The Social Media Blog - Methodical Madness

6 ways to write a better brief

The other day, I read a great article from AdAge on the importance of  a well-written brief. It struck a chord with me because I am a firm believer that an effective brief is critical to the success of any project or campaign. In fact, nothing at The Duffy Agency is executed without a brief. 

In the article, a marketing consultant, Casey Jones, shares his experience, “The norm is partial, incomplete and sometimes no brief at all.” Unfortunately, my experience has been similar. Some people think a brief means only a paragraph of information. It doesn’t. Some think it’s just a list of a product’s features. It isn’t. A well-written brief is akin to a well-defined map. It clearly guides the team and ensures that the final outcome is achieved in the most effective and efficient manner possible.

 

To formulate a brief that will not only help define your message, but also add value to the strategic and creative process, here are a few tips.

 

1. Choose reality over the abstract
   
   The more specific you can be with your target demographic, the better your brief will become. To say your target is  anyone with a mobile phone would probably be too broad. Even using the word “target” may be too abstract. Abstract concepts don’t buy products, people do. So, define your target as an individual.  What’s their gender, age, education? Try creating a full bio for your target. Who is this person? What’s their name? What do they look like? Look through stock photography and create a visual of the person. All of this will help the team visualize who they are talking to and develop better creative.
   
   
2. It’s all about their needs
   
   One of my favorite sayings is that people don’t need drills; they need holes. The product or service must satisfy a motivating need in order to sell. When developing the needs of your target audience make sure you are not confusing the drill for the hole.
   
   
3. Play mind games
   
   A person is not a blank slate waiting to receive messages. They are an amalgam of all their experiences and knowledge. Use this to your benefit. What pre-existing knowledge, experience or feelings will influence how they interpret your message? Has the target had a bad experience in the past with your product? Is there a new feature that fixes a perceived problem? Btw, perceived is the key word here. How your target perceives your brand makes all the difference in how you will communicate with them.
   
   
4. Make a good impression
   
   If a customer was exposed to the message you created for only a few minutes and walked away, what would you want them to think about your brand? Be clear and concise in your offer. Bounty paper towels has done this brilliantly for years. What do we all know about Bounty? It’s the quicker-picker-upper. It will quickly clean up spills and will do so faster than any other brand. What promise do you make to your customers? And does that promise fulfill a need?
   
   
5. The proof is in the pudding
   
   When creating any type of messaging, what proof are you offering so that the target believes it. And remember, just because it is true does not make it believable or convincing. You could say that your motor oil is better for high performance engines. Or you could say that your motor oil is better for high performance engines which is why 75% of all NASCAR drivers use it in their racing cars. If you are better, faster, more economical or whatever your claim, make sure you use target-relevant facts to back up your claims.
   
   
6. Add some definition
   
   For your campaign, messaging, ad, social media program, etc. to be successful you need one important ingredient: a definition of success. Ask yourself, if your campaign is 100% effective, what will happen? What will your customer do? Success may be an increase in Web site hits. Maybe success is the number of people retweeting your content. Regardless of the goal, just make sure you establish one. As Yogi Berra once said, “You've got to be very careful if you don't know where you're going, because you might not get there.” 

Obviously, there are other things to keep in mind when developing an effective brief depending on the brand and objective. What pieces of advice would you give? What do you find lacking in the briefs you’ve seen? Let us know in our comments section.

And of course, if you would like The Duffy Agency to help you with developing your next brief, don’t hesitate to contact us.

 

Kevin Duffy is the Creative Director for The Duffy Agency's Boston office.

Is it time to pitch the pitch?

Last fall, I was looking at my house and decided it was in desperate need of a facelift; specifically, it needed a new coat of paint. So I did what I usually do in these situations, I asked a few friends to recommend some painters. I also Googled “painters” for my hometown. In the end, I came down to four firms that had good reputations, good references and all the right experience I needed.

Then, I gave each of them my terms.

I asked each to paint one side of my house including the trim. I then proceeded to tell them that once I saw the results of their work, I would decide which company I would pay.

Normally, you’d think there is no way any self-respecting company would agree to such outrageous terms. However, it happens in the marketing and advertising industry all the time. We even have a name for it: pitching.

Essentially, your agency, along with a number of competitors, develop an advertising or marketing campaign for a client. If they like it, you win the business.  Of course, even if you win the business, you may not get paid for the creative and strategic work you developed. After all, some clients would argue, the big idea part was already done. Free creative and strategy was the cost of entry.

There is no other industry in the world that works this way.

 

And the only reason it still exists at all is habit. Since the days of Mad Men, advertising companies made commission off of media buys. So we would give the creative and strategy away for free in order to get that 15% chunk of the media pie.

But things have changed. Media budgets have evaporated. And those brands that still have substantial media budgets are buying that time directly. In addition, there is "free" media, such as Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

So what is a modern-day advertising company to do?

Stop pitching (at least for free). Giving away your product tells clients that it has no value. So, if you don’t value it, how can your clients? Some may bring up pitch fees as compensation, but in truth pitch fees are part of the problem because they provide the illusion that the client is paying for the work. In truth, pitch fees are usually pennies on the dollar and usually never even cover a fraction of the cost of the pitch for the agency.  

At The Duffy Agency, we have never been big fans of entering into a pitch, but have transgressed in the past with the lure of landing that big client. In almost every case, we've paid a heavy price.

The Duffy Agency's product is the services we provide, including international brand strategy, creative execution and campaign adaptation for new markets. These are things that have taken years of hard work to develop. These services have a tangible value, and we bill for them accordingly.

Of course, a creative pitch is different from a capabilities presentation or a "chemistry" meeting, which we are always happy to do. Sitting down with clients and getting a clear understanding of their business problems and goals is part of establishing a good working relationship. 

However, spending hundreds or even thousands of hours developing free work is not a sustainable business model. As an industry, we need to change how the client/agency relationship works and start valuing the work we produce.

The Duffy Agency's motto has always been, "We will do anything for our clients." For the new year, we've decided to modify it a bit: "We will do anything for our clients—except work for free."

What do you think about pitching? Do you think it is an industry practice that should stop? Tell us what you think in our comments section.

 

Kevin Duffy is the Creative Director for The Duffy Agency's Boston office.

Top 10 Social Media "Top" Lists of 2011

As 2011 winds down and we start looking forward to 2012 with the hope of economic growth, we thought we would review the year that was. However, what we found was that nearly everybody and their brother has created a top whatever list of 2011. Not ones to reinvent the wheel, we thought we would bring you our Top Top Lists of 2011...in no particular order.

 


The 10 Most-Viral Fortune 500 Brands of 2011

These are based on the number of views, but from a business perspective, We have to say that the Corning video A Day Made of Glass has to be the #1 B2B video of recent memory.

 

Top Ten Women Social Media Influencers

This is a great list and one that we completely agree with, especially the ranking of Ann Handley (she's one of our faves too).

 

Top 10 Most Significant Search & Social Marketing Stories of 2011

A good retrospective of 2011 by Guillaume Bouchard of the different events that shaped 2011 in social media and search.

 

 

Top 6 Social Media Marketing Trends of 2011

2011 was a pretty quiet year when you come to think of it. So much so that Mashable could only come up with 6 social marketing trends. Sometimes it's about quality not quantity.

 

Top Ten Social Media Disasters 2011

A good list and analysis from DavidAmerland, although it is presented rather quickly at times.

 

 

The Top Ten Social Media Lessons of 2011: Part I and Part II

Lessons to be learned from the social media landscape as see by Christopher Barger.

 

 

The 25 Best Social Media Books of 2011

For those who want a bit more depth than can be found in your normal blog post, this is a list of some great books on the practice of social media marketing.

 

10 Social Media 2011 Highlights (Data Included)

The best part of this list from ClickZ is the data that is included (in case you didn't get that from the title).

 

 

 

The 10 Best Social-Media Campaigns of the Year

AdAge has comiled a book of Top 10 lists, but for us, this is the one we were interested in the most.

 

 

 

 

 

The World of Social Media 2011

While not really a "Top 10" list, our last entry is a fascinating look at the statistics surrounding social media for the year 2011 presented by VideoInfographs.com

 

 

 

What do you think? Are there lists we missed? Share you view in our comments section.

Happy Holidays from The Duffy Agency

Everyone at The Duffy Agency would like to thank the readers of this blog and all our colleagues and clients for a tremendous year. And in that same spirit, we wish you the happiest of holidays and a healthy and prosperous 2012!

We also wanted to share with you a special holiday gift: a holiday poem inspired by Dr. Seuss. Click below to read it. We hope you enjoy it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Santa Claus Graphic Guidelines

How not to get sued by an elf this Holiday Season

Hey it's that time of year again. Our client Santa wants to make sure your Holiday marketing communication is compliant. So we thought we'd share Santa's graphic guidelines.

 
Download TheDuffyAgency-Christmas

 

via www.brandrants.com

Is your brand's message lost in translation?

Great post on the Brand Ranter blog:

When people think about cross-cultural marketing blunders they usually think of the funny translation gaffs. There are dozens of examples. You’ve probably come across a few of these yourself. 

These types of mistakes are easy to spot with a quick back translation or a check with someone from the local market. The silent killer of many cross-cultural campaigns is translation that looks fine in a back translation but to a native sounds lifeless and utterly forgetable. Your brand's personality expressed through emotion, nuance and colloquialism is often the first thing to be lost in translation. 

Read the entire post here: www.brandrants.com

A Dear John Letter to Google+

Dear Google+,

Let me start this off by saying that it's not you; it's me.

Really. I think you're great. These last few weeks have been really fun. Your simple elegance is breath-taking and you are so easy to get along with.

I can't deny that I was attracted to you at first. You were so new and shiny. Call it "the grass is always greener" syndrome. Or simply call it "social lust." Sure, you were a bit more modern, a bit younger, a bit flashier and brought some things to the table that I had not seen before. You seemed wild and exotic. But eventually,  as we spent time together, I realized that you didn't really offer me anything new.

And that's the rub.

I don't know that I am ready to break-up with my current social network.  I've been going with that other site for so long now (coming up on 5 years) that I'm just more comfortable with them. We've shared so many memories together. Pictures. Videos. Games. Even a poke or two. Plus, my entire family and all my friends really like my current social network. It'll be hard to get them to switch their minds and embrace what you have to offer.

I know this may come as a shock. But from what I understand, I am not the only one that feels this way. Your appeal has been dwindling by the day. And recently, I've even heard that members of your own family have disparaged you in public (albeit accidentally). How can I love you if even your own parents don't think your worthy of their time?

I know that maybe if I spent more time with you, I would change my mind. But that's just it. I don't have the time for another social network—at least not the time it takes to develop a proper relationship.

Not that you care, but I think my current social network noticed my wandering eye. They've really done their best to improve our relationship (although it still seems very needy at times...wanting to know what I am doing every second). They've even given themselves a makeover to make me more interested. And I have to say, it's working.

Perhaps if we met at a different time in my life things would be different. And maybe they still can be. I'm not completely closing the door to any future with us. So, I'll keep tabs on you just in case.  

I wish you nothing but success.

My warmest regards,

~ Kevin

 

Kevin Duffy is the Creative Director for The Duffy Agency's Boston office.

The lasting legacy of Steve Jobs

R.I.P. Steve Jobs

Let me start by confessing that I am somewhat of an anomaly in the advertising and marketing world. And it's not because that I am a copywriter who has absolutely no interest in writing the great American novel. Nor is it because , as a creative, I actually relish working within the boundaries of the brief. No, it's none of those things. In fact, it is far worse.

You see, I am a PC.

In an industry littered with Apple fanboys (and girls) and a reverence for Apple products that borders on idolatry, I sit with my over-sized black HP laptop somehow managing to make a living despite using a clearly less stylish and, as I've been told throughout my career, inferior operating system.

Now there is no doubt that Apple computers are nice. They're sleek. They're light-weight. They're stylish. In other words, they're everything I am not.  But that is not the reason I don't use an Apple. Truthfully, it just good old-fashion sloth. I have been using a PC for so long that it's just more comfortable. And yes, I know that Apple computer are 1000% easier to use than PC's. I've also been told this for years by people who make the Republican party look like amateurs when it comes to sticking to the talking points.  I consider this assertion that operating an Apple is somehow written into our DNA along the same lines as someone who grew up in France telling me that speaking French is the easiest thing in the world. Meanwhile, I sit there not knowing a word of French telling him that, in fact, English is the easiest language. My point is that I could very easily argue that a PC is more intuitive. But I won't.

So why am I telling you all this. Well, as a technological pariah, my instinct is to shun anything Apple—and at this point, truthfully,  it's just out of principle. But even with all my natural inclination to hate all things Mac, I can't but help admire the life and mourn the passing of Apple's great visionary, Steve Jobs.

In my mind, there are two specific aspects that made him probably one of the most influential people of the last hundred years. The first was that he never let the impossible stand in the way of a good idea.

A few years ago, I read an article about how Steve Jobs worked with his development team. He would come to them with the craziest ideas. They would tell him what he was talking about was impossible to build. And he would tell them he didn't care—just build it.

The other great trait that he possessed was the ability to understand not only his customers, but people in general. In fact, of the many accolades that will heaped upon Steve Jobs in the coming week, from technological savant to entrepreneur to envelope-pushing visionary, it can't be overstated that his prowess as a marketer was second to none and his style of marketing should be something we all try to emulate.

In 2009, while participating in a panel discussion at SXSWi, I saw Mark Cuban say that giving customers what they wanted was a bad idea. Initially, I thought he was just being provocative. But he had a good point. He argued  that if all companies did was give people what they wanted then there would never be any true innovation. People, he reasoned, don't know what they don't know.

No one knew this better than Steve Jobs. He always seemed to be 5-10 years ahead of the rest of us. But not in an arrogant sort of way. More like someone who goes ahead of the pack to blaze a trail that makes it easier for the rest to follow. And in a career that spanned 4 decades, Steve managed to also build one the biggest and most sublime brands  the world has ever seen.  There is no missing Apple products. From the first Macs to the iPad, they all have a certain look, feel and emotional draw.  People love their Macs. They love their iPhones. This is something you don't see with PCs. PCs are more utilitarian and less, well, cuddly.  I mean, I like my HP...but I don't think I'll be getting a special haircut expressing my adoration.

Nothing made the genius of the Apple brand more clear than a viral video that may the rounds a few years back entitled "What if Microsoft designed the iPod package" (oddly enough this video was produced by Microsoft.)

Even from the cold, dark recesses of my PC world, I marvel at the sheer consistency of the Apple brand experience across products, packaging, and even architecture. I mean, Apple stores are massive but not cluttered. They all have about 3-4 products but they have hundreds of them on display so everyone can play with them. It's a fun and enjoyable experience going to an Apple store (next to Chuck E. Cheese it's one of my kids favorite places).

I've "talked" before about what we can learn from the way Apple markets its products.  So I won't bore you by repeating them (bore yourself by reading the post).But suffice to say that Steve Jobs never let his customers guide his product development. He let his imagination and intuition guide it.

He developed one of the first truly social brands and tapped into the idea of creating a vocal and passionate community. He was authentic and engaged with his customers. And in turn, they became willing zealots in the Church of Steve. But he never rested on his laurels. He was always pushing for the next thing. He sought perfection and possibility. And when Steve Jobs marketed his products like they were the best thing since sliced bread, that was usually because they actually were the best things since sliced bread.

Steven Jobs was a once in a generation person. His brilliance has changed the way we communicate and interact. Forever. And the only thing worse than losing such a brilliant mind, would be not to learn from the trail he blazed.

So from a staunch PC users (who now owns an iPod, iPad and soon iPhone), I bid a fond farewell to Mr. Jobs and only wonder what could have been if he only had a few more years. 

Share your thoughts about Steve Jobs in our comments section.

 

Kevin Duffy is the Creative Director for The Duffy Agency's Boston office.

This time, it's personal

Social media asks a lot from both consumers and the brand. So, before you start putting yourself out there, make sure you are ready for the relationship.

In the old days of advertising (pre-2005), campaigns came and went. You'd run them for a while and then see how they were being received by the marketplace. Based on that, you'd either continue or scrap it and try something else. Marketing campaigns were almost like spaghetti. You'd cook it up based on best practices , throw it against the wall and see if it stuck. (I realize this is completely oversimplifying the process, but you understand what I mean.) Stopping a campaign had no real consequences.

Social media is different.

With social media, your goal is to create a community around your brand. And this changes the terms of the relationship between consumer and brand. With social media, consumers invest a certain amount in a brand. Brands are no longer asking for your attention; they are asking for your time. It's a more personal relationship. In fact, just look at the lexicon of social media: "liking" brands on Facebook and "following" brands on Twitter. These are very personal expressions.

And like any personal relationship, breaking up has definite repercussions.

Sure, you may think you can still remain friends, but no one likes to be dumped. And when you stop a social media campaign and abandon a community that has invested time and energy into that relationship (especially suddenly and without warning), there are consequences.  From a brand's perspective, the worst of these consequences is the lost of trust.

Business strategist, Fred Reichheld, talks about the value of trust in his book The Loyalty Effect. Trusting a brand builds loyalty to that brand, and loyalty to a brand brings sustained profitability. In fact, research shows that loyal customers are more apt to continue buying a brand even if the price increases. Once a consumer loses trust in a brand it is almost impossible to regain it. And if you do, it is a lot harder the second time around.  

In other words, social media is a commitment—not a campaign. And as such, it should be well thought out beyond your immediate marketing goals. Now, some of you may say that the commitment/campaign debate is just semantics. But if you develop a social media presence with the idea that it is just another campaign, you may be missing the point.

If you want help developing your social media strategy—one that will stand the test of time—feel free to contact us at The Duffy Agency.

 

Kevin Duffy is the Creative Director for The Duffy Agency's Boston office.

What the pharmaceutical industry can teach us about social media

Social media marketing has grown faster than most any other business discipline (and I use the term "discipline" loosely) in the last 50 years.  And like many new disciplines, it has been going through growing pains. Social marketing has always had its critics. Some celebs have even announced it death. But this is to be expected with any new discipline. What's happening today in social media marketing is reminiscent of the trials and tribulations of the pharmaceutical industry in the late 19th century.

Back then, chemistry and industry came together and created well-known brands such as Merck, Bayer and Pfizer. It seemed there was no ailment that modern science could not cure. Unfortunately, this also gave rise to snake-oil salesmen selling tonics and potions to cure everything from headaches to hair loss, with no real idea what they were selling or how to properly use it.

There was such a rush to be first to market that proper research was often pushed aside—sometimes with disastrous results.  Bayer, for example, created a brand new product to help morphine addicts kick their habits called Heroin (yes, Heroin was a brand name, but thanks to the Treaty of Versailles we can all use it now...so to speak).  The only sign of efficacy people looked for was if it made you feel good. If it did, they reasoned,  it must be curing you. That's how we end up with cocaine-laced pain medications.

Social media marketing is going through a similar process. Since its inception, much of social media's efficacy has been based on anecdotal evidence with little thought to research and true causation studies.  In fact, if you look at some social media marketing reports, the numbers seem very promising on the outside, yet a bit more in-depth study reveals serious flaws in their research (read our " Don't believe everything you read about social media" post) .

That's why it was refreshing to listen to Dan Zarrella's The Science of Social Media Webinar this week. What Dan does best is take aim at, what he calls, "unicorns and rainbow" advice from social media experts. In other words, he tries to put science behind the hyperbole with interesting and sometimes surprising results.  For example, according to Dan and the numbers he's looked at, the idea that "engaging in the conversation” is important, really isn't. The most important thing, as we've all heard before, is publishing interesting content. Dan will also be the first to tell you that his research is not iron clad, but he makes the best inferences based on the data he can collect. But the promising part is that the marketing industry is starting to look at social media with a more critical, research-focused eye.

Social media has a bright future but it is still in its infancy. And despite what you may hear, social media is not a magic tonic that will cure all your marketing ills. It can be an effective part of your overall marketing program, but it takes more than just showing up. Like a 19th century patient downing elixirs filled with opiates, simply creating Twitter accounts and Facebook pages may make you feel good, but is it really fixing the problem? Social media—like any marketing effort—takes serious thought, thorough research and a solid strategy.  

At The Duffy Agency, we have a motto that says "we don't guess, we know." What that means is that when we develop any type of marketing campaign, we never assume; we take the time to find out. The same is true with social media. Your social media campaign needs to be based on strategy not just tactics. And if someone tells you all you need to do with your social media marketing is simply show up and "engage in the conversation," watch out. They could just be trying to sell you something.

(By the way, if you would like help with your social media marketing feel free to contact us.)

What do you think? Is there too much hype in social media and not enough fact? Let us know in our comments section.