Marketing Blogged

The Barclays Premier League season may have finished for the players, who have nothing more taxing to look forward to than kicking back and relaxing for two months somewhere they see as exotic, more than likely to be a teammate’s marital bed.

But no such oasis awaits Nike, the sports giant and kit supplier to sundry national and international teams, which is going full steam ahead and using the three-month escape from the cacophony of Premier League football to flog some of its new England shirts.

To celebrate the launch of the new England kit, Nike is launching a social media campaign, called “Country First Club Second”, as it weighs into the long-standing club v country argument, a debate which continues to err on the side of club.

Nike, though, is firmly on the side of country, well up until August and the start of the 2013/14 Premier League season.

The new England kit will be worn by Ashley Cole, Wayne Rooney and the gang for the first time in the friendly game against Republic of Ireland next week, after which it will get an airing in England’s match against the Nike-supplied Brazil.

A cynic would suggest that Nike is crudely launching the “Country First Club Second” campaign to capitalise on the three month break from the Premier League, a period it hopes to sell as many Nike-supplied international kits as possible.

And come August, Nike will U-turn and become “Club First Country Second” as it looks to back the launch of the new 2013/14 Nike-supplied Manchester United and Manchester City kits.

This is perhaps a little harsh, but it is worth noting that Manchester Untied and Arsenal (away kit) will not unveil their new jazzy Nike strips until July this year.

And what chance Nike succeeding getting fans to put country before club? Zilch.

England’s performances have been woeful for so long, that the days of holding any hope of England winning anything is long gone.

And there is little hope of fans suddenly becoming full of patriotic fervour watching a couple of meaningless friendly matches, though there is match against the Scots in August which might invoke some fighting  (literally) spirit from the fans.

Cynicism aside, Nike should be applauded for running a  campaign of this ilk, as it is running against the tide of thinking, and it is a bit of a gamble, which for a big corporate like Nike is commendable.

But sales of replica England Umbros-supplied  shirts have been dire for years; and even the marketing might of Nike could not  provide the Midas marketing touch when it owned the brand. So it is difficult to see anything changing now.

The Barclays Premier League is increasingly looking like a recession proof business but there are good reasons why it attracts so much money.

We all know about the rising value of TV rights, thanks not just to the forthcoming battle between BSkyB and BT but also to the fact that it’s now broadcast in 212 territories by 80 different broadcasters.

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What was David Beckham’s best career move? Signing for Manchester United? His £25m transfer to Real Madrid?

Nope, it was his marriage to Posh Spice in 1999, a union that yanked him from the back pages of newspapers to the front pages and kick-started the unceasing rise of brand Beckham into a global phenomenon.

It is common knowledge that it is not Simon Fuller’s 19 but Victoria Beckham who is the puppeteer behind brand Beckham, the former Spice Girl green-lighting and vetoing Beckham’s sponsorship deals.

So what now happens to brand Beckham? Does his final bow from the field of play end his flourishing endorsements? Unlikely, Viva Forever brand Beckham.

One issue which has deterred potential sponsors has always been access to the globe-trotting star, what with his family and football commitments.

Now that he is freed up, expect the offers to come flooding in, be it more grooming, clothing or tech brands, Beckham can cheery-pick.  The only danger here is that Beckham becomes over-exposed.

But so long as his good looks and family-man image remain, Beckham has at least five years as a global poster-boy.

And thereafter don’t count against son Brooklyn taking his dad’s mantle once his old man creeps into old age and into a global ambassadorial role, bestriding the globe complete in his Gucci slippers.

There is a consensus that Beckham’s sponsors knew little, if anything, about the star’s announcement.

Maybe one or two senior people knew at his top sponsors, like Adidas, Sainsbury’s and H&M, but Beckham’s PR people would have been mindful that any leak and subsequent posting on social media and they would be chasing and not dictating the story.

One source close to Adidas said activity was planned for the rest of the year with no knowledge of Beckham’s retirement.

There are few global stars, if any, which can match Beckham’s cross-gender appeal: the last one on these shores was perhaps George Best.

But Beckham has always been more appealing to brands than Best, because, to put it crudely, Beckham is an empty canvass bereft of a strong, opinionated personality (or at least that is what is portrayed) so brands can project upon him.

And now through sheer hard work, commitment and dedication, Beckham can pick and choose what he wants to do for the rest of his life, with money being no object.

Unilever - Bringing vitality to life.

Our agency, MCS, recently exhibited at the Suffolk Business Exhibition in Ipswich and we held a competition for visitors to our stand whereby they had to recall the slogans of 17 top brands. Most were flummoxed and the eventual winner ‘only’ got 11 correct (probably with a little help from the internet). Try these three (I’ve reversed them so you have to guess the brand from the slogan): 1) Trusted everywhere, 2) Looking after your world, 3) Bringing it all together.

Unless you work in strapline development, I’d be very surprised if you got all three correct. (The answers are Duracell, British Gas and BT). And this is why I suggest that the brand slogan presents a conundrum for organisations – how to get it right. Read More »

Personalisation is endemic in marketing at the moment. From Coca Cola’s new names on bottles, ‘Share a Coke’ campaign, to Starbucks’ insistence on writing our names (and is it just me or is it always the wrong name?) on our chai tea lattes. It seems we’re not allowed to buy a drink now unless we’re prepared to get personal.

But we all know that personalisation goes beyond having our name on a paper cup, or at the top of an email. And intelligent, data-led personalisation initiatives are booming. Plus, the rapid evolution of the so-called digital ecosystem in the last two years, in particular, means we are suddenly swimming in a vast ocean of data. And we are surrounded by brands that are understandably keen to jump in.

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Brands are never far away – on any given journey you pass billboards, posters on the train, even brand names and logos plastered across clothes & shoes. The world is awash with their presence; and they all mean something to somebody, somewhere. But what makes some brands successful, and others flounder?

On the face of it, brands are in a symbiotic relationship with their consumers, regardless of the category they are in. Brands need people; people need brands. But is that relationship really on equal terms?  Are brands the driving force, shepherding their flock using carefully constructed brand planning, or are they at the whim of consumers who relentlessly vote with their feet?

The tide has turned away from brands holding all the power, and dictating to the consumer.  The information age has rapidly led to a reversal where consumers can be more knowledgeable instantly and more demanding of quality –the products themselves and the service that precede and follows after purchase.

“Love me, love me… say that you love me…  I can’t care ’bout anything but you…” Nina Persson, singer.

Winning consumers over to your brand is tougher than it has ever been before.  Once you’ve won them over, you then have to battle to keep them, and make them as loyal as possible.  The influence that a brand can exert is critical to its success.  But influence is an outcome of other more tangible elements that a brand can impact.

Ipsos’ Influential Brands research has identified five key pillars that contribute to overall influence: having Presence, being Leading Edge, Trustworthy, demonstrating Engagement, and Corporate Citizenship.

The pillars themselves do not determine how much influence a brand has, they simply explain a brand’s personality – so how each brand derives the influence it has (and not the fundamental level of influence).

Not only are these pillars important to building influence but also drive trial of products – meeting a need, and doing it differently (and better) than the competition. Brands must be both relevant to the consumer, and also to differentiate from their competition.

The British top 50 shows us an interesting insight into what is currently important to consumers:

Only icons need apply

The more traditional global “brands” are present – as seen by the appearance of PepsiCo (#46); Kellogg’s (#30) and Heinz (#21).  Media and entertainment brands are represented, with Sky #28, Channel 4 and Disney, demonstrating that only brands that have iconic status in the British consumers’ eyes appear.

Communication is key: Mobile services providers are present (O2, #44; Orange, #42) as are the manufacturers of the devices such as Blackberry (#32).  Ipsos has also seen this trend as mobile is helping us explore consumers in ways that feel less like research and more like real life with Ipsos’ AppLife discussion platform.  Our app allows consumers to share their current, real life experiences with moderators and other consumers, with the consumer comfortable and in context from being in their own environments.  As a result, the quality of consumer insights is enhanced.

“A journey of a thousand sites begins with a single click.”  ~Author Unknown

The internet, together with technology & service providers that create easy access are now central to consumers day-to-day lives, so it will perhaps be no surprise that consumers have rated brands from this category highly.  Being able to satisfy relevant new consumer needs has driven monumental growth of technology brands, particularly when they are able to give consumer something that they never knew they needed in the first place.

The Information age has also built strong influence for brands that exist as digital resources and gateways.  When they are able to score highly on ”making life more interesting”, “changed what I do in my life” and “encouraged you to make better decisions” it’s clear consumers are now accustomed to seeking information and using that every day.  The digital experience is now intrinsic to any brand, and making the shift from online to bricks & mortar retail needs to be seamless from a consumer’s perspective.

Credit cards have evolved to suit online life

“In banking the British public have accepted horrendous service for a long time” Metro bank founder and chairman Vernon Hill

The banking and financial sector is most noticeable by the absence of brands in the top 50.  Barclays are the only bank to make an appearance (#50), and beyond that the only other financial brands present in the Ipsos Top 50 are Visa and Mastercard.  When trust is a key component of influence, it’s no surprise that the traditional banks have struggle to positively impact consumer – trust and corporate citizenship suffering heavily.

Both Visa and Mastercard have benefitted from the increase in online sales.  Whilst consumers can still choose to use a normal debit card, the additional security benefits provided by the likes of Visa drive the consumer trust protecting consumers from online fraud, non-delivery, incorrect delivery, damage and even protection from travel companies / airlines going bust.  Additional security layers are provided by both to protect customers with a password for online purchases.  Overall the support of transactions for online purchases keeps the brands relevant, important to consumers today, with a high level of presence and also rated well for “having a strong future”.

What sets Visa apart from Mastercard is the depth of sponsorship. Both have corporate deals with sport, but Visa has a greater scale – Olympic sponsorship, including the monopoly on ticket sales; and also significant football sponsorship: “possessing exclusive rights in the financial services product category for all FIFA World Cup™ activities around the world. Amongst its competition this has given Visa a distinct edge in consumers’ eyes with stronger “seen everywhere” scores generating higher presence.

Consumers have taken the power back – loyalty and levels of engagement can change rapidly.  Consumers have the means to give immediate feedback via reviews or direct to customer service teams, and with a transparent platform for consumers to see what other consumers think, consensus can change overnight or even more rapidly than that.  Overall the adage of “give them what they want” remains true – be relevant, be different and evolve or become extinct.

The Influential Brands study from Ipsos reveals the five key dimensions that explain the influence that global brands wield, helping clients understand and engage the powers of influence that affect their identity.  To learn more about these five dimensions and how they relate to your brands, please join our breakfast event at 08:30am, May 15th 2013.  Click here for more details.

In a global recession it goes without saying that jobs are scarce, let alone careers or vocational positions.  Unfortunately, through a mixture of circumstances, many people will suffer through these straitened times.

However, for some enterprising – and often young – job seekers a new trend has developed.  Fed up with the constant rejection letters, for those afforded even that courtesy, some have taken to social and traditional media in an effort to secure employment.

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With shopping activity in Britain’s high streets dropping in April to its lowest level since August 2012, the high street needs to be reinvented as the heart of the community

In many areas we have witnessed the demise of the high street during the economic downturn – this coupled with an increase in online shopping means that the future of the high street seems to be hanging in the balance. So with the older consumer in mind at a recent Age UK Engage Business Network seminar, we examined whether the high street in its traditional format can, or should, survive and what the alternatives are.

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So Trader Media Group has finally confirmed what everybody in the industry already knew: that classified rag Auto Trader is shutting as a print magazine.

Last year, John King, Trader Media Group’s then chief executive, when asked about the possible closure of the 38-year-old classified magazine, said “we’re looking at around 12 to 18 months from now.” Read More »

With video content becoming an increasingly important part of the marketing mix, brand owners are finding themselves faced with an almost bewildering array of options when it comes to choosing a production partner.

Do you approach a traditional agency? Do you approach a video production company? Or do you approach a freelancer directly? There are, of course, pros and cons to each choice: a traditional agency will oversee the whole project, but is perceived by many to be complex and expensive; and while a video production company may give you more specialist production skills there are so many out there, that making a choice can be daunting. Read More »