Creative Advertising - Billboard

by Fred Victor

A creative billboard, an outdoor advertising method, is one of effective ways of promoting your products to the massess. Here are some inspiring and creative billboard designs. 

In brief, outdoor advertising is a distinct medium, and creative message should be specifically geared to. Your billboard message is extremely important to the overall success of your campaign. Of course, lengthy message is prohibited as passers-by will not be able to read. Images for your billboard use should be very carefully selected. After all, this image could end up being over 48 feet wide! Defects in the image will be magnified at this large size. The resolution of image is extreme important.

The Importance of Product Life Cycle in Media Planning

by Fred Victor

A company’s product life cycle (PLC) has a significant impact on decisions making when it comes to media planning as managers will make different marketing decisions at each stage in a product's life, for instance, from the beginning with the need to generate awareness for a new product, then ending with the ability to maintain that awareness.

Incorporating PLC in media planning is an essential task that must be continually undertaken. The competitive business environment is undeniable, like shifting market conditions, including the ever-changing customer needs and wants, almost always ensure that what worked in the past will not work in the future, hence requiring media planning revisions in how a product is marketed.

New Product Entry Points

When a new product is introduced, the challenge will be the effort to generate awareness for that product. At this very early stage of market introduction, the use of traditional print and broadcast media is a proven way to create awareness and ultimately demand.

Establishing the Preference

As soon as a product has public awareness, marketers begin creating product preferences among target customers. Establishing that preference over other available offerings requires telling the product's story through selected media channels. For instance, mass media can be considered including social media as it allows more information to be shared virally.

Competing in a Crowd

Often, this occurs during a product's mid-life stage where marketers begin to rely on word-of-mouth (WOM) generated through satisfied customers as well as the third-party endorsements such as celebrity endorsements.

Maintaining the Awareness

Once a product is established e.g. Secret Recipe, AirAsia etc., the advertiser's challenge is to maintain that public awareness. At this stage, mass media platform becomes important in maintaining a general level of awareness for a product where it also raises awareness among new market entrants.

Starting Over

A product or service will eventually reach a point of diminishing returns; media use declines when this happens, provided the marketers are able to introduce a brand extension or a completely new product. Of course, the life cycle starts all over again.

In other words, at every stage in a product's or service’s life cycle, marketers will critically consider the choices related to generating public awareness, customer preference, demand, and ultimately the purchase decisions. 

Advertisement is an Investment, Not Expenditure – Marketing Channel

by Fred Victor

Well, it’s a million dollar question particularly for those conservative-cum-old fashion business owners or managers. Often, advertisement is considered as expenditure. Some broiling questions like “How much we need to spend”, “Can we spend less than 3% based on total projected sales?” and other concerning matters that have put them in advertising dilemma.

In todays’ heavily brand-driven business environment, advertising budget should be considered as part of a brand investment rather than considering it as expenditure. In fact, such investment helps developing and strengthening your brand in short- and long-term, if it’s advertised (or invested) effectively.

So, isn’t it “unfortunate” to consider advertising as expenditure, but not investment? Let’s dissect the issue a bit further.

First, should advertising investment be considered as advertising expenditure/cost (like any other costs, fixed or variables) is to be passed on to the consumer? Or, should advertisement be considered as an investment by your company (for a brand) which helps increasing your brand strengths, sales and market share eventually, resulting in economies of scale which either reduces the overall cost of investment or increases the brand values to your customers, partners, shareholders and employees.

An unfortunate Pricing Example:

Product cost = Cost of Goods Sold + Direct/Indirect Costs + Manufacturing Costs + Advertising Costs

Frankly, it’s weird that advertising cost is taken into account in determining a product’s price. As a general rule of thumb, pricing methodology covers both direct/indirect cost and manufacturing costs. Advertising investment should not be included as the “returns” – brand contributions (ensued from advertisement) are expected to provide surplus (or incremental sales) towards covering direct/indirect costs.

Having said that, advertising investment is not a cost in the same manner as fixed or variable costs or any other attributable overheads, but measured as a long-term investment in your brand on which the brand must generate “returns”.

In sum, “returns” should be a matter to deal with when it comes to investment in advertisements. It’s all about the potential returns from the (advertisement) investment, where (a) brands strengths (ensued from brand exposure), (b) sales (ensued from product/brand exposure), and (c) market share (ensued from product exposure) are factors that to be achieved.

As far as advertisement is concerned, expenditure ... is irrelevant!

VW Ad Hits at Super Bowl

by Fred Victor

When the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers clashed at Super Bowl XLV in the United States recently, it wasn’t the final score of this American big show that sent the Internet. Oops, it wasn’t the tumbling singing sensation Christina Aguilera’s National Anthem too;

It was the VW’s clever commercial ad that stole the show!

In brief,  the ad featured Volkswagen’s (VW) The Force, which featured a child in a Darth Vader suit using mystical powers (or The Force, made famous in the Star Wars films), to move the home’s washing machine, family dog, a doll and his breakfast – albeit in vain.

Feeling dejected, the tiny “dark lord” than decides to use The Force on his father’s parked VW Passat 2012 in the driveway – and actually starts it, much to his surprise.

The humorous appeal started here when the car is actually started from a distance by his father via the vehicle’s “remote control start button” featured by VW!

The Super Bowl has been known to be a great platform to boost ads, and it’s not difficult to see why. The event is the most-viewed programme in the United States, and this year’s game attracted a record 111 million viewers.

The ad, which gave viewers a glimpse at Apple’s vision for its then upcoming Macintosh computer, has been widely regarded as one of the most memorable and successful American television commercials ever, as it was considered an important symbol of fighting conformity (considered to be IBM at the time).

At that time, Apple saw a 30% increase in the number of people going directly to their job search site!

“This year’s Super Bowl delivered an incredible audience count of 111 million. As an addition, the online audience reached nearly 30 million, we would probably look at figures that most advertisers would die for, and that’s without even considering the buzz and word of mouth interest this ad has generated.

When you look at these numbers, the US$3mil price tag starts to look reasonable for you. Sounds good deal huh? If you consider what it would have taken to reach that audience without the unique opportunity presented by the Super Bowl, you could even call it a bargain.

When you look at these numbers, the US$3mil price tag starts to look reasonable for you. Sounds good deal huh? If you consider what it would have taken to reach that audience without the unique opportunity presented by the Super Bowl, you could even call it a bargain

It is pretty interesting to learn that VW would have spent a bomb on the commercial at a cost of US$100,000 per second (for a typical Super Bowl ad), and the 30-second spot would have cost the German car manufacturer US$3mil just to air it.

In return, however, this commercial ad leveraged off the unforgettable Star Wars score and humour to create an emotional appeal and achieved more than 20 million hits on Youtube in less than a week.

Let’s take a shot!

PLC Management on The American Idol Season 10

By Fred Victor

The premiere American Idol (hereinafter called AI) auditions have finally returned on the 19^th day of January 2011, the first episode was aired with New York / New Jersey.

After 9 years of running, the American Idol Season 10 is a classical example of maintaining a product in a declining stage (in my personal opinion) within the Product Life Cycle (PLC) process – possibly rejuvenating it by adding “new features” and finding “new users” and “viewers”.

Instead of using unfashionable ways like price theory. Some tactical strategies have been deployed by the FOX and AI show producers. Let’s take a shot:-

The show’s producers lowered the minimum age requirement from 16 to 15 years old (market development strategy of Ansoff Matrix); the FOX and show producers intended to further develop “new” market so to access broader market consumption (e.g. new participants and viewership).

Stunning new judges hired (celebrity endorsement of A&P Strategy) – Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler feat. Jimmy Lovine (Chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records who acts as in-house mentor) to replace Simon Cowell, Kara DioGuardi and Ellen Degeneres. The show producers have tempted to further qualify the use of celebrities in their marketing campaigns, thus enhancing the AI’s awareness, appeal, and relevance to AI’s brand image – ultimately, influence hits on consumer buying behaviour.   

Moreover, the AI promos for idol were aired earlier on TV – round the clock since 7^th January 2011 (repetition theory of communication and/or consumer buying behaviour).

The first AI promo video reveals Kelly Clarkson, Lee DeWyze, Ruben Studdard etc. that “where they came from” before this AI season 10. The AI 10^th season’s slogan – “Who’s next?” appears (hero effect of consumer behaviour).

In another AI promo video, you’ll see footage from the audition rounds featuring Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks and Fantasia Barrino. To witness the powerful promo video which attacks both potential participants’ and viewers’ emotions and dreams, click here http://www.youtube.com/geconsultgroup#p/a/f/0/vZP0TTzWCmg.

So what do you think about the changes of American Idol Season 10 is making? As a Marketer’s point of view, are you getting excited for the new season?

Like Randy always says: “Yo dog (dawg) / dude, that was hot!”

What do you think? ;-)

End Note

This article is about the marketing term (of PLC management) to describe the life of a particular product in a particular market. PLC management in marketing term refers to the management through a sequence of stages from introduction to growth, maturity and decline. The American Idol Season 10 is a classical example – maintaining the product, possibly rejuvenating it by adding new features and finding new users.

The PLC management in engineering term refers to managing product design and production details.

Celebrity endorsements have proven successful in China recently where, due to increasing consumerism. In fact, it is considered a status symbol to purchase an endorsed product.