Five cool tourism marketing campaigns that may need post-Covid tweaks.

July 15, 2021

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, This is Cool, Effective Communication — @ 10:43 am

Will marketing ever be the same after we’ve spent so long viewing the world through a Covid lens? Lingering hesitancy toward close social interaction with strangers adds a new risk element to advertising, imagery selection and especially cool, interactive tourism marketing campaigns. Yet, isn’t getting to know strangers – and being enriched by the experience – a fundamental selling point in tourism?

This makes all our jobs as tourism marketers just a bit harder. So, for fun, let’s reminisce about a simpler time…when worrying about portraying germ exchange wasn’t so high up on our marketing radar. Here are five cool tourism marketing campaigns that may need some post-Covid tweaks if implemented today.

THE SWISS VILLAGE PHONE PROMOTION

Cool Tourism Marketing Campaign Concept: Swiss villages in the region of Graubünden are so quiet that everyone who lives there can hear the pay phone ring in the town square. And if you called that phone in the village of Tschlin (population 166) and someone doesn’t pick up…you could win a free trip and other prizes. 30,000 people called in just six days.

Post-Covid Tweaks: All 166 people answering the same phone without showing it being wiped down and sanitized even once?

THE KLM BONDING BUFFET

Cool Tourism Marketing Campaign Concept: Get 20 strangers to share a Christmas dinner buffet together in an airport. The catch? The buffet descends from the ceiling (in its futuristic Star Trek way) in stages, each time a new person fills a seat. And once all 20 seats are filled, the table laden with food locks in place. KLM Airlines really knocked it out of the park on this one.

Post-Covid Tweaks: “Tweaks” just ain’t gonna fly here. Sharing food? Hugging? Cozying up for selfies? This utterly brilliant marketing concept can only reign supreme pre-Covid.

EUROPE – IT’S JUST NEXT DOOR

Cool Tourism Marketing Campaign Concept: French national railway company SNCF wanted to encourage people to take a train journey to other European countries. So, they placed THE coolest freestanding, interactive doors in unexpected places all around Paris. People who opened the door experienced real-time interaction with engaging locals in other cities.

Post-Covid Tweaks: Dude, that door handle needs serious sanitizing, and mesmerized groups of spectators can’t stand six feet apart and still watch the interaction!

CLOSED FOR MAINTENANCE – THE FAROE ISLANDS

Cool Tourism Marketing Campaign Concept: This is an incredibly genius idea to both combat and draw attention to the overtourism problem…while at the same time promoting tourism for an off-season weekend. Visit Faroe Islands “closed” to visitors the last weekend in April. Instead, that weekend it welcomed volunteers from abroad to help with maintenance and clean-up of the islands’ many natural sites and attractions. In return, visitors get a free room and meals during their stay.

Post-Covid Tweaks: Wide open spaces and lots of fresh air working outdoors? They almost skated through with that. But the vague “free room and meals” leaves one in doubt: will I have my own room and is it clean? Communal meals? How intimate is the contact I’ll have with strangers? Ah, Faroe Islands… you were so close with this one!

THE GREAT ESCAPE TO GRAUBÜNDEN

Cool Tourism Marketing Campaign Concept: Wow, the folks at Graubünden Tourism must really eat their marketing Wheaties, because here’s another winner from them. In this promotion, people at the Zurich train station could interact in real time with a friendly, welcoming, grandfatherly-type gent in the village of Vrin. He even prints free tickets for spontaneous-minded folks to hop a train and go visit him that day.

Post-Covid Tweaks: Has that guy been vaccinated? Have my fellow adventurous travelers been vaccinated? Because if we’re all going to shake hands, hug, and share a meal in Vrin, I need to know.

OK… I’m not REALLY suggesting that we need to see the people of Tschlin wipe down the phone. Nor am I saying there should have been a bottle of hand sanitizer hanging from the doors in the French railway ads.

The point is, as marketers, we just got a new dimension added to our lens. How will people perceive our messaging, images, and attempts at interaction in this uncertain world? There’s no easy answer, and no permanent one either. This will evolve over time as the pandemic ebbs and flows…and eventually recedes completely. But for now, we’ve all got to add this to our growing list of “considerations we must factor into our marketing material.”

Still, it’s pretty cool to reminisce, right? Those were the days. One time, a group of strangers at a tourism conference even baked me a bunch of homemade cakes! Yeah… those WERE the days.

What does cheugy mean? When you know…you know.

May 4, 2021

Filed under: Observations From the Field, Effective Communication — @ 9:35 am

A picture of homemade lasagna with the caption "wait, is this cheugy?"

Cheugy means something or someone that’s just a smidge off-trend and “trying too hard.” Never heard the word? You’re not alone. But why should you care? Well, if you’re a marketer and you want to reach Gen Z…you should. You might be using cheugy concepts in your marketing (oh the shame!) and you don’t even know it.

The trouble is, defining what’s cheugy (pronounced chew-gee, with a hard G) is subjective. And a clear explanation is elusive, despite a multitude of sources that try to define it. For example:

In Rolling Stone: “…an aesthetic that is somewhere between basicness and cheesiness.”
In The New York Times: “It’s not embarrassing or even always negative.”
In The Urban Dictionary: “The opposite of trendy.”
But Insider said it best: “Ultimately, cheuginess is a vibe, something you can sense without always being able to substantiate why.”

Wait…what? I just read three articles and a dictionary definition and I’m still not certain I can identify something that would universally be considered “cheugy.”

Perhaps it’s my age. The term is apparently a dig at Millennials by Gen Zers, implying that all the things Millennials thought were cool in high school are no longer cool. So I guess if you’re a Gen Xer or a Boomer, you’d probably be wise to stay out of the dialogue. Gen Z will just come up with another term (that none of us can understand) to describe how “older people” try too hard to use all the young people’s slang. Or wait…does that just make us cheugy? I’m so confused.

I remember being a kid in the early 80’s when a friend at summer camp tried really hard to define the word “preppy” for me. It was another of those “you know it when you see it” kind of terms and I obviously didn’t see it. She even gifted me her copy of The Official Preppy Handbook (“don’t worry, Grand-ma-ma will get me a new one”). And still…it was pretty clear that if you weren’t preppy and didn’t have that magical essence naturally in you, simply flipping your collar up wouldn’t cut it. You imposter.

Cheugy is the same way. You just have to know it when you see it, so if you DON’T… don’t despair. Our brains aren’t wired for everything, and just the way you may not understand calculus or be handy with mechanical things… so too, you may not be capable of identifying cheuginess. Not even if they come out with The Cheugy Handbook.

However, if it helps, here are a few things that seem to be universally accepted as cheugy:

Ugg slippers
Barstool Sports
The Instagram caption “I did a thing”
Sneaker culture
Being an iced coffee addict
Starbucks pumpkin spice lattes

But don’t go thinking you’ve got the definition nailed, even if looking at that list gave you a good idea of the cheugy vibe. Because even among those who coined and spread the term, there are regular debates about what’s truly cheugy…and that’s not even a permanent label. Apparently, low-rise jeans were once considered cheugy, and now they’re not. Try to keep up.

Here’s the big question though. Now that the mainstream media have written all about the word, giving license for the uncool and uninitiated to bandy it about, will Gen Z even want to use it anymore? Or will the term itself be deemed cheugy? We’ll have to ask Gaby Rasson, the 23-year-old software developer who’s credited with creating the term back in 2013. Gaby – clearly the idol of Gretchen in Mean Girls, who tried so hard to make fetch happen – will always reign supreme as the last word on cheuginess.

In the New York Times article, someone said “lasagna is cheugy.” Dude, my mom just made a killer lasagna this past weekend and I cleaned my plate spotless. If that makes me cheugy, I’ll gladly take that label with a side of meatballs and a glass of chianti.

And one last thought. I recently wrote a blog post about Marketing Lessons from The Princess Bride. It was wildly popular, but now I’m thinking…is The Princess Bride cheugy? BRB. DMing Gaby.

The Hiring Chain video: great idea, brilliant storytelling.

April 23, 2021

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, The Power of Persuasion, Observations From the Field, This is Cool, Effective Communication — @ 9:31 am

If you’ve not seen The Hiring Chain video, get ready for a great idea and some absolutely brilliant storytelling. And it’s not just because legendary music artist Sting is performing the tune.

Click image to watch:

GREAT IDEA

First, let’s talk about the idea as it relates to tourism and hospitality. As the industry roars back from the pandemic, there’s a definite labor shortage on the horizon. Housekeepers, groundskeepers, gardeners, kitchen staff, maintenance and custodial staff, and so much more will be needed. It’s entirely possible many of these roles can be effectively filled by people with Down Syndrome (which, FYI, is often written as “Down’s Syndrome” too).

CoorDown, the awesome organization that produced the video, has a helpful website on the subject. Here’s a link to their hiring page to learn more about hiring in your country.

BRILLIANT STORYTELLING

Second, let’s talk about the brilliant storytelling this video achieves, and why. Marketers, take note:

By using the generic career titles – baker, farmer, dentist, barber, etc. – the viewer gets a feel by osmosis for the variety of jobs possible for Down Syndrome workers.
By the time the lawyer hires John, it’s clear how the story is unfolding and the viewer starts to anticipate what comes next.
The music tempo and vibe emotionally carry the viewer through this journey. When the baker walks into the barber and the music slows down, it fosters an “a-ha” moment. The brain has a chance to stop and realize how that whole hiring chain was connected.
The ending sequence is pure magic. Just the simple act of speeding up the tempo implies quantity and depth. Without saying it in words, it’s like saying, “You see how many jobs were filled and opportunities given just because of that one first move by the barber? We had to speed things up just to fit it all in.”

It goes without saying that the video production is spot on…and yeah, it doesn’t hurt that Sting is performing the song. AdAge said it best… “it’s like a jazzy nursery rhyme.”

When you plan your next video, take a page from great and brilliant Hiring Chain video. They didn’t spell out much in black-and-white words, yet the combo of visuals, scenes, and music told the story better than any descriptive narrative would have.

BTW, you can use a similar storytelling concept with signs. See some of our faves here.

Your new year’s resolution? Better alt text.

January 13, 2021

Filed under: Digital Marketing, Website Strategies, Writing Tips, Effective Communication — @ 2:58 pm

OK, so this may not be the sexiest or most popular new year’s resolution, but here’s why it should make your list.

First, let’s be sure you understand what it is. We’ve found through our consulting and digital marketing work that very few people DO understand it, even those that are responsible for writing the alt text on their own brand’s website.

Alt text – short for alternative text – is the text description applied to images on websites (and social media, but that explanation is for another day). This isn’t the same as a caption, which can appear on your website with the image so that anyone can instantly see the words. The alt text is hidden from the front-facing website and doesn’t appear unless it’s needed. Think of it like writing a description on the back of a real-life photo that’s sitting in a frame. When you look at the photo you can’t see the description, but if those details are needed, you can get them.

Now… when would such additional hidden details be needed? Because if you’re looking at the photo on a website, you can clearly see what that photo is about… right? Nope. Not always.

The hidden text is vital in these three ways (all equally important):

It gives search engines a full description of the photo, which makes it easier for search engine algorithms to see and understand images. Using alt text on your website images means that a search engine can more easily find your photos and then show your website and/or images to people searching for relevant things you offer.
When images on websites don’t load properly – when there are connectivity and/or internet strength issues, for example – the alt text will appear instead, so at least visitors know what you were trying to show.
For those with vision impairment issues, or those who use screen readers for any other reason, the alt text is essential because it describes photos that the user physically CANNOT see. A screen reader, if you didn’t know, is a program that reads content on a webpage aloud, and the alt text allows the screen reader to give information about the visual aspects of the page. And by the way, ADA Compliance actually requires this of websites, so you might as well do it right.

Now, why won’t a caption suffice for all this? Technical aspects aside (and there are some), the biggest reason is because a caption isn’t necessarily a proper description of a photo. For example, here’s me trying to decide between my top two vices (since we’re talking about resolutions and all):

Chris Miranda holds prosecco bottle and coffee cup while deciding which to drink while giving a webinar.

The caption for this photo might be: Chris decides between two vices. But the alt text would be something like: Chris Miranda holds prosecco bottle and coffee cup while trying to decide which one to drink while hosting a webinar.

So that takes us back to your new year’s resolution about committing to better alt text. When you’re ready to dive in, here are nine brief but helpful tips for writing effective alt text.

And you can drink prosecco OR coffee while you read that article… no judgement here.

Looking for other ways to make your website easier to read and more accessible? Choose your font and typeface wisely.

Hershey’s Kisses fell prey to Satan in 2020.

December 3, 2020

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, Observations From the Field, Effective Communication — @ 10:05 am

If you’re like me, you had NO IDEA there are people out there whose sanity and well-being rest on the annual appearance of the Hershey’s Kisses holiday commercial.

But not just ANY holiday commercial. It must be the original commercial that launched in 1989 and has basically remained unchanged, with Kisses doubling as bells that ring out “We Wish You A Merry Christmas.” If you haven’t watched TV during the holidays in the past 31 years, you can see that original spot here.

This year, Hershey’s updated said commercial with a twist, like so: (click on the image to watch)

Apparently, this change ruined some people’s lives. Snippets on the subject from social media:

“I’m emotionally scarred.”
“Nothing is sacred anymore.”
“There was once a time when I loved the holidays and now I feel terrible.”
“FIRE THE PERSON WHO SUGGESTED TO CHANGE IT!!!”
“2020 wasn’t the year to change it, we’ve been traumatized enough.”
“THIS YEAR CAN GO STRAIGHT TO HELL.”
“It fills me with primal rage.”

And those are some comments I *didn’t* have to censor. Naturally, mainstream media seized on the backlash and made national news out of Hershey’s’ evil decision to ruin the holiday season.

Am I the only one fascinated by this situation? If you’re a marketer, it’s likely your brand’s recognition is far less than that of Hershey’s Kisses (she says in the understatement of the year). But if we zip up to the 30,000-foot view of this whole debacle, here’s what you can learn from it:

Consistency and frequency matter. People are fickle and have short attention spans, and it takes a long time to penetrate their awareness and create meaningful connections. Your own audience may be proportionately smaller than that of Hershey’s Kisses, but that doesn’t dilute their potential for loyalty. Keeping your annual marketing campaigns fresh is always a good idea, but keeping a few select elements the same year after year after year can form a bond of repetition that becomes tradition. Whether this is your “opening for the season” video, or a holiday campaign, or an anniversary message… there are things your loyal guests recognize that strengthen your relationship with them every year. Marketers often get swept up in the idea of creating new campaigns in order to reach new guests, but don’t be so quick to summarily drop all “old campaigns.” You’ve built equity there that could be harnessed.

Change will always scare some people, so don’t freak out when it happens. Humans resist change, and yeah…sometimes they can get dramatic about it. But you’re doing your business a disservice if you lose your nerve every time people complain about a change you’ve made, because you KNOW some will. Whether it’s a change in hours, name, staff, product, programming, marketing campaigns, or whatever… if you’ve thought it through and it’s the right move for your business, then prepare yourself properly to address (or ignore, if appropriate) any negative reaction. Related note… if you’re certain the news will be unwelcome, this might help: Five Tips to Deliver Bad News Gracefully.

Audiences can be unpredictable. Between the dual social groundswells of gender equality and Black Lives Matter, it’s a safe bet that Hershey’s thought enhancing this commercial with a black father baking cookies with his young daughter would only bring them a flood of positive feeling. Well…nope. I guess nostalgia trumps social change in this case? So, take note: be prepared for surprises. There’s simply no way you can 100% predict how all people will react to your decisions.

And perhaps one BIG takeaway here is: just don’t mess with nostalgia during a pandemic.

In closing, however, I leave you with this thought. Surely the ad agency of the globally-recognized Hershey’s brand has enough research and data in its pocket to know how staunchly loyal audiences are to this commercial… after all, they haven’t changed it in 31 years and I’m sure that was a deliberate choice.

So, did they do it on purpose in 2020 knowing it would cause controversy and therefore get a wider audience and more coverage? Or did they predict some backlash but felt the upside of the change would be worth it? Comments on that are welcome… and I’m just gonna sit here and eat an entire bag of Kisses while I ponder it.

Words matter, but so does the font you choose.

November 5, 2020

Filed under: Digital Marketing, Writing Tips, Effective Communication — @ 7:21 am

A graphic of the word typeface using a magnifying glass. If you’re not a graphic designer or branding specialist, your experience with choosing typefaces is likely limited to the little dropdown box at the top of your screen, where you select from fonts like Arial, Universal, Comic Sans, and the whimsically-named Wingdings. You may not even realize that a typeface is a design of lettering (i.e. sans serif), and fonts are variations within each particular typeface (i.e. Arial or Calibri).

Further, you probably choose your font for documents and emails based on your own personal preference of what you think “looks good.” Is it pretty? Professional? Strong? Does it reflect your personality? Does it set you apart? Or is it just the default font used by Word, Outlook, etc. and you never give it a second thought?

But in marketing and branding…typeface and font matter A LOT, and they can’t simply be based on your personal preferences. Therefore, it requires a bit of knowledge to make wise choices. Why?

First, because accessibility and legibility are essential in marketing, and not just because laws and the ADA say so. There’s a large group of folks out there with poor vision, learning disabilities, and reading/comprehension issues, and you’re ignoring that entire audience if they don’t have access and the ability to comprehend your messages.

But second – and as importantly – the world is full of clutter and speed, which has reduced people’s attention spans to mere milliseconds. Why would you risk wasting a precious point of contact using a typeface or font that’s even a tiny bit difficult to decipher? You’ll lose ‘em, fast.

So here are eight super-smart tips for choosing your typeface and fonts wisely when designing your logo, brand identity, website and more. This articulate gent Gareth Ford Williams succinctly details – in an easy 10-minute read – what you should consider. And if psychology bores you, just skip right to the list of eight things you need to know:

A Guide to Understanding What Makes a Typeface Accessible

I guarantee after reading this, at the very least, you’ll forever beware of the mischief that “imposter letter shapes” cause. Sneaky little buggers.

Got your typeface and font all sorted? Now try these Four Quick Tips to Strengthen Your Writing.

How to make directions idiot-proof.

October 19, 2020

Filed under: Customer Service, Writing Tips, Effective Communication — @ 8:00 am

Whoever thought that watching someone try to follow written directions to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich could be so hilarious and entertaining? Click the image to watch:

The dad’s deliberate insistence on following EXACTLY what was written feels absurd to watch… but only because we all know he knows how to make a PB&J. His brain can certainly fill in the gaps in direction, and the direction writers just assume that he will.

But what about someone who’s never seen nor heard of a PB&J? Or even a sandwich?

That’s how guests feel when your directions and instructions aren’t specific enough. What kind? Stuff like…

Directions from the nearest highway to your property
How to control the thermostat in the hotel room
How to connect to wifi
How to use any sort of mechanical or technological item in the room
How to set the *#$%@ alarm clock
How to get to various local attractions nearby

Basically, any time you’re telling a guest how to do anything, it’s just so much easier on them – and better customer service – if you’re specific to the point of absurdity. You can’t assume they will use GPS (or that it will work well in rural areas), or that they’ll use their phone to be self sufficient for everything they need. So spoon feed them every step of the way.

Because there are so many things you can’t control in their total experience… why risk causing frustration on something you can control? Need more convincing on this? See what happens when you don’t make enough chocolate chip cookies.

Beards and coronavirus: a lesson in fact checking.

March 3, 2020

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, Observations From the Field, Social Media, Effective Communication, Uncategorized — @ 9:30 am

If you’re a social media marketer, or your business engages in social media marketing, then last week’s beards-and-coronavirus misinformation fiasco should have been a huge wake-up call for you.

Here’s what happened.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’re likely aware that a new coronavirus (COVID-19) has emerged, and it’s causing concern in pretty much all corners of the globe. Regardless of whether a country has experienced any cases on its own turf, everyone is glued to the media reports to stay abreast of the latest status, advice, and warnings.

On the morning of Wednesday February 26 2020, someone (original culprit unknown) posted an infographic that the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) created in 2017 for workers who are required to use facepiece respirators in their jobs. It was apparently (and very smartly) timed to align with “No Shave November,” to help those intending to grow beards in support of cancer awareness know what types of facial hair would prevent such respirators from working properly. The respirators aren’t effective if the hermetic seal isn’t intact on the skin, so this safety message was not only smart but necessary.

The problem is… on Feb 26, 2020, this infographic was erroneously shared as NEW information from the CDC as a warning to the general public about COVID-19. The dramatically incorrect message? Men with beards won’t be protected from the new coronavirus unless they shave to one of the styles that work with everyday facemasks.

But wait… it gets worse.

The media, never shy about jumping on new (and especially absurd) angles to fuel a 24/7 news story, seized that nugget WITHOUT FACT CHECKING, and transformed it into headlines such as:

CDC Warns Men About Facial Hair Dangers as Coronavirus Spreads
CDC: Shave Your Beards to Prevent Coronavirus
These Beards May Make You More Likely to Catch Coronavirus

Within 24 hours, dozens of seemingly-credible news outlets shared this incorrect story as fact. Here’s what the first five pages of a mobile search for “coronavirus beards” returned on the morning of Feb 27:

Now, forget for a moment that we’re talking about epidemics, media alarmism, and the shyster-like use of “click bait headlines” as a marketing weapon.

The lesson for social media marketers is this: never EVER believe what you read – or worse, share it – unless you’ve checked the facts yourself. In this case, a quick Google search would have told you that dozens of outlets were reporting on it… but that meant diddly squat, because they were ALL wrong.

So, you can’t rely on “quantity of stories” to verify facts, which is tempting. Here’s what you CAN do:

Check the original-named source. In this case, one hop onto the CDC website or their Twitter feed would have revealed that they made no such announcement. But ANYTIME you see a media report that claims that “so-and-so says”… go straight to so-and-so’s website and social channels to find out if it’s true.
Check the media sources best known for reputable fact-checking. Two known for highest standards in accuracy and credible sourcing are Associated Press and Reuters. If they didn’t cover the story, it casts doubt on the veracity. (Note: Reuters didn’t cover the beard thing at all, and AP did just one story… on Feb 27 refuting the claim, with context and quotes sourced directly from the CDC.)
Check the credibility of the media outlet you’re using. A helpful website, Media Bias/Fact Check, has a handy search tool that evaluates the bias and accuracy of media websites. While it’s by no means infallible or the only source available for such assessment, it’s certainly useful as an indicator. A quick search on this site reveals things like how often a media source uses loaded language to sway emotion vs. factual reporting, how deeply/accurately it checks its facts, and how often it skews facts/opinion to favor a political bias (either left or right).

You may be thinking “well, I’m a tourism destination/hotel company/attraction/restaurant, and I’m not likely to be sharing coronavirus stories, so this sort of fact-checking thing doesn’t really apply to me.”

Not so. Weird stuff, urban legends, outrageous claims and more are reported in the media all the time (broomstick challenge, anyone?)… and in your quest to keep your own social feeds interesting and relevant, you may pluck one out to spin with your own angle, and share it with the best of intentions.

So, the moral of the story is: check your facts and keep your beards on.

Bonus (related) tip: the tactic of using shock-and-scare to get attention isn’t just reserved for online. Learn about the time Alamo tried to casually scare me into upgrading to a “safer” car.

Marketing: it’s about time.

December 20, 2019

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, Spending Budgets Wisely, Branding Strategies, Effective Communication — @ 10:29 am

Recently, I saw a stat in Marketing Week that gave me – a marketing counselor – a headache:

More than half (54%) of digital commerce projects are deemed unsuccessful.

Further details on this stat turned the headache into a migraine:

The main reason for this is a lack of customer alignment (34%), poor logistics (29%) and insufficient investment (29%). Some 51% of digital commerce leaders don’t believe their organization invests enough in commerce, while 28% say digital projects move too quickly and lack strategy. (Source: Wunderman Thompson Commerce)

Know what all of that fancy-stat-reporting really means? People are not spending enough time thinking about, researching, and planning their marketing efforts before taking action.

Oh wait… did you just gloss over that last sentence without stopping to really absorb what it means, and what you should do about it? As if that was just another piece of blah-blah advice from a marketer? “Spend more time thinking about your marketing before taking action.” Duh. Of course that’s good advice, you say. So basic. I knew that. Give me something REALLY meaty to chew on, like something I didn’t know before.

Folks…there’s a difference between knowing and doing. As a rule, we humans aren’t that accomplished at just sitting quietly and thinking for extended periods of time. If we have a marketing plan to write, we want to sit down and “just bang it out”… hopefully in the 93.5 minutes we’ve allotted in our schedule for it. The moment we sit down to just think, we get antsy about wasting time…and so our fingers seek out the keyboard so we can feel productive.

But just look at those stat percentages above, detailing the reasons why digital programs were deemed unsuccessful. ALL OF THEM could be solved by spending more time planning… even “insufficient investment,” because more time up front can help you 1) spend the same funding with wiser choices, 2) figure out how/where to get more funding, or 3) decide NOT to spend in that arena and invest the money elsewhere to get a better return.

Sitting down and thinking for an hour is not wasting time. Taking a full day off email and away from work to mentally explore strategy options, while curled up in a comfy chair, with your favorite snacks, beverages, and – dare I suggest it? – pajamas… is not wasting time. Blocking an entire half-day each week to seek solitude and reflect on marketing progress is not wasting time.

Carving out time to just be still and think is never going to be easy. Never. The business world moves at a fast pace, and we have colleagues, supervisors, and clients/guests who actively and passively demand our attention. But if we don’t find the fortitude to MAKE the time, we’ll all be doomed to live with some pretty sucky stats forever.

You can’t say no to bunnies.

February 20, 2019

Filed under: Marketing Strategies, The Power of Persuasion, Observations From the Field, This is Cool, Effective Communication — @ 10:07 am

Here’s the problem with the cards in hotel rooms that encourage guests to “save the environment” by reusing their towels and sheets each night: consumer skepticism.

The bubble over our heads: Really, hotel? You think we don’t see through this? You’re just saving laundry costs by making people feel guilty about selfishly destroying the planet. We all know that some marketing shyster came up with this angle to trick guests into doing it…and damn it, it burns us that you’re racking up the profit on the backs of our guilt.

The irony is…we really ARE conserving the planet by washing things fewer times. But that’s a massive, fuzzy, intangible outcome, which relies on everyone around the world doing it too…because my ONE little towel is pretty impotent in that crusade all by itself. This makes it hard for folks to embrace, and so – of course – our skepticism kicks in. We might reuse the towels (it’s not a tough ask), but it doesn’t bring us the satisfied, warm glow those cards were meant to inspire.

Enter: bunnies.

During my recent stay at Inn by the Sea in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, I quickly noticed the subtle presence of rabbit art around my room. Then I saw this and it all clicked:

The gist: We invite you to help us conserve. Savings from our linen program support the Inn’s “Rabitat,” a habitat restoration project with the Department of Conservation for Maine’s endangered New England Cottontail Bunnies, preservation of open space locally, and migration routes for butterflies.

Cue warm glow. I’M HELPING SAVE THE BUNNIES! And not just ANY bunnies… THOSE BUNNIES. PROBABLY RIGHT OUTSIDE MY WINDOW. Hopping around IN THEIR “RABITAT.” They even have an adorable name: New England Cottontail Bunnies.

Dude, if you don’t choose to reuse your towel to save a New England Cottontail Bunny, you’re just going straight to hell.

Bravo, Inn by the Sea. You nailed this for several reasons:

It’s tangible, so guests can visualize and embrace the reason behind linen reuse.
It’s meaningful…both to them and to you. It gives you something to rally around together in a shared way, which deepens your connection and fosters good feeling.
It’s different and specific, so it stands out and makes an impression in the sea of vague “help us save the planet” white noise.
It doesn’t hide the fact that you’re saving money…rather, it shows what you’re doing with the rediscovered funds, which REALLY makes guests trust you and want to help.

Lastly…it’s authentic, genuine, and credible. It smacks down that natural human instinct we all (sadly) have for skepticism about marketing.

And, let’s call a spade a spade: it’s fun and it makes people smile. That…AND it saves the bunnies? #winningatmarketing