What Marketers Can Learn From "Pumpkin Mania"

Back when baby boomers were kids Halloween was a simple and quaint occasion Trickortreaters were released into the neighborhood with their costumes candy bags and UNICEF cartons while their parents stayed home had dinner and read the paper Somewhere along the way Halloween became a big party with an open invitation Everyone amp8212 even pets amp8212 were welcome to attend As the popularity of Halloween grew so too did the marketing profits as candy night had evolved into an allday food festivalWith so much pressure to win in a limited time frame brands are turning on their Halloween marketing earlier and earlier every year Halloween in the summer Why not Dunkin39 introduced its new Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Latte on August 21 while many of us were still at the beach But when big brands like this set a new calendar others have no choice but to react in kind With everyone behaving the same way in the same space it39s easier to get to saturation and commoditization faster Halloween is still weeks away but there39s a good chance that many of us are already weary from overexposure to trendy new pumpkinflavored foods beverages and even pumpkin spice vape juiceThere39s an adage in advertising that says once something is declared quotinquot it39s already quotoutquot If you39re trying to get in on the valuable trend of marketing to the Halloween holiday perhaps you should consider a contrarian strategy for example avoiding crowded trendy spaces like pumpkin and exploring vacated traditional spaces After all fad behavior can be circular Who would have thought that millennials would be spinning vinyl records or wearing flannel shirts What39s old can always be new again especially if you will it to be If so what can marketers learn from Pumpkin Mania to win business with timeless ideas for ageless peopleDon39t chase opportunities create themPumpkin Mania is a great example of what can happen when too many brands chase the same trendy idea at the same time Trends are irresistible because they fuel the elusive fast growth rates that so many brands are seeking What39s more capitalizing on a trend is a relatively simple endeavor as someone else has already done the innovation and taken the risk But being a follower is better than being a leader until it isn39tGiven how hard it is to predict trends and how selfcanceling it can be when too many brands follow a trend think about the timeless ideas that might exist in your category If it39s worked before there was probably a boomer driving that success As this generation ages they39re only too happy to reassociate themselves with timeless quotfadsquot from their younger years Timeless brands think The Rolling Stones make boomers feel ageless which is only a good thing Why chase new trends when you can be the only one in your category to refresh a timeless trendPrioritize the consumer you know bestThe best brands create opportunity by having a deeper understanding of emerging consumer needs and preferences and executing against it first While millennials have a wellearned reputation for being difficult to figure out boomers are known entities to many brands that have marketed to them for decades Who knows Hershey39s better than a boomer amp8212 and viceversa Is Hershey39s prioritizing them this OctoberAs you think about stepping out of the fray of trend marketing consider underleveraged consumers such as boomers who respond to timeless ideas from classic brands If you win with them now you will have a consumer relationship that will continue to deliver value long after the last jackamp243lantern has been carvedCreate enduring equities that are trendresilientIf you39re looking for a pumpkin spice coffee this month you won39t have to look very far Seasonal variants are a timeproven way for marketers to create timely new interest in their offerings The catch here is that once a brand has tasted success with this approach it becomes the modus operandi Suddenly the annual marketing plan is a series of seasonal or periodic initiatives that lack a cohesive brand benefitEarly in my career I was fortunate to be part of the Folgers Coffee ad agency We created the quotBest Part of Wakin39 Upquot campaign in 1984 and it39s still driving growth today because the brand stands for quotMountain Grown Coffeequot that wakes you up and brightens your day Regardless of what trendy flavor or format they may sell and at what time of year their success is also powered by the brand39s underlying equity of being the beloved morning brand that makes for great days The lesson here is simple Use trends to create opportunistic momentum for brands that stand for something that39s enduringTrends are and always will be an important part of marketing but in the end the goal is to be a brand that persists well after the trend has run its course Easier said than done To help with this try thinking of the connection between your brand and its users like a human relationship The strongest of all human relationships amp8212 the marriages that endure for a lifetime amp8212 are built on a solid foundation of love and respect If a relationship is high in love and low in respect it ends up being a fling Too much respect and not enough love is a relationship that also ends early because it39s not interesting The implication here is that trends engender newfound interest and love in brands but to endure long after the trend that same brand must also engender the consumer39s respect that is something about the brand must also appeal to the rational side of the consumer39s instinctsIf respect is a key ingredient of longterm brand relationships don39t forget that boomers are at a stage in life where they39re starting to realize that the brands they39ve loved for years no longer love or respect them They39re frustrated that they39re feeling neglected but they still want to believe that they matter So think about getting out of the quotfad frayquot and stepping away from consumers who are in it for the short term Why not target the most valuable cohort in market the boomers who are yearning to be respected by brands they already love In the end anyone can do pumpkin The trick is to spice up your marketing with timeless ideas that are a real treat for ageless boomersPhoto courtesy of EatercomClick the social buttons to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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What Marketers Can Learn From "Pumpkin Mania"

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Peter Hubbell

"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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What Marketers Can Learn From "Pumpkin Mania"

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Peter Hubbell

"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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