DIGS is the premiere luxury real estate lifestyle magazine serving the most affluent neighborhoods in the South Bay and Westside of Los Angeles, California.
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30 DIGS.NET | 3.6.2020 Why? Maybe it's because most marketers today only care about writing "hit songs," forgoing artist development (branding) and lacking the patience to build a vested audience over time who will ultimately become loyal fans (customers.) When the record labels lost control over the access and distribution of artists and their music, they too became "hit song" marketers, and stopped nurturing and developing talent for the long-term. It's a sad and eerie parallel which should be a caution- ary tale for brands and how they go to market. Too many choices, decidedly unhappy. Log onto Spotify and you'll have over 30 million songs to choose from. Search for a marketing expert on Google and you can choose between 1,380,000 results. (Don't get me started!) Research has shown that when people become over- whelmed with options they can experience "choice overload," called "The Paradox of Choice." It's a real thing with real-life implications, especially as it relates to marketing. For brands and consumers, it means they can become paralyzed – and avoid making choices altogether. You see how this is playing out in marketing all of the time – it's easier to "spray and pray" your brand messaging all over the place, as no real strategic "deci- sion" is required. With unlimited access, distribution, and choice on what and where to distribute your messaging, it's safer and easier to stay undecided – that is, show up "everywhere" and say "whatever." And don't forget about the audience – they're getting bombarded by constant messaging and becoming You've heard of the KISS principle – "keep it simple, stupid." It's an old saying first coined in 1960 as a design prin- ciple, yet it's never been more impactful and powerful than today. Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) said it differently but perhaps more eloquently "Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication." In the music business, it's insanely tough to create hit songs. Yet those that do, follow the KISS principle. In fact, did you know that most hit songs use only four chords – E, B, C#, and A. And some of the greatest guitar players of all time are self-taught? The list of self-taught musicians is quite impressive – Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Prince and Keith Richards just to name a few. Perhaps a cruel irony is at work - the more you know, understand and practice music theory, the harder it is to write hit songs. The complexity of choice creeps in. In music, you start with 12 basic notes to choose from, then pick major or minor, and from there you will have the ability to create over 4,000 unique chords that can be played. Music theory wizards would then add variation with voicing and proclaim a "C major triad in the first inversion" is different and unique versus a " C major in the second inversion," and it gets really geeky from here. For some, it's math. For others, it's art. And for a select few – feel. But to write a hit song, four chords is all you need. The KISS principle, exemplified. Marketing is like music. Marketing at its best is simple, steady, and patient. And marketing campaigns are just like songs – some are well crafted and received; others fail miserably or go unnoticed. Success in marketing and music has everything to do with reach (audience) and frequency. With enough frequency and just the right amount of reach – you can create a hit song. But with unlimited access and distribution that today's connected economy provides, marketers have created a cacophony of noise that one could hardly call music, (and why they mostly tune out.) Its sound is dissonant, unremarkable, forgettable and hurts the ears! FOUR CHOR DS A R E A LL YOU NEED. P U B L I S H E R ' S M U S E Warren J Dow Publisher wdow@Southbaydigs.com 310.373.0142 harder to engage. And that could be the main reason why your marketing is ineffective. Back to the KISS principle – Keep it simple and repeat. Go all-in on a signature marketing channel, one that Is authentic to you and relevant to your audience and make it your own. Keep showing up, make it a habit – people will notice. But make sure the message and story you tell is focused on how you can improve people's lives – in the end, that's all that matters and why you will be allowed to exist. Unintended Consequences The challenges both marketers and consumers face today is one of choice. One thing that has not changed and never will is that time is people's most precious asset, and in a world of abundant choice, it will continue to rise in value. The unintended consequences of unlimited access and distribution are multi-faceted, but the abil- ity to be "the chosen one" and stand out in the ever-growing crowd of messaging, content, marketing, etc. is increasingly futile and close to impossible – especially if you're trying to be "everywhere a little" versus "a few places a lot." I think the golden age of curation is on the horizon. If we want to truly add value to consumers' lives, give them a better way to sift through the morass and digital junkyard of today. And stop interrupting, spamming and trolling with irrelevant, intrusive noise pollution. It's destroying your brand and annoying your audi- ence. When you amplify and try to scale because you think that "more is more," you expedite your demise. Figure out how to turn your features, benefits, and effort into a story – one that gives your customer a vision of a better life and the ability to act on it. Until next time ~