Show your mistakes so customers love your brand

Read time: 4 minutes

Hey there 👋 - it's Brian.

I see so many businesses spend money on marketing campaigns that don't convert customers. Why? No emotional connection with their audience. The good news: you don't need a big marketing budget to make big money.

In today's issue, we'll look at one marketing trick Ryan Reynolds used to create a $783M film on a low budget: he created an emotional connection by showing his mistakes.

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Learn the low-budget tricks Ryan used to sell the highest grossing rated-R film of all time

Some quick facts about Ryan Reynolds in case you’re not familiar:

• His acting created over $2.2B in revenue• A-list celebrity with over 60M followers on Instagram and Twitter• Entrepreneur: owns Maximum Effort Marketing, Aviation Gin, Mint Mobile, and a Welsh soccer team

Ryan fought hard for ELEVEN years to make the movie, Deadpool. When producers said yes, they gave him the lowest marketing budget they could.

Ryan was forced to try low-budget marketing tricks that turned Deadpool into the highest grossing rated-R film of all time.

You don't need a big marketing budget to drive big sales. We'll learn how you can use a simple low-cost trick to get your customers emotionally connected with your brand.

Ryan becomes obsessed with the Deadpool comic superhero

It’s 2004. Ryan Reynolds reads the Deadpool comic and obsesses over the character. Deadpool is the comic book version of Ryan Reynolds: quick-witted, doesn’t take anything seriously, and has R-rated humor. He obsesses over making the Deadpool movie so he can play his own quirky personality in movies.

He asks producers for the funds to make this movie. They reject his idea. Producers don't want to take the risk on an R-rated superhero movie.

Ryan needs to make high sales on a low budget or waste an 11-year obsession

Ryan refuses to give up. He pitches the movie 46 times over the next ELEVEN years - no one wants to take the risk.

Finally he gets his break. Someone leaks Deadpool's test footage. Deadpool fans demand the movie. Fox finally agrees.

But... producers want to limit their risk, so they give him the lowest budget they can: $58M. Sounds high, so let's compare that to other movies in the graphic below:

Ryan is devastated. But he accepts the challenge: he has to prove to Hollywood that fans want his R-rated quirky personality... and make a box-office hit on a low-budget.

The stakes are high. If he succeeds, he secures a seat as an A-list celebrity and he can be himself in movies.

If the movie fails? He’ll have wasted an 11-year obsession.

How you make a low-budget marketing plan

Ryan's plan is to create content that makes the audience emotionally connect with the character. How?

In all of his ads, he makes the character competent (smart, confident, eloquent), yet vulnerable (makes mistakes, gets made fun of, light-hearted). We'll go into how you can do this for your brand in a bit.

Here are some examples from Deadpool:• Deadpool gave Conan O’Brien a massage (and gets grossed out)• Ryan and Hugh Jackman create a fake rivalry (Ryan gets made fun of)• Deadpool prepared kids for battle on Halloween (kids want his mouth taped shut)

The results of creating an emotional connection with your customers

Then, the weekend Ryan's been waiting for. The movie release date. Ryan waits anxiously to see the results. Will his 11-year obsession be a waste?

Turns out...

Fans love his character. Deadpool makes $783M and becomes the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. 1,350% ROI! You don't need a big budget to get a big return.

So how can you use Ryan's low-budget marketing tricks to build an emotional connection with your customers?

Ryan has a unique style that gets his audience hooked. He shows his mistakes, yet does so in a confident manner.

It's called The Pratfall Effect: The idea that when competent people make a mistake it makes them more likable. People connect with you on an emotional level and want you to win.

3 ways to use the Pratfall Effect to make your customers feel a connection with you:

1) Admit when you make a mistake

Companies try to hide their flaws and customers can see right through it. But bringing out your flaws will make you MORE likable.

When you make a mistake, admit it, be light-hearted, and laugh with your customers about it.

For example - Ryan Reynolds starred in a movie called Green Lantern - which turned out to be a terrible movie.

Ryan's audience loves him for openly joking about his mistake with Green Lantern. Here's a clip from two Green Lantern stars joking about how they don't remember the movie:

2) Use weaknesses to your advantage

If customers perceive a weakness in your business, address it head-on to frame the weakness in a positive light.

Examples:• Expensive product? It's priced to ensure quality.• Service takes too long? Because you look at every detail.• Are you less popular than your competitors? Each customer gets more attention.Ryan's telecom company, Mint Mobile, is only $15 a month so customers worry about low quality.

He addresses the "weakness" head-on with an ad that assures customer that quality is great.

3) Don't take yourself too seriously

A company that jokes about themselves shows vulnerability and mistakes. Customers feel a connection with companies that have a personality.

So don't be afraid to use jokes about your business and your industry.

Richard Branson and Ryan Reynolds teamed up to announce that Virgin Airlines will now be serving Aviation Gin (Ryan's gin brand).

He's clearly having fun and his customers are too.

Create an emotional connection to your brand

So differentiate yourself from your competitors. Be honest and light-hearted. Don't be afraid to make mistakes.

Your customers will feel an emotional connection to your brand and be more likely to buy from you.

That's a wrap!

See you next Thursday 👋

Brian

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