Whatever you dream is, whatever you want to achieve, you must learn Marketing. It will make you successful. That’s why this book has Chapter 3.
The Secret to Marketing: Make People Relate on a Visceral Level
Greg Ippolito at a TED talk said what I believe (actually I know), is the secret to Marketing, and as such the secret to success:
“With all forms of art, whether it be advertising, music, literature, when it really, really works well, it’s when it connects with the audience in that visceral level. And we can think of our favorite song, of a great passage from a movie, or a great passage from a book, the things that connect with you deeply, what really gets you in the gut and shake you inside out, this are the things we go for, and this are the things that are part of the creative process to reach.
So even when this messages are typically uplifting, they usually tap in something dark and secretive inside of us, fears that we don’t share with other people, like the way we doubt ourselves, or our worry that we are missing out on something, or our frustration that people don’t get us, or our fear that our lives maybe aren’t that meaningful…
This are profound beliefs, and for the people that hold them, they remain again secret, this aren’t things that people typically volunteer on surveys, this aren’t data points that you can put on a spreadsheet and analyze, to get to this part of advertising and to make advertising great, you need empathy and compassion, and these things are the realm of the artist (…)”.
What this means?
The secret to Marketing is to connect with the audience in that visceral level.
Don’t just advertise a Wedding ring so that a man can give it to a woman, say something profound that shakes the man buying the ring so deeply that he feels a profound and lasting happiness just by buying the ring:
A DIAMOND IS FOREVER – DeBeers, 1948
Don’t just ask a man to leave his family and risk his life, even though he loves his country. Tell him something he can look forward to everyday:
BE ALL YOU CAN BE – The US Army, 1981
Don’t just sell a car, don’t just build a great car, challenge people’s egos:
DRIVERS WANTED – Volkswagen, 1995
Don’t just promise a good meal, if it is so good why don’t you say so, give them a reason to be curious to try it:
FINGER LICKIN’ GOOD – KFC, 1952
Don’t just design a product that will solve people’s immediate problems, help them solve transcendent problems too:
IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING – Adidas, 2004
Don’t just offer a means to an end, why not offer some authenticity too, where else will people find it anyway, when most things around them are fake:
IT’S THE REAL THING – Coca Cola, 1970
Don’t just make a product, offer unbelievable benefits too, what is a hammer without the motivation to build a house:
JUST DO IT – Nike, 1988
Don’t just let the haters destroy the reputation of the product you worked so hard on, tell everybody how good it is, don’t be bullied:
MAYBE SHE’S BORN WITH IT – MAYBE IT’S MAYBELLINE – L’Oreal, 1991
Don’t just make a statement, say something that is capable of moving hearts, arms and legs into action:
NO CHILD BORN TO DIE – Save The Children, 2011
Don’t just make a car that can move you from A to B, make something that is enjoyable to drive, again, offer “unnecessary” but invaluable benefits:
THE ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE – BMW, 1975
Don’t just do a service for people who have to put their trust in you, do it without having to worry them:
WHEN IT ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY HAS TO BE THERE OVERNIGHT – FedEx, 1982
All these taglines from all these companies, shake us inside and tap in our deepest desires and fears. We hear what this companies want to offer and we just have to react to it, it is impossible to stay indifferent to words like that. If you can market your products, or yourself like that, people will adhere, they won’t have a choice. The rest you cement with credibility, business ethics and great costumer service.
Stélio Inácio
This text is part of the book Escaping Poverty – 5 Steps to Start your Own Business