tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post1860265340464293887..comments2023-12-19T03:57:42.866-05:00Comments on New Breed of Advertisers: What do you think, Greg? (Part 2)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12125792591159561789noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-74673646836313294352009-05-02T16:13:00.000-04:002009-05-02T16:13:00.000-04:00Thanks, ESI. The book is primarily about the conve...Thanks, ESI. The book is primarily about the conversation between seller and buyer, but it's as much about the conversation as it is about the seller and buyer. In other words, Greg and Bob show their awareness of current marketing trends. <br /><br />How does it look when marketing to Christians? Sometimes great and sometimes not-so-great. I think the five bullet point examples in Part 2 demonstrate good conversations.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12125792591159561789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-83906154495344765302009-05-02T06:18:00.000-04:002009-05-02T06:18:00.000-04:00Sam - a great, tough, honest interview. Marketing...Sam - a great, tough, honest interview. Marketing is constantly shifting but I think one of the primary shifts has occured over the last 5 years and is ongoing. With the maturity of web 2.0, social media channels, marketing is less "transactional" and more "relational"...it's about a conversation, not just a pitch.<br /><br />The implication is that "the conversation" IS the brand and it isn't just 1-1, between vendor and prospect, rather it involves community of stakeholders - users, experts, etc...<br /><br />I wonder if Greg's book speaks to that at all? What does that conversation look like in the context of marketing to Christians?Every Square Inchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11636924397725214300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-38061405293019132332009-04-24T19:57:00.000-04:002009-04-24T19:57:00.000-04:00Thanks, Brad. I like Greg and I'm glad he let me p...Thanks, Brad. I like Greg and I'm glad he let me push against the content. <br /><br />You're right about politicians, especially (it seems) in the last few campaigns. Sometimes I have trouble seeing the possibly pure motive behind reaching a specific group because my default setting is to think they (politicians) just want numbers. <br /><br />I'm sure God will have a long list of times I crossed the line in accusing folks in this way. As much as I want to make assumptions, I really don't know their hearts.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12125792591159561789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-5771446735336580812009-04-23T18:05:00.000-04:002009-04-23T18:05:00.000-04:00Sam - Great interview! Man, you are one mover and ...Sam - Great interview! Man, you are one mover and shaker... And I like how you push hard on the interview questions. Great job. <br /><br />These guys are fascinating - and obviously have been very successful. I guess it's easier to digest when you think of marketing large-scale exciting projects (Narnia, Purpose-Drive) to Christians and cross-over appeal to "nominal" christians. But as you point out, it can get possibly creepy when generic products are "marketed to Christians." I personally don't ever see Christians becoming a market-segment, like Soccer Moms, but what do I know. (I guess the politicians have done that on a regular basis, right?)<br /><br />GREAT, fascinating stuff.Bradley J Moorehttp://www.shrinkingthecamel.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-71425964479274217902009-04-19T19:00:00.000-04:002009-04-19T19:00:00.000-04:00Good word, Hiram, and thanks for tuning in.
Vene...Good word, Hiram, and thanks for tuning in. <br /><br />Veneer of any kind bothers me. Interestingly, the alternative isn't products that lack flash or attraction or the promise of pleasure. The inherent truth in many products is flashy, attractive and pleasurable. The challenge is finding that truth and conveying that truth without adding veneer...to the green movement or any cause of Christian interest. <br /><br />My prayer is that Greg (and Bob) convinces companies to do just this.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12125792591159561789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-60868644078837089412009-04-18T17:02:00.000-04:002009-04-18T17:02:00.000-04:00Sam, thanks so much for posting this. as a Christi...Sam, thanks so much for posting this. as a Christian, a consumer, and also a producer of goods, these are all issues I'm attempting to understand. I have to say that I tend to distrust anything that has (or seems to have) an ulterior motive. I would prefer that something simply be what it is than that it pretend to be otherwise. As long as pretense is avoided, my choice is simply, in product AA vs AB, 'which meets my needs/wants best'? As a Christian, we have the added question 'does it honor Christ and what He would have me do with the gifts He has given me?' - a question which I answer imperfectly.<br /><br />I hope that, as the 'green' movement in marketing targets consumers who care about the environment and has actually changed products to some extent, an awareness of Christian values will make producers pay closer attention to the human component involved in production so that we will have more products that value the poor and downtrodden in society. Yet this also adds another layer to the puzzle - meaning we will have to discern more carefully which of these products are real and which have just a 'veneer' of valuing what Christians value. I guess humans haven't changed in 2,000 years.Hiramhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00452547011155210099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-41411131609858853662009-04-16T16:31:00.000-04:002009-04-16T16:31:00.000-04:00Great observations, Erin. I hope you AND Greg are ...Great observations, Erin. I hope you AND Greg are right. <br /><br />I need to be able to trust a marketer to care for me. Many do, but imagine a world where I never had to be suspicious or cautious.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12125792591159561789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2101059195328496385.post-39364875829691819702009-04-15T09:51:00.000-04:002009-04-15T09:51:00.000-04:00After following this fascinating exchange, I was r...After following this fascinating exchange, I was reminded of marketing’s historical shift from a sales orientation (the “I-have-products-that-you-must-buy” focus) to a marketing orientation (the “you-have-needs-that-I-want-to-meet” focus). If corporations have embraced a consumer focus of meeting existing marketplace needs, then we don’t have to be suspicious, even if the companies are specifically serving a Christian audience. <br /><br />As part of the industry, however, we know that much of marketing communications is in the presentation: persuading the market to believe a particular product and brand is a necessity. It is this part of the proposed Christian–marketplace relationship that I find myself suspicious of (even as I agree with Greg that God is more powerful than a marketing pitch). <br /><br />But Christians are not immune to persuasion; we are capable of poor choices, sinful choices . . . even more so if the communications coming at us use Christian-culture lingo. We are warned in the Word against blind acceptance of any message or messenger (see Col. 2:8 and 1 John 4:1). With messaging crafted for the Christian market, we would need to take extra precaution.<br /><br />It would be wonderful if corporations chose more wholesome messages to promote their products. Sadly, those companies are doing just fine without catering to a more conservative market . . . what if the 77 percent of the market that is Christian would put their purchasing power toward companies with complementary ideals? Perhaps that is what Greg is suggesting, that the void in the marketplace is wide and ready for companies willing to meet that need.Erinhttp://erinstraza.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.com