Let’s not get off on the wrong foot here. Contrary to what YouTube and your social media platform of choice would like you to believe, six seconds isn’t enough time to build a brand. It’s barely enough time to read a headline and certainly isn’t enough time to do anything that would create customer loyalty.

But six seconds is plenty of time to make a connection. To get noticed. And perhaps to create just the smallest amount of interest.

That’s the point, isn’t it? That’s always been the point.

We use the tools at our disposal to plant a seed in the mind of our target. With every exposure, we feed that seed of an idea and try to make it grow. 

So while these new and ever-evolving digital tools create new opportunities, smart marketers will hold fast to some baseline truths to make the most of every hard-earned impression.

#1 – Your logo doesn’t mean anything

At least not until you make it mean something memorable. It’s simply a representation of some other idea or feeling. Don’t make the mistake of shoving your logo into an ad or post and expecting your audience to know what to think about it — not until you’ve made it clear what your logo represents.

#2 – No one is doing anything unless they have a reason

Do you think people are really scanning their social feed in the hopes that they can “learn more”? Is that what you do? Stop treating your call to action as a throw away item. Make it relevant to what you’ve shared with your target already and promise them something more rewarding if they go forward.

#3 – Nobody reads ads, they read what interests them 

Engage your audience with content that they care about. If you are a fun, consumer brand, do something that looks fun. If you are a serious, complicated B2B brand, identify with what you know your audience is thinking or feeling. And always reflect the personality of your brand, just like you should do in any medium.

Remember, target audiences have always possessed the ability to move on from your ad — by turning a page, clicking the remote or simply looking away. This is not a new phenomenon. So as you adapt your messaging to fit the medium, apply the same discipline and criteria for success that you’ve always maintained.

That’s the way to turn those six precious seconds into something that will in fact help build your brand.

I first realized the irresistible power of advertising when I was just 16 years old.

My father, who was a textile salesman back when sewing plants were still a thing in the South, made me a partner in his side hustle where he secured overruns of clothing from these businesses and sold them at regional flea markets. He sourced the merchandise. I handled the sales.

In the fall and winter months, we sold jeans and flannel shirts. In the spring and summer, it was shorts. And as you would suspect, we saw seasonal peaks and valleys.

One weekend in late August, we were set up with hundreds of pairs of shorts to sell at one of the bigger regional markets. We had a great booth location. The place was packed. But we couldn’t give away our shorts, not even for our bargain price of 3 pairs for $10.

As the first day was winding down, my dad had stroke of genius. He took the neon yellow posterboard sign that was taped to the front of our booth, flipped it over and made a new sign: Back to School Shorts, 3 for $10.

Within two minutes, shoppers began stopping in their tracks to notice our newly positioned “back to school” shorts. And sales took off.

My father, a true salesman if there ever was one, brought two new signs for the final day of the sale. Each one read: Back to School Shorts, 3 for $20.

We were barely able to keep our tables stocked with shorts, and by midday we had sold out. Time and time again, people read the signs out loud and came to the conclusion that if they missed out on getting some “Back to School” shorts for their kids, they would never forgive themselves.

Our product didn’t change. The market conditions didn’t change. Heck, we even raised our price. The only change was giving people a new reason to buy the same old thing. Market insight combined with pinpoint messaging. It was that simple.

Sometimes advertising is really just that easy. People try hard to make it complicated, but the right message delivered to the right audience in a way that gets noticed, that’s a formula that works.

For your next campaign, try getting out of the way and give your advertising a chance to resonate with your customers.

Tired of those muscle-bound super brands kicking sand in your face every time you show up on consumer beach? Well it doesn’t have to be that way.

While it’s true that bigger is better when it comes to advertising budgets, it is possible to deliver a Charles Atlas message with that 98-pound frame by working a little bit harder and a whole lot smarter.

Start with your focus. Don’t try to work too many muscles too soon. Find the area where you can produce the best results and work it hard. Then look at your routine. Are you consistent? Can the same message be found in everything you do? If so, your string bean budget will have all of the power of a Sherman tank. And while your advertising budget may not actually get bigger, it certainly will look more impressive.

You and your customers. It started off as a match made in heaven. You had the perfect product, they bought it, and life was good. For years it went on this way. Then one day you woke up and realized you didn’t know each other any more. And before you could say mid-life crisis, you lost sight of who your target audience really is.

The relationship you have with your customers is just like any other. The minute you start taking it for granted is the minute it starts to die.

If you’re in a rut, don’t panic. It happens to the best of brands. Make an assessment of where you are. Find out if your market assumptions are still accurate. And then get to know your customers all over again.

As the retail nation tries to find its footing in our current start-again-stop-again marketplace malaise, the experts will tell you that capturing every potential customer is more important than ever. But really, when was that not important? 

Retail stores live and die according to foot traffic. And as anyone in retail marketing will tell you, visibility is the key to foot traffic. 

Just look at the current environment. Have you ever seen more temporary signage in your life? Banners hung from storefronts. Signs posted on street corners. It’s the most basic form of advertising, and it’s making a big comeback because it works.

Now not everyone loves signage. Many communities have what seem like excessively strict rules about what you can post, and where. If you want to hang a simple “Now Open“ sign on your storefront, you’ll probably need a lawyer to help you sort through all of the regulations. 

It’s all with good reason however. 

Left to their own devices, many store owners would slap a sign on every window, door, façade, light post, parking sign and employee they could afford to address. That would be a tremendous eyesore – there’s no denying it. What’s even worse, it would likely be ineffective.

A well-designed signage system will instead represent your brand, project a personality to your customers and make them feel welcomed. What could be more important than that?

Think that’s irrelevant based on what’s happening in the marketplace today? Just look at the big box retailers and grocery stores that are being successful with click and pick ordering. They know a good customer experience depends upon a simple process. So these stores pour a lot of effort into making sure their customers know where to park once they arrive, what to do once they are parked and what they can expect from the experience. How do they do it? With signage. 

Restaurants and other retailers have taken note and are using signage to muster momentum. Show up for your takeout and you’ll be greeted with signage that lets you know exactly what to do. Pull up to your favorite salon and you’ll see right away what the norms will be once you walk in. Make your way through the aisles of the local pool store and you’ll be directed which way to walk and where to stand while they test the chlorine  levels in your water sample. Why? Because confusion leads to frustration. And frustration leads to lost customers. 

The more challenges a brick and mortar store faces, the more important a great signage system becomes. When you’re ready to invest in a strategy to enhance your customer experience, you would be well-advised to keep these considerations top of mind.

Rule #1 – Don’t Abandon the Brand. 

Your signage should fit seamlessly alongside all your other brand assets. Adapt your already established graphic elements into ownable extensions of what your customers already know about you.

Rule #2 – Don’t Be Handcuffed by the Brand. 

On the other hand, sometimes a mature brand – or even a very young brand – may not have enough in the old toolbox to get the job done. This might be the perfect time to expand the brand, particularly if you’re about to make a major investment in hardware. Don’t look back two years from now and find yourself longing for something new.

Rule #3 – Stand Out While Fitting In. 

Consider the environment your signage will be seen in. Be a good neighbor and think about how your signs will affect the businesses around you. Then let the personality of your brand be what sets you apart, not your visual volume.

Rule #4 – Keep It Simple Signage. 

You (or more likely your signage vendor) will be tempted to really blow it out. But never forget the purpose of your signage – awareness and communication. If your signage system doesn’t enhance your customer experience – from quickly identifying your location to easily navigating your property – then you’ve missed a huge opportunity. 

Rule #5 – Follow the Signs of the Times.

Use your signage to react to this ever-changing marketplace, even after COVID-19 has become nothing more than a memory. Make it your first line of communication and synch it with what you’re doing on social media. Something as simple as seeing store hours online that don’t match what’s on your door will cost you customers. 

In an age where “Now Open” has become the most powerful phrase in advertising, what you do to distinguish your store fronts beyond that message might just determine how quickly your business returns to normal.

The next time one of your cohorts utters that phrase in reference to marketing, you can feel safe in agreeing with them 100%. It’s nothing like rocket science, it’s much harder.

Those guys from NASA can always rely on zero being zero, actions spurring reactions and a straight line being the shortest distance between two points.

You, on the other hand, have to deal with consumer trends, shaky budgets and a hundred other things seemingly designed solely to ruin your day. But in this world of never-ending change and routine upheaval, there are a few things you can rely upon.

Big thinkers will always triumph. Experience is the best teacher. Strong team members make for strong teams.

So ask yourself, who’s on your team? And what has their experience taught them? Because being in change doesn’t mean you have to know everything about the sweet science of marketing. You just need to know the people who do.

Sustainable packaging isn’t just a green thing. It’s no longer even a political thing. Today, delivering your products in a package that’s eco-friendly is much more of a business survival thing.

Don’t believe it? Well, do you really think McDonald’s would commit to having 100% renewable and recyclable packaging by 2025 if it didn’t make long-term business sense? Not a chance.

What McDonald’s knows, along with an ever-growing number of packaged goods brands, retail companies and even delivery services is this: Sustainable packaging drives purchasing decisions and builds brand loyalty. And the price of not responding to customer expectations is much, much higher than the cost of converting how you package and present your products.

Luckily for us all, packaging technology is evolving as fast as consumer trends are developing, and so is the price point. It’s now surprisingly affordable to switch to options that are more sustainable. Combining advancements in materials with creative models for reuse will not only endear your brand to consumers, but it can also provide new opportunities in shipping and display efficiencies, alternate ways to market and promote your products and even an eventual reduction in manufacturing cost.

And truthfully, you probably already know most of that. But what you may not know is how to make the move to sustainable packaging. Here are three of the most important considerations when it comes to the health of your brand:

1.     Step in slowly, don’t leap. Changing your packaging, your displays or your shipping structures is complicated even without environmental considerations. It can be downright terrifying with them. Plus, you’ll need front-end buy-in from distribution and supply chain managers. So start small and make sure you have an expert by your side who can guide you through the process. You could create more problems than you’ll solve by making a complete conversion all at once.

2.     Now is the time for a redesign. Take advantage of the new production opportunities your alternate packaging can provide. Make sure your brand reflects the forward-thinking steps you’ve taken. Simply sniping your package with a new and improved message won’t cut it.

3.     Rethink your product. Why not go for the one-two punch of sustainable product and eco-friendly packaging? Reduce manufacturing waste, incorporate reusable elements and shift to safer raw materials. If you can make a true commitment without infringing on the quality of your product, you’ll have a chance to make an even stronger connection with your consumers.

Naturally, you can’t break down a decision this big into a handful of soundbites. Product safety and security, materials compatibility, shipping considerations and a dozen other factors all belong in the equation. But the longer you wait to get started, the greater the chance that your customer will move on to a brand that didn’t.

What can a Broadway musical can teach us about maintaining marketing focus?

As first appeared on the Archer Malmo blog, Kaleidoscope.

To quote the lead characters from Stephen Sondheim’s sensational Broadway musical “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” times is hard.

In the show, Mrs. Lovett spent her days bemoaning the state of her pie shop and the difficulty of acquiring quality meat. However, her partner in crime Mr. Todd was much more focused on acquiring new customers for his barbershop; thus, he developed a plan and went to work.

Hopefully, none of us will mimic the actions of either Mrs. Lovett or Mr. Todd, but we can ask ourselves: How are we going to react when times is hard — like they are right now. Because now is the perfect time to sharpen your tools and build a plan for the future. Simply put, you can’t be afraid to think big, even when you face a less than ideal market situation.

Don’t lose focus on what made you successful in the first place, and recognize the opportunities that are built into your current reality by keeping these three things top of mind:

1. Be ready for the rebound. It’s going to happen. And when it does, will you be in a position to take advantage? How will you attract new customers? And how will you reestablish connections with existing ones? Then, what can you do to build your brand beyond what you ever thought possible?
2. Take a hard look at yourself. Really peel back the layers and look deeply into the marketing mirror. Do you like what you see? Now is the time to figure out what actually works and what probably doesn’t. Then double down on the strategies that will build brand love for the long term.
3. Search for new opportunities. Crisis creates change. It also creates new economies. Is it time to adapt your business to fit the new reality in order to keep it moving forward?

Nothing is more valuable than time. Use the time you have right now to be ready when customers start beating a path to your door once again.

Have you ever played that game where everyone sits in a circle and whispers a message from person to person until the message gets back to the person who spoke it first? It never fails, the message always gets screwed up somewhere along the line.

It’s not intentional. Usually someone doesn’t listen very well, and then someone else mumbles, and before you know it, the original message is contorted into something totally unrecognizable.

Internal communications are a lot like that. Only about a million times worse. Whether you’re a large company with multiple offices or a singular shop with three departments, you have to make sure people are hearing the message you want delivered.

That’s why you should treat your internal communications just like your external communications. Use smart messages with intriguing visuals and deliver them in a way that will get noticed.

Do that, and before long it will seem like you’re talking to yourself all the time. Which, in this case, is actually a good thing.

Never in your lifetime will you ever have a marketing budget as big as you want. Face it, there are only so many Proctor & Gambles in the world.

When you finally do get enough money to redo your packaging, you’ll want a new catalog to help push your product into the pipeline. If you get enough dough to create some print ads, you’ll wish you could have a television spot to round out the campaign. It’s never enough.

So deal with it.

How, you ask? By putting the money you have against the materials that will have the biggest impact. If you’re a packaged goods company, that’s probably going to be your packaging. If you’re a service company, that may be your online presence. If you’re a brand new company, perhaps that will mean a strong identity. Regardless, you have to start with the materials that will most directly create revenue.

Follow that line of thinking and one day when you get a muffin, you might just get some jam to go with it.