MARKETING: The Magnetism of Heart (part II)

     There are people we associate with qualities we admire so that when we think of certain virtues we are also invariably reminded of them. For instance, every time I come across a version of the quote “Your character is defined by what you do when you don’t have to” I am reminded of a classmate. He was the only person I’d ever seen to take anonymous peer evaluations seriously. While everyone else was engaged in an unspoken race to be the first one finished and out the door, he put into the form the kind of thoughtfulness you’d be fortunate to find on an adoption paper. Although I’ve never spoken to him, I will always remember him and what he stands for.

Why do these people stay in our minds? I believe we are attracted to those with uncompromising principles, those with extraordinary ambitions, and those who can breed empathy from adversity because they live so determinedly by causes we too believe in and hold dear. Their overt identification with strong ideals leads them to be recognized as people with substance. Substance is heart and like moths to a flame, we gravitate towards this essence.

In this way brands are similar to people, when they have substance, when they embody values we admire or lifestyles we aspire to pursue, they hang around in our minds. Even when we don’t encounter them often. Even if they are not an integral part of our lives. When the occasion arrives that we must recall a certain product or service, the brands with purpose will be the ones to come to mind and when we have to make a purchase decision, the brands with heart are often our first call.

According to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, self-actualization, the desire to become all that one is able of becoming, penetrates the deepest level of human motivations. This suggests that a brand that can inspire and champion consumers in realizing self-actualization has the precious opportunity to create one of the most lasting connections. In recognizing their big ideaLs (see part I) brands take that first step in establishing such a bond. 

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MARKETING: the big ideaL (part I)

          A while back Ogilvy & Mather made a discovery they call the big ideaL.¹

In their words the big ideaL is a platform of thinking that “allows brands to commit themselves to and then identify themselves with some cause of enduring importance. So that the qualities of a brand are no longer passed on merely through positioning, tone of voice, a visual identity or a big idea. But through its actions and words in support of something bigger than all of these.” 

     “big ideaLs exist in the intersection between two things.” 

  
“The Cultural Tension is an articulation of something that is wrong with the world that needs changing, and that is addressable by the brand in question.”
“The Brand’s Best Self is what the brand is like when it is at its best – what contexts and situations does it seek out and revel in.”

                                        What does it give consumers?
A big ideaL allows consumers to give voice to a model reality they’d like to see transpire. It makes people feel good.

                                       What does it do for a brand?
A big ideaL helps a brand stand apart from its competitors. It helps a brand penetrate markets by relating to consumers through cultural “trends”. It engages emotional responses and by driving interesting conversation it can make a brand famous.

                                       What are its tangible results?
A big ideaL leads to higher consumer consideration (brand X is my first choice), salience (brand X stands out the most), and brand voltage (how successfully brand X can convert awareness to bonding).

Let’s look at something concrete

                                           Chivas Regal’s big ideaL

Chivas believes the world would be a better place if people lived with chivalry.

      
A brand that embraces this philosophy is the premium whiskey maker Chivas Regal. Their marketing campaign “Live with Chivalry - The Resistance Movement” encourages people to live with “honour, brotherhood, and courage in an age of the individual”. The campaign celebrates friendship and endorses gallantry through a variety of short films, multimedia ads, and events.²

                                              What it gives consumers:
It reminds people, in an age where individualism is the norm, to look at another way of life. Living chivalrously makes the world a better place. 

                                            What it does for the brand:
It differentiates Chivas from other premium whiskeys and widens its market by becoming relevant to a bigger population (E.g. Men who don’t regularly drink premium whiskey but believe in living chivalrously). Its romanticism evokes a sense of dignity and a desire to live in accordance to knightly ideals. Mostly, the message is so creatively unique, idealistic, and optimistic that it is talked about, remembered, and shared.

                                                 Tangible results:
Over 3,000 people surveyed identified with Chivas’s code of chivalry; they believe these values are relevant to the way people live today. Chivas’s online movement “The Wall of Resistance” has acquired over thousands of signatures since its launch in 2008.

¹Ogilvy & Mather, the big ideaL
http://www.ogilvy.com/On-Our-Minds/Articles/November_2010_The_big_ideaL.aspx

²Live with Chivalry Campaign
http://www.chivas.com/en/INT/Campaigns/