What is Search Engine Optimization?

Search Engine Optimization, also known as SEO, is becoming more and more common in a brand's media strategy as consumer internet usage skyrockets.  SEO is used by thousands of companies in order to ensure that their company's website appears high up on a search engine's results page.  This can be beneficial to a business because it is always good to be the first result in the consumer's mind. 

When you make any search on Google, Yahoo, Bing, or any other search engine, the odds are that you are seeing SEO in action without even noticing.  Say your washing machine broke down and you need a repair man.  You quickly take to Google and search for "Washing Machine Repair" and look at the results. 

Other than the first three results that show up using Google Ads, the next two results on the Google search results are both for a website called Washing Wizards.  From the looks of these results, it seems like Washing Wizards are utilizing a successful media plan by using search engine optimization.  Not only do they come up as the first result, but also the second.  This shows how SEO can really help a business get their name out there and use brand reinforcement in order to stay in the consumer's mind. 

What other examples can you think of?  Try searching for your name and see how far down you appear on the search results.

Working with a Client

If you work for a marketing agency, the odds are you'll usually be working with a client.  Depending on how popular your agency is, finding big-name clients can be a difficult task.  Clients often want things done to their exact specifications, and this is can often times be extremely frustrating.  On many occasions, you will require necessary information about the client's product and their desires that they refuse to give you because they are not being specific enough. 

Working on this mock project for the Springfield Chamber of Commerce, I have run into this problem withing with our other class "client."  When designing our creative brief for the client, there have been more than a few occasions where we need to know the client's exact thoughts on a matter and their distinct objectives regarding what they want this new campaign to focus on.  Every time we have questioned them about their wants and needs, the client has avoided giving us a set answer, which is extremely frustrating. 

However, this happens all the time in the real world, so it is important to remain calm and not lash out on the client.  In many occasions, the client has invested a lot of time, money and resources on this campaign, so it is important that you take their best interest into account as best as possible in order to provide them with positive results. 

Seeing Your Media Selection in Action

Have you seen this man?  If you're like thousands of other Americans, the answer is "yes."  Isaiah Mustafa became the face of Old Spice's "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like" campaign in early 2010.  This campaign is a great example of media selection and how it can totally redefine your brand.

In addition to creating memorable TV commercials that quickly went viral, Old Spice continued to make their recently re-branded company known on social media.  The company's YouTube channel features dozens of videos of Mustafa answering user-generated questions through Twitter.  Some of these interactions include conversations with celebrities like Alyssa Milano where Old Spice even went as far as to send flowers to her house. 

By continuing this campaign on a medium other than television, Old Spice is fitting with their new brand image of a younger demographic that heavily focuses on social media.  Because they took the effort to incorporate many different mediums into this campaign, Old Spice has seen a huge increase in sales and has managed to stay relevant among the competition. 

Which Type of Media is Right for You?

Choosing the right form of media to use for your product or service can be a difficult task.  Certain types of products and various target markets are only suitable for certain types of media.  An example of knowing your target market and utilizing them properly is through Toyota's promotion of their 2003 Corolla. 

Toyota set out with the goal of marketing their new Corolla to a younger market.  Taking into account that television viewership of young adults was slowly declining, Toyota wanted to do something different.  One thing that Toyota's agency, Saatchi & Saatchi LA, knew was that in order to appeal to this young demographic, the brand needed to move online. 

 

 Moving to a campaign heavily based on social media and online was difficult for Toyota as they were one of America's top-spending brands on television.  The particular challenge that Toyota faced through utilizing online media was finding a platform that would accept interrupting ads without detracting from the viewer's content.  Their solution? Utilize YouTube.  Toyota understood that the videos people look up on YouTube differ greatly from content they like to view on television.  The types of videos normally viewed on YouTube are short and funny clips, so Toyota decided to move their marketing campaign in this direction.  Toyota decided to release short YouTube video initiatives titled "Best in Jest" and "Sketchies."  

The "Best in Jest" featured the best funny videos of the week while still pushing the new model Corolla to their audience.  "Sketchies" was a site where the viewing community can submit their own user-generated content and put them up to a vote for the best video while still having the Corolla brand gently pushed upon them.  

These two campaigns had extremely positive results and really boosted the brand's image and favorability to the younger market.  By choosing the right media to advertise on and knowing your target market, Toyota was able to gain new customers that could remain loyal for life. 

Engaging Your Audience: Gotham's Finest

As discussed in Anthony Young's Brand Media Strategy, one of the most important things your brand can do is properly engage your target audience.  One campaign that successfully engaged their fans on its way to becoming highest grossing films of all time was The Dark Knight. 

 

The main tactics used by TDK in order to increase buzz regarding the film was the use of viral marketing.   Warner Bros. used many interactive elements that went viral immediately in order to really engage their hardcore fans.  One example of this was when they created WhySoSerious.com which lead readers to an online scavenger hunt that ended up leading them to real-world bakeries in 25 different cities.  Once at the bakery, participants would ask for an order left for "Robin Banks" and the cashier would hand them a special cake with a number on it.  Inside the cake was an evidence bag containing a cell phone and a joker playing card along with clues to the next location.  This is a great way of getting fans involved with your brand while also using teasers as to what the film is about.  In this case, engaging participants to get involved in the scavenger hunt shows how much hype existed for the release of this movie.  

Warner Bros. also created an online newspaper for The Gotham Times where the movie takes place that was only promoted via social media rather than traditional methods.  This further engages their audience because the film's target audience relies more on social media rather than traditional means like TV and radio.  The results of these viral campaigns were staggering with millions of Google searches and YouTube hits.

The main point of this is that engaging your audience can be vital to your brand's success.  By utilizing the proper channels and creating a campaign that is interesting and entertaining, The Dark Knight was able to captivate millions before the film was even released which lead to its outstanding box office success. 

Whats all the Buzz About?

From a marketing perspective, buzz can be defined as a method of advertising that gets consumers talking about your product, service or idea in order to increase sales.  Uses of buzz can be seen every day through teasers, press conferences, and commercials.  While buzz is usually beneficial, it can also be detrimental if used improperly.

Such is the case with the Ford Edsel in the late 1950s.  Ford tried to create buzz by parading an Edsel across the country via train but covered by a tarp.  This concept was designed to stir consumer's curiosity as to what the car might look like.  Although this did create buzz, the actual car did not live up to the wild expectations that this campaign created for consumers, and the model did not sell very well at all.

 To this day, buzz marketing is still used by many brands in order to create excitement about the release of a new product.  One company that has utilized buzz more than any other is Taco Bell with the introduction of their new Doritos Locos Tacos.  After the success of the Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos Tacos, the public demanded the product expand to feature the Cool Ranch flavor of ideas.  Taco Bell then released the following commercial called "The World's Most Obvious Idea" as a teaser for the release of the Cool Ranch Flavor:

In this case, it was easy for Taco Bell to create buzz because their consumers were already demanding this product.  Taco Bell chose to acknowledge this in the commercial by portraying various situations of customers saying that they should make a Cool Ranch flavor.  With the success of this new flavor, Taco Bell released yet another teaser trailer for their newest brand, Fiery Doritos Locos Tacos, titled "The World's Most Hottest Idea" which can be seen below:

This created a lot of buzz amongst the brand's consumers because the Doritos Locos Tacos have become so successful during their short lifespan.  In order to create buzz, Taco Bell really needed to know their market.  With the success of the nacho cheese and Cool Ranch versions, it was a no brainer for Taco Bell to release a new version.  Because the Fiery DLT is relatively new, it may take a while to see the success of this teaser trailer.

Are you reaching your market properly?

Even if your company spends millions of dollars on the perfect ad campaign, your efforts could be completely wasted if you are not reaching your intended target market.  Consumers used to act in a very precise way that could be easily represented through the Consumer Pathways model which goes as follows: 

 

 Traditionally, the the process that the consumer would complete in their head went from step to step starting with awareness and ending with brand advocacy.  However, with all the conveniences of a modern day society like the availability of the internet as a shopping hub, consumers no longer have to start at one particular stage over another in order to purchase a product.  

For example, over this past summer I was browsing the internet looking for a new TV for my dorm room.  After checking a few sites, I finally found a brand I've never heard of for a really low price.  Being a college student, I am naturally broke, so having a low price is an important quality to me, so I decide to purchase this no-name brand.  This puts my involvement stage, active consideration stage, and purchase stage all before my awareness stage because I had never heard of the brand.  Being a naive college student, I didn't even think to look into the brand to see if they are a reputable company.  Naturally, the TV was poor quality, my parents got mad at me, I returned it and thus ended the brief relationship stage I had with this company, which means the odds of me becoming a brand advocate for this company are slim to none.

As a marketer, you cannot always assume people will follow the traditional model properly.  In order to combat this, marketers need to be proactive in the way they engage their consumers.  You may think you have a big idea that is going to make your company millions, but if it is not made readily available for all consumers to access in their own methods, you may find yourself unsuccessful.  Customers buy products for various different reasons including emotional attachment, functionality, and even price.  If your brand media strategy does not adhere to your target market's motivation for purchase, they will not be your customers for much longer!