Whether it's the holiday season or any other time of year, the purpose of giving gifts to clients, business partners or customers is always the same. In short, gifts serve as both a thank-you (showing recipients that you truly appreciate and value them) and a brand-building tool. But with the sheer volume of gifts and promotional items that people receive from businesses increasing every year, how do you cut through the tchotchke clutter and choose a memorable gift that gets you noticed and reinforces your relationship?
Here are five ways you can reinforce your marketing messages with gifts and show the recipients that they are important to you in more ways than just a sale:
1. Useful
The gifts you give should be useful. Don't just add to the pile of company pens that get lost in the back of your clients' desk drawers. Instead, choose gift items that your clients will actually use ... frequently. If your client works in dark or cramped spaces he'll probably appreciate a high quality flashlight over those mouse pads you passed around last year. Don't be afraid to contact a promotional items company and ask for help in selecting gifts. They're knowledgeable in new and popular items and can steer you in the right direction.
2. Meaningful
Choose a gift that will appeal to an aspect of the recipient's life that you know about through your relationship-building efforts. For example, if you know your client spends a lot of time coaching his daughter's soccer team, select a gift that he can use on the field. This type of specialized attention can go a lot further than a logo-imprinted ruler.
3. Helpful
Everyone likes to receive gifts that can help them make their lives or jobs easier. Why not give a business book or informational material related to your client's field? Imagine a client's reaction to receiving a book about effective DIY marketing options, especially coming from a marketing firm! That sort of selfless honesty is sure to bring your business some appreciation and make a lasting impression.
4. Social
Gifts don't have to be tangible items to help you communicate your marketing messages. Sometimes a social gift works quite nicely. For example, if your client likes sports, give him tickets to a popular sporting event. Take him to dinner before the event, and while you certainly can talk a bit of business, even if you don't you're still building your relationship. You can even take this gift idea a step further by inviting spouses or guests to join you so you can delve even further into your relationship by getting to know the important people in your client's lives. In one fell swoop you've given your client a great gift and given yourself a networking opportunity.
5. Fun
Sometimes it works to give gifts that are just plain entertaining. Sharing a laugh goes a long way to solidifying a relationship and keeping you in the other person's mind. Stay tasteful and professional, but don't be afraid to have a bit of fun.
No matter what gifts you give to communicate your marketing messages and generate future recall among your clients, business partners and customers, remember that a gift that helps you further your relationship with the recipient is the most powerful choice. If the gift you're considering giving to your client isn't useful, meaningful, helpful, social or fun, then you might want to reconsider.
Link:www.entrepreneur.com
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Retaining your existing customers
Your sales come from two groups of customers: new customers and existing customers. It can cost you five times as much to attract a new customer as it does to maintain an existing customer relationship. And it might cost sixteen times as much to bring the new customer to the same level of profitability as the lost customer. So for you customer retention is more important than customer attraction.
How do you make this happen? The first step is to ensure your entire organization is customer-focused, not just your sales staff and customer service people. Everyone needs to be striving for high customer satisfaction – engineers, shipping and receiving, kitchen help, mechanics, bus boys, maintenance staff, delivery people, everyone. Everybody is involved with taking care of the customer in some way; engineers need to be designing with the customer in mind, employees responsible for shipping need to ensure products arrive in perfect condition, maintenance staff create a clean, attractive environment for customers. You would be hard pressed to find a job that is not linked to the customer somehow.
And remember, if you’re not taking care of the customer someone else will.
Here are a few suggestions on how to retain your existing customers:
1.Resolve customer complaints immediately. The customer is always right. If the food is too salty, the service took too long, the music’s too loud or not loud enough, a product is out of stock, bathroom isn’t clean enough, etc., make sure the problem is resolved to the customer’s satisfaction before they leave. An unhappy customer is not likely to be a repeat customer, and more importantly likely to complain to anyone who will listen.
2.Solicit customer feedback. Who better to tell you how to improve your customer service than your customers? And don’t be cheap – offer a good incentive for your customers’ information. Make it as simple as possible for your customers by using pre-printed feedback cards, online feedback forms, a 1-800 number, etc. Thank them for their feedback and follow up with them if possible to let them know you’ve implemented their suggestion.
3.Offer a 100% money-back guarantee. This advertises to your customer you are serious about customer satisfaction. If they return something in a less than desirable condition to resell or they don’t have a receipt offer them store credit on your loyalty card. This ensures you don’t lose the sale and you keep your customers happy.
4.Be a philanthropist. Support your local National Public Radio station during their next pledge drive, sponsor an animal or exhibit at your local zoo, make donations to local PTA’s for school equipment and supplies, or any other charity of your choice. Or better yet, let your customers pick the charity. You get advertising for your company, and a worthy charity receives a donation. A definite win-win for everyone.
Make sure you have a good business website. I’m going to write a separate article on this topic because of how important I feel a good business website is for any company. And in this age of $4/month webhosting, WordPress, Joomla, Xoop, Twitter, RSS, and CPanel, there is really no excuse for not having an excellent web presence for your company. All for a fraction of the cost of a Yellow Pages.
Link:MBAbrief.com
How do you make this happen? The first step is to ensure your entire organization is customer-focused, not just your sales staff and customer service people. Everyone needs to be striving for high customer satisfaction – engineers, shipping and receiving, kitchen help, mechanics, bus boys, maintenance staff, delivery people, everyone. Everybody is involved with taking care of the customer in some way; engineers need to be designing with the customer in mind, employees responsible for shipping need to ensure products arrive in perfect condition, maintenance staff create a clean, attractive environment for customers. You would be hard pressed to find a job that is not linked to the customer somehow.
And remember, if you’re not taking care of the customer someone else will.
Here are a few suggestions on how to retain your existing customers:
1.Resolve customer complaints immediately. The customer is always right. If the food is too salty, the service took too long, the music’s too loud or not loud enough, a product is out of stock, bathroom isn’t clean enough, etc., make sure the problem is resolved to the customer’s satisfaction before they leave. An unhappy customer is not likely to be a repeat customer, and more importantly likely to complain to anyone who will listen.
2.Solicit customer feedback. Who better to tell you how to improve your customer service than your customers? And don’t be cheap – offer a good incentive for your customers’ information. Make it as simple as possible for your customers by using pre-printed feedback cards, online feedback forms, a 1-800 number, etc. Thank them for their feedback and follow up with them if possible to let them know you’ve implemented their suggestion.
3.Offer a 100% money-back guarantee. This advertises to your customer you are serious about customer satisfaction. If they return something in a less than desirable condition to resell or they don’t have a receipt offer them store credit on your loyalty card. This ensures you don’t lose the sale and you keep your customers happy.
4.Be a philanthropist. Support your local National Public Radio station during their next pledge drive, sponsor an animal or exhibit at your local zoo, make donations to local PTA’s for school equipment and supplies, or any other charity of your choice. Or better yet, let your customers pick the charity. You get advertising for your company, and a worthy charity receives a donation. A definite win-win for everyone.
Make sure you have a good business website. I’m going to write a separate article on this topic because of how important I feel a good business website is for any company. And in this age of $4/month webhosting, WordPress, Joomla, Xoop, Twitter, RSS, and CPanel, there is really no excuse for not having an excellent web presence for your company. All for a fraction of the cost of a Yellow Pages.
Link:MBAbrief.com
Consumer Buyer behaviour
If a marketer can identify consumer buyer behaviour, he or she will be in a better position to target products and services at them. Buyer behaviour is focused upon the needs of individuals, groups and organisations.
It is important to understand the relevance of human needs to buyer behaviour (remember, marketing is about satisfying needs).
It is important to understand the relevance of human needs to buyer behaviour (remember, marketing is about satisfying needs).
Let's look at human motivations as introduced by Abraham Maslow by his hierarchy of needs: The hierarchy is triangular. This is because as you move up it, fewer and fewer people satisfy higher level needs. We begin at the bottom level.
Physiological needs such as food, air, water, heat, and the basic necessities of survival need to be satisfied. At the level of safety, man has a place to live that protects him from the elements and predators. At the third level we meet our social and belongingness needs i.e. we marry, or join groups of friends, etc.
The final two levels are esteem and self-actualisation. Fewer people satisfy the higher level needs. Esteem means that you achieve something that makes you recognised and gives personal satisfaction, for example writing a book. Self-actualisation is achieved by few. Here a person is one of a small number to actually do something. For example, Neil Armstrong self-actualised as the first person to reach the Moon.
The model is a little simplistic but introduces the concept a differing consumer needs quite well.
The psychology of each individual considers the product or service on offer in relation to their own culture, attitude, previous learning, and personal perception. The consumer then decides whether or not to purchase, where to purchase, the brand that he or she prefers, and other choices.
http://www.marketingteacher.com/Lessons/lesson_consumer_buying_behaviour.htm
Advertising techniques
ADVERTISING TECHNIQUES
AVANTE GARDET
he suggestion that using this product puts the user ahead of the times e.g. a toy manufacturer encourages kids to be the first on their block to have a new toy.
FACTS AND FIGURES
Statistics and objective factual information is used to prove the superiority of the product e.g. a car manufacturer quotes the amount of time it takes their car to get from 0 to 100 k.p.h.
WEASEL WORDS
“Weasel words" are used to suggest a positive meaning without actually really making any guarantee e.g. a scientist says that a diet product might help you to lose weight the way it helped him to lose weight.
MAGIC INGREDIENTS
The suggestion that some almost miraculous discovery makes the product exceptionally effective e.g. a pharmaceutical manufacturer describes a special coating that makes their pain reliever less irritating to the stomach than a competitor`s.
PATRIOTISM
The suggestion that purchasing this product shows your love of your country e.g. a company brags about its product being made in America and employing American workers.
DIVERSION
Diversion seems to tackle a problem or issue, but then throws in an emotional non-sequitor or distraction. e.g. a tobacco company talks about health and smoking, but then shows a cowboy smoking a rugged cigarette after a long day of hard work.
TRANSFER
Words and ideas with positive connotations are used to suggest that the positive qualities should be associated with the product and the user e.g. a textile manufacturer wanting people to wear their product to stay cool during the summer shows people wearing fashions made from their cloth at a sunny seaside setting where there is a cool breeze.
PLAIN FOLKS
The suggestion that the product is a practical product of good value for ordinary people e.g. a cereal manufacturer shows an ordinary family sitting down to breakfast and enjoying their product.
SNOB APPEAL
The suggestion that the use of the product makes the customer part of an elite group with a luxurious and glamorous life style e.g. a coffee manufacturer shows people dressed in formal gowns and tuxedos drinking their brand at an art gallery.
BRIBERY
Bribery seems to give a desirable extra something. We humans tend to be greedy. e.g. Buy a burger; get free fries.
TESTIMONIALA
famous personality is used to endorse the product e.g. a famous basketball player (Michael Jordan) recommends a particular brand of skates.
WIT AND HUMOR
Customers are attracted to products that divert the audience by giving viewers a reason to laugh or to be entertained by clever use of visuals or language.
SIMPLE SOLUTIONS
Avoid complexities, and attack many problems to one solutions. e.g. Buy this makeup and you will be attractive, popular, and happy.
CARD STACKING
The propaganda technique of Card-Stacking is so widespread that we may not always be aware of its presence in a commercial. Basically, Card-Stacking means stacking the cards in favor of the product; advertisers stress is positive qualities and ignore negative. For example, if a brand of snack food is loaded with sugar (and calories), the commercial may boast that the product is low in fat, which implies that it is also low in calories. Card-Stacking is such a prevalent rational propaganda technique that gives us only part of the picture.
GLITTERING GENERALITIES
The glittering generalities technique uses appealing words and images to sell the product. The message this commercial gives, through indirectly, is that if you buy the item, you will be using a wonderful product, and it will change your life. This cosmetic will make you look younger, this car will give you status, this magazine will make you a leader-all these commercials are using Glittering Generalities to enhance product
These techniques can help us a lot to improve our advertising skills and can also help us to attract more profitable customers
appeal.http://www.foothilltech.org/rgeib/english/media_literacy/advertising_techniques
AVANTE GARDET
he suggestion that using this product puts the user ahead of the times e.g. a toy manufacturer encourages kids to be the first on their block to have a new toy.
FACTS AND FIGURES
Statistics and objective factual information is used to prove the superiority of the product e.g. a car manufacturer quotes the amount of time it takes their car to get from 0 to 100 k.p.h.
WEASEL WORDS
“Weasel words" are used to suggest a positive meaning without actually really making any guarantee e.g. a scientist says that a diet product might help you to lose weight the way it helped him to lose weight.
MAGIC INGREDIENTS
The suggestion that some almost miraculous discovery makes the product exceptionally effective e.g. a pharmaceutical manufacturer describes a special coating that makes their pain reliever less irritating to the stomach than a competitor`s.
PATRIOTISM
The suggestion that purchasing this product shows your love of your country e.g. a company brags about its product being made in America and employing American workers.
DIVERSION
Diversion seems to tackle a problem or issue, but then throws in an emotional non-sequitor or distraction. e.g. a tobacco company talks about health and smoking, but then shows a cowboy smoking a rugged cigarette after a long day of hard work.
TRANSFER
Words and ideas with positive connotations are used to suggest that the positive qualities should be associated with the product and the user e.g. a textile manufacturer wanting people to wear their product to stay cool during the summer shows people wearing fashions made from their cloth at a sunny seaside setting where there is a cool breeze.
PLAIN FOLKS
The suggestion that the product is a practical product of good value for ordinary people e.g. a cereal manufacturer shows an ordinary family sitting down to breakfast and enjoying their product.
SNOB APPEAL
The suggestion that the use of the product makes the customer part of an elite group with a luxurious and glamorous life style e.g. a coffee manufacturer shows people dressed in formal gowns and tuxedos drinking their brand at an art gallery.
BRIBERY
Bribery seems to give a desirable extra something. We humans tend to be greedy. e.g. Buy a burger; get free fries.
TESTIMONIALA
famous personality is used to endorse the product e.g. a famous basketball player (Michael Jordan) recommends a particular brand of skates.
WIT AND HUMOR
Customers are attracted to products that divert the audience by giving viewers a reason to laugh or to be entertained by clever use of visuals or language.
SIMPLE SOLUTIONS
Avoid complexities, and attack many problems to one solutions. e.g. Buy this makeup and you will be attractive, popular, and happy.
CARD STACKING
The propaganda technique of Card-Stacking is so widespread that we may not always be aware of its presence in a commercial. Basically, Card-Stacking means stacking the cards in favor of the product; advertisers stress is positive qualities and ignore negative. For example, if a brand of snack food is loaded with sugar (and calories), the commercial may boast that the product is low in fat, which implies that it is also low in calories. Card-Stacking is such a prevalent rational propaganda technique that gives us only part of the picture.
GLITTERING GENERALITIES
The glittering generalities technique uses appealing words and images to sell the product. The message this commercial gives, through indirectly, is that if you buy the item, you will be using a wonderful product, and it will change your life. This cosmetic will make you look younger, this car will give you status, this magazine will make you a leader-all these commercials are using Glittering Generalities to enhance product
These techniques can help us a lot to improve our advertising skills and can also help us to attract more profitable customers
appeal.http://www.foothilltech.org/rgeib/english/media_literacy/advertising_techniques
value cahin
The value chain is a systematic approach to examining the development of competitive advantage. It was created by M. E. Porter in his book, Competitive Advantage (1980). The chain consists of a series of activities that create and build value. They culminate in the total value delivered by an organisation. The 'margin' depicted in the diagram is the same as added value. The organisation is split into 'primary activities' and 'support activities.'
Primary Activities.
Inbound Logistics.
Here goods are received from a company's suppliers. They are stored until they are needed on the production/assembly line. Goods are moved around the organisation.
Operations.
This is where goods are manufactured or assembled. Individual operations could include room service in an hotel, packing of books/videos/games by an online retailer, or the final tune for a new car's engine.
Outbound Logistics.
The goods are now finished, and they need to be sent along the supply chain to wholesalers, retailers or the final consumer.
Marketing and Sales.
In true customer orientated fashion, at this stage the organisation prepares the offering to meet the needs of targeted customers. This area focuses strongly upon marketing communications and the promotions mix.
Service.
This includes all areas of service such as installation, after-sales service, complaints handling, training and so on.
Support Activities.
Procurement.
This function is responsible for all purchasing of goods, services and materials. The aim is to secure the lowest possible price for purchases of the highest possible quality. They will be responsible for outsourcing (components or operations that would normally be done in-house are done by other organisations), and ePurchasing (using IT and web-based technologies to achieve procurement aims).
Technology Development.
Technology is an important source of competitive advantage. Companies need to innovate to reduce costs and to protect and sustain competitive advantage. This could include production technology, Internet marketing activities, lean manufacturing, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), and many other technological developments.
Human Resource Management (HRM).
Employees are an expensive and vital resource. An organisation would manage recruitment and s election, training and development, and rewards and remuneration. The mission and objectives of the organisation would be driving force behind the HRM strategy.
Firm Infrastructure.
This activity includes and is driven by corporate or strategic planning. It includes the Management Information System (MIS), and other mechanisms for planning and control such as the accounting department.
ansoff's matrix:how to grow systematically
This well known marketing tool was first published in the Harvard Business Review (1957) in an article called 'Strategies for Diversification'. It is used by marketers who have objectives for growth. Ansoff's matrix offers strategic choices to achieve the objectives. There are four main categories for selection.
Ansoff's Product/Market Matrix
Market Penetration
Here we market our existing products to our existing customers. This means increasing our revenue by, for example, promoting the product, repositioning the brand, and so on. However, the product is not altered and we do not seek any new customers.
Market Development
Here we market our existing product range in a new market. This means that the product remains the same, but it is marketed to a new audience. Exporting the product, or marketing it in a new region, are examples of market development.
Product Development
This is a new product to be marketed to our existing customers. Here we develop and innovate new product offerings to replace existing ones. Such products are then marketed to our existing customers. This often happens with the auto markets where existing models are updated or replaced and then marketed to existing customers.
Diversification
This is where we market completely new products to new customers. There are two types of diversification, namely related and unrelated diversification. Related diversification means that we remain in a market or industry with which we are familiar. For example, a soup manufacturer diversifies into cake manufacture (i.e. the food industry). Unrelated diversification is where we have no previous industry nor market experience. For example a soup manufacturer invests in the rail business.
Ansoff's matrix is one of the most well know frameworks for deciding upon strategies for growth.
refernce:marketingteacher.com
micro and macro environment
The micro-environment
This environment influences the organization directly. It includes suppliers that deal directly or indirectly, consumers and customers, and other local stakeholders. Micro tends to suggest small, but this can be misleading. In this context, micro describes the relationship between firms and the driving forces that control this relationship. It is a more local relationship, and the firm may exercise a degree of influence.
The macro-environment
This includes all factors that can influence and organization, but that are out of their direct control. A company does not generally influence any laws (although it is accepted that they could lobby or be part of a trade organization). It is continuously changing, and the company needs to be flexible to adapt. There may be aggressive competition and rivalry in a market. Globalization means that there is always the threat of substitute products and new entrants. The wider environment is also ever changing, and the marketer needs to compensate for changes in culture, politics, economics and technology.
The internal environment.
All factors that are internal to the organization are known as the 'internal environment'. They are generally audited by applying the 'Five Ms' which are Men, Money, Machinery,Materials and Markets. The internal environment is as important for managing change as the external. As marketers we call the process of managing internal change 'internal marketing.'
Essentially we use marketing approaches to aid communication and change management.
The external environment can be audited in more detail using other approaches such asSWOT Analysis, Michael Porter's Five Forces Analysis or PEST Analysis.
marketing environment
diagraam illustates the factors which affect the marketing environment.
inner circle explains the "micro" factors n the outer boundary tells us about the "macro" factors
Three words marketers must sing in 2010 : Serve , Shrink and Simplify
Three Words Marketers Must Sing in 2010: Serve, Shrink & Simplify
In one of my last Ad Age columns for the year, I focus my attention on three critical words marketers need to embrace, repeat, and perhaps even "retweet" in 2010: Serve, Shrink, and Simplify. It's worth a full read, but here are a few excerpts:
Serve: You've heard this from me before, but I'll say it again. Service is the new marketing. Serving trumps selling. If consumers are in control, we can't just sell or wrap ads around them. We need to serve their needs, solve their problems and dial up talk-worthy "brand experiences." And we must do so 24/7, as Twitter-influenced consumers increasingly expect the "service desk" to be on all the time, from the 800-number and brand "chat" line to the Facebook fan page. Serve and you'll touch the nerve. The other good news is that more brands are getting this -- almost intuitively. That's why we're seeing a fire hydrant of service innovation taking place across brand blogs, Twitter and even iPhone apps. Consider the implicit assumption in mega-brand Tide's new iPhone app -- the "Tide Stain Brain" -- which acts as a de facto washing consultant.
Shrink: Our screens are shrinking -- big time. With billions of "app" downloads -- certain to explode further in 2010 -- much of our attention is now fixed (often frenetically) on screens half the size of a playing card. That has big implications. We need to adapt to a smaller interface. We need to rethink design. We need to cut the clutter. We need to obsess on the power of "icons" with the compulsiveness of a Steve Jobs or an airline safety card designer. We need to translate "everything-but-the-kitchen-sink" brand websites into two-inch screens. Oh, and this "shrinking" principle also applies to how we tighten and simplify copy. Twitter's 140-character limitation may seem like a climbing Everest to the "diarrhea of the mouth" crowd, but get used to it. Brevity is the soul of wit, my friends. We need to do more with less. Indeed, small is the new big.
Simplify: Of course, we'll never win on either the "serve" or "shrink" principles unless we really simplify things for consumers. Admit it, we love complexity. We hide essential information in illegible fine-print. We're rather give consumers a 200-page "how to" manual than a simple video demo. If you want your iPhone app to sing, you darn well better build it on "add water and stir" simplicity principles. If you want your small-screen ad unit to engage, or your sponsored content to drive participation, you better think hard about stripping out the gobblygook. Just think about the upside. Consider all the micro-charges on our bank or Amex statements because Apple computers made it ridiculously simple to pay for content. Then project that to e-commerce sales, or perhaps even the riddle of how to save online content from Jack-the-"Free"-Ripper." Let there be no doubt -- simplicity sells.
In one of my last Ad Age columns for the year, I focus my attention on three critical words marketers need to embrace, repeat, and perhaps even "retweet" in 2010: Serve, Shrink, and Simplify. It's worth a full read, but here are a few excerpts:
Serve: You've heard this from me before, but I'll say it again. Service is the new marketing. Serving trumps selling. If consumers are in control, we can't just sell or wrap ads around them. We need to serve their needs, solve their problems and dial up talk-worthy "brand experiences." And we must do so 24/7, as Twitter-influenced consumers increasingly expect the "service desk" to be on all the time, from the 800-number and brand "chat" line to the Facebook fan page. Serve and you'll touch the nerve. The other good news is that more brands are getting this -- almost intuitively. That's why we're seeing a fire hydrant of service innovation taking place across brand blogs, Twitter and even iPhone apps. Consider the implicit assumption in mega-brand Tide's new iPhone app -- the "Tide Stain Brain" -- which acts as a de facto washing consultant.
Shrink: Our screens are shrinking -- big time. With billions of "app" downloads -- certain to explode further in 2010 -- much of our attention is now fixed (often frenetically) on screens half the size of a playing card. That has big implications. We need to adapt to a smaller interface. We need to rethink design. We need to cut the clutter. We need to obsess on the power of "icons" with the compulsiveness of a Steve Jobs or an airline safety card designer. We need to translate "everything-but-the-kitchen-sink" brand websites into two-inch screens. Oh, and this "shrinking" principle also applies to how we tighten and simplify copy. Twitter's 140-character limitation may seem like a climbing Everest to the "diarrhea of the mouth" crowd, but get used to it. Brevity is the soul of wit, my friends. We need to do more with less. Indeed, small is the new big.
Simplify: Of course, we'll never win on either the "serve" or "shrink" principles unless we really simplify things for consumers. Admit it, we love complexity. We hide essential information in illegible fine-print. We're rather give consumers a 200-page "how to" manual than a simple video demo. If you want your iPhone app to sing, you darn well better build it on "add water and stir" simplicity principles. If you want your small-screen ad unit to engage, or your sponsored content to drive participation, you better think hard about stripping out the gobblygook. Just think about the upside. Consider all the micro-charges on our bank or Amex statements because Apple computers made it ridiculously simple to pay for content. Then project that to e-commerce sales, or perhaps even the riddle of how to save online content from Jack-the-"Free"-Ripper." Let there be no doubt -- simplicity sells.
Three words marketers must sing in 2010 : Serve , Shrink and Simplify
Three Words Marketers Must Sing in 2010: Serve, Shrink & Simplify
In one of my last Ad Age columns for the year, I focus my attention on three critical words marketers need to embrace, repeat, and perhaps even "retweet" in 2010: Serve, Shrink, and Simplify. It's worth a full read, but here are a few excerpts:
Serve: You've heard this from me before, but I'll say it again. Service is the new marketing. Serving trumps selling. If consumers are in control, we can't just sell or wrap ads around them. We need to serve their needs, solve their problems and dial up talk-worthy "brand experiences." And we must do so 24/7, as Twitter-influenced consumers increasingly expect the "service desk" to be on all the time, from the 800-number and brand "chat" line to the Facebook fan page. Serve and you'll touch the nerve. The other good news is that more brands are getting this -- almost intuitively. That's why we're seeing a fire hydrant of service innovation taking place across brand blogs, Twitter and even iPhone apps. Consider the implicit assumption in mega-brand Tide's new iPhone app -- the "Tide Stain Brain" -- which acts as a de facto washing consultant.
Shrink: Our screens are shrinking -- big time. With billions of "app" downloads -- certain to explode further in 2010 -- much of our attention is now fixed (often frenetically) on screens half the size of a playing card. That has big implications. We need to adapt to a smaller interface. We need to rethink design. We need to cut the clutter. We need to obsess on the power of "icons" with the compulsiveness of a Steve Jobs or an airline safety card designer. We need to translate "everything-but-the-kitchen-sink" brand websites into two-inch screens. Oh, and this "shrinking" principle also applies to how we tighten and simplify copy. Twitter's 140-character limitation may seem like a climbing Everest to the "diarrhea of the mouth" crowd, but get used to it. Brevity is the soul of wit, my friends. We need to do more with less. Indeed, small is the new big.
Simplify: Of course, we'll never win on either the "serve" or "shrink" principles unless we really simplify things for consumers. Admit it, we love complexity. We hide essential information in illegible fine-print. We're rather give consumers a 200-page "how to" manual than a simple video demo. If you want your iPhone app to sing, you darn well better build it on "add water and stir" simplicity principles. If you want your small-screen ad unit to engage, or your sponsored content to drive participation, you better think hard about stripping out the gobblygook. Just think about the upside. Consider all the micro-charges on our bank or Amex statements because Apple computers made it ridiculously simple to pay for content. Then project that to e-commerce sales, or perhaps even the riddle of how to save online content from Jack-the-"Free"-Ripper." Let there be no doubt -- simplicity sells.
In one of my last Ad Age columns for the year, I focus my attention on three critical words marketers need to embrace, repeat, and perhaps even "retweet" in 2010: Serve, Shrink, and Simplify. It's worth a full read, but here are a few excerpts:
Serve: You've heard this from me before, but I'll say it again. Service is the new marketing. Serving trumps selling. If consumers are in control, we can't just sell or wrap ads around them. We need to serve their needs, solve their problems and dial up talk-worthy "brand experiences." And we must do so 24/7, as Twitter-influenced consumers increasingly expect the "service desk" to be on all the time, from the 800-number and brand "chat" line to the Facebook fan page. Serve and you'll touch the nerve. The other good news is that more brands are getting this -- almost intuitively. That's why we're seeing a fire hydrant of service innovation taking place across brand blogs, Twitter and even iPhone apps. Consider the implicit assumption in mega-brand Tide's new iPhone app -- the "Tide Stain Brain" -- which acts as a de facto washing consultant.
Shrink: Our screens are shrinking -- big time. With billions of "app" downloads -- certain to explode further in 2010 -- much of our attention is now fixed (often frenetically) on screens half the size of a playing card. That has big implications. We need to adapt to a smaller interface. We need to rethink design. We need to cut the clutter. We need to obsess on the power of "icons" with the compulsiveness of a Steve Jobs or an airline safety card designer. We need to translate "everything-but-the-kitchen-sink" brand websites into two-inch screens. Oh, and this "shrinking" principle also applies to how we tighten and simplify copy. Twitter's 140-character limitation may seem like a climbing Everest to the "diarrhea of the mouth" crowd, but get used to it. Brevity is the soul of wit, my friends. We need to do more with less. Indeed, small is the new big.
Simplify: Of course, we'll never win on either the "serve" or "shrink" principles unless we really simplify things for consumers. Admit it, we love complexity. We hide essential information in illegible fine-print. We're rather give consumers a 200-page "how to" manual than a simple video demo. If you want your iPhone app to sing, you darn well better build it on "add water and stir" simplicity principles. If you want your small-screen ad unit to engage, or your sponsored content to drive participation, you better think hard about stripping out the gobblygook. Just think about the upside. Consider all the micro-charges on our bank or Amex statements because Apple computers made it ridiculously simple to pay for content. Then project that to e-commerce sales, or perhaps even the riddle of how to save online content from Jack-the-"Free"-Ripper." Let there be no doubt -- simplicity sells.
steaming over Via instant coffee at Starbucks
Steaming Over Via Instant Coffee at Starbucks
Baristas and customers are put out over the aggressive rollout of its new (heavens!) just-add-water line .
Starbucks (SBUX) instant coffee was always going to be a tough sell. That's why the company spent years developing it and months preparing its frontline employees (aka baristas) for the Sept. 29 launch of Via, three-packs of instant that go for $2.95. "We took a lot of time with it because we knew it could undermine the company if we didn't do it right," CEO Howard Schultz said this summer.
It's too early to say whether Via is a success. But judging from the coffee blogs, including the company's mystarbucksidea.com, for some baristas the pressure to sell Via is intense and unwelcome. "This is the most stressful promotion I have ever experienced, and I've been with the company for seven years," a barista wrote on starbucksgossip.com. Some customers are finding the hard sell a bit exasperating, too. As one wrote: "Please no more high-pressure Via sales pitches. It's annoying … it's completely out of line with Starbucks' vibe."
That Starbucks would even create an instant coffee is surprising enough. After all, the company celebrates the ritual preparation of coffee, and the sense of comfort, indulgence, and sometimes community that its customers experience. It is telling that, before introducing Via in three test markets, the company told employees an elaborate story about its creation: that it was a two-decade-long quest begun by a researcher named Don Valencia; that Valencia passed away before scientists at the company finally came up with a micro-grinding technique that allowed Starbucks to make an instant coffee that passed the exacting Schultz taste test; and that the name itself is in part homage to Valencia.
In the weeks before the official launch, Starbucks held pep rallies for employees in nearly 100 cities in the U.S. and Canada. Managers instructed baristas about how to strike up conversations about Via with their customers. And for the first time ever, Starbucks unveiled a national TV and print advertising campaign focused on a single product.
Starbucks sees great potential in Via: Instant coffee is a $21 billion global market. And Starbucks made a significant investment in Via, the biggest product rollout in its history. Naturally, executives set ambitious sales goals. There, perhaps, lie the roots of the problem. Starbucks baristas typically think of themselves as akin to bartenders, not salespeople. "We were just told to place a Via 12-pack in the customer's hand while asking if they would 'like to add some Via to their order,' " blogged one barista. "I have seen more annoyed customers than enthusiastic ones from all these strong-arm sales tactics. … Not to say it's not a good product. I think it just needs to be kept in the supermarkets next to the other Starbucks mass-market frill."
The company won't provide any specific information about Via's sales so far except to say that the product has been incredibly well-received. Clifford Burrows, president of Starbucks Coffee U.S., has seen the criticism of the sales tactics and says: "I've read it, but the general spirit is one of enthusiasm about Via. Some will find it easier to sell than others, some stores will be more successful than others."
Baristas and customers are put out over the aggressive rollout of its new (heavens!) just-add-water line .
Starbucks (SBUX) instant coffee was always going to be a tough sell. That's why the company spent years developing it and months preparing its frontline employees (aka baristas) for the Sept. 29 launch of Via, three-packs of instant that go for $2.95. "We took a lot of time with it because we knew it could undermine the company if we didn't do it right," CEO Howard Schultz said this summer.
It's too early to say whether Via is a success. But judging from the coffee blogs, including the company's mystarbucksidea.com, for some baristas the pressure to sell Via is intense and unwelcome. "This is the most stressful promotion I have ever experienced, and I've been with the company for seven years," a barista wrote on starbucksgossip.com. Some customers are finding the hard sell a bit exasperating, too. As one wrote: "Please no more high-pressure Via sales pitches. It's annoying … it's completely out of line with Starbucks' vibe."
That Starbucks would even create an instant coffee is surprising enough. After all, the company celebrates the ritual preparation of coffee, and the sense of comfort, indulgence, and sometimes community that its customers experience. It is telling that, before introducing Via in three test markets, the company told employees an elaborate story about its creation: that it was a two-decade-long quest begun by a researcher named Don Valencia; that Valencia passed away before scientists at the company finally came up with a micro-grinding technique that allowed Starbucks to make an instant coffee that passed the exacting Schultz taste test; and that the name itself is in part homage to Valencia.
In the weeks before the official launch, Starbucks held pep rallies for employees in nearly 100 cities in the U.S. and Canada. Managers instructed baristas about how to strike up conversations about Via with their customers. And for the first time ever, Starbucks unveiled a national TV and print advertising campaign focused on a single product.
Starbucks sees great potential in Via: Instant coffee is a $21 billion global market. And Starbucks made a significant investment in Via, the biggest product rollout in its history. Naturally, executives set ambitious sales goals. There, perhaps, lie the roots of the problem. Starbucks baristas typically think of themselves as akin to bartenders, not salespeople. "We were just told to place a Via 12-pack in the customer's hand while asking if they would 'like to add some Via to their order,' " blogged one barista. "I have seen more annoyed customers than enthusiastic ones from all these strong-arm sales tactics. … Not to say it's not a good product. I think it just needs to be kept in the supermarkets next to the other Starbucks mass-market frill."
The company won't provide any specific information about Via's sales so far except to say that the product has been incredibly well-received. Clifford Burrows, president of Starbucks Coffee U.S., has seen the criticism of the sales tactics and says: "I've read it, but the general spirit is one of enthusiasm about Via. Some will find it easier to sell than others, some stores will be more successful than others."
Apple vs Google
Apple vs. Google
How the battle between Silicon Valley's superstars will shape the future of mobile computing
Photo-Illustration by David Rudes
By Peter Burrows
This Issue
Apple vs. Google: Why They Can't Be Friends
Schmidt gave up his Apple board seat due to increasing conflicts Kevin Lorenz/Bloomberg
Jobs believes app development is crucial to keeping iPhone sales brisk Tony Avelar/Bloomberg
On Jan. 5, Google (GOOG) did a very Apple-like thing. In a presentation at the Googleplex in Mountain View, Calif., the 11-year-old search behemoth unveiled Nexus One, a stylish touchscreen smartphone that runs on the company's Android operating system, is sold through a Google-operated retail Web site, and greets the market with an advertising tagline ("Web meets phone") as simple and optimistic as the one Apple used in 2007 to introduce its iPhone ("The Internet in your pocket").
On the same day, Apple did a very Google-like thing. Steve Jobs, the king of splashy product launches and in-house development, announced a strategic acquisition. For $275 million, Apple purchased Quattro Wireless, an upstart advertising company that excels at targeting ads to mobile-phone users based on their behavior.
When companies start to imitate one another, it's usually either an extreme case of flattery—or war. In the case of Google and Apple, it's both. Separated by a mere 10 miles in Silicon Valley, the two have been on famously good terms for almost a decade. Jobs and Google CEO Eric Schmidt, both 54, spent years in separate battles against Microsoft (MSFT) while Schmidt was at Sun Microsystems (JAVA) and Novell (NOVL). Over time, they went from spiritual allies to strategic ones. When Apple had an opening on its board in 2006, Jobs tapped Schmidt. "Eric is obviously doing a terrific job as CEO of Google," Jobs said at the time. Schmidt, meanwhile, called Apple "one of the companies in the world that I most admire."
Tensions in Silicon Valley's special relationship began to emerge in late 2007, when Google announced plans to develop Android for mobile phones. Apple had unveiled its iPhone in January of that year, and it was clear that the two companies would spar in the smartphone business. Still, both were niche players, with more formidable rivals in companies like Nokia (NOK), Samsung, and Research In Motion (RIMM). Only after software developers began creating thousands of mobile apps, and it became clear that phones would become the computers of the future, did the conflicts begin to grow serious. Last summer, Apple refused to approve two Google apps for sale to iPhone users, raising questions about how much of a Google presence Apple would allow on its devices. In August, Schmidt gave up his board seat. "Unfortunately, as Google enters more of Apple's core businesses," Jobs said at the time, "Eric's effectiveness as an Apple board member will be significantly diminished, since he will have to recuse himself from even larger portions of our meetings."
Now the companies have entered a new, more adversarial phase. With Nexus One, Google, which had been content to power multiple phonemakers' devices with Android, enters the hardware game, becoming a direct threat to the iPhone. With its Quattro purchase, Apple aims to create completely new kinds of mobile ads, say three sources familiar with Apple's thinking. The goal isn't so much to compete with Google in search as to make search on mobile phones obsolete. "Apple and Google both want more," says Chris Cunningham, founder of the New York mobile advertising firm Appssavvy. "They're gearing up for the ultimate fight."
Apple spokeswoman Katie Cotton declined to comment on the company's advertising plans or its relationship with Google. Google spokeswoman Katie Watson said the company would not make executives available for this story. She did provide a statement, attributed to Vic Gundotra, Google's vice-president of engineering: "Apple is a valued partner of ours and we continue to work closely with them to help move the entire mobile ecosystem forward."
Direct Mail is Lead Channel for Promotions
Direct Mail is Lead Channel for Promotions
Here are some facts about Dirct mail:
According to a study from the Direct Marketing Association (DMA):
* Non-catalog direct mail is used by 90% of marketers, agencies, and other suppliers of direct marketing services surveyed.
* Nearly half (46%) report using it as their primary channel for promotions.
* Companies that send promotions using non-catalog direct mail spend an average of 46.9% of their company’s total annual ad expenditures on the channel.
* Most of the companies that promote their products or services using non-catalog direct mail receive responses via the Internet (93.7%), phone (79.5%), or through contact from an internal sales force (70.8%).
Here are some facts about Dirct mail:
According to a study from the Direct Marketing Association (DMA):
* Non-catalog direct mail is used by 90% of marketers, agencies, and other suppliers of direct marketing services surveyed.
* Nearly half (46%) report using it as their primary channel for promotions.
* Companies that send promotions using non-catalog direct mail spend an average of 46.9% of their company’s total annual ad expenditures on the channel.
* Most of the companies that promote their products or services using non-catalog direct mail receive responses via the Internet (93.7%), phone (79.5%), or through contact from an internal sales force (70.8%).
Differentiation Competitive Strategy
In a differentiation competitive strategy, a company tries to differentiate its product from that of its competitors. By differentiating its offer, every company tries to create a desirable image in the minds of consumers relative to competing products. This way competitors may find it harder to convince consumers that the company;s product is not better than theirs. A good example of differentiation strategy is of Gillette.
This type of competitive strategy is extremely handy for those companies who want to charge skimming pricing. When customers know that they are getting something special, they may not hesitate in paying a higher price for the product.
This type of competitive strategy is extremely handy for those companies who want to charge skimming pricing. When customers know that they are getting something special, they may not hesitate in paying a higher price for the product.
Overall Cost Leadership
Overall cost leadership is when a company produces its goods and services at the lowest cost compared to its competitors. It is able to achieve low cost by increasing the overall efficiency of the company. It may be do that by decreasing its production and distribution costs.
This also may be achieved by expanding the size of the company. In economics, when firms are able to decrease their average costs by increasing their size, it is called economies of scale. A good example of overall cost leadership is Walmart.
The production concept also focuses on reducing the cost of the company. Hence, it is also connected to overall cost leadership.
This also may be achieved by expanding the size of the company. In economics, when firms are able to decrease their average costs by increasing their size, it is called economies of scale. A good example of overall cost leadership is Walmart.
The production concept also focuses on reducing the cost of the company. Hence, it is also connected to overall cost leadership.
Nokia and the Problems at its Door
As we all know that there are three different approaches to marketing. They are entrepreneurial, formulated and intrepreneurial marketing. Entrepreneurial marketing is when a new business starts up and starts to cater to the needs and wants of consumers. A lot of creativity and innovation is present in companies practising entrepreneurial marketing. For example, Nokia anticipated the shift to software and services much earlier than other handset-makers. It launched Ovi in 2007, almost a year before Apple opened its highly successful App Store. A few months later, Nokia bought Navteq, a maker of digital maps, for a whopping €5.7 billion (then $8.1 billion), to be able to offer better location-based services. Shortly thereafter, Nokia launched Comes With Music, an innovative pairing of a handset with a digital-music subscription.
However, after establishing themselves, businesses indulge in formulated marketing which is much too formal and creativity may take the back seat in such a marketing. Thus, due to a lack of creativity and contact with customers, the business may suffer. For example, the first version of Nokia's smart-phone, called the N97, was a let-down. It has as many bells and whistles as a Swiss army knife, says Carolina Milanesi of Gartner, a market-research firm, but its software, based on Symbian, makes them almost impossible to use. “It is like having a Ferrari body with a Fiat Cinquecento engine inside,” she says.
All this proves that Nokia will have to focus again on creativity and a passion for solving consumer problems. If Nokia does this then it will practice intrepreneurial marketing. Last February Nokia’s management kicked off what is internally known as a “transformation project” to address all these concerns. “We needed to move faster. We needed to improve our execution. And we needed a tighter coupling of devices and services,” explains Mary McDowell, Nokia’s chief strategist. The firm has since introduced a simpler internal structure, cut its smart-phone portfolio by half, ditched weaker services and begun to increase Ovi’s appeal to developers by allowing them to integrate Nokia’s services into their own applications. While giving Symbian a makeover it is also pushing a new operating system, called Maemo, for the grandest, computer-like smart-phones.
Guys, I tried to explain the different approaches to marketing strategy by using the example of Nokia. I included some extracts from the article I read about Nokia. Guys, check out the entire article and do give feedback.
Emotional marketing
So what is the success factor of the Starbucks brand? The emotional experience of its consumers – they feel sophisticated and part of what many brand experts refer to as a "coffee house" community.
For the Starbucks community, coffee is not just a beverage, but it is a ritual, a habit, a treat, and a satisfying reward all rolled in one.
Marketing strategies without emotions don't work. The world is driven by emotions and emotions drive consumer behavior. Rational thought leads customers to be interested but it is emotion that sells.
Use the Right Colors in Your Promotional Materials
Its very important to know which emotions or symbolizations will trigger your target audience to buy your product or service. The use of the right colors in your promotional materials – in your marketing brochures, your product packages, or on your web site – can actually increase your sales. When people see certain colors they can change their emotions or they can symbolize things related to the colors. For example, if you're selling a money-making product you should use green and brown colors, as they represent money and strength, and bring out the emotion of greed and comfort respectively.
Selling By Coaching
Treat your prospective customer as a player who wants to achieve extraordinary results. You are to help the player win. listen to words, body language and emotions to understand the player's both conscious and unconscious needs.
Make Your Customers Laugh
Why would people want buy from you if they don't enjoy doing so? Making what you have to sell fun to buy is simply taking the whole process one step further. "If you can make your customers laugh, and excite them with your vision of what life can be, they are not going to walk into your outlets, butrun into them. Running a successful business should be fun for you, and there's every reason why you should be able to communicate that sense of fun to your customers. Certainly, if you aren't having fun, you probably aren't running a successful business."
EMOTIONAL MARKETING- THE STARBUCKS EXAMPLE
Starbucks is the prime example of a company that uses emotional marketing. Starbucks is one of the strongest global brands around. Its complicated logo is not memorable, and most people will not be able to recreate it if you ask them to. They will describe it as “something green” “roundish” with a “person or something” in the middle. The slogan is not memorable either, and before you rack your brains, Starbucks doesn’t have one.
The packaging and collateral are nothing special and I challenge you to find an advertisement in any magazine. Starbucks does advertise, but uses emails as the preferred medium.So what is the success factor of the Starbucks brand? The emotional experience of its consumers – they feel sophisticated and part of what many brand experts refer to as a "coffee house" community.
For the Starbucks community, coffee is not just a beverage, but it is a ritual, a habit, a treat, and a satisfying reward all rolled in one.
source: http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/marketing_emotional.html
The end of boring presentations
O'Reilly Insights
The End Of Boring Presentations
Scott Berkun,
Keep your business presentations short. You'll get your point across more clearly.
Scott Berk:
Meetings, and the presentations that drive them, are boring, slow and rarely effective. Walk the halls of any Fortune 500 corporation right now and you'll find many rooms occupied by people with six-figure salaries, fighting to stay awake. Their supposedly precious time is wasted as they struggle to figure out, through jargon-filled phrases and long, bulleted lists, what on earth the person speaking is trying to say.
But now there's an escape from the oratorical hell of the business world. Presentation innovations are on the move and they're taking over the world. The core idea? Force people to use less time.
In 2000, software developer Mark Jason Dominus realized most speakers were far from concise. They go on too long and rarely make their points clearly no matter how much time they have. His solution? Instead of giving them 60, 30 or even 20 minutes, just give them five. The time limit was the only rule, and he called this format the lightening talk. Dominus explained that he "invented the format in a desperate attempt to help people get to the point or at least to shut up quickly." At four minutes he'd ring a small bell as a warning, and then at the five-minute mark he'd bang a large gong and kick them off the stage. This is a sentiment millions around the world wish they could share with the people they have to listen to every day.
In similar spirit, Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham from the architecture firm Klein-Dytham wanted to inspire creative people to express themselves clearly. They invented a new format for presentations called Pecha Kucha (pronounced pe-chak-cha), with the goal of making presentations fun and interesting, and increasing the number of speakers that can present in a few hours.
There are two simple rules that Klein and Dytham enforce: each speaker only gets 20 slides and each slide is displayed for 20 seconds. No more rambling. No more endless piles of bulleted lists or whizzy animations, since every second is precious.
Each presentation in Pecha Kucha is exactly six minutes and 40 seconds long, about as much as the average adult human being can stand being lectured to by your average presenter. Speakers can show pictures and images that support their points, or simply allow their slides to act as an attractive backdrop for the words the speaker improvises over them. The length makes it easy to practice and rehearse, a rarely followed piece of advice for good speech making even Aristotle and Dale Carnegie approved of.
These how-to presentation people are all alike, they must hang around management types too much. Yes, I know that I want my surgeon to hear a briefing on technique for my forthcoming operation which
But most professionals, when they learn of these short formats, think it's a joke. How can executives possibly prune down their 60 minutes of carefully constructed diagrams and stratagems, into 20 minutes, much less six? The answer is easy. The Gettysburg address can be read in two minutes. If you think clearly enough, you need less time. Speakers must make only their strongest points, and work hard to refine them down to their most concise and eloquent essence. It becomes impossible to waste hours making complex diagrams, and wander into empty rhetoric, since the talk isn't long enough to allow it.
Pecha Kucha forces speakers to refine, and refine, and refine again, using each slide for its maximum value. Just as poets may write haikus and rock bands pick the three- to four-minute sweet spot of time for music, speakers often find there is magic in increments of five to 10 minutes in time. Certainly not all presentations in the world should be limited to five minutes, but anyone who attempts it is certain to learn lessons on communication that will improve all of their interactions with others, regardless of how much time they have.
Brain science is also on the side of lightening-fast talks and Pecha Kucha. With fewer slides to work with, presenters are forced to think visually, using images to help convey points instead of bulleted lists. Our brains are designed to understand some concepts faster through pictures than text descriptions alone. According to John Medina's bestselling book "Brain Rules," eight to 12 minutes is a good rule of thumb for human attention. Anything that takes more time to consume runs the risk of leaving your audience comatose, and Pecha Kucha runs well underneath that mark.
In 2006 Brady Forest and Bre Petis from O'Reilly Media created an event called Ignite, an evening of short talks and socializing, which uses a simpler format of 20 slides, with 15 seconds per slide, for a total of five minutes. Much like Pecha Kucha, these events have had growing popularity around the world, especially among creatives, progressive managers and entrepreneurs.
To celebrate the success of this new wave of public speaking, March 1-4 has been designated as Global Ignite week, and nearly 50 Ignite events will be held around the world. This is your chance to see for yourself what the future of public speaking might be like. The events are inexpensive or free and anyone can apply to speak or start their own event in their home town. If you want to spend less of your working life bored, or boring others, you owe it to yourself to check Ignite. And of course, also check out Pecha Kucha for its calendar of events.
Scott Berkun is the best-selling author of the booksConfessions of a Public SpeakerandThe Myths of Innovation. He has also worked at Microsoft, taught creative thinking at the University of Washington and runs a popular blog at www.scottberkun.com.
The End Of Boring Presentations
Scott Berkun,
Keep your business presentations short. You'll get your point across more clearly.
Scott Berk:
Meetings, and the presentations that drive them, are boring, slow and rarely effective. Walk the halls of any Fortune 500 corporation right now and you'll find many rooms occupied by people with six-figure salaries, fighting to stay awake. Their supposedly precious time is wasted as they struggle to figure out, through jargon-filled phrases and long, bulleted lists, what on earth the person speaking is trying to say.
But now there's an escape from the oratorical hell of the business world. Presentation innovations are on the move and they're taking over the world. The core idea? Force people to use less time.
In 2000, software developer Mark Jason Dominus realized most speakers were far from concise. They go on too long and rarely make their points clearly no matter how much time they have. His solution? Instead of giving them 60, 30 or even 20 minutes, just give them five. The time limit was the only rule, and he called this format the lightening talk. Dominus explained that he "invented the format in a desperate attempt to help people get to the point or at least to shut up quickly." At four minutes he'd ring a small bell as a warning, and then at the five-minute mark he'd bang a large gong and kick them off the stage. This is a sentiment millions around the world wish they could share with the people they have to listen to every day.
In similar spirit, Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham from the architecture firm Klein-Dytham wanted to inspire creative people to express themselves clearly. They invented a new format for presentations called Pecha Kucha (pronounced pe-chak-cha), with the goal of making presentations fun and interesting, and increasing the number of speakers that can present in a few hours.
There are two simple rules that Klein and Dytham enforce: each speaker only gets 20 slides and each slide is displayed for 20 seconds. No more rambling. No more endless piles of bulleted lists or whizzy animations, since every second is precious.
Each presentation in Pecha Kucha is exactly six minutes and 40 seconds long, about as much as the average adult human being can stand being lectured to by your average presenter. Speakers can show pictures and images that support their points, or simply allow their slides to act as an attractive backdrop for the words the speaker improvises over them. The length makes it easy to practice and rehearse, a rarely followed piece of advice for good speech making even Aristotle and Dale Carnegie approved of.
These how-to presentation people are all alike, they must hang around management types too much. Yes, I know that I want my surgeon to hear a briefing on technique for my forthcoming operation which
But most professionals, when they learn of these short formats, think it's a joke. How can executives possibly prune down their 60 minutes of carefully constructed diagrams and stratagems, into 20 minutes, much less six? The answer is easy. The Gettysburg address can be read in two minutes. If you think clearly enough, you need less time. Speakers must make only their strongest points, and work hard to refine them down to their most concise and eloquent essence. It becomes impossible to waste hours making complex diagrams, and wander into empty rhetoric, since the talk isn't long enough to allow it.
Pecha Kucha forces speakers to refine, and refine, and refine again, using each slide for its maximum value. Just as poets may write haikus and rock bands pick the three- to four-minute sweet spot of time for music, speakers often find there is magic in increments of five to 10 minutes in time. Certainly not all presentations in the world should be limited to five minutes, but anyone who attempts it is certain to learn lessons on communication that will improve all of their interactions with others, regardless of how much time they have.
Brain science is also on the side of lightening-fast talks and Pecha Kucha. With fewer slides to work with, presenters are forced to think visually, using images to help convey points instead of bulleted lists. Our brains are designed to understand some concepts faster through pictures than text descriptions alone. According to John Medina's bestselling book "Brain Rules," eight to 12 minutes is a good rule of thumb for human attention. Anything that takes more time to consume runs the risk of leaving your audience comatose, and Pecha Kucha runs well underneath that mark.
In 2006 Brady Forest and Bre Petis from O'Reilly Media created an event called Ignite, an evening of short talks and socializing, which uses a simpler format of 20 slides, with 15 seconds per slide, for a total of five minutes. Much like Pecha Kucha, these events have had growing popularity around the world, especially among creatives, progressive managers and entrepreneurs.
To celebrate the success of this new wave of public speaking, March 1-4 has been designated as Global Ignite week, and nearly 50 Ignite events will be held around the world. This is your chance to see for yourself what the future of public speaking might be like. The events are inexpensive or free and anyone can apply to speak or start their own event in their home town. If you want to spend less of your working life bored, or boring others, you owe it to yourself to check Ignite. And of course, also check out Pecha Kucha for its calendar of events.
Scott Berkun is the best-selling author of the booksConfessions of a Public SpeakerandThe Myths of Innovation. He has also worked at Microsoft, taught creative thinking at the University of Washington and runs a popular blog at www.scottberkun.com.
Why google is quitting China??
Why Google Is Quitting China
Rebecca Fannin,
It's not censorship. The search giant just couldn't compete with Baidu.
It's easy to give up if you've already lost the battle. And Google is doing just that in China. Eric Schmidt's move to quit offering a censored Google.cn search engine to the Chinese market has been read by idealists as the right thing to do. But it is first a business decision.
Even though Google's ( GOOG - news - people ) market share climbed from 15% in mid-2006 to 31% today, the company had hoped for a bigger share by now. Kai-Fu Lee, Google China's former president, told me in 2006 that Google not only wanted to have a competitive product to Baidu's, the local search leader, but a superior product. This didn't happen: Baidu has only increased its market share, going from 47% in mid-2006 to 64% today. That's a big lead.
Baidu, started by China-born entrepreneur Robin Li in late 1999 just as Larry Page and Sergey Brin were cranking up Google in Silicon Valley, understands the local Chinese market better than Google's Mountain View team.
Google fumbled with an initially inferior Chinese search engine launched in 2000, while Baidu grabbed the lead in China--and kept it--with several innovative search features customized for local tastes. Baidu introduced community-oriented services that appealed to Chinese Internet users, including bulletin boards where leads on information could be exchanged--a service that Google China's former president Kai-Fu Lee dismissed as having nothing to do with search. Baidu also offered instant messaging, a hit with China's Netizens.
Plus, Baidu was first to the market with mobile search and information offered up in multimedia, including video clips. Baidu also set up a national network of advertising resellers in 200 Chinese cities to educate businesses about the power of online advertising--a step that Google did not take.
Baidu's search feature for music also proved highly popular. Google, realizing the potentially illegal nature of the free music downloads, opted to provide links to music stores instead. Baidu later began collaborating with music labels on authorized downloads.
Leadership lessons by Jack Welch
Managers muddle – leaders inspire. Leaders are people who inspire with clear vision of how things can be done better. "What we are looking for are leaders at every level who can energize, excite and inspire rather than enervate, depress, and control."
- Create a vision and then ignite your organization to make this vision a reality: Get people so passionate about what they are doing that they cannot wait to execute this plan. Have great energy, competitive spirit and the ability to spark excitement and achieve results. Search for leaders who have the same qualities.
- Focus on strategic issues: Your job is to understand the strategic issues within each of your businesses where they are going around the five questions. Know the talent they need to win in those markets and the amount of capital they need. And make bets.
- Don't micromanage: our job is to see the big picture. Don't manage every detail. Don't get caught up in the minutiae or obsess over every detail, but instead inspire others to execute of your vision. Surround yourself with great people and trust them to do their job and contribute their best to the organization.
- Involve everyone and welcome great ideas from everyone: Anyone can be a leader, just so long as they contribute, and the most meaningful way for anyone to contribute is to come up with a good idea. Business is all about getting the best ideas from everyone. New ideas are the lifeblood of the organization, the fuel that makes it run. "The hero is the person with a new idea." There is simply nothing more important to an organization than expressing ideas and creating a vision.
- Lead by example: To spark others to perform, you must lead by example. Jack Welch mastery of the 4 E's of leadership – Energy,Energize, Edge, and Execution – was always in evidence. "He had great energy, sparked others, had incredible competitive spirit, and had a record of execution that was second to none. This is a key of the Welch phenomenon. Had he been lacking in any of the traits he espoused, he would not have commanded such acclaim."
Jack Welch was the former Ceo of GE.This is just a part of the 25 lessons by Jack Welch in which he talks about leadership in detail, building a winning organization, harnessing your employees and building a market leader company.
7 part competitive strategy of Microsoft
"If you possess the market, you eventually possess the profits" -Bill Gates
- Concentrate your effort on a market with huge potential but few competitors
- Get in early and big
- Strive to become the industry leader
- Set the industry standard to become the industry leader:
a)Make your product the best
b)Make your product the most useful
c)Make your product the cheapest
5.Establish a proprietary position - own what you sell - and protect this position
6.Make your customers and strategic alliances offers they cannot refuse
7.Continually invest in innovation to improve your products and services.
Ten Tag Lines
Garnier : :Take Care"
LOreal : "Beacause u worth it."
Panasonic: "Sense and simplicity"
Ufone : "Its all about U"
Cisco : "The human network "
Goldleaf: "taste apart"
LG : "Life's good"
Nokia : "Connecting people"
Warid : "we care"
Mountain Dew : " Do the dew"
Why Would a Business Say No to Growth?
Why Would a Business Say No to Growth?
By YOU'RE THE BOSS EDITORS
Sally Ryan for The New York Times
No pizza for you! The owners of Great Lake have been criticized for their uncompromising approach.
Nick Lessins and Lydia Esparza are the married owners of a Chicago pizza shop, Great Lake, that has received rave reviews, and they made the unconventional business decision not to capitalize on them. In his interview with the owners, Kermit Pattison asked why they choose to have their customers wait for hours rather than hiring more employees and expanding (a decision that has helped spur comparisons to the “Soup Nazi” on “Seinfeld”):
Mr. Pattison: Many business owners would look at your sudden success with envy and say, “Seize the day, expand, add new locations, franchise.” Why not you?
Ms. Esparza: It would change our values. That is the American way — to expand without really thinking.
Mr. Lessins: We really enjoy the work that we’re doing and we don’t want to cheapen it. Consciously or unconsciously — probably both — we’re trying to create a manageable way to earn a living and still maintain our sanity. We value time as much, if not more so, than money.
Is there something wrong with that? If not, why don’t more people make the same choice?
Marketing plan of coca cola
Coca Cola carefully monitor both the internal & external aspects regarding its business as both the internal & external enviroment & their respective influences will be discive traits in relation to coke's success & survival in the soft drink industry.So monitoring internal & external enviroment of business is important to earn a profit.
Nonprofit Marketing
The marketing of a product or service in which the offer itself is not intended to make a monetary profit for the marketer. If the product or service does not making any monetary profit so why the marketer's marketing it? Hey guy's give ur views.
Planning company marketing program
I visited the site HowStuffWorks.com where i find the attractive lines which was that Planning your company's marketing program is a process much like the one you go through as a young person deciding what you want to do with your life. for more information visit the website.
how to make more money for yourself or your business
Few days ago i visit the site MBAbriefs.com where i find the intresting article written by David.The name of the article is THE BIGGEST MARKETING MISTAKE YOU CAN MAKE. In this article he says that whenever u r launching new product or services try to focus the current customers because acquiring new customers can cost five times more than the costs involved in satisfying and retaining current customers.For more detail visit the site mbabriefs.com
Internet made B2B, B2C and C2C
http://b2b.salesandmarketing.ws/2005/10/internet-made-b2b-b2c-and-c2c.html
This shows that these terms are made by internet B2B refers to Business-to-business, B2C is Business-to-consumer, and C2C represents Consumer-to-consumer. These terms have all been popularized by the World Wide Web. Any website or company that is marketing and advertising their products online to other consumers and businesses is said to be BtoB, BtoC, Or CtoC.
This shows that these terms are made by internet B2B refers to Business-to-business, B2C is Business-to-consumer, and C2C represents Consumer-to-consumer. These terms have all been popularized by the World Wide Web. Any website or company that is marketing and advertising their products online to other consumers and businesses is said to be BtoB, BtoC, Or CtoC.
What is a Customer?
- A Customer is the most important person ever in this office… in person or by mail.
- A customer is not dependent on us… we are dependent on him.
- A customer is not an interruption of our work… he is the purpose of it.We are not doing a favor by serving him… he is doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so.
- A Customer is not someone to argue or match wits with.Nobody ever won an argument with a Customer.
- A Customer is a person who brings us his wants. It is our job to handle them profitably to him and to ourselves.
- A customer is not dependent on us… we are dependent on him.
- A customer is not an interruption of our work… he is the purpose of it.We are not doing a favor by serving him… he is doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so.
- A Customer is not someone to argue or match wits with.Nobody ever won an argument with a Customer.
- A Customer is a person who brings us his wants. It is our job to handle them profitably to him and to ourselves.
Five ways to measure customer satisfaction
1. Ask them. Duh, you say. But I can’t remember the last time someone asked me seriously about how satisfied I was with their service or product. And I don’t mean the token “So how is/was everything?” you get from the cashier or assistant manager. When you’re checking out isn’t exactly the time to be divulging all the pros and cons of the establishment. Plus “everything” is a pretty broad term. Try something a little more specific, like “What do you think of our selection of ____?” or “Is there anything we can do to better serve you next time?”.
2. Create your own mystery shoppers. Why not catch somebody while they’re shopping, standing in line, waiting to be served, etc., and ask them specific questions with the promise of a coupon or a freebie when they’re done? If you get somebody before their consumer experience you’ll get a lot better feedback because they’ll be actively looking for an answer. Give them an assignment like “How long did it take you to find what you were looking for?” and ask them about their experience when they’re done.
3. Bribes are always good. Sure, some businesses ask me to call their 1-800 customer satisfaction hotlines for a chance to win $1,000 and a date with Salma Hayek, which is great and all but the fact is I never call. It’s partly due to apathy, laziness on my (and their) part, and partly because I don’t feel like I’ll get anything out of it. Sure, a date with Salma Hayek would be nice (OK, I made that part up) but it seems like the higher the number the less likely I am to win, and $1,000 seems to me to be on the high side.
4. Make it easy for customers to complain. Don’t think you’re getting a sense of customer satisfaction by reviewing customer complaints because most people don’t go to the trouble of formalizing a complaint. 95% of dissatisfied customers don’t complain, and many quit being customers. Make it as easy as possible to solicit feedback from customers by putting comment forms at every table in a restaurant (with something besides crayons to write with), keep comment forms near the rest rooms, put a 1-800 number, email address, or website for comments on every receipt, etc. The more quickly you can respond to their complaints the more likely you are to hang on to them as a customer. If you can’t resolve a problem on the spot ask for the customer’s contact info and offer to let them know when their problem is resolved.
5.Count repeat customers. It’s not too far of a stretch to say that a satisfied customer is more likely to be a repeat customer, so come up with a way to track repeat customers. This could be as simple as a punch card where the nth something is free to a full-fledged loyalty card that offers cash discounts and tracks customer purchases.
The main goal here is to keep your employees focused on the customer. If I wander into a shop with a 20-something employee who makes me feel like a nuisance for cutting in on his texting time I’m probably not going back anytime soon if I can help it. To train your employees on the importance of the customer you could do like L.L. Bean and prominently display this poster in your employee areas
Link:MBAbriefs.com
2. Create your own mystery shoppers. Why not catch somebody while they’re shopping, standing in line, waiting to be served, etc., and ask them specific questions with the promise of a coupon or a freebie when they’re done? If you get somebody before their consumer experience you’ll get a lot better feedback because they’ll be actively looking for an answer. Give them an assignment like “How long did it take you to find what you were looking for?” and ask them about their experience when they’re done.
3. Bribes are always good. Sure, some businesses ask me to call their 1-800 customer satisfaction hotlines for a chance to win $1,000 and a date with Salma Hayek, which is great and all but the fact is I never call. It’s partly due to apathy, laziness on my (and their) part, and partly because I don’t feel like I’ll get anything out of it. Sure, a date with Salma Hayek would be nice (OK, I made that part up) but it seems like the higher the number the less likely I am to win, and $1,000 seems to me to be on the high side.
4. Make it easy for customers to complain. Don’t think you’re getting a sense of customer satisfaction by reviewing customer complaints because most people don’t go to the trouble of formalizing a complaint. 95% of dissatisfied customers don’t complain, and many quit being customers. Make it as easy as possible to solicit feedback from customers by putting comment forms at every table in a restaurant (with something besides crayons to write with), keep comment forms near the rest rooms, put a 1-800 number, email address, or website for comments on every receipt, etc. The more quickly you can respond to their complaints the more likely you are to hang on to them as a customer. If you can’t resolve a problem on the spot ask for the customer’s contact info and offer to let them know when their problem is resolved.
5.Count repeat customers. It’s not too far of a stretch to say that a satisfied customer is more likely to be a repeat customer, so come up with a way to track repeat customers. This could be as simple as a punch card where the nth something is free to a full-fledged loyalty card that offers cash discounts and tracks customer purchases.
The main goal here is to keep your employees focused on the customer. If I wander into a shop with a 20-something employee who makes me feel like a nuisance for cutting in on his texting time I’m probably not going back anytime soon if I can help it. To train your employees on the importance of the customer you could do like L.L. Bean and prominently display this poster in your employee areas
Link:MBAbriefs.com
Retaining customers vs acquiring new customers
Most marketing theory and practice focuses on attracting new customers rather than on retaining existing ones, pre selling and selling rather than caring for the customer after the sale.
Don’t make this common mistake because acquiring new customers can cost five times more than the costs involved in satisfying and retaining current customers.
The key to customer retention is customer satisfaction because a highly satisfied customer:
- Stays loyal longer
- Buys more as you introduce new products and services
- Is more likely to tell their friends and family about your business
- Pays less attention to competing brands and advertising
- Is less price sensitive
- Offers product or service ideas to improve your business
- Costs less to serve than new customers.
Don’t make this common mistake because acquiring new customers can cost five times more than the costs involved in satisfying and retaining current customers.
The key to customer retention is customer satisfaction because a highly satisfied customer:
- Stays loyal longer
- Buys more as you introduce new products and services
- Is more likely to tell their friends and family about your business
- Pays less attention to competing brands and advertising
- Is less price sensitive
- Offers product or service ideas to improve your business
- Costs less to serve than new customers.
Viral marketing
Definition
Marketing phenomenon that facilitates and encourages people to pass along a marketing message.
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Viral marketing depends on a high pass-along rate from person to person. If a large percentage of recipients forward something to a large number of friends, the overall growth snowballs very quickly. If the pass-along numbers get too low, the overall growth quickly fizzles.
At the height of B2C it seemed as if every startup had a viral component to its strategy, or at least claimed to have one. However, relatively few marketing viruses achieve success on a scale similar to Hotmail, widely cited as the first example of viral marketing.
Direct Mail Marketing
The most frequently used medium for direct marketing is direct mail, an advertising disciplin in which marketing communications such as real estate post cards, sales brochures and business booklets and mortgage door hangers are sent right to customers using the postal service.
In developed countries like the US and UK, bulk rates allow marketers to send direct mail at lower rates than first-class mail, rendering direct mail a significant percentage of total postal volume.Direct mail enables the marketer to use various direct mail designs and direct mail pieces.g
Direct mail enables the marketer to use various direct mail designs and direct mail pieces. In fact, an entire stratum within the direct mail industry deals with direct mail materials such as brochure paper and post card templates for direct mail printing.
Objectives.
Marketing objectives and goals for direct mail advertising can be more customer-oriented, such as upgrading customer service, building top-shelf customer loyalty and fueling higher purchase from existing customers.
Other direct marketing plan objectives include delivering company news, bringing in foot traffic, responding to competitors and testing product or service appeal. Direct mail services may also attempt to build up brand awareness or bolster other marketing initiatives with a direct mail marketing campaign.
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