You’re the Next Contestant on the Price is Right!!!!!!!!!!
I LOVE the Price is Right. Who doesn't? I'm sure everyone has a memory of watching it and excitedly shouting at the TV in hopes the contestant on TV will take your suggestion on what number to pick. I began watching the show when I was younger during my summer vacations. Just recently, I've had the time to watch it again. What I've noticed the second time around is that this show has not changed one bit. It's 70's bright, glittery colors and graphics are as old and outdated as the microphone Bob Barker uses. The one with the skinny handle and long cable leading who knows where. The 80 games that are on constant rotation have not changed and neither have the cheesy prizes. Contestants still have a change to win old-fashion popcorn makers, silver dishware and 1990's floral living room furniture. The constantly changing Barker's Beauties seem to wear the same cheesy outfits since the start of the show in 1972. Yet none of this seems to matter.
The show has been on for 35 years making it the longest running game show in American TV history. The show has also had the pleasure of having the same host Bob Barker for the length of the entire show. Bob has won 17 Emmy awards, received a Lifetime Achievement award for host and has been installed in the TV Academy Hall of Fame. What makes a show that seems to be stuck in the past so popular? Well for one, they give hope. Hope to be a contestant for just being in the audience. Hope that a contestant doesn't need to super smart or witty in order to win. Hope getting the right price. It's about hoping you win the prize.
The element that has led to the success of this brand is consistency.
1. The charmingly Bob Barker
2. Barker's Beauties
3, Games
4. Announcer
5. Set Design
6. Barker's Beauties Outfits
7. Excitement (contestants & audience members)
8. Bob T-Shirts (contestants wear)
9. 'Have your pets spare or neutered."
10. Prizes ranging from living room sets to cold hard cash.
This consistency over 35 years has built a safe haven for all to enjoy. From stay at home moms, children to young to go to school, retired folks, college students and the unemployed. You won't find deception, drama, scandals, blandness or sexual references here. This type of behavior is only common around the soap operas, court and talk shows the game show is nestled in-between.
So what does this mean for brands? Consistency is good. A safe place is what consumers want when most shows in daytime television show dysfunction in families (Montel & Maury Povich), argumentative TV hosts (Rosie from The View) or broken relationships fighting over money (Judge Judy, People's Court). A little hope that one day you can be a contestant on the Price is Right!
Bob Barker is retiring this month so lets make sure to pay tribute by spade or neutering your pet.
Friday, May 4, 2007
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Blocking You Out
Just as I finished my last post about brands building meaningful relationships with people or fear the rath of the people (formally: consumer).
Art Hijacks Internet Ads
Artist Steve Lambert and the non-profit “R&D For The Public Domain” Eyebeam OpenLab, coded a Firefox add-on that replaces ads on a website with contemporary art. While a prototype is up and running, they’re working to build a fully curetted art database.
The project will be supported by a small website providing information on the current artists and curator, along with a schedule of past and upcoming AddArt shows. Each 2 weeks will include 5-8 artists selected by emerging and established curators. Images will have to be cropped to standard banner sizes or can be custom made for the project. Artists can target sites (such as every ad on FoxNews.com) and/or default to any page on the internet with ads. One artist will be shown per page. The curatorial duty will be passed among curators through recommendations, word of mouth, and solicitations to the AddArt site.
Art Hijacks Internet Ads
Artist Steve Lambert and the non-profit “R&D For The Public Domain” Eyebeam OpenLab, coded a Firefox add-on that replaces ads on a website with contemporary art. While a prototype is up and running, they’re working to build a fully curetted art database.
The project will be supported by a small website providing information on the current artists and curator, along with a schedule of past and upcoming AddArt shows. Each 2 weeks will include 5-8 artists selected by emerging and established curators. Images will have to be cropped to standard banner sizes or can be custom made for the project. Artists can target sites (such as every ad on FoxNews.com) and/or default to any page on the internet with ads. One artist will be shown per page. The curatorial duty will be passed among curators through recommendations, word of mouth, and solicitations to the AddArt site.
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
People (not consumers), Building Momentum (not awareness)
I came across this article today about old school vs. new school of planning....
I think it explains very well where advertising is heading. People aka consumers are so savvy to being marketed to that the upping the frequency of ad messages just doesn't cut it anymore. It's like my friend, the wonderful, wise Erin says its about starting a conversation and I wholeheartedly agree. It's about starting a meaningful relationship that engages people in a two -way conversation. It's about giving people the ability to interact with the brand. To get to know it without being intrusive and just taking up valuable time in a person's life.
momentum versus awareness
I’ve been thinking about the value of brand momentum versus raising awareness. The old marketing/advertising model looked at reach and frequency as successful ways to raise awareness of your brand. If ‘x’ amount of people are exposed to your brand, ‘y’ amount of times, they are more likely to engage with your brand. So, the equation looked like this:
x (amount of people exposed) ‘times’ y (amount of times) = awareness
A CMO can take this soft data and defend the current marketing campaign to the CEO, CFO, etc. The problem with this model is that it focuses strictly on traditional advertising mediums such as TV, print, radio and traditional interactive. All which are one-way form of communications and doesn’t factor in engagement, interestingness, etc.
That’s where marketing 2.0 comes in with brand momentum.
From CP+B’s Hoopla,
“momentum is a better goal to strive for than awareness…Momentum, if sustainable will roll over everything in its path.
How do you know if your brand has momentum? The answer to this is…you just know. People are talking about it without being prompted. New stories are being done about it. Independent websites spring up, where enthusiasts swap tips about it…”
Get the picture? It’s about connecting with people (not consumers) and building authentic relationships and holding conversations (not advertising) with them. This is similar to the transmedia planning model Faris talks about and what Leland just wrote about.
Also, marketers are looking into the momentum effect to measure campaigns on social networking sites.
The “Never-Ending Friending” study identified a metric dubbed the “Momentum Effect” by Marketing Evolution, a marketing, measurement and consulting firm. The metric attempts to quantify the impact of a brand within a social network beyond traditional advertising impressions to encompass the viral power of consumer-to-consumer communication.
“We looked at awareness levels, responses to an ad, the number of people who came to the custom community–and asked what the exponential value of the conversation happening in the social network is,” Browning said. In other words, what value can be placed on the brand chatter among friends in your network?
Read the rest of the Mediapost article here.
We can start by replacing traditional advertising lingo with different phrases and goals.
Raising awareness -> Brand Momentum
Targeting individuals -> Engaging a brand community
Does your brand have momentum?
Posted at 5pm on 04/30/07 | no comments | Filed Under: advertising read on
I think it explains very well where advertising is heading. People aka consumers are so savvy to being marketed to that the upping the frequency of ad messages just doesn't cut it anymore. It's like my friend, the wonderful, wise Erin says its about starting a conversation and I wholeheartedly agree. It's about starting a meaningful relationship that engages people in a two -way conversation. It's about giving people the ability to interact with the brand. To get to know it without being intrusive and just taking up valuable time in a person's life.
momentum versus awareness
I’ve been thinking about the value of brand momentum versus raising awareness. The old marketing/advertising model looked at reach and frequency as successful ways to raise awareness of your brand. If ‘x’ amount of people are exposed to your brand, ‘y’ amount of times, they are more likely to engage with your brand. So, the equation looked like this:
x (amount of people exposed) ‘times’ y (amount of times) = awareness
A CMO can take this soft data and defend the current marketing campaign to the CEO, CFO, etc. The problem with this model is that it focuses strictly on traditional advertising mediums such as TV, print, radio and traditional interactive. All which are one-way form of communications and doesn’t factor in engagement, interestingness, etc.
That’s where marketing 2.0 comes in with brand momentum.
From CP+B’s Hoopla,
“momentum is a better goal to strive for than awareness…Momentum, if sustainable will roll over everything in its path.
How do you know if your brand has momentum? The answer to this is…you just know. People are talking about it without being prompted. New stories are being done about it. Independent websites spring up, where enthusiasts swap tips about it…”
Get the picture? It’s about connecting with people (not consumers) and building authentic relationships and holding conversations (not advertising) with them. This is similar to the transmedia planning model Faris talks about and what Leland just wrote about.
Also, marketers are looking into the momentum effect to measure campaigns on social networking sites.
The “Never-Ending Friending” study identified a metric dubbed the “Momentum Effect” by Marketing Evolution, a marketing, measurement and consulting firm. The metric attempts to quantify the impact of a brand within a social network beyond traditional advertising impressions to encompass the viral power of consumer-to-consumer communication.
“We looked at awareness levels, responses to an ad, the number of people who came to the custom community–and asked what the exponential value of the conversation happening in the social network is,” Browning said. In other words, what value can be placed on the brand chatter among friends in your network?
Read the rest of the Mediapost article here.
We can start by replacing traditional advertising lingo with different phrases and goals.
Raising awareness -> Brand Momentum
Targeting individuals -> Engaging a brand community
Does your brand have momentum?
Posted at 5pm on 04/30/07 | no comments | Filed Under: advertising read on
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