If you're a dedicated Harry Potter fan and a marketer, then here's the top 9 lessons that we can learn from the greatest wizard in the world to becoming market wizards in a digital age.
1. If potions isn't your forte, then why not try Quidditch?
Harry Potter isn't great at everything, and neither are marketing campaigns. For some B2B brands, a social media campaign may not be the best marketing strategy if they are trying to target a niche group of people. Social media tools such as Twitter can be too widespread, and often don't have the intimacy of more targeted marketing tactics, such as a round table event.
2. While an invisible cloak can get you around Hogwarts undetected, sometimes you have to face the music
Just like how Harry can sneak around under his invisible cloak, marketers who hide behind a 'cloak' of social channels are missing out on the face-to-face interaction. While Twitter is great for introductions, marketers need to get out and meet the people that are most important to their brands - whether they're brand advocates, thought leaders in the industry or potential clients, in-person interaction really matters to solidify the relationship.
3. Magic can't fix everything
At the wave of a wand, Harry can fix broken noses or become invisible, however, fighting dragons and swimming under water takes more complicated magic, and more time. While marketers may feel pressure to make their targets for Twitter followers or new leads, sometimes in all comes down to quality and not quantity. While marketers can boost their social media followers, it matters much more if they have relevant followers. While social media campaigns can feel like a magical fix, they time to be curated and develop.
4. Stick to your potions books, you'll learn a lot
Hermione has taught us to do the background research before acting on any projects. While one campaign may sound like a quick fix to gain recognition, is it a strategic business initiative or a glossy gimmick? As marketers, we often forget to do the on-the-ground background checks before launching a campaign. While the gamification of a Facebook app sounds great on paper, will it drive more visitors to your homepage? Will it increase brand awareness? Would the budget be better spent on an event? These are questions that need to be asked prior to a campaign launch.
5. You may not need the best wand, but you'll need advocates
Although Harry breaks the Elder wand, he's still able to battle Voldemort with a little help from his loyal friends and supporters. Although marketers aren't up against evil witches, they still need the same loyalty from their brand advocates to successfully complete their projects. Marketers need to be on the lookout for those who can best represent their brand externally. Approaching a loyal social media follower to write a guest blog or promoting these supporters on Twitter can boost your brand image, and organically extend your network of dedicated advocates.
6. Invisible ink always re-appears
As Harry realised in the Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows, that anything written down (even with invisible ink) can reappear, and may cause unprecedented complications. For marketers, 'invisible ink' can be what your digital communciations team is writing about the business through social channels. Consistent internal as well as external communications strategy is essential for strong brand messaging. If your website promotes one set of messaging and your Twitter channels say another, this can be confusing for customers, and can degrade your organisation's image.
7. How to deal with Draco Malfoy?
Just like how Harry faces his most vocal nemesis, Draco Malfoy, marketers have to cope with negative reactions to their brand as well. In a digital age, marketers have back-and-forth communications with customers. Marketing strategy is no longer about broadcast messaging, but engagement with customers, and sometimes, even just listening to what they have to say.
8. Separating the Muggles from the wizards
For those of you who are die-hard HP fans, you'll know that the Muggles' world and the wizards' world are completely separate - and they should be. For marketers, campaigns should target one community or another, not all the contacts in your customer relations management system. If you're sending out a direct message campaign to everyone that has checked the box that they're interested in 'media', this could mean many different things. Television, technology, social media and advertising all fit under this description, but they all require different messaging.
9. If your competitors are in the sky, learn to fly a broomstick
To be a successful wizard, Harry had to learn to fly a broomstick to play Quidditch and sometimes to outrun Dementors. For marketers, if their competitors are 'learning to fly', they need to as well. If your competitors are launching customer-led viral campaigns, you better get your own as well, or risk getting left behind.