Happy Holiday Marketing!!

It's November!! Face it folks - the holdiays are here, and were technically hear before we could even think about saying "Trick or Treat".  Did you think you saw Christimas a little earlier this year with many of your big box retailers?  No, you weren't imagining things. Yes, in the next few years Christmas WILL literally begin in July! 

Each year it becomes harder and harder for small business to compete. At Votre Mot, a problem for you is a concern for us. Larger brands  are competing amongst themselves and this push to catch earlier and earlier sales might just be having the opposite affect these money makers were expecting.  "The problem has grown to a point that over-hyped holiday mania is pissing off consumers and driving them away from some of the most promotional big brands" states Carol Tice a Forbes.com contributor.  With any challenge there are opportunities, and we see an opportunity for you. 

The holiday season is truly a gift to small business. Why is that? This is an opportunity to engage your consumers that are - stereotypically - at their highest levels of motivation to consume and engage. Maybe you can also take advantage of a reality that many consumers are a bit turned away by the big box brand early holiday enthusiasm, quite possible these consumers may look to patronize your offering. 

We are excited to take this month of thanks to support you in marketing your small-medium enterprises this holiday season.  So it's time to strategize! What is your strategy?? If you haven't quite developed your strategy for partnering with the holidays to further your products or services - we are here to take this journey right along with you.  

Each week throughout the month of November we'll be giving your FREE (ha!ha!) tips on how to maximize your seasonal activities. Stay tuned . . . .

• holiday marketing campaigns

• small business Saturday

• turning picky, seasonal shoppers into brand loyalists

• engaging & utilizing the community around you  

Out the Laundry room, and down the street . . . .

tidedrycleaners.com

 Their tag? " A Brand You Trust. Quality You'd Expect." Not surprising right? Afterall it is 65 year old "Tide". Oh! What about . ."Service You'll Love".  This vow certainly stems from their promise to you when you patronize their Tide Dry Cleaners.  


So many brands, so much to market - national & international - we just can't keep up with it all.  Totally shocked that we missed this one, especially being that we are personally loyal to the brand.  

TideDryCleaners, Johns Creek

As someone who loves the brand (a staple in my childhood home!), you can imagine that we fell in love all over again when stumbling upon this sight. Yes, you can by Tide detergent across the street at your neighborhood grocery store and then drop your clothes to be serviced by the very same household brand. How Awesomely brilliant!

TideDryCleaners, Duluth, GA

Yep, that's right Tide (Tide Dry Cleaners on Facebook) has now come to a neighborhood near you to serve you and your precious garments.  They're brand voice is yelling,  "Don't hold me confined to the four walls (or closet) of your families laundry room.  I'm more than just detergent, I can do more for you - I've got your back and clothes on it - in more ways than just wash and dry" Love, Love!!

tidedrycleaners.com

Why do we love this so much? At Votre Mot we are about empowering the enterprises we serve to think "beyond the box" (not just outside of it).  Just when you might think that a brand has exhausted it's product mix they introduced a new service.  No matter your product mix or service roster - you to can grow maybe in ways you never previously anticipated (Remember, Tide's Loads of Hope? . .).  Let us be your partner in growth and success. Remember today's potential, can be tomorrows investment. Let's invest in what you have to offer . . . .

Marketing more than Rx

Impress Yourself Today!

Summer colds - uhhh! So annoying. What eases the pain and irritation associated with this journey to wellness? Not much, but a little encouragement can go along way when fighting that virus lurking summer crasher.

Who would think this encouragement could come in the form of a little cough drop.  Well at Votre Mot we think Halls "A Pep Talk in Every Drop" campaign is a great demonstration of 'Understanding' your target audience.

Every morning marketers arise to this challenge "How do I manage a consistent and genuine connection with my target audience (and keeping that connection)". Market researchers and consumer psychologist alike, arise to the challenge of examining the thoughts and souls of consumers to support this edge - that every company and organization works so tirelessly to obtain.

The science (yes marketing is a science) behind this simple campaign? Well, Human Behavior 101! Mankind is designed for partnership and companion ship.  The moments when we are alone, or have a feeling of being on our own - we are susceptible to weakness and in fear of failure.

Sometimes you just need to think or know that somebody, somewhere has your back.  Sometimes you want to just feel that they are present in your moment of frustration and despair.  This creates a memory and a frame of reference.

Halls hopes this campaign will allow their brand personality to shine. They are thoughtful, they feel your pain, and this little lozenge is just for you - to help you make it - you can do it.  Right? Although online there are hints of those who didn't appreciate these little messages - we get and actually appreciate this campaign.

Your service or offering may not have been around since the 1930s (image the taste back then), but you too can utilize the same principals to build your enterprise.  Let us help! www.votremot.com

The "Mess ups!" of International Marketing

Just last year, a CMO Global Marketing Readiness Study gave us insight into the challenges in marketing American brands abroad.  CMOs (Chief Marketing Officers) identified the following key challenges in international marketing.

• Disruptive Technologies
• Globally Connected Consumers
• Localization
• Multi-Channel Misses
• Organizational Structures

Hits and misses in international marketing are inevitable and undoubtedly a source of significant frustration. However, today we'll make like of this challenging issue by giving you a snap shot of a few misses and lessons learned in marketing our well known products and services away from home. Enjoy!

International Marketing Errors

Coors put its slogan, "Turn it loose," into Spanish, where it was read as "Suffer from diarrhea." 

Clairol introduced the "Mist Stick," a curling iron, into German only to find out that "mist" is slang for manure. Not too many people had use for the "manure stick". 

Scandinavian vacuum manufacturer Electrolux used the following in an American campaign: Nothing sucks like an Electrolux. 

The American slogan for Salem cigarettes, "Salem-Feeling Free", was translated into the Japanese market as "When smoking Salem, you will feel so refreshed that your mind seems to be free and empty." 

When Gerber started selling baby food in Africa, they used the same packaging as in the US, with the beautiful baby on the label. Later they learned that in Africa, companies routinely put pictures on the label of what's inside, since most people can't read English. 

An American T-shirt maker in Miami printed shirts for the Spanish market which promoted the Pope's visit. Instead of "I saw the Pope" (el Papa), the shirts read "I saw the potato" (la papa).

In Italy, a campaign for Schweppes Tonic Water translated the name into "Schweppes Toilet Water."

Pepsi's "Come alive with the Pepsi Generation" translated into "Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave," in Chinese. 

When Parker Pen marketed a ballpoint pen in Mexico, its ads were supposed to say "It won't leak in your pocket and embarrass you." However, the company mistakenly thought the spanish word "embarazar" meant embarrass. Instead the ads said that "It wont leak in your pocket and make you pregnant."

The name Coca-Cola in China was first rendered as Ke-kou-ke-la. Unfortunately, the Coke company did not discover until after thousands of signs had been printed that the phrase means "bite the wax tadpole" or "female horse stuffed with wax" depending on the dialect. Coke then researched 40,000 Chinese characters and found a close phonetic equivalent, "ko-kou-ko-le," which can be loosely translated as "happiness in the mouth."

Also in Chinese, the Kentucky Fried Chicken slogan "finger-lickin' good" came out as "eat your fingers off."

When General Motors introduced the Chevy Nova in South America, it was apparently unaware that "no va" means "it won't go." After the company figured out why it wasn't selling any cars, it renamed the car in its Spanish markets to the Caribe.

Colgate introduced a toothpaste in France called Cue, the name of a notorious porno magazine. (Courtesy Aha! Jokes.com)