The following is a guest post by Mark Kinsley.
Too many mattress marketers keep doing the same things over and over expecting different results. That’s the definition of insanity and if this mentality continues, it’ll be a long walk off a short plank.
If you want to differentiate your business or product you have to rethink your communication approach. It does not start with better demographic data. It starts with the heart.
Mattress marketing is not about targeting and segmenting and all that technical mumbo jumbo. If you want to bring people into your store, focus on your message first. Start with the heart. Getting advertisements in front of your target audience will have limited impact if you’re not connecting with people on an emotional level. You do this by saying the right things.
William the (not so) Great
William is a car salesman I called a few weeks ago. He said all the wrong things. Since we last spoke William has phoned me six times asking for a deposit on a car I did not agree to buy. Although I am the absolute perfect audience, his message was way off. At one point he made things worse by mentioning, “…we make commission on each sale, so make sure and call me back.” The poor guy kept saying all the wrong things. How could he do better?
William needs to start with the heart. He should have talked about how a car is more than metal on wheels. To win me over he could have said, “To me a car isn’t just a machine you drive. It goes beyond simply getting from point A to point B. That car is how you take your wife to her favorite restaurant on your anniversary. It’s there for every romantic evening on the town—for every kiss and every kind word you say to one another. That car takes you to important places. It gets you to your kids’ baseball games and ballet recitals. When your neighbor needs a ride, your car let’s you build that friendship. I feel like we live in a world where moments and memories are all we have…and a good car can make each one better. When the time comes, your car is here—patiently waiting for you to pick it up. And I’ll be more than happy to hand you the keys.”
William would have sold a car that day—without saying a word about commission. When you start with the heart, people can feel it. They know you care. It’s bigger than two people talking about a product. Life is being lived and people are connecting. That’s what we want. When you share the emotions that are connected to a mattress, you will find customers you never knew existed.
Crafting Your Message
In this business, we are selling one of the most individual experiences on the planet—sleep. It’s highly personal and full of emotional potential. When you’re crafting ads or working with a copywriter, think about how sleep makes you feel. What is it like when you go to bed? Take yourself to that moment when you first get in between the sheets and your body fully relaxes after a long day. Think of those special conversations you share with your spouse, or the times when your kids get scared and crawl into bed with mom and dad. How do you feel when you wake up completely refreshed? Have you accomplished incredible things after an amazing slumber? Sure you have. Sleep makes life better. Think about life’s amazing moments and connect those vivid examples to sleep.
It’s time to supercharge your mattress sales and to do that you must start with the heart. People want to be inspired. They actually do want to connect with your company. Let them. Provide the avenue. Write the type of advertising that makes people feel something in their hearts.
Do you need help crafting an emotional message? Shoot me an email and I’ll be happy to share some of my thoughts (markk@mediacross.com). I’ll do you one better—for the first person that emails me I’ll write an original television or radio script that connects with people on a deep emotional level. I have only three requests:
- Run the ad and share the results in a way you feel comfortable.
- Let Mark Quinn share the produced spot with his audience.
- Call me and hold the phone up to the cash register—I want to hear it ring.
Mark Kinsley is Vice President & Lead Strategist with Mark Quinn’s strategic communication firm. You can email him at markk@mediacross.com.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this blog post are Mark Kinsley’s. They do not represent the thinking of the company he works for, or anyone else with whom he is affiliated.