This is a great lesson to for entrepreneurs who are
thinking about using media advertising as one of their
small business marketing tools.
Remember Meat Loaf (born Michael Lee Aday)? His album Bat
Out of Hell, released in 1977, has sold nearly 40,000,000
copies and was on the charts for over 9 years. He is also
featured in a new commercial that is running pretty
frequently on TV.
The ad features Meat Loaf as a dad whose son is begging him
to get him a cell phone. He's singing about how he won't
run up the minutes. I personally like Meat Loaf and his
music and I think the commercial is pretty cool with a very
catchy tune that pulls some lyrics and riffs from Meat
Loaf's Paradise By The Dashboard Light.
The other afternoon, I heard the commercial and started
singing the tune in my head and realized I had seen the
commercial several times and could not think of the company
or brand of the phone! Now, I'm thinking this was a fairly
expensive production because in addition to Meat Loaf,
Tiffany is in the commercial and they are probably fairly
expensive talent to hire.
After all of this expense, I couldn't relate a brand or a
product to the commercial! I kept an eye out for the next
airing and saw it was for the AT&T GoPhone. Think of all
the money spent on the ad. They did a lot of things right
like using celebrity endorsements, a good tune and an
entertaining spot. But it really made me wonder, why
couldn't I think of the company or the product?
What could you do differently if were considering a similar
TV ad as one of your primary small business marketing tools
? For one thing, a bit more focus on the product instead of
the production. For another, you would add a special offer
with a deadline to buy the phone or go to a Web site to
download the video and a special offer coupon. You would
have a tracking mechanism to see how many inquiries and
sales were generated. What if they had a toll free number,
1-800-MeatLoaf, to call and get a special offer and find
out how to download the song to iTunes or even a ring-tone?
The marketing folks could track response and the ROI on the
ad. What if there were a contest to be in a commercial with
Meat Loaf?
But instead, the focus was all on creativity and
entertainment. I'll bet the ad will even win an award but I
still think ads should be written to sell the product now,
not build a brand or win awards. My guess is that you can't
afford Meat Loaf in your ads but remember, when you do
advertise, it's about making money, not building your
brand. Brands don't put food on the table, sales do. When
you spend money on marketing, either do it yourself of find
a professional whose goal is to increase your profits and
is willing to guarantee results, not just earn a commission.
You can see the commercial on www.youtube.com. Search for
Meat Loaf AT&T. This version is a 90 second commercial that
does a better job of naming the product than the spot on TV
but it still could have soooo much more potential as a
source of REVENUE instead of a brand. When you think about
branding as a strategy, ask yourself if you want to get
your name out there or sell as much of you product or
service as possible and build a strong and loyal customer
list as quickly as possible.
For the small business marketing tools to add to your
toolbox, go ahead and think about branding. However, make
the strength of your brand be a result of your reputation
of providing phenomenal products and services. Build your
brand using marketing that creates prospects and leads. It
is just as expensive to get your name out there with a
compelling offer and reason for a client to buy from you
now as it is to just get your name out there. The
difference is the ROI. The Meat Loaf commercial offers no
way to measure the ROI and small businesses can't afford to
throw scarce marketing dollars up against the wall and
guess at the ROI.
Here is a powerful small business marketing tip when it
comes to a brand-building strategy: If your financial
planner came to you with an idea to spend $10,000 on
marketing as an investment, you'd think, "What will my
return be?" because she is your financial planner. Use the
same standards with your marketing, advertising and media
reps. Ask the question: "What is my projected return and
how does it compare to other marketing investments?" If
they tell you your return is x-thousands of impressions,
ask them which impression will put money in your pocket?
After you watch the YouTube video, see if you can help me
out. Why is Tiffany is carrying a leg of lamb on her
shoulder in the commercial? Maybe she makes her meat loaf
with lamb!
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