Do This, Don't Do That, Can't You Read The Signs?

By John Frost,
Goodratings Strategic Service

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?

What the Five Man Electric Band sang in the ‘70’s is just as true of marketers today.

Read their sign. SunTrust wants me to switch to them. Okay. But why? What’s in it for me? (Let’s call this jump through hoop #1)

But that’s not all. They also say that if I’m not satisfied (therefore raising the possibility that my very actions might be unsatisfactory when the benefit to me was not communicated in the first place), they’ll be nice enough to switch me back. (I’ll call this jump through hoop #2)

Let’s see, where does that leave me? I reckon I’m back in the very place I started before they told me to jump through hoop #1!!!!

Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?

Before we look too far down our marketing noses at the their campaign perhaps we should take a look in the mirror.

“We’ll be talking to Hercules and the Chicken Fat People this afternoon at one o’clock”. Who are they? Some may know; most don’t. How is that relevant or interesting to me? That’s our “Switch to SunTrust”.

To keep this from happening on your station I recommend you consider “The 10,000 rule”. *

The 10,000 rule

Imagine your station has 10,000 people listening at any one time. Before you make your listeners jump through hoops ask yourself how many of those 10,000 listeners will find it relevant and interesting.

Considering interviewing Hercules and the Chicken Fat People at one o’clock? Trust me, none of your 10,000 listeners care. However, what if Hercules tells the story of saving a baby from a burning building and the baby’s parents are so grateful that they take him and all the Chicken Fat People out to Dairy Queen for a Blizzard? Now we’re getting somewhere!

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign
Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind
Do this, don't do that, can't you read the sign?

*The 10,000 rule was so named in honor of Vic Roznovsky, a five year journeyman major leaguer who highest annual salary was $10,000. You can look it up.