Getting "Real" & Marketing In Publishing

"Authenticity" and "Marketing", not two words that most Americans are likely to pair with one-another. (Gallup suggests that advertisers/marketers are as trusted as HMO's and car salesmen) However, they are two words that we are increasingly fascinated by thanks to some powerful hypotheses posed by our own MJP. The key question? If the primary driver of brand strength is TRUST, then does marketing/advertising to an increasingly skeptical American population necessarily help forge stronger brands?
While we wrestle with this question, it is interesting to note that there is a movement afoot in advertising and marketing circles to embrace "guerilla/viral" tactics not simply because they are seemingly more cost-effective than traditional tv spots and magazine spreads, but because they are more effective from a targeted reach point of view...and arguably more authentic than mass. It isn't exactly rocket science. What is a more effective means of getting you to try a new product, a billboard or a recommendation from a friend? Whereas "guerilla/viral" marketing a la Malcolm Gladwell doesn't necessarily fill the coffers of traditional advertising agencies as efficiently as a solid, corporate image television campaign does, it has worked well for some of the most powerful brands on the marketing radar screen these days (Altoids, Mini). In fact, it is a lesson that NBC learned just last month. In fact, one could argue that as "guerilla" becomes mainstream in advertising and marketing circles, the way that clients measure successful advertising agencies is changing. Today, it is the small, "big idea" shop like a LBWorks and a Crispin Porter + Bogusky that has the "leg up" on the mega-agency.
Recent signs suggest that even the staid marketers in the publishing industry are jumping on the "authenticity marketing" bandwagon. No longer is trade marketing all about relationship building with the Barnes & Noble buyer or soliciting a good review from the "mass influencers" like Publishers Weekly and the Sunday Book Review. By leveraging the likes of viral movements like Bookcrossing, author-centered blogsites and even trade-book blogs a handful of maverick marketers for the publishing industry are starting to dip their toes in the "guerilla" pond of internet-based viral marketing. In fact, the UK's Guardian stated as much in Click Lit, earlier this month about Douglas Copeland's Hey Nostradamus! promo. Net/Net a select few in the publishing industry have finally realized that books sales have historically been driven by two factors, trust and word of mouth. It is nice to see that they are getting back to their knitting on the marketing front. Who would have thought that a few maverick marketers in the publishing industry would eventually be in a position to teach the P&Gers a thing or two about cutting edge marketing. In terms of marketing, the good old "one-to-one" referral is the "new" solution, "small" is shaping up to be more powerful than "big" and it is an exciting time to reinvent the rules of the games of advertising, marketing, sales and relationship building.