Make ‘Triangulation’ an advertising buzzword!

It means different things to different people. Surveyors use triangulation to identify the location of a point by measuring the angle to it from three points of which the location is known. Geologists use it to identify the centre of an earthquake. In psychology, triangulation is a manipulative tactic. According to the Wikipedia page, even politicians know how to use it.

A few months back, I was reading Truth, Lies and Advertising by Jon Steel. It is considered a good book on account planning. It is also the first time I saw ‘triangulation’ used in an advertising sense. Jon, a geography graduate, draws a parallel between identifying the location of a point by using three points and determining the direction for a creative campaign by using three perspectives.

What needs to be updated?

The internet was yet to have an impact on marketing and advertising in 1998 when this classic was written. And as a fellow digital strategist pointed out to me recently;

“Any modern agency that still thinks its job is only about communication will be in deep trouble soon…” — A LinkedIn comment by Alexander Glasneck

In my opinion, a few other things have also changed over the last 12 years;

1. Agencies have the capability to re-frame business perspectives
2. Opinions and prejudices are now more susceptible to change (and I believe every individual allows for around 10% change in opinions if the message is compelling enough)

Below, I’ve tried to illustrate my version of the triangle;

This works better for me for a few reasons;

1. It supports a collaborative model — if you are in the ad business, try to recall how many times you have completely changed how the client perceives a business problem? I have done it a few times. Also, try to recall how many times your idea has been improved on inside the client’s boardroom?
2. It acknowledges that consumer opinions and prejudices can be changed to a certain extent. We all know plenty of campaigns that have done this.
3. Have you heard about the 6 degrees of separation? It postulates that everyone is separated through a maximum of 6 people (e.g. I know a friend who’s father is a minister who knows the president who knows the ambassador to the USA who works with Donald Trump). This 2016 article from Facebook research shows that it’s 3.5 degrees of separation. This other article says that the number is 2. Point being, you’re prone to more influence by a higher number of people. This means that an ad campaign has better chances of changing behaviour/feelings/actions if it helps the consumer to better identify as part of his/her circle of influence.

What happens when we leave out influencer circles?

I proposed a campaign for a global male grooming brand.

The problem: most people use soap as a lubricant when shaving.

Challenge: get them to use my client’s shaving gel.

Although the target user could not be described as being fanatical about growing a beard (I am. Therefore, I know), they still conform to the anti-shaving norm that is going strong in Colombo.

How do I know this? Amazing CTR, a decent amount of clicks on the ‘download now’ button (the campaign involved a ‘download now’ button) but a terrible rate of content submissions (content submitted / times the asset was downloaded) across all platforms.

My prognosis; people who are of the opinion that they ‘should’ shave, do not shave when asked to, because a brand asking them to shave is not the same as them doing it on their ‘own’ volition.

Another use for triangulation

I have missed out on doing brilliant campaigns because I have sh*tty verbal communication skills. Convincing internal teams is the first part of doing any good campaign. So, I use triangulation to help me navigate my way through to my team’s brains and hearts.

The shape of this triangle will depend on the structure of your agency. I use this technique to circumnavigate my speech impediment. If you’re doing fine without it, don’t use it.

And now, another triangle...

This one is for personal development. If you start your day by journaling like me, this one could come in useful to you;

I strive to make the most of my day by balancing work, being grateful for the things and people that make my life tolerable and non-professional visions I have for myself.

I have been doing this for about a month now. So far it has been good. If you think it can work for you, give it a try. And think about me the next time you ‘triangulate’ your way to a better campaign, pitch or day.