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October 19, 2005

Let George Washington Spread Your Message | A Clever Analog Promotional Technique

A few Fridays ago, I was perusing the New York Times with coffee-in-hand. (Something I can do occasionally if I manage to get to the Times before my wife completely dismantles it and uses relevant sections for pet clean-up tasks — relegating me to my usual “internet news only” diet.)

While paging the Times, this photo caught my attention (nothing like “cash imagery” to attract attention) —

Erik S. Lesser for The New York Times The network also put stickers advertising the new show on $1 bills.

The caption to the photo intrigued me further and got me to read an article I would normally never consider reading —

Seinfeld Who? NBC Pursuing the Heartland - New York Times

The following are excerpts which set me up to do a bit more research — 

And, perhaps most seductively, NBC has been stuffing cash registers at stores here like Goody's and others in or around Nashville, Salt Lake City, Des Moines and Milwaukee with tens of thousands of $1 bills used for groceries and other basics. The dollars are affixed with yellow stickers (removable, consistent with Treasury Department guidelines) that ask, "What's your wish?," and implore people to watch the show. All told, the network expects to give away 150,000 of those dollar bills in 15 cities and towns.

Though NBC hopes the show will have broad appeal - it also took its dollar bill campaign to New York and Los Angeles - Barbara Blangiardi, the network's vice president of marketing and special projects, said that "absolutely the Christian community was a target audience."

The $1 bill promotion was conceived by another California firm, this one an advocate of promotional stunts, called Impact.

Analog vs Digital Promotions

Digerati spend a lot of time talking about “viral” processes in the digital world and — as a result — sometimes forget the fact that the analog world can be quite viral as well.

Analog Leafleting

As New Yorkers, a simple stroll down any crowded mid-town street will attest to the fact that leafleting is alive and well — and probably effective — given how commonplace it remains. 

I always figure handing out leaflets is a shitty job, so I tend to take them as they are handed to me and stuff them in my pocket for later disposal.  I often end up with a pocket full of discount coupons and grand-opening announcements to a variety of strip clubs, discount mens’ clothes, fringe political causes, new restaurants, etc. (We are talking NY city here.)

Digital Media Mix Optimisation — Response Rates No Longer Matter

One of the key advantages of the digital world of bytes is that incremental production costs tend to go to zero. 

Not true in the analog world of bits.  A leaflet, direct mail piece, or magazine ad, has small but very real incremental costs associated with it.  10 cents per piece may not sound like much but for 100 million exposures — that’s $10 million dollars.  This is why response rates are so-carefully measured to make sure each media component is worth it — both on their own and relative to each other. 

One of the key activities to maximise marketing campaign results is optimising the marketing mix — incrementally adjusting how much you spend moving forward on each component (based on the most recent “response rate vs cost” data of each component).

Even the art of targeting has really been driven by the relative high costs of analog media.  Targeted analog media command a premium because the potential response rates can be several orders of magnitude higher if your potential customer is several orders of magnitude more common in the media being purchased.  This is why trade publications consistently outperform broader mass media.  From a pure margin point of view, it’s always better to own a bunch of “Pizza Man Quarterlies” and “Bee Keeper Weeklies” , than it is to own a broader circulation publication.

Digital Media — Incremental Cost Goes to Zero

All media have both fixed and variable cost components. 

However, once the fixed or “sunk costs” have been made in digital media assets, incremental production costs tend towards zero — this is probably the single factor driving the relentless shift towards the “internet component” of even traditional (“old school”) Madison-Avenue-style advertising campaigns.  I routinely hear estimates ranging from 18 to 30% — and growing steadily year to year.

On the negative side, this is also the driving force behind the growing amount of digital SPAM we are subjected to.  Although we all still get junk mail — with some “valuable to advertiser” demographic groups like physicians, getting proportionately higher amounts  — with high incremental printing and mailing costs of about $1 for each piece sent, we are protected from unlimited SPAM by “pure cost vs response rate” considerations.  It’s just too damn expensive to torture us with direct mail beyond a certain point. 

Not so on the internet.  Once a piece is produced, the cost difference between one email and 100 million emails is negligible.  A Direct mail campaign for Viagra requires a pretty good response rate to cover the $50 million dollar price tag for 100 million pieces.  Extremely good targeting, at a minimum, would be required to make the numbers work at all.

Almost no response rate would cover the expense of a similar email campaign.  100 million emails might cost you $10k if you outsourced it — and much less if you did it yourself. 

Hence the endless un-targeted “digital leafleting” we all get strolling down the streets of the internet.

The Idea of Using Paper Currency to Piggy-back “Other Messages”

It’s the economics of analog media that makes the idea of piggy-backing promotional messages on paper currency so intriguing. 

  • The value of paper currency itself keeps the message from getting thrown out.
  • The natural circulation of paper money keeps the message exposure growing in proportion to the number of time a given bill changes hands.
  • The variable cost of each exposure is zero.
  • Targeting isn’t required.

How Would One Go About Constructing Metrics for “Currency Piggy-back” Campaigns?

Even though it isn’t critical, it would still be nice to estimate a few things about this promotional technique.

Question 1 — How often does paper money change hands?

I would have thought there would be lots of data on this but I couldn’t find any. 

Monetary multipliers probably correlate poorly since —

  • the velocity of the money supply is dominated by financial instruments other than paper money (credit cards, checks, etc).
  • we know a priori that different denomination bills have different velocities.

However, we can infer a few things using some interesting data from Bureau of Engraving and Printing (the printers of US paper money).

Facts About $1 Notes 

  • Of all the notes printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, $1 notes make up about 45% of currency production.
  • The life span of a $1 Federal Reserve Note is 22 months. (Other denominations have different life spans.)

How long does money last? That depends on the denomination of the note.

  • A $1 bill lasts 18 months;
  • $5 bill, two years;
  • $10 bill, three years;
  • $20 bill, four years; and
  • $50 and $100 bills, nine years.

How much money is printed each day? The Bureau of Engraving and Printing produces 38 million notes a day with a face value of approximately $541 million. That doesn't mean there is $541 million more money circulating today than there was yesterday, though, because 95% of the notes printed each year are used to replace notes already in circulation.

So, while I couldn’t find any good data on the average number of times a paper money changes hands —

  • paper money wears-out at a rate proportional to its use (or number of times they change hands)
  • paper money has a fixed number of times it can change hands before it wears out
  • paper money is printed at a rate proportional to the rate they wear-out
  • The lower the denomination the more often it is replaced.

Therefore, the choice of using $1 bills is clearly your best choice to get you message out the quickest.

Question 2 — What is the Diffusion Rate of Paper Money from Region to Region?

While we know currency changes hands often, we also know that money travels long distances as well.  When I was a child collecting coins, I was always excited to find coins minted in other parts of the country since they were less common than those minted nearby — and only become more common the older they get since they have more time to travel to other regions in significant numbers.

Again, I could find no direct studies on this but one could easily study the regional difference in the distribution of paper currency by both date of issuance and Federal Reserve Bank of origin to derive pretty good estimates.  I was just hoping I could find someone else who might have done such a study, since I don’t really care enough to do it myself. (I could always sample my wallet for a quick estimate — if only I didn’t use so much plastic.)

Nevertheless, we know that it takes time for money to diffuse from region-to-region.  Therefore marketeers could — 

  • use this technique both regionally and nationally
  • do test marketing in local markets before deploying more broadly 
  • customise messages by region 

Question 3 — Why Don’t We See a lot more SPAM on our paper money?

Theory  — It’s Illegal to Deface Currency.

This may be another one of those very common “True True But Irrelevant” attempts to impugn causation.

First, is it really illegal to add your message to paper money?  From the Bureau of Engraving and Printing: Defacement of Currency —

Defacement of currency is a violation of Title 18, Section 333 of the United States Code. Under this provision, currency defacement is generally defined as follows: Whoever mutilates, cuts, disfigures, perforates, unites or cements together, or does any other thing to any bank bill, draft, note, or other evidence of debt issued by any national banking association, Federal Reserve Bank, or Federal Reserve System, with intent to render such item(s) unfit to be reissued [emphasis added], shall be fined not more than $100 or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.

Defacement of currency in such a way that it is made unfit for circulation comes under the jurisdiction of the United States Secret Service. Their mailing address is:

United States Secret Service
950 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20223.

The United States Secret Service web address is http://www.secretservice.gov.  

So as long as the currency is not “rendered unfit for use”, it would appear you are not breaking any laws by adding your message. (I’m not an attorney — but I am a “good” customer …)

As for the TV show promotion mentioned in the Times article, they put a “removable sticker” on each bill which has a number of advantages —

  • more likely to be notice by currency recipients
  • more control over the print production values of the message
  • unlikely to be removed (good for the aggressive marketing department)
  • can be removed (good for the conservative legal department)

Also, even if you just “hand out the currency” to customers of the store, as mentioned in the article, most people will take it and won’t bother removing the sticker — so even though the first person cost you $1 — each additional recipient of that bill cost you zero so, over time, it looks like a very cheap — and legal — way to hit a target market with a short “re-inforcing” message.

Question 4 — What is the History of the Use of Paper Money to Spread Messages?

History is always full of interesting details — both relevant and irrelevant — and this area of inquiry is no exception.

The slogan “In God We Trust” was a rather late addition to our paper currency —

when on July 11.1955, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed Public Law 140 making it mandatory that all coinage and paper currency display the motto "In God We Trust." The following year, Public Law 851 was enacted and signed, which officially replaced the national motto "E Pluribus Unum" with "In God We Trust" All of this occurred at the height of cold war tension, when political divisions between the Soviet and western block was simplistically portrayed as a confrontation between Judeo-Christian civilization and the "godless" menace of communism. Indeed, the new national motto was only part of a broader effort to effectively religionize civic ritual and symbols. On June 14, 1954, Congress unanimously ordered the inclusion of the words "Under God" into the nation's Pledge of Allegiance. By this time, other laws mandating public religiosity had also been enacted, including a statute for all federal justices and judges to swear an oath concluding with "So help me God."   All paper currency issued after October 1, 1957 included the IN GOD WE TRUST national motto.

and, along with the Pledge of Allegiance and School Prayer, became part of the “Red State Agenda” to blur church and state in the US. [For more on the movement to return to the more modern liberal democratic tradition of “separation of church and state” (practised by Europeans) on our paper currency, see "IN GOD WE TRUST" -- STAMPING OUT RELIGION ON NATIONAL CURRENCY and  godoffmoney.com: Welcome! ]

“Short Snorters”

“Short Snorters” — not Lilliputians with a penchant for white powders — but rather the legendary “Short Snorters” of WWII Aviators.   I first encountered this term from my father when I found, in his office desk, an old one-dollar silver certificate which was covered with signatures.  It was neatly folded into a 1 inch square packet which needed to be “unwrapped” delicately to avoid tearing it.

My father had been a member of the French Air Force in WWII.  The French Air Force trained its pilots in Alabama and it was how my father ended up coming to the US from Algiers.   My dad had told me lots of interesting stories about the French Air Force in the US during WWII (which he turned into a novel) — so this “folded up dollar bill with signatures”  stimulated a bunch of new WWII stories. 

Rather than going into these stories, I’ve included some interesting links on Short Snorters and illustrative excerpts below.

Related Links on Paper Money

Using Paper Money to Spread the Word

This post … errr rather article — alone was worth the time spent on my search.  The author has a large collections of one dollar bills which have been stamped with various political slogans over the years. And apparently he isn’t the only one because he also include the following links to other with similar interests —


Short Snorters



Short Snorters



What is a Short Snorter ?


There may be as many explanations as there are Short Snorters.  Briefly, it is a piece of paper money, signed by friends and comrades, usually upon leaving a particular combat posting.  In some cases, several signed bills are taped end-to-end.  I've read that Marine Corps pilots in the Pacific and 15th Air Force airmen in Italy lay claim to creating the idea, but its origin is uncertain.  It might even date back to the First World War or before.  Some descriptions suggest they were used as part of a drinking ritual -- the flyer in a bar with the fewest signatures bought the round. Whatever the case, they are a special part of our historical record. 


5th AAF WWII Slang [some other interesting WWII slang expressions as well — good for recreating period pieces]



Short Snorter   


One or more bills of currency (usually starting with an American dollar bill) signed by two or more persons and dated. The Short Snorter usually inferred that the owner had crossed the Equator, but not necessarily so. It was loosely understood that if an air crew member offered to exchange signatures, and the other could not produce a Short Snorter, then he had to buy the drinks at the nearest bar. Short Snorters were a great way to get acquainted. As different kinds of currency were acquired in one's travels, it was not unusual for two members of the great flying fraternity to swap examples, whereupon the new bills would be glued to the end of an ever-growing Short Snorter


InfoArk(ive): shORt snORter



shORt snORter


This past weekend my Father presented me with some papers from my Grandfather. Among them was one of his short snorters, an envelope with a bunch of one and two dollar bills that were signed and had cello tape residue on the ends.


FYI here's background on what a Short Snorter is: Currency serves as notebook: Historical 50th anniversary feature


"... an aircrew member's short snorter was a chain of paper currency, taped together, end-to-end, from various countries they had visited. The longer your short snorter, the more countries you had visited. Long short-snorters also meant free drinks at the bar, since the person with the shortest one had to buy the round... "



whatis



SHORT SNORTERS



Short snorters generally started with dollar bills, then while in England
we all attached English paper money, signed our names and Squadrons on it,
and then got all our fellow pilots to sign too. When we ran out of room,
we added another bill (Marks in Germany, Francs in France and Belgium)and
more signatures. Some guys had short snorters with more than a dozen bills
covered with names. They became something to do, something to show off and
something to talk about(e.g.)who we flew with, where we flew, and a way to
remember some of those who signed who had gotten shot down. They were also
considered to be a lucky token to have on our persons. Sort of kept the Flak
away and kept the engine, etc., running smoothly.


Howard R. Dentz,
USAF Res. Major, Ret.
386th Fighter Squadron
"A" Flight Leader.


456th Bomb Group: And Yet Another Short Snorter


The Start of a Short Snorter 


Defacement of Currency



Bureau of Engraving and Printing: Defacement of Currency



Defacement of currency is a violation of Title 18, Section 333 of the United States Code. Under this provision, currency defacement is generally defined as follows: Whoever mutilates, cuts, disfigures, perforates, unites or cements together, or does any other thing to any bank bill, draft, note, or other evidence of debt issued by any national banking association, Federal Reserve Bank, or Federal Reserve System, with intent to render such item(s) unfit to be reissued, shall be fined not more than $100 or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.

Defacement of currency in such a way that it is made unfit for circulation comes under the jurisdiction of the United States Secret Service. Their mailing address is:


United States Secret Service
950 H Street, NW
Washington, DC 20223.


The United States Secret Service web address is http://www.secretservice.gov.  


From the Bureau of Engraving and Printing [a surprizingly interestting site with lots of interesting facts and history on paper money — a real treasure trove for school kid reports (and adults who confess ignorance)]



Facts About $1 Notes 



  • Of all the notes printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, $1 notes make up about 45% of currency production.

  • The life span of a $1 Federal Reserve Note is 22 months. (Other denominations have different life spans.)

Facts About Dollar Bills


Facts About U.S. Money [another school kid site which has compile some of the more intriguing facts from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing site]



How long does money last? That depends on the denomination of the note.



  • A $1 bill lasts 18 months;

  • $5 bill, two years;

  • $10 bill, three years;

  • $20 bill, four years; and

  • $50 and $100 bills, nine years.


How much money is printed each day? The Bureau of Engraving and Printing produces 38 million notes a day with a face value of approximately $541 million. That doesn't mean there is $541 million more money circulating today than there was yesterday, though, because 95% of the notes printed each year are used to replace notes already in circulation.


 How much money is printed each day? The Bureau of Engraving and Printing produces 38 million notes a day with a face value of approximately $541 million. That doesn't mean there is $541 million more money circulating today than there was yesterday, though, because 95% of the notes printed each year are used to replace notes already in circulation.


When was paper money was first printed in the U.S.? The U.S. Department of the Treasury first issued paper U.S. currency in 1862 to make up for the shortage of coins and to finance the Civil War. There was a shortage of coins because people had started hoarding them; the uncertainty caused by the war had made the value of items fluctuate drastically. Because coins were made of gold and silver their value didn't change much, so people wanted to hang onto them rather than buy items that might lose their value.


What denominations of bills were first printed? The first paper notes were printed in denominations of 1 cent, 5 cents, 25 cents, and 50 cents.


Other Equally Interesting (and Remotely Related) Articles I ran across during my search


Posted by cmayaud at 11:01 AM | Permalink| Comments (3)
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Comments

I have a penny with a sticker on it advertising a Bing Crosby concert.

I guess this is nothing new.

Posted by: Allan at October 27, 2005 06:49 AM

lol this is definitely nothing new.

Posted by: Jay at November 2, 2005 04:30 PM

hi Christian,

It's been a long time! I'm gonna recommend that my clients "put money where the message is" the next time I have to do some direct marketing. Need to check though if something can be pasted on Euro coins!

I have my own version of the short snorter. I keep one note of paper currency from every country I have visited in my wallet. I just keep them for fun.. and who knows, perhaps it may be lucky eh?

I also keep a few coins from that currency in a separate jar at home. The goal is to fill the jar!

Warm regards,
Arun

Posted by: Arun Sadhashivan at November 7, 2005 03:53 AM

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