A big hand for the little guy

The other day I was with my good friends at minnow who make documentaries. Minnow's reputation is of integrity, honesty, truth, championing causes, supporting the little guy who can be amazing if seen in the right light (hence minnow). Telling their story well... finding the story that makes everyone that sees it come away and tell their friends that they must see this film.

It got me to thinking that our brands can only dream of such a reputation. This is what advertisers only dream of in their sleep. So why not take some of that magic dust. How do we get some of that.. The problem is the integrity. They are perceived as having integrity.. advertising does not.. as soon as we overtly control or if there is a perception that we have influenced the truth of the film the integrity goes away.

All we can do is stand by them and champion them.. support them.... find a film or story that is within your brands area or is about someone who might use your brand.. if it touches your heart, support it, sponsor it, get it made... Imagine a conference, with the usual stands and your film in an auditorium next door... 30 mins of passion and emotion and great story telling, that highlights a cause worth talking about, something they truly care about.. imagine people watching it on your website, on you tube, imagine the public talking about it on the tube.. imagine it winning a Bafta.. and all it says at the end is.. "Thanks to your xxxxx for supporting us"..

So how do you find such a film?.. that's the trick!! But as people are increasingly having more choices and less time.. we are going to have to become more remarkable in every thing we do... a small specialised documentary that talks to the few, taps in to everything we as advertisers are trying to do.. that is to talk to the early adopters, the innovators the people who care.. they will champion your cause if it's worth fighting for... it gives them something to get behind.. we create a movement.. a cause behind the film... a website that give people a forum to discuss and take action to make decisions.. to make collective decisions to become part of the solution... ..celebrate the customer..lead.. and tell it through a good story... tell their story.. not the brands.. a story that can passed on..

suddenly you've changed peoples lives, you've changed the world.. made it a better place, inspired people.. suddenly you are loved..suddenly in a crowded market they have a reason to choose one very similar product over another.. they believe in what it supports.. wouldn't that be great...

http://www.minnowfilms.co.uk/

http://www.sheffdocfest.com/

The new 70's

The ethos of the seventies as I experienced the hippy culture in the seventies, growing up on a commune, the people around me, organic food, natural ingredients, concern for the environment, collectivism, the radical leaders outside of the mainstream, the sense of hope that it could all be different, all the fundamental values I experienced in this minority in the seventies, albeit a vocal and public minority, There was a lot of hope, but eventually this hope got swallowed up with the eighties and was never adopted my the majority, the success and dominance of capitalism drowned them out. It seems now that this has all come around again, these values are around me and seem to find there way into the mainstream much more readily than when I was a child.

We’ve moved on so much; collaboration, mass change, positivity, action, galvanising people for change, it can sound a bit utopian, it sounds a bit seventies and a bit hippy – when I hear people voice this concern I want to tell them that it’s different now, the people on the fringes, the people that were young then, who thought it were possible to have the utopia, some of these people are in a position of power now and now the capabilities of social media, the internet, we have a chance of making some serious change. Change in the environment, change in how our healthcare system is run, how we care for the elderly.

The baby boomers are reaching retirement, and I don’t think they will accept growing old as their parents did, they will want change. The internet and collectivism I believe will allow them to come together and solve the problems they are faced with. Ideas can spread without getting tied up in systems and apathy.

The internet also allows busy people do good things. Now activism and collective good can be inserted into the daily lives of people. The new platforms for engagement make it so much easier to participate. Obama’s bottom up approach to galvanising a nation is a perfect example of how people can engage and make change. Pfizer’s Baby boomer cause supporting CVD.

So if we can find a cause that aligns with our brand, be aware that apathy can be overcome these days.

Making Peoples Lives Better

This is a great presentation that I found on Slideshare from Paul Isakson's blog "Everything can always be made better" and it sums up the new marketing dogma of making people's lives better which is the new way to make your brand stand out from the crowd. To give your customer's a reason to choose you over the competition. It highlights the need for us as advertisers to offer solutions to our brands that improve it as a product, that improves the experience of the product, not just communicate its benefits, whether emotional or functional.
We have to start thinking. Will the consumers/customers care. will it improve thier lives. If it does they will remark on it and word of mouth will spread it.

Making Peoples Lives Better

View more presentations from Matthew_Broughton.