curiousgirl's playground

• Do you really understand the real need (sometimes unspoken need) of your customer?
• Can you give the customer what he or she really wants?

This is the motto of Song. If you haven't heard of Song before, they are a "lifestyle" airline (later killed and absorbed by Delta) targeted mainly towards women. Song is all about creating a deep, emotional relationship with the consumer:

• Experience creators. They have renovated the entire end-to-end flight experience from the time you punch in your flight information at the kiosk to when you are at the gate to when you are sitting in your seat. The pastel colors of Song are carried throughout this journey (Song logo/backdrop at airport, airport Song gate design, flight chairs, etc). Even the diaper changing station of the plane has the words "oh baby!" (white text on blue) written on it.
• Brand the people. Song employees are not interviewed. They audition. People are taught "how to be Song." People talk about whether or not they are "Song" or how much "Song" they are. The company has turned "Song" into an adjective. (Like how Google has turned itself into a verb.) Are you "Song?"
• Introduce novelty. Song is an airline, yet it has publicized itself in completely innovative ways, methods people would not typically associate with an airline. For instance, Song has a concept store in Massachusetts (much like the Apple store) where visitors can stop by for a visit. They have run a series of ads - print and TV - to convey their brand. These ads typically feature real, happy-looking people. The created scene is often magical yet not surreal.

The notorious saying goes, "I know I'm wasting half of my advertising dollars. I just don't know which half." After one year since Song's campaign, the team met for an evaluation of ad effectiveness. To their dismay, they only found that 15% of their target demographic could both recall their ads and associate them with the Song brand. What does this mean? It means there is a such thing as being *too* creative and out-of-the-box. Yes, you will grab people's attention, but they will not necessarily associate their confusion / surprise with your brand. You can't expect people to be smart enough (or proactive enough) to connect the dots.

• Create a lovemark. Follow the advice of one of the greatest advertising agencies of all time, Saatchi & Saatchi.

  Lovemarks transcend brands. They deliver beyond your expectations of great performance. Like great brands, they sit on top of high levels of respect - but there the similarities end.

  Lovemarks reach your heart as well as your mind, creating an intimate, emotional connection that you just can’t live without. Ever.

  Take a brand away and people will find a replacement. Take a Lovemark away and people will protest its absence. Lovemarks are a relationship, not a mere transaction. You don’t just buy Lovemarks, you embrace them passionately. That’s why you never want to let go.

  Put simply, Lovemarks inspire "Loyalty Beyond Reason."

  
  

• It's all about relationships. Not just with your customer but with your friends, your boss, your boyfriend, your children, your dog, and even your stock portfolio. It's how you manage and understand these relationships that really matter. I suppose at the end of the day, the essence is understanding what it means to be human. What motivates people? What do they care about? What are their inner wants and desires? Why do they do what they do? What are their stories?
• Feeling > Thinking. "How do you think?" is on the outside. "How do you feel?" is on the inside. Getting to know the inside is what counts. How well can you read the inside?

technorati tags: song, airline, experience, experience marketing, customer, customer need, lovemark