10SMALL BUSINESSES

#MarketingMistakes

Should Avoid At All Cost

@LogoDesignGuru

#ThinkDesign | #LDG

In its true

essence,

marketing is a

contest for

consumer

attention

@LogoDesignGuru

#ThinkDesign | #LDG

Getting it right can

lead to phenomenal

results, while even

the tiniest error can

make it vulnerable

@LogoDesignGuru

#ThinkDesign | #LDG

What the gurus say

about marketing…

@LogoDesignGuru

#ThinkDesign | #LDG

“People don’t know

what they want

until you show it to

them”

- Steve Jobs

@LogoDesignGuru

#ThinkDesign | #LDG

“The aim of marketing

is to know and

understand the

customer so well that

the product or service

fits him and sells

itself”

- Peter Drucker

@LogoDesignGuru

#ThinkDesign | #LDG

Marketing blunders

have plagued hundreds

of brands. Even today,

brands suffer due to

fatal errors in marketing

@LogoDesignGuru

#ThinkDesign | #LDG

Some of the worst marketing mistakes brands ever

made and what you can learn from them…

#1 The Mascot

King’s Tyranny

Brand: Burger King’s first mascot that

surprised people by appearing from

nowhere at different locations. This made

people hate the brand rather than love it.

Lesson: Always test your marketing

strategy first.

#2 Colgate Meals,

Be Serious

Brand: Colgate decided to market its

brand by selling meals under

Colgate’s name. The results were

disastrous

Lesson: Always stick to what you do

best.

#3 The Unsinkable Titanic

Brand: Titanic was marketed as a

masterpiece of engineering. They

even went as far as to say that it

was unsinkable. After the ship sank,

the company went bankrupt.

Lesson: Always be truthful in your

marketing

#4 The Doritos

Princess

Brand: A commercial from Doritos

shows a child requesting her father

to play with her. The father negates

at first but agrees later upon seeing

a bag of Doritos in the hands of his

child. Seriously?

Lesson: Make your marketing

realistic.

#5 JP Morgan’s

Fumble

Brand: JP Morgan thought it would

be wise to give a chance to their

customers to chat with the Vice

Chairman of the company via a

public session on Twitter. A true

recipe for disaster.

Lesson: Always beware and be

ready for criticism from your

customers.

#6 Chevrolet’s

Marketing Genius

Brand: GM’s Marketing VP Jim

Campbell asked his company’s

employees not to use the term

”Chevy”, used affectionately by its

customers, but rather use the official

term “Chevrolet” in marketing efforts.

Lesson: The customer is always

right.

#7 Kayak’s Stair

Lift

Brand: Kayak showed a commercial

in which an elderly women is forced

to climb the stairs while her son

overtakes her “stairlift” to go

upstairs. This ad seems an insult to

elderly people.

Lesson: Don’t contradict reality and

ethics in marketing

#8 Home Depot’s

Eye for Detail

Brand: A tweet from Home Depot

which compares black men to

gorillas.

Lesson: Avoid racism in your

marketing campaigns.

#9 Netfilx and

Qwikster

Brand: Netflix marketed its

streaming online media platform as

“Qwikster”. The company sustained

heavy losses due this one mistake.

Lesson: Make rebranding relevant.

#10 The Sweeter

Side of Coke

Situation: Coke introduced a slightly

sweeter version of their beverage

replacing the original Coke. The

result was widespread protests by

Coke fans.

Lesson: Never replace your original

idea if it has been successful.

The essence of good marketing lies in …

Ability to capture customer attention

Maintain brand

reputation

Honesty in the

message

Sustain originality

Need more advice on good

marketing? Head towards

our ThinkDesign blog