Sunday, November 08, 2009

etrade commercials

I usually complain about the TV commercials I see, but every once and awhile I see a good one. Today I want to talk about the E*Trade TV commercials with the smart ass talking toddler.

At first when I saw these commercials about a year ago, maybe longer, I thought they were cute and funny but so-so is salesmanship. However, E*Trade and their ad agency have been smart and they have continued to use the wise talking toddler and it's working to build brand recognition. The commercials are enjoyable to watch, memorable, and they sell the benefits of using E*Trade with all of E*Trade's analytical research tools for investments.

The key here is they are sticking with their concept and character (the talking toddler) instead of every 3-4 months coming out with a new concept. By sticking to a concept and using the same character, it builds name recognition, brand, and sales.

The lesson here is to choose a concept and stick to it for years (decades+). Think Jolly Green Giant, the Pillsbury Doe Boy, etc. This is how to brand and get long term name recognition for your product. The worst thing you can do is switch concepts and characters every few months because when you do so you are starting from scratch each time and you kill the branding momentum you have been building. Branding takes years to achieve and requires sticking to a concept and not changing your mind on how to advertise your product every quarter.

To your business success!

Peter Geisheker, CEO
The Geisheker Group marketing company
http://www.geisheker.com
(920) 471-1638
"We don't help you compete, we help you dominate!"

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