I’m pretty conservative when it comes to language. I’ve never called anyone a “guru” or “rockstar,” I think architects should stick to designing buildings and I believe too much “360-degree thinking” will make you dizzy. If you’re “out of the box,” you’re likely in some other box which may or may not be better than the one you just escaped from/were kicked out of.
So in a world filled with pompous marketing jargon, “Oatmeal vs. Bacon: How to Differentiate in a Generic World” is a refreshing read and a succinct guide to creating and growing loyalty in your product or service. I put it on par with Seth Godin classics like “Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable,” and you can read “Oatmeal vs. Bacon” in a half-hour at a coffee shop. Foster is known for lift-off-the-top-of-you-head-and-expose-it-to-the-air one-liners and this book has many. But the quips just keep it readable as you absorb the content. (Click here for the book’s Facebook page and here to follow Foster on Twitter).
Oatmeal is stodgy and unappetizing and requires lots of time, money and effort to make it taste better, or appear to be something other than oatmeal. Bacon, on the other hand, needs little fluff, has transparent packaging and people even wrap other foods in bacon to make them taste better. Foster’s book shows us how the analogy really holds with branding and marketing, whether it involves a company, product, event or yourself.
Foster’s delivery makes his book readable, but he is really talking about time-honored principles of customer loyalty – things people understood in ancient Mayan marketplaces as well as they do at Apple headquarters.
- Have a great product. If your product sucks or customers don’t like you, you are doomed, no matter how big your marketing budget is.
- You will know your product is great because you don’t have to spend time or money getting people to believe it is something else.
- You will know you have a good brand when people generate much positive word-of-mouth and rise to your defense.
Foster discusses the concept of “pull” vs. “push.” Selling oatmeal requires push – interruptive advertising in print, online and broadcast media, as well as display advertising. “Pull” is based on two things: be interesting and tell stories. Interesting stories include such things as the brand’s internal culture, over-the-top customer service or the experience of using the product (assuming, of course, you really do have an interesting internal culture, over-the-top customer services or great customer experience stories).
Above all, bacon companies never lose sight of why people love their brand and they are disciplined and use restraint in their marketing. Bacon companies don’t often provide discounts; they set trends; they are good places to work; and they are heavily connected in their communities.
Even if you are bacon, you still need to “cook” – to exercise your marketing plan. That includes having the courage to accept the pressure of being different, as well as performing when you’re under the most scrutiny. Foster also advocates using the success of one product to promote everything else you do. When in doubt, be memorable, and never tolerate mediocrity. To increase sales, some companies change the essence of their product, or hide their bacon, hoping to reach more customers. Don’t do it! Discovering why people like your company creates the foundation for all your other marketing efforts.
After your bacon is cooked, you need five tools to get it in the hands of your audience:
- A decent logo.
- A decent Web site
- Social media presence
- Storytelling
- 500 people who love you. Communicate with them through newsletter, events, forums or just pick up the phone and call them. The idea is to make them evangelists for your brand.
Foster has been very influential in regional marketing and social media circles through associations with BlueLine and Tricycle and he’s helped me form ideas and approaches in my own public relations practice. I would not be surprised if some slick New York branding firm plucked him from the farm fields of Caldwell, Idaho, like a UFO abductee, because his brain is worth dissecting. It’s pure bacon.
