The Affari Edge Blog

So many times when someone finds out that I work in advertising they immediately start telling me how advertising doesn’t work.  It usually doesn’t take long to realize that once again advertising is getting a bad rap typically because of one of three scenarios:

1) An account executive was more concerned with meeting a quota than the client’s needs. 
2) They are copying what their competition is doing; only not as spending as much or doing it as well.
3) Someone they know had great success with a certain medium and since it worked for his business then it must for everyone.      

I hear this regularly, as often as every two to three weeks.  As a business owner, I feel their pain.  These stories time and again involve someone spending thousand of dollars only to have it be as effective as flushing it down the toilet. 

In many cases before we can even begin to share with someone how we can help, we have to gently break it to them that as much as we would like to be able to tell them that the wonderful, caring account executive that was there to “help” really just needed to meet a monthly quota. 

Don’t get me wrong, I love our account executives – most of them anyway!  I even understand that they have a job to do.  It just seems shady to me that an account executive would allow someone to advertise through their medium knowing that it isn’t the right fit.  We recently took over an account that had been placed directly by the client to the station.  First the account executive tried to convince the client that she didn’t want to lose part of her commission.  After she realized she was stuck with us, she confided that one of the stations she had convinced our new client to buy wasn’t really the right fit.  The client has seen some results, but nothing like they should have with the amount of money they spent. 

Over the years, we have seen time and again, that people think that they have to be where there competition is.  Often there is such a clutter of like-minded organizations that you can’t tell one company from another.  No matter what the budget, if you are late coming to the dance, you better make sure you have far better moves and be more strategic if you want to get noticed.  Don’t be afraid to break out of the traditional molds, if you really want to get noticed.  We’ll talk more about ways to do this in upcoming blogs.

Advertising is never a one size fits all proposition.  It’s very important to realize that just because a certain medium worked for one type of company; it won’t work for every one.  I realize this may be common sense, but we regularly hear about people spending money in the wrong place.  It would be very doubtful that a fine dining restaurant would use the same advertising plan as a car dealership that focused on helping to rebuild credit. 

So, the next time you hear that advertising doesn’t work, take a moment to realize that it’s true; it really doesn’t if it isn’t done right.    

For years Americans have known only two streets that are part of their daily lives. There’s 1st Street where we live and decide to raise our families. And there’s 2nd Street where we work and make the money we need to support our families. Until recently there has never been a consistent 3rd Street. This all changed with America’s adoption of Starbucks and its affordable, luxurious lifestyle.

It is a new phenomenon in the ever changing world of integrated marketing. While some companies rely so heavily on traditional marketing and advertising, Starbucks has created a new media vehicle: 3rd Street.

Just think about how many Americans spend large amounts of their days - and weeks - meeting at Starbucks. Whether it be for a casual coffee break, an after work hangout, or a weekend get-away, Starbucks has become the official adult hang out.

So, how did they do it? They don’t spend much on traditional media such as TV, radio and print. Instead, they created an atmosphere that was unlike anything any American had experienced before. Comfortable furniture, perky baristas, highly customizable coffee/espresso drinks, and new-age interior design all made the local Starbucks the new place to meet for a cup of coffee. The trend spread across the country like a virus in what could arguably be the best viral campaign in history.

This new atmosphere has made Starbucks the official 3rd Street for millions of Americans. This raises the question, “What will be America’s 4th Street?” That is what many advertising professional are trying to create right now. However, after the creation of the 3rd Street, it will be much more difficult to get Americans to buy in to a 4th Street. After all, they already spend all of their time at home, work, and Starbucks.