Putting the 'happy' back into content
I took part at an event organised by PR Moment around the concept of ‘contagious content‘ (or viral marketing) on Wednesday.
What motivates popularity, shareability and is it actually worth it?
Anna Salter from Kantar Media provided the data, neatly summed up in a handy acronym that defines the perfect storm of viral marketing: REACH – Relevance; Emotion; Ambience; Currency; Handiness.
If you tick these 5 boxes, then you’re in with a chance of a hit.
Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success by Adam Grant is a fascinating book that looks at the difference between people who naturally give and those who are natural ‘takers’.
He found that the least successful people in business tend to be ‘givers’, as you may suppose. However, Grant also discovered that the most successful people also tend to givers – possibly far more surprising.
The book uncovers lots of great research that often flies in the face of our conventional thinking.
One that particularly struck me was the thinking and expectations behind asking for help.
Research shows that at work, the vast majority of giving that occurs between people is in response to direct requests for help. In one study, managers described times when they gave and received help. Of all the giving exchanges that occurred, roughly 90% were initiated by the recipient asking for help. Yet when we have a need, we’re often reluctant to ask for help. Much of the time, we’re embarrassed: we don’t want to look incompetent or needy, and we don’t want to burden others.
It’s a peculiar phenomenon called Game Face where people don’t want to look vulnerable and prefer to be seen as successful all the time. Continue reading “Why don’t we ask for help more often?”
It may be unfashionable to praise a bank in 2014, but it appears that Natwest deserves a round of applause.
Its latest campaign promises a fairer deal for existing customers, rather than always offering the best rates to new ones.
This sort of policy is music to my ears, but really it should be standard for all brands, rather than a unique selling point.
The fact that it isn’t standard speaks volumes. In Natwest’s case, it’s possibly a result of losing customers to other banks, lured by an eye-catching cashback offer if they switch (known as ‘churn’ in the trade).
However, at least they’re trying to do right by current customers and inspire loyalty, rather than always going after the bright shiny new customer across the street. Continue reading “When will brands start putting ‘trust’ over ‘short-term profit’?”