IMC Hawks Blog

Tag: Marketing

  • Social Media: The universal power move

    By Hope Weaver

    (Photo from Unsplash)

    The Power Move

    The use of social media is skyrocketing. Individuals resort to sharing their lives on the internet now more than ever. It is constant being updated, retweeted, shared, liked, disliked, and deleted. Most  use Instagram to stay connected, Facebook to scout out their next restaurant visit, and Twitter to share what’s on their mind. As a result of this cycle, brands must resort to meeting their audience where it makes the most sense . . . on these digital platforms. The use of social media is an effective tool in boosting company performance and customer traction. Building a client base on social media is a new form of communication that is no simple task. As evolutionary as social media is, many companies rely on its algorithm to survive. Understanding the ins and outs of posting and growing on social media is a job in and of itself. Discovering what consumers want to see and how to provide that desired material is key to social media mastery.

    (Photo from Unsplash)

    Power Move Explained

    Researchers Jun Li, Woo Gon Kim, Hyung Min Choi conducted a study centered around the effectiveness of social media. More specifically the study focused on how social media pages enhanced the performance of casual-dining restaurants. The results of the study suggest that first, social media is a measurable component, and second a selective approach must be taken when cultivating a brand’s media presence.

    Social Media as a Measurable Component

    It may seem pointless to assume that social media is its own science. To the consumer, advertisements, products are marketed to you, images are posted, and you consume the media you want to see … scrolling past the rest. Yet, ads are planned, items are marketed to specific media accounts, and the algorithm is an ever-changing resource. Businesses benefit greatly from understanding the algorithm and guiding their focus toward learning more about media sites like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Li, Kim, and Choi mention in their article that “customer engagement metrics (customer reviews, ratings, likes, shares, and positive comments), in the social media environment, were directly related to overarching corporate goals, such as revenue” (2019). This means that competence in a variety of social media sites and their algorithms is vital to the success of customer engagement and overall company morale.

    Cultivating a Consistent Media Presence

    Brand consistency is an important concept in the methods of social media marketing. The overall aesthetic of each company should be presented on their online platforms as well as in person. In order to maintain customer loyalty and brand consistency, attention must be placed on the social media pages. For example, as cosmetic details like colors, typeface, and logos are important to the physical brand, the same ideas must be translated into media marketing. Maintaining consistent activity is also important to mastering the ‘power mover’ of social media. Posting on a schedule and with a theme will ensure that you reach your niche audience. New content is a must but keeping it consistent with the aesthetic and posting schedule is important.

    Tips and Tricks

    Based on the evidence compiled from the article mentioned above, proper use and selection of social media sites are important for a successful brand. Choosing the best site is important for finding the right users and followers for your page. Additionally, it is necessary to implement promotional activities that your users will show interest in. This way investing time in what they consume, and such information leaves a lasting impression. There are companies that make it easy to post consistent scheduled content allowing brand consistency and media mastery to be more attainable.

    Source

    Li, J., Kim, W. G., & Choi, H. M. (7 August 2019). Effectiveness of social media marketing on enhancing performance: Evidence from a casual-dining restaurant setting. Tourism Economics, 27(1), 3-22. https://doi-org.liblink.uncw.edu/10.1177/1354816619867807

  • It’s not you, it’s the process: What to actually expect when creating content

    By Abigail Morris

    (Photo from Adobe Stock user Kittiphan)

    As I sit here writing this post, I find myself “stuck” on how to introduce this topic. I’ve spent hours on collecting, organizing, and summarizing data to include into this article. Yet, I’m sitting here clueless and hesitant. I’ve spent years of my academic career honing my skills to create content such as this and still I find myself constantly in this headspace. And because I aspire to do this as a career, the pressure of continually creating post and visuals that are interesting an engaging can become extremely discouraging – especially when I’ve dedicated so much time to the practice. But when I take a moment to step back and analyze where this disconnect is coming from, I begin to understand that this stagnant headspace is part of the process. 

    With every creative industry (especially in areas of art and literature), there is a tedious and straining side of content creation that hardly ever is mentioned or noticed. And when you’re creating relatable/interesting text and visuals – one might find themselves more inclined to interject personal elements into their work (that are deemed professional and relatable to the topic).  Diana Bossio in the article, Burning Out and Turning Off: Journalists’ Disconnection Strategies on Social Media, she states that “These exchanges [emotive intrapersonal communication within a professional context] are a kind of labor, and they can also be seen in the context of building and engaging with community, being ‘creative’, expanding personal and professional networks, and engaging in a pleasurable activity. Baym (2018) characterizes this as relational labor, or practices and strategies that creative professionals have adopted to create stronger emotional and thus commercial relations with audiences.”

    So, whenever a post receives positive feedback and attention, the creator of that content will feel a sense of accomplishment that validates their passion to keep creating. In the same sense, this kind of personal connection with content creation can cause emotional fatigue and burnout whenever they feel that they aren’t “hitting the mark” with their work. And with the added pressure of one needed to meet their quota, this can further discourage an individual within this field.

    Like how writers and artist cope with creative blocks, understanding social media burnout can help content creators to identify aspect of their work that are causing stress or lack of fulfillment, so that one may be able to find ways to fix this disconnection.

    This kind of persuasive and engaging rhetoric is heavily used within social media marketing, especially when one uses this to convey their brand identity as relatable. According to Demand Metric, 82% of consumer’s have a more positive perception of an organization after reading custom content. Because of this, 90% of organizations use content as a method for marketing. This desire for a brand to articulate an active, positive and informative image to their audience has become a necessity when creating brand trust and loyalty. With this push to create a positive and engaging public narrative for an organization, those assigned to accomplish such task many find themselves mentally and emotionally drained in order to provide their clients with quality work.

    (Photo from Adobe Stock user Drobot Dean)

    So, what should someone do then they are creatively “stuck”?

    Disconnect by creating a professional persona.

    The journalist interviewed for this study recommended that content created for work should not be used or posted on personal accounts. This ability to divide your personal and professional life is a way that any content creator can ease the stress of work so that they have the mental capacity to think outside of the box and create. In the article, Bossio states that “For journalists using social media as a professional communication tool, disconnection strategies actually work in tandem with the different ways they connect online, positioning those connections more strategically as professional labor and thus inscribing particular meanings and uses for social media interactions.”

    Now, this ability to disconnect doesn’t mean that you’re sacrificing effective “personal” quantities of the brand identity that draw the attention of your target demographic. This just means that your personal and professional social media post shouldn’t be intertwined. Similar to the concept of dividing your physical workspace from your bedroom – the same concept should be used within your creative process. Although these personas differ, they’re still a part of who you are.

    Just like how your able to decorate your desk at work with personal little nick-nack and trinkets – you can bring elements of yourself into the work you create. At the same time, you’re not going to put your queen-sized mattress in your office cubical. The professional persona that you create for work can embody a similar presence of your personal self. But when you start to associate the stresses of work into areas of your life in which you mentally and emotionally escape (in this case, social media), you begin to lose that sense of security that once was there (which is the number 1 way for any level-headed individual to lose their sanity).

    As easy as I make this advice sound, one’s ability to successfully disconnect and create a professional persona is not something that can accomplished overnight. This kind of self-discovery takes time to properly analyze and evaluate.

    (Photo by Adobe Stock user WavebreakmediaMicro)

    In the meantime, if you find yourself in a creative limbo, remember that:

    1. This is absolutely normal
    2. Many people who work within the creative field experience this at some point within their career.
    3. Even though you feel creatively stagnant, YOU ARE DOING SOMETHING.
    4. It just takes time to see those results.
    5. If you’re aware of what you’re experiencing, IT WILL PASS.
    6. Understanding the source of stress and creative fatigue is vital when creating your “plan-of-action” to overcome the creative block.

    Applying these steps into your workflow can tremendously help the stress created that can manifest itself into creative blocks. Also, acknowledging this aspect can lift the internal frustration that comes with constantly creating and posting content.

    Allowing yourself the time to self-reflect and implement what you’ve discovered into your workflow not only lifts the pressure of expectations that you and those around you create, but it also allows you to focus on creating work that efficiently conveys the intended message.

  • Establish your brand identity and you will guarantee success

    By Kelly Geiger

    Imagine you are walking through the mall and every store looks the same. Décor, logos, colors… everything is exactly the same. How could you possibly find the store you are looking for? This is where brand identity shows its importance. When you walk through the mall and see the check mark of a Nike store, the cursive sign reading Free People, or the navy-blue color surrounding the Gap, there is no question as to what brand you are looking at. Establishing a brand identity through colors, logos, fonts and more will not only set you apart from other brands, but also improve recognition and memorability for customers.

    This article will do two things. It will help you understand what a strong brand identity is and show you the importance of visually building a brand that sets themselves apart from their competitors.

    What is brand identity?

    “Brand identity is a combination of the name, terms, signs, symbols, and design used to identify a brand’s goods or services and distinguish them from competitors (Aaker 1991; Kotler 1991; Zaichkowsky 2010)” (Ward and Yang and Romaniuk and Beal, 2020). This is the part of the brand that people associate with visually. When you see Coca-Cola, what color do you think of? Red. When you see the words ‘Just o It’ what brand do you think of? Nike. When you see the golden arches what brand do you think of? McDonalds. “Brand identity elements are the building blocks that contribute, creatively, to enhancing brand presence in advertising content and purchase environments. For example, many McDonald’s advertisements contain no direct brand name, but instead favor brand identity elements such as the “Golden Arches” and “I’m lovin’ it” jingle” (Ward and Yang and Romaniuk and Beal, 2020). These are all examples of how successful these companies were in creating a strong brand identity. 

    Brand identity is not about selling the company’s product, it is about selling the company itself. They want to set themselves apart from their competitors, and using these visual elements is how they do it. This idea of ‘selling themselves rather than their products’ is further explained in the scholarly article Building a unique brand identity: measuring the relative ownership potential of brand identity element types by Ella Ward, Song Yang, Jenni Romaniuk, and Virginia Beal. “Described as an integrated system of cues, the purpose of brand identity is to provide a physical, proprietary representation of the brand (Perry and Wisnom 2003). In this sense, rather than providing a reason to buy the brand, the primary function of brand identity is to create a synergy amongst disparate brand elements and establish a unique brand look and feel for relatively homogenous goods (Perry and Wisnom 2003; Underwood 2003; Romaniuk and Nenycz-Thiel 2014).” In the image below you can see what an established brand identity might look like.  This mock example is a great representation on how a company creates a color scheme, font, and logo variations that are specific to their company.

    (Photo from BeHance, https://www.behance.net/gallery/57691987/Bang-for-the-buck/modules/375634675)

    While some might not value the artistic side of branding such as choosing colors, logos, fonts, etc., this isn’t just so your brand looks ‘pretty’ or ‘trendy’, it is truly a science to set yourself apart from your competitors.  Brand identity is important because it relates to the psychological ways consumers connect their memory with your brand.  “Brand identity elements can help explain the brand (Kohli et al. 2013), add meaning (Dahlén and Rosengren 2005) and contain imagery such as colours and shapes that expand the way the brand is encoded and stored in memory (Keller et al. 2008; Hartnett et al. 2016). As a result, the brand becomes more readily accessible to the consumer via creating a unique brand identity and artistic presence. (Ward and Yang and Romaniuk and Beal, 2020) Again, when it relates to identity elements, the goal is not to sell the product but the brand itself. Another way to explain this is “Identity elements are the cornerstone to brand identity that helps consumers to recognize brands and distinguish them from competitors (Hoek and Gendall 2010). These elements evoke the brand in the mind of consumers and create a unique look and/or feel that makes it easy to identify the brand (Perry and Wisnom 2003; Romaniuk and NenyczThiel 2014).” (Ward and Yang and Romaniuk and Beal, 2020).

    The biggest takeaways from this article are the importance of brand identity and its key position in successful companies.  It relates to integrated marketing communication in many ways but most of all brand identity can be practiced through campaign and message design.  The corresponding brand identity features are mostly used in the forms of advertising, packaging, and other forms of design.  Integrated Marketing Communication deals with these features of how and why it is necessary to create a brand identity as well as how this will eventually help your company succeed within its marketing and advertising techniques.  

    Source

    Ward, E., Yang, S., Romaniuk, J., & Beal, V. (2020). Building a unique brand identity: Measuring the relative ownership potential of brand identity element types. Journal of Brand Management, 27(4), 393–407. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41262-020-00187-6

  • How can brands stay up to date with user generated content?

    By Courtney Busick

    Brands are constantly changing. They need to stay up to date on how an audience interacts with them on social media. Many companies are finding users who share their content through stories or posts shows more engagement and interaction than counting likes and comments. How can brands engage their audience? By understanding their human values and what makes them want to share user-generated content with others.

    What is user generated content? User-generated content (UGC) is completely created by the user. Many brands are using this by asking users on social media questions about their products. More and more brands are finding that they can get free marketing from social media users with UGC’s. Whether it’s Lays asking for new chip flavors or Coke sharing the hashtag #shareacoke, brands can get reviews from user who share their content on platforms.

    Sometimes it can be hard for a brand to navigate UGC’s so here are some tips I love from other marketers that can help you engage with user-generated content.

    (Photo Pi Datametrics, https://www.pi-datametrics.com/blog/name-game-coca-colas-shareacoke-summer-ad-campaign/)

    Connect Human values to your Products

    Understanding a user is understanding what they value. Brands must look at human values and use those to generate content that users enjoy. “Human values are guiding principles reflecting style goals in life that may impact how individuals judge situations and events” (Nikolinakou 14). Meaning that human values are what drives our decisions. It affects consumer behavior towards certain products. It can also affect what we purchase. There are four levels of human values described by the article a brand should understand. Self- Transcendence (audiences’ stances on political or social issues), Conservation (audience’s desire to maintain security and stability), openness to change (what motivates users to change their opinions about products/services), and Self enhancement (user’s need to achieve success, wealth or influence) (Nikolinakou 14).

    Target actually used this in their “Acceptance” campaign. In 2010, Target pledged to donate $500 million to student’s education and they would double that for the best college acceptance video form their audience. So people sent in videos of them opening their college letters (Siu 2015). This allowed for the brand to connect with the brand personally and have fun showing of their authentic emotions. They touched on self-transcendence and conservation of their audience by showing what they value and how they are going to engage their loyal customers.

    (Photo from Contently, https://contently.com/2012/08/03/target-video-captures-real-college-acceptance-reactions-video/)

    In IMC, we should always be focused on the values of the consumer. This can also be seen through looking at a specific target audience. This is from their demographic to their psychographics and behaviors. What are the values and behaviors of my audience and how can I engage them in user content? For user generated content, you not only want to look at your brand target audience, but the population that is most likely to share you content through reviews or promotions.

    Reach out to audiences with specific human values to share content or promote a brand

    Human values drive consumer decisions. The primary and most popular values is conservation values. Consumers are constantly looking for trust and safety from their brand (Nikolinakou 15). By brands reaching out to the customers for promotions it makes them feel in charge and in control of the brands they love and their purposes.

    An example of this is social media management company Buffer. Instead of creating captions and content on their own, they encouraged their users to engage in their blog and submit their own content. They get the chance to be featured on their account. They post their own content to make you feel a part of their content process. Buffer also makes sure to be quick in responding to comments and dm’s on their pages. It allows for them to be authentic and true to their followers.

    In IMC, brand loyalty is so important. If a consumer picks our brand, we know we have to think of how we can meet their needs and that they want to stay with us. You cannot have customers without brand loyalty. As a customer to certain brand, I want to feel like the brand cares about me and what I value. I like to find brands that are consistent and authentic with what they do. People are influenced by others around them, so it creates a strong community of people who love and will continue to purchase from your brand.

    So what makes it easy for brands to use user generated content? Connection and understanding. In order for brands to immerse themselves into user generated content they must understand their clientele and who is loyal to their brand. They must observe human values and understand what human values they should reach in order to find quality brand users.

    Sources

    Nikolinakou, A. (2019) “Do human values matter for promoting brands on social media? How social media users’ values influence valuable brand‐related activities such as sharing, content creation, and reviews” Journal of Consumer Behavior. 14-22

    Siu, E. (2021, April 15). 10 user generated content campaigns that actually worked. HubSpot Blog. Retrieved February 25, 2022, from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/examples-of-user-generated-content 

  • Which Form of Social Media Content Works Best for Increasing Brand Attitude?

    By Shelby Watson

    (Photo from Dreamwealth Films, http://dreamwealthfilms.com/content-is-king-what-bill-gates-said-about-internet-in-1996/)

    Creating content-driven media to share across social channels is one of the most effective ways for a brand to reach their target audience today. However, there are so many different ways to create advertising content. How do you know which one is the most effective? Especially for brands that are looking to increase positive attitudes towards their product or service, understanding the techniques available and being able to decide which one will work the best for your purposes is incredibly important.

    What are the major techniques used by companies on social media?

    First, it will help to understand what techniques are available to you. Content marketing is a more traditional tool used by a brand, where hired social media coordinators will create original content for a brand, share that content, and try to increase brand reputation or sales. Typically, this form of content is heavily curated by the company producing it and is easy to control, which can allow a brand to create a cohesive image of itself.

    Sponsored content is content that a company pays someone to post in order to promote the brand’s image or encourage sales of its products. Often, sponsored content is posted by influencers within a certain niche market or a well-known or respected celebrity. Sponsored content is almost always disclosed as such, so an audience is aware that the content they are seeing is marketing.

    User-generated content is content that an individual posts on their own social media channels promoting a brand or product. Often, user-generated content does not disclose whether or not the poster was paid or otherwise compensated for promoting something. This kind of marketing can be riskier because a brand cannot always predict how an individual will talk about their products or services.

    Which techniques are most effective at increasing positive brand attitude?

    According to a study completed in 2019, there are significant differences in how audiences receive certain types of content. Sponsored content is generally received less favorably, likely because the disclosure that something is a paid #ad comes off as insincere to a targeted audience. For example, in November of 2021, Amazon teamed up with actor Terry Crews in hopes of improving attitudes towards the working conditions within the company’s fulfillment centers. In a TikTok posted to his channel, Crews visits an Amazon warehouse and acts like a kid in a candy store, excited about the work and employee benefits offered by Amazon (which the video says include paid college tuition and flexible working hours). The internet was quick to point out the insincerity within the video, noting that it does not accurately represent what working at a fulfillment center is like. Crews was also criticized for being willing to promote such an unrealistic video for money. In the end, Amazon’s brand attitude, as well as Crews’, took a hit because of the sponsored content.

    (Photo from Business Insider, https://www.businessinsider.com/terry-crews-amazon-ad-video-2021-11)

    On the other hand, content marketing and user-generated content are both better received by audiences because these forms of content are generally trusted more. It makes sense that user-generated content is more likely to read as sincere – if someone who doesn’t work for or with a company promotes a product or service, we are likely to believe they do actually enjoy it. For example, shopping has become a popular niche within TikTok and Instagram. #Amazonfinds on Instagram is filled with all kinds of items people are promoting from the website, and “Amazon Must Haves” videos like this one are incredibly popular across TikTok. Popular ways for brands to encourage positive user-generated content include challenges or giveaways that require users to post something in order to participate.

    It is a little more surprising, however, that content marketing and user-generated content show little difference in how they influence audience brand attitudes. Audiences likely trust content marketing more than sponsored content because the connection between author and message is clearly established. We know that a brand is going to market goods or services to us, so we expect to see ads when we follow a brand on social media. However, when we follow a celebrity or influencer, we expect to see content about them and their lives, not necessarily ads. So, this form of marketing reads as trustworthy.

    To continue with the example of Amazon, the company uses its Instagram (@amazon) as a way to reinforce its brand image and messaging. The company features humorous reviews of items from its website and uses symbols such as Amazon delivery trucks, the trademark Amazon smile, and the brand’s orange, black, and white color palette in order to support the brand image it has already built. Because we expect to see Amazon promoting itself and the items it sells on its own Instagram page, we are more likely to trust the content they are posting and in turn, may be more likely to purchase something through their platform.

    How can this help me market my own brand on social media?

    Understanding how your audience perceives different forms of content on social media can allow you to make informed decisions about how to improve brand attitudes. Depending on what your brand is looking to accomplish, you might determine that sponsored content is not the way to go or that you would prefer the control of content marketing over user-generated content. It’s always important to remember that these are general rules and that specific scenarios may call for specific kinds of content. However, using scientific research and recent case studies can help you make better decisions about your brand marketing in the future.

    Source

    Christandla, F., & Müller, J. (July 2019). Content is king – But who is the king of kings? The effect of content marketing, sponsored content & user-generated content on brand responses. Computers in Human Behavior, 96, 46-55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2019.02.006

  • The Future of Marketing and Social Media

    By Jaime Mull

    (Photo by Austin Distel at Unsplash)

    Social media is constantly evolving, and new trends are occurring every day online. It can be difficult to keep up with the constant renewing and recycling of trends on apps like TikTok and Instagram. Companies, now more than ever, are using their various social media outlets to target consumers with current trends and memes to sell their brand or product. Well-known brands have used social media to sell their products for many years, but it hasn’t been until recently that they’ve truly engaged with consumers and actively participated in the trend cycle that is occurring. If brands are now using social media as their main selling source and are constantly posting and engaging with customers, how will their engagement evolve in the next few years? What will we see from brands on social media in the next few years that we haven’t seen yet?

    How is Social Media Used Today?

    Social media is not just a one-dimensional outlet for people to share their life and thoughts with others. Over the past few years, social media has evolved into so many different things, and has allowed people to communicate and share ideas in various ways. Specifically for marketing, social media has now become the main outlet for brands and companies to share products and communicate with their consumer-base. With apps like Instagram and Twitter, consumers can comment on a brand’s post or tweet, and the brand has the ability to respond right away. This gives brands a huge advantage and allows them to show consumers how reliable of a company they are.

    The growth of social media platforms has also created an omni-social presence, which suggests that almost every aspect of a consumer’s decision-making process is prone to social media influence (Appel et al., 2019). With the amount of different apps and websites that brand’s can post on (TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat), it is almost impossible for the consumer to avoid a product or specific brand message. If a brand wants people to see their message, they have several options for sharing and can pay to promote themselves even more.

    The use of influencers and celebrities in marketing has also increased greatly and is extremely popular today. Considering the possible reach and engagement influencers command on social media, companies have either begun embracing influencers on social media, or plan to expand their efforts in this domain even more (Appel et al., 2019). This means that influencers being used to promote a product or brand isn’t going to change in the near future, because it has shown to be effective.

    Brands will Become your Best Friend

    A safe assumption to make based on past and current trends is that brands will become even better equipped to answer consumer’s questions and meet consumer’s needs. For example, new platforms have emerged to make the connection between customer and firm effortless. Much of this is via instant messaging applications for businesses, which several leading technology companies have recently launched as business-related features in existing platforms (Appel et al., 2019). Brands are going to become even more accessible in the next few years due to platforms like this, that will allow customers to reach someone within the company in less than a few minutes. Consumers are tired of waiting for days to hear back from a brand’s customer service line, and they’re tired of hearing the same excuses for why certain products don’t work. Brands are going to become much more personable and honest with consumers, as well as make themselves available for questions and feedback at a much faster rate.

    The Future of Political Collaboration

    Something we saw in social media in the last few years that wasn’t as evident in the past was the increase in posts regarding politics, specifically from brands. Many popular brands, ranging from Ben & Jerry’s to Bumble, spoke up during the 2020 Presidential election and were very clear about which side they were taking in the race. It is becoming a growing trend for brands to show their support for political figures, which is interesting because there’s always the chance that they lose customers who don’t agree with their stance.

    There is also the case of politicians themselves utilizing social media more in the future, essentially to market themselves. A relevant example of this is with Donald Trump and his run for office in 2016, and 2020. Research has shown that with simple interventions, social media platforms can increase targeted audiences’ likelihood of voting (Appel et al., 2019). We will definitely see more social media use from politicians, as well as brands in support of politicians, in future campaigns and election years.

    Social Media is Always Evolving

    While it is always interesting to analyze social media and predict what trends and themes will happen in the next few years, no one really knows for sure what will happen online. Social media is constantly shifting and changing shapes, and new trends are always being created. It will be interesting to see how social media unfolds in the future.

    Sources

    Appel, G., Grewal, L., Hadi, R., & Stephen, A. T. (2019, October 12). The future of social media in Marketing – Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science. SpringerLink. Retrieved February 24, 2022, from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11747-019-00695-1

    Distel, A. (2019, July 24). Photo by Austin Distel on unsplash. Beautiful Free Images & Pictures. Retrieved February 24, 2022, from https://unsplash.com/photos/tLZhFRLj6nY

  • Controversial Advertising Strategies: Understanding How They May Help or Hurt Your Brand

    By Emma Hudson

    (Photo from Unsplash)

    Have you ever heard the phrase “there’s no such thing as bad press?” On the surface, this statement may seem logical. Controversial advertising is known for making brands more relevant by grabbing attention and garnering conversation. But just how valid is the “bad press” argument?

    According to an article released by MDPI , controversial advertising operates by deliberately inducing feelings of surprise by “violating social norms or personal ideals, to draw attention.” Controversy must be used with extreme caution, as it may generate both positive and negative effects in the reception of an advertised brand.

    Here’s a closer look into the successes and failures of controversial advertising and questions that should be examined when considering a controversial campaign for your brand.

    What does effective controversial advertising look like?

    A common misconception about controversial advertising is that its primary goal is to offend its viewers. In reality, controversial advertising doesn’t aim to polarize an audience. When done correctly, it’s an attention-grabbing technique for stating an opinion, and brands use it to stir the conversation about a contentious topic.

    An example of effective controversial advertising is found in the 2017 Budweiser advertisement, “Born The Hard Way.”

    (Photo from Budweiser: Born The Hard Way)

    This commercial tells the story of Budweiser founder Adolphus Busch and his journey to America from Germany with a dream of building his own beer company. The ad artfully portrays the trials a young Busch may have overcome, from fiery ships to unwelcoming American citizens, and eventually meeting with future business partner Eberhard Anheuser.

    The advertisement was released during Trump’s executive order banning immigrants from Muslim countries and makes a subtle statement on the topic. The story makes people realize that something so fundamentally American, like Budweiser beer, can have immigrant roots.
    It reminds viewers that the United States is founded on immigrants, a message that starts a conversation without condemning pro-travel ban or anti-immigration individuals. The strategic use of controversy helped the commercial reach 21.7 million views within the first 72 hours, with a predominantly positive audience reaction (Atkinson, 2017).

    What does ineffective controversial advertising look like?

    When approached ineffectively, controversial advertising undermines customer trust in brand values and creates confusion that may lead to brand abandonment (Buchnik and Nowacki, 2018). A prime example of this is Hyundai’s commercial, “Pipe Job,” meant to promote the Hyundai ix35, an eco-friendly fuel cell car with “100% water emissions.”

    (Photo from Hyundai: Pipe Job)

    This advertisement shows a man running a hose from his car’s tailpipe to its passenger compartment in his closed garage. Taking a few deep breaths and closing his eyes, the man waits to be killed by carbon monoxide poisoning. A few hours later, the garage light comes on, and the man leaves in defeat. “The new 1×35 with 100% water emissions” appears on the screen, which makes it impossible for the man to take his own life. Unsurprisingly, the commercial was pulled after airing for only 24 hours, receiving backlash for mocking suicide attempt survivors (Herper, 2013).

    Questions to ask before using controversial advertising

    1. What are your goals?

    The first question you want to ask before pursuing a controversial topic through advertising is, “what are your goals?” If the reason that your marketing team wants to execute a controversy is to go viral, you need to think again. Controversial advertisements should have logical reasoning and meaning behind them to achieve their desired effect.

    This question reigns relevant to the “Pipe Job” commercial, as the motives of the advertisement were unclear. Sure, the company wanted to promote that their new car has 100% water emissions, but couldn’t they accomplish this through a less triggering method? More likely than not, the brand used the controversial advertising strategy merely to go viral, which ended in outright disaster.

    2. Are the goals relevant to your brand values?

    To elicit a positive response, you must consider if your goals align with your brand values. If the messages perceived do not reflect your brand’s values, it may come off as disingenuous, which will damage consumer trust. Additionally, if the values presented through the advertisement are misaligned, your audience will likely not align with those principles either. The disconnect between audience values and campaign messaging can lead to brand abandonment.

    The Budweiser commercial does a great job relating its brand values to the commercial at hand. Budweiser claims the title of “America’s beer,” so the idea of immigrants achieving the “American dream” aligns directly with the brand’s image.

    3. What are the potential consequences or misconceptions?

    A great way to determine the reception of your advertisement is to conduct focus groups. This will allow you to receive insight into how audiences may react to your commercial before it is published and cannot be changed. Once your commercial is live, there’s no turning back.

    It may also be beneficial to consider some of the common causes of negative reception in controversial advertising. Such controversies can be triggered by:

    • Human figures presented in a way that implies or maintains negative stereotyping of specific social groups (women, men, children, or elderly people)
    • Information whose accuracy is clearly doubtful (misleading advertising).
    • Negative associations of a religious, racial, or ethnic nature.
    • Content that insensitively utilizes trauma or violence (drastic scenes, violence, cruelty, death, rape, etc.)

    (Buchnik and Nowacki, 2018)

    Key Takeaways

    In a current culture obsessed with controversy, it’s easy to create a campaign that draws attention from the masses. While the saying goes, “there’s no such thing as bad press,” it is vital that your team thoroughly strategizes for positive public perception. With the right goals, consideration of brand values, and proper reflection on potential consequences or misconceptions, you’re more likely to receive the desired response from your audience.

    Sources

    Atkinson, Claire. (2018). “Budweiser’s Super Bowl Ad Was the Most-Watched Online.” New York Post, https://nypost.com/2017/02/07/budweisers-super-bowl-ad-was-the-most-watched-online/. 

    Herper, Matthew. (2013). “Hyundai Apologizes for Car Ad Depicting Attempted Suicide.” Forbes, https://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2013/04/25/a-hyundai-car-ad-depicts-suicide-it-is-so-wrong-i-cant-embed-it-in-this-post/?sh=2691cee6554d. 

    Bachnik, K., & Nowacki, R. (2018). How to build consumer trust: Socially responsible or controversial advertising. Sustainability, 10(7), 2173. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su10072173