Monday, January 19, 2009

L. A. Lewis Marketing Strategies

If you happen to pass through the Jamaican corporate area you perhaps have seen the graffiti --- of the prolific DJ L. A. Lewis. He is known in Jamaica more than a lot of popular musical artistes however only a(n) (un)fortunate few have ever heard his music.

The graffiti is usually done the same way wherever it is seen, characterised by tacky writing with white paint, "loving" messages and the 7Up mascot - Fido Dido. The messages range from "We Love You L. A. Lewis" to "L.A. Lewis the pore love you" and other simple messages promoting the (in)famous DJ. When interviewed Lewis claims he is not responsible for any of the markings, and refers to them as fan art.

But why is this unknown DJ so popular, I analysed some of his main psychological marketing strategies and came up wit these:

As humans we tend to love what other people love

The theme present in all of L. A. Lewis' writing is apparent love from his fan base. It seems as if people are so in love with this artiste (not necessarily his music) that they want to tell everyone about how great he is. Our curiosity then starts to perk and we try to find out who this L. A. Lewis is, you want to find that quality that everyone is loving so much. We yearn to love... an intrinsic human nature, we not only want to love something, but something that has everyone else's approval.

Strategic ad placement

This is another great move by Lewis (or his fans), his graffiti is placed in places that see high volumes of traffic, especially highways or main roads. On your typical route through the capital Kingston, you will possibly come across about 2 L. A. Lewis Ads.

Branding

My favourite is his branding, we know its L.A. Lewis graffiti if its done in white paint using a broad paintbrush, has the Fido Dido mascott, Star of David or Weed Splif. This is sometimes accompanied with the loving messages to this great DJ or to the police.

Audience Selection

The Messages are usually addresses to the police or the "pore". This gives a feeling of belonging, taking into consideration the number of people who "consider" themselves to be poor, especially in times of economic crisis. The reference to the police is perhaps to keep them from charging him for damaging or defacing public property.

Word of Mouth

These ads spark conversation, they are what you may call remarkable - worthy to make remarks about. This is what has been the driving force behind this urban legend.

This is arguably one of the biggest, and least expensive marketing campaigns the island has ever seen. Who says marketing has to be a multimillion dollar initiative, in fact millions are wasted each year because of products or services being incorrectly marketed.
Next time you are considering the strategy for your next product or service, think about the L. A. Lewis Marketing Strategies - and join the "millions of fans" saying "L. A. Lewis we love you".

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