Find a Way

I just heard an inspiring story about a young woman who pleaded with a soft drink company to change her life.

“Music is my passion, but I can’t do that without your help. If I can’t find a way to pay for school, then I can’t go. You could change my life.” That was North Central University junior Nicki Boon’s video message to Dr. Pepper requesting to participate in Dr. Pepper‘s Million Dollar Tuition Giveaway which involved throwing a football into a hole in a target.

Two days later Nicki was called by a Dr. Pepper staff member. Her video plea had worked; she had been chosen to participate. Determined to win the contest’s prize money, she practiced five days a week, 100 throws a day. She became obsessed with winning.

Nicki also worked at a steakhouse, and one of her customers was Minnesota Vikings Ray Edwards. The next time that she waited on his table, she explained her opportunity to him. After she was finished, Nicki added, “I know that you play football, do you have any tips for me?”

“Can you throw the football?”

“No, not really.”

Ray advised, “Throw a two-handed chest pass.”

“You’re a football player. Why are you telling me to throw it like a basketball?”

The next practice, she understood why. “I had so much more control that way,” she explained.

Nicki’s practice paid off, and she went all the way to the final competition held at halftime of the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta. The underdog facing a baseball pitcher, Nicki maintained that the actual competition was “a blur. It felt like David and Goliath walking in there.”

When the competition was over, Nicki saw that she had seven and then realized that her competitor had five. “Did I win this?” She asked out loud.

“Yes,” said the officials.

Nicki was amazed. “A weight just lifted off my shoulders. It was a miracle.”

Her prize was $123,000, which is enough to make her dream of studying the music business at a school in Nashville come true. Her unorthodox method of throwing was accurate, and that’s all that mattered.

I found several of Nicki’s actions interesting. First, she was determined to find a way to have a career in the music business. Second, that career path had to lead through school. Third, she was willing to search out of the box for the money. How many women music majors would consider throwing a football for whatever purpose, even a scholarship? Fourth, she tenaciously and consistently practiced throwing the ball well. Fifth, she sought help from an expert. Sixth, perhaps most importantly, she followed his advice. She was determined to find a way, and she did.

The next time you have a challenge which appears hopeless, remember Nicki Boon and find your way.

A Wise Play

Last Friday my roommate opened the sports section of the newspaper and noticed a two page spread on the paper’s football pick contest. “Look at this,” she urged. “They have listed the advertisers’ picks for the games this weekend.”

Indeed they had.

Below their pictures, eleven advertisers’ picks were listed along with their names and the names of their businesses. These were the advertisers providing the prizes for the contest and advertising in the two-page spread which promoted the contest. Since their picks were in the center of the paper, the picks jumped out at the reader.

“That is smart,” I replied. “The newspaper involved the advertisers by having them make those picks.”

Contests are notorious for getting the involvement of consumers. This time of year, consumers frequently participate in contests which offer the opportunity to pick the winners of football games. Football fans love to guess the winners, don’t they? Melding their interest in picking football game winners with the involvement that consumers have in contests, the local newspaper created the “Click, Pick, and Win” contest. Entrants can sign up and make their picks online. Their results are totaled each week and added into a running total. Weekly prizes as well as a grand prize are awarded.

Tapping into the football hype at the beginning of the season is smart for the newspaper and for the advertisers. Why? First of all, most readers of sports pages are part of a hard-to-find market: men. Guys read the sports pages, especially this time of the year, to keep up with their favorite team and find out what is happening with other teams, too. If men are a business’s target market, this is an excellent vehicle to reach them.

Second, guys who are football fans love to participate in guessing which team will win a game. Setting up a contest in which they can do this on a weekly basis gives them the opportunity to do so and have bragging rights as to their picks for the week.

The newspaper took this a step further, however, with the third reason that this idea is smart. By having the advertisers make their picks every week, the newspaper opened the door for feedback to the advertisers. One of the greatest challenges to selling media is feedback. The advertisers’ weekly picks will prompt unsolicited comments from consumers on a particular game or week’s picks such as “You did okay this week on your picks, didn’t you?” or “I can’t believe that you picked New York in that game!”

These picks give advertisers an opening for conversation with consumers and the opportunity to build a relationship with them. The picks give both the target market and the advertisers a common interest. Rather than being a stranger who wants to take the consumer’s money, the advertisers become people, establishing trust. After all, you can trust another football fanatic, can’t you?

Trust opens the door to building a long term relationship as a customer and a business person. These relationships are profitable for both parties. That is what you want from your marketing.

The next time that you are offered an advertising opportunity, take a careful look at it. Does the offer involve your customer? Does it offer an opportunity for two-way communication with your customer? Will it afford you the chance to lay a foundation of trust and build a relationship with your customer?

If it does, grab it. That is profitable advertising.