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Paul Harrison's blog
E-tailing and the end of bricks and mortar
Are the days of the traditional bricks and mortar store numbered?
Probably not. What we do know is that the internet and online shopping has meant that consumers have access to more information, which is a good thing. At least for the near future (probably until we get flying cars and jetpacks), there will be people who will go to the bricks and mortar shops.
So this is Christmas?
You may get a lump of coal in your stocking if you buy the Christmas cards being sold by Typo, which feature the slogans "Merry F---ing Christmas" and "Happy Christmas D---head".
The Geelong Advertiser, along with news.com.au are reporting that the national clothing chain is selling the cards as part of the franchise's Typo stationery range, with a 10-pack selling for $5.
As expected (and probably hoped by the brand), there has been some controversy and outrage that the cards are offensive, and don’t represent the "true" meaning of Christmas.
The reality is that the cards were probably sold to fill a gap in the market and are more of a reflection on today's consumer driven society, rather than some inexorable slide into hellfire and damnation (or community standards).
Injecting some shock into junk food marketing
An advertisement created by The Precinct studio highlights the debate about whether shock ads actually change behaviour. The viral execution features a mother preparing to inject her son with heroin before the scene changes to show him eating a hamburger.
The caption reads: ''You wouldn't inject your children with junk so why are you feeding it to them?''
McDonald's isn't lovin' it much
A new advertisement to be shown in Washington DC (US) made by the health lobby group, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) shows an overweight, middle aged man lying in the morgue, with a half-eaten hamburger in his hand. Some lame acting by a weeping woman (the assumption is that she is related to him) and a nodding doctor, rounds out a generally unremarkable execution.
How to plate-up Masterchef's success
There's a lot more to the success of Masterchef than the cooking.
During the first series of Masterchef, I remember watching a repeat episode on a Sunday afternoon, and thinking that this was going to be a runaway success. I even wrote a letter to the Green Guide editor (which was published) saying that Masterchef was a “revelation” and would be one of the great successes of 2009. It is so nice that I sometimes get my predictions correct (I’m pretty good at guessing the gender of babies in utero, as well).
I want to believe
Ask any good salesman the key to making a sale, and they will tell you that there are two parts to a successful sales pitch. The first step is to create or highlight a problem in the mind of the customer. The second step is to provide a “logical” solution to the problem, thus dissipating any anxiety.
The key to the solution being accepted is that the customer has to feel some degree of trust in the salesperson, which makes it easier for the customer to believe that what is being offered will work. Once that happens, the belief becomes an integral part of their identity, so it becomes very difficult to dismiss it.
It’s pretty basic stuff, but it works most of the time.
There is nothing like Australia... but we already knew that
It’s an appealing ad, but will the rest of the world get it?
SALE - Read this post, now!
There is a perception that in past two years or so, there has been an increase in sales. Some media outlets are even suggesting that sales are the new norm.
Dickheads and Nose Candy... controversial, but will they change behaviour?
Two social marketing campaigns have caused a bit of controversy in Australia in the past week or so. In Victoria, VicRoads has launched their "Don't be a Dickhead" campaign, while in NSW, the Department of Health's anti-drug educational campaign has sparked controversy over the use of colloquial language to describe drugs; terms such as"nose candy".
The dickhead and nose candy campaigns are two very different campaigns, with different potential outcomes.
Home is where the salesperson is...
Would you say your child’s education is important to you?
It seems like a harmless enough enquiry and, when asked, what parent would not instantly agree that their child’s education is a priority?
But when it comes to the sale of educational software, obvious questions like this can be significantly more dangerous than you’d think – corralling parents into a corner that is difficult to escape from. They are the foundation of an insidious in-home sales strategy one former sales person described as “a sheep paddock, where you would go around shutting the gates as you went through your routine. So that at the end, the only gate left open was to buy”.