Getting your brand and message to cut through the noise to reach your customers is increasingly challenging. There’s more noise, more vehicles and more messages than ever. But what if you could get your customers to help spread the word?
That’s exactly what Ikea has done with their big blue shopping bags. The bags have morphed into lightweight, inexpensive duffels for athletes, boaters, gardeners and anyone else who needs to carry lots of stuff. Ikea doesn’t have traditional shopping bags – you bring your own or buy one of theirs at the store. But it’s a big bag – it holds 19 gallons of stuff, so it has many uses.
As a result, you’ll see Ikea bags in really strange places, and when that happens, people say “That’s a great idea, how can I get one?” And that’s what makes the approach really cool – you can only get the bags in an Ikea store. They don’t sell them online, so people go to a store for the bags, and often also buy things to put in them.
Most businesses have shopping bags. But how many charge for them, and then have customers helping promote the brand and products?
Do your products or services have unique appeal? Are your customers promoting your brand? If not, why not?