10 Modern Marketing Lessons from Don Draper

10 Modern Marketing Lessons from Don Draper

Introduction

After seven seasons, the show came to an end. Despite all the cigarettes, the scotches in the middle if the day and the office romances, Mad Men is a great show and few marketing lessons can be learned from me.

Even if the time is different and advertising is different now, some rules are timeless.

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Sell products, not advertising

Sell products, not advertising

Don is focused on providing a service that genuinely helps the businesses he serves (selling products). It’s the difference between asking “what can my client do for me?” and “what can I do for my client?”.

Draper’s thinks about the real growth of the client which in turn will grow the agency as well. Some strategie may lead lto greater profits in the short term, but the client will eventually leave once they realized their needs weren’t top priority.

As a marketer, aim to grow with your clients, not at their expense!

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Know your target audience

Know your target audience

Marketers need to define their target market and decide how to best reach them given all the limitations that they will have to face.

Knowing your audience will help you to have a concise message that tells immediately the customers why they should invest in a product in as few words as possible.

The consumer is king, he must be in the center of all the thinking, planification and even objectives.

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Plan your campaign in advance

Plan your campaign in advance

In the show, when Draper and his team went to pitch a client, they often have the entire campaign strategized before revealing even a hint of their plans. They've determined when and where their campaign will be showcased months before the public sees it.

The ad placement in newspaper or TV is not chosen randomly, the entire campaign is planned in advance.

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Make it simple but significant

Make it simple but significant

Avoid unnecessary words. Keep your message concise and get to the point. Don't let your audience get bored with long-winded copy. The shorter the message, the more likely they are to remember it.

consumers are looking for transparency, authenticity and accessibility in what they buy.

start a conversation, ask questions, see their reactions. They’ll appreciate it and feel like they’re part of something. Besides, their reactions will help you know them better and understand their needs so that you can serve them.

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Use your experiences, they are relevant

Use your experiences, they are relevant

Sharing experiences is one of the best ways to connect with your customers, Don Draper proved it many times.

Not only does it render more effective, personal and human content, but it provides your customers with a sense that they know you, and in turn, know your business. We can’t espouse enough the value of an effective personal brand when it comes to keeping your clients interested; even if your product or business isn’t incredibly riveting, using one of your own human experiences to make your product tangibly relevant to your customers is invaluable in establishing a strong presence in all social media platforms and attracting new customers.

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Tell a story, a compelling one

Tell a story, a compelling one

Nobody tells a story better than Don Draper. While describing the consumer’s profile it’s he’s painting a picture. What allows Draper to tell a compelling story is the personal touches which will strike an emotional chord with the consumers.

Mad Men and Don Draper remind marketers that advertising is fundamentally storytelling.

Social media can help you get your story out there because it’s free and there’s user interaction.

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Evoke an emotional response

Evoke an emotional response

It’s important to engage your audience on an emotional level. Showing a little emotion can be a powerful thing.

The emotional needs of consumers allows him to effectively manipulate them into considering and then buying his client’s products.

Brands must start to see the importance of engaging with the consumer beyond the product. Emotions are essentials and key for the engagement.

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Engage with your audience

Engage with your audience

Your audience is not just here to please you and wait for your message or ad. Give them something relevant.

Social media can help you easily engage with your audience.

You can start a conversation, ask questions, see their reactions. They’ll appreciate it and feel like they’re part of something. Besides, their reactions will help you know them better and understand their needs so that you can serve them.

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Change the conversation

Change the conversation

One of Don Draper’s famous quote is “If you don’t like what they are saying, then change the conversation”.

It is not about dominating the conversation. Today’s advisors can create a dialogue with clients and prospects through a thought leadership and personal branding campaign encompassing digital and social media channels.

Make the initial conversation more about your experience and insights and less about capabilities and selling services and don’t forget that a large portion of marketing power lies in the ability to change people’s perceptions of things, especially a product or service.

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The past will always hunt you

The past will always hunt you

The first seasons of the show proved that Don Draper couldn’t escape his dark past even with all he’s effort.

For a brand, it’s the same specially now a days with internet, nothing goes away; it stays there forever. It’s impossible to erase it . That’s way brand should always monitor the online reputation and react quickly and wisely in case of a crisis.

Sometimes when the damage is done, it’s better to accept it and move on. No matter how bad that thing is, it’s permanent.

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Let’s recap

Let’s recap

• Sell products, not advertising

• Know your target audience

• Plan your campaign in advance

• Make it simple but significant

• Use your experiences, they are relevant

• Tell a story, a compelling one

• Evoke an emotional response

• Engage with your audience

• Change the conversation

• The past will always hunt you

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Conclusion

If there's one thing "Mad Men" has taught us, it's that the goal of intelligent advertising is not to sell, sell, sell. It's to get inside the customer's mind and stay there. Once you plant the seed, the customer lets it grow. When that happens, your brand turns into something much more than a product; it will become a personality.

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Simple right? Just follow the rules

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Any questions ?

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