“Me great” marketing sucks
So, I’m watching the Kentucky Derby last weekend and it’s sponsored by Yum! brands. Do you know who Yum! is? Do you care? Well, some ego-centric person seemed to care because they spent a solid chunk of change to ‘bring awareness’ to the parent company of several other well-known brands.
And what are those brands? You may have heard of them because they spend millions to compete for your fast food dollar: KFC, Taco Bell, Long John Silver’s, and a few others. These brands have a lot of clout, and whether you patronize them or not, there’s no denying their impact and notoriety in our culture.
Answer me this? Why did Yum feel they needed to have a identity, too? For me it’s the epitome of egocentric marketing – the worst way to promote anything. It’s a pissing contest – look how swell we are. We own all these brands and you better know us (or else).
Who cares? I sure didn’t.
So instead of building on their unique brands individual marketing identity, they clouded the consumer with another useless fragmentation. It was stupid. It was a waste of resources. And a colossal waste of money. They should be ashamed of themselves for putting out this arrogant and ego-maniacal marketing effort. Of course the Taco Bell Kentucky Derby doesn’t quite sound right (and the Yum Kentucky derby did?).
But I guess that’s better than the Elmer’s Glue Kentucky Derby!
The lesson is simple: don’t fall prey to egocentric marketing. Don’t focus on how great (you think) you are and instead focus on the client and what they get from your creative products and services. Benefits are all anyone wants. And talking about yourself, as Yum decided to do, is the antithesis of what marketing and promotion is about. What a waste. Don’t you fall into that trap.
Promise?
