I believe in marketing. I believe in PR. I believe that solid strategic communications efforts can drive consumer behavior. But I also believe that if you don’t have a good product or service, marketing and PR cannot be the lone fuel of your business.
I was reminded of this recently when visiting a family member in the hospital. The hospital grounds were immaculate. The doctors were skilled and personable. The nurses and other staff were efficient and kind. Customer service was outstanding. No amount of marketing could have influenced my family’s opinion of this hospital as much as our experience. This hospital has a good product.
Fast forward to a different hospital experience. The staff provided poor customer service. My family felt uncomfortable. The nurses put the IV in the wrong arm. We will never return to that hospital — no matter how nice their billboards are or how fancy their Web site is. Of course, when you’re talking about your health, you have less patience for giving an organization another chance.
I think about this with the re-branding of American car companies. They can change their messaging. They can educate us on the vast improvements in American vehicles over the past 20 years that we may not be aware of. But if they cannot demonstrate that their product is a good one, marketing and PR can only do so much. Communications can get consumers to the dealership. It can encourage test drives. It can drive them to the Web site to look at financing. But in my view, it can’t close the deal.
So, yes, I believe strongly in the value of PR and marketing. And I believe it should be thoughtful, strategic, creative. But I also know it has to be supported by a stellar product or service to be successful.
Not sure if you’re familiar with The Ad Contrarian (http://adcontrarian.blogspot.com), but he riffs on the periphery of this topic on a fairly regular basis.
At the risk of oversimplifying his message, you get people to like your brand by getting them to try your product–you can’t just create a brand out of the ether. To that, I would add that most consumers only allow themselves to be burned once (as illustrated by your bad experience at Hospital B); while a longtime customer may be willing to overlook an occasional misstep.
When was the last time you saw a Jaguar/Ferrari/Lamborghini/Bentley commercial? They also may just really know their demographic and because I’m low-middle class, I’m not subject to their ads. Now I’m curious!