I read an article in The New York Times this morning, For Super Bowl XLIV Advertisers, Synergy Is the Name of the Game, that got me a bit irritated. The premise of the article, and a view that I subscribe to, is that marketers must think beyond the 30-second TV spot and incorporate all digital forms of customer engagement appropriately.
However, this comment caught my attention: “That’s the way you have to go to market now,†said Kathy O’Brien, vice president for personal care at the Unilever United States office in Englewood Cliffs, N.J. “The Super Bowl is an element of a complete, 360-degree campaign.†I started to cheer, but that was premature. She followed her statement with the following: “During the Super Bowl, we’re going to use Twitter to engage the audience in real time by reaching out to people Tweeting,†she added, “and urging them to watch our commercial again.â€
Give me a break! Is this what marketers mean by 360-degree campaigns? Using Twitter to encourage re-watching a TV spot? You have to be kidding! Clearly, companies are still struggling to plan coherent, integrated customer-engagement programs.
I have several thoughts on the subject, which I’ll be sharing over the next few months. But first, I’d like to know what you think the root cause of this problem is. Why is this still so hard? Send me your thoughts.
John Ellett is co-founder and CEO of nFusion Group, LLC, a marketing agency that helps companies plan, execute and measure customer engagement programs in today's complex media landscape.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for your blog! I enjoy reading your posts quite a bit!
To me, this example you bring is merely 360 degrees of window dressing. As a marketer, I often made the mistake thinking that a slashed budget means slashed creativity or that somehow my brain was numbed by the thought of tight budgets. My suspicion in this case is that this is an active desire to truly be 360 degrees worth of touchpoints but that a lack of dollars is not allowing for what they would truly like to do – consequently this band aid approach.
We are in an economy where all aspects of our lives are ruled by “do more with less” and “make lemonade out of lemons” e.g., make coffee at home, don’t go out to eat as much, etc. This type of thinking has not transferred over to the marketing space.
Dear john
I think it’s massive inertia here. This event has been ingrained into our psychy for so long and is probably the one single biggest TV audience of the year. I’m still laughing at the thought of this huge company thinking TV+Twitter = 360 Degree Campaign in of itself. It’s not the tool it’s the way you use it. Now if they were to say “Watch our ad and tweet us when you see something not right” flying cow in the background, bird flying backwards etc etc this gets you a chance to win XYZ…that might make some folks pay attention. From my personal stand point though I can’t wait to watch a TV add again – certainly would make me feel special…er…no.
Its still a shot gun blast versus the sniper rifle.
note to self – sell Unilever stock…
Regards
Richard