March 16, 2017

Why toddlers are better at marketing than you are

They want to know 'why', and so should you

Anyone who has spent time with a toddler knows that the most frequent word out of their mouth is “why?”. It’s cute until it’s not. After the 276th time, it gets old rather quickly. But I can tell you from experience that when it comes to marketing, these kids have the right idea.

During the first part of my adult life, I was paid to ask why. As an analyst in the military, I spent my days researching, learning and constantly asking why. It was my job.

When the second season of Mad Men was on cable, I made the transition from the military to the world of marketing. I quickly learned that asking why is my most powerful tool for being effective. I’ve seen that asking that one question makes the biggest difference between good and great.

All too often in marketing, I see people focus on the wrong question first: What to do? Deciding the “what” before the “why” is the leading cause of bad advertising.

The majority of marketing is designed to do one of two things; increase brand loyalty (keep current customers) or change consumer behavior (get new customers). The hard truth of marketing is that all marketing works. Many companies have been successful by using bad advertising for years. Say something loud enough and long enough and people will hear you.

But good advertising works better, gets more customers and ultimately saves money by being more effective. If you want your marketing to be effective, take a lesson from a toddler and start with the right question: Why?

  • Why should you invest in a particular advertising?
  • Why would someone drive an extra 20 minutes to spend their money with you?
  • Why do consumers care about this product, this service, this location?

Here at tdg, we love asking questions and finding answers. If you want some help finding what questions to ask, we would love to help you. Stop by the office, send an email, or give us call. Turn us loose on your marketing challenges, and see what asking the right questions can do for your business.

Originally written by Phelan Scherer

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