The power of visibility (2)

His height was already a disservice to him. He was so short that he couldn’t stand a chance of being seen in a crowd. He was one of those you had to find a place for to couch in the front row of a group photograph because he would otherwise have been invisible. But bad as the height problem was, it was not as terrible as the bogey of a horrendous reputation that dogged his every step. A tax-collector in Israel at that time was synonymous with extortion, personal and establishmentarian, and was not the kind of person a girl wanted to take home and introduce to her parents as a suitor! Zac had heard that the Rabbi was visiting town and he very desperately needed to see Him. By the time he got to where He was, there was a huge crowd gathered for the same reason that brought him. With his heavy social baggage and biological disadvantage, nobody would give him a chance of access to the Rabbi. If he was to get the required attention from Him, Zac knew he had to do something out of the ordinary. He promptly climbed a sycamore tree that was in the vicinity. He did not have to wait for long. As the Rabbi got to where the tree was, He looked up and SAW Zac. Mission accomplished. Other things followed from there that exceeded his expectations.

The visibility you require for effective road to market is enhanced by four key factors. The first is ocular or visual impression. This has to do with what the eyes can see. This is the primary purpose of logos and colours as well as product packaging. A good book with a bad cover will not sell. This is the reason why car manufacturers concentrate on aesthetics as they update their models annually. The visual dimension is what actually creates the most buzz, especially with the current generation that literally lives on cyberspace where so many things compete for attention in a way that has resulted in shorter attention span for many people.

The second factor is the auditory perception. This essentially has to do with storytelling. By nature, we relate well and connect deeply when stories that resonate with our personal experiences are told around a product or service. If we look at many of the things we have bought and why we buy, we will be able to connect to certain emotional narratives that informed the purchase. When potential investors listen to a pitch, they are listening more to the story behind the product or service than any other thing. If they can connect with the story and the passion with which it is conveyed, they are more likely to invest than they would if all they saw was a spreadsheet report on the business.

Emotional connections are very important. In 2008, Martin Lindstrom published his ground-breaking book “Buyology”. The book is the result of a three-year marketing study of over 2000 people and an analysis of their responses to brands, logos, advertisements and actual products and what informs their buying decisions. It also tries to draw a correlation between religion and branding and how this affects buying decisions. If there is anything that comes out clearly in the book, it is that buying decisions don’t follow any logic. It is purely emotional before it is economic. Products that are able to connect deeply with the sub-conscious of the customer will not lack patronage. The first time I tasted beer, I wondered why anyone would ever drink such a bitter product. However, I ended up drinking that same bitter stuff for several years with relish because it was “woke” in my circle of friends! Fads are driven by emotions rather than facts, logic or science. In an election, terrible politicians who have no significant value to offer but who can connect with people’s emotions routinely trounce those who have well-laid out programmes but lack the capacity for that connection.

ALSO READ FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

• Top 10 Business Ideas In Nigeria You Can Start With 100,000 Naira

• Lunatics Have Taken Over Affairs Of Nigeria ― Obi

• How To Detect Fake Bank Alerts

The fourth factor is the oral ingestion. If the product is to be ingested, how does it taste? How is this taste connected to the customer’s experiences, background, expectations and perhaps health needs?

To create visibility without becoming a nuisance, the first thing you need to do is to mine your environment very well. Information is the oxygen on which any effective marketing strategy runs. Understand the buying patterns, their social preferences, religious convictions, availability of other options and how those options are marketed and positioned, etc. You can never have too much information about your potential market. Rather, you can have too little. With the information that you have, segment the market. Not everybody needs what you have to offer and even in the right market, there are levels of access and affordability. In Matthew 7 verse 6 of the Bible, Jesus warns against casting your pearls before swine. No matter how much or how expensive the jewelry you put on a pig, it will still choose to wallow in the mud! Rejection is what you will always end up with when you are engaging with the wrong people in the wrong market. The size of a fish determines the depth in which it would swim in a river! Fishermen who know that use it to determine which part of the river they plan to fish in!

When you have zeroed in on your market, start a CRUSADE there. Crusading is about creating the required buzz to make you seen for the right reasons. It is a way of positioning your brand in the mind of your market in an indelible way that leaves positive memories with every encounter with the brand. Your passion is the anchor of your crusade.

For a crusade to succeed however, it must covey a specific significant value code that speaks to definite needs in the market. People don’t buy into you because they like you but because they need you! But they must SEE before they buy! Use every available platform to project the value that you and your brand represent. Friends, family, social media, club meetings, alumni associations, town meetings, opportunities to talk to a group of people, community engagements, social hangout spots, business associations, radio, TV etc., are all veritable platforms to articulate what you have to offer. Use them to good advantage where practicable or allowed.

Advertising gives traction to your message and enhances the distance to which it can go. If you have targeted a market, it logically follows that the message of your advert must reflect the expectations of that market. Reinforcement is the strength of visibility. Adverts may not necessarily generate sales but they help to reinforce your message and enhance the process of getting it ingrained in the market’s consciousness. Some people need to see or hear something several times before it gets their attention.

Get out of your shell. Take your lamp from under the bushel. A generation is waiting to navigate its way by its light. Exit obscurity. Get visible!

Remember, the sky is not your limit, God is!