The Only Thing Better Than Branding a Product? Branding the Problem It Solves
Plus: BulbHead's new Top 10 hit & the optimal social-media posting frequency
As I was thinking about what nugget of old marketing wisdom to share this week, a newsletter hit my inbox that featured just the sort of thing I would have written about. Since I’m not too proud to borrow an idea and promote a fellow direct marketer, it will serve as our topic for today.
Old Gold🪙
Danavir Sarria is the founder of a DTC growth agency called SupplyDrop and the author of a weekly newsletter called The Upsell. Here’s an excerpt from his latest edition:
Back in the early 1900’s, Albert Lasker needed to find a way to sell more Listerine. So he decided to give “bad smelling breath” a medical sounding name (Halitosis), advertised the heck out of it as a NEW problem, and drove millions in sales …
This isn’t the only famous attempt at problem-driven ads.
Athlete’s Foot?
Doesn't exist either!
While the problem of itchy feet exists, the term “Athlete’s Foot” didn't come from a doctor's office. It came from inside the mind of advertisers who wanted to label a new problem, promote that problem, and sell their product as the only "cure" to that problem.
There's no name for this angle, so I'll make one up now:
"Branded Problem Ads"
As the name suggests, the whole ad idea is based around finding a problem and giving it a name, so it becomes marketable and you can make it the next big thing... naturally leading to more product sales.
The idea of branding something other than your product is a tried-and-true marketing tactic, as Sarria’s newsletter shows. When I worked for one of the big DRTV companies, we were obsessed with creating a branded technology inside our products similar to Sony’s “Trinitron,” which Wikipedia says “allowed Sony to charge a premium for Trinitron devices into the 1990s.”
But branding a problem? That’s on a whole different level!
It’s also a great example of why it pays to study the Masters of Marketing (e.g. Lasker). Some modern marketers clearly haven’t forgotten these genius tactics of yesteryear. Indeed, a modern example of a branded problem immediately came to mind: P&G’s “nose blind.”
Or wait … maybe “nose blindness” is a real thing? In any case, Febreeze now owns this problem in the mind of the consumer.
True, most of us don’t have P&G-level advertising budgets, so creating awareness of a branded problem can be challenging. I still think it’s worth the effort. You never know when you’ll end up with a major hit that can sustain a big advertising budget, so why not make sure you’ll enjoy the benefits of owning both the product and the problem?
Can you think of any other recent examples of a “branded problem”? If so, share it in the comments.
Choose products with better odds of success. ✅
Create cost-effective commercials that sell. ✅
Use smart media math to make more money. ✅
SciMark can help you accomplish each of these goals. Email me to find out more.
Chart Watch👁️
Bull Shot
Pitch: “Just spray and the stain, and the odor, goes away”
Brand: Horsepower
Offer: $19.99 for one
Marketer: BulbHead
This campaign is sitting at #7 on the DRMetrix chart. It first tested in June, entered the Top 50 last month and broke into the Top 10 at the beginning of this month.
The product itself is Old Gold. The original hit was 2013’s Stream Clean starring Marc Gill, which was marketed by Plymouth Direct/Media Enterprises (now Top Dog).
As for the brand, BulbHead appears to be trying to extend Ruby Horsepower, a campaign that appeared right below this one at #8 and has been a Top 10 hit since the spring. What’s odd is the Horsepower scrubber itself was an attempt to extend the Ruby brand — as in the True Top 50 hits Ruby Sliders (2021) and Ruby Space Triangles (2023).
Is Ruby the brand or Horsepower? Does a bull/horse combo (or a horse/bull excrement combo) even make sense? These are questions BulbHead is apparently trying to work out in real time. In my opinion, all three ideas have brand potential, but right now the muddle of concepts is confusing — and confusion is a sales killer.
Fun Fact🧠
How often should you post on social media for optimal results? According to a study of 332,490 social media accounts over a 30-day period by Neil Patel (NP) Digital:
For LinkedIn, it’s 1 post per day
For Instagram, it’s 1-2 posts/Reels per day
For TikTok, it’s 1-3 posts per day
For X/Twitter, it’s 3+ posts per day
For YouTube, it’s 1 short & 1 long-form video per day
For Facebook, there was “no success pattern identified”
Commenting on this in a recent newsletter, Kevin King writes:
Surprisingly, on some networks, posting too frequently actually reduced reach—especially on Instagram and YouTube.
DR Jokes😆
You’ve heard of “dad jokes,” but how about “DR jokes”? I came across one the other day that would qualify. It’s from the funny folks over at the satirical publication, The Babylon Bee. While amusing on its own, it’s even more amusing for those familiar with Al Eicoff’s famous phrase.
Got a “DR joke”? Share it in the comments or shoot me an email. If I like it enough, I’ll include it in the newsletter and give you a shout-out.
