Most men – at least the ones I know – have a special space they call their own, whether it’s a basement with a flat screen TV, a peaceful office, a garage with a never-ending supply of tools or even a motorcycle for joyriding. Most often deemed the “man cave,” men designate a household area as their space and let the testosterone flow.

The man cave is where men can truly be themselves – loud, macho and simple. Crude even. The cave provides a kind of vacation from chaotic life. I hesitate to say, but this includes a nagging wife, barking dog and screaming kids. It’s true: the man cave is the key to every man’s sanity.

Google “man cave” and variations of the same idea appear on the screen: extravagant rooms with pool tables and home theaters, ideas for masculine decoration and videos outlining the tools and techniques for building the ultimate man cave.

What if the idea of a macho space was created for something usually marketed toward women? Chrysler has done just that with the “man van,” a special (manly) version of the Dodge Grand Caravan.

Chrysler's "Man Van" prototype

Rumored to hit dealerships within the next couple of months, the man van will feature a slightly sportier look with a snazzy black-and-gray interior trim accented with hot-colored stitching on the seats and steering wheel. Besides an effort to make many old vehicles feel new because of sluggish sales, Chrysler hopes to help men overcome the highly feminine stigma surrounding the minivan. With the man van, dads can feel more comfortable toting the kids to school or picking up groceries.

Beyond the cool factor of the man van, what’s even more interesting is the fact that Chrysler is marketing a minivan for men. With most minivans focused on sliding doors, the driving experience and convenience, Chrysler’s man van is the first of its kind in the marketplace with others not far behind. Honda Motor Co. is already planning to launch a sleeker “athletic” design for the Odyssey.

Looking back at our “Missing Males White Paper,” which states that males are virtually ignored in the household marketplace in terms of product development and marketing, the man van goes beyond the norm. Will it gain the attention of the modern-day man? Or will it be seen as joke? I personally see the man van as a bit cheesy, but hope this could be the start of more household product marketing geared toward men.

Although Chrysler and Dodge have declined to comment on the man van, dealers of Chrysler have said that the man van will turn heads. For the minivan-driving man, the man van is just what he needs to claim his on-the-go space.

Many companies can, quite easily, describe their brand and what it stands for.  These descriptions, however, can become too long to be effective.  Is it possible to describe your brand in less than a minute? What about 30 seconds? In a post discussing the importance of keeping your “elevator pitch” short and sweet, Michael Gass provides a few tips for selling your most valuable assets here.

I gave my two cents a couple months ago when asked to be a guest blogger on 1-to-1 Media. Here’s my take on the challenge:

The Right Elevator Pitch Gives Your Brand a Lift

The average elevator ride is 30 seconds. Even in the Empire State Building it is possible to ride from the lobby to the 80th floor in 45 seconds. That’s plenty of time to send a quick message on your iPhone or finish half of the overpriced, large nonfat, no whip, caramel latte. But is it enough time to deliver a strong, concise brand pitch to a potential business partner? It should be.

Whether you’re trying to promote your brand, interest a customer in your services, or grab the attention of a reporter, having a strong elevator pitch is critical to a company’s success. Like its name implies, an elevator pitch can be delivered in the time it takes to share an elevator ride with a prospect. For this reason it’s important to not think of your pitch as a traditional speech resulting in a signed contract and round of applause. Instead, it serves as an engaging jumpstart for an ongoing dialogue of indefinite length. Then, the quality of your compelling content can close the deal for you.

Below are five tips for creating an effective elevator hook:

Include the three pitch essentials:
It must contain the benefit that is most important to your audience, be specifically tailored to meet the needs and solve the pain points for your audience, and contain emotional appeal, since emotion is often remembered even when intellectual information and facts have been forgotten.

Determine your unique selling proposition:
Competition is inevitable for every company. Separating your brand from the pack is what creates the bulk of the hook. “I own a marketing company” doesn’t hold a candle to “I own a marketing company that has more than 20 years of proven success in positioning homebuilding and remodeling products as industry leaders.” Don’t be afraid to let them know how and why you are different, and why your unique capabilities will turn into an opportunity for them.

Embrace simplicity:
Avoid the Walt Whitman approach to writing and keep it simple. Time is precious, both yours and your audience’s, so respect that and only hit the highlights.

Keep it fresh:
Even after the perfect pitch is developed, your job is not over. Savvy businesses grow and change, and your pitch must follow suit. As your audience’s needs and expectations change, make sure you change the way you speak about your business. The language of your pitch, your approach, and what you choose to highlight for a particular audience must change over time.

Practice makes perfect:
The perfect concise, emotional, unique, and simple pitch is created. Congratulations! Now it’s time to practice it. Distribute the pitch to your entire team. It’s a great brand refresher for everyone. Since each pitch should be unique, memorizing the pitch is often not the best approach, but knowing the key messages inside and out ensures brand consistency and effectiveness.

This form of pitch is an ace in your pocket, and one of the most versatile messaging tools a company can have. Next time you find yourself in an elevator with a prospective client, instead of passing the time idling, you will be ready.

It’s easy to get carried away when writing. A lot of writers tend to  go on and on about a particular subject, when, in reality, most readers just want to get to the point.  This is okay in novels, where readers usually want lots of vivid details, but it is not okay in business. Marketing clients don’t have time to read lengthy articles. They just want to know what you’re trying to say, to figure out if they want to do business with you or not. Using big words and over-explaining is often counter-productive, and can cause clients to stop reading your articles all together.

Here are some tips from Ernest Hemingway on how to write more effectively:

1) Keep sentences short.

2) Write a short opening paragraph.

3) Use engaging words.

4) Be positive.

5) Keep only masterpieces.. eliminate anything that is not great.

To read examples of how these tips are used visit:

http://www.copyblogger.com/ernest-hemingway-top-5-tips-for-writing-well/

Have we gone too far?

A 1978 Virginia Slims magazine ad reads, “Back then, every man gave his wife at least one day a week out of the house.” The ad depicts two very different women: a black and white photograph shows a woman in an apron hanging laundry outside while the other image illustrates a beautifully modern woman showing a little skin in a colorful, flowing dress. The ad continues, “You’ve come a long way, baby.” With feministic undertones, the ad is just one example of a campaign dedicated to the independence, glamour and liberation of women – worlds away from cooking, cleaning and taking care of the children. It illustrates a woman who is free, happy, and most importantly, unattached.

The Virginia Slims campaign, although not the first of its kind, helped pave the way for a critical change in the relationship between men and women, especially in marketing. The past few decades have been a transfer of women gaining authority in the marketplace. Today, role reversal is extremely common in marketing and advertising with many brands opening the door to women in a man’s world of sex, power and money. The surprising part is that women are coming out on top.

It’s no secret that women are powerful shoppers. Did you know they are responsible for 80 percent of all household purchasing decisions? With such a striking statistic, it’s not surprising that a great focus is directed toward women when it comes to marketing, advertising and the media.

How many ads can you think of that directly target men?  Of those,  do you think the modern man is fairly represented? It has been said that men are portrayed as indifferent, egocentric and self-indulgent. We discuss the role of men in the marketplace (or lack thereof) extensively in our Missing Males White Paper. The research here summarizes the idea that marketers and the media depict a man’s role in the household either negatively or not at all.

Today, not only do we notice the “missing male,” but we see a complete role reversal that changes the male / female dynamic even further.  Women are now portrayed as individuals with male characteristics – powerful, dominant and influential – while men are unexpectedly feminine, slave-like or illustrated as sex objects.

A current example of a brand taking advantage of role reversal is Xanté liqueur. With a racy slogan, “Unimaginable Pleasure – Oral Delight from the Country of Europe,” Xanté specifically targets women with sexually charged copywriting and controversial ads. The liqueur itself is described using words like affection, touch, penetration, and ménage a trios, but one phrase sticks out like a sore thumb: “The Golden Age of Women.” It’s ironic, yet playful and fun. The ads are the real catch with women leading sports in which you’d typically only see men participating – hunting, rowing, sledding, and cricket. In each ad, the men are very robotic, playing the role of dogs, servants and even objects.

Xante advertisement

It’s obvious that the women are in charge. The men are just their toys.

Take a look at this recent Marc Jacobs ad. I’ve taken the liberty of transforming the word “bimbo” into “HIMbo” when discussing the role reversal of men and women in marketing and advertising. This himbo fits the mold:

"himbo"

There’s been a 30 – 40 year transfer in how men and women are portrayed. It’s as if they swapped roles completely. Has it gone too far? I’m all for independent and strong women – both in the workplace and at home – and respect the necessary and long-awaited advances made in decades past.

But have the tables turned too drastically, where men lose credibility?

Do the media know they have created a true battle of the sexes? Maybe, but women have officially taken off their aprons to show what they’re really capable of: conquering anything a man can do. From leadership roles and strong opinions to successful careers and sports, women have come a long way (baby).

Marketing home products through olfactories

What do you think of when you smell chocolate chip cookies baking in the oven? What about freshly cut roses?

We all link memories, places or people to certain scents, and they’re different for everyone. Not just in perfumes and colognes, smells occur everywhere. They’re in subways, schools, restaurants and stores. Although it’s no secret that marketers use the five senses to increase their bottom line, scent’s role has changed, showing up in many unexpected places including jewelry, hotels and even bubbles.

It used to be that fragrances had their place in beautiful glass bottles atop a striking vanity. Think about Chanel No. 5, which was initially introduced in 1921. Called “the world’s most legendary fragrance,” most women today wear it because their mothers and grandmothers chose it as their perfume of choice. Many don’t realize that the way you smell is very much another form of expression much like clothing or art. It has been said that you can tell a lot by what kind of music a person listens to or with whom they spend their time. This holds true for scent, too.

The idea that something as simple as perfume can contribute to an identity translates into more than just people. Smells are memorable. They create adventure, change experiences, and express creativity. With that said, many companies are incorporating smell into their products to create experiences that keep customers coming back for more.

Scent in places: Retail locations are increasingly promoting aromas just as much as the products or apparel they sell. Abercrombie & Fitch is an example: If you’ve been to any mall housing one of these teen clothing stores, you can smell it from a mile away. Not only does it promote the company’s signature fragrances, but customers leave with a familiar and tantalizing scent. Anthropologie and West Elm also advertise their collection of scents by burning candles that may be purchased in the store.

Hotels are also catching on, including W Hotel, Westin, and At Four Points by Sheraton, infusing their lobbies with scents intended to make guests feel more comfortable. For example, Sheraton’s Welcoming Warmth aroma was designed “to make guests feel like they belong the moment they enter the hotel.” And because olfactory senses are closely tied to memory, guests will likely recognize a signature scent and immediately recall said hotel.

W Hotel candle

It’s no wonder that scent has become an important role in creating a brand.

Scent in product: Scent is an essential factor when it comes to personal hygiene products.  Taking this success to the next level are some manufacturers who hide scents in unexpected places.

Erica Weiner is doing just that with her Vinaigrette Perfume Locket Necklace. The beautifully crafted locket necklace looks like an antique, but there’s a catch. Each locket is filled with one of two D.S. & Durga oils. Created to mimic 18^th to 19^th century solutions to unpleasant city smells, these necklaces are one of a kind.

In a similar way, Francis Kurkdjian took a childhood activity and transformed it into something more. With his 7-year-old niece as inspiration, Kurkdjian fused three different scents – cold mint, cut grass, and pear – into bubbles. His goal: to pique children’s interest in their sense of smell.

Research has shown that the right smell can definitely bring in the cash. Many are starting to catch on, and scents are being used as sales tools in many retail operations around the world, from magazines to coffee shops. Whether the goal is to set the mood or to drive customers to buy a specific product, scents will create memorable experiences while infusing businesses with the sweet smell of success.

Sources:
http://www.foodarts.com/Foodarts/FA_Feature/0,4041,129,00.html
http://www.trendcentral.com/WebApps/App/SnapShots/Article.aspx?ArticleId=7860

Imagine being able to interact with your customers at the exact moment they see your product on the shelf, view your ad or read an article about your product. Imagine engaging with your customers the moment they shop for your product – or better yet, the moment in which they even consider purchasing your product.

2D codes are making this possible. The “next big thing in shopper marketing” makes it easy for marketers and suppliers to identify shoppers and offer information and incentives that will encourage future loyalty. These two-dimensional bar codes may be scanned with camera-ready smartphones, taking users directly to a screen that provides additional product information or special offers.

2D Barcode

The codes may be printed on packaging, displays, in magazines or on literature. When scanned with the built-in camera, a user’s smartphone reads the code and takes the user to a screen that can offer anything from loyalty rewards to how-to videos or special pricing.

As social media and marketing continue to work hand-in-hand, advancements such as 2D codes will only become stronger and more prevalent. The latest in highly targeted messaging is getting to the root of consumer interest and need. Consumers want better interaction with the brands they love… and brands in turn need to respond to these desires.

A major benefit of the 2D codes?

• They allow for two-way communication between the customer and the brand. Companies learn where customers are shopping, what they’re looking for and how to capture their attention. Customers have the chance to provide feedback by commenting, clicking through and by simply showing interest.
• The information users receive is incredibly flexible. Marketers have the ability to change coupon offers or notify the user of new information as soon as it’s available.

The opportunity marketers have right now is getting the word out about 2D codes. Consumer awareness is relatively low… even as codes are starting to appear in magazines and on store shelves.

Smart marketers will look into 2D codes as they appear more in our day-to-day living. In Amsterdam, for example, train stops have 2D codes posted to signs, providing train schedules and entertainment for those who scan with their phones.

I see this new way of marketing to and interacting with the customer taking off in a big way. Through what other mediums will we see these scannable codes?

Marketing Home Products in a Changing Marketing Landscape

As we all know, planning season is upon us…and what better way to prepare for our 2010 marketing plans then to identify the home products marketing trends for the upcoming year?

At K&A, we explored the latest and greatest marketing trends for 2010 and came up with our favorite five.

1.  Word of Mouth Marketing
Customers will leave you if they don’t see the difference between you and the other guy. And in today’s chaotic marketplace, this will continue to grow. That’s why word-of-mouth marketing, especially tech-based and mobile communications, will be more important in 2010 then ever before.

2. Social Responsibility
Being eco-friendly has gone mainstream. Customers buy from brands that are making a difference in the world; and as more and more young consumers–one of the biggest advocate groups of ‘being green’– enter the marketplace, you will continue to see corporate social responsibility gain momentum in 2010.

3. Customer Insight and Implementation
Tomorrow’s customers want a say in the development, improvement and branding process. Companies that create discussion forums and blogs on the company Web site, establish a presence on social media sites like twitter and Facebook, or use platforms like UserVoice or Get Satisfaction for customer feedback, allow customers greater input in the process and more trust in the brand.

4. Personal Branding
With the growth in use of social networks like LinkedIn and Facebook, as well as blogs, the lines between professional and personal have become blurred. Social media tools have become a professional’s online resume, portfolio and personality, all in one. In 2010, expect to see more personal branding that defines who you are and what role you play in your company.

5. Authenticity
Authentic branding will continue to increase in popularity in 2010. Customers want to know who they’re dealing with, buying from and what the company stands for. Customers have been and will continue to seek transparent and honest communications from brands they can trust.

For more insight into our top five marketing trend picks for 2010, tweet me at @stevekleber.

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How Marketing Home Products Benefits from Integrated Efforts

Is it PR, or is it advertising? Or marketing? Or communications?

At Kleber & Associates, we combine these efforts into what’s called Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC). When marketing home products, one must be cohesive and thorough.

Because the landscape of communication has changed (think texting, Twitter and iPhones), so has the way we do business.

Integrated Marketing Communications doesn’t have a universal definition, but its overall gist is a holistic approach to marketing in which all aspects of communication come together to form cohesive and unified messages. IMC is designed to align stakeholders in such a way that they feel everything is connected…from PR to advertising to promotion and direct marketing.

Consider our “Four P’s of Integrated Marketing Communication”:

• Plan: Like any strategy, you and your team should designate specific goals and tactics as you prepare to integrate your marketing efforts.
• Participate: Try to strip away titles like “PR-like object” or “creative execution.” All members of your team should be focused on one thing: what’s best for the audience. Therefore, you should all be thinking of ways to effectively overlay all promotions, advertising, PR and marketing.
• Pass On: Keep everyone informed. All the time. Share information in a way that keeps all of the team in the loop.
• Promote: Sell back the results of integration by promoting the metrics of its success.

When planned and executed well, IMC fosters cooperation, lower costs, better internal communication, personal growth and innovation. As your team collaborates to blend traditional PR efforts with traditional advertising and social media, your team has the chance to learn more, sharpen their skills and think more strategically. Not to mention the time and money saved when it comes to printing duplicates and e-mail threads!

Stakeholders appreciate it, too. Imagine receiving a clear set of messages with one voice that encompasses your entire campaign.

MMC Learning puts it nicely:

“IMC wraps communications around customers and helps them move through the various stages of the buying process. The organization simultaneously consolidates its image, develops a dialogue and nurtures its relationship with customers.”

In the end, it’s really all about togetherness. And doesn’t that sound nice?

Balancing Social and Traditional Communications

Yes, social media is changing the way the world communicates, but that doesn’t mean that every customer is using it. Despite the hype surrounding social media channels like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, we must not forget that traditional communication mediums play a vital role when marketing home products to our target audiences.

For today’s companies and home product marketers, it’s critical to strike a balance between social and traditional communications that is tailored to your specific brand. If your home products business is consumer focused, then social media channels may be a more popular way to reach out to your customers; if you’re operating in the b-2-b channel, communicating in trade publications and more “traditional” communications channels may be worth more of your time and effort. Your business model, industry and target audiences including their gender, age and race, will help you identify the best methods to reach them and influence their perception of your brand and/or their buying patterns.

It’s important for brands to implement a multi-faceted marketing approach that talks to customers when and where they look for information. Some brands claim that social media doesn’t work, but they’ve yet to invest any time and effort into making it a success. It can’t be a “build it and they will come” approach. Creating a Facebook page and Twitter account won’t do anything for your brand if you’re not participating in the conversation. Social media is about interaction and engagement and is only successful when effort is put into a transparent, two-way communications model.

The bottom line is that in today’s chaotic world, you need to balance your efforts between new (social media) and traditional communications. You can’t be talking to everyone, in every medium, and expect to do it well. Talk to those individuals who mean the most to your brand; and do so in the channels where they will hear you and join your conversation.

Recently, K&A created a “Marketing to Hispanic Americans White Paper” in order to define the group that is continuing to grow in influence in the home and commercial building products sector. Our goals were to get to know this audience – not just demographically – but to understand their perceptions and behaviors to make home products’ marketing programs more relevant and efficient, and thereby, more successful, for our client partners.

As our team embarked upon this research, the question “are Hispanic Americans a race or ethnic group” frequently arose. After much discussion, we settled on the latter, and further defined this group:

“ . . .  with origins in Latin America and Spain and for which are often divided into sub-groups including Mexican Americans, Puerto Rican Americans, Cuban Americans, Dominican Americans, Central Americans and South Americans, among others.”

Recently, I came across an article in MediaPost (one of my favorite publications for research information), written by Juan Tornoe who authors the blog “Hispanic Trending,” which spoke to our agency debate about the identity of Hispanic Americans.

“The Latino community is nothing short of a genetic kaleidoscope,” he said in the article “What Race Are Hispanics?”

He further pointed out that even the U.S. Census Bureau states “Hispanics can be of any race, any ancestry, any country of origin.” And that the most important thing to remember is that by identifying Hispanic Americans as an ethnic group doesn’t pigeonhole them as a particular race, or set of standards that they can’t move away from, yet “defines a particular outlook in life, a state of mind, a way to interpret and respond to outside situations and stimuli.”

The bottom line is that Hispanic Americans are a diverse ethnic group of individuals with similar heritages, state of minds and outlooks on life. Despite the race versus ethnic group debate, they continue to be a vital component of the success equation for home and building products manufacturers and marketers.

For more information about Marketing to Hispanic Americans, e-mail Steve Kleber at sk@kleberandassociates.com or tweet him at @stevekleber for a complimentary, advance copy. Click here to view Tornoe’s complete MediaPost article “What Race Are Hispanics?”