Get more business this week by telling your customers to stay away

Dear friend,


Mark Holm here, your favorite promotional products specialist. I hope you and your family are staying safe and well in this challenging time.


Have you ever heard “Sometimes you gotta zig when everyone else is zagging”?


That’s what I was thinking this week when I saw some news out of Ohio. More on that in a second…


If you are a brick-and-mortar business with a storefront right now, you have probably been trying to figure out how to safely open your doors again. Maybe you can, maybe you can’t.


While we are open here in Northern California, some places are still in Lock-down, and may be for awhile.


Los Angeles… New York City… I’m looking at you here.


As a conscientious and profit-minded business owner, what should you do?


You might just say “Hey, come on in! We’re open and we’re sterilizing everything every 20 minutes! It’s fine you won’t catch anything!”


But you also know that might scare people…”Yeah right you’re sterilizing everything…what about that kid in there licking the doorknob, and how is that young thing keeping social distance while she’s flirting with that guy?”


All these and more: the list of unspoken but very real fears goes on. As a matter of fact, there’s something deeply in us that is skeptical of anyone shouting “It’s safe! It’s safe!”


It’s a bit like I discovered after I turned (ahem) 21…if you find yourself saying out loud that you’re not drunk…you are probably not exactly sober.


Anyway…


It got me to thinking…what if the best thing to do is not to convince everyone it was safe?


Even more…What if the best thing was to get them not to come in?


Heck, let’s go all the way….


What if the best thing to do is to tell your customers to stay the heck away!

Think I’m nuts? Then check this out:


Last week the Ohio Craft Brewer’s Association ran a brilliant campaign called Ohio Brew Haul, encouraging people who would otherwise roll into their now-open favorite neighborhood craft brewpubs, to stay the heck away!


That’s right, this campaign is telling people to stay home, and to buy beer to get it delivered to them, rather than come in and risk spreading COVID.


They ran this campaign on social media, and encouraged their clients to share widely in order to win branded merchandise like hoodies, pint glasses, hats, t-shirts and other great gear.


“Sometimes you gotta zig when everyone else is zagging….”


The more I thought about it, the more I realized this was a really great idea for a few of reasons:


1. Doing the opposite of everyone else around you gets attention. Right now most businesses are saying “We’re open! Come on back!”, these guys are saying “Stay home! We’ll bring the beer to you!”


2. It speaks to peoples’ concerns about doing business with you right now. People who are nervous about going out to eat sure won’t come in just because you say it’s OK. So what do you do? You take your business to them…that’s an idea I think too few people have really explored in this period of new normal…it’s one YOU ought to consider if you have a brick-and-mortar. Remember, it’s not two side of a coin: Dine in or Curbside Take Out…there’s also delivery!


Hey, it’s worth checking out, especially if this new normal last for awhile…


3. This shows the power of a well-thought out marketing campaign. Powered by social media, it got out the word by giving away branded merchandise as a response reward to drive sales that its clients would be happy to wear. This was not a one-shot blast, but instead had multiple elements all working together seamlessly.


4. It was on-point with its timing, tone, and message. That’s trickier than you might think right now …Pepsi got a lot of backlash for its branded banners pointing people towards COVID-19 testing centers…as if that’s what you want people to think about when they’re concerned they may have COVID… “Boy, fretting about my mortality has made me thirsty…I wonder what I might have to drink while I’m on the way to the testing center….”

Marketing around this pandemic is like balancing a spinning ball on your nose while walking a tightrope and reciting Latin poetry...


And at least on this one, Pepsi dropped the proverbial ball. Just be careful your campaign is not tone deaf while trying to be clever.


Think creatively


So with that I encourage you to think creatively about how to do your business differently during this pandemic. If you’re a brick and mortar, I think there are a lot of things you can take from this story and apply straight to your own business.


If you are a service or other product, take the principles: Don’t try to convince people it’s safe (or anything else about why they should do business with you), take the time to hear their concerns, and then lean in to their concerns and find a new avenue to serve them.


And if you can at all, do it provocatively.


You want to be zigging while everyone else is zagging.


Thank you


Thanks for reading, and If you’d like help thinking through a campaign using branded merchandise in concert with your marketing campaigns, especially in this unique and challenging time, then please give me a call today.


I wish you peace and health in these challenging times.


Warm Regards,

Mark Holm

Contacts


Ideal Printing Promos & Wearables

2795 East Bidwell Street #100 #246

Folsom, CA 95630

t. 916.990.3502 | f. 916.983.5021

mark@idealppw.com

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