Have you seen a movie recently?  Do you remember why you chose that film versus all the others playing in the theater or sitting on the rental shelf at the time?  In all likelihood, it was word-of-mouth buzz or a fantastic trailer.

For anyone selling a product or service, word-of-mouth marketing, on a grand scale, is the panacea.  Marketers have some control over effectuating a word-of-mouth movement, but by and large, it’s the product or service’s ability to exceed customer expectations after the purchase that drives this type of buzz.  In keeping with the movie analogy, that’s why movies like Slumdog Millionaire, with limited initial promotional budgets, rise to the top.  They are simply too good to ignore.

May we all be so lucky, at one time or another, to be associated with a product or service that effectively sells itself.  Unfortunately, most products and services don’t operate this way.  They require strong up-front and ongoing promotion to get off the ground and take hold.  In the movie business, this usually equates to a fantastic trailer and big advertising dollars to play it early and often.

We’ve all seen world class trailers that makes us want to buy an advance ticket for a movie on Fandango.com.  What, then, are the elements of a great trailer, and how can organizations apply these lessons to their own marketing efforts?

1)      Engaging – Great movie trailers always grab the viewer’s attention.  There’s strong imagery, compelling music, and rising tension.

Obviously, it’s much easier for a movie trailer to quickly pull a viewer in than for a B-to-B company representing a product or service to quickly engage a potential buyer.   That said, organizations selling even the most mundane products or services must draw the buyer in, quickly.

2)      Inspirational – The best movie trailers inspire us.  Many showcase an individual or group of people rising up to overcome a significant challenge in an exceptional way.

Marketers should also seek to inspire.  We must paint a compelling picture of what the world could be like with our product or service.

3)      Cogent – Within the span of two-and-a-half minutes, movie trailers accomplish a great deal.  They present the challenge, introduce the characters, show complications and hint to the resolution.  Even trailers for movies with the most complicated of plots achieve this cogency.

Organizations should aspire to represent their capabilities with the same brevity and clarity.  Product-centric organizations almost always drop the ball here.  They want to show every bell and whistle, and in the process they confuse the buyer.  Organizations that embrace Customer Voice Selling, on the other hand, are very skilled at positioning their products and services with an economy of words and images.

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