The Yellow Wristband and The Bracelet

The Lance Armstrong Foundation (LAF), a nonprofit organization dedicated to cancer prevention and survivorship, isn’t the only Foundation using something you wear on your wrist to draw attention to its cause. The Until There’s a Cure Foundation has been raising funds and awareness about HIV/AIDS for a number of years now through the sale of what it calls The Bracelet.

Of course, unless you have been a sequestered juror for the last couple of months, you know that in the LAF’s case, we’re talking about those ubiquitous, thin, yellow rubber wristbands that have become almost de rigueur among young and old alike. As Lance himself wrote in a direct mail fundraising appeal I received last summer just days before he was crowned victor once more on the Avenue des Champs-Elysees, “Ultimately, we want five million people worldwide to wear LIVE STRONG yellow wristbands.”

Well, leave it to Lance to exceed expectations – at last count, 13 million of them have been sold.

So if only over half a million people have chosen so far to wear The Bracelet (according to an ad I saw the other day in Blender magazine), you might think Until’s numbers pale in comparison to the LAF’s. Uh, think again.

The Bracelet, described by the Foundation as “a simple yet elegant symbol reminiscent of the MIA/POW bracelets worn during the Vietnam era,” is decidedly more high-end than Lance’s wristband, and such high-profile celebrities as Mandy Moore, Tiffani Thiessen, Tony Hawk and Kevin Bacon are seen wearing it in glamorously photographed ads. The Bracelet comes in everything from copper ($15), to sterling silver ($75), to 14k gold ($400), while every one of Lance’s plain yellow wristbands are made out of synthetic silicone rubber and sell for the same low price: $1.

But I’m not here to compare the price or quality of this jewelry – nor how much money each Foundation is raising as a result of such innovative marketing efforts. Obviously, both are masterminding brilliant campaigns on behalf of wonderful, worthy causes.

No, I’m here to tell you that both the Lance Armstrong Foundation and the Until There’s a Cure Foundation are subscribing, whether they know it or not, to the theory behind “Free Prize Inside!”, Seth Godin’s latest – and, arguably, greatest – book.

“A free prize isn’t a gimmick,” Seth says on the inside back cover. “It’s a game-changing soft innovation; a cool twist that doesn’t cost a fortune but that transforms the way people think about your product or service.”

“Generally, a free prize has two characteristics,” he says on page 19. “First, it’s the thing about your service, your product or your organization that’s worth remarking on, something worth seeking out and buying….Second, a free prize is not about what a person needs. Instead, it satisfies our wants. It is fashionable or fun or surprising or delightful or sad. It rarely delivers more of what we were buying in the first place. It delivers something extra.”

Fashion statements of a similar kind, both the yellow wristband and The Bracelet deliver “something extra.” Give to either cause and you get more than just a good feeling, you get an incredibly “cool twist” as a symbol of your support. You get, yes, a “free prize.” But what’s much more important is this: Because so many people are buying their products – and, in a show of solidarity, wearing them – both Foundations are raising more awareness and funds than they ever could have otherwise. All concerned benefit, most of all, those fighting cancer, HIV and AIDS.

The Raging Bonfire That is the Blogosphere

Adrants made my morning today, referring me to an article written by Pete Blackshaw, chief marketing and customer satisfaction officer of Intelliseek, that, in my mind, adds fuel to the raging bonfire that is the blogosphere.

Blackshaw, appearing in MediaPost’s MediaDaily News, says, “Blogs and bloggers have made a huge mark in 2004, and this should give every major marketer and advertiser pause for deep reflection.”

Not mincing words, he warns marketers and agencies alike that “the blog revolution brings with it unmistakable tradeoffs and potent new ‘rules of engagement.’ Ignore them at your peril.”

He says, “bloggers promise to hold marketers to new levels of accountability, impacting just about everything advertisers do, say, and claim.”

One of his recommendations for brands is to “Listen to the pulse: Know exactly what bloggers are saying about your brand, or about your designated spokespersons or suppliers.”

Coincidentally, Blackshaw’s commentary is not unlike what Don Jackson was saying in “2,239 Tested Secrets for Direct Marketing Success,” the book he put together with Denny Hatch in 1998, when he advised readers to, “Listen to the murmur of your market.” Jackson said to, “Create feedback loops in your database environment so that you can record what your customers and prospects are saying about your products, your service, your company and your competition. There is no more valuable source of information.”

Blogs may not have been what Jackson had in mind at the time, but today, I’m guessing he’d be in agreement with Pete Blackshaw, who says, “We’re in a new era of consumer control, and the bloggers are underscoring that point in a big way. Blogs can open the door for many marketing opportunities, but advertisers must be aware of both the positive and negative impact blogs can have on brands.”

Broken Line, Solid Practice

Historically, the prototypical direct response ad has always included an order form, which is invariably surrounded by a broken line. To those who don’t respond by phone or – today – computer, such a plain and unmistakable border tells the audience to get out the scissors, detach along perforation and mail before said offer expires. Even if there’s no form to complete, coupon to save, or paper to shuffle in any way whatsoever, it’s still an incredibly strong call to action. It’s Pavlovian, really, consistent with the laws of the conditioned reflex. But evidently all this is no secret to the marketing team at Boston Sports Clubs. I can’t tell you how many ads of theirs I’ve seen framed by broken solid – as opposed to dotted – lines. For a business that’s all about getting people up and at ‘em, that sure is one way to get people (read: potential customers), well, up and at ‘em.

Recycling References to Popular Culture

Before you attend your next brainstorm meeting, I have a little homework assignment for you. Watch a few hours of television. Take in a couple of good movies. Listen to some talk radio. Punch up The Lycos 50. Then grab the latest issues of People, Time and Rolling Stone magazines, and read them cover to cover.

I know, all that’s going to seem like information overload to some of you (and, to the others, perhaps a disdainful exercise in futility), but if you can stomach all the mind candy, the ideas will come rolling off your tongue. You’ll recycle a few references to popular culture and have everyone at that meeting – and, ultimately, your customers – singing your praises.

Trust me. Using current events and popular culture to call attention to an advertising or direct marketing campaign is a card any experienced creative knows is worth playing once in a while.

For instance, in the early ‘90s, a direct mail package I wrote for Science News featured the line, “things that make you go h-m-m-m…” in big, block letters on the outer envelope. Not only was this the name of a hit song at the time – not to mention a sketch on the old Arsenio Hall Show – but it was also a decidedly different, hip way of promoting the magazine. While I’ll never be able to prove the viability of this offbeat catchphrase, I can say that this package had a long, multi-year run as the magazine’s control, winning a couple of major industry awards for its creativity and performance along the way.

That was then. Today there’s a surfeit of ads out there paying homage, either sincerely or sarcastically, to what’s in the news. It’s a quick, relatively easy way to ride the coattails of someone – or something – already much bigger.

I’m thinking of the loud, cheesy Toyota Corolla TV commercial that spoofs MTV’s “Pimp My Ride” – like it or not, you can’t help but notice it.

Or those ingenious, ubiquitous “got milk?” ads from America’s Dairy Farmers and Milk Processors that have painted painfully silly white moustaches on every celebrity and his or her brother, in an audacious attempt to help glamorize the otherwise plain liquid refreshment.

But I also have in mind all the ads using this national election year to parody politics. Among others, Chick-fil-A jumped on the patriotic bandwagon recently with a full-page, full-color (red, white and blue – naturally) ad in Parade, The Sunday Newspaper Magazine, featuring one of its “spokescows,” sandwich board and placard in hooves, donning a classic straw boater hat and beseeching us to, “Vote Chargrilld Chikin” [sic].

Okay. I guess we’ll just have to trust the bovine animal’s recommendation.

And Captain Morgan Rum weighed in with its “Captain Morgan for President 2004” campaign, complete with slogan (“The Party Without the Politics”), bumper sticker and, yes, website, where you’ll find this call to action: “We call on everyone - of legal partying age - to join our cause, our mission … and, of course, our rockin’ party. In addition to standing side by side with like-minded spirits, your support will serve to guarantee and protect the universal right that drives us all: the quest to find that next GREAT bash!”

Yikes. Even by the Captain’s standards, that may be a little over the top. But surely he knows the demographic profile of his constituency and how to swing the vote in his favor.

And finally, most brazen of all, W Ketchup is using product to promote politics – or is it vice versa? – and issuing this warning: “Choose Heinz and you’re supporting Teresa Heinz and her liberal causes, such as Kerry for President.”

H-m-m-m, fair broadside or not, I’m still not buying that one.

A Big Lesson in Marketing

The success of any advertising or direct marketing campaign depends on a coalescence of elements, not the least of which are the motif of the creative and the timing of the launch. If you can tie those two together, you’re likely to be sitting pretty.

For example, take the Sunday newspaper insert I received recently from Target, which prides itself on selling quality, stylish merchandise at reasonable prices. Scheduled to arrive in-home about a week before the first day of school, it was obviously designed by the retailer to look like a classic composition notebook – ruled pages, marble red cover and all.

But the “back to school” theme doesn’t stop there. This bold, eye-catching, 8-1/2” X 11” insert is divided into three two-page spreads – one each for middle school, high school and elementary school – each of which features a selection of obligatory, age-appropriate school supplies, clothes and gear.

But wait – it gets better. We’re not just talking back packs, calculators, plaid skirts and denim blazers here. No, you have to give extra credit to Target for using this opportunity to cross-promote Take Charge of Education, its community relations and credit initiative which, since 1997, has donated over $100 million to schools across the country.

“Every time you use your Target Visa or Target Guest Card, Target donates up to 1% of the purchase amount to the K-12 school of your choice,” reads the plug.

And as if the creative team behind this masterpiece hadn’t already pulled out enough stops, they added one final flourish on the inside back cover: Above a picture of the ubiquitous Target Bullseye Dog are these three parting words – “See. Spot. Save.”

Wow! Clearly, the folks at Target know much more than just the A, B, C’s of promoting sales of their goods. In one small notebook, they teach a big lesson in marketing.

Cause-Related Marketers and the Runners They Chase

For more than two decades now, I have been running an average of about 20 road races a year, and practically every one of them benefits at least one local or national charitable organization.

As an athlete, it’s not necessarily the first thing you think about at a race, but besides all the physical training you have behind you, the idea that your entry fee (or at least a percentage thereof) is going to some worthy cause can’t help but serve as a strong, underlying motivating force. Of course, any such philanthropy is probably an afterthought for some runners – understandably. After all, we’re preoccupied with our performance. We’re running for time and place.

But if you’ve competed in as many 5K races as I have, you come to realize you’re also running for something more than just another free tee shirt, ribbon or – if you’re really fast – trophy. You’re making strides against disabilities and diseases and hunger and homelessness. You’re putting one foot in front of the other for some seemingly interminable distance in memory and honor of those heroes among us.

Yes, personally, that’s what you come to realize. But that’s also what many smart businesses have come to realize, too, which is why so many of them today are heeding the principles of cause-related marketing and sponsoring road races to enhance their reputations as well as brand loyalty.

For instance, Savings Bank Life Insurance (SBLI) of Massachusetts is doing well by doing good with its sponsorship of the legendary Falmouth Road Race, a 7.1-mile seaside jaunt from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights. This race makes donations to a number of local organizations, including sports teams, youth groups, scholarship committees and healthcare facilities.

Sovereign Bank has recently assumed the title sponsorship of the Cape Cod Marathon, called by Runner’s World “one of the 10 most scenic marathons in the USA.” In 2003, beneficiaries included the Penikese Island School (a private, independent and Massachusetts-accredited Chapter 766 secondary school for troubled adolescent boys), the Police Athletic League and the Falmouth Jewish Community Center, among others.

Eastern Bank sponsored last spring’s 5K Road Race to Benefit the The Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism, a non-profit organization that, as part of its mission, aids financially disadvantaged families who need financial assistance in caring for their children with autism.

The 28th running of Boston’s Tufts Health Plan 10K for Women is staged every fall on Columbus Day. After the 2004 edition of the race, a $10,000 cash grant will be presented to EncorePlus, a YWCA Boston program that supports women who are under- or uninsured and at greater risk for breast and cervical cancer.

Caliper Life Sciences and Sodexho were principal sponsors of the most recent Art Doyle Road Race, held annually in memory of Dr. Arthur M. Doyle, who served as Vice President of Academic Affairs at Framingham State College for 34 years, and was an extraordinarily popular, longstanding member of the Greater Framingham Running Club. Race proceeds go to The Arthur M. Doyle Scholarship Fund.

And, finally, I just sent in my entry fee for the 7th Annual 3.5-mile Monster Road Race, a fun, Maynard, MA-based event held to benefit the Boys and Girls Club of Assabet Valley.

That’s just a small percentage of all the road races in Massachusetts, but enough of a sampling to see just how big the opportunities are for both runners (physical) and sponsors (fiscal). Each is contributing to the greater good of society while still fulfilling their own respective needs. And that’s a win-win proposition, if ever there was one.