What ‘Negan' of the Walking Dead Teaches Us About Marketing
Keep an Eye on the Opposition
Negan was watching Rick's group so closely that they were able to forecast exactly where the group would run and surround them in an instant. Internet marketers need to do this with their competition as well. Keep an eye on what they are posting on facebook and what new offers they are promoting. If something works well for them, it wouldn't hurt to take a similar route.
Turn Staff members into Marketing and advertising Ambassadors
Negan's followers are an eccentric and crazed bunch, but they all serve as driven ambassadors. Season 6 of the show focused heavily on Negan and the danger he posed, but fans never even saw his face until the last moments of the season finale. This is because his personnel were powerful ambassadors.
Local business owners should take this lesson to heart. This is particularly true since 80 percent of organizations with employee advocacy strategies report better brand visibility. Give workers branded t-shirts for free or share videos of them taken at work. Offer prizes to whoever recommends the greatest number of new customers or send them out to community events in exchange for a day off.
Whatever it takes, produce ambassadors like Negan's… except for the killing part, obviously.
Build Local Relationships
In both the comics and the television show, Negan goes around to nearby settlements and makes deals with the locals. These are usually unfair to the given community, but the deal is created nonetheless. Local business owners should also make connections with other nearby companies. Something as simple as putting the other place's business cards in the lobby can create a working relationship.
Of all the things one could take from The Walking Dead, advertising and marketing lessons is the most surprising. However, the lessons are there. And when viewers are staring pure evil right in the eye, they can at least take a couple of promotional lessons from the experience.
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