Chocolate Lovers Take Note
This is about personal touches, and how everything old can be new again.
Chocolate’s easy to sell, right? But how about in a recession economy? Or how about in a small town? What would motivate me to buy chocolate? Well, a loving wife, for one thing. So there I went, into the chocolate store. I bought her some stuff, but then, I saw this:
This is Rex’s Outrageous Road Crew Crunch. This particular bag, and it’s worth clicking that graphic and looking at the bigger picture, is called “Asphalt.” It’s like Chex Mix drizzled with really high quality chocolate. I know this because Pat who runs Carriage Town Chocolates told me about the quality of the chocolate.
Look at the back of the bag:
There’s a story there. In fact, the whole EXPERIENCE is a story. If you didn’t already click through to Rex’s site, do so, and get the larger story. It’s brilliant.
And this is where personalization matters.
Look at this great card I received by Cheryl Smith of Culture Smith Consulting. She wrote me a nice and personal letter, and left me with a warm impression. Do I need her services right now? No. Will I think of her because I’ve got that card sitting on my desk? Absolutely.
Professional speaker Stephen Hopson sent me a card, too. I got it on the same day as Cheryl’s, actually. What a great day for me. Stephen was nice because he reminded me about some great moments we shared at SOBCon 08, and gave me a warm feeling.
In both cases, Cheryl and Stephen send me messages through Twitter and email and Facebook on and off throughout the week. I’m not feeling like I don’t know them, or haven’t heard from them, and yet, these bits certainly add to the feeling of personalization and personality.
How are YOU approaching the problem of being the same as everyone else? Because it’s out there. Are you doing something about it?
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Comments
Great post. I am having heart palpitations dreaming about my two favourite things…Chex Mix and dark chocolate. (heavy sigh)
Chris:
Well, that was a FIRST for me - seeing a card I wrote appearing at a blog with such clarity! Wow. No one ever photographed a card I wrote and put it up for all to see.
Thanks for doing that - like the card and bag of chocolate brought a smile to someone’s face, this one brought a smile to mine! :)
love is a morsel of chocolate
on top of a giant box of chocolate
that is dipped in chocolate itself
thanks for *your* personalization
*smooch*
As a web designer, I really love Cheryl’s card. Nice design and nice brand. Makes it all the more memorable and business productive as well.
What about guys like me? Sometimes I find myself too differentiated. I could go chat with other woodturners and read woodturning blogs (rare), but thats not who my customers are.
Chris Penn, and John Wall said on marketing over Coffee that it’s tough to sell a $10,000 dollar talk on “twitter use” to a bunch of twitter users.
I am that guy..I am a bit different, sometimes I think folks aren’t sure what to do with me. For me the challenge is to help others identify the parallels.
It’s difficult to differentiate, and you’ve picked out some great examples from different walks of life. I think in the web/online world it’s easier to get away with a touch of quirkiness. But it’s very difficult to find a balance between necessary seriousness and being overly gimmicky.
Personalisation, originality in site design while retaining intuitive navigation. Having a niche, even if it’s not a massive difference just a different approach. E.g. I should focus more on my expertise in usability and accessibility in web design perhaps.
Just bought myself some asphalt (the dark chocolate kind)…I can see why you featured this company–when it comes to marketing approaches, the genuine ones always shine through.
In the April edition of Harvard Business Review, Frances X. Frei suggests we ask ourselves, “Are we trying to be all things to all people, or specific things to specific people?”
While my blog is focused on client service and all that it encompasses, today it all comes back to being specific things to specific people. Those who stay attuned to best practices from all types of industries and who embrace not only customizing, but personalizing their products/services will win the day during the next decade.
Interesting that use of USMail (my personal favorite tool) is now so rare as to be commented on or called quirky.
As always, Chris, thanks for a great post.
Oh wow, that chocolate looks good! I never did meet a piece of chocolate that I didn’t like.
I have a bunch of blank cards sitting in my desk for those occasions where an electronic touch just doesn’t cut it.
[…] never know what might happen when you take the time to handwrite a note. The other day I wrote to Chris Brogan, thanking him for the impact he’s had on me at this phase of my business. I sincerely […]
the alkali in the ingredients stopped me.. so, like Keith, I discover how differentiation can cause some to not buy and others to want to buy
Thanks Chris! I was filling orders and someone mentioned they heard about Road Crew Crunch via your blog - it made my day (well, I read the article at 2am while packing bags!)I hope that you enjoy what is inside as well you did our packaging! Dig In!
Rex
Oh, the insides were top shelf, Rex. I’m making my way to the bottom of the bag. Make sure you tell Pat from Carriage Town chocolates. She did a great job of selling your goods on your behalf, praising your chocolatiering skills all the while.
I thought Joseph Jaffee sorta said it best when he said “If you want people to love your brand, you gotta make it lovable,” which kinda seems like at the core of what you’re talking about.
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I like the detail, good article!