Customers pay attention when messages mean something to them. Learn how to build meaningful marketing that helps you grow brand, revenue and relationships.

1. Meaningful Marketing
Strategy Workshop
4.17.12
twitter.com/buildingbelief
facebook.com/mythologymarketing
Jeff James linkedin.in/in/jeffjameswv
youtube.com/mythologyworkshops

2. The Ten Pillars of Meaningful Marketing™
Understanding Engagement
What do your employees/customers/partners believe? Campaigns and communication - How, when, where the
Ten Pillar Descriptions
What do they want to believe? What do you want them story will be told in unexpected, breakthrough ways
to believe about you or your product/service?
Priority Surprise
Choosing first the ones who will choose you - Unexpected value - emotional and functional – that
Segmenting customers and stack-ranking who is most exceeds expectations and builds into a dependence that
valuable to you they won’t be able to live without
Differentiation Dialog
Competitive strengths that set you apart- Finding the The power of intimacy and the path to loyalty -
core of who your organization is and why that is special Interactive communications that lead to relationships
and unique in both emotional and functional benefit
categories
Alignment Empowerment
Internal buy-in and readiness…are your people ready? Incentive and opportunity to share the great experience
Helping your team see, understand, believe and live out with others
the vision
Mythology Innovation
Your brand, your story that builds belief and inspires The next surprise - Feeding the addiction of being
action delighted with new value
http://www.mythologymarketing.com/pillars/

3. What We’re Doing Today

4. Agenda
• The media and marketing world we live in today
• What it takes to break through with meaning
• Understanding your customer/constituent segments
• Building your value proposition
• Creating “sticky” stories and meaningful messages

5. TODAY’S MARKETING
ENVIRONMENT

6. Creating Change
The Rider
(Intellect, Logic)
To effect change,
The Elephant you must
(Emotion, Desire, address all three
Impulse) effectively
The Path
(Environment,
Prompts, Tools)
Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard © 2010 Chip and Dan Heath

7. Beginning Assumptions

8. Good

9. Not So Good

10. UNDERSTANDING

11. Understanding
• Market • Decision Process and
– Segmentation Triggers
• Decision-Makers • Competitors
– Personas • Influencers
• Your Team

12. Sources: FlightView, The WiseMarketer 11/3/11
How Understanding Can Open Doors
• 78% of airline customers are "often frustrated by
the lack of timely, accurate information" about
delays
• 45% of travellers said their biggest frustration
was not knowing where their plane was, or
when it would arrive.
• Another 34% said their biggest frustration was
not receiving fast enough or accurate enough
updates on new departure times. In both cases,
the lack of information was felt to create a more
stressful travel experience.
• Implications:
– 40% said they consider avoiding that airline
the next time they fly;
– 22% say it's partly why they don't like flying and
may avoid flying, if possible

13. Client Segmentation
• Industry
• Region
• Size - Revenue – Historic and potential (Lifetime Value)
• Reputation? Influence in the area? Industry?
• Relationship history?
• Relationship/service cost?
• Business Philosophy? Risk tolerance? Growth stage?

14. How Do Consumers in Your
Industry Make Decisions?
• Their buying criteria
– What is paramount on their list of must haves/nice to haves?
– Relationship vs. function?
• Their decision process
– Who’s involved? How is decision made?
– Where do they gather data?
• Their influences
– Industry data/reviews, peers?
• Their decision calendar
– Time of year? Frequency?

15. Identifying the Influencers
Who They Are Ranking Their Influence
• Activists: influencers get • Market Reach – the number of
involved, with their communities, people an individual has the ability
political movements, charities and to connect with.
so on. • Quality of Impact – the esteem in
• Connected: influencers have which an individual’s view and
large social networks opinions are held.
• Impact: influencers are looked up • Frequency of Impact – the
to and are trusted by others number of opportunities an
• Active minds: influencers have individual has to influence buying
multiple and diverse interests decisions.
• Trendsetters: influencers tend to • Closeness to Decision – how
be early adopters (or leavers) in near an individual is to the
markets decision-maker
Keller, Ed and Berry, Jon. The Influentials, Free Press, 2003

16. Exercise
• Who are the influencers in your…
– Niche segments
Message
– Key Regions
Influencer Influencer Influencer
Market

17. #shale Influencers

18. Customer Segmentation Map
Customer Demo- Functional Emotional Affinities & Gathering Decision- Current Other
Segments Graphics Needs Needs Interests Spots Making Beliefs About
Process You

19. Audience/Persona Summary
Customer Segment Awareness/Affinity Primary Needs/Desires
#1
Engaged Keys to Success
What do We Want Them to Believe? What do We Want Them to Do?

20. Competitive Map
Competitor Functional Advantages Emotional Advantages

21. PRIORITY

22. Priority
• Of your client segments, which are most critical for
meeting short and long-term goals? Why?
– Stack rank segments
– Stack rank sub-segments within segment
• Factors to consider
– Revenue potential
– Historic revenue
– Profitability
– Reputation influencer
• How are current resources being applied towards these
priority segments?
– What adjustments need made in order to ensure the most
important segments receive appropriate investment?

23. DIFFERENTIATION

24. Differentiation
• Differentiation drives growth
• What are the core elements of service in your
industry?
• What elements are essential vs. non-essential?
• What element will you be the absolute best at in
your market area
– Becomes key point of differentiation

25. The Discipline of Market Leaders
The Discipline of Market Leaders, Michael Treacy and Fred Wiersema. Addison-Wesley. 1995

26. Three Characteristics of a
Good Strategy
• Focus
– Southwest emphasizes only three factors: friendly service,
speed and frequent point-to-point departures
• Divergence
– Value curve should stand apart from competitors
– Southwest offered point-to-point travel between midsize cities
vs. hub-and-spoke
• Compelling Tagline
– Authentic, clear, memorable
Blue Ocean Strategy, Harvard Business School Press. W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, 2005

27. Core Elements of Creative
Services?
• Critical
• Nice to have
• Not that relevant (perceived)

28. Defining the Value Proposition
For (Target Customer):
Who Needs:
The (Offering Name)
Is a (Category)
That (Provides Key
Benefit):
Unlike (Primary
competitive alternative)
Because (Our offering’s
primary differentiation):

29. MYTHOLOGY

30. Mythology
• myth·ol·o·gy a set of stories, traditions, or
beliefs associated with a particular group or the
history of an event, arising naturally or
deliberately fostered
• What builds belief?
• Purpose of mythology - What human emotions
can you connect with?
• What should the structure of the story look like?

31. Can You Share the Myth?

32. Newer Examples

33. Emotional Value:
Connecting via Archetypes
Stability & Control
By a factor of three, what you
do is not nearly as important as
how it makes people feel.
- Seth Godin, April 2007
Caregiver Creator Ruler
Care for others Craft Exert Control
something new
Belonging Independence
& Regular &
Jester Lover Sage Explorer Innocent
Enjoyment Have a Guy/Gal Find and Understand Maintain Retain or
Fulfillment
good time OK as you are give love our world independence renew faith
The Hero and the Outlaw, Margaret Mark
& Carol Pearson © 2001 Risk & Mastery

34. Emotional Value:
Connecting via Archetypes
Stability & Control
Caregiver Creator Ruler
Care for others Craft Exert Control
something new
Belonging Independence
& Regular &
Jester Lover Sage Explorer Innocent
Enjoyment Have a Guy/Gal Find and Understand Maintain Retain or
Fulfillment
good time OK as you are give love our world independence renew faith
Hero Outlaw Magician
Save the day Break the Affect
rules transformation
The Hero and the Outlaw, Margaret Mark
& Carol Pearson © 2001 Risk & Mastery

35. What Builds Trust?
• Consistency of word and action
• Unselfish action
• Authenticity and openness (Non-
manipulated admission)
• Unrelated third-party validation
• Familiarity and intimacy
• Unexpected benefit
http://www.forbes.com/2006/09/25/trust-relationships-confidencetech_cx_ll_06trust_0925tips.html?boxes=custom

36. Exercise
• Considering your client segment priorities and their
corresponding emotional/functional needs, what
mythology should you develop, communicate and
reinforce to establish your value proposition?
• Sources of inspiration
– Historic examples
– Employee and client stories
• How many belief-building elements can you incorporate?

37. What’s the Difference
• The Power of the Sale • The Power of the Story
– Media plan VS. – Story plan
– Audience plan – Storyteller plan
– Memorization by brute – Memorization by
force stickiness
Can a commercial message have the same
power as an organic story?
There are built in obstacles, but it’s possible.

38. What Makes an Idea Stick?
SUCCESs
• Simplicity
– Finding the core of the idea
• Unexpectedness
– Combining surprise and interest
• Concreteness
– Bringing it alive with the five senses (memory Velcro)
• Credibility
– Tapping the power of authority – or anti-authority – to build belief
• Emotional
– Priming people to care
• Stories
– Generating involvement that leads to action
Made to Stick, Heath and Heath © 2007 Random House

39. Successful Advertising Templates
• Pictorial analogy - Featuring extreme, exaggerated analogies rendered
visually
• Extreme consequences - Exaggerated results of not using the advertised
product/service, or extreme benefits of using it (NOTE: The majority of
award-winning ads fall under these first two categories)
• Extreme situations - A product/service is shown performing under unusual
circumstances, or an attribute is exaggerated to the extreme
• Competition - In which a product/service wins a "bake-off" with the
competition; even better if the bake-off circumstances are exaggerated
• Interactive experiment - Where people interact with the product/service
directly to "see for themselves"
• Dimensionality alteration - Shows the long-term implications of a
decision, such as not using or using the product/service
• 2009’s best ads
– http://www.youtube.com/user/AceMetrix#p/c/6DB48DCE2DC7066A/6/OWrAJT1IDuM

40. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Accomplishment Enlightenment Redemption
Beauty Freedom Security
Creation Harmony Truth
Community Justice Validation
Duty Oneness Wonder

41. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Accomplishment
•Achieving goals and making something of oneself; a sense of satisfaction that can result
from productivity, focus, talent, or status. American Express has long benefited from
transmitting a hint of this meaning to its card holders by establishing itself as a credit card
intended for those who are successful. Nike relies on the essence of this meaning for
many in its “Just Do It” campaign.
Beauty
•
The appreciation of qualities that give pleasure to the senses or spirit. Of course beauty
is in the eye of the beholder and thus highly subjective, but our desire for it is ubiquitous.
We aspire to beauty in all that surrounds us, from architecture and fine furnishing to
clothing and cars. Enormous industries thrive on the promise of beauty stemming from
shinier hair, whiter teeth, and clearer skin. Beauty can also be more than mere
appearance.
•For some, it is a sense that something is created “correctly” or efficiently with an
elegance of purpose and use. Companies such as Bang & Olufsen audio equipment and
Jaguar automobiles distinguish themselves through the beauty of their design.

42. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Community
•A sense of unity with others around us and a general connection with other human
beings. Religious communities, unions, fraternities, clubs, and sewing circles are all
expressions of a desire for belonging. The promise and delivery of community underlies
the offerings of several successful organizations including NASCAR with its centralizing
focus on car racing and leagues of loyal fans that follow the race circuit, Harley-Davidson
motorcycles and their Harley Owners Group (HOG), and Jimmy Buffet with his dedicated
Parrotheads. These businesses attract and support user communities who embody
specific values tied to their products and services.
Creation
•The sense of having produced something new and original, and in so doing, to have
made a lasting contribution. Besides driving our species to propagate, we enjoy this
experience through our hobbies, the way we decorate our home, in telling our stories,
and in anything else that reflects our personal choices. Creation is what makes
“customizable” seem like a desirable attribute, rather than more work for the buyer, for
example, making the salad bar a pleasure rather than a chore.

43. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Duty
•The willing application of oneself to a responsibility. The military in any country counts
on the power of this meaning, as do most employers. Duty can also relate to
responsibilities to oneself or family, such as reading the daily paper to stay abreast of
the news. Commercially, anything regarded as “good for you,” including vitamins,
medications, Cross-Your-Heart bras, and cushioned insoles relays some sense of duty
and the satisfaction it brings.
Enlightenment
•Clear understanding through logic or inspiration. This experience is not limited to
those who meditate and fast, it is a core expectation of offerings from Fox News, which
promises “fair and balanced” reporting, the Wall Street Journal, which many consider
the ultimate authority for business news, and the Sierra Club, which provides
perspective on environmental threats and conservation.

44. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Freedom
•The sense of living without unwanted constraints. This experience often plays tug-of-war
with the desire for security; more of one tends to decrease the other. Nevertheless,
freedom is enticing, whether it’s freedom from dictators, or in the case of Google, the
freedom to quickly search the Web learning and interacting with millions of people and
resources.
Harmony
•The balanced and pleasing relationship of parts to a whole, whether in nature, society, or
an individual. When we seek a work/life balance, we are in pursuit of harmony. Likewise,
when we shop at Target for a toaster that matches our mixer, we are in pursuit of
harmony. Much of the aesthetic appeal of design depends on our personal desire for the
visual experience of harmony.

45. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Justice
•The assurance of equitable and unbiased treatment. This is the sense of
fairness and equality that underlies our concept of “everyman” or Average Joe.
It helps explain the immense popularity of the Taurus and the Camry, the ranch
house, Levi jeans, and white cotton T-shirts—all products with a simple,
impartial appeal to a very broad audience.
Oneness
•A sense of unity with everything around us. It is what some seek from the
practice of spirituality and what others expect from a good tequila. Although we
don’t normally think of them as a company, the Grateful Dead sustained its
revenues for decades building an experience that connected with its fans’
desire for oneness. Similarly, organizations that connects their members into
nature or a broader sense of the world, like the Monterey Bay Aquarium or the
United Nations, are capable of evoking a meaning of oneness.

46. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Redemption
•Atonement or deliverance from past failure or decline. Though this might seem
to stem from negative experiences, the impact of the redemptive experience is
highly positive. Like community and enlightenment, redemption has a basis in
religion, but it also attracts customers to Weight Watchers, Bliss spas, and the
grocery store candy aisle. Any sensation that delivers us from a less desirable
condition to a more pleasing another one can be redemptive.
Security
•The freedom from worry about loss. This experience has been a cornerstone
of civilization but in the U.S. in particular, acquired increased meaning and
relevance after 9/11. On the commercial side, the desire for this experience
created the insurance business, and it continues to sell a wide range of
products from automatic rifles to Depends undergarments to credit cards that
offer protection from identity theft.

47. Making Meaning: How Successful Companies
Deliver Meaningful Experiences
Truth
•A commitment to honesty and integrity. This experience plays an important role in most
personal relationships, but it also is a key component of companies like Whole Foods,
Volkswagen, and Newman’s Own, all of which portray themselves as simple, upright, and
candid.
Validation
•The recognition of oneself as a valued individual worthy of respect. Every externally
branded piece of clothing counts on the attraction of this meaningful experience whether
it’s Ralph Lauren Polo or Old Navy, as does Mercedes Benz, the Four Seasons hotel
chain, and any other brand with status identification as a core value.
Wonder
•Awe in the presence of a creation beyond one’s understanding. While this might sound
mystical and unattainable, consider the wonder that Las Vegas hotels create simply
through plaster and lights. Disney has been a master of this experience for decades, and
technology companies routinely evoke awe as they enable their users to do what seemed
impossible the year before.

48. How Archetypes Map to Meaning
Archetype Meaning
Caregiver Validation
Creator Accomplishment, Creation
Ruler Justice, Security
Jester Validation
Regular Guy/Girl Community, Harmony
Lover Harmony, Oneness
Sage Truth, Enlightenment, Wonder
Explorer Freedom
Innocent Oneness, Beauty, Redemption
Hero Duty, Validation
Outlaw Freedom
Magician Wonder

49. Exercise
• Building from your value • Simplicity
proposition, use the principals
of communication SUCCESs • Unexpectedness
and the tools in today’s media
toolkit to build a “sticky” • Concreteness
concept targeting a priority • Credibility
client segment that spreads
the brand mythology • Emotional
• Stories
• You can use images, stories or
abstract ideas to develop your
sticky concept

50. ENGAGEMENT
DIALOG, SURPRISE, EMPOWERMENT

51. Marketing Accountability
2011-12 Objective 2011-12 Goals/Metrics
Maximum % aware in % aware of org and message
target audience
Make consideration % preferred in consideration set
set out of X choices
# and % taking a step Web site visits, lead form submitted
towards participation
Win participation # and % converted
Turn customers into % repeat customer, % proactively
repeat customers and advocating
vocal advocates

52. Tip: Use “hashtags” to join in
What are the business or start conversations, on
goals? 7 Twitter such as #buzznuggets
6
Interact and listen Pull out interesting
Who’s planning, to audience for
managing, measuring? tidbits for posting on
new content social media sites using
What’s the target ideas. Ask them a simple tool like
audience? to contribute HootSuite or Tweetdeck
content
What value are you really
delivering to the
audience? Why should
they care to follow? 1 2 4 5 Use the blog
headlines to
Who’s building the
content calendar?
Plan and develop your e-
Distribute newsletter;
Create Your customers will
Who’s creating content? Publish via Social
Organization’s click back to your
What are the weekly/ via Blog Media and blog to read the
monthly story ideas?
(Sticky) Email full articles,
Who’s approving the
Content which will
content? 3 Optimize with your
improve your
search engine
Who’s responding/ priority search
Tip: “Sticky” = 1) unexpected, 2) rankings!
conversing with the delivers emotional, functional or engine keywords
entertainment value, 3) simple
audience?
The Social Media Planning and Execution
twitter.com/buildingbelief Map

53. Rings of Influence and Interest
Implication
Interest
“Brag Communities
Network”
Friends/Famil
y
Topic/Theme
Admirers
Interest Communities
Content
Participants General
& Topics
Teams/Clubs/ Population
Groups/ Media/Blogs
Schools/Church Who Cover the Topic/Theme
/Alumni and/or its Implications
Networks Workplace
Interest in the Individual Participants Interest in the Topic
Turbo-Charged by Popularity of Participant Turbo-Charged by SUCCESs Criteria

54. Developing an Influencer Strategy
• An influencer is someone who helps other people buy from you
• Influence is contextual
• Popularity is not influence
• Passion, knowledge advocacy and popularity are factors of influence
• Everyone can be an influencer about the topics they are passionate about
• You don’t have to know your influencers (but it can help). Instead of finding them
allow influencers to self-identify
• Influencers are “turned-on” by empowering them to be advocates
• Most influencers are hard to influence. You can’t buy influence – stay authentic
• Your most influential customers are already predisposed to buy from you
• Influencers are often driven by status: recognition is more important than rewards
• (bonus) If your products suck it will be really hard to find influencers. The opposite is
true, of course.

55. Time to Build Belief…
jeffj@mythologymarketing.com
mythologymarketing.com