The Effortless Principle

We interact with brands in numerous ways. More than we’ve ever done.

As customers we’re on the receiving end of a plethora of messages. So, it’s very frustrating when it takes a huge amount of effort to actually understand what a brand’s advertising, for instance, is really about.

Within the deluge of pre-Christmas and New Year advertising, I’ve been scratching my head to understand what many campaigns – for retailers in particular – are really about. On the positive side, IKEA ‘s ‘Wonderful Everyday’ campaign is one of the few where there’s a consistent and endearing message that doesn’t take much effort to understand.

Too many ads simply rely on production techniques which get in the way of what (supposedly) they are trying to tell you. Car advertising is one of the main culprits here. There are so many mood scenes which obscure the brand, let alone the car itself. You need to go back a long way to think of car ads which were based on a simple well executed idea which didn’t take any effort to understand. The VW Beetle ads are the most brilliant example of this.

Looking at interactions with brands when the buying process kicks in, it’s particularly important to follow the principle of making this effortless.

Amazon is a really positive example of effortlessness. Their ‘buy it now’ link certainly made my Christmas shopping a lot easier. And throughout the year it’s similarly effortless to simply repeat regular purchases which then arrive on the doorstep the next day.

Yes, Amazon hook you in alright. They know my data. For me, in this instance, that’s a good thing. But there are so many other online sites which try to do the same. And this makes it really challenging to get to the final point of checking out.

I have a book of numerous login and password details for sites that I only use occasionally. These are all coded in case the book gets into the wrong hands but apart from using Google Save for some of them, it’s the only way I can remember how to get into the likes of Boots, Screwfix and BT, amongst others.

The solution to this is for the marketing people who are behind any type of brand to dissect the customer journey into all its touchpoints - whether that’s online or through physical interactions. The effortless principle should be applied to each one.

How effortless is it:

- To understand what’s being communicated – without having to deal with all the clutter around the messaging?

- To find the actual product or service that’s right for you (particularly if it’s a best value travel ticket!)

- To find out more – without realising it’s just a bot providing the answers

- To actually buy it – without feeling that you’ve parted with more data than is needed?

There are so many complications in our lives – be it in a work, home or personal environment. This may be around big life-changing decisions through to those smaller complex niggles such as the recurring one on Facebook right now asking which refuse bins need to go out the next day!

In the marketing world, those who manage brands can reduce complications by making everything effortless for their customers. And they should ensure that all employees in their organisation will make the customer’s journey effortless too.

It shouldn’t take too much effort for good marketers to work out how to do that.