MARKETING COMMUNICATION DIGEST

Larry Page, CEO of Alphabet (the company formerly known as Google), has a quirky way of deciding which companies he likes. It’s called “The Toothbrush Test.” When Page looks at a potential company to acquire, says the New York Times, he wants to know if the product is, like a toothbrush, “something you will use once or twice a day.” Page clearly understands habits. But what if your product doesn’t pass his Toothbrush Test ? Perhaps you’d like people to use your product or service frequently, but it just doesn’t make sense to do so. Nir Eyal was hired to present at a gathering of 700 real estate agents, some months ago; and the MC made a gracious introduction, saying, “Now we’ll hear from Nir Eyal, an expert on Consumer Habits. Nir is going to teach us how to make home buying and selling into a habit!” Opening, Nir had said: “I’m sorry, there must have been some misunderstanding. There is no way I am going to teach you how to make home buying and selling into ...

Six steps for launching­ a brand via PR In the past, almost every new brand was launched with a big advertising campaign. In today's media environment, that's not a very good idea. Advertising is expensive and not very credible, especially when used on behalf of a new brand. That's why many of the most successful new brands were launched with PR; brands like Google , Facebook , Snapchat,   Twitter and of course, Mirinda (of the three orange men fame) here in Nigeria . Launching a new brand with PR, however, raises a number of questions. If no advertising is involved, what changes, if any, need to be made in the overall launch? If no advertising agency is involved, who does the positioning strategy? To stimulate your thinking about these and other questions, here is an outline of six steps a PR launch might take: 1     1.  The Leak A PR program usually starts with a leak to key reporters and editors. Internet sites are often favourite targe...