Do you have a tagline or slogan for your company?
An often repeated phrase associated with an individual, organization, or commercial product; a slogan. MacDonald - I'm lovin it DBS Bank - Living, Breathing Asia (or is it the other way round?) Standard Chartered Bank - Here for good Singapore Airlines - A Great Way To Fly Some tagline are in use for many years, while others are changed constantly to fit new directions. One organization that changes its tagline more often that you change car is Singapore Tourism Board. You've got Surprising Singapore, Uniquely Singapore, Your Singapore and now Shiok. Some tagline are powerful while others leave you scratching your head (Excellence through total quality). The powerful ones not only make you think of the brand immediately, it is also specific and promise a benefit. For example, Fedex's tagline "When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight." Powerful tagline also represent a way of life or a stand like Nike's "Just Do It." While looking at the Malaysia Airlines ad on the bus (see my earlier blog here), I noticed it has a tagline as well. It is "Journeys are made by the people you travel with." I'm trying to understand what this statement is about. Could "Journeys are made more pleasurable by the people you travel with" sound better? Could they promise something more specific so that one immediately recognize it without looking at the brand's logo? Saw this ad inside the bus this morning.
It's advertisements by Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and there were a few of them. Each poster showed flights offered by the airline to different places with the departing and arrival destinations indicated at both ends with a photo of the destination's iconic scenery in the background. So there's Singapore to Kuala Lumpur with the twin towers in the background, and so on. And between, these two destinations, there's a sentence as follows: "1 captain . 1 co-pilot . 6-member cabin staff . 3 boarding gate service staff . 6 baggage handlers" For longer flights, they'll have 2 captains, 2 co-pilots, 28-member cabin staff....." I started thinking what the ad is trying to sell. Are they selling efficiency as there are 3 boarding gate service staff and 6 baggage handlers? Are they selling safety with 1 captain and 1 co-pilot? Are they selling service with 6 cabin crews? Perhaps they are selling everything. But how am I going to translate these to the benefits that I assume they are selling? Firstly, I do not know what is the standard number of cabin crew for a 2-hour flight in the industry. And having 6 cabin crews does not equate to good and attentive service. What about the crew to passenger ratio? Even if they have more staff than the average industry standard, nothing was mentioned in the ad. You can't expect the readers to play guessing game. Another question that comes to mind is do I have to pay more? This reminds me of an article I read about a beer company using their method of washing their glass bottles in marketing to differentiate themselves. Although other beer companies are using the same method, they were the first to lay claim to it and other competitors were not able to claim the same. But the benefit was clear to customers. I think it was related to hygiene, if I remember correctly. If MAS wants to be the first to lay claim to the facts, did they focus on the wrong things? Or too many things? I'm confused. Did you watch the final of The Final 1?
Channel 5’s reality singing competition show in Singapore. It is the same as the Singapore Idol, a replica of the successful American Idol where contestants pit their singing talent against each other every week. This year, the name has been changed to The Final 1. Maybe the producer wanted to have a change of name to make it slightly different (but actually no difference) and sounds interesting (not interesting at all). Or they decided they do not want to pay for the license to use "Idol." In contrast to past years' winners, this time round, a lady contestant emerged the winner. The papers were abuzz with news of her being the first female to win a singing contest. While it is a fact and a feat, but it doesn't make a difference. Looking back at the past winners, including the ones on the Chinese channel singing contests, how many of them have actually launched a successful singing career? Unless winning the prize without the intention of going into professional singing is what they have in mind, this is just a beginning of a journey. What's more important is the road ahead. In business, it's the same. You can be the first to the market, the first in the market, the first to invent, or the first in anything. But what happens after that is more important. Are you able to sustain your competitive advantage? Remember, your competitive advantage lasts only as long as your competitors do not come out with a similar or better product or service as you. Can you innovate faster than your competitors copy you? Can you create your own personal identity? And find a niche that you can dominate? That's the difference. And all the best to Farisha Ishak, the winner of the final of The Final 1. Photo source : Channelnewsasia |
AuthorOutrageous Marketing Archives
May 2020
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