Since this is a marketing blog (and I’d like to get back to enjoying my “special day” [insert ironic pause here]), I’ll simply remark that I find that the leaders in one-to-one marketing seem to be…online forums?

Yep. That’s right. Online forums. When you sign up for one of these online forums, they routinely ask for your birthdate. The software then obligingly kicks out a “happy birthday” email automagically. Nice. It’s a great way for the board to remind you that they exist, and a nice thing for the recipient, even if you know it’s not the thought, but the programming that counts.

Honorable mention in the birthday email sweepstakes: Jack in the Box. I received a “personal” email from Jack Box today, along with a coupon for a free desert. Way to extend your brand – and your tongue-in-cheek marketing attitude to Jack-lovers around the country. Nice job, Jack!

all things come to them's that wait.

I love Jack in the Box. Seriously. I love their food (the cheddar potato wedges are to die for). I love their commercials. I love their whole attitude and persona. I’m a huge fan. I think the entire “Jack” character is simply brilliant. Which is why I’m nothing short of stunned regarding the recent remake of the jackinthebox.com corporate website. Don’t get me wrong. It’s attractive. It’s cool. It’s got the content (the commercials) everyone wants to see. But you’d think it was designed by someone mainlining Heinz ketchup. Slow doesn’t begin to describe it. And slow = death on the web.

Now understand that I’ve got a lot of experience building rich media websites. I’ve written two books on Flash. And I’ve won the Adobe Shocked Site of the Day for one of my multimedia extravaganza websites. In short, I know what it takes to put a site like Jack’s together. And I’m here to tell you that, no matter how cool the site is, and how much cool content it contains, they are dreaming if they think that most people will wait two or three minutes (!) for a site to load.

I’m not exaggerating. Try it for yourself. Go to www.jackinthebox.com and give it a look. It took me close to 3 minutes for the site to load. Once I got there, then it took even more time for individual pages/sections to load. Now you might expect that videos would take a while to load. But the Jack site is using FLVs (Flash video) – which typically load/stream quickly. (Don’t believe me? Go to www.grokmedia.com, click on the “broadcast” menu and try loading/playing one of the TV spots there.)

I’m sure that the design looked great on paper. Once you get it loaded, it’s attractive and fun. But if you can’t get the site to load within a reasonable period of time, most visitors won’t stick around to see the content. This can be fixed – with some tweaking, fine-tuning, and some rethinking about how the ‘weight’ of key assets and how they load.

While I’ve not seen any other indication of this, it looks to me as if they are using this redesign to launch a new corporate ID – new logo, etc. The new logotype is fun in a kind of retro 1960′s kind of way. And it’s a shame that few will stick around to see the site and how they implement the new style cues throughout.

From a marketing point of view, Jack in the Box is normally firing on all eight cylinders. They (usually) don’t miss a trick. I can only assume that, in their excitement to launch a new site and promote a corporate ID redesign, they overlooked the fact that a site that takes forever to load does your brand no favors. Here’s hoping that they figure this out quickly, and make changes in the site so that visitors will have an opportunity to experience the site and nobody will leave thinking “I don’t know Jack – and won’t take the time to get to know him.”

I love advertising icons. And I collect them. Seriously. My office has an ever-growing collection of advertising icons, from PVC figurines of Mr. Peanut and Toucan Sam (Froot Loops) and Snap, Crackle, & Pop bobble heads, to plush figures of Tony the Tiger and the Taco Bell Chihuahua. If it’s an ad icon, I either have it – or want it. 

I got to thinking about that the other day, when a friend saw my office for the first time, and commented on the collection. Why do I love advertising icons so much? After thinking about it for a while, I’ve come up with some reasons why I do – and why I’m not alone in this.

1. Icons allow marketers to focus attention on the strong points of their brand, and put them together in what amounts to a condensed form. Think of an icon as a kind of a shorthand, to communicate instantly a brand message. 
2. Icons give your brand a personality. Think of it – Mr. Clean is a big strong guy who is obviously really good at cleaning (how else to keep the white t-shirt and pants spotless?). Tony the Tiger is always full of boundless energy. Mr. Peanut is dashing, sophisticated, and cool. 
3. Icons provide a way to extend your brand image, by using that personality to interact with the public. Think of the brilliant Jack in the Box spots. (Any of them – they are all fantastic.) Jack at once is hip, in control, and ironic – and projects his personality in the TV spots, using his tongue-in-ball approach to position the brand as far more hip than McDonald’s (and far less whacked-out than Burger King). 
4. Icons are memorable. Brands are built over time. Icons allow you to carry forward all the goodwill and value from previous impressions, instead of having to build the message anew, each time you create an ad. 
5. Icons are cool. A successful icon is worth its weight in gold, and can become a way to generate a secondary income stream via licensing. 
6. Icons have legs. Not legs in the sense of two extremities, but legs in the sense that they tend to survive changes in agencies of record, changing of the guard in marketing departments, and changes in society. Icons endure. 
7. Icons save money in the long run. Think about it. Once you’ve spent money building a brand, wouldn’t you like to be able to rest on your laurels every now and then, if only for a moment or so? Icons let you do that. All Green Giant has to do is to play the “Ho Ho Ho” jingle and show the giant animation tag, and it’s as good as a blue ribbon seal – you automatically know that the product advertised is going to have the “Green Giant Seal of Approval.” No need to wonder if the product’s any good. That’s money in the bank, when you don’t have to spend time convincing the public that your new product is safe, tasty, or worth the money. 
8. Icons work. Ask any company that has a product or corporate icon, and they’ll tell you that nothing is more sacred, or more important to the success of the company, than to protect the integrity of the icon. I’ve done some work before on campaigns that involved corporate brand icons, and the rule book you must deal with (and the gauntlet you must pass through for approval) is both impressive and daunting. They don’t expend that kind of energy on something unimportant. Successful companies know that icons are like currency in the same league as precious metals. They transcend economics. 
9. Killing an icon is a study in stupidity. 7-Up killed the “Spot” character. Can you remember a 7-Up ad lately? Neither can I. Jack in the Box killed the clown – and then brought him back a decade later…and hasn’t stopped since. (Unlike many, they learned from their mistakes.) Speedy Alka Seltzer, though semi-retired, still plays a role in Alka Seltzer advertising (especially online). He’s too big a presence to leave behind. 

I could think of more, but I think you get the point. If you’re willing to go for the long game, instead of the short-term gratification, a brand icon is the way to go. They are not easy to create. They must be nurtured. And they can prove to be fragile, if not protected. But they can boost your product or service into the bigs, when it comes to brand image.

* All the brand icons mentioned are trademarks or registered trademarks and property of their respective companies. Although I’d kill to own the rights to any of them. 

Exhibit A is one of a pair of commercials Jack did when they faced a competitive threat from Burger King regarding Angus beef. Living in the Panhandle, and having a bunch of my in-laws in the cattle business, I can tell you that “Angus” is just a breed of cow. Marketers will try and tell you that “Angus” is a better-tasting breed. I’m not convinced, but keep in mind, it is not just the breed of cattle, but the cut that makes the difference. In other words, ground skirt steak is not gonna be as tender and tasty as sirloin, no matter how good the breed of cow you use. “Angus” is a marketing ploy, pure and simple. But Burger King was getting some traction on the subject, and Jack in the Box felt compelled to respond. Here’s one of the spots they used to counter the Angus offensive:

Funny? You bet? A little edgy and rude? Undoubtedly. But still they managed to keep it clean, and made a point that resonated with the public…just exactly what part of the cow IS the ‘Angus’? It didn’t take long before B.K. stopped selling the Angus burger. They won an Effie Award for the spot. And got sued by Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. over the ad, implying that Jack implied they were serving a part of the cow that you don’t usually think of as edible by humans (if you know what I mean, and I think you do.)

When the food Nazis started sniping at fast food companies regarding calories, fried foods, and fats, Jack took the challenge on without blinking (easy for him to do, come to think about it):

The deadpan humor is dead-on. Their consistent tone makes their spots instantly recognizable. And the humor keeps the public eagerly anticipating the next spot. (When was the last time you thought a McDonald’s or Wendy’s spot was worth remembering?)

It must be working – in the last year, Burger King has moved into the offbeat humor space, with their “Subservient Chicken” spot linked to a bizarre online, interactive promotion. Remember, in advertising, imitation is the sincerest form of plaigiarism (with a nod o’ the head to George Bernard Shaw).

What can we learn from Jack in the Box ads? Hmm. Well, to start with, humor works, but only when it’s used intelligently. Their ads are funny in a sly way, that makes them all the more appealing. Wacky gets old quickly. Tongue-in-cheek wears much better. Secondly, consistency is essential. When you develop a tone that strikes a chord with the public, ride that horse for as long as you can. Don’t discard it for something different – consistency makes your ads work harder for less airtime. Lastly, if you’re gonna do TV, do it well, and do it often. Nothing kills a campaign faster than shoddy production values and a too-small media buy. Follow those three maxims, and you’re likely to succeed. Ignore them, and well…you don’t know Jack about advertising.