Transparent Marketing™
How To Earn The Trust Of A Skeptical Consumer
OK, marketing pro, let's take a quick test. The following
sales copy is excerpted from the Altoona Tribune. Just how effective
do you think it could be? Is it persuasive? What is your instant reaction
to the tone of the message?
"Modoc Oil - The greatest medicine on earth. It has
no equal. It relieves all pain instantly: Toothache in one minute
- Headache in one minute -- Earache in ten minutes - Sore Throat in
one night - Neuralgia in from three to five minutes."
"Modoc Oil can be used internally as well as externally
without the least danger. It has never been known to injure anyone
young or old. One of the most valuable properties of this oil is its
adaptability in painful diseases of children. Should your babe show
any symptoms of pain in the stomach or bowels, wet immediately a flannel
cloth and lay it on the seat of pain. Relief will certainly follow
in less than ten minutes."
"Modoc Oil is a sure and speedy cure. Every family
should have a bottle within reach. It's a doctor in the house."i
Brash, isn't it? Would you rush out and buy a bottle of
this miracle cure? Would anyone? In 1885 the demand was so strong
that the Oregon Indian Medicine Company had to build a new plant encompassing
an entire city block of Corry, Pennsylvania. As late as 1912, the Company
was still in full production with a popular price point of fifty cents
per bottle.ii
What about today? How would such blatant copy be received
in our cynical marketplace?
Researchers at www.KeyProjects.Com
iii recently conducted an unconventional test.
They placed the very same ad in the Altoona Mirror (The Tribune is no
longer published). Here is a synopsis of their findings:
- Medium: Altoona Mirror
- Length of Run: One day
- Circulation: 35,000
- Response To Toll Free Hotline: ?
- Sales: 0
A fairly predictable result - but it demonstrates a vital
point. This original ad worked only because people trusted and believed
its message. Not anymore.
With each passing nanosecond, consumers are growing more
and more jaded. It is difficult to fathom just how skeptical this generation
has become... skeptical and wary.
The average person is assaulted with a barrage of
577 new marketing messages per week.
If we could somehow wire the mind of the consumer as they
sift through the conundrum of emails, snail mails, banners and commercials...
we would probably hear a resounding response:
"I don't have time to listen, and I don't believe you
anyway."
Indeed, experts tell us that people sort their mail in
order to find an excuse to trash it. And even if by chance, a message
somehow escapes this ruthless purge... it probably won't be remembered.
Statistics indicate that we retain less than 1% of
the marketing messages we encounter.iv
That means that this very week, your company's pitch is
just one of another 577 being hurled at the prospect. You may be #11,
or you may be #450, but whatever number you are, it is imperative to
win a place among the fortunate 1% that are actually "heard"
and remembered.
And this is only half the battle... somehow you must be
believed.
In the first quarter of 2000, our colleagues and competitors
burned nearly two billion dollars in online advertising. This is
182% more than the first quarter of 1999. And this is despite the
fact that only a fraction of these monies will ever purchase a trusted
first position.v
Here's the bad news:
The Post Modern Consumer just doesn't believe us anymore.
They have endured too many empty promises, too many exaggerated benefits,
and too many artful disclaimers.
The word "sales" has become synonymous with the word
"hype".
What are we as marketing experts to do? How can we continue
to invest against these diminishing returns? How can we be heard? And
most importantly, how can we be believed?
While these questions are challenging, they also afford
a major opportunity.
Most companies are churning out traditional sales jargon
laced with vague adjectives and "me too" claims. A visionary (even if
small) firm who learns how to communicate in a new way could achieve
instant credibility.
Credibility translates into trust; trust translates into
relationship, and relationship can translate into sustained sales.
But what is this "new way to communicate" and how can
we learn it? Here's one place to begin.
This article contains 2591 words. You have already read
747 of them. It will NOT answer all of your questions. It is very limited
by it's length and by it's medium, but it will disclose five key
principles that could truly help you penetrate the venerable defenses
of your target market. It utilizes two research studies, it contains
eight quotations, and it references seven sources. It is tightly focused
on a single question:
How can we get this skeptical generation to accept
and respond to our marketing message?
The answer can be found within a simple set of principles
that embody the core philosophy of Transparent Marketing™.
As we race into the new millennium, the rules are changing;
people are changing. The "old school" methods of selling products are
growing stagnant. Social Scientists call this new era The Age of
Post Modernity.
And the Post Modern Consumer will not tolerate multiple
"closes", self-promotion, or invasive mail. He doesn't even like "suits
and ties".
Technology has empowered this new generation with far
more options than in times past. Marketers are often held hostage
by a single click. And whether the weapon of choice is a mouse or
remote, we have but seconds to initiate a relationship.
There has to be a more effective way to communicate.
Transparent Marketing™ offers a discreet new
philosophy based on a collection of historic values.
The British poet, W.H. Auden once said:vi
"The image of myself which I try to create in my own mind
in order that I may love myself is very different from the image which
I try to create in the minds of others in order that they may love me."
In Transparent Marketing™, both images are
one and the same.
To understand the application of this new philosophy
we must fast forward from 1885, to some 115 years later.
Here is a modern (if subtle) version of "snake oil copy".
It is actual sales text extracted from the high traffic web site of
a major company (the name has been changed) .
"Led by one of the finest management teams in the
industry, MediWidgets has consistently demonstrated a keen understanding
of the industry and a strong vision for its future. This vision translated
into a concept of a superior system - of how patients should move
smoothly through a logical healthcare system that offers highly technical,
less-invasive, cost-effective procedures."
What is wrong with this piece? Is it too long, too short,
or too direct? If you were the expert hired to revise it, what changes
would you make?
Transparent Marketing™ suggests a different
way to analyze this sample copy. Here are five key principles:
1. Tell (only) the
(verifiable) Truth
"Write the truest line you know." When Earnest Hemingwayvii
penned this famous advice, he could not have known that it would have
such lasting impact. His words still resonate today. If the new marketer
is to succeed in persuading the Post Modern Consumer, he must embrace
this maxim just as eagerly as the aspiring author.
The task is challenging. First, we must strip our ad copy
of every last info fragment that is not absolutely accurate.
Then we must go back and strip it again, this time of every fragment
that is not absolutely verifiable.
Here is a direct quote from the mission statement of HealthWidgets.Com:
"We consider respect, trust and integrity to be essential
in all our dealings. We expect honest, ethical behavior from ourselves,
and we encourage it in others."
Fine sounding words, but despite the noble tone,
their message will likely be discarded. If the Post Modern Consumer
can't instantly verify a claim he will assume that it is false.
2. Purge all vague
modifiers.
Let's take a pair of surgical scissors to the MediWidgets
pitch. Let's cut away the subjective adjectives, adverbs, and prepositional
phrases.
"Led by ______________________ management teams in
the industry, MediWidgets has _________ demonstrated a _________ understanding
of the industry and a ___________ vision for its future. This vision
translated into a concept of a ____________ system - of how patients
should move _________ through a _______ healthcare system that offers
_____________________."
Question: What do we have left? Answer: Not much.
What is this copy saying? How will it impact a prospect?
Here is a paraphrase of the remaining paragraph,
along with the likely responses of a weary decision maker as he scans
for meaning.
- Info-Fragment 1: MediWidgets is led by a management team.
(So what. So is every other company)
- Info-Fragment 2: MediWidgets has demonstrated an understanding
of the industry and it's future. (Yeah, yeah, yeah. Says who? How
have they demonstrated this "understanding"?)
- Info-fragment 3: MediWidgets has designed a system for moving
patients through a healthcare system. (What are these people talking
about? What do they really do? How can they help me?)
If theses responses seem harsh, they are probably not
harsh enough. While this writer has no desire to demean the work of
another professional, the Post Modern Consumer couldn't care less. He
actually despises hype and anything else that insults his intelligence.
He is armed and dangerous. With a single click,
he can terminate a company's opportunity.
3. Let someone else
do your bragging
To the Post Modern Consumer, nothing is more nauseous
than the sound of someone singing their own virtues. If you must convey
subjective information about your product, then do so through the
voice of your customers, peers, or reviewers.
In our sample copy we deleted the following modifiers:
finest, consistently, keen, strong, superior, smoothly, less invasive,
cost-effective. Anyone of these colorful words could be acceptable,
bracketed within the quotes of an unbiased third party, but they will
not work when we declare them for ourselves.
As King Solomon, advised his son, some 3500 years
ago, "Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth".viii
4. Substitute general
descriptions with specific facts
The Post Modern Consumer demands to be respected as a
capable decision maker. They despise thinly veiled sales pressure,
but they appreciate simple, direct communication. Give them the resources
they need to make an intelligent comparison; then politely "step back"
and allow them to make their own evaluation.
Let's see how this second principle applies to the first
two key points of the sample copy.
- Info-Fragment 1: MediWidgets is led by a management
team
This fragment does not offer any substantial meaning.
If the goal is to persuade the reader to trust the company, then we
need to provide specific facts that clearly imply the effectiveness
of the Team.
This goal can be accomplished with a hyperlink to more
information, and/or with a single inclusive statement of "ipso de
facto" qualification.
In the limited space of the above copy, it is probably
best to focus your prospect on the qualification of one team member.
Here is an example:
MODIFIED INFO-FRAGMENT 1: Jan Vincent, the CEO
of MediWidgets.Com, was formerly the Technology Director of the
Mayo Clinic. She holds dual doctorates in Computer Science
and in Nuclear Medicine.
- Info-Fragment 2: MediWidgets has demonstrated an understanding
of the industry and it's future.
This fragment makes a bold proclamation, but does
not offer a shred of evidence. It is not difficult to imagine
how sarcastically this nebulous claim will be received by the reader
as he slashes through the dross.
MODIFIED INFO-FRAGMENT 2: In the past seven years, the
R&D staff of MediWidgets.Com has developed six new software
applications and eleven new patented, patient care procedures.
According to "Medicine Today", 62% of all U.S. Hospitals utilize
at least one software solution created by the MediWidgets Research
Team.
5. Admit your Weaknesses
The Post Modern Consumer is not looking for perfection.
He is looking for honesty. He wants to build a relationship with someone
or with some company that he can trust. Best selling authors
Jack Trout and Al Ries espouse this vital principle.
"Why does a dose of honesty work so well in the marketing
process? First and foremost, candor is very disarming. Every negative
statement you make about yourself is instantly accepted as truth.
Positive statements, on the other hand, are looked at as dubious at
best." ix
When a company is humble enough to admit a weakness, they
immediately distinguish themselves from the competition. It opens the
door for a trust relationship.
The consumer is all too aware of the fact that we are
not perfect. To pretend otherwise, only serves to raise their suspicion.
Tell them what you can't do, and they'll believe you when you tell then
what you can do.
As Emily Dickinsonx has said, "The truth must dazzle gradually".
Let's see how the principles of Transparent Marketing
work together in the sample copy
For the sake of clarity, we have divided it into two paragraphs.
MediWidgets.Com helps people access their personal
medical records from their home computer. Jan Vincent, the CEO of
MediWidgets.Com, was formerly the Technology Director of the Mayo
Clinic. She holds duel doctorates in Computer Science and
in Nuclear Medicine.
In the past seven years, the R&D staff of MediWidgets.Com
has developed six new software applications and eleven new
patented, patient care procedures. According to "Medicine Today",
62% of all U.S. Hospitals utilize at least one software solution
created by the MediWidgets Research Team...
These paragraphs reflects a new approach to the
MediWidgets marketing message, but they could be improved still further...
In fact, they would be more web compatible, if they were organized in
an easy-to-scan list format. The message, itself, could be strengthened,
if it were complimented by a simple set of decision tools. These
include:
- A customer satisfaction rating reflected in real time, on
the web site.
- A symbol beside each feature that reveals the percentage of
current customers who agree with its claim. This information would
be gathered in a simple agree/disagree poll taken from customers who
have used the product for six months.
- A simple, easy-to-scan chart that (politely) compares the
MediWidgets solutions with its competitors
- A "What Are Your Limitations Section?" that would allow
the prospect to learn in advance the product's inherent weaknesses.
This section would have a (moderated) forum that let customers add
their own comments and observations.
In the final analysis, it's not the prose; it's the principles.
Transparent Marketingˆ¥ is about values not sentence alchemy.
It asks that we treat the customer with the same integrity that we would
expect to be treated.
Its simple approach to a complex problem can best be captured
in the words of an anonymous rhyme:xi
A lion met a tiger
As they drank beside a pool
Said the tiger, "tell me why...
You're roaring like a fool."
"That's not foolish;" said the lion,
With a twinkle in his eyes,
"They call me king of all the beasts
Because I advertise!"
A rabbit heard them talking,
And ran home like a streak.
He thought he'd try the lion's plan,
But his roar was just a squeak.
A fox, who happened on the scene,
Had a fine lunch in the woods.
The Moral? When you advertise,
Just be sure you've got the goods.
