The Quisenblog

Links to five great articles we found this week. Check ‘em out:

The Scoop on “Digital Watermarks.”

Digital watermarks are basically QR codes without the clunkiness. Here’s how they work, how to create them, and why you should include them in your demand generation toolbox.

How Many Lives Does A Brand Have?

Martin Lindstrom is one of my favorite writers when it comes to following trends in the business of advertising. This treatise on how brands can be repurposed and many times be “risen from the dead” helps us envision how our own brands can evolve over time.

Declare Your Radicalness.

This article from the Harvard Business Review poses the question, are you an “incrementalist” or a “revolutionary.” More than just a Myers-Briggs personality test, this article challenges us to consider our personal styles and how we can adapt to different situations.

11 Ways To Incorporate Video Into Your Business.

Face it, wouldn’t you rather watch a five-minute video of someone putting together an IKEA bookcase than pouring through an instruction sheet? That’s one of the appeals of video, and being that 2/3 of us are visual learners, there are plenty of opportunities to use video in our marketing trees that we may not have considered before. This article from OPENForum is a good starter.

Okay, so that’s only four. But hey, it was a short week, right?

As always, you can follow me on Twitter at @mickeylonchar or @Quisenberry. See you next week.

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Mickey Mobile Marketing, New Media, On Clients, On Customers, Social Media, how-to, strategy brand refresh, brand rejuvenation, digital watermarks, friday five, Martin Lindstrom, online video, QR codes

Evian’s rollerskating babies. The Kid From Brooklyn. The “Will It Blend” video series.

Viral videos. We’ve all seen them. Is there a formula to creating a viral video millions will want to see? With around 70,000 new videos a day being uploaded just to YouTube, the odds against your viral video catching on are slim to say the least. But is there a method for creating a viral video that has an edge in capturing viewers’ attention? What is the “secret sauce” behind some of the most successful viral video campaigns out there?

In this video, Martin Lindstrom tries to find the answers. In his interview with noted viral video creator Mads Holman, Lindstom hits on the three main characteristics of a successful viral video strategy:

• It must embody a “talking point” that people can easily share with one another.
• It must be outrageous or sensational—something that is somehow “too much” for TV. It is this outrageousness that makes us want to share it with others.
• It must be able to be “serialized”—the concept should be able to lead to a series of follow-up videos that build on the same audience. One-offs may gain some attention, but tend to fizzle quickly unless something’s there to keep the interest going.

Lindstrom’s report points out that while the idea of viral videos has long generated interest from marketers (whoa, million of viewers FOR FREE!), very few have been able to do it right. While more than 30% of major advertisers worldwide have attempted to launch a viral video program, fewer than 5% continue to have a viral media strategy.

The good news about launching a viral video program? It doesn’t take a big budget, a big staff or a big infrastructure. The key is to think outrageous. Relevently outrageous (so your product or service doesn’t come out of left field). Make it easy to share and respond to. And above all, fun.

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Mickey Media, New Media Evian, Mads Holman, Martin Lindstrom, Rollerskating Babies, viral media strategy, viral video campaigns, YouTube

How are buying decisions made by consumers? Which kinds of stimuli incite action, and which leave the consumer cold? Why do consumers often report behaving one way when in observation they may react totally the opposite?

These are questions that have vexed marketers for years. And now, a new book by Martin Lindstrom may shed some light on many of these issues.

Lindstrom’s book, Buyology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy, reports the findings of some recent breakthrough Neuromarketing studies that relate buying behaviors to regions of the brain. Through the use of fMRI technology, Lindstom and his team were able to observe what goes on in consumers’ brains in real time while subjected to a variety of marketing images and concepts. Among some of his more interesting findings:

• Celebrity personalities and product placements are ineffective.
• Sexual images and innuendo, while widespread throughout advertising, are effective only at selling sex, not products.
• Products that involve some sort of ritual are much more likely to be embraced by consumers.
• When subjects view images associated with strong brands—for example, the iPod, Harley-Davidson, Coca Cola—their brains register the same patterns of activity as they do when viewing religious images.
• Fragrances and sounds associated with a brand are far more memorable and powerful than a (more often than not forgotten) company’s logo.
• Disclaimers and health warnings, instead of suppressing consumer behavior, actually stimulate it.

Kudos to Lindstrom and his team for undertaking this ground-breaking study. The information and often-surprising findings of this friendly-reading 240-page book is well worth the effort.

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Mickey On Customers brand association, Martin Lindstrom, neuromarketing