👋, I’m Kimberly. I’ve been creating obsession-worthy brands for the past fifteen years. And now, I’m giving away my secrets every week in this newsletter.
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my Nope List—a list of the overused words that you should never feature in your marketing again.
This week, I’m adding to my Nope List with five common marketing tactics that need to similarly be put out to pasture ASAP—and suggestions for what you can do instead.
So check this list, then check yourself.
Let’s begin with…
The Laundry Lists of Unlinked Logos
Go to most websites today, and you’ll see it. A single (or double!) row of logos of either well-known publications or well-known clients.
These rows of logos serve an important purpose: they lend credibility to the product or service being offered.
“Oh wow!” the potential customer is meant to think. “If Vogue/Business Insider/ Forbes/ Fast Company featured them, well then they MUST be legit!”
Then, “Please, take my money!”
But whenever I see a series of logos like this, my first instinct is to click on them. And nine times out of ten, they don’t go anywhere.
This only serves to make me more suspicious.
Hmm, why doesn’t this brand want me to see what exactly got written about them? Maybe it was a top ten list of new brands that are damaging the environment, run by unscrupulous CEOs who are not treating their employees well?
The same thought goes for logos of clients.
Ok, so you worked with this client. But what exactly did you do for or with them? Did you design one email, or did you create the logo?
I also know that a lot of publications these days are pay-to-play. And getting “featured” doesn’t necessarily mean that the editors endorse your product. It may just mean they don’t hate it so much that they wouldn’t take your money.
Sometimes, the company will include a pull quote underneath the logo—and this is better.
Here’s a great example from comforter company Buffy:
But, like data, pull quotes can easily be twisted.
The example I see of this all the time is the skincare company Proven—which targets me relentlessly with ads because I’ve worked with many of their competitive brands.
Proven is constantly running ads about their appearance on Shark Tank a few years ago.
If you saw the actual episode, they got skewered. No one invested, and the sharks called BS on the fact that their formulas are not so “personalized” as they would have you believe.
But their ads would make you think they WOWED the Sharks.
How to Turn This Nope into a Yep
Logos from publications and of your impressive clients are good—but you need to beef them up.
Yes, please do include a quote. But also provide a link to the source article, so that I can read the quote in context.
If you’re showing the logo of a client, include a testimonial quote from the client. And give me a link to a page where I can either see the work you did or read a case study about it.
Your customers are getting savvier and savvier.
And giving this level of detail says a lot about you and your transparency.
The Pop-Ups That Ask You for Too Much, Too Soon
Of all the things on my Nope List, this is the one that I see the most often. And it annoys me the most.
It seems like every time you visit a website these days, you’re being greeted by an immediate pop-up asking you for your email, in exchange for a discount on your first purchase.
The problems with this method are many.
You’re moving too fast, buddy. I just met you. You haven’t bought me a drink yet, and you’re already asking for my number. This is a turnoff.
You’re selling yourself short. By screaming “discount” in my face right away, you’re training me to focus on price… when all of the other things about your brand should be front and center first. Lure me in with a story, and the price won’t matter so much.
You’re trying to trick me. Almost every time lately, if you do fill in the box with your email address, you’re immediately greeted with a SECOND box—now asking for a phone number for text messages to receive that shiny discount. For shame, for shame for not being upfront about this.
How to Turn This Nope Into a Yep
It’s all about the timing.
Instead of hitting me with your pop-up right away, wait till I’ve been browsing for a bit. Let me learn a little more about you, ask some questions, and maybe make me laugh.
Then, test out how you’re offering me the discount. Is there any other carrot you can give me that doesn’t make me focus on the price that could make me sign up… and perhaps save the discount for later (or, gasp, not at all!)?
Lastly, if you want my email AND my phone number, just say so. Don’t sneak the ask in at the end. I’ll respect you for it.
The Brands That Try Too Hard to Sound Current
It’s cool when companies show that they, too, are cool by talking like teenagers.
It makes me really want to buy their products.
Really.
Here are a few examples from one of my favorite Twitter accounts “Brands Saying Bae”—which is devoted to calling out brands who use too much try-hard language.
How to Turn This Nope Into a Yep
All good brands should have a document that defines their brand voice.
And while it can be tempting, especially in more casual online scenarios, to throw that voice out the window and get super casual… remember that your voice got defined the way it did for a reason.
You need to think about your brand voice—and think about who your customer is—before you start getting too punny, talking like a twelve-year-old, or speaking in all emojis 🙄 🙄 🙄 🙄 🙄 .
Black Friday… in October
This year, I received my first Black Friday email on October 26 — a full 30 days before the most frenzied shopping day of the year.
Here it is, in all its glory.
At first, my heart raced (The sales are coming!).
Then, my FOMO kicked in (What if I miss a deal?).
And then I tuned out (It’s all too much, too early!).
When Black Friday first became a thing, times were simpler. Black Friday was a special day when we shook off the turkey hangover, set the alarm extra early, and lined up in the cold to see what kinds of surprises retailers literally had in store for us.
As shopping shifted to digital, the competition got more fierce.
Retailers realized that they didn’t need to wait until the actual day to start their deals — and they all tried to get the jump on each other earlier and earlier.
And as consumers, our feeling of scarcity also began earlier and earlier, triggering mass anxiety and overwhelm.
How to Turn This Nope Into a Yep
Simmer down. Take a chill pill. Know when to hold ‘em.
Having a special shopping day is cool.
Having a special 30 days of shopping just isn’t special.
Then Announcing… the Next BIGGER Sale
After Black Friday comes… Cyber Monday!
And after Cyber Monday comes… Take Off Even More Tuesday!
And after Take Off Even More Tuesday comes… It’s Practically Free Wednesday!
As a consumer, the barrage of sale after sale, often with wider and deeper discounts, hits the trifecta of confusing, stressful, and disappointing.
There is nothing I hate more than stressing over the end of a sale and deciding to pull the trigger than seeing another sale announced within the same month (and sometimes the same week).
As with anything good, the more of anything you do (like running a sale!), the less special it becomes. Don’t be like The Gap—one of the most notorious examples of a brand constantly running sales.
How to Turn This Nope Into a Yep
Make your special sales feel special by abiding by the timing.
When I was running editorial at Sephora, we only ran two discounts a year: 15% off for a few days in the spring, and 20% off for a few days in November.
These sales were only for our Beauty Insider reward program members. And beauty junkies across the country would mark their calendars in advance, build their baskets, and be at the ready.
Products would sell out, frenzies would ensue, sales were through the roof, and (most importantly), we were not damaging the equity of the brand by running a ton of sales.
In Conclusion
As I wrote about my Nope List of marketing words, this Nope List of marketing tactics is by no means exhaustive.
And I’d love to hear what you’d put on it!
Email me your marketing pet peeves (also, pictures of pets) at kimberly@brandsthatgetyou.com.
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About Me
I help early stage founders create the kind of brands that get customers so obsessed, they’ll do your advertising for you.
Based on my experience founding my own consumer brand, I developed The Branding Sprint—a uniquely collaborative, streamlined, and agile approach to brand creation.
Click here to learn more about The Branding Sprint, or schedule a call with me.