Got Chunks?

Relentlessly subjected to a constant barrage of advertising, the average person today feels like a juror in the O.J. Simpson trial with 900 exhibits, 433 motions and 126 witnesses providing an overwhelming glut of tedious data, facts and figures. In the end, most legal analysts agree that O.J.’s “not guilty” verdict swung on the relentless song of Johnnie Cochran to the 12, “If it doesn’t fit, you must acquit.”

In the jury deliberation room, as the 12 tried to fit all the data into a clear, coherent picture, Cochran’s melody echoed in their brains. Cochran further assured them repeatedly that “Simpson could not, would not, did not commit these crimes.” Had Cochran presented a rational, logical, left-brain definition of “reasonable doubt” to the jurors, O.J. would probably not be walking the streets today

For the purpose of marketing  start thinking about your business as a group of messages, brandable chunks if you will. Each of these chunks must be written powerfully and in a way that is repeatable by your team.

"Slogans and taglines are usually white noise, adspeak, something you wish people that would believe even though they probably won't. But a good positioning statement differentiates you from your competitors in a meaningful way. The problem is that positioning statements are usually about the BIG picture. They tend to be all-encompassing, relating the totality of your company to the totality of your competition. A brandable chunk is a memorable, micro-positioning statement about JUST ONE ASPECT of your business. Consequently, you can easily have a dozen or more meaningful, brandable 'chunks' of highly memorable message." - Roy H. Williams, the Wizard of Ads.

Brandable chunks are memorable, micro-differentiators. They are refined from average advertising in the same way that hi-octane gas is refined from crude oil.
 
Brandable chunks:
1. Create vivid mental images
2. Employ unusual word combinations
3. Communicate features and benefits succinctly
4. Have rhythm so they tumble off the tongue

 
Many marketers think of advertising in terms of images or design elements, but design cannot be repeated by salesmen or customer service. Brandable chunks can.

Let’s look at a group of chunks the Wizard of Ads just wrote for a fishing store.

1. Fresh, live fish prefer fresh, live bait.   2.  We believe there’s no time like the present, and no present like time.   3. No cell phones. No video games. No electronic devices. Just a tackle box and a couple of fishing poles.  4.  Your luck will change the moment you step through that door. (The face-to-face variation would be, "Your luck changed the moment you stepped through our door.")    5.  It may look like they (we) sell bait and tackle, but what they (we) really sell is the perfect day.   6. Just add water.

Here is another example of brandable chunks we wrote for an online freight management company.

1.  Freight quotes from hundreds of carriers at a single click.   2.  You get a tracking number for every shipment, no matter which carrier you choose.   3.  Automatically generates paperwork and allows you to upload customs documentation direct to your carrier.   4.  The tool you would have invented if you'd had the time.   5.  Your key people can get the information they need 24/7 for free... isn't the Internet wonderful?   6.  We give you an online eye so you know the exact status of your shipment.  7.  Freight brokers hate us but you're going to love us.

Brandable chunking is the most powerful thing you can do to your marketing.

Would you like some help crafting yours? Contact us, we're here to help.
 

Morty Silber, CEO

Mad Strategies Inc.
a Wizard of Ads Partner