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Archive for the ‘Communication’ Category« Previous Entries Next Entries »The ABCs of market researchFriday, July 24th, 2009
The death of Michael Jackson last month came as a shock to most people. What shocked me more, however, was the flippant claim that came after his death, that the whole thing was a publicity stunt. It is undeniable that his record sales have gone up considerably since his death, but I can’t help think how disturbing and disgraceful it would be to fake your own death in order to sell your name and product. Another story suggesting a publicity stunt has also caught my attention in the past week, which seems to be a more plausible claim. Jamie Neale, the backpacker who went missing in the Australian bush, was found alive after 12 days lost in the Blue Mountains. A miracle? No, say the press and the public – it is a blatant hoax to gain publicity and money. Indeed, it has been predicted that Jamie Neale could sell his story for up to £500,000. We may never know if this story is a hoax or not, but these suspicions emerging in the press certainly got me thinking about the need and desire for publicity, and how far people will actually go to gain press coverage and money. It is not just individuals that will push the boundaries to gain publicity and sales; many companies do it too. There are hundreds of examples of bad marketing with mistakes ranging from ignoring your target audience, to misleading the public, to outright lying. An amusing example that I came across recently comes from a leading energy provider who promised a price guarantee to fix prices until 2011…on the same day as it announced a 35% increase in price! What is it that forces people and companies to submit to such shameful and open displays of dishonesty and deception? Is it really worth risking a brand’s reputation just to sell a few more products? If we think about the long term, it is certainly not worthwhile damaging reputation or excluding potential customers from your brand. It does, however, make sense that if a company is not doing well, it will do everything it can to obtain sales. This is where market research can make all the difference. If market research is carried out sufficiently, it will provide a company with the means to avoid such blatant and shameless subjections to bad marketing and publicity. Market research can show a company exactly who its target audience is and how best to appeal to them without having to risk its dignity or reputation. So, if you have a worthy and quality product that is not selling to its full potential, don’t give in to shocking marketing campaigns and dishonorable publicity stunts to boost sales instantly. Just take some time to do your market research and ultimately your brand will reap the benefits – it’s easy as 123. Standing Out From The PackFriday, March 27th, 2009
What do a cassette tape, a boomerang, and a 1980′s electro-pop song have in common? In Matt Powell’s latest Thursday Night Insight entry this week, he looks at the impact of ‘thinking outside the box’ and standing apart from the competition, and the lasting impression that it can make. Over the past couple of weeks I’ve come into contact with a few advertising campaigns that have, in one way or another, caused me to devote at least some part of my day to thinking about them. By that, I mean more time than just taking a glance at a glossy piece of direct mail that goes straight into the recycle bin after couple of seconds. These pieces of marketing have really engaged me – either through getting me to think, causing me a great deal of intrigue, or just appealing to my inner child. The first was a cassette tape that arrived in the post in a brown padded envelope, in a Mission Impossible-esque manner. On the cassette was a label with a personalised web address for me to visit. I was not the only one of my in the office to receive one of these tapes, so there was some discussion as to what they were for. A quick visit to the website, showed that it was a campaign from E-Rewards that centred around constant evolution – the cassette tape being one of the evolutionary step in the personal music player. The campaign certainly stood out from everything else that landed on my desk that day, it created discussion around the office, caused me to visit the website, and now the cassette is adorning my desk-top. Certainly more interaction and longevity than standard direct mail would have been afforded. My second encounter with out-of-the ordinary marketing was on a lunch break whilst in the local supermarket/convenience store. Whilst I was perusing the assortment of soups on offer, I – and my fellow shoppers – were treated to short minute-long blasts of a very familiar 80′s electro pop song. I first dismissed it as the slipping standards of the store, probably allowing staff to play their own music through the store music system. Still, the familiar music was annoying me – I couldn’t remember where I knew it from. After a few more minute-long blasts it dawned on me why the dated music was so familiar – it was the music that backs Dairy Milk’s latest advertising campaign (with the boy and girl and the dancing eyebrows). Once I realised that, it evoked the amusing images from the TV advert – by coincidence I was stood at the counter waiting to pay – with an assortment of Dairy Milk products on display in front of me. Very clever. Plus, I was feeling slightly jubilant that I had remembered where I knew the music from – something that would have irritated me throughout the day if I hadn’t have figured it out. Again, slightly different approach to getting the message across, but a memorable impact. The third piece of marketing that I found particularly engaging is in fact B2B’s latest mailer – not that I’m blowing our own trumpet – it could be a mailer from any company and I would still be writing about it. It is, as the first sentence of this article has probably given away, a boomerang. The boomerang is a play on the theme of ‘getting a return on your investment’. The boomerang has instructions of how to use it on its reverse. This piece of marketing is now sat on my desk awaiting the day when I can finally find somewhere large enough, and unpopulated enough to throw it without posing a threat to the public. Indeed, over the past week, whenever I have come off the phone, I usually find that the boomerang has moved from my desk into my hand. Of course, there are many, many more examples that could be added to the three I have outlined above, but the message is the same. In order to stand out from the crowd and make a lasting impression, we need to somehow differentiate our offering. This applies not just to direct mail and advertising, but to business as well – and is even more important in times such as these. There is no harm in sitting with the pack – but thinking outside the box or offering something different to the competition, can really make the difference in setting a product or company aside from the rest, and create lasting success. For more information on how to differentiate your offering, why not cast your eyes over the following white paper: Differentiation: Are Product, Brand and Service Still Enough? Darwin And The RecessionFriday, March 13th, 2009
In today’s Thursday Night Insight, Paul Hague puts forward his argument that the recession could be responsible for bringing about a return to ‘traditional values’ Have you noticed an increasing sloppiness in our business attire over the last decade? I am thinking here of the way we dress, the way we speak and the way we communicate. Of course, our forefathers would say that there is nothing new in this. Every generation claims that standards are slipping compared with the previous ones. I’m not sure I fully subscribe to this. Just because somebody wears a Trilby hat rather than an ostrich plumed cavalier hat, doesn’t mean that we are moving backwards. I am thinking about the way we dress for work. The initial concession of “dress down Friday” gave way to the abandonment of the tie on every day of the week. ”Smart casual” became “straight out of the garden casual”. A similar and parallel trend has taken place in our writing. We dash off e-mails without taking care of either the grammar or spelling. Blackberries encourage a curtness of communication verging on sheer rudeness. Text messages have created an interesting but new language which, for some of us, takes longer to decipher and create than the good old English we grew up with. However, the worm looks as if it might be turning and I think that it is the recession we have to thank. Have you noticed that the tie and suit is making a return? Do you get more e-mails which begin “Dear” rather than “Hi”? Are the comma, colon and semi-colon getting a new lease of life? And, if this is so, why should it be? The only explanation I have is that the boom times of the last 10 years created a cockiness which justified the more relaxed way of working. Claims that informal business practices were breaking down barriers, increasing creativity, and improving efficiency were hard to deny as the profits rolled in. In the yin and yang of life – that delicate balance between good and bad, sloppiness and perfection – we can all be guilty of sliding down the route of least resistance. Dress codes, forms of address, written notes have all suffered. And now as the economy tightens, we suddenly feel we can’t leave anything to chance. When visiting a potential client, some small gremlin at the back of my mind advises me to wear a crisp white shirt, pick out a red tie and don my navy blue suit because I have known for years that it engenders confidence in both the wearer and the observer. My notes to clients have increased in their frequency and I try to improve on my accuracy. Perhaps we will see this trend gather momentum so that it isn’t just the things I have been talking about that will change. I predict there will be less automated phone answering systems and more real people to talk to. Perhaps there will be genuine improvements made to services as people fight for every inch of business by trying harder. I am not enjoying this recession at all but I can see it is whipping me into shape. It must be doing the same to others. Darwin would have had great fun if he was alive today watching his principles work out in business. 2009 Key Challenges part 2 of 2Thursday, February 26th, 2009
We conclude yesterday’s article on the two key challenges facing marketers in 2009 by discussing some short-term marketing solutions which will address current needs yet still contribute to long-term brand equity. In the current climate it is understandable that marketers are scrabbling for short-term solutions to compensate for wider financial constraints, but aggressive pricing and slashed marketing budgets may not be the long-term answer. Cutting prices, for example, may make your offering more affordable and available to the masses, but will it necessarily mean greater profits? Even if you are still covering your costs, are you ultimately damaging your brand image? Are you becoming known as a ‘cheap’ provider in more ways than one – that is to say will your hard earned brand reputation become tarnished as you become known for being a cut-price provider? Worse than that is the scenario where people become so confused by conflicting messages that they don’t really understand what kind of provider you are at all, and so steer clear altogether. Some degree of discounting may be inevitable in the current climate – especially if that’s what all your competitors are doing. But cost-cutting should certainly not be done in isolation, or without due consideration. Other tactics to consider may include measures to encourage customer loyalty, improve customer service, or add value to your brand in some other way. For example, a slightly revised product addition to your portfolio may meet the needs of those looking for a cheaper solution from you. Alternatively, you may wish to target new markets not all will be affected by the recession to the same degree. Equally, you might wish to concentrate more on relationship marketing in an effort to retain existing customers by increasing their satisfaction and their loyalty. All of these actions have the potential to continue to be profitable for you long after the economy turns around and, importantly, they can all add value in a way that remains consistent with your brand. In summary, do not compromise your brand position and brand values. Make sure your marketing goals are clear and that every action is taken with your overall brand strategy in mind. Realize The Full Potential Of Your CustomersThursday, January 22nd, 2009  Yesterday’s blog entry entitled Getting More From Your Existing Customers is clearly a hot topic at present. What’s more, less than half (46.5%) of the 650 marketing professionals who took part in the online and in-person survey feel they have good insights into retention rates, customer profitability and lifetime value. However, among those strategies cited for extracting greater revenue/profitability from existing customers are:
• making communications more personal, relevant, targeted and timely A much broader set of strategies are employed for acquiring new business, including:
• testing and launching new products aimed at specific market segments And, according to nearly 60% of survey respondents, introducing better segmentation, profiling and targeting strategies is the principal way in which they are aiming to better engage core audiences. « Previous Entries Next Entries » |
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