Page 154 - Marketing the Basics 2nd

146 Marketing: the Basics
have begun to argue that today’s scarce resource – and thus the currency of the new economy – is actually attention’. We think he is absolutely spot on. So how do we get through being over communicated and over advertised and get to market? One key answer is buzz marketing. Buzz marketing allows you to get in ‘under the radar’.
Nowhere is truer than for the Nexters generation. For them, the most important influencers regarding spending in order of importance are friends, television, magazines, movies, the Internet and sports. Having seen more commercials than any generation before, the youngsters are advertising savvy and because of this are sensitive and hard to influence. They want to discover the brand through underground channels, not classic ads. To break through the clutter, commercials need to be exceptionally original. Otherwise, flooding the air with GRPs (gross rating points – a way of measuring advertising spend) will only annoy the target market and damage both the brand and sales. Taking the creative approach pays handsomely. Brand preference builds at much younger ages than ever before. As teenagers have more disposable income than previous generations, their lifetime value is high if they remain loyal to the brand. Capturing this segment is crucial for the future of many companies.
We have to ask ourselves, what can firms do to lure the reluctant youngsters to buy their products? Buzz seems to be one key way of going underneath their radar.
There is little research about buzz as it is a relatively new concept and scholars only recently started to explore the buzz generators and their effects. Buzz is formed by all the discussions regarding a brand, product, event and so on among people at any moment in time. What are some characteristics of the buzz? Some early lessons are emerging. First, buzz spreading cannot be contained. It is spread exponentially through word of mouth; buzz can be generated, but cannot be moulded, directed or stopped. Buzz is like a snowball which grows, gets momentum and finally melts if it is not refuelled. Second, the message cannot be controlled. The message is distorted and filtered by every transmitter and receptor of buzz. Its downside is that word of mouth can become negative, with important implications for the product or company that tries to generate buzz.