March 2007

"Where did you hear about us?"

To know where those prospects are coming from, and to realize what mediums, ads and creative angles resulted in positive results while seeing which ones crashed and burned--that's valuable information for any marketer or business owner. So...'where did you hear about us?' is a great question. It's a great question for business owners to ask and even a better answer for business owners to discover. Unfortunately, when asking that question, getting an accurate answer is equally tough. After all, many consumers don't like feeling like they were "sold" or actually admitting that they watch as much television or listen to as much radio as they do, etc. Therefore, getting an honest answer to that question is too often impossible.

Sometimes we really have to re-examine the goals of our advertising to determine how they fit with the ole 'where did you hear about us' inquiry. After all, while a lack of honest answers may muddy the research waters, no one is going to stop advertising. Advertising is obviously an extremely important part of any marketing plan or businesses would not continue to invest so heavily in various media ranging from television and radio to newspaper and park benches. Most forms of media will work if used properly; otherwise they would not exist. Maybe our time would be better spent asking another question: What is the purpose of advertising?

Are goals more image-driven, sales-driven or both. Typically, “both” is the best answer. Often the goals of an ad campaign center around image. For example, car manufacturers often advertise to impact the thinking of their current car buyers in order to make them feel secure in their purchase. Of course, this is done with the intent of leading to future sales. Other times, the goal is exclusively sales motivated: to move ‘X’ widgets before the new inventory arrives.

In his book, The 33 Ruthless Rules of Local Advertising, Dave Stilli writes, “The objective of advertising is to first have an impact on the mind of the consumer followed by or accomplished simultaneously with an impact on the spending of the consumer.”

Equity Position

The marketing battle for the mind is essentially Equity Position. It’s what every company is after: to emerge first in the consumer’s mind in their category.

Luxury car = Mercedes-Benz

Overnight Delivery = Federal Express

Athletic shoes = Nike

Holding an equity position in the mind of the consumer is important to any company seeking to prosper. Establishing such mental equity is what advertising is geared toward. However, advertising is just one component in the mix. After all, Mercedes-Benz would not garner six figures for its top lines if it made junk, nor would it command the luxury car category. Being first in a category certainly helps with Equity Position, but more than enough success can follow a second or third market entry. For example, Budweiser’s Bud Light was introduced in 1982 and emerged into the lite beer category after Miller Lite, Schlitz Light and Coors Light, but topped the category in 2000; and held the top market share in the overall beer category in 2002.

Sales

Sales are the ultimate bottom line. It's why businesses function. Generating sales is an extremely important result of good advertising. Tracking sales in conjunction with the various market factors is key. For instance, for one attorney client, we track the monthly new files opened compared to what commercials ran and website traffic visits. This allows us to hone in on spots pulled...what language in those spots pulled and what did not. This also allows us to determine what other market factors may be involved in a downturn...increased competitive factors, etc. 

The bottom line is simple: knowing where customers are coming from is important. However, it is more important that customers keep coming! Building brand equity with your advertising efforts while tracking as much sales data as possible as it relates to your advertising is sometimes the best way to answer that tried, but not always true question, "Where did you hear about us?"

© BrandVision Marketing. 2007. Matthew Scott Trueblood. All rights reserved.

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