Morning!

Here’s what my last week has looked like…

Monday: Skydive
Tuesday: Work
Wednesday: Shoot day
Thursday: Team social (in London)
Friday: Drive to Wrexham
Saturday: Wedding

Hectic is an understatement. It feels like a blessing to take a few hours to sit down and write.

Anyway, here’s what you’ll learn today: 

• Marketing campaigns that changed the world

• How they made it happen

• Who was behind them

NOTE: Remember to check out the audio version of this breakdown below!

LISTEN TO THE AUDIO VERSION

BREAKING DOWN THE STRATEGY

When we think of weddings, we think:

• White dress

• Fancy suits

• Big diamond rings

But one of those things is an intruder - the diamond rings. 

Because without one viral marketing campaign, they probably wouldn’t even exist today.

Back in 1477, Archduke Maximilian of Austria proposed to Mary of Burgundy with a diamond ring. You’d think after that the trend must have continued up to the modern era.

But it didn’t.

Although that was the first recorded diamond ring proposal it actually didn’t become widespread until the 20th century.

Why?

Because of De Beers’ infamous marketing campaign.

In the late 1930s, the diamond industry was struggling due to the Great Depression. Not to mention South Africa was pumping out diamonds back then, which meant the market became saturated.

• No one had money to buy them (demand was low)

• South Africa was supplying too many (supply was high)

Not a good look if you’re trying to sell diamonds.

At this point, De Beers (the world's largest diamond mining company) got a little bit panicky and decided they had to find a way to revive the diamond market.

So they hired N.W. Ayer (an NYC marketing agency) as a last-ditch attempt to save their company - and industry.

After a bunch of market research to understand attitudes and perceptions towards diamonds, N.W. Ayer noticed that they needed to add some emotional value to diamonds.

Rolex had done it with watches.
Rolls-Royce had done it with cars.

They needed to do it with diamonds.

So they decided to try and reposition diamonds as the ultimate symbol of love and eternal commitment.

That’s when the infamous phrase, “A diamond is forever” was born.

It meant diamonds were no longer just a shiny part of the ring. They were a symbol of something much more. An emotion that people wanted to showcase when they were proposing.

That campaign changed everything.

Before it ran only 10% of engagement rings contained diamonds. By the early 1990s, this number had skyrocketed to 80%.

In the United States alone, diamond sales increased from $23 million in 1939 to $2.1 billion by the end of the 20th century.

1 campaign. That changed the way we live.

But this got me thinking…

How many other marketing campaigns completely shaped the way we live our lives?

De Beers changed proposals. Albert Lasker made us drink orange juice for breakfast.

But were there others?

After 2 hours of research, I quickly realised the answer was a big fat yes.

Here are 3 marketing campaigns that changed our lives forever (+ what we can learn from them) ↓

Campaign 1: A “Hearty Breakfast”

The “hearty” breakfast you know today, was sold to you by marketers.

In the early 20th century, the typical breakfast was nothing like it is today.

It consisted of:

• Toast

• Fruit

• Porridge

And other lighter foods.

For bakers and fruit farmers, this was fantastic. But for pig farmers… it was an absolute disaster.

So Beech-Nut Packing Company brought in Edward Bernays (often referred to as the "father of public relations") to up their bacon sales.

Bernays knew that if he was going to change the taste buds of America he couldn’t be the one shilling them bacon.

So, Bernays wrote to 5,000 physicians asking if they agreed that a “Hearty breakfast” was the healthiest thing to eat in the morning. Over 4,500 doctors responded affirmatively, supporting the benefits of a substantial breakfast that included bacon and eggs. 

(All things Bernays client happened to be wanting to sell).

He then started to push this “Hearty breakfast” to America with taglines like “The real American breakfast”.

There is actually a video on YouTube where Bernays quickly walks through the campaign… highly recommend checking it out.

Campaign 2: “Think Small”

Americans are renowned for liking things bigger and better.

Yet today, American roads are filled with small, practical cars.

Well, pre-1950 most American car ads pushed the idea that the bigger the car, the better it was. Which wasn’t great for Volkswagon who were trying to break the VW Beatle into the American market.

So in 1959, VW hired Bill Bernbach’s agency DDB to solve the issue.

That’s when they published the “Think Small” campaign:

Now there were 2 genius things about this campaign:

1/ It mirrored public perception

The easiest way to get someone to make a friend is to mirror that person. If they think a certain way, act like you do too. Instantly, they feel like you’re both on the same page.

And that’s exactly what this campaign did.

VW laughed at themselves, the same way Americans did. But when they laughed with them, it stopped them laughing at them.

2/ It highlighted practical benefits

Whilst being funny to the masses, it also showcased the clear benefits of buying a Beatle. It’s smaller, more efficient, and more practical.

People laughed. Then they paused. Then they thought. Then they bought.

Campaign 3: “A Diamond Is Forever”

Okay, I’ve already given the story of this campaign, but I didn’t want to leave you without giving you the key lessons from it. Because De Beers did a couple of things that we should all take note of.

1/ Add emotional attachment

People buy with their hearts much more than they buy with their heads. They pull the trigger with emotion, then justify with logic - and that’s important to remember.

No one buys fancy cars because they feel better to drive, they just tell themselves that after.

The more emotion you can tie into the purchase, the better (as long as it’s positive, of course!)

2/ Sell outcomes

Kind of a basic marketing principle, but one everyone should remember.

De Beers rocketed the price and demand for diamonds by making it more than just a shiny object. No one wants a shiny object, they want the outcome the shiny object brings.

For customers of De Beers, that’s a showing of endless love to their partner.

 🌱 THE GREENHOUSE

Things I’ve saved this week that are worth seeing:

• Watch Bernay break down his bacon campaign. (See here)

• Read how orange juice became a breakfast drink. (See here)

• How Tesla used stories in their marketing. (See here)

TL;DR

1/ Understand who has influence on your target audience. Then let them preach.

2/ Mirror your target audience. Then show them the benefits.

3/ Add emotion. Then sell the outcome.

Right, time for me to go and get ready for this wedding!

Hope you learned something.

If you did, why not forward this email to a friend - appreciate ya :)

Until next Sunday.

— Niall

WAIT… BEFORE YOU GO

If you’ve read this far, why not see how else I can help you:

• Follow me on Twitter for more marketing stuff.

• Connect with me on LinkedIn to follow my business journey.

• Want to work with me? Start HERE.

THAT’S ALL!

This has been a breakdown of marketing that changed how we live. I hope you have learned something and can implement a similar strategy in your business!

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