You want to talk about modern advertising, and lots of buzzwords will come up. “Social.” “Integrated.” “Consumer-focused.” You name it. And hey, why not? They’re all good ideas. But let’s talk about good old fashioned guts.
Now, there’s a lot of different kinds of advertising. If you’re making a sales pitch, you’ve got one set of goals, but building brand awareness is something else entirely. With brand awareness advertising, you’re just looking to get your name and logo out in front of as many eyeballs as you can, as often and as memorably as you can. And when it comes to doing something memorable, I can’t think of anything more effective and more awe-inspiring than literally jumping out of a spaceship and plummeting 24 miles back to the surface of the Earth while wearing a corporate logo.
Sure enough, “Red Bull Stratos” made just such a splash when Felix Baumgartner, Austrian daredevil and serious badass, reached an altitude high enough to be considered outer space, took a look out his capsule portal… and jumped. The story was an immediate sensation, for obvious reasons, and hit every major news delivery vehicle like a firestorm. And every single story made mention of the folks behind the escapade, Red Bull. How’s that for building brand awareness?
I don’t expect you to jump out of a spaceship when it comes your turn – and if you expect me to jump out of one, let me tell you, there’s not enough whiskey in the world to get me convinced. But the fundamental principle is sound. When you’re building brand awareness for your business, you’ve got to get bold. A compelling message and a gutsy delivery will enable you to stand out in a crowded field. And if you can stand out, then it’s your name that people will remember when next they need the sort of product or service you’re offering.
