Nate Riggs: Social Business Strategies; communication, social web strategies, & passion in Columbus, Ohio.

Marketing is becoming more about tactical communication.  Plain and simple.

Good tactical communicators find creative ways to reach the right audience with the right message at the right time, using a medium that makes sense for the receiver.  The goal is to motivate your target to (eventually) take a action.  For that, marketers look for a need.

Good Tactical Strategy
I like to run in the evenings and, while stopped at what seemed like an endless stoplight last night, I noticed this brilliant piece of tactical marketing.

When I saw this, I wanted to snap a picture and send it in to the FAIL blog.  My initial impression was that the marketer really screwed this up.

First, the sign was facing away from the busy road. Duh.  Who in the hell will ever see it?  Second, the sign was too small and type too light to EVER be seen by any passing traffic or cars stopped at the light. EPIC FAIL, right?

Wrong.  Here’s why.

Targeting is Critical
First, the marketer is offering child care services, probably out of her home.  The price point of $100 per week is uber cheap for childcare.

You may not be able to tell at first, but this sign was placed at the bus stop area of a major intersection on the north-end of Columbus.  During the mornings and late afternoons, you can often see groups of 20+ people heading to or coming home from work.  These riders will sometimes stand for up to 20-30 minutes waiting for the bus to scoop them up.  The marketer was savvy enough to focus the sign towards the boarding area, making the message visible to an audience with ample time to read the messaging and consider the offer.

Now think about audience of bus riders.  Aside from the environmentally conscious or the super-frugal, we can assume that the majority of bus riders choose to do so as a result of limited finances. Riding the bus is cheaper than owning a car.  Likewise, if they are riding the bus, there is a good chance that it is taking them to work in the city or elsewhere.  Bingo!  We can assume that the audience probably has some form of steady income, and a possible need for affordable childcare while they are away at work.

But wait – there’s more!  The childcare marketer takes this one step further with the color choice on the sign.  Pink is typically seen as a color that attracts attention from a female demographic. So, its safe to assume that working moms who are riding the bus would be the right audience to receive the message that the marketer wants to deliver.

EPIC WIN!

Strategy
What can we learn from this example?  Here’s what I learned.

1. Sometimes the placement of the message is more important than the actual message itself.
2. You can be much more accurate shooting with a rifle, rather than a shot gun.  What I mean by this is that the more targeted you can be with the delivery to an audience, the less effort you waste sending messages to people who will never buy what you have to sell.
3. You don’t need a huge budget to be effective.  You just need to think through the tactical strategy and timing behind delivering your message.
4. Price is critical to a successful tactical strategy.  The best messaging in the world will never help your audience get deeper pockets.

So, do you have some examples of your own of good tactical marketing?