Every now and then, I wonder how/why companies make the decisions they do. A while back, I had interviewed with the folks at CampusCompare. Their concept was to allow students to input their own statistical info and create a match-up with colleges that fit their grade/social/interest criteria. Free product, and all kinds of marketing and promotional opportunities.
When I went in for the interview, I was praised for my understanding of the concept, my approach to generating success/buzz for the company, and even on my shoes. For those interested in my footwear, click here to view. Anyway…
I had been asking to bring a sample marketing campaign to the interview, and I did, but I made sure that a) my name and the date were on every page, and that true specifics (contact names, phone numbers) were left out. I didn’t want this to be an interview where they got a free marketing campaign, and I got shown the door. And yes, it’s happened before. Quite a few times.
Upon going through my plan, the interviewer was impressed, but when she realized that I wasn’t offering up the crucial details, she proceeded to say two things:
1. We may not actually be looking to hire this position for quite some time, but we really wanted to talk to you. (OK, so you wanted free consulting … )
2. Would you mind if we ran with this campaign without actually hiring you? (OK, so you wanted to get my permission to steal my ideas….wow, how could I refuse?)
From there, I realized that perhaps this wasn’t going to work as expected. So I thanked the interviewer for her time, and left.
The other day, out of the blue, I got a marketing email from CampusCompare. Apparently they finally got their act together, and they’re doing stuff. While I wouldn’t want to pee on anybody’s cornflakes, what they sent was bizarre. But only half as bizarre as the second email I got a day or two later.
Email #1:
It is once again the time to give thanks for the loved ones in your life and the good things that you have.
OR…
Is it the time to stuff your face, sit your ass on the couch for four days strait, and make your mother do 2 months’ worth of dirty sox?
Whichever it is, tell us now. We’ll post a blog with all of the best answers.
So, what are you thankful for?
I like the tone of the message — they’re obviously trying to speak their users language. But, and it’s a big but, if you’re an educational company (helping students choose a college…), wouldn’t you spell check your emails? One of the words I know how to spell is “straight.” Unless we’re talking boats or country singers, it’s not “strait.” I’m not even thinking about the spelling of sox for “socks. After all, I’m a Red Socks fan … err, Red Sox … riiiiight.
Then I thought maybe this was an intentional mistake, maybe they wanted people to write back. So I let it go. Everybody makes mistakes, right? Wait ’til you read Email #2…
Email #2:
In our efforts to reach as many students as possible, the CampusCompare team has created this little rap video advertising our essay contest, “Essay Enlightenment.”
Send us your college entrance essay by Dec. 9, 2008, and you could win:
One Grand Prize:
- A 200$ gift certificate to Amazon.com
- Essay revisions by professional editors
- A 1-on-1 session with an admissions essay expert
- Your essay published on the CampusCompare website
3 Runner-Up Prizes:
- Essay Revisions by professional editors
- Your essay published on the CampusCompare website
Submit your essay today to win 200 dollars yo!
So now, instead of worrying about misspellings on your college essays, you don’t have to worry at all. Professional editors will actually make revisions to your words. How cool is that (yo)? It’s like of like having NASA help write your science report. Or for those who like semi-obscure references, “Hey Vonnegut, can you read lips?”
Without being overly nitpicky about branding and spacing, you’ll notice that each of the emails is in differently sized fonts, different voice, and so on. But the bigger issue here, to me, is that at first, they don’t spell check. Then later on, they want you to let a professional write your essays for you. This isn’t about asking your guidance counselor to proofread, this is “let the professionals take over.” Some admissions reps might question that approach, don’t you think?
The lesson here? Not everyone is a marketing expert. So many times I have CEOs make decisions that ultimately backfire. They wholly think they’re either doing the right thing, or that my level of scrutiny is simply overkill. Maybe it is, sometimes. But better to be overly right than a little bit wrong.
