heart marketing Archives - Page 2 of 2

It’s with the greatest of #RockHot pleasure I introduce a new product I’ve been dying to publish for several years. With my co-host John Gregory Olson, a peer in the marketing sector and blogger extraordinaire, I’m so pleased to announce the debut of The Heart Of Marketing Podcast!

In our first 6.5 episodes already available on iTunes for your listening pleasure, we explore a variety of topics oriented to heart marketing, marketing with heart, who’s doing marketing with love, and how a mid-tier business gets to the heart of the matter.

Care to listen in to our pre-launch episode where we do the intros and giggle through the whole thing? Well, I do the giggling and John lures me back to center!

Episode 000 of The Heart Of Marketing Podcast

You Subscribe And We Give!

Our official launch is today, February 9, 2015 and it’s Heart Month, Valentine’s Day and, yep, Jayme Soulati’s birthday. There’s a special promo we’d like to share. When you subscribe to our podcast in iTunes (Stitcher is coming soon!) and (see below how to do that), John and I will donate $1 per subscriber up to $500 to The American Heart Association! W00t!

When you listen and give us a rating (we like 5 stars!) and review, there very likely could be a special something saying thanks and we love you coming your way. Of course, that’s not a definitive because that would be like buying votes! Gahh!

Open For Suggestions

There is so much we can talk about in our 30-minute show, but it’s no fun coming up with the topics without your input. So, please, in the comments below or via my contact form on my site, send along your suggestions for show topics.

If you’d like to be a guest on the show, feel free to send along a pitch, too.

The OMGosh we did it still amazes us both. Our show has been in the works since September 2014. While the barrier to entry is pretty high for a podcast, the medium is so fun and natural for us both, and we’re really jazzed to share with you.

How to Rate, Review, Subscribe to The Heart Of Marketing Podcast

1.Click on this link in iTunes.com to get to the home page of our podcast. Open in iTunes via the app.

2. Listen to an episode — I like Episode 000 above (introductions), and I also like Episode 001 about Taylor Swift.

3. Click on the ratings and reviews section (we like 5 stars if you can afford them!) and drop in a few words in the reviews section.

4. Click Subscribe and you won’t miss an episode!

The full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal boasts a “four-layered masterpiece” describing the hazelnut swirl atop the new Hazelnut Macchiato by Starbucks. The final words we’re left with (there are only 25 words total) are “Crafted by hand and heart.”

Several years ago, I complained to anyone who’d listen that Starbucks was in bed with the Wall Street Journal. I had never seen so much publicity and positive stories in this national business daily for a brand without the power and global reach of IBM, for example.

Incidentally, IBM is one of the five stocks being attributed for pushing the Dow to record high on March 6, 2013.

The ad we’re seeing by Starbucks today is colorfully creamy with espresso blending into the white latte to show a caramel you can’t resist (I never buy those ridiculously expensive lattes that are so full of calories, too). What is an appeal, suggests Starbucks, is that every barista makes your coffee drink with loving care — from the heart.

I’ve heard of people say that some baristas write a patron’s name on a cup with a cute little heart and a “have a great day” sentiment. I wonder if anyone has ever written a phone number for some cute customer? I think that would be too much heart.

Brands Using Heart Marketing

No other examples of powerful brands using heart come directly to mind, and (I think I just coined a new marketing field, Heart Marketing), so let’s do a scan through the last two days of Wall Street Journals to see whether heart is conjured:

Toyota: Toyota Shakes Up Top Ranks. Apparently, the family-owned car giant is now ready to welcome outsiders with open arms to its executive management. Think that’s a heart-felt move? Nope, just one of necessity for survival.
Clorox: The general counsel of Clorox, Laura Stein, researched the new CEO’s management style to learn how better to work with him. The new CEO, Donald Knauss “likes her go-getter style; ‘she will help anyone who asks for help.'” Heart or get-ahead smarts? I’m saying a bit of both. People who help have to be transparent or it’s just too smarmy.
Honest Tea: I wrote a post right here about Honest Tea and its CEO op-ed in the Wall Street Journal (what is it about the Wall Street Journal and beverage companies?) and in today’s paper that company gets a quarter page of top publicity with three color photos of beverages about Honest Tea’s New Soda. This company does have a heart and I know its guiding principles are about heart. Yes, a good example of powerful brands living by and using heart.

Let’s think of this a bit differently:

The world is a horrifying place for adults who are in touch with global and domestic news.
While the Dow dinks around in record territory and the housing crisis abates somewhat, students are still faced with record tuition at public universities.
Families are still grappling with lack of employment and other personal issues which contribute to red ink.

Is Starbucks on to something? With its subliminal copywriting that its baristas have a heart and care for you; does that work and will that bring in the patrons to order the new Hazelnut Macchiato?

Heart should not ever be taken with a grain of salt. It’s what I’m teaching kidlet — live from the heart, give to others first, focus outward, understand why someone is a bully and try to help them (well that’s a bit far fetched for a kid), but hopefully you get my drift.

Heart and Social Media

Heart computes in social media, too.

There are numerous people asking for help.

In fact, a 16-year-old asked me this week two questions about his brand new social media agency. Did I believe his prices were solid and how could he earn some credibility because people didn’t want to work with someone so young. I gave him my thoughts more than once and I invited him to write a guest post for The Happy Friday series.
How about the young man who found me locally who was writing a book and wanted my help publicizing that book? Now, mind you, that book of his was ensconced with one of those you-pay-we-publish businesses that just wanted his money; however, I spent time with him and counseled him and wrote a website and did a video with him. No charge.

What does your heart look like? How do you live it? I’m not talking about how much love you have for your offspring or spouse or partner. I’m talking about the values with which you live at work. Do you spout off about having heart, “C’mon, have a heart already!” or do you seriously come from a genuine place filled to the core with nurturing and caring and a desire to help, teach, support, share, and develop solid relationships?

Powerful brands can try to use heart to appeal to a patron who is down in the dumps; you, however, have the opportunity to make that a reality — a genuine and authentic reality.

What’s the outcome of all this? When someone you don’t know says to someone you do know who shares it with you, “You know what? I really like that girl, she’s the real deal.”

Enough said. Show me your heart…there’s a place for more love in business and social media. The scuttle butt I’m seeing, reading and hearing hasn’t been from the heart; perhaps it should be a guiding principle for each of us.

By Jayme Soulati