Question

Topic: Advertising/PR

Wizard(?) Of Ads And December Ad Spending

Posted by Anonymous on 8/20/2004 at 10:02 AM ET 250 Points
I am helping a company establish a brand identity. (Currently the company runs coupons and promos to target only those who are ready to buy NOW)
Research is in; targets are locked; production's complete; we're ready to roll. Our strong sales year runs from Feb to Oct. We pull back almost all advertising in Nov thru Jan. Since I am trying to build a 'preference' for the brand in advance of demand, should I push the partners to spend money on ads during the Holiday Crush or simply let them do what they usually do.

The tie in to the Wizard? Oh, he says that as you try to change from attracting "sale driven" buyers to 'brand preference' buyers, you usually have a 13 week transition when demand drops off; then ads start attracting the clientele who aren't just looking for a sale. Since I have the 13 weekdemand drop build into our business cycle, I'm wondering if I can use this time to my advantage WITHOUT encountering an additional dip in sales. If I am wrong I will be pre-spending ad dollars we would use for a blitz in early Feb.
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Peter (henna gaijin) on 8/20/2004 at 1:25 PM Member
    I understand about the seasonality. Where global products get around this through hitting different markets, many local products still have to deal with seasonality.

    I am not sure I agree that you need to see any loss of sales from 'sales driven' to 'brand driven' sales. I would not recommend making a full switch over from one style of promotions to the other at one time, but instead make a slow transition. Keep doing what you have been doing as you slowly build your branding.

    It depends on your exact product/service, but many home improvement projects don't fall out of the attention span during the off season. For projects above a certain size (such as ones where an architect gets involved, drawings are made, permits required, etc.), there is a lot of up front work required before the construction work can be done. This work would happen during the off season to allow construction to happen during the non-off season. To promote your brand, you need to be reminding them then about what you offer.
  • Posted by SteveByrneMarketing on 8/20/2004 at 3:20 PM Member
    Hi pickespu,

    With your research in, do you have benchmarking for the brand share already in prospective customer’s minds? Did you do a SWOT analysis on all competitors? Do you have a positioning statement that clearly claims some territory in the marketplace? How about calling a small group of customers and prospective customers and have brief open-ended-question discussions about there perceptions of your brand and seeing advertising during the off-season – I’ve done this and it’s always produced interesting feedback.

    You stated getting “almost zero response” in the Nov-Jan period with coupons and promos (?) targeting those ready to buy now. What about creative offer structuring? Can you offer anything usual during the off season? Is the off season off because weather prohibits installations? Can you pre-condition the market for sales a few months later? Off season offer structuring, testing with A/B splits, there seems to be many ways to explore how to use the Jan-Oct period wisely.

    Hope I haven’t inundated you with too many questions – it’s not my intention. These are the questions that came to mind while reviewing your question. Without the answers, I would tend to agree with the others you should have some branding communications during the Nov-Jan period. It could be advertising, or some PR releases, maybe a feature article in the home improvement related pub’s. Think of all media opportunities for branding – SEO, email, web placements, contests/events – how about an off season related contest with a free February home improvement project as the grand prize.

    Just some of my thoughts, hope it helps,

    - Steve
  • Posted by Blaine Wilkerson on 8/26/2004 at 11:12 AM Member
    You stated:

    "Company is 40 years old and has advertised in Nov-Jan period in the past and found almost Zero response.So lack of response is not due to lack of advertising, but because of competing priorities for spending AND attention."

    How in the world do you know there is zero response? Do you post a number to call? Or is it based on lack of sales?

    Furthermore, As Jim and a few others pointed out, perhaps your advertising is ill-timed. Why advertise for outdoor products while people are indoors due to weather? Is it because of shotgun marketing to the massess? Assuming everyone is sitting around watching TV so what better time to post and ad right? Wrong!! Advertise while your product is "in season" and during the cold months, advertise in place that don't have cold winters.

    Your problem isn't competing priorites, it's bad timing and poor targeting.

    Good Luck!!
  • Posted by mgoodman on 9/5/2004 at 7:05 PM Accepted
    I'll be the contratian. I think you should avoid the holiday season, at a minimum. People are usually thinking about holiday stuff, not about home remodeling in November and December. You want to advertise (even corporate stuff) when your target audience has the time, interest, and patience to think about what you're saying/showing.

    It has nothing to do with seasonality or lack of same in the category. It has to do with the mindset of your target audience at the one time of year when they are bombarded with more messages than they can assimilate ... and when they are probably more defensive about advertising generally.

    You might want to start the campaign in late January, but for this category I'd avoid 4th Quarter of the year. You'd like to reach your target audience when they are ready to receive your message.
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