June 3, 2010        •       www.visionsmc.com       •        410-849-8095   

 Editor's Note

Last week, the Blue Angels were in town for the Naval Academy's Commissioning Week Ceremonies. I played hooky from work for a few hours and enjoyed the show. What a day to be an Annapolitan! The clouds were puffy and white, the sky was bright blue, the trees were glowing green, and there was a light breeze that created small waves that twinkled in the sunlight. (And I was in the shade with a clear view of the show!)

The Blue Angels are amazing-they fly fast and close, and perform very scary-looking maneuvers. I've been watching the Blue Angels since I was a little girl, but they never cease to amaze me. The bravery and skill of the pilots is phenomenal.

This year, however, as I answered the questions of a curious four-year-old, I thought a little differently about the Blue Angels. "These planes are expensive!" "There has to be a lot of work that goes into producing their shows." "All this for a college graduation-does graduating from college really warrant this?"

And I came to two conclusions:

1. The Blue Angels are an incredibly flashy high profile marketing tactic for the US Navy-and it works. (Annapolitans don't seem to be jaded about this annual event-facebook and twitter were lighting up, and the local paper had multiple stories on it.)
2. Graduating from a US military academy at any time, but especially during our current international conflicts, and pledging to help defend our country for five years does warrant the full pomp and circumstance that the Navy produces. My gratitude goes out to the new graduates.

And of course, there is something we can all learn from the Blue Angels about marketing.

Molly Hughes Wilmer   

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 Feature

Flying High: The Power of Good Branding

According to their website, the U.S. Navy describes their Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Blue Angels:

"The Blue Angels' mission is to enhance Navy and Marine Corps recruiting efforts and to represent the naval service to the United States, its elected leadership and foreign nations. The Blue Angels serve as positive role models and goodwill ambassadors for the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps."

The Blue Angels are a brilliant marketing tactic and there are two specific things we can learn from them: the power of a brand, and the importance of flawless execution.

Powerful Branding

There are times you need to go all out when it comes to branding. And the U.S. Navy is one of those. Marketing the military-that's a tricky job. While there are some Americans who support the military wholeheartedly, with no questions asked, there are many who struggle with various issues associated with the military.

In marketing the Navy, the Blue Angels tackle these issues head on. Their shows are not timid-they are bold exhibitions of the Navy's flight capabilities. The Blue Angels are expensive and an obvious display of American power. The Blue Angels' officers have a higher death ratio than pilots in the fleet. They don't apologize for any of this-the U.S. Navy is what it is.

At the same time, the Blue Angels celebrate the best of the Navy and the military-the fliers are the best of the best, in peak shape, and go through a rigorous application process to be chosen. The planes, the custom-made uniforms, the show routine, and the narrator are all polished in good disciplined, military fashion. The individual moves within the routine are awe-inspiring, executed with amazing precision. The U.S. Navy is what it is.

For many people, there is something romantic about ships and planes that tugs at heartstrings. We have a cultural history of exploration, adventure, and risk that is represented by these vehicles. The Blue Angels leverage this historical romance with an updated twist to tell the story of the modern U.S. Navy.

It takes a pretty hardened cynic not to be impressed by this very powerful and well-thought-out marketing tactic.

Flawless Execution

Several years ago, I wrote about what we can learn from restaurants about managing our customer experience. Imagine if you managed your marketing with the precision that the Navy approaches the Blue Angels?

Each show site is scouted months in advance, and then during the days preceding the show. For each show, the Blue Angels have a 50-page planning manual-it includes details down to the type of forklifts needed. The officers have schedules that show what they need to be doing minute-by-minute.

Their precise maneuvers take practice. They fly 120 training sessions in the off-season. The pilots fly six days per week during their season, getting up at 4:45 to work out five days a week.

Your marketing tactics probably don't involve life and death precision. But, are you working hard enough on your marketing? Could you be getting a better response if you did put more effort into it?

What Can I Do? How can you leverage the example of the Blue Angels in your company? Look a little deeper into your marketing program. Where do you need power in your branding? Are there negativities you need to overcome? Are there uncertainties about what you stand for, who your company is, where you are positioned relative to your competition? When do you need to pull out all the stops and get your message out there? How well thought-out and executed are your marketing tactics? Are they timely, are they reaching a targeted audience, and is the messaging spot-on? The Blue Angels reach an estimated 15 million spectators during air shows each year. Additionally, the Blue Angels visit more than 50,000 people a show season (March through November) at school and hospital visits. There are a lot of children (future recruits) and parents (influencers of recruits) in that audience.

Ask the Expert Question I'm not the Navy-I don't really need that kind of firepower. Answer Unless you are the Army or the Air Force (or BP right now), you are right-you don't need that kind of firepower. So, it should be a lot easier to get your marketing working beautifully for you. Is it? Submit your questions to the editor: molly@visionsmc.com

 Want to Know More?

The Blue Angels website has great information about the squadron.

Seth Godin had an interesting blog about "artificial pop" and when it's necessary.

© Molly Hughes Wilmer, Vision Strategic Marketing & Communications, 2010. All rights reserved.

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