Seth Godin says that the “new” best way to make an internal sale is to make a video of people on the street talking about your product.  Now while I could poke plenty of holes in the fact that this is not a “new” tactic by any means, I do agree with the basic premise of what Seth is saying.

As a marketer and Brand Manager, you can easily get sucked into an echo chamber.  And from what I have seen, the problem gets amplified in Silicon Valley.  You just assume everyone knows what 3G means or that they guy on the street really cares about your new longer lasting scent (for us CPG marketers).

At P&G, one of the basic principles of the company is that “The Consumer is Boss.”  And building off that, I believe every marketer should keep in mind that they themselves are not the consumer…not even close.  A consumer does not live and breath your product every day.  And while your salary depends on that brand or product, to the consumer it is just another item in their shopping basket.

Sometimes we Brand Managers need to be reminded of that fact.  And Seth is dead-on that video of people on the street is a good way to do it.  For sure it is more effective than a focus group.

Case in point, I bet the Google Chrome Product Team was shocked when they saw this video from NYC.  Watch it for yourself and you’ll see that most people don’t even know what a browser is, much less care about a new one named after a metal.

2008 Forrester Consumer Forum

Two weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to attend the 2008 Forrester Consumer Forum.  While I have worked with Forrester for several years, it has only really been the past few months that I have started going deep with their research.  After reading through several of their reports and seeing their analysts speak at the Forum, I have come to the conclusion that Forrester Research should be a trusted partner for every Brand Manager out there.

That probably seems like a pretty bold statement so let me explain.  First, if you aren’t familiar with Forrester, here is their description on their website:

Forrester Research, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORR) is an independent research company that provides pragmatic and forward-thinking advice to global leaders in business and technology. Forrester focuses on the business implications of technology change. Uniquely, Forrester guides marketing executives, business strategists, and IT professionals to create a unified technology plan that gains business advantage.

Now what makes Forrester such a strong partner for Brand Managers (and business leaders overall)?  Well a couple of things have really stood out for me:

1. An experience tailored to your business needs: Unlike many of their competitors, Forrester custom tailors your experience based on your role at a company.  You can choose from 19 different roles ranging from Marketing Leadership to Consumer Market Research to CIO.  Doing so allows you to quickly see what research & info is most important to someone in your role.
2. Timely research to help you answer the tough questions: Has your management been asking you how your brand will survive and thrive in the market downturn?  Did you have an answer to their question?  If you were working with Forrester, you would.  Right now they are providing Market Downturn Alerts on research that can help you gain a strategic edge while competitors are scrambling.
3. Analysts that push you to think about “what’s next”:  Anyone can give you facts and figures.  Forrester is unique because their analysts take research and then use it to push you to think about what’s around the corner.  Just in the past few months, they have published such great reports as Brand Matters To Socially Connected Consumers, Fight the Recession with an In-House Agency, and Ubiquitous Marketing.

When times get tough, management is going to start asking the difficult questions about every decision a Brand Manager makes.  Having a strategic partner like Forrester Research in your corner gives you the confidence (and the numbers) to back-up your plans.   And with that confidence, you can take advantage of the downturn to gain market share and take your brand to the next level.

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AdAge had an interesting article yesterday by Allen Adamson, managing director of the New York office of branding consultancy Landor Associates.  Adamson, who is also the author of the upcoming book BrandDigital, writes about “the impact that digital technology and dynamics are having on brands and brand building.” A few key points really jumped out to me:

1. The Digital Space has not changed the basic principles of brand building:  While Digital is about more than just new tactics, it hasn’t turned the basic concept of brand building on its head…at least not yet.  Brand Building is still based firmly in the WHO, otherwise called your customer, target market or any host of other words.  It is about understanding what makes that person tick, what motivates them and who they are as a person.  Likewise Digital has changed the importance of Brand Equity.  Your brand still needs to stand for something meaningful in the hearts and minds of the consumer.  And you need to stand for this something in every way that you communicate with your consumer.
2. While Digital hasn’t changed the basics, it has ”magnified” them:  The digital age has made it easier than ever to find ”instantaneous feedback” about your target and what they think about your brand.  In this “transparent, shareable environment”, you don’t need to wait for a focus group to learn more about your customer.  You don’t have to wait for a Brand Equity Scan to come in every 6 - 12 months.  Instead you can listen to the conversation from your customers about your brand online with blogs, Twitter, and any other number of tools.
3. With Digital, consumers can become part owners in brand development:  With the digital space, it becomes less about orchestrating a giant mass media campaign through TV and Print with a control message, and more about giving consumers the tools to make a brand their own.  With digital, consumers can quickly spread word about a brand…the control is out of the hands of the company.
4. Success Fators of Digital Brands:  Adamson also interviewed Gary Briggs, former CMO of eBay, who outlined 4 success factors of Digital Brands including A.) Comprehensiveness, B.) Playfulness/Fun, C.) Ease of Use, and D.) Trust.  Of these, I think Playfulness is the most interesting one, especially if fun is at the heart of your brand equity.  Subservient Chicken worked so well for Burger King not only because it was a fun digital experience, but also because it built BK’s equity of “You Can Have It Your Way.” 

The challenge of building our brands in a digital world will grow exponentially in the future.  The winners are going to be those brands that not only recognize the branding opportunities of digital but also capitalize on them.  Adamson wrote that in his research:

“It was fascinating see which traditional branding organizations were highest on the digital-learning curve in adopting new technology to further their branding efforts and which were taking their time getting up to speed.”

That quote perfectly captures the opportunity in my career at P&G that I will be talking about in tomorrow’s post.

I will be off in Kansas City for the next couple of days doing consumer research.  Some Brand Managers love research…others hate it.  Personally I am somewhere in the middle.   When you attend good research, there is nothing better for getting in touch with the people buying your product.  But you can’t just sit behind the glass of a focus group room and hope for magic.  You need to get out there and actually talk with the consumers…understand what makes them tick by really having a conversation.

The exciting part for a Brand Manager is that there are so many ways to do this today. 

First, you can do research every day just by monitoring Social Media around your brand.  Set up a Google Alert around your brand to capture mentions in the media and blogs.  Use Blog Pulse, Technorati and other tools to catch even more blog posts.  Or use Summize to see what is being said on Twitter.  There is a ton of free research out there on the web…it just takes a little time to find it.

Another great type of research are “Shop Alongs.”  In these, you actually go shopping with a person to see how they behave in a store.  We spend so much time on designing our package, trying to get the right placement in-store.  But if you aren’t basing those decisions on how people are really shopping, then the decisions are worthless.  That is why Shop Along are so great.

Finally, my favorite type of focus groups are the ones where you get out from behind the glass and talk directly to the consumers.  These are usually set up much like a traditional focus group with the major difference being that you, the marketer, are actually running the consumers.  You are doing the talking, asking the questions and leading the conversation.  This freaks many people out at first but you will quickly get the hang of it.  And the benefit is well worth the initital nervousness.

So I’ll be pretty quiet the next couple of days when it comes to blogging.  But I will try to keep a running commentary on Twitter if anything interesting happens.  Till next week…