Marketing Punters and Pundits alike make stupid predictions. One of the most laughable of late was the prediction of the early demise of “physical” Marketing- it will all be digital, in the ether, non-corporeal the big-thinkers said.
And like the seers of a “paperless office,” they were dead wrong.
Case in point is a superb piece of Marketing that just crossed my desk today. The sexy brand Ferrari built their website on Microsoft’s Sharepoint for Internet Sites (FIS) platform, as have thousands of other companies. Seeing an opportunity, Austin-based Catapult Systems decided to build a Practice out of planning, developing and maintaining websites built on FIS; in order to drive (excuse the pun) the business forward, they decided to do a Marketing campaign leveraging the Ferrari brand in a smart, fun way.
They sent a physical mailer with a nice Ferrari keychain attached. A VIN number was etched on the keychain. With simple text, the physical mailer drove (there we go again) folks to a website where one can watch a very simple-yet-compelling video about Sharepoint FIS and how Catapult systems can help companies engage their customers with the Sharepoint technology. After watching the video, one had to register (with only a few information fields.)
And guess what? No matter what happens, you get to keep the keychain (and who doesn’t love Ferrari products!)
In one fell swoop, the consumer got a very compelling digital and physical experience.
Now, I’m not trying to stump for Catapult; that’s not my intent or the intent of this blog. But I do want to heap praise where praise is due.
But more than that, I want to share a bias with you all- I still love physical marketing. A good giveaway is as compelling as any website.
So throwaway the bathwater but keep that gorgeous and gurgling baby!
This is a great example of the problem with categorical predictions. “Print is dead.” That’s crap. All the fancy interactive digital psychedelic marketing injected into every gadget you own can be very effective, but some experiences call for a physical connection. A tactile response. Is digital outpacing physical outreach? Absolutely. But marketers who make sweeping statements just prove to me that they’re aren’t really thinking about their customers.
Hey Josh, totally agree. One has to understand how current customers consume information and how potential customers do to. Non-digital media are still King in many spheres of life….