If you’re a regular to this blog, well, even if you’ve read it just once or twice, you know I have an unhealthy obsession with brand utility. Every time I see a brand engage with consumers in a meaningful way, i.e. offer them something of value, my heart is filled with rainbows and unicorns:

A recent example of brand utility comes from Chrome, an urban cycling lifestyle brand.  They are well known for their bags, and were looking to build up awareness and sales for their burgeoning shoe brand.

Chrome came up with a trade in program:

On March 17 , at 9:06 a.m., Chrome posted the following status update on its wall:

“Hey Everyone! We’re doing a “Turds For Gold” Shoe Exchange and, starting RIGHT NOW, we’re sending a FREE PAIR OF CHROME SHOES to anyone that sends us a crappy, worn-out pair of kicks. The exchange is two days ONLY and packages MUST be postmarked by 3/18 to qualify. In your shipment, please include a return shipping address and shoe size info.”

The head of marketing for Chrome, expected to give out 500 or so shoes. Turns out, over 5,000 people sent in shoes. Every Chrome employee, plus volunteers found through Facebook, made sure that everyone go their shoes.

So, Chrome gave away a bunch of shoes, way more than they expected. Who cares?

1) The total cost of the promotion is about what it would have costed to advertise in the top two urban cycling trade magazines for the entire year.

2) Word of mouth: I found out about this story, via an article on Clickz , from a writer who actually swapped an old pair of shoes for a new pair of Chromes. How many other people, whether in the cycling world or communications world, now know about Chrome shoes?

3) This kind of marketing creativity, and playfulness, fits perfectly within the Chrome branding. As outfitters to urban cyclists, they are catering people who see themselves as unique, creative, and interesting. Marketing that reflects the identity of your customers– A huge branding plus.

All of this being said, there are many more metrics that Chrome could have/should have tracked, to accurately determine ROI from the campaign. In fact, there is no complete record of who they gave their shoes out to!  I would venture to guess that the earned media from the promotion + the cost of the promotion = less than advertising expenses for similar media exposure.

Brand utility doesn’t always have to be about giving something away, it can be about offering a better product, that your customers pay for, because it makes their lives better. The Kodak Share Button is a fantastic example of this kind of utility:

People love to share photos with their friends via social networks, email, or by any other means out there, electronically or otherwise. Kodak now has taken a step out of the sharing process, no need to upload the photos to your computer. The photos are also higher quality than the 2 or 5 megapixel cameras on the best mobile devices, so you get the convenience of mobile sharing with the quality of a digital camera.

So the next time your sitting in a meeting and ask, “how do we drive awareness, sales, or traffic”, don’t forget about utility. I know that this line of thinking isn’t revolutionary, but I thought these examples were especially impressive.

Here are some more examples, and explanation, of the power of brand utility from Ingmar De Lange:

What are some of the great ways you’ve seen utility in communications? What are some of the worst?

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