Insomnia gave us this nifty little idea…
It’s actually not our idea, but that of a really clever guy named Larry Brauner, whose Online Social Networking site did something similar earlier this year.
Here’s how it works:
- You visit the Area 224 Page on Facebook.
- If you aren’t already a fan of Area 224, consider becoming one. No purchase necessary, valid in all 50 states and throughout the world.
- Then, once you’re a fan, you can post to the Area 224 Wall. SO, while you’re posting to our wall, why not post about YOUR BUSINESS? Yes, type in the name of your business or organization’s fan page, and other fans will see it.
- Also, while you’re there — consider checking out other companies and organizations. Maybe even become a fan.
Fan Pro Quo!
Other companies we like — like Arment Dietrich, for instance — have done some clever things (like “fan of the week”), too. So, feel free to share other fun Facebook Business Strategies while you’re on the Area 224 Page.
Cheers!
What’s it like to build a brand in this modern age?
Ford Logos
I often hearken back to days of old — when I was in an operating company of a large financial services conglomerate*. Often, we’d hear something from the field: “hey, we’ve created this product, we need to sell it” or “this is a service that we need to roll out.” All of this needed to happen within the confines of a large, prescribed, and sometimes unwieldy brand architecture.
But it became a lot simpler when we’d ask the following two questions for context:
Are talking about BRAND or MODEL?
Are we discussing BENEFITS or FEATURES?
Let’s start with Brand vs. Model. “Ford” is the brand. (One that happens to be kicking some major bottom these days — probably for going against the grain.) You can see from the above photo that brand, obviously, is more than just a logo. The cars and their features change over time, sometimes mistakes are made along the way, sometimes there are breakthrough successes.
But each MODEL must support the overall Ford BRAND. Ford might mean “All-American” to some, could be “economical” or “reliable” to others, or “supercharged sports car” to others.
Gonna launch the Ford Edge? Or the Fiesta? Those are MODELS — the guess here is that the team behind the Edge said “what could we build that says ‘crossover’ but still embodies the Ford BRAND?” (Can you tell that, with each passing day, I want a Ford Edge more and more?)
So, if you’re building a BRAND, are your MODELS supporting the overall BRAND? Is each one of your PRODUCTS or SERVICES a MODEL, underneath an overall BRAND ARCHITECTURE?
Note: these questions work well, VERY WELL, for on- and off-line brands. Trust me.
What about the “Benefits vs. Features” question? Thanks, again, to Ford for hitting us upside the head with the BENEFITS vs. FEATURES on the Ford Edge Official Site. Screenshot, please…
Thanks, Ford
Did you notice something? While Ford could have hit you over the head with MPGs, with government ratings on fuel efficiency, scores on 0-to-60, etc., they didn’t. They put themselves in your shoes (as a driver, consumer, future buyer) and said, simply “Drive Past Gas Stations Faster.”
That’s putting BENEFITS before FEATURES. That’s asking the question “How will the reader/prospect/future buyer BENEFIT from buying our product/reading our copy/visiting our site?”
People of Earth, I’ve been guilty of not asking these questions, too. Feature: my site can do x, y and z. Benefit: visit my site and you’ll end up happier, more refreshed. Whatever.
There’s a little bit of empathy marketing here. There’s a little bit of agile marketing here.
But there’s a ton to learn from Ford here, too.
And from the Financial Services concern I worked for, where we actually would get pushback on BRAND vs. MODEL. And on BENEFITS vs. FEATURES.
It was great pushback, made us all stronger.
Try pushing back yourselves.
[*That large financial services conglomerate should be pretty obvious if you've Googled me.]
