Week 1: What's the Point?

 

My name is Brian Lamy and I am a senior marketing-communications/advertising major here at WNE.  I have always had an interest in marketing--specifically social media and television advertisements.  Although I am still undecided on which career path I would like to take, ideally I would love to be an account executive for Anheuser-Busch, or possibly a career in public relations.

During our first week of class, we were posed with the question "What is the point?"  This may seem like a very broad question, but when viewed from the perspective of a marketer, it becomes more clear.  The first thing we talked about on day one was the Hostess company's Twinkie and the cult following that the snack cake has gathered over the years.  What did Hostess do right to create such an iconic snack with millions of loyal customers?  Why were these customers so outraged and even heartbroken when the company declared bankruptcy and the Twinkie was no more? This directly back to the question "What is the point?"  The point of Hostess' marketing efforts was to create an iconic snack cake that people would love for years.  The Twinkie has the power to bring back memories of childhood and "the good old days" even though it is just an unhealthy snack.  This point was highlighted even more when Hostess declared bankruptcy and people were no longer able to buy Twinkies or other Hostess products for that matter.  People were actually physically upset that this part of their life had been taken from them, showing how meaningful Twinkies are and how effective the Twinkie is as a brand.  In my opinion, any brand that can develop a cult following is a successful brand, and Hostess has done so with the creation of the Twinkie.

In our next class, we talked about Claude Hopkins who popularized the revolutionary marketing strategy of pointing out a unique selling proposition (USP) or competitive advantage that one brand had over another and highlighted this advantage in the company's marketing efforts.  Hopkins created advertisements for the Schlitz beer company which highlighted the fact that Schlitz beer is legitimately "pure" because of all the steps they take to ensure the best product possible.  For Hopkins, the "point" was to differentiate your brand from the competition in order to strengthen your public image and attract new customers.  By highlighting was your brand does differently over the competition, you are setting yourself apart and possibly improving your brand's image.

In my opinion, the "point" of this weeks lesson is that there are many different elements of marketing that all need to be taken into account when trying to create a successful campaign.  While a USP is extremely important, it is also equally as important to create a solid product that can develop a cult following like the Twinkie.  Each element plays a role in the success of other elements, and without all these elements working together, your brand may find it very challenging to become successful.