Product Comparison In Brand Publishing Is No Longer Relevant
Humor me for a minute and think back to the last time you watched television. Think about the commercials you viewed. Which one annoyed you the most?
For me, it has to be the Chevy commercials that have been around for the past 3 years or so. You know the ones featuring “real people, not actors.” The ones where “real people” are brought into a large room and cars and trucks appear out of nowhere like some kind of magic show. The host lists off the awards Chevy has been winning and compares the vehicle’s winning features over their most direct competitor. These advertisements provide a great example of how a brand can be tone deaf to how their buying audience would like be connected with.
Here’s the deal Chevy: You lose almost everyone when you behave like that unpopular guy at a party who talks about how wonderful he is especially compared to the other guests. It relays a sense of insecurity and drives astute buyers to view you with pity, not envy.
Today, product comparison marketing is a dead approach, much like the VCR is a dead technology. Today’s buyers are both more informed and at the same time more skeptical. According to the 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer, public trust in all things like government, manufacturers, media, etc. is at an all-time low. Trust in US companies stands at a lowly 50% which is down from 61% just 4 years ago.
Now look, buyers will still want to look at comparisons amongst technologies before making a purchasing decision BUT they won’t be looking at YOU the manufacturer anymore to get it.
While Chevy is losing credibility, Ford seems to have learned the secret with its First-Ever videos. Think about it, one brand is screaming how great they are and the other is simply telling a story that captures the attention and imagination of those who could be a fit to purchase their cars. I wonder which Car Company got the memo and which is still thinking it’s 1987?
The first thing you learn on the first day of a modern marketing class is “Don’t give your competitors airtime.” Even the brand publishing giants Coke and Pepsi have taken their time to learn this lesson but this year’s Super Bowl commercials ran with no mention of each other. That’s a far cry from the “Pepsi Challenge” taste test commercials from the 1980s. Both brands understand that if you want to connect with your audience, you need to tell them your story, being real, engaging emotion, leading, and relaying feeling.
Let’s make a deal beginning today. Let’s stop talking about how great your screen is or how much better your filter is compared to another one in the market. The engineers and operators who will purchase your product either know that already or will learn it, not from you, before they make a purchasing decision. Let’s make a deal to use the valuable time you have to connect with your audience as an opportunity to not just gain a customer but make them a lifelong fan of your brand. Any other way and you aren’t running a sustainable plan for the growth of you brand and company.
Image credit: "366A7187," docmonstereyes © 2014, used under an Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/2.0/