Perception

Someone recently told me that the way that I show I care about people is wrong. For a while, I thought about it and considered the way that I show I care. But here is the thing about love and affection, everyone shows and perceives it differently. It’s like marketing that way. If two people who have had different life experiences, different interests and different mindsets sit and watch the same advertisement they will get different things out of it.

I mean it makes perfect sense marketing like love and affection is not a perfect science, it is not even a science at all, really it’s an art. One that is not perfect and never will be. For marketers this can be an issue, how do you get 1000 people who all are different to understand the same message? Frankly, you don’t. In my opinion, this is way diversity in messaging comes into play. Once you understand the way your audience communicates, you can develop one message that can be shown in many ways.

Then all of sudden your message is understood by 990 people instead of 500.

Just something to ponder,

-M

Experience Friday: Halloween

So last week was the week leading up to Halloween and well there is a lot to be learned from the sugar infused holiday.

Let your freak flag fly.

Halloween is the one time of year we can be whoever we want. There is no judgment, no one to tell you ‘you’re doing it wrong’ there is no reason to not be whoever you want. So be the book character you wish could be your best friend or that movie star you hope you can one day be like and you know what of Malala is your role model then you do you and be her.

Don’t be afraid to ask

A lot can be learned from the hoards of kids running around knocking on doors begging for candy. There is nothing wrong for asking for things that you deserve.

Never forget the people you love

Halloween when you are 19 is the biggest excuse to get wicked drunk and party your face off. But sometimes you have to do things for the people you care about that don’t involve a drop of alcohol and driving your drunken boyfriend home at 3 am while he sings the monster mash at the top of his lungs. Yes, Skipper, you owe me.

At the end of the day it is always the people around you who make it all worth it.

-M

Ikea’s ode to Home

The Home. The place we cry, laugh, dance, love, play, hurt and just be ourselves. The only place that will always welcome you back with open arms regardless of what happened that day. It never judges, only loves and sometimes it is the only thing you can rely on.

This ad developed by the master of homes; Ikea starts out showing the exterior of different homes before the narrator launches into a description about the home and how marvelous they are. Ikea really nails this piece and hits the audience where it counts, calling on the power of emotional appeal strategies to drive home the one very clear message that resonates with every human on the planet; we all need a place in this crazy world to belong and be ourselves and that place is home.

Ikea acknowledges that everyone’s definition of home is different whether it is an apartment, house, mansion, log cabin, tent or lean to; everyone has got one and everyone needs one.

Moving around a lot as a child painted a bit of a different picture of what home is; this picture isn’t right or wrong but simply mine. Home to me is where I am and where I am most comfortable being with the people I am most comfortable with.  Now when you are 16 and moving for the third time things are a little different but at 19 and getting ready to move out for myself the definition has changed again. Home isn’t really where mom and dad are anymore, home for me right now at this point in my life is where my current adventure is.  And Ikea really appeals to everyone with this ad an shares a very important message, that no matter where you go or what you see home will always be there in whatever definition you need it to be.