The power of “real” people in marketing is certainly not new. The latest iteration of the idea is peer-to-peer marketing in social media. The underlying notion is simple, whether it is social media or a traditional “testimonial” commercial, consumers are more likely to trust the opinion or experience of people that they perceive to be like them…real and therefore trustworthy.
Mercedes-Benz has been in the process of re-building their brand’s core values (see earlier post) and recently has been focusing on safety. Mercedes-Benz’ use of real people to make their case for safety results in a very compelling campaign. Here’s a recent television commercial:
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” The accidents changed their lives, the films could change yours.” While the television commercial is nice, the real power comes if you visit the website. There you can select from a whole range of films and hear each person’s or family’s story. Here are a couple of examples: (more…)