Market with Feeling
The other night some friends of mine decided to order pizza. They very kindly asked me if I wanted some and I appreciatively declined. Thirty minutes later the pizza arrived, and I immediately saw the error of my ways. Once that smell entered the room, it was clear that I wanted pizza all along, I just couldn’t feel it. The pizza they offered me was just a word, but the pizza that arrived was an experience, complete with sites and smells. This made me wish that they had presented me with a scratch and sniff pizza sticker.
Scenario 1 – Real life
Friend: “Want some pizza?”
Me: “No”
Scenario 2 – Awesome Scratch & Sniff World
Friend: “Want some pizza?”
Me: “No”
Friend: *Scratch* *Scratch* “How about now?”
Me: “I’ll take 10”
When it comes to marketing, that connection to the senses, that feeling makes a world of difference. Obviously, you can’t transmit the smell and taste of your product, but looking at what a firm like Nike is doing, they’re giving you the feeling that you’re on the floor with Kobe Bryant. To show a customer a shoe is one thing, to put them in a place where they can imagine being on a court is another completely. When working to promote something, ask the following:
1) What’s the feeling that encourages people to buy and what will they feel during the experience? For the pizza, it’s hunger that stimulates the sale. For the shoes, it’s the thought of being out on the court using them.
2) How can I re-create that feeling? Pictures, audio and videos are a great way to tap into that feeling in your customers. Anything that allows them to imagine themselves eating your food, wearing your clothes, or reading your book is a powerful thing.
It’s certainly not easy, but it goes a long way towards connecting with customers.
Have you come across any marketing that did an especially great or poor job of making you feel the product?
Who could resist the smell of pizza, especially if you are from Chicago like me! The sense of smell is really a powerful trigger for emotion. A well-known trick in real estate is to bake cookies at an Open House. It that case, it really isn’t about the yummy cookies. it is about an intimate place where friends and family gather and are connected.
Robin – Great example. In that case they’re tapping into the feeling of warmth and comfort that one would associate with a happy home. Now I’m hungry for both pizza and cookies.