Sticky Marketing: Bridging the Brand and Mind Divide

I think we have to agree that traditional offline marketing is still a crucial business initiative even in today’s consumer markets. As much as I am a huge advocate of bringing people online and influencing through great online content and virtual social interaction, digital alone will not cut it. Going out there with road shows, direct marketing with flyers and sales promotions are still expected by the buying public, most especially in Singapore (Great Singapore Sale, anyone?)

Which is great for the economy, especially in the current slumpish conditions. But unfortunately, most businesses want to fast track the route to cash. ‘What is the fastest way to push stock and goods?’ ‘Which shopping season will reap the most money for us?’ Hence, the customer neglect.

Segment and predict the market, yes. Understand the market, NO!

Getting Sticky With It

I am writing this post inspired by Penn Olson’s post: 5 Guerilla Marketing Campaigns Captured on Video. How guerilla marketing campaigns work is by capturing your attention momentarily and then leaving an impression of the brand and its message in the mind (however, viral is unpredictable and should not be an objective but a bonus).

In his book, ‘The Tipping Point’, Malcolm Gladwell speaks of The Stickiness Factor, the specific content of a message that renders its impact memorable. Using this concept at value, it shows how easily being top-of-mind can greatly improve your marketing and branding effort. I personally think being ‘sticky’ does not require huge and blatant impacts. It is the quality of the customer’s attention and learning that matters most and this can be attained by a carefully thought-out marketing campaign. One that bridge traditional with digital.

So I now present to you…‘Sticky Marketing’.

The Sticky Route 2 to the End Point is essentially getting into the mind of the buyer before- or post-purchase by redirecting the buyer’s attention to online digital assets such as a website or social portals (Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.) Unlike Route 1, where interaction and intellectual exchange is minimal and where the focus is on closing a sale, Route 2 provides a journey for the customer to further understand the brand and products. A sustained exposure and learning of the brand. Is that not sticky?

Watch how this German guerilla campaign is used to market the brand’s automobile paintwork repair services. A pity they did not provide any info on the ‘sticker’ on getting to the brand online, but I am pretty sure they are Google-ready. (This was in fact a viral video project as part of the brand’s engagement with the readers of its blog):

Now replace the above campaign with any of your offline campaigns, be it a road show or door-to-door direct marketing with flyers. Just remember to promote your web portals or your social media channels (please don’t do this mistake). If you are successful in leading your customers to your online assets, it is a great opportunity for sticky marketing  and not merely simple selling. Long term sustainability is always better than short term profit!

So which route will your business choose? 1 or 2? Do you want to get sticky with your customers? If I got this wrong, please do tell in the comments!

Ps. Warning! Sticky Marketing is not an attempt at intellectualism. Just merely saying it simple :)

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