ThinkNoLimit Marketing Coaching

This is quite an interesting corporate communication initiative. Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) is not new and many companies have this sort of plans for their employees. Yet, I haven't seen any really advertise about it. The objectives are obvious : attracting talents while projecting itself as a good employer. The ad doesn't mention the details of the actual plan but it does say about everyone, regardless of length of service and grade, can enjoy this plan. That's the unique selling point could have been more upfront as the key message in the ad.

If I'm not wrong, Smartone Vodafone is more into selling own "house brand" phones compared with other operators. Does house brand work for telcos, like supermarkets ? House brands in supermarkets usually target consumers who look for price rather than quality. If we apply the same thinking, house brand phones should be cheaper than "branded" ones and targets those who don't really look for sophistcated functions. These customers are at the lower end of the market, ususally older (aged 50+), wanting a phone as a phone with basic functions. Here are some house brand phones sold on TV functions and affordable prices. Will they sell ?

I remember I talked about Lenscrafters' acquisition of The Optical Shop before. I have checked my previous posts and it was one and a half years ago. At that time, I was wondering they were keeping the Chinese name, 高登眼鏡. Maybe such transition had been planned. In the whole acquisition, Lenscrafters had bought the infrastructure of The Optical Shop per se, not the brand name. If the positionings of Lenscrafters ad The Optical Shop are different, I guess I would skip this re-branding exercise. I would buy the infrastructure and launch the new brand, Lenscrafters, straightaway. Re-branding is usually considered a safer route but we can't avoid leaving an image baggage of the old brand in the minds of the consumers.

Thought it was a new TVC of Cathay Pacific or some corporate advertising of a financial institution. Surprise, surprise, it's the HK Institute of Education - HKIED. 教育要教大理想, no one would disagree with that but the ad doesn't tell anything special about HKIED. Education is a big market but if any of these education institutes really want to win a good share of it, its marketing will need to be improved. Easier said than done as most of these institutes did not have marketing function like commercial organizations before. Recruiting marketers can solve part of the problem but it also takes certain change of mindset in the management. People running these institutes are scholars and academics. It's not easy for them adopt marketing thinking.

Quality is about consumer perception and perception is reality. Perception is more feeling than science. Building a perception is the job of every marketer. Like Rejoice is talking about smooth hair, what is smooth hair in the first place ? Your definition could be different from mine. That's how advertising comes into the play : using visual cues to educate consumers what smooth means so that consumers can feel it. To increase credibility, we offer samples for consumers to try or even provide money back guarantee. At the end, is it true that Rejoice makes your hair smoother than other shampoos ? No one knows and consumers are not able to tell anyway. A good initiative of Rejoice but why don't they put it up on TV ? It deserves bigger backups to build that smoothness perception.

Thanks our reader Irene for her contribution. I was speechless when I watched this. If it were aired in HK, what would happen ? A good piece for sharing at the weekend and welcome your contributions too.

Critics believe that advertising has the power to shape social trends and the way people think and act while advertising professionals believe advertising mirrors values rather than sets them. Which argument is true ? Both are true. Look at this TVC of Pedisure. While we know balanced diet is important for children, many of them are picky eaters. What do we do ? It takes patience, time and training to adjust their behaviours. That's the proper way. Got no time and want a quick easy way out ? Here is Pedisure. If a problem can be solved with money, it's no longer a problem at all. That's exactly the value of Hong Kong people at large. This ad is trying to sell the product as a quick fix for time-starved parents who are unwilling to take the hard way to teach their children. It does have consumer insights and is a reflection of the reality. On the other hand, however, since parents can solve their problems the easy way, they no longer need to learn the hard way t...