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4 Types of Advertising Campaigns that Sell

4 Types of Advertisin g Campaigns that Sell

If your company is not using one or more of these techniques, The James Group already knows your marketing is underperforming.

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Fortunately, it is never too late to fix this They are: If your company is not problem by creating a new campaign based 1. A WORD HOOK using one or more of on time-tested best 2. A CHARACTER HOOK these techniques, The 3. A REPEATABLE THEME James Group already practices. This article 4. A CONSISTENT BRAND LAYOUT knows-your marketing will demonstrate how your company can use Without exception, the is underperforming. these techniques to most popular and most Actually, we're being improve your successful advertising polite. Look at a marketing results using campaigns have used one company's website or a examples from large of these techniques or single print ad. If at budget advertising combined several of these least one of these campaigns you will techniques, making them techniques is not easily recognize and well-documented best present, you can be lower budget practices in creating ad certain of two things: 1) marketing campaigns campaigns. That company isn't that have proved getting return on successful for small investment on their and midsized marketing spend. 2) companies. The CEO and CFO are To improve your unhappy about it. marketing, you need to These principals hold gain several levels of true whether you do understanding: business-to-business, 1) Why these types of business-to-consumer, campaigns are Why is this so important?

In the history of the world, there have only been four types of advertising campaigns that both build brands and drive sales.

or even business-togovernment marketing and regardless of the size of your marketing budget.

essential. 2) How each campaign type functions. 3) How to isolate the sales moment. 4) When to change your campaign.

Why These Types of Advertising Campaigns are Essential

A brand is a set of visual and verbal images that combine to convey a single

The company name, logo, tagline, and campaignable image all come together in one mental image at key consumer touchpoints.
mental image.

and how you define an impression. But one thing is certain, people are bombarded by too much information every day.

So, what will they do? When a target customer They'll scan it in a blink, looking for a handle to sees your website, print process the information. ad, TV ad, brochure, direct mail piece, or hears Without a handle, they your radio spot, it may be are most likely to reject the first time that person the marketing piece by simply moving on to is encountering your something else. brand or product. The average American These four types of encounters between 300- advertising campaigns 3,000 advertising first function as impressions per day, handles, or entering depending on which study points, that allow you believe information to be processed quickly. Because information can be transmitted, a sales proposition can be made. If the proposition is compelling, a sale can be driven. But all this starts with a campaign handle. The second reason these campaign types

Understanding mental images is the link between branding and sales. Consider how your mind works. What did you have for breakfast this morning? Did the information come to you in words or pictures? You saw a picture of your breakfast; for example, a picture of the bowl of cereal or cup of coffee, before your mind said, "cereal, coffee." What did you wear yesterday? Your mind is searching in pictures (even when you can't remember). The same thing happens when people are making purchasing decisions. Mental images flip by in little movies at blinding speed. What company should I hire? Or what brand should I buy? By using one of these four campaignable ideas,

are essential is they create powerful mental images.

you create a higher probability your company or product will be remembered.

How Each Campaign Type Functions

Campaign Type 1:

THE WORD HOOK

The word hook is a repeatable catch

Great examples of advertising campaigns using the word hook include Verizon's "Can you hear me now?" created by Bozell/New York to convince the world Verizon has the best network.
phrase from ad to ad.

The word hook is like the chorus of a good pop song. They are catchy. Maybe, even insidious. Everybody knows how to play along. The triumph of a Perhaps the longest How effective was it? running word hook with great marketing catch Consider that in July of more than 1,500 ads phrase, is when it 2003, a J.D. Power & comes from Absolut. becomes so well Associates survey ranked Conceived by TBWA in known, it additionally Verizon at the top of the 1980, the well-known can serve as a cultural list for wireless quality, ads feature images joke. while Alltel was ranked based on the bottle's In a televised debate number seven-even distinctive shape with before the 1984 New though they share the the word hook running York and Pennsylvania same network through a at the bottom, like presidential primaries, nationwide roaming Absolut Manhattan Walter Mondale agreement. featuring an arial view dismissed Gary Hart by Alltel CEO Scott Ford of Central Park in the saying "When I hear explained this point to shape of the bottle. your new ideas I'm investors at the Smith How effective were the reminded of that ad, Barney Citigroup ads? In 1999, Absolut 'Where's the beef?'" conference in January of commanded an amazing The line drew a great 2004, commenting that 58% market share for audience response. The the ranking difference vodka-an alcohol that is point is, over twenty could only be explained defined as colorless, years later, you are by advertising perception. tasteless, and more likely to remember "Where's the beef?" than Gary

Another word hook is Mastercard's "Priceless" campaign created by Mc- Cann Erickson.Since 1997, Master Card has added new U.S. credit cards at more than twice Visa's rate.

odorless. Wouldn't you like to command 58% of the market?

Hart or Walter Mondale.

WORD HOOK EXAMPLES by The James Group:

Anatomy of a Business-to-Business Campaign WQIS "Strange Things Happen"

Anatomy of a Business-to-Consumer Campaign

GarageTek, "Find Yourself in the World's Cleanest Garage" Purpose: To position remodling the garage as a home improvement decision appealing to women. Campaign Type: Word Hook, "Find your __ in the world's cleanest garage." Repeatable Theme, things happening in the garage. Consistent Layout, featuring handwritten copy, garage panorama in the upper third, close-up shots of product at bottom and the signature GarageTek yellow line. Result: GarageTek became the undisputed market leader in garage organizing systems and grew sales three-fold in three years.

Purpose: To remind the marine community why it was so essential to not jump ship to lower priced, less experienced insurers. Campaign Type: Word Hook, "Strange things happen" Consistent Layout, using blue duotone and repeatable theme of incidents that happen every day on the water. Result: Reversed sales slide and WQIS outdistanced its competition. Five years later, WQIS is 10 times larger than its closest competitor.

Campaign Type 2:

THE CHARACTER HOOK

A character hook uses a hero, villain, or victim to embody a key attribute of a brand.

Great heroic character hooks include Ronald

The Maytag Repairman is something people would a victim of great product rather not think about. dependability, created by Few people enjoy facing

McDonald, a hero of the Leo Burnett Agency happiness created in 1963. in 1967. The campaign Ronald helped McDonald's helped build the to own family fast food. company into the How effective was this juggernaut sold to character? Consider that Maytag's rival, the 96% of school children in Whirlpool Corporation in the United States can 2006 for $1.6 Billion. identify Ronald McDonald. Characters are Only Santa Claus is more tremendous for breaking commonly recognized. through advertising A villain, savvy customers find appealing, is Joe Isuzu, the sneaky car salesman created by Della Femina, Travisano and Partners in 1985. Joe was later brought back into action in 2001.

the fact that they could die at any time. So buying life insurance is not a feel good experience. However, people like Snoopy. By using Snoopy, people like Metlife, making the company more approachable than other insurers.

clutter and establishing How well did it work? emotional connections Today, MetLife is the with customers. They are largest U.S. life insurer, vivid, intriguing, and by a wide margin. It is cause us to care about also the number-one them. If you care about provider of property and a character, then you casualty insurance care about the brand. (P&C) products in the workplace. Meaning, the Ever wonder, what character hook worked Snoopy has to do with for both their businesslife insurance? Only emotional transference. to-consumer and Buying life insurance is business-to-business side.

CHARACTER HOOK EXAMPLES by The James Group:

Anatomy of a Business-to-Consumer Campaign

Anatomy of a Business-to-Consumer Campaign

Transparent Value. Purpose: To personalize how the first fundamental database works to assist smart investment decisions. Campaign Type: Word Hook, "We

Blockheads Purpose: To differentiate Blockheads Burritos from other Mexican places as the fun place to go with friends. Campaign Type: Character Hook,

know how many ________ has to sell to justify it's stock price." Character Hook, following a single analyst (the character) through his day as he gets these answers. Consistent Layout, featuring the Transparent Value logo as the window to look through for answers. Result: Launching 3rd quarter, 2006.

using sock monkeys with adult life stories, resembling friends you know. Repeatable Theme, different sock monkeys with different stories. Result: On rebranding alone, after 12-years of business, without external advertising, systemwide sales jumped 20% on existing stores. Also sold new franchises and opened new company stores.

Campaign Type 3:

THE REPEATABLE THEME

A repeatable theme is a situation that plays out again and again calling out the need for

ads created by Cliff before it comes. a company's product. Examples of Freeman. Repeatable themes a repeatable theme Consumers know the make the target include the Got Milk ads punch line that is customer feel like they created by Lowe coming. They love to see have the inside track. Worldwide and the York the set-up played out in They know how to play Peppermint Patty different situations. It is along and thus feel satisfying to be in on the connected to your joke, brand.
REPEATABLE THEME EXAMPLES by The James Group:

Anatomy of a Business-to-Consumer Campaign

Anatomy of a Business-to-Consumer Campaign

Corbis Insurance Services Purpose: To differentiate and draw attention to a minority owned insurance broker and demonstrate they are more creative with the coverages they provide.

ThinkFun Purpose: To show that everyone plays mind challenging games, and not focus on a particular age group. Campaign Type: Repeatable

Campaign Type: Repeatable Theme, making images out of Corbis Business Cards. Result: Won major Fortune 1000 business, including Nike and Harmon International, and government business including the St. Louis Airport. In 6 months, company merged with Aon.

Theme. The games are so interesting, even animals are interested in them. Result: Increased sales 15% in the first year, and proved key in helping client win a tremendous retail partner. In 2004, Barnes and Noble put a Thinkfun Center in over 360 stores throughout the United States.

Campaign Type 4:

CONSISTENT LAYOUT
A consistent layout uses a unique, design look and repeats these elements at each

become the number one else is playful design, airline in the world, as you want to go serious. touchpoint. This allows well as the most Consistent design is customers to easily profitable. about consciously identify your company in a standing out from the blink. The more distinct Consistent layouts these elements are from include Apple's iPod ads crowd and keeping your your competitors, the with silhouetted dancers trademark design going on everything. easier it is to stand out people on bright from the clutter. backgrounds. Created by But more importantly, TBWA Chiat Day, the Great examples of consistent layout include iconic ads helped make the Continental ads, with the iPod the number one MP3 player in the world the blue globe, yellow and helped Apple extend trim, and white all caps headline. NW Ayer put thatits brand from a design on everything from computer company to a consumer electronics print ads to bag tags to company. cocktail napkins and helped Continental One of the keys to the consistent layout serves a deeper purpose. Consistency instills trust. When a company plants its flag around one design look and feel, customers feel comfortable with that brand faster and longer. In an uncertain world, consistent layout is to zigthe consumer's deep where everyone else is desire for something zagging. If everyone one they can consistently count on, is soothed by else is corporate blue, you want to be another a consistent layout. color. If everyone
CONSISTENT LAYOUT EXAMPLES by The James Group:

Anatomy of a Business-to-Business Campaign

Anatomy of a Business-to-Consumer Campaign

Roundhouse Purpose: To position Roundhouse as the fashionable warehouse technology partner for fashion companies. Campaign Type: Consistent Layout, orange duo-tones that are highly differentiated from competitors. Repeatable Theme, showing images of shopping (the retail business) and explaining the way Roundhouse could improve the business. Result: After 10-years of business, the campaign doubled the business in eight weeks. Became the preferred EDI supplier for JC Penny and Sears.
How To Isolate The Sales Moment
Without question, every company needs to have one of these campaign types.

Clearlight Mortgage Purpose: To take the fear out of the complicated mortgage process. Campaign Type: Repeatable Theme, happy people once the mortgage puzzle has been solved for them. Consistent layout, showing headlines emerging from code, demonstrating how Clearlight mortgage solves the mortgage process. Result: Successfully transitioned company from original brand facing trademark conflict. Uncovered niche in first time mortgages to grow business.

the sale. When your Even company or product when not doing major matches up with a little advertising, these movie of an unmet need techniques are necessary that is playing in the on the website, brochure, target customer's mind, or direct mail piece, due to a sale is quickly made. how people intake and Consider GarageTek's remember information. key to success. The Remember, these husband comes to wife campaigns provide a and says, "I want to

can't easily steal, and one that your customers want, and one you can deliver. This is what you want to

handle for your company. But what campaign to use and what should it be based on?

remodel the garage, so we can have a cool garage to work on the car and do our projects Build the campaign out of in." Exciting to him, but the "sales moment." There no sale. are dozens of things you If the husband comes to build your ad campaign can say about a company the wife and says, "I on. From there, you or a product, want to remodel the but only the sales moment garage, to get the stuff investigate which truly makes off the floor and hanging campaign type most clearly and most on the wall, so we can have the world's cleanest memorably tells that story. Then investigate garage." She hears: which design best gets clean, garage. It matches a little movie of people's attention while conveying the brand's an unmet need in her mind and she wants the attributes. world's cleanest garage. The James Group founded its brand Great marketers, like positioning and fullgreat meditators, see service advertising how the human mind agency on these wellworks. Before every decision you have ever documented principles in 1996 and has made, especially purchasing decisions, a produced an enviable little movie in your mind 95% success rate in providing ROI on played of what you wanted to gain from this marketing spend for clients. Each campaign decision. If the The James Group marketing signals creates goes through a matched your little movie of an unmet need, detailed process to correctly identify the you went for it. If not, you passed. So how do sales moment. This process includes you isolate the sales moment? To develop a identifying customer desires through one-onsingle brand position one customer that tilts sales in your interviews, identifying favor, you triangulate strategic advantages the list of customer through interviews with desires, with your management, and strategic advantages,

and the exploitable determining the weaknesses of the exploitable weaknesses competition. This helps of the competition by you to identify the studying their unique sales moment marketing. This way the that you can own. The sales moment is ownable sales moment is properly identified one your competitors before expensive marketing mistakes occur. "The sales moment is the single mental image that satisfies the customer's unmet need."
When To Change Your Campaign

change their message. market share started to The key is to let sales be diminish in 2005. Nike achieve established goals. If your has run variations of the advertising is not working, the sole indicator if a change it. If your sales are campaign is working or Just Do It campaigns since 1982. Continental no longer growing, change not. This means don't change your advertising has been running the it. campaign because you blue globe ads for over However, don't keep are bored. One of the a decade. They are throwing things against saddest things in probably all very bored. the wall, waiting for marketing is to watch Laugh all the way to the something to stick. Be successful companies bank and find a hobby strategic. Advertising change their ad other than your campaigns most often fail campaigns marketing for simply because the entertainment. ownable sales moment It is also interesting to hasn't been correctly note, from 1987 to identified. Then because 1997, MasterCard tried one of the four campaign five advertising techniques haven't been campaigns-and failed to used. Meaning, if you are narrow the gap with using one of these because they are bored, Visa. When McCann techniques and you're still want something new, or created the "Priceless" not experiencing great campaign another spot results, then you haven't they think their customers want actually tested better. correctly identified your something new. Let sales But they knew they had sales moment. And of correctly identified the course, quality of design determine this. sales moment in execution is always a Absolut wisely ran 26 "Priceless" and that they factor. years before changing

You change your advertising campaign only when the current one isn't growing sales to

Another reason sales stop their campaign when their growing is because the ownable sales moment has shifted due to changes in the marketplace. When necessity dictates, companies must

were using best practices in advertising with the word hook. The rest is history. Bottom line. Identify an ownable sales moment, use one of these four types of advertising campaigns and you will have the greatest chance of marketing success.