The Drama ?? Edition

Best ‘borderline Hollywood': Salesforce ??

Howdy Cowboy! So you're the #1 CRM solution in the world. But with great power comes great responsibility. Especially if you're one of the biggest companies in the world too - you know, those adjacent to the 'evil' Big Tech that steals customer data. ??

You need to say you DON'T, that you have the integrity and courage to do things differently. Like a cowboy in the Wild Wild West of AI, preventing a 'daylight robbery'. ?? In comes Matthew McConaughey (and you thought my surname was hard to spell?!), who's won an Oscar for playing a cowboy a decade ago and has been sticking with that image since. (Live and learn Beyonce. ??)

Why it works: 'Fame' is a communications strategy 4x more effective than any other (Source: Institute of Practitioners in Advertising). It relies on latching onto popular culture to get seen and be liked. Let's be honest - The Wild Wild West analogy is WAY simpler and more memorable than that flowchart your Product Marketer drew for the 'Why Us' page. ??♀?

And no, you don't need a Hollywood budget to GET OUT OF THE OFFICE in your comms. Check out how Salesforce did this 25 years ago on no budget at all - in the previous edition of this newsletter - link in comments. ??

Best 'Marketing trolls': PostHog ??

PostHog helps engineers build better products, but it also has a soul and a sense of humour. Their homepage is GLORIOUS ?, visually and copy-wise. But statistically, most will get all the way down, read all the rational arguments, and still won't convert. So let's at least get remembered, right? ??

They know Devs and Product people love to hate on Marketers - so let's amuse them with a collection of terrible Marketing tactics here. 'Eco-friendly', 'NOT endorsed by Kim K', classical social proof for FOMO. Nailed it! ??

Why it works: Emotional messaging works 7x harder than rational in B2B. (Source: B2B Institute of LinkedIn) We like those who are self-aware, dare to stand out, and make us laugh. You might not believe that, but that’s exactly how I got you reading this newsletter. ??

Best ‘feel the feels’: 42 Labs ????

Here's one from yours truly, are you ready? 42 Labs are an AI consultancy with a difference - unlike all the Accentures of the world that send media-trained Partners to talk about 'unleashing potential of AI', this team actually gets stuff done. ??

Instead of a white paper, they show clients their own LLM models. The CTO doesn't need to allocate a budget for two years - they get Proof of Concept done in 2 WEEKS! Oh, and they've be in the business of Big Data...since it was little. (Yes, all of these lines came out of our 2-hour Positioning workshop.) ??

The 'That Feeling When...' campaign (above is one of the 6 executions) is based on the insight that CTO, CIOs, Heads of Data are under high-profile pressure to 'do something with AI' and scared of getting it wrong, leading to delays in getting started. So we empathise with them and show a happy resolution. ??

Why it works: You have less than a second to stop the scroll on LinkedIn, so you need something that triggers emotion - first curiosity, then amusement, and a smile at the moves of the last guy. The copy is buzzword-free, the endline is punchy, and 'absurd' was indeed the agreed-upon tone of voice for this campaign. ??

Best ‘know thy audience': Popr.ai ??

Popr helps Sales people 'start more conversations in LinkedIn DMs with personalised GIFs and Memes'. Yes, that's an actual offering. Yes, this is probably better than a pitch slap. Yes, Sales people still need to fix the rest of the process for it to work. ??

How do they get on the radar of these Sales people?

Bad answer: 'Oh, we’re gonna do a knowledge exchange event for Sales.' ??

Good answer: 'Let's start an old school game show and invite the LinkedIn crowd.'

Why it works: As I watch someone sing advice on how to deal with back-to-back meetings (this line sounds very Carrie Bradshaw, doesn't it?), I realised Sales people are an extrovert nation. And while 75% of B2B ads are not fit to drive growth cos they’re not creative enough to trigger an emotional response, which is what builds memories - this one did. (Source: System 1, tested on 1,600 B2B ads.)

Best ‘relatable use case': Grammarly ??

'The team is looking down the barrel of a 16:45 meeting'...yep, we've all been there. A very smart way for Grammarly to broaden their appeal - from the focus on clear writing, to the common enemy of 'corporate inefficiencies'. So can they make this meeting an email? ??

Sports commentary moves it (like...a step) away from the typical office setting and makes it a solid ad, not just another demo. The line of 'He's been seeking redemption ever since he ended that call with I love you' - shows the viewer 'they get us'. (If you're reading this from the UK, you will be amused to hear I once signed off an email to a boss with an X. It's been 10 years. I still haven't recovered from that. Age of the BlackBerry. ??)

Why it works: See how they showed us all the integrations in this video without shoving them down our throats? Very mindful, very demure. (OK, sorry, I'll stop. ??) No, but really - if you want anyone to remember anything from you ad - lead with ONE message. If you have more - people will remember less. (Source: Kantar Millward Brown, pic in the comments.)

Best ‘small print worth reading': Black Rabbit ??

Black Rabbit is a B2B Video Marketing agency based in Poland. You think I’m gonna use their work here? Too predictable! ??♀? A good way to see if they ‘get’ B2B Marketing...is how they market themselves. Here’s what their newsletter footer looks like. Respectful, amusing…and kinda convinces you to stay on the list. ??

Why it works: If you've been a long-time follower, you'll remember BlaBlameter.com - a way to check your copy (and entire positioning) for buzzwords. The more you rely on ChatGPT in your job (everyone can tell that you do and when you overdo it ??), the less effective your marketing messaging is. Because it makes people trust you less, and yawn more. ??

Best ‘truth hurts': Klue ??

Klue is a SaaS solution that 'brings together external competitive intel and internal knowledge from your team in the field.' I think there's an element of follow-up with customers (which would make it way more valuable), but not sure.

What I'm sure about though, is that long Sales cycles are messy and entire strategies can be built on misinformation. This video dramatises the need in relatable documentary-style. ??

Why it works: 95% of your buyers are not in-market, they don't care about your features. But they may relate to the problem you're trying to solve if you get on their radar using emotion (e.g. without boring them to death ??).

How it could work even better: SaaS Marketers often work hard on Demand Generation, but most forget to build a Brand. (You know, that thing that even LinkedIn tells you to do. ??) Start with a catchy line that can be carried over every piece of content, so it sticks in people's heads. With a name like Klue - it's a crime against copywriting to NOT play with 'What happens when you ain't got a KLUE' or...(brand tone of voice permitting), anything related to Clueless. ” “Ugh, as if!”??

Best ‘vintage': FedEx ??

This ad is from 20 years ago by a much-awarded ad agency BBDO. ?? Even though FedEx was (likely) the market leader at the time, given they run their own planes - their business success is reliant on maintaining preference and demand. Reliability is what matters in logistics, so you better communicate that. 'Reliability' is also a MASSIVELY overused buzzword, in literally every vertical. 'Whatever it Takes' is a more emotional and personable line, one ChatGPT would never come up with. ??

Why it works: One repeatable line is what makes a good campaign. If you've got multiple ones across your content - it means you haven't landed your messaging hierarchy and are doing NOTHING for your brand. (DM me, we can fix it together for 500 USD, no joke. ??.) Dramatic visuals that force your brain to work to connect the dots - that's what makes ads memorable. Memorability is what you want because... 81% of B2B buyers buy the brand that comes to mind on Day 1. (Source: Bain&Co) ??

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Greetings from the autumnal Stockholm! ??

Diana