“That’s just marketing fluff, no one will care about that or believe it!”
I’ll admit it - I used to diss marketing all the time. I didn’t understand how or why it mattered.
I watched a fair amount of TV when I was younger and read lots of newspapers and magazines. Ads were things of amusement at best. I never stopped to think and understand why a print ad or a television commercial was presented the way it was. I cared why things were displayed the way they were at the grocery store or pharmacy.
Boy, was I wrong.
A few years ago I co-founded a CPG start-up (consumer packaged goods) in the legal cannabis industry. Coming from the tech sector I was used to investors and prospective employees asking me what was unique about our product or solution; what’s our “secret sauce” ? Well, our company developed and sold baked goods and snack products. Of course ours were the best in the world but there were many other companies in the market offering similar products. There was no “secret sauce”.
(BTW - I’m so happy no one uses the term “secret sauce” anymore...thankfully it’s buried in the graveyard next to “paradigm shift”).
This CPG start-up was a branding play. We were going to win by developing and building a brand that connected with our target consumers and built trust with them, that their experience with our products would be second to none. So, how do you do that? With marketing.
Through the journey at the CPG start-up I developed an appreciation for the importance of building a strong brand. The brand represents who you are, what you stand for, and why you exist. Consumers whom you hope will use your products on a regular basis will buy if they trust the brand.
Trust in a brand is built over time. The company needs to use various strategies and programs to establish a connection with the consumer, convey the value of the products and then convince the consumer you can help them with some important part of their life.
I regularly buy electronics products from the same brand. I buy athletic apparel from the same brand. I have my preferred brands for wine and beer. I’m sure you could say the same. As a consumer I've been subject to marketing my entire life and realized it was happening or the importance of it to get me as a consumer to buy those products, over and over.
I’ve learned that marketing is about telling a story. To craft the right story I’ve learned that the company needs to have a strong understanding and definition of their target consumer. Who they are, what they do, and what things they need help with. Your product, to be successful, has to address the needs or pain points of the consumer. You can’t develop a good story that will successfully connect with the consumer without this.
We can all think about products or apps we downloaded to our phone or laptop that we’ve used and then been left disappointed. The company was successful in getting your attention; they convinced you their product could help you. And...it didn’t. This brings up another lesson learned.
The company’s product needs to live up to the story that’s been told by marketing. You have to walk the walk, not just talk the talk. Crystal Pepsi and New Coke were both launched in the nineties to much fanfare. Those products might have lasted 18 months, at best. (Now, some people argue they were never indicated to be successful products, but rather part of some brilliant marketing campaign to refresh interest in “Coke Classic” or regular Pepsi). The product experience has to back-up the marketing story being told to consumers. Otherwise long term harm to the brand can occur, and companies can struggle.
And the final lesson for now - marketing is a continuous journey and takes ongoing investment. Even the biggest brands in the market: Apple, Nike, Toyota, Samsung, Sony, Starbucks...they have been well-established for years. Yet they continue to invest marketing dollars in keeping their brands refresh and interesting to consumers.
Thank you for investing time in reading this post. Questions and comments are always welcome.
Shail Paliwal
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