How Do You Market Cars In A Green World?

June 27, 2010 By Simren Deogun Leave a Comment

Continuing on my recent Green kick [see previous post on environmentalism and consumerism], I’ve been thinking more and more about the automobile.

With timely documentaries such as Who Killed the Electric Car? and Suzuki’s series, The Nature of Things, the gasoline-powered car is no doubt a major villain against Mother Earth, alongside oil cartels and mankind, of course!

So, I pose myself (and, you) the following question: How do we market cars in a world becoming increasingly concerned with Greenism yet consistently concerned with price?

Nissan Leaf From Ford’s Model T to Nissan’s Leaf, a drastic shift in buyer perception, power, and overall market sentiment has taken place. In his time, Ford had unearthed a growing societal need for mobility while simultaneously offering a streamlined solution. Long gone are the days of assembly-line, one-colour options. But, in contrast, are the days for ultra environmentally-friendly vehicles now, today? Or are we not ready yet?

The market alongside the consumer continue to evolve. But the idea of the economical car is far too perfect to dissolve — price is king! And with the inclusion of luxury-trim stylings in low-cost models, car companies are laughing as they continue to win on the basis of simple economics.

Whether you’re looking for cost-effectiveness, luxury, size or looks, I think the message to the market in each of these categories is pliable enough even in the face of environmental concerns. And again, the story is everything. Maybe yours is of the working parent with kids or the college student with a part-time job or the high-rolling millionaire CEO! The story is designed to appeal to you, whoever you are, and that’s where creative marketing in the auto industry enters the picture.

Zoom-zoom. Drive one. Das Auto. The Relentless Pursuit of Perfection. These are just off the top of my head. Can you identify any? Better yet, do you identify with any? Because these taglines are powerful assets in helping carve out a specific audience with a specific desire.

And through all of this, the green advocates and environmentalists are not completely forgotten with many hybrid options available and with, hopefully, full electric alternatives also on the horizon.

What do you think? How much does being green factor into your car purchase decision? And, if the price was right, would you choose electric over gas?

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When Did Green Become More Than Just A Colour?

June 20, 2010 By Simren Deogun 2 Comments

Type “green” into Google, and you’ll get a firm understanding of how deeply rooted the new “green” has become.

Google Search - Green

Not just a colour. But a politics. A party. A movement for the environmental world.

And to the right appear sponsored ads to protect the environment and safeguard your home. Green is no longer a hard-to-reach and even harder-to-understand abstract concept. It’s in your living room, heating your house, lighting up your chandelier, and fuelling your car.

Also, Green is not just for the 21st century hippie, but for the well-rounded, health-minded, socially-conscious every-person. And industry leaders (alongside marketing mavens) are making it easier to fall into the latter category by making green ubiquitous.

Procter & Gamble’s Future Friendly. Apple’s “A Green Apple“. UPS’ right turns over left turns save fuel. And a host of dreamt-up green labels and “certifications”. These are just a few examples of some of the big steps being taken by profit-driven conglomerates to spearhead greenism.

It’s no surprise that there is a whole other side to this movement that centers on my world, the marketing world. Taking steps to be green as a company as well as offering green products and services is a strong, smart differentiating marketing strategy. As consumers become more knowledgeable about environmental threats and how being “green” can make a positive impact, their inherent inclination is to opt for goods and services which match that ideology.

But what’s the tradeoff? Often, it’s price. Green goods bear the heavier price burden over their value-marked but less green alternatives. So, green comes at a premium, no surprise. But in 2010, we are closing in on the precipice of the green movement, where green becomes mainstream and — ideally — drives down cost. Numerous reports and studies show that price is the biggest barrier to going green, so I ask, who is going to make a big splash and make green affordable?

And let’s not forget that Green is also money — not just to the consumer but to the CEOs and CMOs. Slowly, as the market moves towards saturation where close to 100% of viable companies exercise green adoption, the differentiating impact of being green will diminish. But the strength of choosing an all-natural, good-for-the-environment product over one that contains trace amounts of death and destruction is marketing heaven.

Green is the perfect murder. Easy to sell to the top, highly profitable, proactive, healthy, and brand-building. You really going to let price stand in the way?

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You Are Your Own Marketer

June 16, 2010 By Simren Deogun 3 Comments

I want this post to have the most eye-catching, most reader-intriguing title. I want its subject matter to be compelling and helpful. I want the writing to be fluid and a little bit off-the-wall.

I guess, though, what I truly want, isn’t as superficial as the above. It’s about understanding how you think, how you function.

When you wake up in the morning, what’s the first thought that enters your mind?

When you walk into work or school, do you feel nervous, excited, dreadful?

Are you a scatterbrain? Over-thinker? Organizer? Socialite? Leader?

Who are you?

If I, as a marketer and, more importantly, a human being, can even begin to just barely scratch the surface of you then I’m making progress.

And that’s all I desire. Progression. Forward movement. Forward thinking. Hope. Anticipation. Success. But none of this can be possible without you.

No marketer is a marketer without a consumer. No company is so without its employees. No success is worthwhile without believers to share it with.

So, I keep writing. I keep trying to understand you. And to even better understand myself. Because if there is anything I hope you can take away from my blog, it is that you are your own marketer, your own force to succeed.

Your message is valuable. Your voice, unstoppable. Your skill, immeasurable. Do what you do with purpose, and I promise to do the same.

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So You Think You Know Everything About iPhone 4?

June 13, 2010 By Simren Deogun Leave a Comment

So you’ve perused the features, perhaps drooled a bit at the imagery and maybe hailed Jobs the all-time, hall-of-fame tech guru? But have you considered Apple’s business strategy? Or better yet, its marketing strategy?

Apple expertly understands the market, what they want, when to give it to them and, most importantly, when to hold back. Aptly put in this National Post article, Apple harvests targeted strategy, Apple is not the quintessential inventor but rather, as I like to put it, the re-innovator!

Let’s extrapolate now on the strategy of Mr. Jobs and his crew of Merry Geniuses:

Hardware Design
It’s different. And yes, Apple is all “think different”, all the time. But it’s not exactly an ogre to prince transformation here [side Shrek reference!]. Some may perceive this negatively, positing why Apple hasn’t pushed the design limits further like some of its competitors, Sony, namely.

Apple keeps it fresh, simple and innovative. The team balances clean design with full-featured ferocity. Plus, Apple only offers one mobile device — unlike ALL of its competitors, who release a multitude of options to the consuming public. By doing this, Apple focuses your attention, simplifying the purchase decision while simultaneously offering the benefit of continuous improvement for that single device, the iPhone.

iMovie
Strategy is easy here. You have to pay for it, a measly $4.99, I believe. It’s not much. But picture this, every consumer who makes the iPhone 4 purchase cannot possibly go without iMovie, it essentially renders the movie-editing prowess of the device useless. Thus, Apple instantaneously pulls in another $5 per iPhone sold, it may sound small but just multiply that 5 by millions and it’s nothing but profit heaven.

iBooks
Strategy here is also easy. This app comes with the phone. No need to pay — though you will pay for the books you want to read, but only once because of the ultimate syncing capabilities.

So, Apple gives you iBooks, but asks you kindly to purchase iMovie (an app that ships free with iLife on all Mac computers). I see this as an interesting and creative tradeoff. You give some and you take some. Kudos, Apple!

The Screen
Apple’s newly-dubbed “retina display” with more pixels than the human eye can detect is a huge leap, but the screen itself has actually stayed the same size. The focus, however, is not on size but on quality. And Apple has always relied heavily on emphasizing quality with a hard-to-beat no-fail attitude. Another trade-off? Perhaps.

There are a plethora of other features, enhancements and Apple idiosyncrasies I could pick apart, but what I want to stress is the strategic importance that backs each of these. Apple is the powerhouse when it comes to product announcements and releases, and it’s significant to understand the implications of their every move and the careful thought that is most certainly poured into every decision.

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Google Slowly Introduces Chrome OS To The Masses

June 10, 2010 By Simren Deogun 2 Comments

Well, at least in my opinion. In a very Bing-esque styling, Google has atypically changed its design approach to an option that will undoubtedly be compared to their biggest competitor.

Google's New Wallpaper-Style Homepage

So, what’s the reason, Google? My guess is that with Google’s Chrome OS on the verge of release, the great Google geniuses are giving us a taste of what it might feel like. Without Microsoft, without a desktop, without all those PC (and Mac!) familiarities, Google has to bridge the gap.

Step one seems to be to introduce the “wallpaper” to Google — thereby transforming your Google homepage into a desktop (or into a desktop-like experience!).

Now, you can customize your Google experience, just like you can currently customize your PC or Mac experience, but, of course, without all the burdens that come with bloated operating systems, such as applications and features you don’t even need. This will most certainly be Google’s future pitch for its shiny, new OS!

Does Google’s new homepage enhance your experience or is it just another web-based distraction? It is smart, though, I will contend. As almost everything from Google is. Even when we doubt Google’s zany new offerings in the beginning, as we did with Gmail and are now doing with Buzz, Google has consistently outwitted our skepticism. The geniuses are testing the waters, sharks abound. For me, I have a take-it-or-leave-it attitude for the wallpaper, but, for the masses, I predict it will grow to be a fan-favourite!

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The ‘Campaign of the Decade’ Campaign

June 6, 2010 By Simren Deogun Leave a Comment

Beyond Rogers Publishing, beyond the prizes, beyond the somewhat confusing black and yellow website, there are 10 Canadian campaigns, one for each year of the last decade, up for recognition.

Which ad is the best of the decade? And does it even matter? The Campaign of the Decade is your choice, you make the call.

It’s your vote that decides the best of the best. Eerily fitting since the campaigns themselves are designed for you, so you’ll invest some part of yourself along with some part of your money (ahh, and there’s the marketing!).

And, yet, from the site to the prize to the voting style, something remains amiss. Something about the whole “extravaganza” is unsettlingly archaic.

I voted for 2007 — what’s your take?

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