Redheaded Jill

So I was definitely today years old before I learned that Starbucks was intentionally misspelling people’s names for marketing tactics. My friend, who works in marketing, pointed that out. They don’t just misspell names because the baristas can’t spell, they do it for attention. It gets people talking. Any press is better than no press.

We had this discussion because another friend was talking about a chef influencer she follows. He was mispronouncing commonly used words and she was like, “Is this intentional, or is he an idiot?” Well, after watching more videos he pronounces the words correctly later. The answer lies in the comment section. Everyone shares and watches his videos to comment and make fun of his errors. That drives up his views, bumps him up in the algorithm and he makes more money.

It’s brilliant. And manipulative. And kind of our fault for falling for it. But I don’t like that reasoning. So… it’s made me look at branding differently.

Do you think my products would sell better if I spelled lotion with an sh or spelled flour as flower? Hm… Something to consider.