Send three and four pence we are going to a dance......

Cicero would like to apologise most profoundly and sincerely if you arrived here at the weekend expecting to read new, fresh and updated intelligent insight and wit. Cicero has been slothful and regrets it. It will not happen again.

In Cicero’s defence the work of protecting the State and its citizenry has taken precedence in past few days and though Cicero is known for his indefatigability, there are so only so many hours in the day even for one as devoted, diligent and dedicated as he.

Cicero would also like to thank last week’s respondent who privately expressed some rather critical thoughts on the musings on teaching men to fish though he is disappointed that such critical thoughts have not been expressed publicly. And please note when the word ‘criticise’ is used it is used in the proper meaning of the word.

And so to this week’s musings…………

Have you heard of the game ‘Chinese Whispers’, where you try to whisper a word or phrase down a line of players with amusing results as the message gets distorted as it passes down the line? And did you know that the world record for the longest line of people playing ‘Chinese Whispers’ was set in 2004 with 614 participants? And do you know what the message was?

Now this may be a guess, a long shot, a shot in the dark but I would surmise that you are going to depend on me to provide the answer. Well it seems that when the world record was broken the original message was ‘Mac King is a comedy magic genius’. The end result was ‘macaroni cantaloupe knows the future’ which only goes to prove that the more complex the message the greater the distortion as it passes down the line.

So what has this to do with marketing?

Brand strategy, great marketing, can be likened to a game of ‘Chinese Whispers’ if you are not careful. Indeed the way many brand identity consultants and brand managers think, it could well be.

How many times have you as a marketing professional sat through wonderful PowerPoint presentations from brand managers, consultants or agencies endeavouring to articulate what the brand is all about. It is death by PowerPoint, slaughter by copy, buried by slogans. It looks great and sounds fantastic but remember ‘Chinese Whispers’. Brand strategy is not a game which starts with the brand manager and reaches the customer via the ad agency, the salesperson and the people in the business. The only place that matters is the final person in the line-the customer. And anyone doing great marketing knows how important it is to ensure that the message is not distorted before it hits the end of the line.

Great brand strategies need no more than three words to convey what they are about. Anything more will be too complex for others to remember, activate and ultimately execute. You may have a great PowerPoint presentation but the strategy won’t work. And the probability of achieving any kind of impact on the customer and the market will be close to zero.

Great brand positioning is pithy, cogent and relevant. It focuses on the two or three things that will mark the brand out as different. It is born from insight, forged through heritage and destined to differentiate. And it must pass the t-shirt test. If it can’t fit on the front of a t-shirt it won’t do. Pass it on.

Is it only me?

Have you checked the date in your diary or in your calendar recently? I only ask because I am confused. It is only the beginning of October, or at least I thought it was unless I have somehow entered a parallel universe through some worm hole in the space time continuum. We have not yet had Halloween or Guy Fawkes Night, but I have just seen my first Christmas promotion. And already my incredibly talented marketing team have feverishly started making preparations for celebrating the holiday period which as State employees we must call it now in these multi cultural days lest we offend more sensitive souls.

Is it only me but I thought Christmas was December 25th. Has it been moved? Has a governmental enquiry been set up to consider the best day to celebrate Christmas and its report been published? Or are we now just living our lives at such a frenetic pace that it just seems if it has been moved? Our suntans have not yet faded and we are already planning Christmas.

Even though I am a man, and for this gender Christmas preparations will not start until December 23rd at the earliest, I do not understand for whom messages that Christmas is coming are aimed. Is there a tribe of incredibly stupid people out there who need to be reminded when Christmas is and who need a long lead time to prepare? Given that we seem to be being encouraged to start to think about Christmas earlier and earlier each year, I contend that by 2014 we will be being encouraged to celebrate His birth a fortnight before He has died. Even for the Son of God that is some feat.

Be assured that Cicero will not be starting his preparations any earlier despite the exhortations and as usual my Christmas card will arrive on or about January 7th. But please do let me know if you are on Santa Alert already.

Have a great week.

Sit felix. Et sit fortunatus.