The Marketing of Omission

`Most people go about their lives with different needs and goals. Unfortunately, I have been cursed with the unfortunate unstoppable need to find marketing mistakes. I read cereal boxes, Ikea instructions, the fine print on the 12-pack of Bounty paper towels. If it’s for sale, and it has words or images on it, I have to move in. Like the infectiously curious members of medical detector clubs, I enjoy finding spelling errors & other mistakes in massive print runs. It’s a sick hobby, I know, but the pure joy of “it wasn’t me” is a high like no other.

What keeps this odd obsession going? Because Big Foot exists. For example, allow me to share with you some real finds from known brands I cherish. I’m not sure which of these two gives me more joy. I’ll let you choose…

Bag Lifting That’s 50% Easier

This beauty came from a Rubbermade trashcan purchased from Ace Hardware in Bonita Springs, FL in 2017. The cardboard wrap over the lid very clearly wanted to explain that lifting out bags from their newly vented version was “50% Easier”. I read the small print only to find what I assume is the same message in other languages.

At first glance, “50% Easier” sounds impressive, but how is the new & improved version 50% easier? And 50% easier than what? They mention the reason is the venting channels. I had no idea such statistical problems were being managed and measured at Rubbermaid, which IMHO is the real story, but yet someone approved this and off to the printers it went. Once adorned on the trash cans in retail establishments, few customers will question the claim. I shall continue my quest like Marketing Robin Hood, revealing the confusing and bringing it to the masses.

A Jar of Sweet + Small

One of my all time favorites is the jar of Peter Piper’s Sweet Midgets. These were purchased in 2015 at a local grocery store in the US Virgin Islands, where clearly the FDA has no office. This jar does not have the word pickle or even pickled cucumber anywhere. No ingredients list. Kudos for including nutritional information, weight & size, and a star-worthy “new sweeter taste”, but yet the buyer still can not be confident what the food actually is in the containter except that the label says “Sweet Midgets”. From the image I can deduce that they are from rows on a farm, but so does nearly everything we grow, so forgive my confusion.

A quick search on Google reveals only one place (Harter House) who at one point sold a jar that looked similar, but today the “page is not found”. Is it possible a pickle producer was dumping their remaining supply of poorly marked pickles in paradise? Wouldn’t be the first time. For a few weeks, everyone’s bottle of Joy dish detergent in Coral Bay said “Not Your First Choice” proudly on the front. Disgruntled label printer? Dang, I love this stuff!

So back to the little pickles. I bravely dove into my midget container with a wing and a prayer and found myself tentatively taking a bite.

Tasted like chicken.

What are some confusing or unintentionally funny marketing choices you have spotted?

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Truth Telling Tips

In an informative blog online at Quirks.com, Market Researcher Maxwell Wang lays out the 4 basics of a good interview.

I don’t want to spoil it for you, Mr. Wang does a great job of explaining each step in detail. Here are the highlights from his tips:

Establish equality, not superiority

Diplomacy in differing opinions: Be confident, not arrogant. ie., Be thoughtful & inquisitive, and firm on following the agenda. Wang notes that non-verbal cues can be helpful here, though I can attest that his tip is equally applicable to audio or text only interviews.

Show Respect

Another helpful reminder is to offer a high level of respect for the intreviewee. Communicate it truthfully, abundantly, and reiterate how valuable their time and opinions are.

Substance over performance

We’ve all seen folks tank on this one and it’s cringe worthy. Pride in your excellent work and career is not the point. The client is all that matters. What does the client need. Understand the ultimate objective of the research, the client’s past experience and current beliefs, and aim accordingly.

Prepare to Improve

As your interviews begin to tally up, remember that it’s ok to regroup and discuss improvements to the discussion guide questions and flow. Concious iterations and acknowledgements where things could be done better are what make the results of a good study a great one. Learn as you go, adjust accordingly, and keep moving forward. Call it “agile”, call it “iterative learning” – we call it continual improvement of the process so we hit that bullseye objective.

Expect the Unexpected

My dad coached my softball team when I was a kid and he would always tell the infielders to crouch with bent knees, because “you never know which way the ball is going to come at you. You want to be able to pivot left or right.” The best players learn to react quickly to the ball’s impending trajectory. A good interview rolls the same. The keenest insights come from what you didn’t know you didn’t know. Stay alert out there!

Oh Crap, The Incentives

And while we’re on the topic of getting to the heart of the matter, I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about incentives: what participants are paid to share their time and opinions. There are different schools of thought on this one, with some believing incentives bias results. Personally, I believe participants should be fairly compensated. Tom Rich wrote a insightful article about how incentives drive outcomes. Good stuff.

What strategies do you apply in your research to ensure truthful responses?

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Spotlight on Good News

There’s a concerted effort among news organizations today to leave the audience on a high note. Popular series include Steve Hartman’s Kindness 101. The Uplift , NBC Good News, Inspiring America, CNN Good News, regional happy spots (Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, and New York), GMA Good News, and Fox’s Be Well health spots. There’s a clear news push to find something good in all the mess.

While I listen to Bill Withers singing””Lean on Me”, the human need to connect and feel love sinks in. We live in a world of kinetic chaos that could squash the human spirit, but yet somehow, we find the good. The media offers up these happy bits and we cling to them like life savers. It is my pleasure to throw you one of my favorites.

Austin’s Altruism

Austin is a superhero and it’s not just because he dons a cape. He helps feed the homeless in Birmingham, Alabama. The fact that Austin has been on this earth just 4 years is almost irrelevant. He’s single handedly making a difference. Using his allowance and lunch money, he politely provides and reminds all to “don’t forget to show love”. How did this happen?

Austin’s dad seems just as perplexed, but equally supportive and proud. My favorite part of Austin’s story is that his superhero name is President Austin, as he believes this is what a President does. May we be so fortunate. You have my vote, Austin!

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Marketing on the Move

“Target market”, “SWOT”, “Unique Selling Proposition”, “Influencer” and whatever comes next – if you’re in the field of advertising, marketing, or market research, you best hop on the bandwagon and learn your client’s love language.

While promotional fields of study have been around longer than you probably realized, the popular words used to describe the practice change over time. Time moves forward. Culture changes. People age out of the business as new ideas from younger professionals enter into the ring. Whatever you want to point to as the reason, the fact is: change happens.

Over time, we have learned to use the terms our clients are using. We also are quick to ask them to describe and define what their words mean to them. The latter is the key. The different perspectives are vast.

Brand positioning? Brand identity? Graphic identity? Brand image? Brand Building? Brand repositioning? So many variations of intent. As a result, we move forward with what the client needs to move forward, all the while using their marketing love language. When in Rome.

“Full service or DIY”, “user experience or usability”, “iterative learning or agile research”, “unmet needs or voice of the customer” – the terms are definitive to those using them, and it’s up to us to be curious, fluid, and purposeful.

What marketing terms have populated your world and why?

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Spring Ahead, Fall Back – But Why?

In the US today, the 2nd Sunday in March and the first Sunday in November, most of the country recognizes Daylight Savings Time (DST).

From the human desire to commune with nature to the yearning for a longer golf game, nothing was enough to win the argument for change until the trump card came calling: the great war. It took the need to save energy to officially move the needles.

Despite popular belief, Daylight Savings Time (DST) was not implemented in the US to benefit farmers. It was first used in the US in 1918 for 7 months as a means to conserve energy for the wartime efforts of WWI. It was repealed until implemented once more during WW2, referred to as “War Time”.

DST wasn’t a uniform policy in the US until 1966, when Lyndon Johnson signed the Uniform Time Act into law on April 13, 1966. It took 8 years for the law to be fully and effectively implemented across the US.

Arizona and Hawaii have never recognized Daylight Savings Time. US Territories closer to the equator also do not recognize DST, including Guam, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands.

Did you know… Daylight Savings Time in the US is called Summer Time in most of Europe.

Did you know….  in 2005, President George W. Bush changed the dates of DST in an effort to further save energy. What had been the first Sunday of April to the last Sunday of October for decades, 2007 began DST the second Sunday in March and to the first Sunday in November.

Did you know… most of the world either never observed, or has since stopped observing, DST.

Did you know… All of China is under one time zone.

Did you know… India is also under one time zone (India Standard Time, IST), yet it’s on the half hour (UTC +5:30) and nobody knows why. Theories include the fact that New Delhi is halfway between meridians, so instead of choosing one over the other, they split the difference and applied it across the country.

Did you know… Newfoundland and Labrador is another location on the half hour (UTC -3:30). Why? Well, Newfoundland, at least, at the time was its own domininion, and hence had the right to choose its own time zone. And alas, in 1935 the Newfoundlandians selected their time zone based on the actual time from Grenwich time: 3:30 hours.

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Spring Shake

Daylight Savings is over in the US and whether you schedule it or not, somehow we see grime more clearly after the cold. Blame the angle of the sun, the current Swiffer advertising strategy, or other more logical reasons for Spring cleaning, humans are wired to clean up this time of year. Whether you DIY or contract out the cleaning services, there’s a certain need to start the warmer season with a clean slate.

Why Spring?

One logical reason to clean your house in the 1800’s was because every piece of the interior was covered in soot, the result of burning coal and wood to light the home. Add to that the heating and cooking, and you have yourself a home that resembles the underbelly of a barbecue grill, the covered area we all pretend isn’t there. I imagine living in that time and rejoicing at the first opportunity to open all the windows and begin the cleansing.

Another reason is based in religion. The Jewish tradition of cleaning in preparation for Passover has long been known, as they want to rid their homes of all yeast in support of eating unleavened bread to celebrate the holiday. Christians are also known to “clean house” before Lent and the Persian New Year includes cleaning, or “shaking the house”, for the first day of Spring.

Even today, the simple transition from cold to warm prompts our eyes to see the dirt through the windows we are opening. So the tradition continues, let’s be careful out there.

Spick & Span Success

Whether you have 5 minutes or an entire weekend, you can find ways to get your cleaning done. We tapped into the superior tips from Better Homes & Garden and found a great plan for deep cleaning.

Here are some of the best tips EVER on how to keep your sneakers white. Who knew?? Leather or canvas, there are tried & true methods out there that really work.

And what would a blog offering Spring Cleaning tips be without the tips from the master herself, Ms. Martha Stewart. She starts from the beginning and ends at the finish line, leaving nary a crumb. So if you’re looking for some adult supervision in this area, this is the website for you.

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The Joy of Olive and Mabel

When Covid 19 hit the US with a punch in the Spring of 2020, how did it affect you? How did it affect your family? Your work? Well, if you are a sports caster and there is suddenly no sports to discuss, you, like many, turn your time and talents inward and start taking a long hard look at your home surroundings.

Andrew Cotter transitioned his sports broadcasting skills to his favorite companions: his dogs. Not what you might be expecting, we encourage you to take just a few minutes to enjoy Andrew’s two favorite players. Welcome, Olive and Mabel…

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Super Bowl Solar Surprise

Go Chiefs! And go Usher! Super Bowl 58 did not disappoint.

Perhaps you pondered where all the electricity for the whole endeavor was coming from. 621,000 solar panels, to be exact. And that’s a number Las Vegas can take to the bank. With over 300 sunny days per year, the area is prime for receiving and storing solar energy.

And the high environment score isn’t all passive. Allegiant Stadium team members actively collect all the used rubber pellets from the turf for recycling. Tiny bits add up to more than 46 tons of rubber since counting began. The smell must be serious.

Score one for Mother Nature!

Take Note

Do you have notes everywhere? Sticky notes? Napkin scribbles? Thoughts to remember? It’s OK. Really.

If you’re one of those people who writes notes by hand, technology is here to help. You can continue to jot down ideas that are then digitized into typed, searchable form.

Moleskin & Neo Smartpen use their own special pen and paper to digitize your handwritten notes.

Wacom Smartpad and Bamboo Slate digitize your writing and doodles using a highly sensitive tablet on which any kind of paper or pen can be used.

Livescribe uses a special pen to digitize both your vocalized and handwritten notes.

Evernote and One Note are platforms that can convert written words inside to text, which covers everything from written notes to typed documents to wine labels – whatever printed items you want to easily recall at a future time.

How do you decide which tools, if any, to buy?

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Break Time

As humans, we make hundreds of choices throughout the day. Drive here. Eat this. Answer that. We choose where to be, when to be there, and what we’re going to do when we get there. Many of us live in this cycle of decisions like we’re running in a hamster wheel.

Taking a break from work is proven to benefit your outcome, as well as your outlook. Like this guy. Be more like this guy.

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