What’s Your Story??
I have been reading or more truthfully, listening to Seth Godin’s book All Marketer’s are Liars. Seth Godin is the author of the best selling marketing books over the past decade. Let me clear the air, he doesn’t actually believe that all marketer’s are liars. The title, I think is mainly to attract attention and stir up controversy.
Godin proposes that all marketer’s must be story tellers and darn good ones at that. What exactly does that mean? Well, anyone marketing a product must have a story that their target market wants to hear. The story introduces what the product is about, it’s core values. The tale must be authentic and must be delivered consistently on all levels. You must live the story. One of the reasons celebrity brands are so powerful is they are the story, they represent a lifestyle that consumer’s aspire to have and want to be a part of.
Consumer’s purchasing decisions give them a sense of belonging to a community. In fact, Godin proposes that marketers call their target market a community instead, a group of people with similar values and beliefs. This concept is perfect for today’s online world, there are online communities springing up constantly. People want to communicate with others that share their world view and purchase products that convey this identity.
Examples the author used to illustrate this concept are a glass manufacturer that proports wine tastes better in their $20 glasses than a glass that costs less. Consumers will pay the extra $40,000 for a Porsche Cayenne when the VW Touareg is manufactured in the same facility with some of the same parts. Fiji water is one of the best selling bottled water brands on the market. Is their water any different from Dasani or the one I drink that is tap filtered by a Brita water filter? No. It’s the story or in other words, branding that consumer’s identify with and aspire to be a part of. So, even if you do not consider yourself a marketer, think of the story you want to tell, then hire a marketer to actually write the story.
October 28th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
I find the author’s points mostly correct but have to add the following: Great marketing will help create the brand’s image but a great company will actually deliver on the promise.
Also, your point about consumers purchase habits driven by a sense of community is dead-on. Translated to politics and campaigns are just that, marketing campaigns to bring groups of people to buy into an ideology.
An aside:
You mention Fiji water and I’ll add Gerolsteiner, as it is my favorite tasting water. The properties of these waters give it a distinct flavor, but one that comes at a huge cost to the environment - marketing has overcome the true costs of shipping, packaging, waste and in Fiji’s case - the plight of Fijians. London and NYC tap waters have been judged as being of high quality by professional taste testers that rated it higher than some of even the highest priced bottled water. As consumers become more educated in environmental and ethical failures in companies and their products we have seen a shift in the marketing message. Weeding through the spin is becoming more difficult however.
November 4th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
I am Felix Tambora a Fashion Designer seeking High _End Retailers and Boutiques are seeking to buy my high quality clothine line for distribution to consumers who are fashion conscience and also seeking Angel Investors to help expand my clothing line to the highest level of the fashion industry.
November 4th, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Hi Kristin - Excellent post.
I tend to agree with much of this but do not believe it is complete.
In the nearly 4 decades of business building I have done, I have found there to be a common strategic marketing error in the area.
The idea that you can take, in effect, any product and create a story that will sell it is failing an important pre-requisite….it must address a problem or disatsifaction that exists in the “community”.
I have seen hundreds of companies fail and millions of dollars wasted on really great products looking for a problem to solve.
That is:
In order for a person to make a buying decision they MUST be dissatisfied in some way with the way things are.
In order for you to decide to buy a Porsche or a VW, you must first be dissatisfied in some way with whatever you are driving now.
No dissatisfaction - no motivation to buy.
In some cases the existence of the dissatisfaction is the motivation for seeking an alternative….in this case would be consumers literally walk-in to the story….IN this case the marketers job is to find this community and tell the story that they want to hear.
In other cases…as in much TV type advertising the vendor is trying to create a dissatisfaction where one may not have existed previously….The sexy spokeswoman describing life in the Porsche lane…The mud covered kid walking across the new carpet to pop some chicken fingers into the microwave. Whatever….
Either way yes there needs to be a story….probably more than one…but almost more importantly there needs to be a dissatisfaction of some sort.
So a useful question to ask when you go to create your story…are you telling it to people who are already dissatisfied….or are you telling it to people who want to make dissatisfied.
Thanks
Steve
Steve Little:
Founder - ThePerfectBizFinder
http://www.theperfectbizfinder.com (free blog)
http://www.theperfectbizfinder.com/program (program report)
I’m standing for all that is possible for you in life and business.
November 4th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
I should probably have included this in my previous post.
There are 6 buying motives - 6 areas where dissatisfaction might exist. They are:
1. Desire for gain
2. Fear of Loss
3. Comfort and convenience
4. Security and protection
5. Pride of ownbership
6. Satisfaction of emotion.
Think about the past major purchase you made and choose which one of these motivated it.
The story told by the marketer who won your business….told you a story that address that buying motive.
Steve
November 4th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
I have a story to tell with TrueDelta.com’s vehicle reliability research, but it happens to be based on actual advantages: actual repair rates updated promptly four times a year. For the most comparable, most up-to-date reliability information.
And yet there are other stories I could tell, that would be based less on facts and more on what people want to hear, and that might be more successful.
Which to run with?
November 4th, 2008 at 3:32 pm
Thank you both for taking the time to share these concepts. The timing for me is great, as I have been in turmoil trying to write effective promos. Where do I start? How do I make a dynamic, effective punch right out of the gate, first line of the promo? How do I present my service to web pr news versus magazine promo articles to introduce my company? This information gives me a better sense of focus. I appreciate anymore info that is offered on the subject of promoting through articles.
In Health,
Sandra Strom
Song of Health
http://www.songofhealth.com
November 4th, 2008 at 4:06 pm
Thanks for all of your comments!
Steve–You make an excellent point that was not addressed, there must be some form of dissatisfaction whether the consumer is already aware of it or you point it out. Thanks for adding the 6 buying motives. They are great to think of when developing a marketing campaign.
Michael–I would need a little more info on what you’re pitching.
Sandra– Glad to help. I am at a similar point and seeing that I am not a marketing expert I am going to develop ideas of what I want my message to say, images I think are great and that represent my brand, and recognizable people who I think represent my customer. I am then going to hire a marketing/pr person! Remember, you cannot do it all. Concentrate on what you do well, then look to “experts” to fulfill your other needs. Melanie Rembrandt, another SUN blogger has been of great assistance to other SUN’ers, check out her posts. Good Luck!
November 4th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
I really appreciate the information in this post.
I am equally having a hard time formulating a marketing message to promote the type of jewelry I make.
Theorically, it should not be that hard, and the idea of defining my target market as a community gives me more pointers, but I am definitely having challenges axing my message the right way.
I would enourmously appreciate any input or feedback,
please visit my website at http://www.amarelajewels.com
Amarela
http://www.amarelajewels.com
November 4th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
yeah… I don’t care so much for the idea that all marketers are liars… I feel like I am lied to all the time by small businesses trying to be competitive.
November 6th, 2008 at 1:26 am
Is this applicable in real estate selling?
November 6th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
I agree, a great story, true or false will help sell the product. I am going to revamp my marketing to add the community element. I think that is a great idea.
October 14th, 2010 at 10:09 am
Thanks for all the comments, these rock! I’m trying to get a natural hair care line going and I have very little experience (me and saving money).