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From time to time the marketing world is stunned by huge, quick, unpredictable and seemingly inexplicable successes. These hits are products or services, entertainment locales or vacation spots, shopping malls or specialty stores that enjoy puzzling immediate popularity. There are incognitos that become hot celebrities, there are events, festivals or concerts that capture the masses, land development projects that evoke huge demand, or styles that become trendy. In nearly all cases, there also are new brands that are immediately adopted by the target population. for instance , Harry Potter or The Leonardo Code, Apple's iPod and therefore the Blogs, the Hamptons in Long Island ny , Toyota's Scion brand, the Crest toothbrush and lots of more examples.
There are cases during which the explanations for a product's success are obvious. The success of Viagra, a product that has solved a significant problem for many men worldwide - is hardly surprising. Even the success of vacation resorts in Turkey - that have made accessible once an expensive vacation style to a replacement bourgeoisie segment, isn't a mystery. In contrast, in other cases the success of a selected product, place or person over the competition remains unclear. we've all observed the phenomenon of a packed and stylish caffe surrounded by apparently equally attractive but relatively empty coffee bars.
Research of selling hits isn't a replacement endeavor. Certain categories have accumulated much knowledge enabling planning and launching of hits with a practical probability of success. within the leisure and entertainment segment, companies like Disney, Warner, HBO, et al. have demonstrated such consistent capabilities in theater, television, music, toys, electronic games, and more. On the entire , secrets are kept closely. Many have tried to crack the formula of selling hits successes.
Short sweet success
In the previous couple of years, more and more sectors became as high paced and as changeable because the apparel industry . The importance of hits for the success of companies has risen in sectors like the following: automobiles, food, grooming, hotels, construction, entertainment electronics, software, and therefore the list goes on. It even includes unexpected categories like financial services.
Personally, I even have begun my add the marketing hits field within the latter half the 1990's. I identified a radical change in consumer behavior and a dramatic rise during a new motivation that I coined "The Fear of Missing Out - FoMO". In extremely concise terms, FoMO turns consumers into serial seekers and adopters of the new (while inevitably forsaking the not-so-new). As such, one consequence among many is that FoMO nibbles at customers' loyalty to well-established brands.
Upon realizing that our efforts to preserve customers' loyalty are, more often than not, futile, I concluded that we were now in need of latest tools to affect a replacement consumer reality that's here to remain . Therefore, I even have developed a comprehensive 'technology' of rules and tools for the event , launching and management of profitable, "Short-Term Brands (STB)". STB are planned short-term successes. During this development process, I conducted an in depth , thorough analysis of over 150 marketing hits in various and diverse categories. In parallel, I studied the accumulated experience in sectors that have learned the way to methodically develop and generate such hits. In mid 2004, the results culminated within the "Marketing Hits' Formula" which is now a neighborhood of the STB armory.
The Marketing Hits' Formula and its implementation method allows for marketing innovation which will be accepted with immediate enthusiasm by target consumers and can spread virally. This formula has two major advantages: First, it's applicable to most categories. Second, it doesn't necessitate enormous marketing and advertising budgets (the commonest method of attempting to instigate success within a brief time frame).
Success has its Rules
The formula postulates that every marketing hit comprises of the subsequent four elements:
1. Marketing hits are usually not large innovative leaps. The new product or service should be based in the maximum amount as 80% on a format that has been successful numerous times within the same category. The format assures familiarity, promises consumer satisfaction and minimizes adaptation efforts on the a part of the buyer .
2. the merchandise or service should be innovative by approximately 20%. This 20% provides the new experience, the individuality , the extra benefit or the other reason to modify from the present product, or to a minimum of try it. This novelty should uphold the subsequent two rules (3 and 4).
3. The product's novelty should address one among the "unsatisfiable" or "regenerating" needs (explanation to follow).
4. the merchandise should include a component of "Cool", "WOW", and/or a "Twist" that makes a "viral motive", or in other words, will supply buyers with an honest reason to inform other potential buyers about the merchandise .
- COOL means 'right', fashionable and utterly current, maybe even a touch edgy.
- WOW means arousing awe and excitement through a tremendous design or by an impressive and an unexpected level pf performance.
- A TWIST means something unusual during a surprising, intriguing and sometimes amusing manner.
Hits are planned and managed short-lived successes (the duration of 'short' varies among categories) that are replaced by new hits. it's of utmost importance to understand that hits satisfy two sorts of human needs not catered for by long-term established brands:
"Unsatisfiable needs" - these are wishes that can't be realized (not to a full extent), however, citizenry will relentlessly plan to fulfill them, while deceiving themselves that it's possible to try to to so. Amongst the unsatisfiable are the requirements for eternal youth, irresistible desirability , grandness, omnipotence, domination, an ever-exciting life, and adventure (without investing the trouble , taking the danger or paying the price). it's understandable that brands supporting such fantasies are sure to disappoint eventually and must get replaced by new solutions.
"Regenerating needs" - needs that need ceaselessly new fulfillments. a number of them are regenerating psychological needs, like the necessity for attention from the environment, the necessity to renew oneself, to stay up-to-date, to get , and to be tempted or seduced. There also are regenerating social needs including the necessity to signal involvement, belonging and openness.
We put the Marketing Hits' Formula to practice during the second half of 2004 and since then have gained experience in such diverse categories as pharmaceuticals, cigarettes, food products and television shows, to call but a couple of .