Real-Time Marketing: Making It Work For Pharma Branders
Real-Time Marketing: Making It Work For Pharma Branders
Let’s start by creating a baseline for this topic. What is real-time marketing (RTM)? Of all the attempts to define this marketing strategy, a blog post from Evergage sums it up quite nicely: RTM is “…the practice of brands engaging their audience via content, advertising, and product placement that is relevant to a specific current event or cultural happening. The content is most often in the form of a “meme” or graphic advertisement shared through social media channels.”
An easy example? Oreo’s infamous tweet during last year’s Super Bowl.
When we start to look at RTM (sometimes referred to as viral marketing) through a healthcare lens, we need to dig a bit deeper. Pharmaceutical branding is inherently complicated. The industry is overflowing with rules, regulations and guidance – all of which make marketing a bit challenging. And because of these parameters, real-time marketing, as explained by Evergage, seems somewhat elusive.
But, it really is all about perspective. Mashable frames it up a bit differently.
“…real-time marketing success starts with a brand's day-to-day activity, not a single well-timed moment. Don't swing for the fences your very first time out. Implement small, real-time marketing initiatives on a regular basis; patiently teach your audience they can expect timely, relevant communications from your brand. Then, when a really big opportunity arises, your team is poised and ready to make the most of it.”
When considering in Mashable’s frame of reference, RTM and pharmaceutical branding seem to better coexist. This tactic becomes less about a cute response and more about being responsive – and proactively so. Pharmaceutical companies face an unfathomable number of questions from a variety of audiences – and comprehensive, strategic marketing efforts can go a long way to answering a lot of them before they’re even asked.
Pharma branders can utilize RTM by identifying opportunities that work within the confines of their industry – and by viewing those parameters as guideposts, rather than obstacles. A program like TEDMED is a great example of such an opportunity TEDMED brings together like-minded industry professionals and gives them a variety of platforms to promote their brands. Brands can use all of the tools of RTM to tell their story while they attend (or even just live stream) this kind of conference.
And, in order to succeed at RTM, you have to get comfortable with learning as you go along. The fundamental tactics of this type of strategy are content, social channels, mobile and video. Can’t focus on all four areas? Then specialize in one and grow from them. But, the key to real-time marketing is responsiveness – build a program around that and you’re more than on your way to a successful campaign.
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Sources
“Real-Time Marketing Isn’t What You Think It Is,” Evergage.
“Someone Give This Oreo Employee A Raise,” Mashable, Feb. 3, 2013.
“4 Steps to Explosive Real-Time Marketing,” Mashable, July 15, 2013.
“Real-Time Marketing Opportunities in Healthcare?,” brandgagement, May 7, 2013.
“2014: The Year of Digital Pharma?,” Pharmaceutical Executive, Jan. 23, 2014.
Is Brand Power Waning? (Part Two)
Is Brand Power Waning? (Part Two)
Guest Blogger: Ashley Wiederhold
Many industry leaders have long expected brands to lose their power as consumers become increasingly knowledgeable about their products, services, and behind-the-scenes activity, thanks to the World Wide Web. As an article published by the Harvard Business Review so aptly explains: “The case for the decline of big brands follows a strikingly clear logic: The primary role of a brand is to make it easier for consumers to choose which products to buy. If consumers have immediate access to information that helps them make those decisions[,] such as user reviews and expert opinion, the value of a brand will fall.”
At first glance, this may seem to be a strong argument. Think about it: When do you rely on brands? Perhaps when you are shopping for something and don’t know much about the product (i.e., you buy a Dyson because of brand recognition and reputation, not because you’re a vacuum cleaner expert) or when you’re in a hurry and don’t have the time to do your research (i.e., you need to quickly pick up a can of green beans and simply grab the variety you recognize).
But, as the aforementioned article points out, the Internet, which is the primary location of the information that consumers access when making key financial decisions, is also highly brand-driven: “As digital disrupts more marketplaces, brands become more important and more valuable. Take a look at the various brand rankings: Digital brands such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, IBM, Intel, and Samsung are in the top 10 of most rankings […] If brands are truly unimportant in a digital world, why is it so brand dominated? Why do so many people choose Google search over Bing when only experts can tell which has the most accurate results?”
The strong power that brands wield is, of course, the answer. But instead of leveraging traditional branding and marketing tools, today’s companies need to take their brand image online. The article puts it perfectly: “It’s about providing meaning and satisfying emotional needs. These fundamental human needs have not changed.” But the ways in which companies are able to meet these needs have changed—and drastically. Meeting these needs is now largely achieved via the Internet, rather than traditional advertising methods.
Before wrapping this up, it’s important to touch on one more idea, which was discussed in part one of this two-part defense of brand power. Because consumers have access to so much more information, it’s critical that companies uphold the brand image that they create by acting upon the values, mission, and attributes that they have chosen for their brand to represent. The article corroborates this, stating: “In a hyper-transparent digital world, consumers instantly know the difference between what a company says and what it does.”
The moral of this two-part story? Brands are important—nay, essential—in the Internet Age.
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Source
"Brands Aren’t Dead, But Traditional Branding Tools Are Dying," Harvard Business Review
Fitbit, meet Tory Burch. Tory Burch, meet Fitbit…?
Fitbit, meet Tory Burch.
Tory Burch, meet Fitbit…?
More and more, companies are partnering to bring products and services to consumers that cross socioeconomic, demographic and psychographic lines. Sometimes, bringing two companies together not only reaches a larger audience, but it exponentially builds their brands. Think Apple and Nike, Eddie Bauer and Ford, The Global Fund (Red) and GAP (along with other brands, including Apple, Hallmark, Converse and Dell) and Isaac Mizrahi and Target.
Earlier this year, and on a more unconventional note, Fitbit and Tory Burch announced a partnership: The Tory Burch for Fitbit accessories collection.
In one hand, you have Fitbit, a pioneering maker of health and fitness tracking gear. The NPD Group now says Fitbit has 77 percent of the market for full-body activity trackers despite intense competition from Jawbone, Nike’s Fuelband, and others.
In the other, there’s Tory Burch, an American lifestyle brand with more than 100 freestanding boutiques and a presence in more than 1,000 department and specialty stores. The collection, known for color, print and eclectic details, includes ready-to-wear, shoes, handbags, accessories and beauty.
In this fashion meets fitness venture, Tory Burch has designed pendants, bracelets and wristbands that will hold the Fitbit Flex tracker (see images below).
The skinny? Well, the Fitbit Flex retails for $100, but Tory’s jewelry ranges from $50 to $595. And, one of the brand elements that seems to resonate with Fitbit products is their wearability and durability, which seems a little bit at odds with Tory’s classics.
The real question here is, will existing Flex owners buy into the accessory options from Tory Birch, or just stick with the basic plastic bands?
And, on the flipside of this thinking, could Fitbit welcome an entirely new, more affluent audience through this partnership? After all, the pendant and bracelet options are much more attractive for going out.
Either way, I can’t wait to see the finished products (hopefully in silver, too!), and once it launches, watch this unique partnership grow.
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Sources
“Twenty Co-Branding Examples,” Businessweek.com, http://goo.gl/S6Uoy
“How Fitbit Survived as a Hardware Startup,” Forbes.com, http://goo.gl/NbSNpf
“Buzz,” Fitbit.com, http://goo.gl/YGcM8n
“About the Company,” ToryBurch.com, http://goo.gl/SGcIkr
Richard Branson Communicates with Consumers, Builds Character with Branding
Richard Branson Communicates with Consumers, Builds Character with Branding
Guest Blogger: Ashley Wiederhold
“Brands exist as a means of communicating what to expect from a product or service,” explains Richard Branson in an article he wrote for Entrepreneur. This definition may seem simple—too simple—at first glance, but it conveys an often overlooked idea that is central to the art of effective branding: branding is a form of communication.
Too frequently, businesses approach branding as an afterthought. Professionals who are busy building a company may assume that the colors and font used in the logo, or the names of its products and services, or even the manner in which they communicate internally, play a minute part in the successful development of a brand with staying power—and they couldn’t possibly be more mistaken.
As Branson points out, branding is a form of communication. When you brand your company, you are creating materials (a logo, a product name, a tagline, etc.) that convey the values of your business. You are targeting, with these materials, the consumers that you want to turn into clients. With the wrong brand message, you and your potential clients might as well try communicating in two different languages.
Branson explains that businesses often make the mistake of trying to create a perfectly polished image for their brand—and this can cause them to suffer from a lack of personality and, as a result, appeal. He explains: “When creating your first ads, designing a logo, and reaching out to potential customers for the first time, you may be tempted to create a brand that’s very corporate and remote. Too many companies want their brands to reflect some idealized, perfected image of themselves. As a consequence, their brands acquire no texture, no character, and no public trust.”
So, what do you do when you’re trying to create a brand that will speak to the right consumers (and in the right language)? Your brand should reflect both the values of your company and the values of your target audience. Only when you remember that it takes two to communicate can you create an effective brand that clearly conveys your company’s message.
Sources:
Image from Forbes
Entrepreneur article
Brand Genius: Jack Dorsey
I was in a Bank of America a week ago and came across Fortune magazine’s 40 under 40 issue. I began flipping through the pages and stumbled across Jack Dorsey; I recognized the name, but only as the co-founder of Twitter. What I learned reading the article, and doing more research on Dorsey for this post, far surpassed my initial impression (he started Square, too?!?!).
So, similar to our “Brands We Love” posts, we’ve talked internally about focusing on key influencers and brand leaders who are making waves in our industry. Dorsey will be our first post profiling such an individual.
There is something innately fascinating about someone like Jack Dorsey – a college dropout who soaks up information like his life depends on it. Someone inherently curious, who has built a life for himself that revolves around invention, innovation and seeing the world as something to evolve, to make better. Learning about him, you find yourself a little envious, but then realize that he has harnessed what he excels at and shared it with the world. It’s remarkable.
A St. Louis native, Jack Dorsey had an affinity for studying maps and spending time in railway yards as a kid. He taught himself basic computer programming and by the time he was a teenager, he had developed a program that graphically simulated the movements of the vehicles on a police scanner.
He studied at the University of Missouri, but a job took him to New York where he enrolled and eventually dropped out of NYU. He bounced around – working at (and leaving or being fired from) two different start-ups and eventually ended up back in St. Louis feeling like a failure. But, his time home allowed him to study varied interests, from botanical illustration to massage therapy.
In 2005, San Francisco became the impetus for Dorsey’s creativity. Through a job at Odeo, a directory and search website for syndicated audio and video, Dorsey was able to partner with colleagues to brainstorm new computer programs. Odeo’s popular “hackathons” which allowed its programmers to work on anything they wanted, eventually gave way to the development of Twitter. A poster on the Y Combinator blog once commented that Twitter was “more of a discovery than an invention” and because of that reality, its precise origins are convoluted. That said, Dorsey was instrumental in its creation and success, along with a team of highly intelligent programmers and developers.
The fledgling Twitter needed to build buzz and awareness, so Dorsey and company used the South by Southwest festival to do just that. Twitter named six attendees who were enthusiastic tweets its “ambassadors,” and posted their messages on plasma screens in the lobby of the conference center. The stunt was insanely successful and paved the way for continued growth.
The beauty of Twitter is how much its basic interface lends itself to all sorts of purposes – uses unforeseen by Dorsey and its designers. And, every step of the way, Twitter has embraced its own evolutions, including retweeting, the @-reply and hastags.
“I believe fundamentally that the next Gloria Steinem, the next Ghandi, the next Martin Luther King – they’re out there and they’re actually using Twitter today. And our job is to insure that people find them.” -Jack Dorsey
Twitter’s beginnings were bumpy, and the management structure was innately flawed. Eventually, Dorsey left the company (he still retains the chairman title, but it’s somewhat ceremonial in nature) and began searching for a new problem to solve.
Genius struck when Jim McKelvey, a longtime friend of Dorsey’s, complained that he failed to sell a piece of glasswork to an overseas buyer because of credit card payment issues. Dorsey began to think of money as “commerce, which is conversation.” Together, they assembled a team; Dorsey focused on the software and McKelvey, the hardware. Soon, they had a prototype and were approaching investors…and Square was born.
Just four years after Square’s technology breakthrough (using the iPhone’s audio jack, rather than its patented dock connector to attach to phones), the company has been valued at $3.25 billion and IPO rumors are swirling. Dorsey has been able to shape Square into a company that he’s proud of, and one that is profiting off of his experience.
At 36, Jack Dorsey is strategically building his personal brand on a colorful Twitter and Square foundation. He’s thoughtful, deliberate and open-minded. He continues to act unconventionally – at a recent talk at Y Combinator’s annual startup school, Dorsey read from some of his favorite books and played music for the audience. And, in some ways, he’s a bit of an enigma – mentioning a possible run for mayor of New York and also enjoys riding the bus to work to be able to observe people’s interactions with technology and apps (via phones, tablets, etc.).
With so many accomplishments already in his repertoire, Dorsey still has immense potential ahead of him and it will be interesting to see is brand develop further with each new venture. Stay tuned, branding nerds!
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Sources
“Jack Dorsey: The pride of St. Louis,” Fortune magazine, http://goo.gl/CGPVOS
“Jack Dorsey holds impromptu art and lifestyle symposium,” CNET.com, http://goo.gl/CUwWvI
“Two-Hit Wonder,” The New Yorker, http://goo.gl/5qB7qd
“20 Things About Jack Dorsey,” All Things D, http://goo.gl/fAUG8
“The Many Sides of Jack Dorsey,” WIRED, http://goo.gl/4vY6E
Birchbox Delivers Brand Satisfaction
They say good things come in small packages. With products ranging from Luna bars, perfume, earbuds, green tea and mascara, brands are seizing the opportunity to distribute product samples in a little package called, Birchbox.
Birchbox.com, is a subscription-based service that delivers a monthly box of beauty samples to your door for a small fee of $10 a month. This NYC centered business was founded by Katia Beauchamp and fellow Harvard alum Haley Barna in 2010. Birchbox chooses products based on a beauty profile you complete when you sign up. From a brand’s perspective, this is a way to upsell existing customers and to acquire new customers by putting the product in front of them that they may not otherwise have been exposed to. A recent box brought me a fun colored nail polish, Kate Spade perfume and a delicious-smelling hand cream. I was so excited to receive my box of goodies, it felt like Christmas as I opened it! In my opinion, Birchbox satisfied me as a customer as it delivered products that I currently use and a few I hadn’t experienced before. I loved the hand cream and bought it on the Birchbox website once my sample size diminished. Bottom line, both Birchbox and the brands benefitted from my purchase that day!
Birchbox has been on the market for two years and has seen rapid growth, both with new female consumers and new business partners, such as major brands like Kiehl’s and NARS. It offers a way for big brands to get their products into the hands of young, e-happy customers with money to spend. Over 200 brands have joined Birchbox because they see the benefit of pushing their products to female consumers each month. Brands such as Elizabeth Arden are scrambling to give away samples to Birchbox’s more than 100,000 subscribers as they see the value in distributing their products to females who love a new beauty item to brag about.
The startup has been so successful gaining female consumers that Birchbox Man launched in April 2012. Now, guys can sign up and, for $20 a month, get their own “Birchboxes.” Products shipped in the boxes will include shaving cream, cologne, headphones and watches, with more lifestyle and tech items planned for the future.
Birchbox is a place where brands can find new customers and engage with them in a very intimate environment-their homes. This subscription-based system introduces customers to small and large brands, helps smaller companies start to find their consumer base, and larger companies find new audiences.
For a small fee and new products shipped to your door each month, would you sign up for Birchbox?
Brands Take to the Sky for Higher Reach
Airport security checkpoints create lines, pat-downs and frequent headaches for travelers. There are also the dull colored table trays on airplanes that make your snack and beverage look, well dull. Airlines have long wanted to engage travelers through these mediums so it was naturally when they invited companies to place advertisements on security checkpoint bins and on table trays to make it a more positive experience for travelers. Does this form of advertising work? Brands think so and are taking advantage of this advertising avenue.
Security Point Media, the leader in airport passenger security checkpoint advertising and the innovator of the Secure Tray System worked up a plan to provide free bins to airports in exchange for the right to sell advertisements on the bins. During a recent trip from New York to Boston, I noticed the ads at JFK airport. As I placed my shoes and other items in the bin, I saw an ad for Zappos that said “Place shoes here, buy shoes here.” I thought it was clever and made me remember that Zappos is a great store for shoe lovers and it distracted me for a few minutes as I made my way through the line. In my opinion, the ad worked as it was colorful, simple and reminded me how much I liked the brand and the products they offer. Brand recognition and recall are much more likely when advertising serves a practical purpose and is helpful to consumers.
Los Angeles International Airport, one of the program’s first test sites, was able to purchase long tables, seating, floor mats and other equipment from the ad revenue they have generated since the start of the bin advertising program. Airports like the program because it gives them a little bit of extra money and helps improve the checkpoint experience for passengers. Brands like Zappos are also helping absorb the cost that TSA would normally have to spend buying the equipment needed for security checkpoint. Sounds like a win win to me!
Another way to reach frequent travelers is by smacking an ad on a table tray while they’re on the airplane. On a recent flight, I saw an ad for Visitrichmond.com that did a great job of showcasing their cities history by having an ad that said “History. Rated “Gee!” From chilling ghost stories to thrilling roller coaster rides, history is for kids of all ages.” The ad featured a group of people enjoying a roller coaster ride. Whether it’s an ad for a hotel, cell phone or a tourism push for visitors, brands are gaining maximum exposure as the advertising images cannot be avoided.
While media companies believe table tray ads provide up to 3+ hours of guaranteed exposure and attention and a clutter-free environment with zero distractions, I believe frequent travelers would question if the ads make as much of an impact as companies would have liked. In a busy traveling world where people are rushing to get to their gate, do people notice advertisements on check point bins and table trays or are they more concerned with making their flight?
Community Naming: The Center
The idea: creative. The purpose: admirable. The name: underwhelming.
Pegasus Global Holdings has secured 20 square miles in New Mexico to serve as a mock town where they can study the environmental and global effects of specific technologies. "Innovators ... (can) to test renewable energy innovations in real world conditions, such as how does a solar panel work on a shadier lot?"
With a plot of land ripe for experiments, a 'ghost town' heritage, a team targeting innovators and specialists in their respective industries, and a $200 million dollar budget, "The Center" is the name they chose? If executed correctly, Pegasus Holdings has a real opportunity to create some press and engagement around this initiative. With a name like "The Center", they've missed the mark.
How about playing up the environmental aspect in the name? Or if that is too trite, what about the dichotomy of ghost town imagery with technological innovation? Have any ideas? Post them in the comments.
Here's to Steve
"Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward.
And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.
Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do."
- Apple "Think Different" Campaign
Photo credit: AP Photo/Paul Sakuma
Scandals: can they be good for a brand?
That iconic "swoosh" is easily recognized by millions of people around the world as the logo for Nike. Its influence reaches far and its endorsements are many, so it's understandable that devout sports fans (and anyone that watches the news) remembers when Michael Vick lost his Nike endorsement after pleading guilty to dog fighting charges in 2007.
Just one month ago, Nike decided to renew its contract with Vick. The quarterback has had a moderately successful comeback since signing with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2009.
"Michael acknowledges his past mistakes," Nike spokesman Derek Kent told CNBC. "We do not condone those actions, but we support the positive changes he has made to better himself off the field."
Many are upset that Nike may appear to support criminal activity with Vick's contract renewal. This has prompted me to wonder: does disassociating one's brand from a scandal (like Nike did initially) help or hurt a brand?
I believe a brand that disassociates itself from a scandal will flourish or flounder based on how it has already branded itself in the past. If a company has established itself as a smart, successful enterprise, then the public will most likely reference that image and see the disassociation as a tactical move. However, if the company has defined itself as a continuously error-prone brand that dabbles in illicit activities, then the public will see the company as irresponsible for cutting its ties.
Take Disney World, for example. Several people have died on the park's attractions, but is that what you think of when you ride "It's a Small World?" Probably not. Disney is highly adept at branding itself as a provider of wholesome happiness, so it can quickly disregard an issue and move on without a hitch. The public knows that what the Disney brand can offer them outweighs any scandalous slights.
I think Nike ultimately made a wise decision to terminate Vick's contract in 2007. There was a lot of bad blood associated with the controversy, and Nike probably would have received some flak for it. But, if Nike had ridden it out, I think it would not have suffered a devastating blow either. Nike's brand — a profitable, dominant, and powerful sportswear provider — can afford to take a hit. And although many don’t agree with Nike's decision to reinstate Vick, I think we can safely assume that the brand won't be hurting for business anytime soon.
Contributed by Allison Meeks