Turning Pride Into Advertising

What if you could get your customers to advertise for you? I'm not talking about just word-of-mouth. I'm talking about turning them into full-fledged outdoor boards.

It's that time of year here in New Orleans. All around the city children are receiving thin or thick envelopes indicating their admission status to the high school they applied to this spring.

But what has always struck me as odd is that accepted students get an envelop at all. Why not send a box? A box full of school colored balloons, yard signs, door hangers, stickers for their lockers and laptops, and maybe a t-shirt or sweatshirt to wear. I mean they just got into the high school of their choice. Their pride is at an all-time high and they'll gladly tell the world they selected you as their high school.

The sign to the left is sitting in my yard right now. A very high traffic street corner (I live across the street from the local grammar school) where parents and students alike pass twice a day going to/from school. Talk about your free advertising. I should send Dominican a bill instead of the other way around ;-)

But while this may seem very obvious for schools, colleges, politicians and such, I think there is something here that goes beyond this limited usage.

Think about the travel industry. I've often wondered why more travel destinations, hotels, resorts and cruise lines don't launch "Day After" campaigns. I just got back from a few days in Cancun and guess what... I've probably talked about the resort I stayed in a half a dozen times. How much richer would my memory be if the resort had sent a little something to my house so that when I arrived home I had a memory of my trip. I guess in my case that would be a koozie or a large drink glass... but you get the picture. If we remember the first and last thing about an experience, why not make sure my last memory is a good one that calls to mind the beach, the pool or just the very attentive bartender/waiter combo that made my short stay a great one? Or better yet, send me a couple of koozies so that the next time I have friends over to BBQ, and I give them a koozie (yours) they ask me, "so where is this place?"

Maybe it is counter intuitive, but I've always wondered what would happen if a resort or hotel property engaged in a real day-after marketing campaign. What would it do to repeat guest business and friend of guest bookings? What if a restaurant emailed you the recipe for that dish you loved at dinner last night, in case you wanted to try your hand at recreating it at home. 

We all like to be proud of our choices. Is there something in that basic human desire -- to be proud, to believe we made the right choice -- that we as marketers can leverage to create "free advertising" in a marketplace? Are there certain industries that make more sense for this approach or maybe some for which it just wouldn't work? And what would it look like in those different industries. I mean I'm not likely to put a yard sign up that says I bought Jiff peanut butter but is there a way to leverage pride (if your Jiff) to get me to help advertise their brand? I'm not sure I have a complete thought here... but seems maybe a germ of an idea mabye? Guess I'm hoping maybe y'all can help me fine tune it.

Thoughts????