Day 4: Think selling your product is hard? Try selling an entire province.
Or, why this ad makes me want to sell everything I own and move to the Canadian wilderness.
Listen.
If you've ever doubted whether marketing can ever truly be beautiful, evocative, compelling and artful...
Inhale.
Exhale.
And press play on "Find Yourself" 👇 from Destination British Columbia:
It's rare to come across an ad that makes you stop in your tracks and remember, for just a moment, who you are.
What you crave.
And what you're searching for.
Read on to slow down with me and ponder: what are your customers really searching for?
Campaign Breakdown:
“Find Yourself” by Destination British Columbia
The Background:
Looking to target short haul travellers from the US, Destination BC needed to create a compelling argument for why it was worth crossing the border to visit the Canadian wildness — which, on the surface, looks similar to what travellers already experience in their homestates of Washington or California.
But, the wilderness of British Columbia is unlike anything else: vast, untouched, spacious, and rich with indigenous history and culture. This provides an opportunity for travellers to connect with nature and themselves on a far deeper level.
The Question:
Understanding the trends unfolding in your industry can help you shape your launch message around what your audience is truly craving.
In this case, Find Yourself taps into the popularity of wellness tourism — the industry’s fastest growing segment — to paint a picture of the experience that customers are already looking for.
So, what trends are beginning to emerge in your niche or indsutry? What are your customers craving more now than ever before?
Your Creative Prompt:
For this campaign, Destination BC went deep. It wasn’t just about the local attractions on offer or promises of fun and laughter. “Find Yourself” explores he soul of the province, while conveying a more expansive experience that (in the wake of COVID) travellers are searching for in droves.
So, imagine your course or program as a physical destination. Think beyond the attractions and ask…
What kind of experience have your customers been craving lately — and how will they get it on their journey with you?
How To Use it:
Watching this advertisement gives me the exact feeling I’d imagine if I sold all my things and ran away to BC. It makes me want more.
Do your launches do the same — or are they just laced with the same old hype? The experience of engaging with your launch should give me a taste of how I’ll feel while I’m working with you (or learning from you).
So look for ways to make your launch itself capture the feeling and soul of your offer. Is it exciting? Is it bold? Is it mellow? Or contemplative?
Bring this to life in your design, the words you use, and in the touchpoints of your launch.
The Big Idea… & What’s Next:
The energy of your launch should match the energy of your offer. Let customers taste the heart and soul of the experience inside your program, before they’ve even bought — and don’t be afraid to dig deeper and ask what they’re truly craving at this point in time.
If you want to learn more about creating an experience-first approach to your next launch, take a peek at Launch Lemonade.
Tomorrow… we explore how a picture billboard can paint a thousand words — and take a break from long-form sales pages — with KitKat. 🍫