LOOKING BACK TO SEE AHEAD
by June Bisel
Partner, BBG&G Advertising & Public Relations

One of the gifts I received for Christmas this year was a book entitled “What a Year It Was! 1960” by Beverly Cohn. As I began to browse through it, I found that it was full of print ads from that year. My first thought was, “This is great. I love old ads.” But then I realized the significance of what I was seeing. The author obviously felt that these old ads were the best way to give her readers a real feel for the times and actually bring them back in time.

And as I looked back, I was reminded that 1960 was a much simpler time. The Andy Griffith Show saw its first episode. Elvis Presley won his first Gold Album. And Bob Newhart won the Grammy for new artist. Modern technology brought the Wirefax, a public facsimile service which was established between Chicago, LA, NYC, SF and DC. Fairchild Cinephonic developed an 8mm camera that recorded sound. And RCA boasted about their Flairline-styled table and clock radios, many almost four inches thin!

Businesses used print ads, radio and television commercials as the primary means of communicating with their target audiences. Salesmen went house to house selling their wares. And the newest buzz word was Plugola, a form of marketing which mentions merchandise on television and radio shows. And, yes, even then marketers pondered new ways to cut through the clutter, new ways to make their message stand out from the rest.

In some ways times sure have changed significantly. Technology has advanced beyond what we could ever have imagined back in 1960. And advertising has found its way into new media and new spaces in our lives to the point that it is impossible to escape. Statistics vary, but it is estimated that the average person is subjected to some form of advertising 1,000 to 3,000 times a day.

And yet, some things remain almost the same. Even after all this time, Elvis’s music is still popular, and we can still watch Andy Griffith on reruns. Bob Newhart is as funny as ever, and marketers are still experimenting every day with new ways to connect with their audiences.

As traditional 30 second spots become a less and less effective way to reach consumers, advertisers need to look at other means of communication. Becoming ever more popular is product placement and branded entertainment. Product placement is when a product, such as a Mac computer or a can of Pepsi, shows up in a feature film, sitcom, etc. Branded entertainment combines audio-visuals such as TV, radio, and podcasts with a brand. The main objective of branded entertainment is to entertain. The secondary objective is to give the product or brand the opportunity to present its benefits and position itself. Both are a bit of a twist on the old Plugola made popular back in 1960. Television’s convergence with the Internet is proving to be advantageous for this type of advertising, as consumers find it far less objectionable to receive branded content through this new media using podcasts and sites such as MySpace, YouTube, and SecondLife. And, as consumers adopt this new media usage, marketers will need to adapt their marketing plans and find new ways to reach their markets.

The “new-fangled” Internet brings back old-fashioned accountability.

What I find interesting about something as relatively modern and high-tech as the Internet is that because of its ability to link consumers to one another in ways that no one could have imagined in 1960, it has made companies once again accountable for their actions. User-generated content has given consumers a new found voice. From a marketer’s perspective, honesty and transparency are critical in order to succeed in business today. Companies that are not acting honestly, not standing behind their products and delivering their brand promise, or are acting unethically in any other way, will face the wrath of a new community of consumers, consumers who span the world and have instant access to one another. Companies will now be more accountable than ever before; and for consumers, this is great news for 2007!

The good news for marketers is that the world is bigger and more exciting than ever. That’s because there are virtual worlds to advertise in now, and when combined with real world marketing, there can be some wild results. We need to keep in mind, however, that the Internet is a very dynamic environment and has the potential for significant changes practically overnight. Track results. Keep an eye on the competition. And, most importantly, keep an ear tuned to your consumers’ needs. Let’s not forget that it’s all about them. If you are not in tune to what your consumer wants, how they feel, and what they need, then you will lose their loyalty and their spending.

So have fun with all this new technology and the exciting possibilities it offers in consumer communication. Make 2007 the best year yet! And don’t forget the most important part of your business—your customer.