Marketing Mojo With Stephanie Fierman

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The most recent news on the Mattel toy recall story is the company’s apology to China.



Clearly Mattel and the entire toy industry have serious challenges right now, but this post is not about China, or manufacturing or lead paint: it’s about how puzzled I am that Mattel – the world’s biggest and perhaps most repected toy company – would permit others to control the story, particularly when the web makes it so easy to get a message out quickly, clearly, repeatedly and directly. Let’s look at just the last several days.

On Friday, September 21, Thomas Debrowski, Mattel’s head of operations, appeared on camera in China to personally apologize for its massive recall of Chinese-made toys.  Mattel made the decision to do this because most of the items were defective due to a (Mattel) design flaw and not because of a (Chinese) manufacturing problem. Several media outlets interpreted this move as Mattel’s attempt to protect its own fortunes, with ABC saying that the company was trying to patch up its relationship with a country that “makes most of its toys and fattens its profit” and the Washington Post pointing out that the toymaker “receives 65 percent of its toys from China and has made significant financial investments in the Asian country.” These reports prompted Mattel to react with a formal statement defending the apology and attempting to point out that it was very similar, if not the same, to the apologies that the company had offered in several other markets. Ugh.

So I went to mattel.com fully expecting the entire home page to be taken over by the company’s messaging and statements of caring and action about this situation. I assumed I would see perhaps one-click access to a moment-by-moment updated list of recalled toys, a video statement from the Chairman, further explanation of the company’s apology to the Chinese, an invitation to call a 24/7-manned 800# hotline for further information and messages to key stakeholders such as parents and stockholders. Maybe a corporate blog. I can’t overestimate how much I just assumed about what’d I’d find at their site. When I stopped for a moment to think about why, I realized, actually, that I had such positive feelings/memories about the company that I just figured they’d “do the right thing”:  Mattel itself is the entity that creating such high expectation on my part.

Here is a snapshot of Mattel’s home page as of Monday, September 24 at:

The main section of the well is unchanged (“The World’s Premier Toy Brands Today and Tomorrow”). Two smaller call-outs link to a recall list last updated September 4, nearly three weeks ago, and the only statement from the Chairman accessible from the home page is Mr. Eckert’s Wall Street Journal editorial dated September 11, more than two weeks ago. In what I consider to be a particularly painful irony, the third of the three call-outs notes that Mattel has been named one of the 100 best corporate citizens of 2007 by Corporate Responsibility Officer magazine.

The first item in a “Mattel in the News” section (IS there any other news?) refers to a new Barbie full-length DVD musical and kick-off event. [NOTE: as an aside, it is possible that Mattel is inadvertently damaging the potential of this new product by having it on the home page at a time when visitors are least likely to want to be receptive to Mattel marketing messages.

There’s no landing page solely devoted to what’s happening and what people care about right now.  Even the information in the site isn’t completely updated.  Forget about the video blogs I’d have all over the web updated multiple times/day, the street teams I might consider fanning out all over the US to talk to real citizens, the use of Youtube to get your position out – in other words, the extensive list of PR options Mattel management deserves and should have in front of them at this moment…  They’re not even using the most valuable piece of real estate in the universe right now, mattel.com, to take charge.

Having made these decisions before, I do not underestimate their difficulty, or the pain this has caused Mattel.  And being an honorable company may just make it worse.  You assume that the public sees and understands much more than they do:  that they will rationally assess an incident in the context of your track record of excellence.
 
If this was ever true, the Internet has forever changed the picture.

It’s not about truth on the Web:  it’s about sensationalism.  The Google algorithm actually rewards popularity – the bigger the fire, the better.   So where companies may have believed that the high road meant staying silent, sticking to their knitting and just fixing the problem… that is no longer an option.

Whoever steps into the void is the party that will be heard, so a premier company like Mattel needs to re-program itself to understand that the “high road” now means delivering authentic 24-hour information online – in good times and bad. 

Manage the story, Mattel: don’t let the story manage you.

Blogging is new to me, and I have been highly amused at the frequency by which things occur out in the world that make me want to go back and change, or update, a post.

I did this once, after heralding LifeCourse Associates’ amazing studies that predict the next generation of kids will be more altruistic, more focused on the world and those in need, less self-involved, etc…. then seeing Angelina Jolie’s 2 year old daughter, Zahara, holding a purse that would pay for a year’s worth of my rent.

Yeah yeah, it’s not the kid’s fault, but (a) she will grow up weird, and (b) it did make for a good blog post!

Today I feel compelled to offer a humble update to my post of 9-19-07, Interview with Stephanie Fierman on ClickZ which, at some deep DNA level, does imply that the principles that make for good Internet marketing mostly reflect those established in the realm of direct marketing decades before.

But now something’s happened that I never heard about when I was managing hundreds of millions of pieces of credit card direct mail, hanging at printers eating cold pizza at all hours, or working on DRTV. And, as a recipient of such mail or a viewer of said DRTV, I can’t say that I’ve detected this same effect, either.

Maybe the Internet really *is* different…

One of the great American pastimes in the marketing business these days is trying to deconstruct what makes Apple, well, Apple.  There was a time when Coke, then Nike, was held up to the same envious scrutiny.  Marketers and agencies want to help their companies move closer to whatever these brands have that make them seem a little magical.

Easier said than done, of course, and I was reminded recently of the importance – and pitfalls – of perspective when trying to apply science to such an elusive concept.  In other words, one must be careful when holding a hammer that everything doesn’t end up looking like a nail.

InsideCRM.com, a site that describes itself as providing “in-depth content that sales managers at small, medium and large companies need to choose the right CRM products and services,” recently published an article titled 12 Effective Strategies Apple Uses to Create Loyal Customers.  The list includes proprietary [technology] formats, attractiveness, education sales and “a store just for Apple.” 

With a heavy dose of respect for the deliberately search-optimized nature of such a pithy headline, I would submit that these items made it onto the list not because they’re the most important, but because they’re the ones that would be interesting to sales managers wearing their CRM hats.  Not only that, but InsideCRM.com had to stretch pretty hard to reach 12, given that at least one of the strategies listed – dedicated retail stores – has produced very public failures for other companies (think Warner Bros., Discovery, Gateway, Compaq…).  

Additionally, I think the article confuses strategies and tactics and even misinterprets a few.  Context and audience were the most influential factors in the creation of this list – not whether the items are actually those that create loyalty.

Likewise, one can wander all over the web and see hammer-swinging folks quoting their own nails, respectively, as the reason(s) that Apple is so successful:

brandchannel:  The power of emotion/[Apple’s ability to] create an emotional link with its audience

MacDailyNews: More than anything else, Apple makes superior products

Engadget.com:  The combination of “high tech, good user experience and stylish presentation”

Does anyone think that any one of the above descriptions really define Apple’s success?  No?

That’s because the hard-to-replicate fact of the matter is that Apple is a winner because of all of the above – and more.  Even Steve Jobs is bashful when he, in part, attributes Apple’s success to making the customer experience as satisfying as is the actual product.   What Jobs has done is obsessively build a company that focuses and controls every bit of the value chain, from the first advertising we see for a non-existent product (how does that advertising make you feel?), to the look and feel of the stores, to the staff uniforms and training, to the product packaging, to the styling, production and functionality of the products, to the after-purchase customer service and communications… it’s an entire ecosystem all its own, from beginning to end, that contributes to that simple sensation of “cool,” or excellence, or desirability we all feel about the company.

One note:  there is a single word in this entire article that accounts for Apple’s success, and it’s the reason why most companies cannot replicate it.  That word is “obsession.”  One man’s obsession and control of a company that is still small enough to keep track of all of its affairs and make sure that every bit of that value chain stays in line.  It’s an expensive, 24/7 job (Jobs!) and, by the nature of the beast, becomes harder and harder to master in big, far-flung companies run by professional managers trying to cut costs and manage multiple brands at the same time.

Ok, maybe one last note:  don’t feel bad.  Even if there was another Steve Jobs out there, part of Apple’s success is the indescribable result of mixing all of these elements together, folding in the boomers, Xers and Yers, layering on the competitive landscape just as it is, at just the right moment in our history… in other words:  magic. 
apple computer, brand marketing, steve jobs

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Some things about Internet marketing are truly new and different… and then there are some marketing/customer principles that never change.

1. A bad product idea is bad no matter what: no one ever ordered 30 lb. bags of dog food by mail and they didn’t change their behavior once the dog food ordering process took place on the web.

2. Customers like to feel special and, if you make them feel that way, all manner of goodness is likely to befall you.

Let’s talk about #2 a bit in the old and new worlds…

The more customized and personal you can make your widget, your pitch and your customer’s experience, the more likely a consumer will be to see your widget as his. Buy it again. Tell other people about it. Become – eureka! – ‘brand-loyal.”

I frequently explain that an “old school” (like, the early 90’s) background in segmentation, CRM and direct/database marketing was perfect for marketing folk like me who later become involved in creating and promoting brands on the web, because the web is theoretically the perfect platform upon which to create and serve up a custom experience in something close to real-time. It’s all about who the viewer or visitor is, what we know about them and their behavior and then looking like geniuses by pushing content or advertising to them that’s actually relevant. You start with the customer, not the product. Isn’t that the foundation of direct marketing? Why yes it is, and the folks at Tacoda, Visible World, Spot Runner and lots of other fascinating new-world, technology-driven companies are transforming previously mass-market processes into “custom” experiences that can blow you away.

Some marketers are still mastering the basics, like creating modular pieces of content and versioned advertising for outbound email newsletters so that, say, a prospect gets a different experience than a subscriber, or a “high value” client gets more exclusive content than a newbie. That’s ok – everyone’s got to start somewhere! Last week I had the pleasure of participating in an interview for ClickZ (Segmenting and Targeted to Improve the Bottom Line – Sept 10, 2007) on this very topic, including how to get a newsletter recipient to “trade up” to more profitable services.

As a marketer, do whatever you can to make your target customer feel like you do what you do just for her – she’ll come back for more and do the rest of the work for you. Think of it this way: do you remember the last time you were at a dinner or a cocktail party and a friendly stranger took the time to speak to you, really looked at/into you, and made you feel – even if just for a moment – like the only person in the room? You would have followed that person into traffic.

Make your customer feel that way. They’ll follow you anywhere.

For those of you who have not seen Tom Fishburne’s cartoons in Brandweek or elsewhere, they are darn funny. Yes, funny enough to be on this blog and NOT just because I have nothing blogworthy to say today!

So from time to time I’ll pick one that I think is, to quote Steven Colbert, the “truthiest.” And if you don’t want to wait for me, check Tom out on your own at skydeckcartoons.com and http://tomfishburne.typepad.com/ Happy Monday, everyone…

Have you heard of a fellow named Tommy Habeeb? Mr. Habeeb has created a new product called the BabySport Water Bottle Nipple Adaptor, a little plastic nipple gizmo that screws on to the top of a regular water bottle so that a baby can drink it. It’s summer, it’s hot, these things are selling like hotcakes and everyone’s happy.

I thought of this guy when I saw MSNBC’s report this week on Starbucks’ plans to develop products specifically intended for the kids who frequent the company’s stores. My only thought was, “Genius, as usual.” But MSNBC’s spin would have made a viewer think that the evil Starbucks intended to use Habeeb’s invention to nurse infants with 670-calorie coffee drinks* – and more than once a day. Actually, the kid in this picture does seem to be struggling with the adult lid a bit… I’m kidding, I’m kidding!

*Yawn*

It’s far more compelling to package this non-event as Motley Fool has, sounding the alarm by warning that “heavy-handed marketing to kids can open up an ugly can of worms” with the example of what happened to Reynolds Tobacco when it got caught promoting Camel cigarettes to children. Comparing Starbucks (with hot chocolate, juices, waters, etc. already available) to cigarettes? For Starbucks’ marketers and product folks, talk about “no good deed goes unpunished…”

I’ll end with some of MSNBC’s own viewers’ representative comments on the network’s website. They are hilarious and spot-on (I’ve edited for length and grammar): mel-wags22: My boys will often get up early on a Saturday morning and we’ll go, get drinks and spend an hour just sitting in the store talking about our week. It’s good family time. If some moron wants to feed their 4 year old, double shot lattes, that’s their problem! 3Under3: As an occasional part of the late-morning stay-at-home-mom rush, I don’t have a problem with the basic kids’ drink menu of steamed milk, hot chocolate or steamed cider, and the bottled drinks, like the organic milk are good… A child who is getting a good diet at home, should be able to handle a treat sometimes without risking obesity. sweetshoppelover: This has become another non-issue perpetrated by the food police. Who are these people? My age group remembers going to the neighborhood candy store, by ourselves, to get malted milks or ice cream sodas. As for over-caffeinated teens – as I remember, that was one of the safer dumb things to do as a teenager!GreginTexas: We all know that the next step, if we allow children to overrun Starbucks, is kids in strip clubs and kids at adult book stores and kids buying alcoholic beverages at 7-11 for their kindergarten class pre-nap breaks. WHEN does this insanity end?
Agree, disagree? How much responsibility does a marketer like Starbucks – who certainly began by selling an adult drink to adult customers – have for protecting kids, beyond what they are doing today? Let me know what you think.

* Note: A vente-sized, double chocolate chip blended crème frappuccino with whipped cream contains 670 calories, including 200 fat calories and 12g of saturated fat. I picked it for effect as the wackiest gut-buster on Starbucks’ website I could find.
marketing blog

Technically, this blog is a “vlog,” since it incorporates video.  I read that in Wikipedia, so it must be true.

So while I write my next post, take a look at a priceless video about marketing.  This thing is so great, so funny, so utterly cringe-worthy BECAUSE IT’S TRUE. 

Or at least, it can be true.  Not when WE’RE in charge of course, but some of those OTHER marketers, well… you know…

“Are we in heaven?” asks one of the videos’ guests. 

“No, Dorothy, we’re at Neiman Marcus.” Or so the high-end department store chain would have us respond on this, the store’s 100th anniversary.
Neiman Marcus has created a 4-part online video series called “The Mystique” and it’s getting its share of criticism online. For some reason, Neiman decided to run Part 1 on the home page of Youtube.com – and paid for it with some criticism. Comments range from “Neiman Marcus= needless markup” to “This is a seriously pointless video.” Other, more positive comments were logged, as well. Why did Neiman Marcus pay $250,000 to spend one day on the home page of Youtube in the first place? A little undercooked thinking is behind the plan, with the VP of corporate communications quoted as saying “Like with anything, you hear people in meetings say, ‘Did you see the thing on YouTube?’” Except Neiman Marcus isn’t “anything” – it’s not a video of someone killing an iPhone in a blender, or your crazy Aunt Agatha falling off the roof – it’s one of the greatest specialty retailers in the country.  Truly a story of American entrepreneurship, Neiman stands for luxury, fantasy and “retail theatre” in the grandest sort of way. It’s not for everyone – what luxury brand is? – but then again that’s why it doesn’t belong on YouTube.

And speaking of luxury, the videos are beautiful. All four are lovingly shot, produced and inspired in their thinking. I do have a beef with the editing, in that each of the four is a bit of a story hodge-podge, jumping between ideas such as design, store display, the history of the chain, the importance of designer relationships, etc.  Neiman would have been been better off reserving each of the four for one theme, and then naming each segment accordingly, so that each story had its own thread and viewers could tell what they were about to see (i.e., name the first installment “The Story” instead of Part 1, the second installment “What is Luxury” instead of Part 2, etc.). But they were fun to watch all the same. Lastly, I’m curious as to where NM is, in fact, running the series in order to reach its key constituencies, whom I see as shoppers and would-be well-to-do visitors, designers, vendors and partners (outside of employees, whom I hope can find them easily on the NM intranet). This intrepid blogger could not easily find them off the NM homepage, nor by Googling “Neiman Marcus, “Neiman Marcus video” or “Neiman Marcus 100 anniversary video.” I wandered luxury sites and blogs – no dice.

Let’s hope that Neiman is using its own customer list, at minimum, to make sure its most valuable friends and family see and enjoy this work. And how do you get a viewer to watch 4 separate vignettes? Give them something for doing what you ask. Neiman Marcus has long had one of the most successful frequent shopper rewards programs around, InCircle. If I were running the ship, I’d give each viewer at least 100 InCircle points (reward levels don’t even start until one has 5,000 points!) for giving me their email address and for watching each of the four videos. The viewer is inspired and rewarded, and I get them back into the store, feeling the magic.

Using new Internet capabilities – blogging, podcoasting, online videos –not to be part of the media pile-on (“yay, we’re on Youtube!”) but to draw your supporters even closer, make them even more loyal? Magic, indeed.