Brands. It’s not me. It’s you.
Valentine’s Day.
Now that you’ve got the annual sigh out of the way, think about the 14th of February. Don’t think of its historical context – think just of what’ll happen on that day in 2014 just as it has for the decades of mass consumerism preceding it.
Person A showers his or her significant other with presents of love and romance. Person B feels the love. Person B reciprocates. Person A goes weak at the knees.
Draw the curtains. You know the rest.
If only it was that simple for brands and their advocates. The problem? Too many rely on looks and not enough on personality. “Why wouldn’t you want to talk to me?” they ask. “I’m beautiful.”
Well, I’ll tell you why, Brand Pitt: because we’re not that shallow. The question brands should be asking is ‘how do we become more hunk, less junk?’
Enter Freemavens and Yourvine, two brand advocacy companies nestled under the Let’s Go Holdings (LGCH) umbrella – the brainchild of 23-year-old Callum Negus Fancey. And when it comes to bridging the online-offline gap for brands and their advocates, it would seem there’s a lot of catching up to do.
“Firstly, advocates don’t want relationships with brands,” he explains. “Instead, advocates want brands to strengthen the relationships between them and their friends. The question that then needs to be asked is, ‘how is this activity adding value to the relationships of my advocates?’”
“Secondly,” he continues, “advocates love a brand because the brand’s purpose…helps the advocate express who they are – so brands need to understand how their actions are a reference point for that individual.”
Sage advice. And for all you black and white fans out there, it’s time to embrace change: the future of brands’ success belongs to the merging of traditional advertising with brand advocacy movements according to Negus Fancey – something he calls the ‘halo effect’.
“While traditional advertising is really good at the ‘front end’ of the marketing funnel – such as raising awareness for a new brand or product and communicating news – advocacy is more effective further down the funnel where perceptions change and love happens.
“Advocates engage in two-way conversations with their friends and – because they feel accountable to their friends – they make tailored recommendations based on trust.”
Hungry for more? We’re heading up to LGCH towers to talk all things advocacy with Callum and his team in the coming weeks. If there’s anything you’d like us to put to him, sound off in the comments below and we’ll get back to you (but we can’t promise a box of chocolates).
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