Using a Slogan to Pick Up Readers
Posted on Saturday, June 30, 2018 at 10:47 AM
Developing an effective slogan that will reel in your target audience.
By
William Dunkerley
A magazine publisher once told me about his
plans for audience expansion. "I just need a catchy slogan," he
explained. His expectation was that an attractive slogan would promote
his brand and bring in many more subscribers.
I had to explain
that, in all candor, the idea that all he needed was a clever slogan was
quite naive. In my experience slogans don't sell subscriptions;
strategies do. That's not to say a slogan can't play a role in an
effective strategy. But before writing a clever slogan, it's important
to decide upon a clever marketing strategy. That's what will sell
subscriptions. The slogan should be a reflection of that marketing
strategy.
The Psychology behind Slogans
An article
titled "The Psychology of a Smart Slogan" published by Corporate-Eye.com
gives an interesting insight into slogans. It explains that "a slogan is
a phrase intended to capture the essence of the ideas connected to an
organization. It is a short yet powerful way to present product features
and benefits using only a few punchy words. The idea is for the slogan
to make the consumers feel good when they read it. Slogans may seem to
be nothing more than just another marketing approach; in actuality,
however, a strong undercurrent of subconscious activity belies this
seeming simplicity."
The article asserts that "slogans work
(or don't work) due to 'priming.'" What is meant by "priming"? Psychology
Today provides a technical definition: "Priming is a nonconscious
form of human memory concerned with perceptual identification of words
and objects. It refers to activating particular representations or
associations in memory just before carrying out an action or task. For
example, a person who sees the word 'yellow' will be slightly faster to
recognize the word 'banana.' This happens because yellow and banana are
closely associated in memory. Additionally, priming can also refer to a
technique in psychology used to train a person's memory in both positive
and negative ways."
Two Sample Slogans, Two Sample
Strategies
With that all said, your slogan needs to be
appropriate for the strategy that you seek to implement. To illustrate
this, let's consider slogans used by two automobile manufacturers. The
first car is the BMW, an upscale German auto that is very popular in the
US.
The high-end BMW.
The other is the Škoda. Most STRAT
readers will probably never have heard of it. This car was manufactured
for decades in Czechoslovakia in a government-owned factory. It was a
low-end, rear-engine car of questionable reliability that had a bad
reputation.
The old low-end Škoda.
Later, in the Czech Republic,
manufacturing was eventually privatized and a new, modern Škoda model
was introduced. One could see the quality improvements just by looking
at the car.
What slogans have been used by these disparate auto
brands?
BMW has made good use of the slogan, "BMW, The Ultimate
Driving Machine."
Škoda, to introduce its new model,
successfully used the slogan, "It's a Škoda. Honest!"
These
are two good slogans based on two good strategies.
Just to prove
how well those slogans are wedded to their respective strategies, try
reversing them: "It's a BMW. Honest!" This slogan seems to make no sense
and would only confuse consumers. "Škoda, The Ultimate Driving Machine"
would have sounded like somebody's idea of a joke.
Target
Audience Strategy
So strategy is important. But what strategy
should you use to gain more subscribers? To do this effectively, you
really must know something about the kind of people you are trying to
attract. What interests them? What are their needs for information?
Many
publications seek to attract virtually anybody as a reader -- or,
perhaps, to find more readers who resemble the characteristics of
current readers. Such approaches may lead you astray, however.
The
goal of any magazine that seeks to be profitable through advertising
sales should be to attract readers who are qualified to become customers
of your advertisers. The principal qualification is that they have the
interest or need and the financial resources to buy what is advertised.
Your
subscription marketing, therefore, should be targeted at that segment,
your target audience. In developing a strategy and slogan, your first
step should be to carefully identify the best target audience for your
promotional efforts.
William Dunkerley is principal of William
Dunkerley Publishing Consultants, www.publishinghelp.com.
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