Marketing tips: learn from political activists who get it wrong

Lobbyists protesting Nestle for their bottled water.

I've been corresponding on social media with a friend who is vegan, and we've been having some very interesting discussions. (No I'm not vegan, but defend people's right to choose.) With the latest discussion, the political aspect morphed into one about being active politically.

This goes to the heart of marketing, about convincing others to take action.

The cause he invited me to sign was a petition Governor Brown to stop exporting alfalfa to Asia because of the drought. As I laid out in another blog, I wouldn't be supporting the petition anytime soon, drawing the comparison that you might as well have a petition to give Californian fish bicycles. The exact points can be made with protesting Nestle's bottled water on the basis of water use.

Part of the reason I didn't sign was that the online petition made some fundamental marketing blunders - while the facts may have been correct, the conclusions the petitioner reaches are 'extraordinary' and not in a good way. The petitioner had lost the context within the big picture, Governor Brown necessarily has to concern himself with the thing that make a big difference.

My points made, can be summed up with the following:

1. Set written objectives. Drill down to what your core objectives are, and state them clearly. Frequently assess whether or not your actions are getting you closer to your objectives.
2. Research thoroughly; spending your time on initiatives that won't make a difference is a waste of your efforts - fight the big battle.
3. Pick your battles. Stack the cards in your favor by selecting those you have a fair or better chance of effecting real change. For example, encourage non vegan people to eat less meat etc, rather than to become vegan - which is a harder sell. The harder sell can come when the customer is ready.
4. Keep high standards of information. Make sure that not only that the facts are right, that conclusions are logical, they are presented clearly and are always voiced in terms of the bigger picture - the things that are important to the customer.
5. Protect your credibility. This is extremely important. The previous three points are ultimately about protecting your credibility, so if completed with tact and respect, the stature and reach your voice has will grow exponentially, and you will be seen as someone who helps effect positive change.

An article in a Southern Californian paper does a far better job of ticking the boxes - it's a far clearer message, and asks for a realistic action. It's interesting to note that if meat and dairy consumption were reduced, then the Californian water woes would improve overnight. Reducing meat and dairy is a smaller step and a more likely of success than battling to prohibit alfalfa exports to Asia.

And there are direct parallels in marketing, as most seasoned marketers will be well aware of. Even consumers are familiar with price leaders, the amazing deal designed to wildly increase sales of discounted products, with the knowledge that once consumers have their wallet out, more purchases often follow.

Lobbyists please take note.

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Bruce Hudson founder and CEO of Gantt NZ Limited and offshoot Enzman, a small marketing company dedicated to growing client's businesses. He is also writing a book on Information Security, due out in September 2015.