All that fuss about Valentine’s Day

ILLUSTRATION BY RUTH MACAPAGAL

There are many stories and legends that provide a perfect backdrop for the month of love or Valentine’s Day, just as there are many marketing campaigns that build on this themed event.

Here are some cases of how companies from different industries offered different types of promotions to celebrate love as a unique service on Valentine’s Day (or for some, for a limited run even after this event). These cases have been designed for different target markets such as lovers, single people, widows or widowers, and even exes.

Singles, again

Lake Shore Funeral Home in Waco, Texas, hosts an annual Widowed Men & Women’s Valentine Luncheon as a fellowship for those who have lost their partners so they could have a chance to be with other people in the same situation. As it is often said, when a chapter ends, another may just be beginning.

Kiss me

Clorox promoted the benefits of kissing such as losing 6.4 calories per minute of passionate kissing or the possibility of men living five years longer when they kiss their wives in the morning, among others. They then ended with an offer to tell their consumers how to remove lipstick stains and more, by visiting their website. They were able to link their brand with the much celebrated occasion, maybe even leading consumers to lose additional calories trying to wash off those stubborn stains from kissing.

Hunting ground

Wal-Mart piloted its supermarket as a meeting site for single shoppers on Valentine’s Day. Interested shoppers simply had to put a ribbon on the handle of the cart; those with ribbons could talk to each other and exchange numbers. They discovered two things with this campaign:

1) Sales value increased because singles wanted to improve their image to the opposite sex through the contents of their shopping cart.

2) The campaign attracted singles from other geographical areas normally beyond the usual coverage radius of a retail store. Talk about hitting two birds with one ribbon! While this was a successful campaign of Wal-Mart in Germany, unfortunately, the company has already withdrawn from the German market. But that’s another story altogether!

Meet and Seat

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines launched the “Meet and Seat” program that allowed passengers traveling to either Amsterdam, New York or Sao Paulo to view and sit beside fellow passengers who also opted in, based on their social profile match. Through this, they can arrange to have coffee before their flight, select adjoining seats or decide to share a taxi afterwards. Passengers can only see other Meet and Seat participants after linking either their Facebook or LinkedIn profiles prior to their flight. They also control what personal information they would like to share with other passengers. While there are strict precautions on handling data (information is purged within 48 hours), data privacy is something that consumers, as well as governments, take more seriously nowadays.

X-rated

Burger King in Israel promoted a limited edition Adults Meal, which consisted of a combo meal plus an adult toy that was made strictly available only after 6 p.m., and only to those 18 years old and above on Valentine’s Day. It’s market segmentation at work!

Get even

El Paso Zoo in Texas launched an anti-Valentine campaign called “Quit Bugging me.” Visitors can name a cockroach after their ex and then feed it to the meerkats and other animals. They can finally have their revenge in a “peaceful” and indirect way. The campaign went viral!

3Es and 3Os

What about your industry? How have players maximized the big fuss during Valentine’s Day? What about your company?

Analyzing the cases mentioned, we find commonalities and patterns of how these marketing campaigns work.

In the past, companies set their sights on attaining three key performance indicators in their marketing campaigns—effectiveness, efficiency and equity building, collectively known as the 3Es. Effectiveness refers to attaining or exceeding the results planned. Efficiency means spending within budget while attaining revenue target. Equity is all about enhancing brands, especially reinforcing their brand association.

Today, more progressive marketing companies have added three additional elements to these promotions, collectively known as the 3Os. These campaigns must be original, ownable and open. Original means that it must be something never done before not just in the company but in the industry. Ownable refers to the ability of the company to be associated with the campaign, even if others will try to imitate them. Being open signifies being honest about any product claim, and so it should not be a campaign made just for the sake of coming up with one for virality’s sake.

The same 3Es and 3Os can be used to plan or evaluate marketing campaigns as a template for what makes a successful campaign, or maybe even the criteria for choosing a Valentine’s date.

—Contributed

Josiah Go is the chair and chief innovation strategist of Mansmith and Fielders Inc. Registration for the 14th Mansmith Market Masters Conference scheduled on May 17, 2023, in SMX Manila is open through www.mansmith.net.