Seems like marketing has changed dramatically over the past few years. The addition of social media has apparently leveled the playing field and changed the dynamics of marketing. Listening to any of the many 'talking heads' (known as business experts) indicates that if you do not have a 'social presence' you're out of business. When did it become necessary to have #sm4np, #Inbound12, or #10ThingsIMustDoBeforeIDie hash tagging all your thoughts and ideas out to the Internet to garner much needed attention from consumers? Does that even work? For me, the age old adage of having a good product at a fair price that meets a consumer need is the best marketing strategy. But alas, you can't sing that in a jingle and only every company in the world is trying to implement that same strategy (even the ones with bad products at ridiculous prices that meet no needs - pet rock, anyone?). So what is a company to do? How do you motivate people to take action and stand up for what they believe?
In this election year, I'm reminded of the power of a good slogan. Slogan's are used to galvanize an idea or concept so that people can rally around and support. Our motto at CodeWeavers is simple, 'TRY CROSSOVER FIRST!' (or for the talking heads #TRYCROSSOVERFIRST). Why? Because it's free to try and if it runs your application on your Mac or Linux box, we'll save you time and money. Simple, right? TRY CROSSOVER FIRST! It's an idea that people are starting to support, tell their families about, and share with friends. In this, an election year, with both job creation and taxes being primary political issues, saving money and saving time seems an appropriate position to take. People can BELIEVE in that! And if having more money in your pocket and more time on your hands is something you want from your software; well, cover me in feathers and call me a duck. It's time to TAKE ACTION!!! It's time to actually capture people's attention (#TAKETHATTALKINGHEADS). And it's time for Flock The Vote or #FLOCKTHEVOTE!
In this election year, CodeWeavers is asking you to vote. Vote for the Republicans or the Democrats or the Independents! Vote for the red team or the blue team or some color in between! Vote for social issues or financial issues or even personal issues! Just vote. In the coming month, we'll ask you to pledge your pledge to vote on our website. And when we have enough pledges that we believe that we can statistically effect the outcome of any political race in any city, county, district, state, or even the country and can see that impact on election day, we'll once again give away our software for free for 24 hours. That's right. A good product for free for 24 hours if you pledge that you'll vote on election day. Think of it as getting paid to wait in line to do your public duty! Maybe our voters will legalize marijuana in California or outlaw hurricanes in New Orleans or require NFC to be standard on all smart phones (I'm looking at you iPhone 5!) or vote another Kennedy into office in Massachusetts. It doesn't matter what you vote for or who you vote for or where you vote as long as you take action and stand up for what you believe! Look for more details about Flock The Vote (or #FLOCKTHEVOTE) coming soon.
About James B. Ramey
James B. Ramey is the CEO of CodeWeavers. His life long love of video gaming started at the tender age of six with an Atari 2600 and evolved over time to include Nintendo, Super Nintendo, Apple Mac IIc, Windows PC, and MacBook Pro. When not fiddling with technology, James enjoys cooking, travel, debating politics in the office, and spending time with his wife, daughter, and their two rescue dogs. For the past 20 years, James has worked with clients around the world in best implementing technology to maximize a return on their investment. He is a graduate of Moorhead State University and earned his MBA from the University of Phoenix. You can find James on Twitter at @jbramey.