It’s always challenging to serve two masters. Brand Response advertising is by its nature striving to achieve two disparate but related end goals. The Brand side seeks to present the product or company in a flattering, stylistic way that builds the case for the brand itself. The Response side is charged with the direct, but deceptively complicated duty of making the phones ring with quality customers, and the web sizzle with interested parties who want to buy. In many cases, it also has to plant the seed in viewer’s minds that they need the product or service, so they’ll buy it at retail locations in the future.
We are often faced with clients who want to sell their product aggressively through DRTV but also want a strong branding message. It’s not an easy dance, but one that can be done successfully with out of the box creative ideas that if successful, becomes the basis for an extended campaign. This is a very different approach for some DRTV people who see each spot as a stand-alone vehicle to sales.
A good example is our campaign for Orthology (www.orthology.com), a truly unique health care company that is changing the game in the Physical Therapy category. Our campaign’s first round of spots feature a professional drummer whose chronic pain from a lifetime of “pounding the skins” was relieved by the powerful therapeutic methodology at Orthology. The spots (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNqzQjWvNYE feature other real patient testimonials, gorgeous B-Roll shots and a targeted offer. Our client has seen tremendous immediate results when it comes to new customer inquiries and patient sign-ups, while helping build a sophisticated brand at the same time.
What we enjoy about producing Brand Response campaigns is the complexity that allows us to hone the offer to generate interest and sales, while creating beautiful images that elegantly highlight the brand. Sure, the budgets for Brand Response productions are typically more generous than traditional DRTV spots, and for production companies like DEG, that’s a good thing. But with higher budgets come higher creative expectations. This fine line between brand building that provides future sales and a DRTVapproach that drives an immediate response is a delicate process that can offer lasting success. It’s a thrill when you can cook up the right formula that balances the creative side, establishing the company’s unique benefits and still pushes the emotional button that triggers an immediate response. To us, that inherent challenge makes it a fun ride.
Written by:
John Briccetti, Owner of DEG Productions, DEG Direct Response and Deerfield Education Group & Partner @ Future of Fishing, Inc. degproductions.tv
Contact John @ john@degproductions.tv