Tribe Building Tip: Great tribes have a PERSON – or live character (animal or mascot) – that they can identify with. This personification of a business is critically important and more businesses should employ this marketing tactic which has been the backbone of advertising campaigns for many very successful companies.
In the fast food industry, we have Ronald McDonald, Dave Thomas, and the Burger King. We’ve also had very successful “ad stars” that are closely associated with the brands – think about Clara Peller, the “Where’s the Beef?” lady from the 80’s and Jared Fogle, the Subway Guy.
Over the years, KFC founder Colonel Sanders was dropped from the company’s advertising. Wisely, the company is bringing the Colonel back and promoting him in a very personalized way using social media. I believe this will be a very successful long term campaign for KFC.
What are YOU doing to personify your company? Many times, small business owners fear being labeled “egotistic” when they promote themselves. As Donald Trump said, “Always have an ego. There is nothing wrong with having an ego.”
It seems to have worked for him – Donald Trump. I predict it will work for KFC and the Colonel as well.
See related article from USA Today:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/2010-09-09-kfc09_ST_N.htm
Gina Carr
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