What in the world does it mean to fizz it up?

By Fizz September 13, 2018

Lenny Ross of Fizz shows what it means to fizz it up

By Mark Schaefer
I’ve had the honor of collaborating with Fizz on a few projects and I’ve learned that “fizz” is used as a verb around the offices, as in “fizzing it up” or even “to fizz” something.

For any newcomers to the company, I’d like to explain what that means, and why it’s even critical to understand the magic of word of mouth marketing.

I was talking about car wraps with the company’s founder Ted Wright – you know, those colorful plastic signs that are applied to car bodies. I asked him if turning your car into an advertisement was something that could be considered word-of-mouth conversational. “It used to be,” he said. “If it’s something that’s first and unique, then that is something that is conversational. Maybe ten years ago. But if it’s commonplace like it is now, it’s no longer unique enough to really generate conversations.”

Turning something commonplace into a conversation-starter that is “talkable” is the agency’s process of “fizzing it up.” While other companies might give away t-shirts and hats, Fizz clients can expect only the unexpected.

• Hula dancers walking through grocery stores.
• People handing out airline snacks at soccer games.
• VW bug cars decorated with … plastic bugs.

It’s not just gimmicks and games. It’s a reason to have somebody stop and have a conversation about a service or product. And those conversations lead to more conversations and that ignites interest and awareness in products better than any advertisement you can buy.

I’ve learned that Fizz is sort of the extreme sports of marketing. While the other agencies might be tapping a putt into a hole on the green, Fizz would be dancing around the hole in grass skirts and fluorescent bow ties. Everything is in service of, “Creating consumer conversations that are interesting, relevant and authentic because those are what drive sales.” When you are clear on your mission, the creative (and the success) just flows.

That’s fizzing it up.

Mark Schaefer is the executive director of Schaefer Marketing Solutions, and the author of several best-selling digital marketing books. He is an acclaimed keynote speaker, college educator, and business consultant.