Marketing with Meaning Is (in) Contagious

As I wrote in the first post of this blog, our goal as an agency is to help change the paradigm of marketing. One of the key measures of success is the level in which the marketing community is speaking, writing, and working against the model of Marketing with Meaning. I’m proud to say that we received more attention to this overall cause, and specifically to our interpretation of where it should go, through a special report from Contagious magazine titled “Branded Utility.”

A few months ago I was interviewed by Pippa Considine as part of her work in developing this special report. When we spoke, I found that Pippa had already conducted a great deal of research, and her perspective is closely linked to ours. We spent nearly an hour on the phone, sharing case studies and examples. The product of our discussion and many additional conversations is an outstanding piece of research and thinking. Her great work comes at a pretty steep price, though; you can purchase it for 450 British Pounds. For your investment consideration, here’s my take on the final product:

What I Loved

First, I’m thrilled that Pippa chose to include some specific examples that I shared with her. There is a nice paragraph on the ConAgra Foods Start Making Choices program. And she mentioned my story of David Ogilvy’s first ad, a guide to oysters for Guinness Stout. She included our belief that mobile marketing is skipping the interruptive stage and going straight to meaning. Pippa also addressed our view that the rise of digital is the catalyst for the rise of Meaningful Marketing:

What’s new at the beginning of the 21st century is the rapid change in digital technology, including the arrival of social networking sites and the increasing sophistication in the way that people use the Internet.”

Further, I enjoyed a section of the report that covered the growing connection between physical products and Web experiences. Nike+ is the obvious example, where running activity is uploaded to training tools. I had not heard about food brands such as Dole and MyFreshEgg that use codes to allow customers to track where a banana was picked or where a chicken laid an egg.

Finally, I was very impressed by an in-depth analysis of how brands are engaging with various partnerships to be able to deliver meaningful content. Again, Nike + iPod is the gold standard, but I also learned about the example of Google partnering with BMW to allow people to program their car navigation systems through Google Maps on their computers.

Opportunity Areas

I’m biased, of course, but I am not happy with the choice of “Branded Utility” to represent this shift in the marketplace. First, “utility” suggests only tools and widgets rather than a wide variety of value-added marketing approaches. Second, the word is straight out of economics textbooks, and lacks the very soul that we want our marketing to assume. People don’t use “utility” to describe how something special touches their lives. So I’ll still take “meaning,” which speaks to higher-level personal experiences.

What’s missing from this report is a true model that marketers can use to shift their organizations. While there are many outstanding examples here and a few dos and don’ts, the report is missing a model or structural framework that can help brands figure out the right way to add value to their specific customers around their specific equities. There are also missing pieces around measurement, long-term investments, and how to sell such programs internally.

What’s Next

In a matter of days I will be able to share some great news on our publication of a book around the concept of Marketing with Meaning. This blog will continue to provide ongoing tips, suggestions, and content, but our book will pull together a holistic model of this new approach. I know from personal experience on both the client and agency side that such a dramatic shift in approach needs more than a cool keynote or a clever case study. It will be more “how-to” guide than “should-do” manifesto.  Stay tuned!