Emotional Advertising: Fear Appeal

“This is your brain…. This is your brain on drugs,” says the actor as they drop an egg into a frying pan and begin to scramble it. These types of ads are often designed to create a reactionary response to motivate a particular behavior. In this case, it was to motivate behaviors for non-drug use. We’ve written on emotional advertising before but we wanted to do a deeper dive into each type of emotional advertising. This week we focus on fear appeal. A theory was developed by a woman named Kim Witte called Extended Parallel Process Model that explains why and when people follow health recommendations. Something called the danger control response is ideal for changing behavior and occurs when the threat is high and the individual’s sense of efficacy is greater than the threat. If the individual’s self-efficacy is lower than the perceived threat then the person will show a defensive response to the fear control ad. You saw examples of these types of ads during the pandemic with the “get vaccinated” campaigns. To sum it up, EPPM states that the perceived threat MUST be higher than the person’s self-efficacy to work. Also, the audience must be understood to create an effective fear appeal campaign. It needs to make people think, “Oh wow, that could be me.” Here are a few examples of the types of fear appeal ads that are possible.

1. Personal hygiene

2. Cancer risk

3. Therapy

4. Drunk driving

5. Drugs and tobacco

Since fear appeal can lead to negative feelings and anxiety, care should be used in an ethical manner that focuses on the betterment of people’s lives. Here are some guidelines to follow when creating a fear appeal advertisement.

1. Introduce the threat

   1. Demonstrate severity

   2. Describe with vivid pictures or words

   3. Use solid references

2. Show the risk to the viewer

   1. Focus on the audience here

   2. Point out similarities between viewers and those in the ad

   3. Personalize it to your audience

3. Show the effectiveness of the solution

4. Show viewers they can use solutions in their lives

A fear appeal can take the form of FOMO, fear of change, fear of death, fear of risks, and fear of failure. Now that you understand what makes a proper fear appeal ad you can use this to your advantage. Keep it personal and keep it ethical.

Importance of Curiosity

Desire. The desire to know something. This incredible motivator for learning facilitates the pursuit of knowledge and creativity. Children have this inherent trait of curiosity to learn about the new world they are in, childlike wonder if you will. We believe that when you stop being curious about things and become complacent it inhibits learning and thusly, growth will decay, whether it be personal or professional. When we think of the traits of successful people, the first one to come to mind is probably not curiosity. However, research shows that allowing curiosity to be piqued in a way that you don’t know the answer to something can increase the curiosity of a task and primes your brain for learning. All great, successful leaders were deeply curious in their respective fields. As humans, we have this attribute of wanting to seek out new information and experience. The workplace can benefit greatly from an environment that cultivates curiosity. There are some serious benefits as well, such as gaining more respect as a leader from your team, inspiring creative solutions, and enticing deeper, more rational thinking. Your employees won’t feel stressed about coming to you for questions when they’re encouraged to do so; this communication will remove many barriers. Here are some ways to encourage curiosity in the workplace.

1.     Ask employees daily “why” questions, such as:

a.     What is one thing that you are curious about today?

b.     What is one thing that you take for granted that you want to ask about?

2.     Emphasize learning: it’s been proven that focusing on learning instead of the goal is more beneficial to the business. Looks like the old saying, “It’s about the journey, not the destination,” may be on to something here. Emphasize learning goals over performance goals, such as hitting numbers, etc. According to Harvard Business Review, “When people are motivated by learning goals, they acquire more-diverse skills, do better at work, get higher grades in college, do better on problem-solving tasks, and receive higher ratings after training.”

3.     Hire with curiosity in mind: ask potential employees about their interests outside of work. People that read about a wide variety of topics typically are curious about learning things. You can administer curiosity assessments in the hiring process as well as take note of the questions that the potential employee asks.

4.     Lead through an example: leaders can always foster curiosity in the workplace by being inquisitive. Ask questions from your employees when you may not have an answer. This shows them that you are human and will foster trust in the relationship because you trust them enough to ask for their help.

5.     Encourage employees to broaden their horizons: For example, companies such as Facebook give their employees time off to explore their interests outside of work. Some brands even pay for further education for their employees. Whatever your resources may be, encourage your employees to go out and explore their unknown.

Curious people tend to be more open-minded and create relationships with others more easily. Curiosity will increase creative thinking, collaboration, and deep problem-solving that can lead to innovative ideas. If you want your brand to be one of the top brands in the world in your niche, then creating an environment that promotes curiosity in the workplace and outside is a must. Stay curious my friends!  

Marketing for Good: Social Marketing

This style of marketing is sometimes called “marketing for good.” This style of marketing promotes a positive societal transformation that tries to influence positive actions instead of selling a product. Social marketing attempts to change behavior for the benefit of consumers or society. Commercial marketing, on the other hand, will attempt to change behavior for the benefit of the brand, such as sales. Typically, social marketing is used by nonprofits, charities, government organizations, emergency services, police, and fire groups. So, what is involved in social marketing and how do you go about creating a campaign? Here are some things to consider.

1.     What behavior is it that I’m trying to change?

2.     What benefits are there from this behavior change?

3.     Who is the audience?

4.     Are there any barriers preventing this change?

5.     How can I reduce those barriers if so?

Make sure that you test your ideas on smaller groups before “going live” and see how it does. Some benefits of social marketing are promoting greener, more sustainable living, promoting health consciousness, reducing social issues, allowing you to reach a larger audience, and it is cost-effective. If a brand uses social marketing then they will benefit from taking a stance on a topic because people now want to buy from socially and environmentally responsible businesses. In short, some things should happen to have an effective social marketing campaign: create interest/awareness, change attitudes, motivate people to want to change, incite that change, and sustain it. It could take some time to see if the change happened and when we some time, we mean years. It’s not uncommon for social marketing campaign measurements to happen slowly, over time. You will have to be patient but following the right guidelines will almost certainly help you succeed.

Difference Between UGC & CGC

There’s a new term out there and it’s called CGC. If you have been with us for a while, you know what UGC is. If not, it can be defined as any piece of organic content created by a user. Hence, the name is user-generated content. So then, what is CGC? It is similar to UGC except that the people creating the content are professionals and it is typically co-produced with the brand. Let’s be clear here. These are not influencers. These are creators and they add value to a brand’s particular niche. Usually, they hire the creators to create content for them but the creators themselves do not post that content on their pages. This allows for more control from the brand. The goal here is not reach and it is very cost-efficient for the brand. For example, our social media manager is a creator in her particular niche of Muay Thai kickboxing. An app brand reached out to her to create Muay Thai content for them every week for a predetermined fee. They send her a new brief each week with a due date. She follows the guidelines for creating the videos and invoices them at the end of each month. When they share the content, she has created for them, they add a collaborator tag that she can either accept or decline on social media. There will also never be a lack of content creators in today’s digital world. Being that we’re a content advertising agency we’ve worked on both styles of campaigns. Our UGC campaigns are usually organic, unproduced content from creators that may or may not have large followings. In other campaigns, we have enlisted content creators to create certain content for the brand from their specific briefs. This is a great example of creator-generated content. Do you want to learn how UGC and CGC can increase our brand’s social proof? Contact us today to find out how.

Fun Friday Feature 7/14

We wanted to do something fun for today and go back to our ad of the week article. Today we want to feature the ad recently done by Maybelline. They pulled a great stunt where they put eyelashes on the tube in London. When the underground got close to the platform they had a mascara brush that combed the lashes back as it came to a stop. To read more about the ad or view it visit the Evening Standard.

Top Brands That Leverage UGC Advertising

It’s no secret anymore that to increase, authenticity, trust and lead generation, brands are leveraging the power of user-generated content and found content in their advertising campaigns. According to Adweek, “85% of the users are found to be more influenced by the UGC than the content made by the brands directly.” We’ve had the pleasure of working with some of these brands on more than one occasion. Here is a list of brands that have experienced the positives effects of UGC advertisements with great spots!

1. FORD

   1. Summer’s Hard

   2. 119 Years of Building, 2022

   3. The Vast & the Various, 2022

   4. Ford Ranger, Fully Prepared, 2023

2. UBER

   1. Uber Eats, Get Anything

   2. Earn Like a Boss, 2023

3. Apartments Dot Com

   1. How to Stay Cool Without AC, 2023

4. ESPN

   1. Ready for Football, 2019

   2. NCAA Semi Finals, 2020/2021

5. OREO

   1. Stay Home Stay Playful, 2020

   2. Stay Playful, 2021

   3. Play is Waiting, 2022

6. PEMCO

   1. Healer of the Hail Storm, 2019

   2. A Lot Can Go Wrong in a Second, 2020

   3. We Insure Ambition, 2022

   4. A Lot Can Happen in a Second, 2023

While there are so many more brands that harness the power of UGC, these brands have done so on more than one occasion. To name a few, Tide, Hefty, Microsoft XBOX, Prudential, Care First Health, Pringles, Ritz Crackers and Delta Airlines. There are too many to name but these top brands know what’s up. If you’re a brand looking to learn more about how to

Current State of Remote Work 2023: The Evolution of the Work from Home Model

“As of 2023, 12.7% of full-time employees work from home, while 28.2% work a hybrid model” …. It’s also estimates that, “by 2025, 32.6 million Americans will work remotely.” (Forbes). I think it’s safe to say that the pandemic changed the workforce as we know it but what do management teams think and where is it headed? Certain CEO’s like Bob Iger are announcing that employees are expected to return into office at least four days a week soon and Drum recently reported that companies who “put up with [remote work] for a long time are finally getting sick of it.” Although some report being more productive at home, the data that companies are getting is proving otherwise. Here are there reasonings:

1.     Remote work is hard for new hires: the onboarding experience seems to take hold better in person than virtual they say.

2.     People work less: everyone says that they work more but some data sets are showing otherwise. People tend to work 3.5 hours less per week when working from home. However, the remote workers argue that they have a better work-life balance and are more focused when at home. Quality of work is much higher.

3.     Productivity is very low on days when everyone works remotely: certain CEO’s believe that when their whole team is remote, they are less productive overall. While we can’t speak for an entire group of people, most are just the same if not more productive.

It seems that higher ups are trying to remove remote work from the equation but we think that their efforts won’t pan out. People say that if they aren’t offered the option of at least hybrid work they’ll find a job that will. If bosses want their employees back in the office full-time they’ll have to make a stronger argument. We just don’t think that the “data” they have is feasible enough to require full-time in office employment with all the remote work benefits. Not only is it mentally better for employees, it is better for our planet. We love our remote business structure at Locomotive and we won’t be changing it any time soon.

Benefits of Working in the Ad Industry

We absolutely love what we do! We would scream it to the rooftops if we could. Not only are we part of the advertising industry, we are a niche brand that focuses on user-generated content and found content campaigns, so we get to work with agencies and content creators. We know there are pitfalls in any industry, including the Advertising game, but since we aren’t your typical ad agency, we don’t have to deal with many of the talked about issues. Here are some of our favorite things about working in the industry!

1.     You get to be creative! This is our top reason to work in advertising. Yes, we get a creative brief from our clients but that doesn’t mean we don’t get to use our own creative juices at work. Finding, sourcing, and clearing content is a very creative process.

2.     It’s a social environment: we love being social. It’s a big part of who we are and how we feel energized. In advertising, there is constant collaboration with others on your team. For us, it’s also with outside advertising teams that we’re working alongside. Not only does that mean it is a very collaborative industry, you also learn and grow often from others.

3.     Consistent work/income: as an entrepreneur, this doesn’t come without a lot of hard work and discouraging moments. However, if you have a passion for what you do, put in the time for lead generation and do a stellar job on your projects that generate WOM marketing, the business will come your way!

4.     Networking: there are a multitude of events that promote networking in the ad industry. Whether it be just a simple webinar or Cannes, one of the largest advertising events in the world each year.

Don’t get us wrong, working in the ad industry requires a lot of grueling hours but it is also a very gratifying job at the end of the day. There can be high workloads and intense pressure to be creative on a deadline. But let’s not forget that pressure creates diamonds! Seeing content that we found and cleared in the final commercial is the biggest reward! With that being said, advertising is not for the faint of heart and it should really be considered when deciding on a career choice. But the diversity of the projects keeps careers interesting all the time. This style of work will require a lot of multitasking skills. We work hard and we play hard. Your hard work will be showcased publicly in the spotlight so it’s important to understand this as well as how the industry can be fast-paced and high-energy at times. We love keeping things interesting in our work life so it’s the job for us but will it be the job for you?

Plastic Free July 2023

1 million plastic bottles are purchased every minute (Tenstsile) and it’s estimated that 75-200 million tons of this plastic is currently floating around in the ocean (Recycle Track Systems). If you know us as a brand, you know that we’re passionate about the environment and doing our part to lower emissions to reduce climate change. That said, this month is plastic free July. We ask that you please join us the movement to set forward lifestyle changes that we can pass to future generations. You can start with something as simple as buying a reusable water bottle and coffee cup. If you want to get really into it, you can avoid using single use plastic bathroom supplies by making your own mouthwash. The choice is yours but here are some tips for you to get started for plastic free July.

1.     No more take away cups! Buy a reusable water and coffee cup

2.     Use bar soap for hand soap: this will reduce single use plastic vastly.

3.     DO NOT BUY BOTTLED WATER!!! a good option is Liquid Death canned water!

4.     Buy reusable shopping bags: most states have actually banned them now so we’re on the right track!

5.     Buy less and/or buy in bulk! Choose to buy larger quantities and use reusable bags to store the items if you can. Buying less can also reduce the amount of plastic pollution.

6.     Buy glass Tupperware containers: These can be found on amazon or even at your local Hobby Lobby now. Typically, the lids are made of bamboo

7.     REFUSE PLASTIC STRAWS! There’s really no reason to use a straw to begin with. We’re not children….

8.     Find a local refill store: there are plenty of refill stores that promote sustainability now. You take your own glass containers and they have an array of options for bathroom supplies, household cleaners, etc.

9.     Stop using balloons and plastic decorations: yes, they’re cute but they’re terrible for the environment. Use sustainable decorations.

10.  Ladies, buy reusable sanitary items: there are plenty alternative to tampons and pads now, such as cups, etc.

It seems overwhelming at first when you start trying to live a plastic free life. However, once you start, you realize that it isn’t as difficult as you thought. We can attest to this. We frequent our local refill store for cleaning supplies, shampoo, conditioner, laundry powder, and dishwasher pods. At this point, we even make our own mouthwash! We understand that it’s not totally feasible to be completely plastic free 100% of the time but it’s just important to do your best as much as you can. When you can’t, make sure to recycle the plastic items you had to purchase. Good luck! We hope this helps you start your plastic free journey!

Increasing Brand Advocacy

We all know that word of mouth marketing is the best type of marketing. So, how does a brand increase its brand advocacy among its loyal audience? Well, it all starts with making sure that your audience and employees are happy. People who enjoy working for you will speak highly about your brand. The same goes for your audience. They can do so through reviews, word of mouth, social media, blogs, etc. UGC is a BIG component here and it’s what we specialize in. Organic brand advocacy is unparalleled. It has a farther reach and it is trusted far more. There are a couple of other things that your brand can do to increase its brand advocacy.

1.     First, you have to identify the specific reasons what people love about your brand. Find customers who love you and through who is engaging and see what it is that they love.

2.     Focus on relationships. Fostering the relationships that you already have through personalization and great customer service is a start. Give more and ask less.

3.     Be an inspiration of authenticity! People want to see that brands are humanized. Showcase your employees. Use UGC in your ad campaigns. Most importantly, walk your talk. If your brand stands for something, stick to it.

4.      Be grateful. Be approachable. Show your customer appreciation publicly and make sure that you feel approachable on social media and other forms of digital spaces.

5.     Reward those that advocate for you. We love a good loyalty member program but it’s also important to give rewards for those who advocate for you on a deeper level. Offer a referral program

The biggest point here is putting your audience first and when you do make sure that it is authentic. People see straight through bs. Cultivating a rapport where there is a two-way communication humanizes your brand. Increase your brands audience through using the one you already have. It’s genius really. Just foster the relationships that are already to create new ones down the line.  

Immigrant Heritage Month

America is built on the backs of our forefathers, most of which immigrated from other countries in search of a better way of living. Here at Locomotive, we are no different either. Our grandparents were from Italy and Ireland. This month is a time to celebrate Immigrant Heritage. Here is a quote from the White House this month on the subject.

      “America is more than a place; it is an idea.  It is the idea that everyone is created equal and deserves to be treated equally throughout their lives and that everyone should have a fair shot and an equal chance to get ahead.  That is what has drawn people to our shores for centuries.  It is what makes us who we are.  And that very idea of America has been advanced by immigrants from every part of the world — my ancestors and yours.  Their dreams-built America, and during National Immigrant Heritage Month, we celebrate their courage.”

-President of the United States.

Here are some ways that you can help support our Immigrant Heritage:

1.     Support immigrant communities: stand up to discrimination and/or volunteer

2.     Challenge stereotypes: share stories that counter negative stereotypes

3.     Educate yourself: know the reasons behind immigrations and the contributions of immigrant populations to our society

4.     Use your voice: use social media platforms to voice positive messages to tear down barriers that create anti-immigration rhetoric

However you decide to support this Immigrant Heritage Month, remember that it a celebration of all that our country is built upon. Without our immigrant ancestors our country would not be what it is today. Without those immigrants joining our country today, it will not be where it is headed tomorrow. Let us join forces to become the best version our country that we can be! 

Earned Media

Who doesn’t love free publicity? That’s exactly what earned media is. Coverage for your brand through organic means. It can be though reviews, media coverage, mentions, social shares, etc. As nice as it is to get that free shout out, it is also the most difficult to achieve. Let’s think about a consumer review. We all use them. What’s the first thing that most people do after they read a review somewhere? The answer is that they visit the website of that business and on average they will read roughly 10 before they go the site, according to Local Consumer Review Survey, 2020. We can’t stress the importance of getting positive earned media, whether it be through a Google review, an Instagram share, or media coverage. Here are a few tips to ensure that you will get a rave recommendation through earned reviews no matter where it comes from.

1.     Create interesting & engaging content: if people resonate with your content they will feel compelled to share it.

2.     Create good media relationships: it’s always nice to have a few media friends. Make sure to nourish those relationships through equal benefit.

3.     Make your audience happy: good customer service for the win always

4.     Use all your channels: Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. Make sure that you’re always posting, engaging and consistent with your voice on all your channels.

5.     Authenticate your expertise: you can do this through writing articles, social media as well as client testimonials.

You have to “earn” your earned media. Nothing is truly free and free publicity is no different. You will have to strive to create a brand name that is reputable and stands the test of time over and over again. Once you do this though, you can reap the rewards of word of mouth marketing and possibly earned media.