Retailers Get Emotional, Drive Sales

In my opinion, advertising is an enormous factor that drives sales in times of tough economies, especially for retailers and consumer products. Too many companies view advertising, marketing, human resources, and strategic consulting, as “fringes” when times are bad, however in reality, these facets are more critical right now then ever before.

David Biernbaum, Senior Marketing and Business Development Consultant, David Biernbaum Associates

Since I work in trends and insights, I'd like to weigh in on this one with some credit where credit is due. The Iconoculture trends company coined a phrase in the fall called the Concession Point. In a nutshell, this is the point where consumers give up on trying to maintain control of things they can't control ( like the economy) and start to instead shift their value matrix way closer in around such concepts as personal happiness. When they do this, and many have, especially younger folks, the marketing messages and especially TV commercials that are more emotional and positive really resonate. Those marketers who act quickly against trend shifts can win, and it's great to see they are capturing and engaging the consumers with these messages. That said, not all consumers feel this way. But goodness knows we can all use some love and happiness, so let's keep the messaging as positive and real as we can. Authenticity is the filter consumers use, so we must take care not to "blow smoke" at the shoppers!

Anne Howe, Founder, Anne Howe Associates

We merchants are facing an uphill battle in getting customers in the store. We need to change their minds about spending money. Tugging at emotions is a great way to change the customer's mood. As a side note, campaigns should not end with commercials. The heart tugging should continue at the store level especially considering the season we are in.

Doron Levy, President, TheMortgageMachine.ca

Advertising was and is more important this holiday season. It's foolish to dramatically cut advertising in a soft economy. The advertising message that seems to best resonate with consumers is value. Consumers do not want surprises. They want to know who has the best deal.

Max Goldberg, Founding Partner, The Radical Clarity Group

Hey! Everybody has the best deal. That is why non-deal advertising is so important. My dollar off today is the other guy's two dollars off tomorrow. Retailers (and any other marketer) must advertise in a way that differentiates the message from that of every other retailer. And, not only may it be emotional, it MUST be brand centric. The emotional ad must incorporate the heart and soul of the brand, that is the heart and soul of the store, and by extension, the heart and soul of the shopper.

Despite hard times, dollars off are not the only answer. So many times, the consumer makes up their mind and then justifies why they are willing to pay something more at one retailer than another.
• "Yes, it costs a little more, but I can stop on my way home from work and save myself two hours of going to XYZ."
• "Yes, it costs a little more, but I am always confident that ABC will make it easy to return if I pick the wrong size."
• "Yes, it costs a little more, but I can get all my shopping done at one store."
• "Yes, it costs a little more, but the staff is so knowledgeable about the product."

When in reality, the shopper just feels good about the retailer.

Gene Detroyer, Entrepreneur, Advisor, Consultant, Professor, Independent

This holiday, between the difficulties in the economy and with the consumer, and companies slashing marketing and advertising, the brands that pushed forward with resonant (relevant) messages succeeded.

While the economy stinks for many, the correlation between intelligent marketing investment and return is still a sound concept. Injecting emotion is always effective, when it's done right. After all, a brand by definition is an emotional attachment.

Phil Rubin, CEO, rDialogue

Every year I cringe at local ads around the country in which businesses tell consumers "the reason for the season" in Christian terms. This year, I cringed a bit harder since most of these ads are being run by local car dealerships and realtors. I'm thinking that they can't afford to alienate all non-Christian consumers and Christian consumers who believe that such appeals are arrogant and exclusionary (put me in that category). On the positive side, I believe that Walmart's clean and straightforward "save money, live better" ads strike the perfect tone this season. The ads are living up to the no-nonsense brilliance of the tag line. Everyone else's "sale, sale, sale!" approaches are numbing by comparison.

This week, I received a card from a Nordstrom associate in California. It wasn't a generic holiday card but rather, a hand-written note thanking me for my business and hoping that my trip to a particular restaurant (which she named) lived up to the review (information she had gleaned during our conversation in the store a couple of weeks ago when I was on a business trip in LA). That accomplished more than any ad ever will.

Carol Spieckerman, President, newmarketbuilders

Advertising has an impact on sales, but the amount of repetition, and true impact that one ad has over another is a difficult factor to determine, under even the best conditions. Most of the time memorability is but one of a very few factors that impact the purchasing decision. This is especially true for items that are not destination driven (i.e. consumers do not specifically go to the store to purchase these). Price, placement in the store, and in-store promotions all have a larger impact on sales than external, premium advertising, even emotional ones.

Kai Clarke, President, Miraclebeam Products, Inc.