As we escape the holiday months and reflect on the bombardment of advertising and branding in our culture, it is imperative to analyze what we have seen and come to an understanding of how the market lends itself to brand awareness. Against the heavy volume of advertisements in our inboxes, mailboxes and cable boxes, it is tough for anyone to cut through the clutter—but this is where the creativity of media buying comes into play.
In the process of serving clients, building brand affiliation and learning to communicate with particular markets, your game plan and the decisions you make can be the deciding factor between effective commercial strategies and ones that get lost among the monotony of advertising clutter. Perhaps nowhere else is this illustrated more clearly than in the annual advertising frenzy of the Super Bowl.
Put yourself, for just a moment, in the shoes of some of the top marketing officers in the country. Given a 30-or 60-second spot, what are some of the questions they might have asked themselves in order to produce advertising that didn’t get lost in the clutter of Super Bowl pandemonium?
Who were they targeting?
What was their message?
When and where were they airing?
Why were they delivering this message to us, the consumers?
When you put a $3.8M price tag on the answers to those questions, you can see where the pressure of the job comes in.
There were certainly commercials that made us laugh and others that made us cry. Either way, we listened, watched and consumed. We received those messages—and will hopefully act upon them.
At Dana, our approaches to clients’ media plans are shaped not only by the available options, but also by our main objectives and the calculated risks that allow our clients to stand apart. Learning the industry is a never-ending quest, but exercising precise communication, analyzing decisions and keeping our ears open to the ever-changing marketplace makes education a clear part of the job description.
What would you do to activate the WOW factor in your marketing? How would you cut through the clutter? Ask yourself who, what, when, where, why and how, and this seemingly daunting task can become a much more manageable feat (or at least a more fun one).
Tune into our next blog, “Essential Media Buying Questions,” to find out more. In the meantime, we invite you to share your thoughts or tell us about your favorite Super Bowl commercial!
