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The New Special Consumer

Marketers Skip the Crowd, Seek Out That One Special Consumer

From Honda to British Airways, Brands Make Unique Cases the Centerpiece of Their Promotional Efforts

By:

Rupal Parekh

Published: December 05, 2011

When a Bangor, Maine, car salesman alerted Honda bigwigs of a local man's attempt to drive his 1990 pale-blue Accord a record 1 million miles, the automaker felt it called for more than mailing him a coupon for a $1,000 rebate. So it chose to throw the owner, Joe LoCicero, a parade replete with a high school marching band, stilt-walkers and floats in the shape of an odometer. Airplanes even flew overhead with congratulatory banners. Suffice it to say it was a major affair in the small town of Saco, Maine -- one that took Honda and its agency, RPA, nine weeks to put together. That's quite a lot of time to devote to a single consumer. "It's hard to put the emotions into words," Mr. LoCicero, a soft-spoken 54-year-old who has lived in New England all his life and has been a car enthusiast since he was a teen, told Ad Age. "It was overwhelming. I had to watch the video to understand what happened that day, and the first couple of times my wife couldn't watch it without crying."

British Airways targeted consumers with a highly talked-about ad retelling the story of Shona Owen, a woman who was born on a BA flight in 1991.

This isn't the age-old marketing approach of tugging at the heartstrings with puppies or babies, or trying to suggest authenticity by casting employees in an ad campaign. It's not about crowdsourcing either, like when Doritos looks to the crowd to source a Super Bowl spot. No, the latest trend in marketing being practiced by Honda, British Airways and Kia is about bringing case studies to life, celebrating the experiences of one special consumer and making him or her the centerpiece of marketing.

Mr. LoCicero is stunned that his personal accomplishment became a cause for celebration, but he's also of the mind that his story benefits the Honda brand by "striking a more personal connection" when promoting the car's reliable attributes to consumers. It's an experience that is amplified by being shared: On Facebook, Honda fans cheered him to the finish line in the days before the Accord's odometer clicked over to 1 million. Once a video of the parade made its way onto YouTube, it garnered nearly 300,000 views, and he's received congratulatory notes from Korea, and some in Arabic and other foreign languages.

Consumers are relating to these approaches because they are genuine.

"We're living in a world of uncertainty where everyone is questioning whether the information we're getting is real or fake, be it from the financial world, or political leaders," said Heather Dupre, a founding partner at strategic branding firm Egg Strategy in Boulder, Colo. "Consumers are more adept at spotting fake hype. They know that actors and celebrity spokespeople are paid and scripted to promote brands, so focusing on a person who has had a real interaction with a brand is truthful and a smart strategy for a campaign," Ms. Dupre said.

At a time when the airline industry is maligned, British Airways used a similar approach this fall with its biggest ad launch in over a decade, which was created by Publicis Groupe-backed Bartle Bogle Hegarty.

BA struck a chord by highlighting experiences with individual fliers, with the most talked-about ad relaying the story of Shona Owen, a woman who was born on a 747 flight back in 1991. The print ad -- which BA shared on its Facebook page -- stressed how the airline, in honor of Ms. Owen's special status as one of few babies born in the air, gave Ms. Owen a first-class airline ticket to Australia for her 18th birthday.

Marketers benefit from this more-personal approach because it doesn't have to entail expensive TV buys but instead can largely be fueled by social media or experiential marketing. The big challenge is being fast enough to capitalize on opportunities when they arise.

Days before Kia's ad agency, California-based David & Goliath, was set to film the last part of a recent campaign, it got word of a couple who had set up an impressive light show at their home in time to LMFAO's hit song "Party Rock Anthem," which Kia's hamster mascots dance to in ads. A video of the light show became a sensation on YouTube, and D&G wanted to be a part of the buzz.

In short order, the agency rang the couple and asked if they could move the shooting of their video from a set to the pair's driveway. "The production became more complicated, but the rewards made it more than worth it," said Brian Dunbar, managing partner and director of client services at D&G. "We had to make decisions very, very quickly. And credit to our client, who got on board instantly. Smart advertisers are finding more innovative ways to involve consumers beyond the traditional testimonial."

Mr. Dunbar warns, however, that you aren't going to get a lift inherently just by featuring consumers -- it has to be a mutual benefit. "For [homeowner] Kevin Judd, it was a dream come true to have his favorite band perform in front of his house."

Said Ms. Dupre: "The brands and agencies that are most adept at spotting those opportunities and creating those experiences will be the ones that stand out to this generation of consumers. Know your consumer. Know where they are, what sorts of experiences they are having connected to the brand, and be able to connect at a moment's notice."

SOURCE: http://adage.com/

Dealer-Chic. Una nueva tendencia

A continuación les muestro el reporte que publicó el prestigiado sitio de TrendWatching en una nueva tendencia, que sin duda, dará de que hablar.

Espero la disfruten.

Rubén

DEALER CHIC

Por qué para los consumidores las ofertas se están tornando un modo de vida, cuando no una fuente de orgullo.

Fuente: thinkcvox

Tocamos el tema con anterioridad en PRICING PANDEMONIUM (EL PANDEMONIUM DEL PRECIO), pero está más que justificado un Trend Briefing completo sobre este fenómeno, poniendo foco no sólo a las numerosas de nuevas prácticas innovadoras que están siguiendo las marcas para hacer promociones y ofertas, sino también en cómo están cambiando las actitudes del consumidor ante los descuentos y las ofertas.

De hecho, la avalancha de ofertas disponibles actualmente para los consumidores no son un mero síntoma a corto plazo de la crisis financiera; DEALER-CHIC ha venido para quedarse:

DEALER-CHIC | A los consumidores siempre les ha encantado conseguir buenas ofertas o premios exclusivos, pero más que tener que ocultar el regateo, ahora nuestros colegas consumidores ven aceptable, cuando no admirable el hecho de conseguir las mejores ofertas. La caza de la oferta continuará siendo una parte esencial de las vidas de los consumidores, ya que se trata de algo más que ahorrar dinero: es la emoción, la búsqueda, el control, la inteligencia percibida, y por tanto la fuente de estatus también.

Eso sí, no estamos diciendo que todo el consumo estará dominado por bienes y servicios con descuento. Sin embargo, para consumidores preocupados por el estatus (véase: todos ellos ;-), conseguir lo máximo de los descuentos y las ofertas no está considerado ya engorroso o incluso avergonzante, sino simplemente inteligente.

De hecho, DEALER-CHIC es incluso otro ejemplo de los giros a largo plazo que se están sucediendo en el campo de consumo, donde consumidores ávidos tienen más de donde elegir, expectativas más elevadas, y más control, a la vez que los consumidores maduros tienen una relación mucho menos reverencial con las marcas.

Así que, aquí tienes tres razones por las que DEALER-CHIC se prevé que crezca cada vez más durante los próximos años:

1. MÁS POR MENOS: A la vez que muchas personas de economías desarrolladas es probable que tengan menos dinero para gastar ahora mismo, los consumidores de todos lados buscarán siempre experimentar más.


2. EL MEDIO ES LA MOTIVACIÓN: A los consumidores se les está urgiendo a usar, reusar y compartir ofertas y descuentos vía las nuevas (y por ello infinitamente más emocionantes y atractivas) tecnologías.


3. LO MEJOR DE LO MEJOR: Debido a la tecnología móvil instantánea o el acceso online a no sólo las ofertas sino también a valoraciones, los consumidores pueden estar ahora seguros de que están consiguiendo el mejor precio por el mejor producto o servicio.

¿Quieres leer más? Entra a: http://trendwatching.com/es/trends/dealerchic/