This is Lester Wunderman – who coined the phrase “direct marketing” – and to whom I almost sold my agency.
A few years ago he and I sat on an American Express committee which met in exotic places to discuss their creative work.
Lester said little, but it was always relevant. As you might expect, I said a lot and hoped some was relevant.
I have never forgotten one thing he said when we were discussing discounts at a meeting in Kyoto. “You are training your customers to expect bribes.”
This struck me because I had already seen impeccable research by Professor Ehrenburg and Alex Biehl of the Ogilvy Centre for Research proving that those firms which advertise most and promote least are infinitely more profitable than those who do the opposite.
By promote, I mean giving things away in exchange for sales.
When you keep discounting, you are not just training people to expect bribes; you are telling them “what we offer is not good enough to sell on its merits.” You are degrading your brand.
Which brands have demonstrated this best over the last 30 years? People like General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. All ended up in deep doo-doo.
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