From the time you wake up to when your head hits the pillow again, there are forces invading your psyche trying to capture any bit of mindshare you’re willing to give. They’re everywhere – over your morning newspaper, in your email, on your Facebook page, while you’re Tweeting, during your commute, and caught in your snail mail.
Some studies show that individuals are now exposed to nearly 3,000 messages a day. But we only notice 52, and we remember just four. That’s a mere .13 percent of all the incoming marketing missiles each day.
Earning a spot in your customer’s “Final Four” is the ultimate goal, right? Easier said than done considering that technology advancements enable more message creation to more people through more channels than ever before. So when technology levels the playing field, brands need to raise their game to make it in the Final Four.
This point was crucial during my time last week at the DMA 2011 Conference and Exhibition in Boston. The common themes were engagement and relevancy. Unfortunately, many marketers still equate relevancy with basic personalization. Receiving an email that starts with “Dear Christa” but morphs into a pitch that has nothing to with my business is not relevant marketing. No way it’s making it into my Final Four.
Here’s another great example from my friend Tom Curtin of tca Creative Services. Tom is crazed by the irrelevant communication he receives from an airline he frequently flies. They continue to send him flight promotions that depart from cities hundreds of miles from his home. He doesn’t care that the airline addressed him by name, but he does care that despite all of his personal information this airline has at its fingertips (most notably his ADDRESS), it still doesn’t send him relevant information. This creates a memorable experience alright, but probably not the one the airline was going for.
So, who’s advancing to the Final Four? I love this example from the State of Maine. The Maine Office of Tourism used web-to-print communications to provide customers with personalized AND relevant travel guides. Following the campaign, travel tourism grew 23 percent.
At Xerox we’re on the journey of relevant marketing just like so many others. Raising your game takes insight, innovation and individual attention. But it’s not the only way to win. So, what four marketing messages did you remember from today? Why? Let us know here or follow the discussion @christabc.
