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Recently, I was looking at the portfolio of Internet work completed by an ad agency. They had some nice stuff and were especially proud of one particular website. The tough thing about agency work is you can never be sure if the client watered down a great idea and, honestly, this site was pretty good. But it didn’t pass my “Two Second Crucial Click Rule”…
Where Do I Click?
The Two Second Crucial Click Rule is one of the tests I use when critiquing web design. It’s really just a simple question:
“If I only had two seconds to view the homepage, would I click on the most valuable link (or image, or button)?”
I created this rule after recognizing that most users come to a site with some understanding of what they will find and a goal of completing a task (this rule isn’t necessarily relevant for heavy content sites).
Within the first two seconds these visitors have already tried to figure out where they will click next…and if they can’t figure it out quickly they will move to another site.
What’s my Most Valuable Link?
The tricky part of the Two Second Crucial Click Rule is that you have to choose ONE THING you want web site visitors to do. In the past, I did some work for a really big retailer and their homepage had (at that time) over 75 links on it….an overwhelming choice for any consumer (especially one in a hurry).
You business challenge is to understand and prioritize the goals for the site and provide clear designer guidance so that visitors will make that Crucial Click.
Design Is Crucial to the Crucial Click
Designers are the most valuable member on the Crucial Click team. A good designer will use the full bag of tricks—color, fonts, layout—to help users find the Crucial Click in less than two seconds.
A great way to test the designer’s work is to remove all the text and ask someone to point where they’d click. If it’s somewhere in the navigation, then you’ve failed; your design should encourage users to click in the body of the page where you are featuring the key activity in which you want the visitor to participate.
The test I use more often is to put the homepage on my monitor, invite someone into my office, show them the screen, then turn it off after 2 seconds and ask them to point where they would have clicked. The results always surprise me.
Bottom Line:
Strategists: Identify the Crucial Click by digging into your business and prioritizing your online goals; don’t be afraid to rank the activities by their profit potential. Avoid overwhelming consumers with too many online choices.
Creatives: Understand the prioritization and then ruthlessly design against those goals. Many homepages have clear zones for primary, secondary, and tertiary content. Make sure that primary content is clear at a glance through your use of colors, layout and font.
Wow, it seems like everyone is drooling over the possibility that Wal-Mart may purchase Tommy Hilfiger. I guess on the surface it looks like a great idea to follow Target’s strategy of adding designer style to low-end merchandise in order to pump sales and attract more upscale customers. But scratch a little harder, and I think that you’ll agree with me when I say…
“this is insane.”
Here are my predictions for the 12 months following a Wal-Mart acquisition of Tommy Hilfiger:
Target won’t care
I know the press feels this deal is a slam-dunk since Target has had success growing its business through exclusive branded merchandise (Isaac Mizrahi, Michael Graves, Philippe Starck). But Target is quite different in its brand development approach; it doesn’t buy and relaunch mainstream brands, it finds design experts and works with them to build a branded product line exclusive to Target. Kmart did the same thing when it partnered with Martha Stewart.
As an aside, Target stores are significantly better appointed, lighted, staffed, and merchandised than Wal-Mart stores. To equate the shopping experience in the two chains is a mistake.
Department store retailers will drop the Hilfiger line
If Wal-Mart purchases Tommy Hilfiger, they can be certain that the brand will quickly become exclusive to the chain because all other retailers will drop it as fast as they can legally cancel their merchandise orders. No mainstream department store will have any interest in devoting square footage to a discounted brand that they will not be able to sell at full price and be shunned by the upper mid-market apparel buyer.
Licensees will sue Wal-Mart to recover lost profits
A significant portion of Hilfiger’s revenue comes from licensing agreements (jeans, fragrances, underwear, etc.). Wal-Mart should anticipate that retailers will also eliminate the licensed goods from their merchandise assortments. I suspect Wal-Mart will offer some licensees the opportunity to sell goods in the Wal-Mart chain, which may be a large volume opportunity but a low margin business. Many of these licensees will not have the skills and infrastructure necessary to become a Wal-Mart vendor. I think Wal-Mart can expect plenty of licensee lawsuits seeking to recover lost profits.
No new shoppers visit Wal-Mart to find the brand
Tommy is a brand that plays both to the preppy and rapper style sensibility giving it a strong (though admittedly waning) appeal. But Wal-Mart stores aren’t urban (another difference from Target). I live in Chicago and there are no Wal-Marts in the major metro area. In the past I lived in New York where there were no Wal-Marts! Wal-Mart is a suburban/rural retailer. I think that some existing Wal-Mart shoppers will explore the apparel aisle when they see Tommy, but I don’t think that the brand will attract a measurable new customer base for the store.
Bottom Line:
Strategists: This is a nice 5 Forces case with significant buyer power and substitute threats. In the fickle fashion world, what makes the value of a brand? Is it existing retailer relationships and infrastructure or is it public brand perception?
Creatives: Can an upscale brand survive in a discounted environment? What merchandising and marketing changes are necessary to preserve the value in a warehouse shopping environment?
When I was a kid my family visited Chicago for the major holidays. I have clear memories of taking the train downtown to see the store windows at Marshall Field’s State Street and visiting again to share my wish list with Santa Claus. So I had the right to be outraged when Federated Department Stores announced they plan to eliminate the Marshall Field’s name and replace it with their national Macy’s brand…
but I’m not, I think the name change is a good idea.
The Crazy Part is How Federated Made the Decision
Still, I think there is reason to be outraged. The Wednesday, September 21 Wall Street Journal claims that “Federated worked with marketing and consumer research experts before making its decision” and “it conducted mall surveys, a phone campaign and focus groups to determine that folding the storied chain into the larger Macy’s business made sense.”
I’m outraged that Federated used inappropriate research methods to make this business decision (ok, maybe not outraged, but certainly confused). This is a classic research scenario where consumers are likely to say one thing but do another. My guess is that consumers will be more likely to claim to plan a boycott in the event of a name change in some idealistic sense of home-town loyalty (though I should note that Marshall Field’s was purchased by Target in Minneapolis years ago, then by May Department Stores in St. Louis), but continue to shop at the store regardless of the name (as long as the location, pricing, and assortment are similar).
In these research conundrums, talking to consumers doesn’t provide any insights. You have to observe consumers.
Maybe Federated Knows This
I’m a little leery about the facts presented by the Wall Street Journal because I just can’t imagine why the store would conduct a focus group to discuss a naming change. There is no way to measure the financial impact of this decision by talking to 15 shoppers (did they take a vote at the end?). Maybe there’s a little insight to glean from surveying 1000 consumers by phone. Still, it’s so far off-base I wonder if Federated executed these efforts for political (non-business) reasons.
The Answer Lies in the Cards
So, you’re wondering where to go to research a name change?
Federated traditionally changes the names of the stores it acquires. They’ve done it many times before. I’d go digging though credit card data to understand the historical purchase behavior of my consumers before and after a name change.
Consumers that hold a department store credit card are perfect to examine because they will likely be the most name-loyal. By reviewing the volume of their transactions over time and accounting for the name rollout, we get the actual (not threatened) insights we need to quantify the name change impact.
Bottom Line:
Strategists: It’s rare that someone will tell you to ignore what your consumers are saying, but that’s exactly what I’m suggesting. Sometimes you have to be sensible and factor human behavior into your research planning.
Creatives: Just because a company is changing it’s name doesn’t mean it shouldn't consider softening the blow. Think about the design cues that are innately part of your product and preserve them to continue the emotional bond your consumers feel to the product (one Marshall Field’s cue is its clock which is featured throughout advertising…Federated plans to retain the clock).
It started two years ago. Rumors circulated around Chicago that a nameless global fast food franchise known for its cartoon character mascot would be placing DVD kiosks in its restaurants. I was looking for a new job and thought working on this project could be filled with fascinating marketing and product development challenges, so I began the frantic networking that led me to a person in the new ventures group at McDonald’s who confirmed that “that project has been killed,” which I believed until last week when one of my friends in St. Louis called to say….
“McDonald’s is renting DVDs, what’s up with that?”
So I did some digging and found out that actually 128 St. Louis McDonald’s are renting DVDs from “redbox” kiosks.
So, um, I guess my sleuthing was a little off two years ago. Those guys at McDonald’s are good at keeping a lid on it!
Why Are They Doing This?
The McDonald’s strategy for redbox DVDs is pretty straightforward: put something in the restaurants that will drive more foot traffic. In this case, McDonald’s believes that DVDs will attract more store visitors (actually, they believe it will attract them twice--once to rent and once to return). And when these new visitors walk in to grab their DVD they’ll be enslaved by the smell of French-fries and unable to resist purchasing a Happy Meal.
By charging only $1 a day for each rental, McDonald’s is clearly signaling that they have no intention of making a profit on the DVD rentals and this is purely a play for increased restaurant traffic.
Does It Pass the Dancing Clown Test?
There’s nothing notable about pursuing strategies to increase foot traffic. Any mature retailer will have it near the top of their list for 2005 strategic priorities. What is notable is the tactics that McDonald’s is using to increase the traffic. Instead of the traditional tactics (discounting, promotions, new products), McDonald’s is entering an entirely new retail category.
And so, as the uber-marketers that we are, we must challenge the plan to the Dancing Clown Test, which you probably aren’t familiar with as I just made it up. The Dancing Clown Test is:
“Would I be more successful attracting additional foot traffic if I paid a guy $10/hour to dress up as a clown and stand outside the store waving his arms?”
Or, more specifically for this case:
“Should I spend $80/day on my clown, or who-knows-how-much to build a DVD kiosk rental infrastructure that allows me to rent movies at slightly above marginal cost.”
The answer to this test is “I’m leaning toward the clown”.
Consumer Behavior Changed In Two Years
I told you I heard a rumor about this project about two years ago when consumers were still renting DVDs at Blockbuster and Hollywood Video. But a lot has changed in the last two years. Consumers changed their rental habits and are quickly migrating to monthly mail services like Netflix. In fact, you should check out Blockbuster’s current website, which makes it nearly impossible to locate a store near you.
One risk for companies that have a two-year product development lifecycle is that they build products that are often out-of-date by the time they hit the shelves. If your firm has an extended development process (and there’s no way to re-engineer the system), it’s best to have a CEO that is comfortable shuttering projects with disregard to sunk costs.
Watch for redbox to Disappear in 24 Months
So, my guess is that the redbox may have some initial success as consumers test the product and kids try out all the buttons. But with somewhat-better-stocked Blockbuster stores (redbox only has about 50 titles) in close to proximity to many McDonald’s and more people migrating to mail-based DVD rentals, I’m very bearish on the long-term prospects for the service.
My guess is that in 24 months you’ll forget that McDondald’s used to rent DVDs and you’ll see a lot more Dancing Clowns (metaphorically speaking, of course).
Bottom Line:
Strategists: Even when the strategy is right (drive more foot traffic), the tactic can be wrong (add DVDs to product mix). Be sure to understand your consumer habits and trends when making tactical decisions.
Creatives: You are often the insight to consumer behavior, don’t be shy sharing your thoughts and insights when evaluating tactical executions.
Through a strange turn of events I recently found myself at the Wizard World Comic Book Convention here in Chicago. Along with 56,000 other folks, I perused the latest independent comic book efforts, checked out the super-star artists and story-tellers, and even bought a few special titles. Of course no convention is complete without a few presentations and I attended a talk given by the big publisher Marvel (owner of the X-Men, Daredevil, the Fantastic Four, the Hulk, and many other popular characters). Top executives from Marvel had a golden opportunity to court their fans and pump sales of their comics (and movies, and action figures) and it slipped right through their fingers…
Who Are Your Taste-Makers?
I’ve heard them called Queen Bees (high school girls that set the fashion trends), Key Influencers (doctors at the therapeutic leading edge), and Early Adopters (gizmo-fanatics crucial to success of new technologies). Regardless of what snappy name you call your taste-makers, it’s likely that there is a group of people with opinions on your product category that influence other consumers’ purchases.
And if you can locate your taste-makers and convince them that your product is great, the word-of-mouth marketing is invaluable.
But Wait! These Taste-Makers Are a Jaded Bunch
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Consumers are media-savvy individuals that don’t like to be marketed to. Well, yes and no. We all know that marketing still works. But I believe you’re more likely to encounter resistance to traditional efforts (advertising, discounting, etc.) among your taste-makers who pride themselves on esoteric product recommendations. Traditional marketing targeting these consumers will just remove the product mystique they crave.
Play the Game
So, if you were a top executive at Marvel and facing a room of 2,000 avid taste-making comic collectors what would you do?
Avoid the traditional marketing pitch, because these kids will see right through your campaign.
Try arming your crowd to be even better taste-makers:
* Provide inside scoop on upcoming storylines
* Introduce new artist or story talent
* Show clips of behind-the-scenes work on ideas in germination phase
A little information to help these taste-makers retain their esteemed position will go a long way to increasing your referral business.
[Wondering what Joe Quesada, Editor-in-chief at Marvel chose to do with this time? He made a few off-color jokes, led off-the-cuff roasts of other Marvel execs, and deflected questions from the audience.]
Bottom Line:
Creatives: Taste-maker marketing takes a light hand, now is the time for subtle work that allows you to stretch design skills.
Strategists: Identify your taste-makers and how you can reach them. And when you’re faced with a room full of taste-makers, be ready to help them while avoiding the hard sell which will surely be ignored.
I marched to the grocery store last weekend fresh from my post lauding Propel for their Chicago sampling campaign. I was determined to track down this fantastic new drink and ready to stock up on all the flavors I could get my hands on. I proudly strode down the drinks aisle to my destination. My eyes slowly traced the colorful bottles, seeking the Propel label. Then I saw it, and I nearly burst into hysterics…
Propel was on sale for $.99 with a regular price of $1.49.
Ok, let me get this straight, you just spent god-knows-how-much on a targeted sampling campaign only to teach your new consumers they should buy the product on sale?
This drives me insane. Why bother trying to build a new brand if you’re going to push it out on the market at a discount? Jeez, just call it Gatorade Clear, save yourself the new brand marketing expense, and run it on sale every weekend. Lord knows nobody considers Gatorade a full-price brand (Gatorade owns Propel).
I’d hoped for so much more. I thought Propel was an upscale water that would incite envy among my friends as I toted the durable blue plastic bottle around during my workouts. Now I know it’s just another flash-in-the-pan that will be gone in 6 months because another brand is willing to pay the grocery slotting fees and promises higher product margins (not that grocers charge slotting fees).
I’m so disappointed I’m not even going to write more about this. Propel, Gatorade (who owns Propel), Quaker Oats (who owns Gatorade), and Pepsi (who owns Quaker): you guys have really let me down. Someday you’re going to have to learn how to sell products without discounting.
Bottom Line:
Strategists: Before jumping into sampling, consider your entire marketing plan. Does it make sense to sample during a heavy discounting period? Are your sampling goals to increase trial or immediate volume?
Designers: You’re off the hook on this one.
My neighborhood has been absolutely crazy this week as Propel Fitness Water promoters have begun a sampling blitz. These guys are everywhere! They’re at the local beach on the weekends, outside my gym in the evenings, and even stationed on the corner near my local Caribou Coffee. I grabbed a sample, popped open the cap, took a sip, and thought to myself…
“hmmm, pretty tasty.”
And then I thought to myself “hey, these Propel folks aren’t that dumb. Their sampling campaign is actually quite strategic and well executed!”
Sampling is Smart for the Right Products
Let’s start with the basics. Sampling is a good strategy if you need to increase awareness and consideration for your product. No, you shouldn’t sample old-fashioned Ivory Soap because most of us have tried it at some point in our life. But if you’re Propel Fitness Water with few consumers that have ever tasted your product then sampling could be a good approach.
Of course there are some product characteristics that make sampling more appropriate: simple trial feature set (providing samples of only a portion of your product is popular in software), ability to reduce sample volume (a popular approach in consumer products), and a popular-price point positioning (stray away from sampling luxury goods for fear that your brand appeal will erode).
Most Important: Have a Good Product
This may seem obvious, but you better make dang sure that your product will be appealing to the folks that sample it. As marketers it’s easy to convince ourselves that the products we manage are vastly superior to competitors’…but often that’s not the case.
My sample experience with Propel was positive because it was tasty (grape flavor) and much better than the unflavored water I expected it to be.
If your product is run-of-the-mill, with little differentiation, think twice before pursuing sampling. People will take free stuff…but your goal is to blow them away and purchase your product later.
Target Your Sampling Demographic…and Own Them
One important thing to understand about my neighborhood is that it’s inhabited by young, successful, single narcissists…a perfect demographic and psychographic target for Propel Fitness Water (with brand positioning that appeals to “active bodies”).
Rather than spread itself over the entire city and hit a wider demo, Propel chose to focus to own my neighborhood over the course of a few days. I’ve probably seen the Propel fellas ten times in the last three days. If I’d only had one encounter it’d be even odds that I’d remember Propel the next time I did grocery shopping. But after ten experiences I’ll definitely remember them during my next trip.
Also, by swarming in and owning the neighborhood over an extended time, the locals have started to talk about Propel casually. One friend asked if me if I planned to “blog about those Propel guys.” Casual conversations about Propel carry a level of implicit recommendation that company-sponsored marketing efforts will never achieve.
Special Note on Measurement
Measuring the impact of this sampling campaign is actually quite easy with. Propel conducted their sampling in a dense urban residential zone with no more than three supermarkets. Many (or perhaps most) of us don’t own a car and do our shopping locally. By establishing a pre-sample baseline and comparing actual sales to baseline projections (without sampling interference) at the local supermarkets and convenience stores, Propel can get some accurate numbers on their sales lift. I love that!
Bottom Line
Strategists: Don’t jump into sampling--it’s not right for everyone. If it’s right for you, carefully consider who you want to sample, how many samples/encounters are necessary to change shopping habits, and devise a sales measurement plan before starting your campaign.
Designers: Sampling involves the experience beyond the actual product. Be sure to plan how your samplers will dress, how they will display your product, and even consider creating talking points that are on-brand and on-message.
After you’ve swallowed the pill and chosen a name for your product, you need a brand identity to support it. Branding is important, and over time a good brand can help you rise from a pool of commodity competitors into someone that makes 1-2% more in margin. A good brand effort requires customer research, trials, and measurement. But if you’re like me, with limited budget, no time for research, and an already-differentiated product, then you should consider…
…just doing “identity” work. I won’t even call it “brand identity” because it does a disservice to branding experts. I’m talking about plain, old-fashioned “identity” efforts like a product logo, website pages, sales materials, letterhead, envelopes, and business cards. You can set standard font, color, and design cues that are used in all your marketing materials to quickly appear professional.
Logos Don’t Have to Take All Year to Develop
In my experience, logo development can really eat at your budget while a lone designer struggles to present multiple concepts (which usually seem to look alike). Of course, each creative concept costs money and eats at your time and patience.
I recommend www.designoutpost.com as an alternative to the traditional logo development path. Design Outpost is a contest forum where you can post a creative brief and prize and let designers submit entries. I provide daily submission feedback and I’m awfully direct in my critiques. I’ve personally used Design Outpost five times and always had good options from which to make a final logo selection.
Blow It Out With Print or Web
A logo is a great start to your identity, but it needs to be applied to a print piece or website to nail down those important design cues that help unify marketing pieces. I always do website work next because it allows me to make layout choices for large sections of copy as well as apply visual treatments for image work. You might have large print pieces that give you the same opportunities. Regardless, make font, color, and other choices during this phase.
Special Note on Design Elements
I love stock photography. I hate stock photography. I love stock photography. I hate stock photography. I love and hate stock photography!
Stock photo sites (like www.gettyimages.com) give me fast access to photos that I can’t afford to have done by a photographer. But they are often bland and clearly “stock”. I ALWAYS work with my designer to alter image use with treatments that make them appear more custom. Don’t get stuck in the stock photo trap—push your designers to experiment with overlays and graphical elements that make your photos appear custom and establish design elements that clearly belong to your product.
Keep it Consistent
Be a stickler for consistency. Funnel final approval for all your print, web, sales, and other materials through one person to ensure that they comply with your identity standards. Prospects and clients will become aware of your product more quickly if all the materials that they encounter over time contain the same identity elements.
Bottom Line
Strategists: Sometimes you need real brand work. Sometimes you don’t. Figure out what scenario you’re in and be open to pursuing lower-cost identity work.
Creatives: Limited budget and time (and research inputs) doesn’t mean you should settle for bland output. Be creative with your colors and fonts and especially with treatments to stock photos.
Ok, in the last year, I’ve had to create names for 5 products. I didn’t want to spend $100,000 and six months making selections so I selected names in less than a day, spent a week defining the branding and identity work surrounding the name, and had the products out the door in less than two months. Big firms like Lexicon will tell you that I’ve made a grievous error and that I should probably be jailed. But I’ve come to the conclusion that for small and mid-sized businesses, the secret to a good name is…
having a good product supported with good marketing.
Really, if you’ve got a good product and good marketing then lets just slap on a mediocre name and get along with it, OK?
Good Names Are the Result of Good Products
Now, I’m sure that plenty of folks will cry about how important a name is to the long-term value of a brand. They’ll say that you absolutely must conduct extensive research on the responses elicited before selecting a particular name. But really, I suspect that Ivory, Tide, Apple, and Marlboro and a million other common and successful names were created over martinis at a local steakhouse. And, if I had a larger expense account that’s where mine would have been created as well (rather than while sipping a Coca-Cola in a IKEA chair with my feet on a Steelcase desk).
And yes, I did mention those names for a reason. Coca-Cola, IKEA, and Steelcase probably never had naming consultants help them make choices. But, as great products with great marketing, they are some of the most valuable brands out there (well, Steelcase may have seen better days, but you get my drift).
Who Decided Naming Should be a Service?
I’m concerned that the naming industry has grown into a specialty simply as a service that allows marketers to lay blame outside the firm if something goes wrong. For the love of all that is holy, a talented marketer should be able to come up with product names on his own.
I’m not going to damn someone for tapping an agency for help with name brainstorming. Agencies employ creative people that could be helpful generating a list of interesting options. But I will say that I’m not a fan of the six figure consulting gig that takes names and tries to apply strategic and cognitive tests to make a recommendation.
Sometimes a marketer needs to be comfortable with a creative choice that can’t be backed by quantitative analysis. If you’re a marketer and you can’t make this type of decision, you should be an engineer!
Don’t Over-Think Naming!
Of course, now that I’m on my soapbox, I will remind everyone that there are some common-sense issues you should consider:
* Make the name different than your competitors’
* Make sure the name fits on your product label (or trade show booth, or whatever)
* Do a quick search to see if anyone is actively using the name (if they got there first just save yourself the headache and use something else)
* Don’t use a name that translates in a major language in a less-than-favorable fashion (a lesson learned the hard way when Chevy launched the Nova…which literally “doesn’t go” in Spanish).
And Buy the Domain Name
After I narrowed my list of product name options down to the final four (or so), I made the final choice through a very disciplined and complex process…I chose the one that had the web domain available. Honestly, this was the single most important factor in our naming process. Because we rely heavily on the web to market our products, securing a memorable and reasonable URL was more important to the product’s success than whether or not a hard “k” sound elicits the right emotive response.
Bottom Line
Strategists: Not everything has to be strategic. Don’t over-think this creative process. Make sure you’ve covered the basic legal and competitive issues, and let the Creatives do their job! Spend your time and money on product enhancements and better marketing!
Creatives: Run with it. Give us some crazy ideas and let’s see what happens.
I hate to say I told you so, but well, I kind of did. Back in March, I posted comments on how creative folks might change their approach to be more TiVo (and fast-forward) friendly when working on T.V. commercials. Now, AdRants reports on a Frank N. Magid Associates study that makes similar creative suggestions. Of course, you heard it here first, and that put you 3 months ahead of the competition.
