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Is Anyone Else Tired of This Crap?
Don't mean to be a wet-blanket but...
I personally think that goofy, one-liner, "clever" shirts, flyers, Facebook pages are stupid.
If you want to get shirts because everyone else has them, then make sure that they follow an intelligent marketing strategy.
Here are the 5 keys to effective brand-building as described from the Harvard Business Review. I included an example of a company and a brief description of why I think that their marketing exemplifies that quality.
1. Message
- "got milk?" Campaign: The people who be, found out that adolescents between the ages of 10 - 15 were not drinking milk because they perceived it as "uncool" or a "drink for little kids". So they released a marketing campaign that countered those beliefs. They started taking photos of some of America's most adored, attractive, popular, and macho figures and painted milk mustaches on them. There are few words on the posters, but it still always speaks volumes. Make sure your PR has a message that your founders would be proud of and exemplify how you want people to see your chapter.
2. Consistency
- "Absolut World" Absolut Vodka Campaign: I can't tell you how many times I have seen good student organizations bring out marketing materials they clearly spent a lot of time on that have completely different fonts on them, completely different color schemes on them, and completely different slogans on them. BE CONSISTENT! A lot of people think that when you say that you have to be "consistent" that means that you are expected to be "boring". I think no other company proves that you can be creative and consistent at the same time than Absolut Vodka. They have dozens of different and creative posters that all share the same font, all have the slogan in the same spot, all have a consistent slogan, and all have the distinctive "Absolut Bottle" in the ad.
3. Repetition
- Coca Cola Campaign: When it comes down to which single company has managed to put their logo on the most diverse line of products, I don't think any company ever has or ever will beat Coca Cola. Ball caps, T-Shirts, coozies, water-bottles, billboards, commercials, you name it they got it. Spreading out the mediums of advertisement you have allows you to not only reinforce your brand, but it also allows you to further penetrate different markets. Do you have a lot of commuters at your school? Why not release some screen printed Rear-View Mirror Air Fresheners with Delta Chi on them? Get creative here, you will be served well if you can repeat your *CONSISTENT* brand over and over again.
4. Simplicity
- Chik-Fil-A's "Eat More Chicken" Campaign: This is unfortunately one of the biggest pit-traps I see Fraternities and Sororities fall in. You get a marketing chairman who is an incredible artist and a recruitment chairmen who is an incredible salesman, but you put them into a room together and ask them to make a recruitment flyer only to get one of the most cluttered pieces of crap you have ever seen. Take a page from Chik-Fil-A. Their marketing campaign is one of the most highly regarded in the nation for it's ability to be so effective, yet so simplistic. Remember that empty space is a GOOD THING. Less is more on this one guys.
5. Congruence
- Tylenol: In 1982 seven people died because someone poisoned Tylenol capsules in Chicago. Tylenol responded immediately by recalling thousands of bottles of Tylenol. Business analysts were dumbfounded by the fact that Tylenol recalled so many bottles when there seemed to be more than sufficient proof that Johnson and Johnson wouldn't hold most of the liability for the incident. CEO at the time Edwin Crawford replied that it was the mission of J&J to keep people safe and healthy, and he felt that was what was more important than profit. The company was hailed for their actions and to this day is one of America's most trusted medicines. What we learned from the story: If your Fraternity prides itself on being a "Chivalrous" or "Gentlemanly" you bet your ass that not one of your brothers ever attempts to take advantage of a passed out girl. The whole thing will be like hitting the "reset" button on your entire campaign.
So there's my rant. Let me know if you thought it was helpful.
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