Creating Ever-Cool: A Marketer's Guide to a Kid's Heart (Hardcover)

by Gene Del Vecchio (Author) "Unlike ages past when children were expected to be seen but not heard, today we live in the age of children..." (more)
Key Phrases: Brand Challenges, Cabbage Patch Kids, Star Wars (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
In their quest for kids' dollars, companies market their products as not only necessary, but popular--or cool--to varying degrees of success. Some achieve tremendous, consistent success. These the author terms Ever-Cools. Now, the secret formula for achieving Ever-Cool status is available to marketers everywhere. Illus., tables.

About the Author
Author Gene Del Vecchio is the president of his own consulting firm in Valencia, California. He is the former senior partner, director of planning & research in the Los Angeles office of Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, the world's sixth-largest agency network. While there, he developed products targeted toward children for companies including Baskin-Robbins, Disney, Good Humor-Breyers, Hershey, Kraft Foods, and Mattel.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 253 pages
• Publisher: Pelican Publishing Company (September 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565542568
• ISBN-13: 978-1565542563
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #598,600 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eeeeever-Cooooool, January 5, 2001

By	Judith A. Jewer (Pickering, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

Are you looking for a secret formula to guide your kid focused marketing decisions? Gene Del Vecchio's book - "Creating Ever-Cool A Marketer's Guide to a Kid's Heart" is truly insightful. It is the closest thing to a secret formula that I've come across.

'Ever-Cool' is a book that answers a seemingly simple but actually quite complex question... Why do some brands in the kids marketplace remain the favorites of children year after year - generation after generation. Exactly what gives these brands their staying power? 'Ever-Cool' answers this question in a well written and entertaining style.

The book has 4 sections: 'The Introduction' , 'The Child's Psyche' , 'A Kid's World and Culture' and 'Marketing to a Child's heart'.

In 'The Child's Psyche' section Del Vecchio examines the timeless and underlying needs of childhood. From the differences between girls and boys, to their fears and fantasies.

'A Kid's World and Culture' investigates children in the world today. Their self awareness, shifting family structures, and universal (hopefully) experiences of childhood such as going to school, and living in the neighborhood. The 'Marketing to a Child's heart' section contains lots of advice and suggestions on how to utilize these insights.

I found the concept that there could be 'Kid Psyche Gaps' in the market place to be particularly intriguing. Del Vecchio explains it in the following way: Psyche Gaps are "that part of the child's psyche that is not currently being satisfied by a competitor" (pg. 221.) Clearly identifying what these gaps are and strategically developing a product to fill the gap is very sound marketing.

Another really cool part of this section is the 'Kids' Idea Matrix'. Del Vecchio provides a creative idea development aid that works in the following way: "By forcing our eyes to see relationships, we help our brains consider the ideas that are born from them. This can be accomplished with a system I call Matrixing a simple process of putting various categories of items in front of our eyes, side by side, in a fashion that will help us to easily mix and match them. The items we will force together are those that we have discussed throughout this book." (pg. 185) Del Vecchio essentially is showing us how to use his ideas.

Del Vecchio also briefly covers advertising, setting up a research program, and ethics. All in all I personally have no hesitation in recommending this book. I found it to be highly insightful and an enjoyable read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent introduction on how to reach children, July 7, 1998

By A Customer

People who want their products to excel in a child's world get a unique insight as to what triggers children. Del Vecchio shares his extensive experience with the reader in a language which is down-to-earth. Add to this an extensive use of case materials which sets it all into perspective, and you have a book which is of interest to any marketer.

The reader is left with an enthusiatic feeling of "this can be done with my product".

6 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Secret Weapon for Kid marketing!, July 21, 2000

By A Customer

Short version: Buy this book now, and get it shipped to you overnight!

This book is the secret weapon for anyone who markets to kids or wants to. Gene Del Vecchio manages to make the subject entertaining and engaging while teaching you a pile of indispensible techniques to capture a kid's heart.

Not only does the book teach you how to market products better, it gets you thinking different. Suddenly, you're developing products and strategies with kids in mind, and you understand why certain products are big hits with kids.

Another funny thing about this book...it helps you to understand kids better. For readers with their own kids, this could be the greates value of all.