A black and white TV strategy that works with developers

It only required a quick search to find the New York Times article from February 19, 1953. That same year RCA released its first color TVs.

The article headline tells the story:

In the early days of TV, of course, this was how advertising was done. Rather than the 30-second spots, each program had a primary sponsor. The company would often get top billing, as well as promotion from the stars.

“Have you tried a Philip Morris lately?”“You’ll love them. They’re so smooth and mild and they taste so good.”“And most important there’s no cigarette hangover when you smoke Phillip Morris.”

In the case of Philip Morris, they had far-reaching influence. The recent movie Being the Ricardos showed how the network, sponsor, producers, and writers handled Lucille Ball’s pregnancy. At the time, it was unthinkable for a TV character to have a baby. Add a rumor that Lucy is a communist and you have all the ingredients for writer/director Aaron Sorkin to do what he does best.

But it’s hard to believe there’s anything positive to learn, especially from a tobacco company.

And yet…

This type of advertising, which is more of a sponsorship, can be the most effective with developer audiences. Granted, you won’t be so heavy-handed, nor as mass market.

In Developer Marketing Does Not Exist, I suggest looking for relationships rather than traditional CPM spending. Find someone who is already reaching your best developer audience, then offer to collaborate. Your goal should be to help them do more of what they’re already doing.

That’s one place we can directly learn from Philip Morris. While they were invested (literally) in I Love Lucy’s success, they trusted the creative team to execute for their benefit.

That’s the sort of support that developers will recognize and appreciate.

Join a community, rather than pitch to it.

If you aren’t sure which topics will resonate with developer sponsorships, our D.E.V. Content Framework can help you maximize your investment. Reach out to our team for a smooth, mild conversation—without the sales call hangover.