So you want better sales? The solution: advertise, right?
Well, what if your advertisements not only helped consumers remember your product, but what if your advertisements had an immediate affect on the target, one that caused them to behave differently?

A recent study from Yale shows that this very common when it comes to food advertisements. The initial study published by the American Psychological Association was conducted with seven-eleven year old television viewers. The study showed that nearly 50% of the observed children consumed more snack-type foods while watching programming that had food advertisements during breaks.

Not only does advertising help create a memory of the product and brand, but apparently it can also cause your target to act differently right away.

A 2008 study conducted by the University of Arizona found the same affects in smoking advertisements. The study showed that smokers who watched programming with cigarette ads were more than twice as likely to take a cigarette break during the show than when watching programming that did not contain any cigarette ads.

This presents an aspect of advertising that often gets over looked. Not only do we want our audience to remember us, but we want our audience to use our products. Connecting consumers to the use of your product instead of just the jingle or cute mascots will help create deeper loyalty to your brand.

The DOW rallied all this week and last, bringing the market above 9,000 points for the first time since January, but today, the market lost 11 points ending the rally. The cause? The latest consumer confidence report came out with mostly dismal news. With consumer confidence down, how are luxury brands doing? Not well, but what’s worse, they maybe damaging their image in the long term instead of just trying to weather the storm.

Luxury brands have a unique position. They offer a product that is unnecessary, but highly desirable by most. They also get to charge a premium because luxury names are often associated with social status and a certain level of craftsmanship. Their clientele is small: people not only with serious disposable income, but people who also have that desire to own or experience things that aren’t necessities, but that speak something about the kind of person they are or more often, the kind of person they want to be. One of the things that makes a luxury, a luxury, is that it is not easily obtained by everyone. It has some sort of exclusivity about it. So when a luxury brand begins to discount their product, what does that do for their image?

Visit your local Tiffany & Co. boutique and you’ll find something you might not expect: discounted merchandise. Not only are there discounts, but there are signs touting them! We’d expect to see mark downs on items on less popular items like clocks and barware, but you’ll be even more surprised to know that their top sellers, engagement rings, are also receiving selected discounts, up to 10%.

Now we can’t blame high end retailers for wanting to capture as much business as possible and maintain high sales. Consumers have almost come to expect sales and this move by Tiffany’s is a clear response to the expectations of consumers. but by lowering their prices and attempting to become more accessible to a larger target, these retailers are losing some of their exclusivity, one of the characteristics that make them a luxury. Tiffany’s has also made it clear that the long-term value of the brand is of the upmost importance, so these discounts have been applied in a traditional sense to reduce inventory or older trends and fashions.

A strong brand, especially in retail, is dynamic, but it also is stubborn and holds onto some pillars that define the brand. Exclusivity is something that Tiffany’s has always had, and something it should maintain on the latest seasonal collections.

For the rest of us, these discounts are great, and if you’re thinking about popping the big question, you can get the engagement ring of her dreams at a discount, but don’t be surprised if everyone else is wearing the same piece of jewelry.

Where do you get your fashion advice? I’m willing to bet most of you, or at least your consumers, look to the movies and sitcoms for guidance on the latest trends, but finding those pieces in stores isn’t always easy, unless you’re looking for the styles of the characters in the box-office-hit, “Twilight” and shop at Nordstrom.

This October, you’ll be able to find clothing inspired by the attitude and mood of the modern vampire film that has taken hold of the pop-culture world at the premium department store, Nordstrom. The timing couldn’t be better for the Awake, Inc. designed line as it will be on sale just 7 weeks before the release of the second film in the series, which is expected to post even larger numbers at the box office this Thanksgiving.

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen hit films, edgy designers, and retailers team up, but this is different. Unlike other pop-culture clothing lines that normally appear at lower-priced retailers like Wal-Mart and Target, this line is showing up at a premium retailer, one that holds a respectable reputation for being on the cutting edge of high-end fashion.

It’s unclear if this is a move that will pay off in this difficult economic time. Those who are looking for bargains might not be willing to spend the extra cash at a premium retailer, but the partnership with Nordstrom might elevate the status of Twilight from a pop-culture flutter to a trend-setting phenomenon that will create a lasting impression on a generation who might not otherwise looked to Nordstrom for their latest clothing purchases.

An article in Ad Age this week talks about Wal-Mart going hard after vendors for more of their ad dollars. It could mean them getting and extra billion bucks from P&G alone.
Why is that important? Right now, on a case to case volume, it’s probable that Wal-Mart under-indexes on co-op. So the money that CPG companies have to pony is going to come from guess where–all the other retailers on the planet. Turning the 800 pound gorilla into a 10 ton gorilla in terms of share of voice. Wal-Mart will be the sign-on to sign-off sponsor of every network in America.

Here’s the article. http://bit.ly/QkRTz

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