grab bag blog

One of the best places to start with your marketing strategy is the idea that nobody cares about your event or product. This is the natural state of almost all media and products, isn’t it? Take movies for example: let’s say you’re trying to get me to go see a new action movie. “Who’s in it?” I ask. If the answer is “It stars [insert big name, like Tom Cruise or Keanu Reeves or Judi Dench],” then you’ve given me a reason to care by connecting it to a known commodity, an actor that I may already have an affinity for. What if it has no name stars (or even if it does)? The next question is “what is it about?” I’m not asking for a plot summary, I’m asking for a hook. Don’t tell me the story— tell me why I should care about the story. Is it a unique take? Is the cinematography cool? Is the atmosphere brilliantly realized? Are the special effects out of this world? Is the location something I haven’t seen before? How is your movie a better thing to see than whatever else might be on Netflix or in Redbox tonight? Most importantly, how does your movie fit into my life? What is the experience I will have? Is this a guys-night-out event (cuz I love those)? Is it a romantic dinner-and-movie night (cuz those are good too)? Is it a family comedy that leaves you quoting catch phrases (cuz I could certainly use one of those right now)? How will this make my life better? These are just three examples of ways to engage a potential buyer. There are many more, but they all boil down to making somebody need to have what you’re offering. Because it’s not just that they don’t know what you’re selling, it’s that right now, they don’t care.