The power of Selling through what is not said
Posted on Jul 7, 2010 by
Paul WhiteOver the years I have noticed how the world's most successful companies are selling from what they don't say, rather than what they do. This is the point in which
marketing becomes an art form, rather than just going through the motions. Even though I am no
marketing expert, I am deeply aware of the types of
marketing that causes me to remember and crave a given product or service.
The difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is the way they live. Successful people can spot a winner not by the raw numbers, or stats, but from what you can't put down on paper. They can see opportunities, and potential from just the little details that most people would ignore. Since successful people often have money they are a highly sought after demographic by marketers. The trick is how do you create product and services, then market them in a way that will get the attention of successful people? It all comes down to quality.
Consumers view
marketing just like they would a piece of contemporary art. They are looking at the contrast, and the lines ( unknowingly ) for a certain feeling. Colors and lines can often be directly associated with feelings. Music is the same way. Why is it that a Music video will have some people that love it and some that hate it? Are we not all seeing the same video?
How to make a successful piece of Marketing
Don't claim rank
Once of the biggest mistakes a company can do is claim rank. Claims like we are #1, or we are the best, will be seen as lack of vision for the future. A company should always be improving their products and services. Nobody cares if you were number #1 last year. Would you buy a stock because they were number #1 last year? No you would look for a company that is on the rise. One company that made this mistake for the last 20 years was GM, and if it wasn't for the government bailing them out, they would not exist today.
Don't compare yourself to your competitors
Its one thing to know where you compare to the competition. Its another to display your competitors side by side with you on a piece of
marketing. As far as your company is concerned the competition does not exist. The focus should be on your products and services and the customer. Never try to compare yourself to your competition, its selling through feel, and its seem as a negative trait.
Its not what you say its your body language
Politics is one place where this is very obvious. Two guys running are pretty much saying the same thing. The only difference is how they deliver their message. They body language means a lot more to the consumers than what they say. In
marketing its the same thing. One popular way of doing this is selling sex. Having a pretty girl using your product or service, makes you look successful. Of course they have to just use your product. If they say, " I really like the product" this will look like they were bought and paid to use it. Subliminal
marketing is very powerful. Did you know that most props in
movies were paid to be there? Every car, and every product is nothing more than an advertisement. In recent years its become very obvious with the number of
movies that seem to revolve around a car, or brand of
cars. But some people realize that product placement is a bought and paid for scheme. The best
marketing is word of mouth. What if I told you there was a product that would give you perfect skin. You would not listen. But if I told you that some celebrity ( known to have great skin ) uses the product, you would start to believe more. If a celebrity is caught using your product and people don't think they were paid to use it, then it looks legit, and people will buy it.
It amazes me the number of companies that think if they pay a celebrity to tell everyone about their product that it will result in sales. Sure it might result in sales just because a million people have now heard your name. But most consumers will know you paid them, and won't try the product, because they will assume the celebrity is biased. If you are going to use a spokes person sell your product, they have to seem honest.
Word of mouth is still the best
The basic rule is you can't buy customers. If your product or service is worth it, word of mouth will be all you need. Evey major website today never paid a single penny on advertising. They all started as a small site and word of mouth caused them to get bigger.
Perception is reality
If your
marketing looks like some half baked idea, with terrible video quality, distorted sound, and bad flow, then it will reflect on the
business. But if it looks clean and well done, this will look good.
To finish off there is one website and its
marketing that stands out above the rest
http://www.lexus.com/quality/Even their behind the scenes videos are better quality than other companies use for their actual
marketing. As far as I an concerned Lexus is writing the book not just on how to make great
cars, but how to market them as well.
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