d like to share ads that inspire you, feel free to comment on my blog and respond with a link.

Who said car ads can't be creative?

Subaru Forester 2009 commercial

Below is an example of bagvertising at it's finest: YKM, a Turkish department store chain.

Below is a bus stop ad in Australia advertising customized stamps.

Below is the "Express Yourself Ad" from Samsung

If you want to view more winning, creative ads, visit: http://adsoftheworld.com/blog.

Recession’s Impact on the Super Bowl Advertising '09

By: Irina Skaya

During good economic times, Super Bowl advertising is expensive but in a recession is the return on the investment valuable enough to spend a swooping $3 million on a 30-second spot?  The other interesting question is what will be the tonality of the brands like in this economic hurricane, humorous and risqué, or more somber?

Many companies who routinely advertise during the NFL's biggest game of the year will still continue to do so. They argue that Super Bowl ads reach the largest audience (approximately 95 million people) at one time. Those who are pulling back are beginning the question the value of their ads in this traditional medium. 

Whether or not you are advertising during the Big Game this year, there are a few things you should keep an eye on. Below are some recommendations by top-level executives for those who did purchase a spot in this year's Super Bowl:

PBMAI
Kellogg Super Bowl Advertising Review
AdAge

Inauguration in the Age of Social Media

By: Irina Skaya

January 20, 2009

7:00 a.m. - Woke up and turned the television on to watch continued inauguration coverage by Diane Sawyer and Charlie Gibson.

8:00 a.m. - Picked up the NY Daily News newspaper to read the schedule of upcoming inaugural activities.

9:00 a.m. - Logged on to www.abc.com/news to watch live coverage of Barack Obama's swearing-in as the 44th President of the United States.

9:15 a.m. - Updated my Facebook status to share my enthusiasm with friends.

My day was not atypical. For decades, people have passively set in front of their television sets to watch historic events like the inaugural celebrations or the Watergate hearings. The historic inauguration of Barack Obama, the 44^th President of the United States and the first social media President, flocked viewers to the online live nation-wide celebration coverage and social networks such as Facebook and Twitter where users actively updated their “statuses,” and microblogged to share their reactions with the rest of the world.

When I logged-on to the Facebook Web site to update my own “status,” I was pleasantly surprised at the exorbitant number of status updates I’ve received from friends—and how much more enhanced the experience became for me. Some of my friends were reporting live from the event, uploading photos almost instantly via the use of their mobile devices. Others who celebrated the historic moment elsewhere also uploaded our own photos and videos to the social network. I, myself, have uploaded a couple of photos and video (to Facebook and Barack Obama’s online photo album) from Times Square where a small group of ANA co-workers and I witnessed the inauguration of the first African-American president. In minutes, I edited the video using the editing software that came with the flipcamera and posted it to the Web. In a way, we were all reporters for the day with the help of mobile devices and pocket-size camcorders. It felt great to be able to actively participate in the inauguration (the non-traditional way) and share my impressions with friends in real-time.

Even for those of us who weren’t in Washington, we still felt the camaraderie and unity within the social community. I am looking forward to the new administration and to further explore the power of the social media.

How Great Marketing Led Barack Obama to the White House

By: Irina Skaya

Today, Barack Obama will be sworn in as the 44^th president of the United States. Successful Internet marketing is the cornerstone of the 2009 historic inauguration. How did Obama connect with today’s diverse general market? How do we as marketers engage, inspire and motivate today’s consumers?

History was made when Barack Obama was elected President, but his win is beyond historic – his superb use of online marketing to promote awareness and create a loyal following has earned him AdAge’s Marketer of the Year award at the ANA Annual Masters of Marketing Conference. It also became be the template which all future presidential campaigns will draw inspiration from.  

Thomas Jefferson was the first President to use newspapers to promote his presidential campaign, Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first to use radio, John F. Kenny used television. Barack Obama is the first president to have the power to leverage Social Media in such a way as never seen before by our Presidency or Government as a whole.  

The secret behind any successful marketing campaign is to put yourselves in the shoes of the consumers. Sure, his multiracial and multicultural background represents today’s generation, but Obama has also appointed the best marketing staff that represents and knows its target market inside and out. That’s why his campaign has embraced social media. Youth vote had a major role to play in the landslide victory, and the role of the internet - the living space of the youth. His inspirational message of “change has come to America" has remained consistent throughout the presidential campaign. This message became even more important in the economic downturn.

On February 12^th, Jim Margolis, Senior Advisor to the Barack Obama presidential campaign will discuss the power of social media and share lessons from Obama's campaign at the TV & Everything Video Forum.

TV widgets...upcoming trend of 2009?

By: Irina Skaya

Apparently, widgets are taking on a new life--they are now coming to a TV near you! And who is behind this revolutionary thinking? Yahoo! in partnership with Samsung, Sony, LG Electronics and VIZIO announced their launch of an internet widget-based function for the TV, this week at the CES conference. The idea behind this Widget Channel is to develop mini-applications that can complement TV viewing with information from the Internet, providing viewers with relevant and targeted information while enhancing their television watching experience. Widget Engine combines key attributes of the Internet, including openness, community, and personalization, with the power of television.

This is great for advertisers because the widget could allow users to purchase products advertised on TV from online store. There are several applications planned such as MySpace, Twitter, Flickr, eBay, CBS, Netflix, Blockbuster, New York Times and various Yahoo! widgets.

We all know that despite the rise of the Web, TV is not going anywhere. People still spend more time watching television than they do on the Internet. TV widgets is a great way to converge the two. For instance, MySpace users will be able to access the widget using a remote and type message to their friends using an on-screen keyboard. Flickr users will be able to share photos with family and friends or watch a slideshow on their TV screen. Many of the widgets are still in the development process, but you can preview them here.

Don't Forget to Tune In...

By: Irina Skaya

Holidays are all about spending time with loved ones. It's about dysfunction, over-sharing, raised voices, embarrassing photo albums, awkward conversations, and zinger comments. Ah yes, it is also the perfect time to enjoy some friendly programming with family. Tomorrow night, December 12th, the ANA Alliance for Family Entertainment will honor the actors, actresses, producers, programming and digital media behind today’s best family content at the 10th Annual Family Entertainment Awards.

Tyler James Williams, star of Everybody Hates Chris will host the festivities. The show will also feature a stellar line-up of celebrities from the worlds of film, television and music, such as: Miley Cyrus, Blake Lively, Mario Lopez, Ryan Seacrest, Simon Cowell, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jennie Garth, Derek and Julianne Hough, Cody Linley, Leona Lewis, Mary Hart, among others.

The awards show is just one of many accomplishments of the Alliance. With your help, our members are working together to improve the media landscape and ensure that age appropriate content is available to multi-generational audiences. With our new name and logo, we are aggressively forming the relationships necessary to carry out our expanded mission.

Again, please help us celebrate the Alliance's accomplishments and recognize the best in family friendly entertainment by tuning in and encouraging your colleagues to watch the 10th Annual Family Entertainment Awards on the CW Network at 9 pm EST on Friday, December 12, 2008. Please forward the following "tune in" Web link to your colleagues - http://www.ana.net/ffpf/content/ftva2008.

Watch the show’s preview below:

Check out last year’s Annual Family Entertainment Awards photos at www.facebook.com/ana.

Also, YouTube has many videos of the Family Entertainment Awards from past years. Just search, "Family Awards." Here is my favorite red carpet video of Zachary Levi and Joshua Gomez from the NBC Show, "Chuck."

Who am I? Tapping into the Chinese consumer market

By: Irina Skaya

Born in a small town that is unfamiliar with traffic lights and shopping malls, in Moldova (located between Romania and Ukraine) and growing up in the Big Apple, I continue to struggle with cultural duality and self-identity. On one hand, growing up in a diverse city like New York, I am more open-minded about other cultures than my parents. But I am always reminded that I am not American enough because I don’t eat hash browns, bacon and eggs for breakfast. On the other hand, I am not completely emerged in the Moldavian culture either because I was raised during the former USSR and I only speak Russian, not Moldavian.

But I am not alone. Whether you’ve emigrated from Moldova, Latin America or China, first and second generations struggle with cultural duality—we are pushed around by our American counterparts for not being American enough, and by families for being ashamed of our own heritage.  At last week’s ANA Multicultural Marketing Conference, Starcom Media Vest Group (SMG) presented marketers with insights into the cultural identities of Chinese Americans, and discussed the importance of researching the values and motivations of this group in order to truly connect to this market.

Although immigrants in general share similarities in regards to the assimilation into the American culture, the assimilation and acculturation models are very unique to the Chinese member community. For instance, the first generation is considered to be the protectors of the culture—they settle into metropolitan areas that are culturally saturated in order to maintain same traditions and rituals. The second generation, born on the American soil, is the forefathers of what it means to be Chinese-American.  They struggle with self-identity during the early part of their lives—they do not feel fully Chinese nor fully American. As they mature, they begin to embrace their culture and heritage by integrating their culture into American life. This group is known as the, “Hyphen in-between.” How does this duality and having two identities impact the Chinese sense of consumerism?

As marketers, it is critical to align messages based on the audience’s relationship to the following core pillars of value: tradition, frugality, family, worth ethic, education, food and entrepreneurship. The state of duality helps explain how participation with English-leaning communication approaches tethered to cultural nuance is vital to messaging. The growing paradox of Westernization and a desire to retain traditional cultural touchstones such as language will create a need for communicating in a nuanced and balanced way. Chinese Americans are the largest consumer of in-language media. The primary language spoken in families and among friends will influence the media consumption. The other indicator is generations. The younger generations are more English-leading as expected. However, most of them have seen Chinese media, consume it when they spend time with the older people in their families—this calls for more balance. In fact, the overall consumption of television is down by 35% and an increase of 53% in time-shifting because of lack of relevance of in-language media and antiquated stereotypes such as emasculated and sexualized Asian Americans. What does the Chinese American identity morph into moving forward?  How do we know this community aligns with our category and brands?

For a more in-depth analysis of the cultural identities study, visit www.ana.net.

89 Days Till the DTV Transition...

By: Irina Skaya

With 89 days left till DTV transition, it is important to understand why it’s happening and who will be affected. On February 17, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. all television stations across the U.S. are required to broadcast digitally only, phasing out analog broadcasting. The digital TV transition promises better sound, clearer pictures and most-importantly, multi-cast channels that will allow for more content and better targeted information.  Earlier this morning, the National Association of Broadcasters forewarned the audience at the Multicultural Marketing Conference about who will be affected by the transition and discussed what advertisers can do to smooth out the analog-to-digital process.

Although most of us are DTV-ready or have made plans to purchase new TV sets with a digital turner or a converter box, or subscribe to a pay-TV service, many seniors, low-income families and those who reside in rural areas will need to upgrade . So, how many are approximately affected? Approximately 19.6 million (17%) of US households receive their television signals through a rooftop antenna. Another 34.5 million (31%) have some over the air usage, meaning they may have a family room set connected to cable, but their bedroom set may broadcast over the antenna. And who specifically is affected? Many of the low-income families include Hispanics. In fact, as many as forty-one percent of Hispanic house-holds where Spanish is the primary language, will need to upgrade their TV sets.  This number is especially important to multicultural advertisers whose target audiences  are Hispanics.

What are some marketing efforts being put in place to spread the word about the upcoming digital transition?

From local churches, analog shut-off tests to “Trekkers” and monitors in grocery shops and gas pumps, DTV transition messaging is targeting Hispanics at work, in their homes and where they hang out. The television industry’s plan of $1.1 billion has made the transition process affordable for anyone. Each household regardless of income can apply for up to two coupons that run between $40 and $75. So far 35 million coupons have  been requested from 18 million households. If a household orders coupons, there is a 90 day expiration day, and once it aspires, they cannot get another coupon. With the numerous number of efforts from the broadcasting industry and the government, the percentage of people unprepared for DTV transition is expected to be low.  As advertisers, we can help aid the transition by promoting the transition to our clients via emails, events, and online efforts.