Top of the Mind Awareness in Equine Marketing: Familiarity Breeds Sales
If you want to understand the power of familiarity, just look at the marketing case study of Beanie Babies. In 1993, Ty Inc. introduced a new toy called Beanie Babies - plush animals with vivid color schemes and soft textures. Raised in intensive cosseted environments, they were manufactured from only the best, most luxurious fabrics and materials.
With only $500 in capital, Ty Inc.'s sales soared to $500 million dollars in just six months. Investors ate it up and Ty's value went through the roof - on paper anyway! The company eventually hit $1 billion in sales thanks to TV advertising on cable networks such as CNN Headline News and Nickelodeon.
The media had a field day with the idea of cute, collectible Beanie Babies. In addition to the national press coverage, collectors and manufacturers jumped on the bandwagon and began creating their own products. It's not unlike what happened in the pet industry years ago with Cabbage Patch Kids, which generated millions of dollars in sales for Coleco.
Yet all good things come to an end - usually sooner rather than later. Once the "collectible" fad passed, so did consumers' interest in these ubiquitous toys. Ty Inc. eventually filed for bankruptcy in 1998. The company had around $18 million in sales and only $15,000 in profits.
In the end, Beanie Babies only scratched the surface of what could be done with early childhood marketing. In fact, they're still being produced to this day, albeit with a couple of minor changes to the design. A recent survey by Mintel of 800 parents revealed that just one-third of nine-to-fifteen-year-olds have a Beanie Baby.
Why? Not because they're collecting or the collectible status has caught on with younger kids. Not because the novelty of owning one doesn't wear off. And definitely not because the product has anything to do with the product labeling or packaging. According to a survey by Mintel, "The main reason children don't collect Beanie Babies is that they don't like them."
Familiarity breeds contempt. Facing this reality, Ty Inc.'s parents realized that the company had an uphill battle on its hands in marketing its products for younger kids. It was close to putting out a whole new line of toys and flavors simply because young kids won't buy what their parents do!
But as with many parent-driven businesses, Ty Inc. put its money into marketing the brands. In its case, it positioned Beanie Babies as "comfort toys" for children, and created a cartoon featuring them in an animated series called Beanie Babies Animation.
It also began using telemarketing calls to inform consumers through targeted advertising. The company even used a toll-free number - 1-800-beanie - to build demand for older toys via television ads and magazine publications.
These marketing efforts paid off handsomely. In 1998 (the same year Ty filed for bankruptcy) sales topped $600 million and profits grew by over 50 percent. What happened?
Simple. Ty Inc. convinced children to buy Beanie Babies all over again, this time with their own money!
Source: Postnewsnetwork.com - Top of the Mind Awareness in Equine Marketing: Familiarity Breeds Sales (Published: February 8, 2010)
Familiarity can breed contempt, but it can also breed sales. The key to consumer familiarity is a strong brand identity coupled with an even stronger association between the consumer and your product, service or business. It also takes a lot of hard work and money, but the payoffs are well worth it.
To get you started further on your quest to build a brand, the rest of this guide will cover:
How to gain consumer recognition and loyalty.
The most effective ways to advertise your business.
How to measure customer response and ROI from advertising.
How to create an effective advertising campaign.
What types of businesses enjoy the most success with branding campaigns.
And a few more tricks of the trade...
The next time you see a familiar brand in the grocery store, remember - being familiar with a product is not the same as being familiar with that product. You need to know your customer's needs, wants and wants to impress them when you reach out to them.
Familiarity Breeds Sales
Source: The-e-marketing-report.com (By: Mike Gebert, Apress.com. March 6, 2008)
There is no doubt in the business world that familiarity breeds sales. Why? Because it builds the top of mind awareness which immediately positions your brand as most relevant and credible to your customer - and at a price that works for you.
Remember that it takes time to develop a brand's awareness in your market - and individuals are generally not accustomed to anything new until they've been around for some time.
This is why you can't be too quick to give up on your brand even if sales are down or it's not doing what you'd like. It may take some time, but this guide will show you how to:
Create a brand that sticks in people's minds.
Get people to remember your brand.
Use advertising techniques that get results.
Build a product into a brand recognized by everyone who sees it or hears about it - and remember the company name behind it.
Familiarity Breeds Sales
Source: Immediatesteam.com Incorporated (By: Tom Stenzel, MarketingVox.com. January 2, 2008)
What separates the winners from the losers in business is whether or not they know who their customers are and how to reach them. This is why it's so important to conduct your own research and analysis (refer to Chapter 13 for more about demographics and consumer behavior) for your business.
Otherwise you risk making decisions based on what "everybody else" does - regardless of whether or not it's true for you!
Familiarity Breeds Sales
Source: Aalto-yliopisto.fi (By: Risto-Matti Huutoniemi, University of Art & Design Helsinki.
Conclusion
How to make your business the most relevant, memorable and appreciated.
Learn the secrets to:
Building a brand that people remember.
Establishing a strong brand identity.
Creating a recognizable manufacture logo and image.
Creating buzz around your brand.
How to build effective advertising campaigns.
Using advertising techniques that work - and avoid those that don't!
Using social media marketing techniques such as blogging, podcasting and vlogging for free promotion!
And much more...
Every business enjoys higher sales when customers are more familiar with the product or service being provided.