Putting the Sensory Appeal into the Sell

Consistency Is Key for Brand Distinction

When we talk about communication this includes everything that comes from the brand. And I use the word everything to be as all-inclusive as possible. Everything from the brand that is introduced to the public must reinforce what the brand wants the public to feel. As mentioned, this is even more important inside the company doors. Those who work for the brand are brand ambassadors and everyone needs to understand and transmit the consistent feeling the brand represents.

Defining exactly what the brand stands for determines everything that is communicated from the brand. That list of brand descriptives I mentioned in the last chapter is the bible for everything developed to promote the brand. Online promotional events need to represent the “lifestyle” of the brand character. When a brand develops a lifestyle to identify with, it gives the brand dimension. This goes beyond just presenting merchandise; it enhances the emotional appeal of the brand.

The Necessity of Tailoring the Brand Voice

The audience you are trying to attract determines the tone and voice of the content you create, and the means of distribution. An example: hiphop music videos sent around the web will attract a younger audience. Using the elements of music, storyline and visuals this format can be very effective for reaching this group. Changing the music to jazz and the characters and language to speak to Baby Boomers will give you more relevance to that over 75 audience using the same music video format. The more accurately you incorporate the voice and tone of your audience, the more successful the response to the message.

How Do We Get the Message to Our Audience?

Thirty years ago, the media sources were very controlled: a limited number of magazines, three network television stations, billboards,

radio and local newspapers. It was very easy for brands to control the message.

One of the clearest examples demonstrating the radical erosion of traditional media sources is cable television, which slowly started to infiltrate the domination of three (eventually four including FoxTV) broadcast networks. Cable brought on an explosion of targeted networks with a very specific focus on clearly defined audiences: the Golf Channel, National Geographic or B.E.T.

The next new media to come on the scene was place-based advertising, or local promotions: point of purchase promotions. As an example, shopping centers now run advertisements in their main court areas, and this is considered “place based” advertising. Malls then became another area where national advertisers could advertise locally.

Our company, ADmotion, was actually one of the first to capitalize on offering national advertisers an alternative use of their television commercials on video walls placed in shopping centers nationwide: www. stylebranding.com/admotion.

Now advertising exists wherever there are eyeballs, including video monitors in elevators, on the workout equipment at the local gym, and at your gas pump. Wherever there is public traffic there is advertising.

How do we decide where to advertise and how to get the message out? I use the phrase surround sound media by which I mean reaching your consumer by putting messages wherever your consumers are. The plethora of places to put our messaging is daunting to say the least, but the data we have available makes it more efficient to surround your audience with your messaging.

The more personal the media, the phone for instance, the more relevant the message has to be. The logic is to be very mindful when speaking to your audience. Once an individual is turned off by the brand with inappropriate messaging it is very hard to win them back.

Technology has had such an impact on the media landscape and the proliferation of media resources has become overwhelming; no one is able to keep up with all of the choices available. Today the available data provides more dimensional lifestyle or psychographic elements giving media buying another dimension that must be determined beyond basic demographic decisions.