Now, what they might be saying is that the traditional use of a 30 or 60 second spot might be fading away, although I'm not even sure that's true. But today, the truth is, you control the message more then you ever have. AND EVERYTHING YOU DO IS YOUR MESSAGE. I put that in all caps and bold because it's important. So read it again. Go ahead, I'll wait.
For the most part, consumers aren't creating their own messages for you, they're passing along or amplifying the message they're getting from you. So, when:
- I go into your store and no one there can help me or they know less about your product then I do, you're delivering a message.
- I try to use your web site and I can't figure out your navigation, you're delivering a message.
- Your return policy is as complicated as possible to deter people from returning products they don't like, you're delivering a message.
- You use those horrible voicemail systems where it takes forever to try to figure out how to speak to a real person, you're delivering a message.
- You put the needs of the company ahead of the needs of your consumer, you're delivering a message.
And thanks to all of the social media tools out there, when you deliver your message, we, the consumer, use those tools to pass along your message. We amplify your message, both good & bad, and pass it along. You may not control what I pass along, but you sure control the message that's delivered in the first place. But thanks to the silo'd world of brands and advertising, brand managers are so far removed from the actual delivery of the brand message, they they have no idea what's actually being delivered at the point of interaction with the brand. I'll place a good bet that most brand managers don't spend much time in retail watching people interact with their brands.
Tonight I saw the new Domino's commercial and visited their new web site, New Domino's Pizza - Oh Yes We Did. This is the world we live in. Companies listening to people saying good and bad things about their brand and then making adjustments as needed. Clearly, their brand experience was not delivering on their message. And unless it's all a put on, they're being transparent about how they're dealing with the gap between message and experience.
That's why I say that today, more then perhaps ever, you do control your message. You, the brand, should be more concerned today about truly making every connection with the consumer work. Stop listening to all of this crap that you don't control the message. People who say that really don't get the world we live in. The world where it's actually more important for you to control the message by delivering compelling, authentic and relevant experiences. So stop listening to this crap and start really controlling your message.
Here are 5 starting points:
- Make it compelling.
- Deliver on your message.
- Don’t use slogans to deliver an empty promise.
- Make it a movement.
- Be authentic.
Click on the link below to download a piece I wrote with a little more detail about those points.
Remember, you're delivering a great message when people want to hear it, tell it, and participate in it. You can create a story that people will want to share in—once you do, your brand won’t just be a product.
Don't listen to people saying you don't control the message. You're just controlling the message in ways you've never thought of before.
