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March 30,
2010
 Surf?
Swim? Or Both?
What do you do to sell the power of your combined products when
your buyers (A) think you are becoming obsolete? (B) give them
less value cost-wise than your competition? and (C) have a
personal preference for the competition?
That is the situation the magazine print world faces. They are
bleeding advertising dollars to the online world. The Internet
is �hot.� The buyers of advertising are frequently young and
personally go online more than they bury themselves in a
magazine. Kick in the far less expensive ad rates the Internet
offers and the ability to measure online ad results and to
advertising buyers, it looks like magazines are going in one
direction: down.
Not so fast, say the print publishers! They have expanded their
Internet offerings in the last year and they are out now to sell
the power of print to these buyers who dismiss their magazines
as pass�.
A Literal (and
Metaphorical) Fight for Survival
Time Warner (publisher of Time, People among
others), Hearst (Good Housekeeping and Cosmopolitan), Conde Nast
(Vogue and Wired), Wenner Media (Rolling Stone and US Weekly)
and Meredith (Better Homes & Gardens and More), have
collaborated on a new million dollar advertising campaign that
dramatizes its point with a clever metaphor.
We surf the Internet.
We swim in magazines.
The Internet is exhilarating. Magazines are enveloping. The
Internet grabs you. Magazines embrace you. The Internet is
fleeting. Magazines are immersive. And both media are growing.
Barely noticed amidst the thunderous Internet clamor is the
simple fact that magazine readership has risen over the past
five years. Even in the age of the Internet, even among the
groups, one would assume are most singularly hooked on digital
media, the appeal of magazines is growing.
Think of it this way: during the 12-year life of Google,
magazine readership actually increased 11 percent.
What it proves, once again, is that a new medium doesn�t
necessarily displace an existing one. Just as movies didn�t kill
radio. Just as TV didn�t kill movies. An established medium can
continue to flourish, so long as it continues to offer a unique
experience. And, as reader loyalty and growth demonstrate,
magazines do.
Which is why people aren�t giving up swimming, just because they
also enjoy surfing.
- Magazines. The Power of Print*
Take-Away
If I was evaluating the Metaphorian Power of
this argument, I would give it a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10. It
does what a metaphor should do: It engages. It�s easy to grasp.
It�s framed in terms its audience can relate to. It has
�legs�--the comparison is made in several ways (exhilarating and
enveloping, grabs and embraces, fleeting and immersive).
Finally, after the factual reference to its growth rate and the
other metaphors to illustrate its premise, the last line of the
argument returns to the central metaphor to firmly nail the
point. Flawless.
I encourage you to review this example several times. What ideas
can you take from this example to apply in your world?
See you next month!.
Anne
Miller
Make What You Say, Pay � With Metaphors.
*
"Magazines Tout the 'Power Of Print,'" Wall Street Journal,
3/1/2010
FYI...
Hope to have information for you on my new
book, which is a follow-up to Metaphorically Selling.
It is in production now. Stay tuned...
 PLANNING
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ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING?
Give your group a program
they will thank you for!
Call today to
guarantee your preferred dates and let�s plan a lively, high
pay-off speech or workshop for your organization. Call 212 876 1875
or email:
amiller@annemiller.com |
