Election season is a fascinating time to watch massive amounts of money being spent on marketing intangibles.
But as the title of this post suggests, this year, Newt Gingrich has attempted something a little different. He is attempting to 'win' by scoring points for the other team.
I put the word win in quotes because I'm not sure from the marketing message, what Gingrich is attempting to accomplish. His ads, statements, and overall marketing message deliver a conflicting collection of positions.
Let me use a couple of analogies.
Suppose you are selling Hummers, those big military-styler vehicles, that measure mileage by gallons per mile. And suppose you were competing against the Ford Expedition. Would it make sense to begin running ads against Ford Expeditions that you shouldn't buy an Expedition because they get terrible gas mileage?
Or your Diet Pepsi running an ad against Diet Coke and outlining the dangers of Aspartame, the sugar substitute in both Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi.
Or your American Airlines critizing Southwest Airlines for the baggage policies as being too competitive and preventing other airlines from making more money.
Newt Gingrich has been running a series of ads attacking his main rival, Mitt Romney. He has critizied Mitt for only paying 15% in taxes while in the same sentence putting forth a plan to let everyone pay 15% in taxes. Huh? If it is bad for Mitt to pay 15% why is it good for everyone else to pay 15%?
Gingrich has critizied Mitt for being successful at Bain while then stating that he would like to tell America's poor to go get a job and stop taking handouts. Huh? Why is it wrong for Mitt to be successful in his job but it is okay to tell others to go get a job?
Gingrich is labeling Mitt a Massachusetts moderate. He acts as if this is some kind of bad thing. Can you imagine a report card that says Jimmy is getting a lower grade in class because he gets along with everyone, is a model student, and shows respect to the teacher?
A moderate, in this election year, is what is needed to win the election. Someone who can speak to both sides and get something done in Washington. It is the platform Obama ran on so successfully. Why Gingrich believes that people will vote for him because he labels Mitt with the word moderate is an odd position.
As I've watched this year's debates and rhetoric, I've felt like a stunned fan at a football game watching a player scoop up a fumble and race 90 yards in the wrong direction. It would appear that Newt is willing to tear down the GOP house in order to 'win'. Like a debater playing the Devil's Advocate, Newt appears to have lost sight of what the real prize is; Winning the White House in November.
Jonah Berger and Eric Schwartz recently published a in-depth look at Word of Mouth Marketing. WOM as they refer to it. A copy of the document can be found here
When we think about Word of Mouth Marketing, we often believe that the more crazy, shocking, or interesting a product, event, or service is the more likely it that it will be picked up in word of mouth marketing and spread from person to person.
The research showed that Interest wasn't the key factor in driving Word of Mouth Marketing. Rather, Accessibility was more important. Seeing something and being reminded of it on a continualy basis dramatically increased the chances that a particular item would be discussed.
The research discussed Time Horizons that exist for Word of Mouth marketing events. But to be clear, an event doesn't have to be an actual event or activity. An event could be the launch of a new product, the release of an announcement, or any other thing that triggers a chance for conversation to occur.
Tent Poles of Conversation
A time horizon surrounding an event is the length of time that a topic will continue to generate conversation after the event has passed. I refer to this idea as Tent Poles of Conversation.
Think about an event that would generate a significant amount of discussion.
As the time approaches for the event, the amount of discussion and talk increases, like a tent pole climbing higher into the air. Then, when the event occurs, there is a dropping off of conversation. The length of time between the event itself and the end of conversation is referred to as the Time Horizon.
It is true that the more memorable an event, the longer the conversation, but that isn't the primary driver of the conversation. It is the accessibility after the event to aspects of what happened that continue to drive the conversation.
This is called Accessibility. Being exposed to the idea, thought, concept, event, product, or whatever. Seeing it more often leads to better word of mouth than having it be unique, crazy, or shocking.
Rather than have a big center Tent pole that you drive forward with word of mouth, instead, a smaller series of tent poles of conversation allow you to keep the discussion going longer.
Social Media and Word of Mouth
Social media gives word of mouth a much bigger boost and should change the tactics used to drive Word of Mouth Marketing. Rather than go for a big announcement with everthing tied to the single Tent Pole conversation, instead, spread it out, set smaller targets of conversation. Tweeting small wins on a constant basis will generate much more awareness than a single announcement.
Updating your blog, Facebook page, or YouTube channel with a series of posts rather than a single larger one, gives your followers and fans a reminder to talk about you and your products.
The time horizon for small events can stretch much further into the future.
Word of Mouth does not have to be random marketing that is out of your control. A series of specific targeted conversation starters can keep your brand, product, or company in the minds of your prospects for a long time.
There is no doubt that Richard Rushfield has been covering the American Idol beat for a long time. No doubt that his knowledge of the inner workings of the Idol machine is unsurpassed. But what is in doubt, and in my opinion flat out wrong, is his criticism and conclusion of the judging of American Idol's judges and their impact on season 10.
I haven't been an American Idol fan for very long. This is my second year of sitting through an entire season rather than grazing on the occasional show.
If you haven't been paying attention, here is a quick overview of what is happening:
Season 10 introduced new judges, Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler
Those who cover Idol are complaining that the judges are not critical enough
Complaints are in that the judges comments are so overhyped that they have become irrelevant
but...
Viewership is up
Talent is some of the best the show has ever had in one group (According to bloggers)
Voting is up
Blogger Hilary Rothing writing for TV Squad even tries to explain that even though the ratings aren't dropping to support her arguements, it is only a matter of time.
A Comparison in Contrasting Styles
For 9 seasons American Idol was a showcase for Simon and company's withering criticism on aspiring singers. Tears of shame was part of the reason the show was popular. We watched like videos of high speed car chases that end up with total destruction everywhere.
But this season things have been different. The judges have taken a different approach and the results have been immediate.
When you are on stage, performing in front of so many people, with so much pressure and it comes time for the feedback, things said are very different than things heard.
First 9 seasons
Judge says to singer - "You had some good points but you had problems here, here and here."
Singer hears from Judge - "blah, blah, blah, You SUCK!"
Season 10
Judge says to Singer - "I loved this, this, and this. You can improve here, but loved it anyway"
Singer hears - "blah, blah, blah, blah, You're GREAT!"
This is not oversimplification. When performing on stage you zone out, you are not hearing or responding to specific items, you are more involved with the emotion of the event, feeding off the energy and not necessarily anything that is actually said.
For 9 seasons, the judges crushed the contestants emotionally. Bashing them with a big club, telling them how bad they were, and then sparingly handing out a tidbit of approval.
This is not the way to inspire people. This is not the way to get the best from a person. This is what emotional bullies do. Like parents who believe that showing to much compassion will somehow make a child soft.
Instead, this year the judges have been a direct cause for the unusually high level of talent. Their positive reinforcements have allowed these contestants to continue to bring more and more of their best effort, to continue to take risks. The contestants do it because they know they are appreciated and loved.
Maybe Love isn't a popular word to use when talking about the music industry. But watch an evening of American Idol and see the compassion, the affection, and genuine love that the judges have for the contestants. You can feel it through your television and you can bet that each person on stage can feel it as well.
Here is leadership inspiring others to overcome their fears to raise themselves to levels that they didn't know they could achieve.
Anyone can sit at home with a computer keyboard and hack out criticism. That is easy as shown by so many that see themselves on the inside, knowing what is best for the show and for the contestants.
Thank goodness season 10 of American Idol is all about how good someone can become.
Tired of the grind at work? Looking for a change? There is a simple solution. Send a off color joke to your fellow employees via the company's email system and there is a good chance you will be escorted out the door.
There is no privacy at work. And email lasts forever.
And it isn't just email anymore. Kwame Kilpatrick lost his job as the Mayor of Detroit because he got caught lying under oath when his text messages showed up.
A SWAT team member lost his job when management discovered he was carrying on sexting with his work assigned device. It was discovered because management wondered why his text bill was so high compared to others in the department.
He sued and lost.
What about Facebook and Twitter? Surely they are off-limits to monitoring from within your organization? Yes and No. What you do at home on your own computer is up to you. But once you log onto a work computer or use a work issued Smartphone, you open yourself up. If you access Facebook on a work computer, on work time, across a work provided Internet connection, all falls under your companies rights to monitor everything you do.
There is no privacy when you are at work.
Still not convinced?
Here are three ways to get your boss' attention and increase your chances of losing your job
When using email, text messages, Twitter, Facebook, or any other form of electronic communication, remember, once it is written down, it lasts forever.
Think Before You Send - Your job will thank you.
Independent Booksellers have been under duress for years as the big box stores have consistently eroded their markets.
To compete, many independent booksellers have turned to event marketing to drive business at their store.
In any market it is always easier to find new products for your customers rather than new customers for your products. Indepenent Booksellers just don't have the clout to launch massive advertising campaigns to bring in a large numbers of new customers. Instead, they must focus on finding new content for the existing customers.
One way to do this is through event marketing. Holding events at a local bookstore is a way to draw attention to the store, the roll it plays in the community, and the fabulous books that it carries.
Events can be wide-ranging. Oftentimes an event will be a book signing with a visiting author. Another idea is a little further out of the book.
Today, board games are experiencing a new surge in popularity. We aren't talking about Monopoly and Scrabble. Instead, these are games for adults and children alike, with a focus on interaction and thinking. Holding a Game Night at your local bookstore is a great way to have old customers reengage with the store.
Three of my favorites are Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, and Settlers of Catan. You can build events around a themed game night, tying in books to the the games. Holding a board game tournament increases the exposure of the event, oftentimes drawing in a younger audience.
My experience has shown that mothers are anxious to find ways to engage with their children as they compete for attention in a world dominated by video games. Instead, playing a board game where all members of the family brought together is a great way to expand beyond books.