Designed in the summer of 2010, Press Pass was a mobile news syndication service. We designed it to build an email subscriber base for our ad agency. I served as creative director & copywriter on the project. Jed Bridges did the design.
R.E.S.T. Method for Responding to Reviews
Today I published a one sheet that I’m proud of. It covers how a business can respond to negative reviews online.
In this one sheet, I introduce an acronym, R.E.S.T. It reminds you to be relaxed, empathetic, specific and trustworthy when responding to a bad review online. Special thanks to Logan Lidster for contributing your insights about how to respond to a review and to Nicholas MacConnell for encouraging me to develop an acronym.
What I like most about this piece is that so many complicated lessons have been boiled down into a single sheet of paper that’s understandable and catchy. I guess all those years of brain training are paying off, huh Nic?
I also created a slideshow for the R.E.S.T. method. Hosted by Slideshare.
Mobile Marketing Association Roundtable Dinner
I’m heading out to the MMA’s Round Table dinner in San Diego right now. These are some questions that Michael Becker, the Managing Director of the MMA, North America, sent before the event for the group to answer. I’m turning it in last minute, but here is my homework:
1. Messaging can take many forms from simple SMS to push notifications and many other forms, so how should marketers prioritize their efforts and build effective mobile engagement strategies?
Start with mobile search. For most marketers, it’s the least expensive and most data-rich place to get your feet wet. I would recommend making a list of questions that customers are typing into Google about your product. Then, choose the top 3 that they are likely searching for on mobile. Build mobile ad words campaigns around that. You’ll get a ton of data that you can use to learn more about your mobile customer, and it doesn’t have to be expensive.
A product is a friend
A brand is essentially the personality of a product. If your product were human, what would its personality be like?
From early carvings of primitive gods to modern day films, like “Toy Story,” mankind has been relating to products as if they were people–as if they had personalities. (This is called anthropomorphism.) When you define the personality of your product, you are tapping into a central theme of human nature.
Who is advertising for?
If you just typed this question into Google, you’re probably asking one of two things:
- What type of business needs advertising?
- What types of customers is a business trying to reach with its ads?
What is advertising?
At its best, advertising is story telling that sells a product or service. The story could be told through any number of channels, including online, tv, radio, outdoor, print, etc.
I use the term ‘story’ loosely. It doesn’t have to be a novel. The story could be told in one or two pictures. American Apparel is able to communicate quite a bit using only pictures.
The hero of the story should be the product or service that’s being sold. Notice how the polka dotted pants make the woman appear irresistibly sexy. Nice work, hero.
How much do your products cost?
One of the questions that B2B customers are typing into Google on mobile is, “how much do [YOUR BRAND] products cost?”
What kind of results are they getting back? Chances are, the answer to their question is buried in a PDF document or some desktop formatted page–not easily accessible on mobile.
Imagine what that B2B viewer is doing when ask search for how much your products cost. They are probably at an airport, in a meeting in between meetings. And they want an answer quickly. My preference is to tell them right in Google AdWords. This is a real-life AdWords campaign for Review Report Card.
If your pricing isn’t as simple as Review Report Card, you can write the ad to explain generally how your pricing works. Is it priced per user? Consumption volume? For example, if you’re a Software company, your ad might read, “Price starts at $50 / user / month. Call for more details.”
Notice the Call button right on the ad. This is the Click to Call Ad Extension in Google AdWords. It’s an absolute necessity for B2B marketers, especially if your products are best explained by a salesperson.
A theory on the commercial viability of creative works
Some people say, “You’ve got to be totally out of the box to do something that’s successful.” Others believe in doing something that people already know.
Both sides have a point.
For a creative work to be commercially successful, it should be unique. That uniqueness is represented by the Esoteric circle above; see how it’s in left field.
Dr. Good’s Bad Review
I’m having a blast with our new campaign, Doctor Good’s Bad Review. The campaign is generating awareness among medical professionals that their online ratings could be attacked at any time. The solution is to stop attacks early with Review Report Card.
CREDITS
Creative / Art Direction: David Engel
Illustration: Mark Leggett
Copy: David Engel, Logan Lidster
Narration: David Engel
Video Production: Logan Lidster
Audio Production: Jerome Peck
Client / Agency: Expert Reputation
24 second pre-roll commercial:
What is Mastery?
Every so often, I like to take a late night walk on Moonlight Beach and get lost in thought.
Tonight, I asked, “What is mastery?”
I came up with an intellectual definition (as opposed to a spiritual, physical or emotional one). Mastery is being able to see the details within the big picture–not just the details or the big picture but both.
Van Gogh’s October 1888 painting, The Bedroom, has little pictures inside of the big picture. Here is one of them:
