April 2009 – Ask the Expert

Q: Can infomercials really save the economy?

A:The economy is bleak, and pundits and economists blame bellwether corporations. Financial institutions such as lenders and insurers are particularly vulnerable, trotted out like ducks in daily shooting galleries of congressional hearings and 24/7 cable news channels. Presumptively guilty of mismanagement, malfeasance and causing global recession, corporate reputations are in shambles.

Because recovery significantly depends upon these institutions regaining their footing, this is a grave problem. But negative image is a marketing issue, which can be calmly assessed and strategically addressed. For sure, corporate jet and Caribbean getaway perks have to go, but so too should traditional advertising practices. Rebuilding reputations and trust is only half the battle. Financial firms must also close sales.

That’s how infomercials can legitimately help save the economy. Trying to stem a tsunami of negativity with 15-second image spots–even when airing during “American Idol” or the Oscars–is like trying to fend off a hurricane with umbrellas. Quick feel-good spots are insufficient defense when Lou Dobbs, Neil Cavuto, “60 Minutes” and the like devote hours of coverage to diminishing your brand. But that trashing also opens a door. Viewers are more willing than ever to devote time and attention to financial matters: home loans, investments, insurance and credit. You know…financial products that providers can advertise. Infomercials offer tremendous potential for institutions to not only rehabilitate reputations, but to sell financial services that can actually get the economy moving. While consumers are understandably nervous about buying new homes, for instance, the regrettable reality is that one person’s misfortune is another’s opportunity. Accordingly, depressed housing prices make 2009 an ideal time to purchase a home, and lenders should push this case aggressively. But given the widespread distrust the mass media fuels, banks must fight fire with fire–and fight the mass media with mass media. Infomercials offer that mass–both in minutes available to present a strong case, and in the aggregate number of minutes that advertisers can afford (always a DRTV strength, but even more in a depressed avail market). By controlling their own conversations, beleaguered CEOs can talk to consumers directly, unfiltered by hostile news anchors or camera-hungry congressmen. Through testimonials, banks can prove that the housing market is not defined by the foreclosures that local newscasts air; instead, when real people speak sincerely of lenders providing real solutions to real problems, the institutions themselves morph from problems to solutions. To suggest that infomercials can save the economy is not to suggest that President Obama should offer free Snuggies for each newly created job, or even promise two chickens in every George Foreman grill. It’s simply to remind ourselves that mass media can drive optimistic behavior as powerfully as it can trigger consumer paralysis. DRTV companies should remind financial corporations of this. As recent events prove, past approaches have sometimes proven shaky.That includes marketing. Financial institutions don’t need politicians to bail them out; they need expert consultants to assist them to right their own ships by convincing wary consumers to do business with confidence.

Timothy R. Hawthorne is founder, chairman and exectuve creative director of Hawthorne Direct, a full-service DRTV, print, mail and digital ad agency founded in 1986. A 34-year television producer/writer/director, Hawthorne is a cum laude Harvard graduate.