I'm navigating my stroller through a crowded Toronto sidewalk, anticipating the best route to avoid the slow-walkers while simultaneously avoiding being run down by the late-for-work crowd, when all of a sudden:
"WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE WAY TO EAT A MARSHMALLOW?"
A girl jumps in front of me, seemingly out of nowhere, overly cheerful and -- more annoyingly -- messing with the flow of pedestrian traffic. I just missed my opportunity to pass the slow-walking couple holding hands in front of me.
Grrr!!
Nevermind. I move to veer around her -- half contemplating how to answer her question (there's more than one way to eat a marshmallow?) -- when, once again, I'm cut off by a similarly-uniformed person, this time a dude.
"WHAT'S YOUR KID'S NAME???"
Um...what?
Without slowing down, I politely tell him that I'm not really comfortable sharing that information with a complete stranger. He shouts after me: "Oh, come on!!! Really???" -- as if I'M the one asking HIM ridiculous questions.
The people in question are "street canvassers" -- they're helping raise money for Plan Canada's "Because I am a Girl" campaign. They're students who are trying to earn some money while making a difference in the world. I find them super annoying.
I'm not a marketing expert in the sense that I went to school for it or anything, but I am a consumer, which I believe gives me enough street cred to determine when a marketing technique is effective and when it isn't. And this type of street marketing is not.
Plan Canada isn't the only charity that resorts to this type of marketing -- I've been bombarded by people representing Sick Kids, World Wildlife Fund...even TV Ontario. I've never given them money, or bothered to go online and look up their website after a street encounter. Mainly because they leave a bad taste in my mouth.
When I have helped companies with their marketing materials, I've found the most effective strategies tend to be the ones that actually put themselves in their target audience's shoes and give their audience what they want. Grant Thornton, for whom I've done some work, does a lot of thought leadership pieces that do just that -- offering pertinent material to help their clients. From a charity standpoint, I think the Kony 2012 did an amazing job of getting the word out about its cause. But an even simpler strategy could revolve around first-hand experiences. For example, I think the best marketing Sick Kids has is through its patients -- like this blog, written by an acquaintance of mine.
I think the Because I am a Girl campaign is pretty amazing -- and it deserves to be marketed way better. Why not organize some low-cost events for little girls around the GTA -- like an intro to soccer clinic or a story time/literacy meet-up?
BasicallyI think the most effective marketing strategies abide by the old mantra, "Show, don't tell". Show people why your company is great, or what your charity is doing, or why you're the best in a certain field.
Don't tell me to listen to you. And don't ask me super annoying questions.