Hey Judette
That is truly sad because it does not do justice to Claudia whose work is fascinating. What is worse is that the creativity that abounds in Trindad (a place I love) would lend itself to the creation of a remarkable goodie bag that need not be expensive. (By the way, I just had a silly thought like a mini 1919 - the bottle already looks like a classy perfume bottle - which would be fab in a Goodie bag alongside other goodies). I digress. Flyers - that becomes immediate trash (well almost) for me, like the flyer on the windshield. Really being remarkable requires IMAGINATION and creativity, and there is more than enough of that in Trinidad. So what happened - as you said context is key, evaluating taste and audience, reception and what is memorable. That is what we are here for to be bold and audacious.

Judette,

Let's start with a truly important pair of statements you made:

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Marketers need to give deeper thought to how they position their products in the context of each situation ....

Truly brilliant positioning is hard to quantify or predict. Same is true with marketing.
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At the core of the recent marketing "failure" lies a grave issue of what I'll call for argument's sake - T&T's marketing culture.

It is a perspective that identifies almost exclusively, IMHO, with sales - which though an important element of marketing is not the beating heart. By nature, as a society, we are all quite conservative. We do not have a penchant for invention and innovation, rather we adopt, and at times adapt templates created elsewhere for "local" use.

Is there any wonder that brochures and other such devices were used almost exclusively? In the sole example given, there seemed to be a different understanding of how the event could, and was used, to establish a favoured place or position in the mind of the present or potential client.

People in T&T understand sales, they understand moving various forms of value from one owner to another. Sadly they do not understand the creation and management of value i.e. marketing.

If were clearly understood that marketing focuses on solving the challenge presented by a consumer's needs profitably for all concerned, then the point of positioning would have been understood and effectively made via the vehicle of the "goodie" bag.

I can only draw one conclusion:

Contributors to the goodie bag failed to assess the marketing potential of the event, and therefore its attendees. Claudia's brand and marquee potential was not considered, rather an issue of cost may have been the driving factor.

If things were reviewed from an ROI, or more specifically Return on Marketing Investment perspective, then this is where and why you get the milliner's pin, rather than another boring brochure. I'll bet, and I know I will win, that most contributors didn't see the benefit for them. There was no WIIFM discernable. But that's only because they deliberately ignored a long-term, bigger picture assessment of the opportunity.

So in casting "the marketing pearls of opportunity" before "swinish sales men" one should not be disappointed, or even surprised. However, the mind beind the milliner's pin understood clearly that here was an opportunity to gain an entree into a select clientele at a relatively low investment, but one which would bring in a remarkably high rate of return in the future.