Mark Irving, advertising company director on how retail ads need a relevant offer to get people into the door.
I was walking along Princess Wharf with a friend, past all the bars and restaurants last Saturday afternoon. This was the first time in a couple of years I'd walked in this area. It was just nice to have a bit of a wander on a nice afternoon.
Then seemingly out of nowhere a bar employee approached us mid stride and asked if we'd like a $5 beer. Is the Pope catholic I thought to myself?
For some reason I can never verbalise this line when it's appropriate. What a great price, particularly after having to pay $9 for the privilege of drinking a beer in Ponsonby recently.
Incidentally, I think $9 for a beer doesn't represent great value. When we were seated, the beers were delivered with a smile, within about 90 seconds. We ended up buying a meal and probably spending about $50.
So from just going for a walk, we were enticed into a great bar with great service. I wasn't seduced or subliminally manipulated, it was my own choice. I could easily have said no at any moment. And the thing I liked about their approach was that they were trying hard and their customer service compared to many bars was excellent.
The waitress who approached us - and I hope she doesn't mind me saying - was the equivalent of a great retail ad. She was offering a discount on a great quality beer and she probably thought we'd end up buying something else, which we did.
In the hugely competitive NZ retail sector you have to offer some deal to get people in the door. It's no good just having an average ad and hoping that the customers come. Kiwis are looking for deals and if it's good enough, they'll make the effort.
The deals have to be relevant though. I once saw a deal for a big-ticket item - about $7,500. They were offering a free bottle of wine worth about $50. Now when you're considering a substantial purchase like this, is a $50 bottle of wine really going to make you purchase that item?
Retail ads, whether they're brochures, print ads, radio, TV or web based don't have to be boring or shout at you. If a salesman comes to your door and starts shouting at you without pausing, offering anything worthwhile, let alone making you smile, are you likely to buy off him? Probably not.
But if a salesman treats you as an intelligent individual, charms you, teaches you something, offers a great deal and even makes you laugh, then you're more likely to buy off him. Advertising is just the same.
There are many retail ads out there that shout at you. Many print ads are laid out so badly, it almost gives you a migraine reading it. Often you don't know where to look and the objective seems to be to cram as much stuff in as possible, without giving any thought to how customers read and process information.
There are however some great retail ads, which are the complete opposite of this. Think the current TV ads for 2 degrees featuring Rhys Darby. Humour, originality, memorability and great offers make this an outstanding retail ad. Particularly with retail brochures though, a bit of thought, humour and common sense can be the difference between someone holding onto your brochure and shoving it in the bin.
Mark Irving is the Director of Range Advertising and Communications.
