Becoming a Part of Your Customers' Lives
New Zealand-based outdoor clothing company Icebreaker devotes less than 1% of its budget to marketing, but has found global success by becoming a part of its customers' lives.
Testimonials from extreme athletes using Icebreaker products on Antarctic sea dives and Land Rover journeys through the Himalayas fill the company's Web site. Instead of spending money to sponsor a flashy sporting event, the company created its own mountain bike and marathon run. Generating more than just goodwill, the event also created a natural test lab as participants used Icebreaker products to face the event's extreme weather conditions.
THE LESSON: Successful marketers create meaningful two-way relationships between themselves and their customers.
More info:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3214241a1864,00.html
