I saw this truck in my neighbourhood and it was enough to make me double-take and snap this photo.
The only thing is, I forgot what they were called immediately after I saw the truck. It was clever but it didn’t stick.
And then a few weeks later I saw it again. While the phone number and website URL are attention-grabbing, the hook breaks down with the name of the company.
Unlike companies like 1 800 GOT JUNK, where their name, telephone number, and website URL are all in sync, these guys have a long, unremarkable business name. And the phone number/URL on their own weren’t enough to make me remember it the first time.
If these guys were called “Stinky and Sons” or “The Stinky Plumbers” (both not great names but hear me out), then it would tie well into their phone number and website, and I might actually have remembered their name the first time I saw the truck.
Running a campaign like this gets people to notice. But if they don’t remember what you’re called, it’s unlikely they will be able to recall or find you when they need you.
I call this a close but no cigar marketing effort. If they went all in on the stinky branding, I think it would have stuck with me the first time and worked better.
Still, kudos for the guts to try this.
