There’s never a right time (so do it often)

Repeat frequently: repetition and frequency are my friends

“There’s no doubt about it,” said a marketer friend of mine a few years back, “quantity trumps quality.” I remember at the time being taken slightly aback. Here, after all, was a person who had the highest standards, who produced work of incredible creativity and originality. Somebody who always went the extra mile, who was never truly satisfied with his own work. But over time, I’ve come to see what he meant. He wasn’t saying that quality doesn’t matter. It does – to him, to me, and I’m sure to you. It’s just that in today’s fast-paced world, with its endless demands on people’s time and attention, it’s often not the most striking, original and creative efforts that win through. It’s the ones people see most often. In a word, quantity.

Back to the drawing board

Have you ever sent out a direct-mail piece, an e-mailshot, or even a fax mailshot (remember those?) and been disappointed with the results? I have. The adrenaline high of getting your effort out the door is only matched by the nervous expectation of a surge of responses. And then by the bitter disappointment when that surge fails to materialise. Was it the design? The copy? The offer? The price? Or worse, was it me? Am I a horrible person? Are they trying to send me a message? Should I just head for the nearest beach, leave my clothes in a neat pile, and walk seawards, never to be seen again? We’ve all been there. And yet, time and again, there’s one thing we fail to take into account. The selling process – and thus the buying process – is not just related to the design, copy, offer and price. It’s also related to chance. Did it hit at the right time? Were your prospects in the right frame of mind? What day of the week was it? Was it before or after payday? Had they just had another similar offer? And most importantly, were they ready to buy? Because that’s the most critical question. Just last week, I was in a department store here in Cambridge, idly looking at DAB/FM/Internet radios. “Can I help you sir?” said the wide-eyed salesman, in his most solicitous Are You Being Served? voice. The answer was no. I was just twiddling the buttons, checking out the sound quality and comparing the features. In other words, Not Ready To Buy. Two days later, I bought. Nothing could have induced me not to buy, as I’d made up my mind. And it wasn’t Captain Peacock who got the commission, but another salesman, who had the good fortune to be in the right place at the right time. Chance, in other words.

Spanning the divide

So if selling is so dependent on chance, luck and cycles, how do you know when to strike? You don’t. Apart from the obvious times (Christmas, New Year, Easter, Valentine’s Day, the end of the month and so on) there’s no certainty. It’s not predictable, so don’t bother trying. Instead, remember my creative friend. Quantity trumps quality. So do it. Do it again. And again. Eventually, you’ll hit at the right time, and they’ll buy. It’s also worth bearing in mind that when it comes to the buying process:

Reassurance and confidence take time, and the more you show up, the more reassured and confident your prospects become. Or to coin a phrase, familiarity breeds content.
Memories are short. This week Japan, last week Libya, before then Bahrain, Egypt and Tunisia. Haiti anyone? Thought not. We humans can only take so much in, and retain it. News, products, special offers. We remember what we saw last. So make sure you’re what they saw last, by turning up often.

Does this mean you should just keep churning out the same material over and over again? No. You can always get a bit more scientific:

Divide your prospects into groups and test different creative pieces on them.
Play with price, offers and inducements to see what works best.
Experiment with new channels, delivery methods and response mechanisms.

Over time, you can see what works best, and do it again and again. But if something doesn’t work first time, don’t immediately discount it. It may not be the copy, the design, the price or the offer. It may simply be chance and the vagaries of people’s crazy schedules and overloaded memories. If you’re convinced you’re on to a winner, stick with your gut feel and keep pushing it out. Make sure you’re happy with the quality, but never forget the quantity. As my wise old (rich, successful) friend said, it wins hands down. Every time. Find out more:

Strutting his stuff: the inimitable Captain Peacock keeps the floor staff in check.

Kevin Ideas, Marketing.