Browsing through any good office supply store, you’ll find a row of erasers featuring so many similar-looking pieces of rubber that you might think you’re at a tire store (but only if you’re blind, can’t smell the papery-ness, and can’t distinguish a nerdy voice from a tough-guy mechanic voice). But honestly, what’s the difference between them? They’re all in the same size range, have the exact same purpose, and I can’t say I’ve heard of a “luxury-level” eraser. The only thing that sets them each apart might be that some are white, some are pink, and some multi-colored (ooooh... you’ll be the envy of every one of the teacher’s pets). They don’t even include a little feature list on the package, just for the terminally analytical people in the world.
All in all, there is literally, no differentiation between the various brands of eraser. And no differentiation means really bad marketing.
That’s except for the revolutionary “eraser for big mistakes”. The eraser for big mistakes is a painfully simple concept; it’s just a bigger version of that generic pink eraser, positioned as a more effective solution for those really big mistakes that we make sometimes. However, is it really that much better than a Pink Pearl for fixing your pencil-related tragedies?
No.
But is it finally a brand that is slightly different, amusing, and maybe even cool in the eraser marketplace? You’d better believe it. If you’re a little kid going into the 1st grade, are you really going to be looking for the best-quality eraser? Or are you going to be looking for something that is unique, fascinating, and something that you can show off to your friends (trust me— kids love just this sort of humor… Why do you think SpongeBob’s so popular)? I think it might be the latter.
Now, don’t you think that this exact strategy can be applied to almost anything marketed to kids? Kids love something different and cool. Why do you think flexible pencils, smelly markers, and light-up shoes sell so well? Think about it. Can we do anything to change other brands for kids?
How about talking calculators? Now that's some real marketing.
