[5 Links] Jason Sperling on Building Brand Attraction in an Age of Brand Aversion

The RPA ECD and author of  "Look At Me When I'm Talking To You" - currently unfolding one page a day on Instagram (@lookatmebook) - shares links on fostering brand loyalty in an attention-scarce world.

// Previously in [5 Links]: Faris Yakob on Paid Attention //

Letting Consumers Control Marketing: Priceless
JS: I was especially taken with this quote in the New York Times by an SVP at Walmart, “Today the customer is in charge, and whoever is best at putting the customer in charge makes all the money.” This simply conveyed what I had been witnessing in recent years—consumers, rather than advertisers, are now doing the interrupting. 

The Guilty Truth: There’s Too Much Content
JS: We all know that there is an epic amount of consumer-related content and clutter out there, and this piece talks about how we aren’t able to absorb all that content that interests and that we’re overwhelmed by content overload. 

Permission Marketing: Internet Marketing Pioneer Seth Godin Says He Wants to Change the Way Almost Everything Is Marketed to Almost Everybody. Will You Give Him Permission to Come In and Show You the Future?
JS: Seventeen years ago, the legendary Seth Godin pinpointed that advertising is fighting for people’s attention and that “there’s too much going on in our lives to enjoy being interrupted anymore.” Fast-forward to today. Think about the advancement of technology since this article was written, including the array of smart devices that we depend on daily plus a tidal wave of social media channels that distracts daily life more than we realize.

How to Create a Brand With Values: Some Brands Are Born Good. Other Brands Need to Have Goodness Thrust Upon Them. How Can Companies Tell the Right Stories to Make Them More Values-Driven—and More Successful?
JS: One of my new rules for inspiring loyalty from jaded consumers in this day and age is to “use a magnet, not a mallet.” It is up to us as brand stewards to share our consumers’ beliefs—which will help foster a magnetic field—to validate their way of thinking. Shared values with consumers are powerful relationship builders says the Ben & Jerry’s founder in this article. 

Why Kmart Lost the Attention of Discount Shoppers: In a World Where Rivals Can Match or Exceed Its Price Promise, Kmart’s Brand Meaning Has Lost Its Relevance
JS: Many brands still live under the notion that creating a viral sensation equals marketing success. This couldn’t be further from the truth: see Kmart and “Ship my Pants.” Although this video garnered more than 15 million YouTube views, Kmart sales continued to decline even after the YouTube success.

Jason Sperling, SVP/ECD at advertising agency RPA, is exclusively posting his new book, Look At Me When I’m Talking To You (@lookatmebook on Instagram), a discussion about winning over jaded, overstimulated consumers, one illustrated, standalone page a day. Rather than passively reading the book, Instagram facilitates a shared conversation with readers. Sperling joined RPA in 2010 from Media Arts Lab, where he was the driving force behind the worldwide “Get a Mac” Apple campaign, declared Campaign of the Decade by Adweek and Top 10 of the Century by AdAge.