My muse

"I don't procrastinate, I just don't like to do things."

This is funny!!

Homophily

"The principle that organizations seek out partners that are similar along various dimensions because shared traits make it easier to trust and understand one another."

Now thats a strange sounding word?

I was reading an article in Columbia Ideas@Work this evening and came across an interesting piece of research - When familiarity breeds connections. The perspectives in the article sound way too familiar to many of us from academy companies, the likes of Procter & Gamble, General Electric, IBM, etc. (remember Jim Collins'; Built to Last).

I think the popular translation of 'Homophily' is 'Cultural fit'.

"Imaginational Era"

Another article this morning that caught my attention - From Survival of the Fastest to the Thriving of the Fastest in Mediapost.

I liked parts of the article, some of it made a lot of sense!

Three key themes will define the coming Imaginational Era: Fantasy as Fuel, The Genetics of Aesthetics, and Expansion and Discovery.

Consumer Cohesion

Interesting perspective on communities of brand zealots on Brand Channel.

Consumer Cohesion: A Brand Blueprint

In order to facilitate a less protracted relationship between the brand and the customer, so as to limit or ideally eliminate the negative sentiment entirely, we have the following roadmap.

I)Pre-empt the inevitable formation of some kind of communities and the opinions that invariably go with it It is very common for consumers to compare their experiences for every product from masalas to their Bose sound systems, and in doing so, to feel a sense of community. While it is a basic need to share and relate, what also contributes to this behaviour is the emotional need of wanting to express themselves through these affiliations.

This need to affiliate is what drives users to join 198 online ‘communities’ while writing little to nothing on their actual profiles on social network websites such as Orkut. The mode of expression has shifted from the self-proclaiming words, to the more nonchalant depiction of one’s interests and inclinations through these communities.

We feel that a brand should pre-empt the formation of these de-facto communities by inviting consumers to relate, share & interact on the brand’s very own ‘premises’. The brand should make the first move in inviting its users to a forum where they can have this kind of interaction. This enables the brand to bring the consumers closer to its fold and maybe even engage with it actively.

II)Product and service improvement through customer feedback Engaging with your customer at any forum and / or observing interaction among various users of your brand can yield powerful and compelling insights relating to product or service quality. In essence, it acts like an inadvertent focus group discussion of sorts, which is the best kind as it is much likelier to yield truthful and relevant insights as opposed to those derived from discussions conducted in the presence of market researchers. III) Pre-empt positive word of mouth Once a marketer has preempted the community formation and invited the audience/consumers to congregate on its own brand’s territory, this experience has to be based on the core consumer insight that the brand operates on. The result of this exercise is that instead of leaving it purely to the markets for the customer to use and then appreciate your product, the marketer preempts this experience and enhances it by adding a pleasant and strong sensory memory to the customer’s overall experience with the product.

IV)Pre-empt negative word-of-mouthNow we come to a point where we are gearing the brand for crisis, if one were to ever arise. The best case scenario in the face of a crisis, after the brand owner has gone through the steps of Consumer Cohesion mentioned above, is that the brand faces widespread negative sentiment among the general public for some error, but the ‘community’ of consumers it has helped foster and which now thrives independently as an active social group, is still on its side. This community still believes in the brand. What emerges is an organized, coherent, single-voiced shout in support of the brand in opposition to the negative, fragmented cacophony that is bashing it.

The worst case scenario will be that this ‘community’ too loses confidence in the brand and joins the denigrating crowds opposing the brand. However, because this ‘community’, though seeded by the brand itself, has now evolved into a spontaneous, self-sustaining social group, they are still likely to speak in a single voice and single line of reason, albeit against the brand.

This gives the brand owner the latitude of addressing rebuttals, explanations and/or counter-arguments simply on the basis of the stance this community takes, as they are highly likely to be the single loudest voice in the debate on the brand’s opposing side (i.e. if the brand owners do their groundwork right). This scenario, needless to say, is infinitely less painful than having to rebut and defend against fragmented and incoherent mob negativity. Clearly, the clincher in any such case will lie with the brand’s corporate communication, advertising and public relations team to get the message across in a strategic, secure and convincing manner.

Essentially, what happens is, because of Consumer Cohesion, even in times of crisis when the brand’s own community has turned against itself, at least the opponent is a large, discernible target with cogent accusations. This enables the brand to prepare an equally crisp and relevant defense, rather than just having to shield itself from brickbats from an unreasoning public anger.

The conclusion certainly is on the money.

Expensive brands need to be insured against market and public opinion vagaries if they are to stay in business past the inevitable crises they are bound to face sometime in their lifecycles. Consumer Cohesion is an approach to doing just that and ensuring that the brand’s groundwork and defense are in prime shape to face marketing warfare.

Storytelling & Branding

I just came across an article by John Quelch in Marketing KnowHow from this mornings HBS newsletter. The points John makes are just as relevant to B2C marketing as they are to B2B.

An HBS research team recently conducted a study of top B2B global brands. They shared the following six characteristics:

1. The CEO is a willing brand cheerleader, loves the brand heritage and is a great storyteller. The CMO sees his or her purpose as helping the CEO achieve this role.

2. The CEO understands that building brand reputation reduces commercial risk, insulates the company in a crisis and provides the common purpose that can bond all the company’s stakeholders.

3. Efforts are focused on a single, global corporate brand rather than individual product brands.

4. The payback on marketing expenditures is measured rigorously to the satisfaction of the hard-nosed engineers and finance staff who run the typical B2B enterprise.

5. Coordination of company websites worldwide to present a consistent face to stakeholders is the best way to get control of marketing communications that may have become too decentralized.

May be the CEO involvement is relatively small but by no means any less significant than for a B2B brand.

Believe it, the Wal-Mart savings could be TRUE!!

Last year when I read The Wal-Mart Effect I was very impressed at the scale of transformation a single corporation can have on a generation. I took the time to follow-up on some of the research mentioned in the book. I visited Dr. Emek Basker's website at the University of Missouri to read her analysis and ensuing publication on, The Causes and Consequences of Wal-Mart's Growth, (Journal of Economic Perspectives 21:3 (Summer 2007) 177-198). This morning when I read the article "What Wal-Mart Savings Claim Doesn't Tell You" in Ad Age I had no reservations believing Wal-Mart.

I say cheers to Wal-Mart economics!

I strongly believe most products at Wal-Mart are Okay, Available and Cheap but the innovation it forces and the price pressure it creates on its suppliers establish a certain Wal-Martian socialism.

I am no fan of any socialistic system but it has worked. From making products available to Americans at an affordable price, to creating a consumer culture globally to developing unsustainable practices of consumer use and throw of products and even the Salmon farming example from Southern Chile; Wal-Mart has made a profound impact. One that is well beyond the $2500 savings the retail store claims to generate for every American household whether they shop at Wal-Mart or not!

BCG - Leadership Perspectives

I was browsing the web when I came across a mention of George Stalk of BCG. His retirement speech was published in a the 'BCG Perspectives' in April 2007.

Here some nuggets of wisdom -

• All investments must be Fast, Focused & Fundamental
• Say Yes or No, but never say Maybe
• Keep your people - Employees, Customers, Suppliers & Financiers - informed
• Leaders don't get more than one chance.

C&D - P&G's Innovation model revisited

From Harvard Business Online: Connect & Develop - Procter & Gamble's Innovation Model.

The Idea in Practice:

Know Where to Look

Before scouring the world for ideas you might develop into profitable products, clarify what you’re looking for:

• Identify consumer needs. Ask business unit leaders which consumer needs, when satisfied, will drive their brands’ growth. Translate needs into briefs describing problems to solve. Consider where you might seek solutions.

Example: P&G unit managers identified a need for laundry detergent that cleans effectively in cold water. They decided to search for relevant innovations in chemistry and biotechnology solutions that enable products to work well at low temperatures. Possibilities included labs studying enzymatic reactions in microbes that thrive under polar caps.

• Identify adjacencies. Ask which new product categories, related to your current categories, can enhance your existing brand equity. Then seek innovative ideas in those categories.

Example: P&G expanded its Crest brand beyond toothpaste to include whitening strips, power toothbrushes, and flosses.

Leverage Your Networks

Cultivate both proprietary and open networks whose members may have promising ideas.

Example: P&G’s proprietary networks include its top 15 suppliers, who collectively have 50,000 R&D staff. It created a secure IT platform to share problem briefs with these suppliers—who can’t see others’ responses to briefs. One chemical supplier, for example, may have ideas for making detergent perfume last longer after clothes finish drying.

P&G’s open networks include NineSigma, a company that connects interested corporations with universities, government and private labs, and consultants that can develop solutions to science and technology problems. NineSigma creates briefs describing contracting companies’ problems and sends them to thousands of possible solution providers worldwide.

Distribute and Screen Ideas

You’ve identified ideas for refining and further commercializing existing products or for employing technology solutions to create new products. Now distribute these ideas internally—ensuring that managers screen them for potential.

Example: At P&G, product ideas are logged on P&G’s online “eureka catalog,” through a template documenting pertinent facts—such as current sales of existing products or patent availability for a new technology. The document goes to P&G general managers, brand managers, and R&D teams worldwide. Product ideas are also promoted to relevant business line managers, who gauge their business potential and identify possible obstacles to development.

Promote Openness to External Ideas

Encourage use of outside ideas. For example, P&G rewards employees for speed of product development. Incentives thus favor innovation developed from outside ideas, since these often move more quickly from concept to marketplace.

"The phrase 'time is money' is an insult to time." - Unknown Citibank Advertising Agency

This is interesting, its proactive and fundamental! I bet the individual who coined the phrase "Time is money" was either an investor, accountant, a strategist? I can't blame the originator only because the only method we ever learn when comparing multiple things together is to assign monetary value to the comparative elements.

Talent Management is a Competitive Advantage

I am a strong believe in a robust talent management process. I will lay my hands on any article/s or books that discuss cases and strategies on the subject. I have liked several of them over the years and have applied and prospered from their knowledge in many of my endeavors. Recently I I came across one such article on FastCompany - Retaining Younger Workers in the Workplace.

The article provided a perspective on myths most organizations harbor about younger employees. Not too long ago there was a book in the same subject area by the name Generations at Work by Ron Zemke.

Over the years I realized there was something common and distinctly missing from most literature on the subject. They all talk about some of the same challenges, the same set of solutions, they all have frameworks and models, that are presented as a company wide program.

My take is we need a Meta Framework not a framework itself! A second order solution, one that fits above an existing model (clearly some of the models are good, but not executed aptly in my view):

1. One size does not fit all!
2. Constant evolution
3. Feedback & Feedforward.
   

Talent Management programs need to be unique - One size does not fit all!
In addition to the generational differences we have significant regional and cultural differences. Just within the US, people in the North East are significantly different in thought and philosophies about work, life than the Mid Westerners and the West Coasters. The values placed in organization, rewards, speed of action and culture are eons apart even between these large unstructured segments. Yet companies take the principles from a HBS program or a McKinsey Quarterly article or a think tank or a best seller book and apply in broad brush strokes independent of the company, its location, its peoples background and history. We need to invest and INVEST HEAVILY to understand the culture first!

Talent Management programs are slow to adapt - Accelerate evolution
In the internet and mobile age, information spreads at a staggering pace. That applies to Talent management models that work and ones that fail. The unfortunate part is we don't experiment enough both in quality and quantity by reinvesting in the feedback we receive. Archaic models stick around for long periods in time because people don't measure the results of the stimulus or have deliberately chosen to ignore the signals. In addition organizational alignment, structures, processes and rewards are usually among the last areas for market research and testing.

Talent Management programs are not collaborative - They are all prescriptive
The most critical flaw I have noticed the cases, perspectives and implementation of research is still the nature and intent of program execution. Most programs tend to be prescriptive, requiring the talent pool to be boxed in one reward and recognition system or the other. None are setup for a active feedback and feedforward processes. This is not a direct evolution argument as much as it is knowing what matters to the talented individual who is being incented into delivering consistent top performance while contributing to the companies strategic long term objectives and goals.

Capabilities

Yesterday I came across a interesting article in the Science Journal Section of WSJ - Scientists Using Maps Of Genes for Therapies Are Wary of Profiling. James Watson the Nobel Laureate for his work with Francis Crick on the Double Helix was deprecated for his position on eugenics. There have been a lot of new discoveries and updates in gene mapping that are raising eyebrows. The article blatantly acknowledged the lack of maturity of our species in expressing ourselves in words.

I started writing this essay because the WSJ reminded me of a recent experience. I had embarked on a knowledge management effort... I did the classic - talked about the opportunity to the stakeholders, the intangible side of KM, the process and the rewards. At the end of it I initiated a number of tasks to capture the tacit knowledge and codify it into documents, images, sounds but I quickly realized I could never capture the mind of the individual. There is clearly a LOT MORE to the human mind than just the data and information store. It is the process of transforming that information into knowledge, the multiple dimensions across which the mind is capable of thinking, the associations the mind makes, evaluates and processes the associations into thoughts, ideas until it delivers it into words. Not to get into the neurology of data and knowledge transformation but I was convinced that 'capabilities building' is a motivation more than the physical act of capturing and systematizing it.

I guess capturing knowledge is a cultural process. One that includes the steps in understanding how everyone else may be thinking and then knowing what they know and how they use it. The last step is the system!

“Damn Right” this is Serious!

Talk about REAL, BOLD and somewhat BRAZEN but truly AUTHENTIC. This morning in the MediaPost was an article on Canadian Club Whisky’s new Campaign – Damn Right!

"Damn Right Your Dad Drank It."
"Your Mom Wasn't Your Dad's First,"
"Your Dad Was Not a Metrosexual"
"Your Dad Never Got a Pedicure."

Provocative and pugnacious! Cheers to Jim Beam and BBDO.

Martin Lindstrom I disagree!

Ad Age - The Curious Misnomer of 'Global' Brands - Yesterday I came across an article in MediaPost that linked to a post by Martin Lindstrom of AdAge. The article was an absolute antithesis to the concept of a BRAND. It gave me another reason to question the "PROMISE" of Publications like AdAge?

The basis of Mr. Lindstrom's article was localization of brands and the absence of a true global brands, given their adaptation to local cultures. I wish to ask Mr. Lindstrom what he considers a "BRAND"?

To me and in my understanding most marketers believe a the simplest level a "BRAND" is not much more than a "TRUST (brand promise)" and a "VISUAL (Logo)". As long as the local execution of a brand preserves the promise and the logo it is in keeping with the equity the brand represents! So who cares if Coca Cola has more than 30 different regional flavors for coke? Who cares if Mamma Mia has unique regional gestures as part of their performance & ensemble varies? They still stand for the same exact thing, their promise! Airlines are a fabulous example of global brands they go to the extent of preserving even the cabin aroma independent of the origin and destination of the flight (Mr. Lindstrom's article on Singapore arilines).

May be Ad Age needs to get back to basics to reevaluate what they mean by a brand and more so what they promise?

Does 'Social Bookmarks' have anything to do with trust?

Not to philosophize or anything but I was wondering what is trust? I was on a website that had the classic social bookmarking links the usual suspects - MSN, Yahoo, Digg, Technorati, Del.icio.us, etc. as I scanned through the images my mind wandered to the idea of why should anyone want to check the links I have bookmarked? Other than myself or the government as part of some unknown NSA tracking scheme? The simplest answer I could come up with was "Birds of a feather, flock together". Someone who enjoys reading my essays may share the same passion and fascination for information and as such my bookmarks could offer him or her that elusive link to a site that will open a treasure of knowledge?

It took me 125 words, 575 characters to describe a simple concept in "trust" or structure in chaos. What is the market for this trust, especially since most social bookmarking is not monetized? How does one assess convergence in trust? Shouldn't trust take investment to build? Who is measuring and tracking this investment? Is this what the community refers to as "Engagement"?

I guess I am in doubt? So is social bookmarking?

Creativity & Change Management

For many years as I trudged through my corporate career I thought what differentiated me was my creativity. My ability to think different in working around the issues that lead to the doors of corporate glory. I equated my creativity to my entrepreneurship, my ability to make things work for me but often ended up taking a few steps ahead and multiple steps behind. My solutions were often too complicated for my managers, colleagues and my reports to understand, not to toot my own horn but I thought of it as my genius that left most people baffled (not scared, just baffled).

After many rounds of trying, learning and trying again I realized a very fundamental precept (Many thanks to my mentors for accelerating this learning); In a corporate role it is ones ability to make change, manage change, communicate change, enroll sponsors, engage managers and deploy change that is measured and rewarded. On the other end as the system recognizes your ability to align and drive the change it is creativity that starts to take center stage. Leading right back into making the new and different entrepreneurial solution to be accepted, adopted and deployed.

It is interesting to hear the same stories from my protege. He thinks he is creative and notices obvious opportunities that others miss and yet his suggestions are bounced off deaf ears. Are organizations just not smart enough or are they lacking leaders that have the heart to drive change?

Adtunes.com

Adtunes.com - I came across the site through a post on ANA - Mestros. I remember those days when our consumer affairs department received calls to help identify the consumer the music in one of the copy streams?

The site is amazing and so was the post. I wonder if there is a way to measure ROI off the queries on the site and also an association with share of mind and recall/decay of the creative?

Surreal or Serious?

I had a great day at the museum the other day, saw artwork by my favorite artist Salvador Dali. That evening when I retired to my study to ruminate over the day I had a strange thought, like always Dali had left me thinking about the artwork and what may have been running through his mind when he painted his masterpieces. The idea of penetrating into his mind was both trying and puzzling, some of his early surrealistic work is somewhat scary.

I can't believe how many times I felt like that when I see products on shelves across the country and around the world. We create products and then find a market for them. Somewhat like the patrons experience standing in front of a surreal artwork in the museum. It is one thing to be the first to market, communicate a value proposition and initiate a dialog BUT it is a whole different thing to have target consumer segment, identify her needs and develops products and solutions she will embrace. Fortunately there is more science than art to modern marketing. It is a repeatable process unlike art where each piece of art is a new start.

Interestingly a scientific process has posterity to it where as art could be a serious gamble. One could end up at the Museum or on the aisle to be painted over?

"QUALITY"

I believed with a movement over 40 years in the making would have congruence and convergence in its meaning and interpretation? As I started ruminated over an experience, I wanted to know if etymology of the word ‘Quality’ and whether it reflected a penchant towards the producer or the consumer. I was pleasantly surprised, when I visited Wikipedia for the etymology - From Middle English, from Old French qualite, from Latin qualitatem, accuative of qualitas, from qualis (of what kind), from Proto-Indo-European pronomial base *kwo- ("who", "how"). It is believed that Cicero coined qualitas as a calque to translate the Greek word ποιότης ("quality"), from ποῖος ("of what nature", "of what kind").

“Who”, “how” – Yoo Hoo! I thought to myself… the proclivity is definitely towards the consumer, the user, the “Who”, and “How” she or he chooses to use, apply or merely CONSUME the product. I have been a long time believer in the fact that quality is what ‘the consumer’, ‘the customer’ makes or perceives of the product or services (I do remember some text book definition from my engineering days). As for me ‘the producer’ or ‘the purveyor’ may believe or think highly of the goods and services BUT if my consumer does not place the same or enough value in their quality of the merchandise means nothing… nada!

While I felt good I did feel a little uncomfortable about ‘the’ experience. I recently spent time with an executive who believed that ‘quality’ is their diligence and effort invested in the products and services they offer and as long as the performance indicators identified upfront were met and or exceeded the “promise” had been kept? I must say I beg to differ! All I had to say was lets stop focusing on QUALITY and start focusing on the CUSTOMER, the CONSUMER let her define the standards, let her define the baseline and quality will happen! Quality is truly the price of entry not a value-add unless we operate in a monopoly.

OpenAds...

When I read the article on Advertising Age this morning I was impressed but quickly that feeling turned inside out... is OpenAds another form of UGC for agencies? Are the professionals just up to some fun or is it for real? With big names like Gillette and P&G, there must be some meat on the bone. Clearly the cases and the article in Financial Times made it that much more credible. Yet, I remain a skeptic? There is something about the concept that seems too good to be true? For starters:

• Longitude & relationship with the agency
  
• Ownership & Commitment from the agency
• Security (the risk of share, learn & reapply)
  

The one thing that I agree is an open system is always richer than a closed one! On that note I was reminded of a poster (sponsored by Ameriquest) I saw by the Chelsea Pier in New York city last year - "Imagination Begins with Inspiration"

Building Winning Brands

Branding Strategy Insider: Building Winning Brands

1. Brands are personifications of organizations, products, services and experiences and they are the source of relationships.
2. Top management support is crucial to a brand’s success.
3. A brand’s identity must be frequently and consistently presented.
4. Profound customer knowledge is essential to building winning brands.
5. The brand and its products and services must exceed customer expectations.
6. Brand building begins with awareness.
7. Relevant differentiation drives customer brand insistence.
8. A brand should strive to evoke emotions and create sensory experiences.
9. A brand should exhibit admirable human qualities.
10. A brand must stand for something.
11. Constant product and service innovation build strong brands.
12. A brand should strive to create a sense of community.
13. The corporate culture must reinforce the brand essence, promise and personality.
14. Internal brand building is essential to external brand building.
15. Front line employees are key to a brand’s success.
16. Co-creating a brand with its customers will help the brand continue to thrive.

From the Blake Project.

EVOLUTION: production to consumption to innovation economy

A while ago I started writing this essay but never completed it, not sure why? The other day as I started backing up my drive and noticed the file AND as soon as I opened it I had a spark and decided to complete and post it.

It is rare to visit a bookstore (brick mortar or online) and not find a book on the consumer opportunity in BRIC countries. The PPP of the market and its potential, is a brown/green pasture for most marketers. I like to think of it as the threshold in transforming from a ‘production economy’ into a ‘consumption economy’.

As marketers it is our imperative to identify her unmet needs, know her as a consumer, understand her as a shopper and engage with her. Create cultural meaning for her unmet need and present her solutions to create those WOW experiences. Communication through the glitz and glamour of advertising and at other times through maven like brand ambassadors.

But this is a SHIFT. A shift in culture from deliberate spending avoidance, saving, picking up products that were okay and cheap to impulse buying, brands as extensions of our personal image and personal gratification from worldly products. It is up to the marketing community to create convincing value proposition to enable this transformation.

This is only the start of the ‘innovation economy’!

The top ten collection...

I came across the top ten list of Viral Campaigns as posted by the Time (UK).

The top ten viral ad campaigns

Adverts so good people choose to watch them? Send them to their friends, even? Times Online reports on what makes viral ads infectious

Marketing Myopia

I just read an article on Green Marketing Myopia, reminded me of an old article that was also referenced in the article - Marketing Myopia by Theodore Levitt (Harvard Business Review, Sep/Oct75, Vol. 53 Issue 5, p26-183, 16p; (AN 3867290))

The classics of innovation discussed by Ted Levitt are timeless. The article elaborates the strategies marketers have applied to avoid marketing myopia - "The Three Cs" -

• Consumer value positioning

• Calibration of consumer knowledge

• Credibility of product claims.

The following nuggets are from the article.

Consumer Value Positioning

• Design environmental products to perform as well as (or better than) alternatives.
• Promote and deliver the consumer-desired value of environmental products and target relevant consumer market segments (e.g., target money savings benefits to cost-conscious consumers).
• Broaden mainstream appeal by bundling (or adding) consumer-desired value into environmental products (such as fixed pricing for subscribers of renewable energy).

Calibrate Consumer Knowledge

• Educate consumers with marketing messages that connect environmental product attributes with desired consumer value (for example, "pesticide-free produce is healthier"; energy-efficiency saves money" or "solar-power is convenient".)
• Frame environmental product attributes as "solutions" for consumer needs, for example, "rechargeable batteries offer longer performance." With indoor air quality a growing concern and fumes from paints, carpets, and furniture now linked to headaches, eye, nose, and throat irritation, dizziness, and fatigue, Sherwin Williams offers "Harmony," a line of interior paints that is low-odor, zero-VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) and silica-free.
• Create engaging and educational Internet sites about environmental products' desired value, e.g., Tide Coldwater's interactive website allows visitors to calculate their likely annual money savings based on their laundry habits, utility source (gas or electricity) and zip code location.

Credibility of Product Claims

• Make sure that environmental product and consumer claims are specific, meaningful, and qualified. Liken to comparable alternatives or likely usage scenarios. Recognizing the ambiguity of the term green, Toyota dismissed a slogan for Prius, "Drive Green, breathe Blue" in favor of "Less gas in. Less gasses out."
• Underscore credibility with product endorsements or eco-certifications from trustworthy third parties, and educate consumers about the meaning behind those endorsements and eco-certifications. More than 40 product categories now bear the Energy Star seal.
• Encourage positive word of mouth via consumers' social and Internet communication networks with compelling, interesting, and/or entertaining information about environmental products. Increasingly, consumers have grown skeptical of commercial messages, and they're turning to friends and peers for advice. The Internet, through e-mail and its vast, accessible repository of information, websites, search engines, blogs, product ratings sites, podcasts, and other digital platforms, has opened significant opportunities for tapping consumers' social and communication networks to diffuse credible "word-of-mouse" (buzz facilitated by the Internet) about green products. The website for Tide's Coldwater Challenge includes a map of the United States so visitors can track and watch their personal influence spread when their friends request a free sample.

GREEN - A sustainable competitive advantage advantage

Wal-Mart is not the first and most obvious brand that comes to ones mind when one thinks of sustainability or green, BUT over the recent past the buzz around Wal-Mart's efforts have been phenomenal. Clearly the PR agency of choice has done wonders and the coverage has put Wal-Mart above the effort of retailers like Whole Foods.

WMT's efforts on developing and maintaining a sustainable supply chain network is truly noteworthy and a great lesson for the up and coming partners, suppliers and competitors - The Greening of Wal-Mart's Supply Chain.

Some nuggets for the readers.

Implementing New Supply Chain Strategies
1. Identifying Goals, Metrics, and New Technologies
2. Certifying Environmentally Sustainable Products
3. Providing Network Partner Assistance to Suppliers
4. Committing to Larger Volumes of Environmentally Sustainable Products
5. Cutting out the Middleman
6. Consolidating Direct Suppliers
7. Restructuring the Buyer Role
8. Licensing Environmental Innovations

Three Traps to Avoid
1. ncreased costs
2. a sub-optimal product assortment
3. criticism of factory labor conditionsIdentifying Goals, Metrics, and New Technologies

Me & my love machine

I came across an article in the Times this morning - Me and my love machine obviously I was intrigued... we men and our cars! The article segmented the populous into a few rudimentary buckets... interesting reading.

INSTRUMENTALISTS

Often have names for their cars.

Tolerate failings or idiosyncracies in cars.

Subconsciously believe that cars respond in an emotional rather than a rational way.

Are affectionate about a car’s failings, but can be frightened that they are not in control of the technology.

Tend to prefer cars that cater for different needs at the same time; for example, sporty saloons.

EXPRESSIVES

See cars as a tool to explore their competence.

Drive at high speed when the opportunity presents.

Regard journeys as a test of man and machine.

Prize being able to corner with precision.

Only want the controls that are necessary – but like to customise.

Prefer one type of car for one job: a sports car or a saloon.

Men, women and beautiful wheels Are you having a deep relationship with your car? No? Well, have you named it? And how do you feel about other people touching it?

GENDER DIFFERENCES

Researchers have found that men are less comfortable discussing feelings about people than women, but when it comes to describing feelings about cars, men are more comfortable than women. Psychologists believe this is because men are less conscious of their own bodies than women, which makes their sense of “self” more easily disengaged from their bodies, and projected on to objects. This identification with objects may explain why men often describe their car as an extension of themselves, and why they get angry when others touch their cars. It may also explain why women (who see cars as separate entities) are more likely to give cars names.

WHAT OUR HANDS REVEAL

About 60 per cent of drivers drive with one hand on the wheel. For most men, the other hand was resting on the gear stick. For women, it was more often held in the lap. According to the driving researcher Professor Andrew Blake, driving with one hand is an indication of mastery of the car, that you see it as an extension of yourself.

SEATING ARRANGEMENTS

The researchers found that generally men assume they will sit in the driving seat, unless things are arranged otherwise. Family members always tend to take the same seats. Families spoke of a sense of “strangeness” if a parent sat in the back.

“I think the fact that Mum and Dad always have their backs to the kids gives the children a psychological advantage: more potential for unseen misbehaviour,” said one dad.

does it suck?

I surfed into an interesting site this afternoon... Ran a couple searches.

Here is what Sucks and what Rocks?

Companies are from MARS, Customers are from VENUS

Innovation: Companies are from MARS, Customers are from VENUS - Interesting article from FastCompany Now.

A few nuggets from the post:

• Companies continue to spend so much money on signing up new customers and pay little to no attention to acquired customers?
• Existing customers want long term relationships and attention, yet companies insist on focusing their efforts in finding new customers.
• The approach, if you look at it this way, is quite different. A company seeks to be linear and left-brained, even when it talks about relationships. Think about customer relationship management (CRM). When was the last time you tried to manage your relationships at home that way? Did it work?
• A customer wants to feel appreciated and loved. Not so much as in “we appreciate your business”, or “how may I help you?” -- both of which sound quite empty when not followed up by relevant action. We want to feel the service.

What Is It Worth to Understand Culture?

Yesterday's Tom Peters! Times had a very interesting article by Darci Riesenhuber the Transformation Architect - What Is It Worth to Understand Culture?

A couple nuggets from the article:

• What is culture? Simply, it is the culmination of shared values, assumptions, and beliefs tacitly and/or explicitly expressed within an organization.
• Why is it important to understand? Because, it determines how people behave and how work gets done. Let's consider how values and beliefs drive behavior using a consumer analogy: I need milk. The convenience store is closer than the grocery store (I value my time), but it is more expensive (I'm frugal). The grocery store offers more options (I value choice). I decide choice and price are more important than convenience, so I drive to the grocery store. While there, I evaluate my options: Whole milk is tasty, but I am weight conscious so I eliminate that option. While I am frugal, I am also health conscious. Although soy milk is more expensive it has additional perceived health benefits, so I choose soy. While, at some point, these decisions were conscious, as long as all factors remain the same and the reward for my behavior is greater than the cost, I continue to behave consistently and, eventually, subconsciously. What happens when my grocery store discontinues soy milk, the price goes up, or traffic becomes unbearable? Suddenly, I am forced to re-evaluate my behaviors to stay consistent with my values in order to achieve the outcome I find desirable.
• How does it relate to strategy and affect business outcomes? Recognize that the same values driving individuals' buying behaviors also drive their behaviors at work. We should ask ourselves, then, "Why don't we spend as much time analyzing the values of our talent pool to predict on-the-job performance and satisfaction as marketers do the values and emotional drivers of their target market to determine buying behaviors and loyalty?" Employees will behave in accordance with their values, regardless of your business strategy.
• high growth business strategy creates an unstable environment that requires individuals to take risks, an individual valuing stability, security and consistency will feel anxious and begin to seek ways to remedy their discomfort.
  
• In some cases, they are able to adapt and learn the behaviors necessary to succeed. In others, the personal transformation is simply not possible and they fail. The best way to avoid this is to determine "fit" during the selection process.
  
• Strategy changes throughout the life of your business, so must your culture. Changing your culture is not impossible, as many would believe. You just have to carefully evaluate and adjust the factors that influence culture, such as your systems (reward, IT), structure (reporting, physical), policies, HR practices (selection, training), communication, leadership-style, etc.
  

Another dimension to interactive marketing...

Marketing is all about consumer education, communication the value proposition when she is most receptive and differentiating within the competitive landscape. Study Places Value On Marketing At Consumer Research Stage - MediaPost article.

Couple nuggets...

• CONSUMERS SPEND 10% MORE FOR televisions and digital cameras they buy in stores when they research these purchases online first using a search engine.
• the brand experience begins well before the shopper walks into the store
• The Internet was the top resource for researching digital cameras and televisions, with 75% of those who researched a purchase beforehand going online to do so. The leading online resources were retail Web sites (73%), manufacturer Web sites (68%), and search engines (49%); 55% of the people walk into the stores with specific brands in mind; 80% of these consumers who do product research before hitting the store end up buying one of the brands they were originally considering; remaining 20% said in-store salespeople were highly influential; 75% didn't know the model they wanted when they got to the store
• Purchasers who used search engines spent on average $31 more on digital cameras and $139 more on TVs. This group used twice as many research sources (5.7 sources) as non-searchers (2.5 sources)
  

Leadership Nuggets...

Interesting article - Careers: Lead Like Fonzie: FastCompany Now, a few thoughts from the article.

Communicate. Share as much as you can about the situation at hand. People don’t like to be left in the dark when it comes to important issues. Make sure you maintain clear channels of communication.

Reassure. Don’t assume your team doesn’t need to hear that everything is going to be okay. They might not have access to the same information as you do and they might cling to assumptions and rumors without your reassurance.

Remain calm. Remember, all eyes are on you. What you say is important, but how you react can have even greater impact. Take a few seconds to take the emotion out of the situation and gather your thoughts before you respond verbally or nonverbally. Then maintain your calm throughout. It’s amazing how comforting this behavior will be on your team.

No brand loyalty?

Bad News For Brands: Supermarket Shoppers Don't Care an interesting post in this morning's MediaPost. Not sure I agree with the contents of the article but I felt I needed to air my thoughts...

Of the 18 categories analyzed, snack crackers, shredded cheese and potato chips are most vulnerable to brand switching, with 78%, 77% and 74% of consumers saying they'd switch brands.

Even some products that seem more easily branded are at risk: 74% of consumers would switch lipsticks, for example, and 73% would switch cereals.

Packaged coffee, 58%, pain relievers, 54%, laundry detergent, 53% and carbonated beverages, 52%, are at lesser risk. They were the only categories to come in with an I'd-gladly-dump-my-brand-for-another score below 60%.

The stats are very revealing but I am a contrarin, I say 'give the consumers a reason to believe!' and they will come asking for more. Competing on price is a sign of weakness not a position of strength.

The Baby-Name Business

When I read the title of the article I was interested to know more, as I got through the blurb about the article I was surprised! But the content and idea just made me mad...

The Baby-Name Business - from AOL Coaches. The article made one thing obvious some people have too much money and too little gray matter. So it is up to smart business people, the marketers and entrepreneurs to offer them a proposition that helps them in both those areas.

If I were to guess more than 5% of the people don't even like the names their parents chose for them, then all this fuss? Remember the artist Prince. A unique name is good but I suggest they go back to reading Romeo & Juliet by Shakespear...

From Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet:

JULIET:
'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.
What's Montague? it is nor hand, nor foot,
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!
What's in a name? that which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet;
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,
Retain that dear perfection which he owes
Without that title. Romeo, doff thy name,
And for that name which is no part of thee
Take all myself.

"Forever young" - Boomers' mantra

We are witnessing the largest ever transfer of funds from one generation to the other - The baby boomers with a purchasing capacity of trillions. AGE WAVE founded by Ken Dychtwald has published extensive research and has a even books that address the opportunity with the segment.

An article this morning in brandchannel.com - Don't Ignore the Boomer Consumer; addresses the opportunity. Some of the nuggets follow:

• Boomers are 71 percent as likely as their younger counterparts to be willing to try new products and services, and 55 percent are just as persuaded by "effective advertising."
• "I think that it's a challenge to reach Boomers today because their lifestyles are very busy,"
• Boomers are a generation that loves to buy stuff but hates being sold to. A lot of brands think that their brands from the past are going to carry them through with Boomers to the present and to the future, and that's not the case. You have to earn your stripes every day."
• Boomers form a generation that makes buying decisions based on the latest sales
• Price-point sensitivity and brand fickleness can be attributed to the financial demands and strains of children, paying for college tuition, caring more and more for aging parents, and uncertain job outlooks—while still thinking about their own retirement.
  
• Boomers may view the necessities more as interchangeable commodities than branded musts, they certainly appear to like their share of indulgent luxuries and are not afraid of technology.
• "Boomers spend more money on computer hardware, software and cellphone service, and a whole host of electronics than any other generation,"
• What we see is a group that is very technology adaptive…and has the disposable income to pay for it
• "old age" and retirement are quite different from their parents' and grandparents'. The "golden years" of later life are turning out to be the "power years," with many refusing to accept the aging process as previous generations have.
• Boomers are less likely to associate retirement with "the beginning of the end" and are increasingly regarding retirement as a continuation of or a new chapter in life—be it new interests, new careers, or even new relationships.
• "They get to do [life] over. So you say to yourself, what is it they want to redo? Education, relationships, their physical appearance, their overall well-being—and they're spending money like crazy because they have it."

My previous posts on Baby boomers include:

• Echo boom...
• Invaluable consumer research data
• Oh My God!
  

Experience of fundamental core values

This week's LOHAS newsletter captured a new movement or a new fad - 'guilt-free and eco-friendly' in an article from NMI - Consumers Are Seeking a Deeper Values Experience.

Insights from the article:

• Consumers are aspiring to achieve the double pay-off of exclusive experiences while supporting guilt-free and eco-friendly goods and services
• From luxury hybrid cars to couture dresses made from organic and sustainable fabrics, it is not enough to have it all, consumers also want to feel better about what they have
• Shopping at natural food supermarkets is up 20% from 2001.
  
• The influence of the "USDA Certified Organic" seal on foods has increased 22% since 2004 and is now at least slightly influential to more than four out of ten consumers.
  
• The percentage of primary grocery shoppers who agree that organic foods/beverages are worth paying an extra 20% for increased from 17% in 2002 to 26% in 2006.
  
• With this increase in values-driven experiental shopping, NMI projects that sales of organic products could reach $24 billion in 2011
  

NMI Publishes Marketing Research:

• The 2007 Health and Wellness Trends Report
• The 2005 Organic Consumer Trends Report
• Understanding The LOHAS Market Report™ Series
  

Free Agent: Getting Our Sexy Back

From this morning's MediaPost - Free Agent: Getting Our Sexy Back

The supply crunch for talent seems to have the potential to rejuvenated the free agent movement.

Anything wrong with incremental INNOVATION?

A comment on my post Commoditize your customer's behavior got me to think about an important question... whats wrong with innovation being incremental? As a marketer my life's mission is to delight the consumer through experiences, I endeavor to improve life, engage each and every one of the consumers, shoppers in everyday acts of joy.

If that excitement and difference comes through small incremental changes in the way they live life itself how does it matter?

To me, the essence of innovation is in developing a value proposition that creates the impetus for change through new brands and new touch points.

Not every innovation needs to be disruptive! Innovation just needs to create new experiences.

Consumers... Engagement.... Network...

The internet has changed everything! The price of entry into celebritydom is negligible. All it takes today is a camera phone/webcam? Sometimes not even that... just a friend with a camera phone/webcam.

I have always believed the one and only thing that most humans are scared of is being irrelevant, being nobody, being forgotten.

Together these make a potent combination.... Be a celebrity, be a "Jackass" or be nobody?

Marketers have tapped this potent combination to engage consumers in any and every which way.

An interesting article in this morning's bandchannel.com post - The Fanatic: A Brand's Best Friend? & a paper that supports the argument with a consciousness that comes from the consumers trust and faith in your brand - Social Brand Capital.

Searching for a value prop in Second Life? Ask IBM

To date I have been trying to figure out what is the business value for an online life? Second Life? Clicking around was okay, flying may be even fun but after a few minutes, new destinations and I was bored. Until this morning when I read IBM's Management Games on BusinessWeek online.

Build some agents, create the necessary stimulus, even preordained environmental responses to the stimulus and wallah you've now got a virtual world that mimics the real world. Sign up players (I mean real people) assign them tasks, set some performance measures for their success and let the games begin... you've got INNOV8!

An inversion of Second Life with real value and a business model. Thats innovation!

Right questions vs. Right answers

All thorough our formative years of learning we are measured for the right answers. All our corporate summative measurements are associated with the final answer, I am not implying that the results are not important enough or as important as the process BUT it is paramount to get behind "WHY?" do these answer needs to be known! How can the answer help us influence our choices and shape the future.

It is a positive step to embrace accountability and measurement, but it may be a huge waste of capability and talent to become slaves to numbers and the analytic models that drive them. As marketers and strategist we need to make judicious choices, based on our knowledge of the past and develop robust processes to shape the future of consumer experiences through brands. As such the fundamental task of how to measure success is upon the strategist. Thus the important element of planning is what to measure? why to measure? and how to measure?
This morning's article in MediaPost - Marketing Accountability: The Long And Short Of It, on our sudden fascination with measures and accountability in Marketing and the long versus short term implications of on Equity & Brand health addresses some for the pitfalls. Some nuggets from the article are listed.

So how are we supposed to use ROI effectively?

• Balance short-term ROI with long term brand equity. And by short-term, we mean within a year and by long-term we mean three years out. A marketing plan requires striking a healthy balance between tactics that yield a high short-term ROI, and those that are essential to driving sales in the long term.
• No long-term gains without short-term. If your advertising doesn't work in the short-term it won't have a long-term impact. Bad advertising fails at the starting gate. But good advertising carries over into the future.
• Understand your audience. Don't put the cart before the horse. Researching how you spend your dollars is effective only after you know whom you should be talking to and what you should be communicating.

Engaging,,, Nike Father's Day Spot!

MOOC (Dated 2000)

The Cool Hunt (Malcolm Gladwell) - New Yorker Magazine
Douglas Rushkoff

Web 2.0 Believe it or not...?

Supermarket 2.0

Commoditize your customer's behavior

Don't get me wrong I am not implying we stop valuing our customers but develop a model for INNOVATION.

I remember the most valuable advice I ever received from an old manager was to make my work obsolete, SERIOUSLY! The logic was to develop talent along the way identify opportunities to outsource any work that lacks the need for creative thinking and sensitivity. Over time I would be left with nothing to do but move up the chain of command or rather the corporate value chain. He suggested I set myself a 15% target for each year, the worst case scenario would be a promotion in no more than 5-6 years.

What if as marketers we did the same thing with our customers? Developed solutions for our customers everyday needs and behaviors, we could potentially harness their everyday needs as we integrate forward and uncover new opportunities to innovate. Every new solution could in itself lead to the next innovation creating a spirally of opportunities a value prop waiting to be presented with commercial viability.

after all what is INNOVATION?

The spectrum of answers is very broad! A significant number of organization out there don't know what innovation really means and or how best to answer the question.

• Is a personalized MM the answer to the question?
• Is Cirque du Soleil's value prop against the traditional circus the answer to the question?
• Is portfolio diversification the answer to the question?
• Is 'being different' the answer to the question?
• Is 'meeting an unmet need' the answer to the question?
  

I can go on and on! I do believe it is any and all of the above and more.

The essence of the answer is in understanding the customers, marrying them with the competence of the organization, creating the processes to deliver the solution and fostering a culture within organizations to repeat the success over and over and over!

I am usually asked is there an innovation model that can be applied, OF COURSE! during my surfing in the wast world of the internet I have found a couple interesting links.

Business of Innovation

Execution Excellence!

This morning I read an article and shortly after stumble upon a a quote by Philip Kotler the father of modern branding.

"The theory of marketing is solid but the practice of marketing leaves much to be desired."

- Philip Kotler

Philly's Global Marketing Is Paying Off - No one ever said marketing did not pay off? But the true realization of value is in execution with excellence!

Leadership: Ego-Ambition as drivers

Leadership: Ambition--Vice or Virtue? This evening in FastCompany Now.

Leadership needs Ego and Leadership needs Ambition! Channeled in a constructive manner and guided by values, character and virtue can ENLARGE the leader and leadership itself.

Ambition, however, can be force for the good. Here are some ways:

Use ambition to capitalize on opportunity. Sometimes opportunity is staring us in the face but we may not recognize it. Ambitious people look at the status quo and see ways to do things differently. It may be to develop a new product, a new process, or a new service. Looking to do things differently can be a force for the good. Entrepreneurs are folks who channel their ambition into looking for new opportunities.

Use ambition as a tool for change. Ambition may be the driver that challenges assumptions. Part of a leader’s responsibility is to identify the need for positive change and to usher in that change. It may provoke us to say why are we doing things this way? Asking the questions may stimulate debate and ultimately action that will cause new ideas.

Use ambition as tool for personal growth. Ambition is wanting to move to the next step. Fulfilling that dream may require more schooling, more training, and more experience. Ambition can be the spark that pushes you to achieve your dream, often when hard work is involved.

Personal Branding

Leadership and Personal Branding from this morning's FastComany Now.

Personal branding has been in vogue since the late 80's when Tom Peter's first introduced the concept of "Brand YOU!"

The idea evolved into the concept of a Free Agent (book) that grabbed the corporate world in the late 90's but the movement fizzled.

More recently the idea of social networking combined with technological advances and support from career advisory services has offered support for the idea of differentiating and rebuilding awareness for Brand YOU! and the Free Agent - Kirsten Dixson and William Arruda have a recently publication Career Distinction - following are nuggets from their article Don't Seek. Be Sought -After; Marketing Ladders newsletter.

Be Visible

1. Know who needs to know you.

You must identify all the people who need to know you. This way you're sure that they will be able to find you immediately when they need the skills you can offer. It would exhaust your resources to become visible to everyone. So you must figure out exactly who your target audience is. Make a list of job titles of people who will be instrumental in helping you reach your career goals. This should include hiring managers, executive recruiters and people who influence them.

2. Get in their face.

Once you've decided who needs to know about you, you must make yourself known to them. You need to be a household name among this target group of people. You can live in total obscurity as far as the rest of the world is concerned, but among this critical constituency, you want to become a mega-star. I call it being selectively famous.

3. Don't go into hiding.

Once you are known, you must be ever visible. Just as celebrities seek out appearances on talk shows and articles in magazines to stay in the purview of their fans, you too must keep the visibility constant. This strategy takes planning and a commitment to stay connected.

Be Valuable

Hiring managers, executive recruiters, and potential business partners need to know that what you have to offer is both relevant and compelling. And it needs to be available from you and only you. So it's your job to demonstrate the value you contribute. Visibility alone will not make you sought-after.

Be Unique

When you can find something just about anywhere, people rarely seek it out. It's when something is rare that it becomes sought after: supply and demand. So you need to know what makes you unique. And among those items that put you in a class by yourself, you must determine which will be the most compelling to your target audience. Are you the most ethical CFO? The creative ad guy who believes that all ad campaigns need stringent revenue metrics? The IT executive who is the world's best business communicator?

Be Courageous

Sometimes, you must be willing to take a stand and risk offending some people. All strong brands are eager to share their point of view. Being courageous ensures that your message gets heard above the noise. If you are singing the same tune as everyone else, your voice will be lost in the choir. Sing your own song, and sing it loudly. Be heard!

Be Consistent

People need to know what you stand for. Avoid the temptation to repeat the message of the day. Unless you're Madonna (who has built an empire around reinvention) you need to stick to your guns. As advertisers know, it's repetition that ensures the message is heard and understood.

Tips to Becoming Sought-After

• Build a large and relevant social network, adding people regularly.
• Maintain your network by regularly giving to the members. A network has no value to you if you let it go cold. Build network strengthening activities into your daily "to-do" list.
• Increase your virtual visibility. Buy your domain name, build your online presence through a website or blog, and interact with like-minded professionals through social networks and relevant web portals. Make sure you show up in Google when people search on the keywords for which you want to be known.
• Increase your physical visibility. Take every opportunity to speak publicly. Publish articles. Consider writing a book. Constant communication is critical.
• Take leadership roles in appropriate professional associations. And if the right organization doesn't exist, create your own.

Uni-Marketing

I have occasionally started an essay and left it incomplete... I guess I loose the chain of thoughts? Until it either the thought comes back or the next interesting thought captures my imagination the essay sits waiting for my attention. This essay is one of those...

Marketing has its origins in differentiation, the early Egyptians marked their cattle to ensure they could be located and identified. The concept developed into communicating uniqueness and then so. Modern marketing was about relevance, differentiation, excitement and more. It was a mass message we sent as marketers to INFLUENCE the consumer in choosing our brands over the competitive landscape. Gone are the days of Mass Marketing, today we are in the world of Segmented Marketing. Connecting, communicating, presenting, solving and listening to the consumers for what they liked how they used, why they chose what they chose and how can we enhance their experience.

The touch points have increased and so has communication (listening and conveying), the value propositions and the difference. Over the past 30 years marketers have feared private label yet they rarely have a robust understanding of what a disappearing ghost private label can be. No one has ever beaten back an enemy in a Guerrilla war especially since you don't even know who the real enemy is? As a strategist I have often thought of the challenge and the only truly sustainable solution is Segmenting the consumer to a Segment of ONE! UNI-MARKETING!

Niche products that do one and only one thing!! Do it better than any Private label! Change the rules of the game and create a new landscape for the brand wars.

This morning's -Today's Niche Marketing Is All About Narrow, Not Small from Advertising Age stoked my imagination to complete this essay.

Niching now

To harness the power of niche marketing to achieve your business objectives in the new economy, follow these principles:

1. Position your brand as narrowly as is economically possible.
2. Become the specialist that anticipates the needs of your target.
3. Rapidly work with the target niche to co-innovate.
4. Set as your goal such consumer centricity that the target niche will want to co-brand their identity with yours.
5. Live by a higher standard of ethics.
6. Embrace a business model and metrics that grow the most valuable assets of the new niched economy.
7. Reap first-mover advantage by learning how to identify a niche of opportunity.
8. Re-imagine your role as that of entrepreneurial founder of a special interest group.
9. Forget push marketing; excel at pull marketing.
10. Realize your brand is now "media" competing against all other media.

The Corporate Athlete

Avoid the Pedigree Pitfall - Talent is talent is talent, lack of related experience is the last thing to stop natural winners.

Interesting article from FastCompany Now:

During the interview process, it’s critically important that you make sure candidates are
1) who they said they were on paper
2) a great fit with your organization

It’s easy to overlook red flags during the interview process when you’ve already sold yourself on the candidate based on his or her background.

WOM

Give 'em Something to Talk About - Only from FastCompany By Chip and Dan Heath of Made to Stick

Fostering the conversation you want customers to have about your products should be an explicit part of product development.

1. The Doughnut
   Voodoo Doughnut in Portland, Oregon, has a cult following because its customers want to tell their friends about goodies such as glazed doughnuts rolled in Crunch Berries cereal.
   
   
2. The Smoothie
   How many people talk about their smoothie purchases? If the smoothie is wearing a wool cap knitted by a grandmother, they will.
   
   
3. The Policy
   Zipcar's policies create a conversation-worthy experience: Renters pay by the hour, gas and insurance are included, and the company doesn't charge for such amenities as satellite radio.
   

Avoidable Marketing Mistakes When Taking Your Brand Global

Interesting insights from brandchannel.com - Five Avoidable Marketing Mistakes When Taking Your Brand Global by Susanne Evens

Nuggets from the article:

1. Understand Your Brand Name
Your company or product name could mean something undesirable in another language. Do the research necessary to ensure you do not sell a car that means "no go" or a computer product that means "frumpy woman." Even something as innocent as a person's name can trip you up. "Gary" sounds like the Japanese word for "diarrhea."

2. Understand the Cultural Significance of Colors
Colors can play a significant role in the aesthetics of your website or other marketing materials, but they also communicate a message. Unfortunately, the message and significance of a color may not be consistent from culture to culture.

In North America, for example, red is often used in operating instructions to signify danger, while other cultures often use green or black for the same purpose. In Asia, white is the color of funerals, while in Western cultures, white is the color of weddings. Without realizing the difference, a wedding company could be sending a disturbing message to its Asian audience.

3. Use Humor Carefully
What's funny in one culture may not even make sense in another. For example, when a preacher visited a missionary, his message on "The Four Ships of Christianity" (fellowship, discipleship, membership, and worship) was a disaster because it was based in a pun that was completely lost in translation.

4. Don't Alienate with Analogies
Similarly, analogies can trip you up. Common analogies in the US may make no sense elsewhere. Even worse, the analogy may be insulting. Neither scenario will help you reach your goal of gaining and maintaining customers.

5. Go Native Online
For years, many people assumed that being on the web meant that you were instantly global. But being available online internationally is a far cry from being able to act global and meet the needs of local international markets.

Linguistics & Marketing Research

Linguistics has a lot to do with marketing, more than just advertising & communication... it is the link between the consumers and the marketers.


Unraveling the mysteries of consumer spending

The one that feeds an understanding the unmet needs and desires.

Also chk - Zipf's Law

Leaders Pushing Limits

Leaders Pushing Limits: Grace Andrews dabbles with Risk and Leadership in her post on FastCompany Now. Some nuggets from her post:

How do I keep the edge without jumping off the edge?

Continue moving…inaction leads to stagnation.

Read…anything.

Talk to people…constantly.

Ask for feedback and be open to what you hear.

Try something that seems counterintuitive.

Don't let others in your organization do all the dirty work.

Go work "on the line or in the trenches".

Do a 360 on yourself.

Try This

Make a list of all the things that inspire you about other leaders. Compare them to your skill sets. What are you missing that they have? This is a great place to start understanding what you need to do to go to the next level. Then start learning those skills and practicing them. Start now, even if it's scary. You don't have to jump out of a plane to get your heart pumping; sometimes it is as simple as looking in the mirror and telling yourself the truth about something you should be doing and then taking the steps to do it.

One last thought

I think finding and pushing your freak-out point occasionally is a good thing. If you're the adventurous type, then go for the gusto and climb, jump, surf. If you are not, don't let that stop you. There are ways to keep your edge, but lying down is not one of them.

All very relevant and interesting thoughts.

Echo boom...

I bet someone heard the word sonic boom and crafted the word echo boom... For a marketer the Echo Boomers (born between 1979-1989) are a $2.45 Trillion opportunity. An article in this morning's MediaPost talks about the attitudes, behaviors and personalities.

Some nuggets from the article: Visa Tells Marketers: Turn Your Attention To Echo Boomers

• Echos are more practical and mature in their spending habits and more generous to others
• Echos are are concerned about saving for retirement
• Echos see having money as a way to give back to others, especially family members and charities
• Nearly half of Echo Boomers (48%) describe themselves as savers
• When it comes to shopping, Echo Boomers are focused on getting more value for their money: 69% consider themselves wait-and-see shoppers, and 83% say they are bargain shoppers
• 80% of Echo Boomers stick to a strict budget when making purchases, and 81% describe themselves as trying to cut back on what they spend
• Even at their young age, more than 70% of Echo Boomers are concerned about having enough money for retirement, a degree of concern similar to the about-to-retire Baby Boomers (78%)
• 65% of Echo Boomers believe their generation is falling behind economically
• 81% do not believe their generation is spending more responsibly
• 88% of Echo Boomers like to buy things for others more often than buying things just for themselves
• If they had extra or discretionary money to spend, 63% of Echo Boomers would most likely spend that money on something for others
• Approximately 81% of Echo Boomers say they are giving what they can to charities
• Only 25% of Baby Boomers describe the Echo Boomers as an admirable generation compared to 68% of Echo Boomers who admire Baby Boomers
• Approximately 68% of Baby Boomers believe Echo Boomers are too self-centered and focused upon themselves
• While Baby Boomers have a desire for youth, only 7% would prefer to be a member of the Echo Boomer generation

Additional highlights from "How America Spends" include:

• According to the Yankelovich Monitor, being seen as "financially successful" is important to 49% of Echo Boomers, a 13% increase since 2002
• Echo Boomers (77%) more often feel the need to manage their spending better than Baby Boomers (66%)
• Echo Boomers believe they have more stress and anxieties compared to other generations (71%)
• Nearly half of Echo Boomers (49%) think that they do not have a better life compared to other generations

...disarm with a HELLO!

An article in this morning's New York Times on how advertising are embracing the hello again!

Madison Avenue Says Hello to ‘Hello,’ Again

From the Apple Macintosh in 1984 to the Applie iPhone 2007 and a lot many long the way - Avon, Level Vodka, even a twist from Colgate-Palmolive. The images are as interesting as the skits, gags & commercials.

What is your carbon footprint?

It is hard to ignore the topic of sustainability with the media coverage on the issue of global warming & climate change. An article in the MarketingNPV journal addresses the issues of Metrics associated with a brand and organizations environmental friendliness.

How Green Are Your Metrics?: At the dashboard level, there are four key areas companies should be making improvements in and measuring when trying to affect a positive change in greenhouse gas emissions:

• reducing your carbon footprint;
• reducing energy/fuel consumption;
• utilizing more renewable and sustainable resources; and
• recycling or reducing waste.

Some links:

• Redefining Progress
• My Footprint
  
• Hybrid Center
• Natural Step
• Global Footprint Network
• Turn the Tide
• Gaiam
  

Let's be Clear…..

Let's be Clear….. - I have been a long time fan of Marcus Buckingham. This morning I came across a post on FastCompany Now by Grace Andrews. Here are some nuggets...

What does clarity mean and how do you know if you have it?

The official definition is "free from obscurity and easy to understand; the comprehensibility of clear expression." There is nothing more likely to create chaos in an organization than confusion and unclear communication. So, how does one establish clarity? Mr. Marcus Buckingham suggests you focus on four powerful and defining questions: (1) Who do we serve?, (2) What is our core strength?, (3) What is our core score? and, finally, (4) What actions can we take today?

Question 1: Who do we serve? When answering this question, you must tell your team clearly and vividly, who their main audience is. Tell them who they should empathize with most closely. Tell them who will be judging their success. When you do this with clarity, you give your people confidence - confidence in their judgment and confidence in their decisions. It frees them to better serve those you have identified are the one audience whom they serve. Please do not give them many masters - it only adds confusion; pick one and focus on it. This clear strategy makes it easy to follow you.

Question 2: What is our core strength?Thirty years ago, Peter Drucker wrote, "the most effective organizations get their strengths together and make their weaknesses irrelevant". No statement could be truer today. Focusing on weaknesses brings down your team. Look at your core strength and go after the business and situations that play to this strength. Understanding and clearly communicating your core strength allows people to follow the vision you create.

Question 3: What is our core score?Simply put, this means finding a way to measure success. This is the most important contribution you can give your organization or team. Once defined, your people know when they are achieving their objectives, when to work harder or faster, and when they are winning! Defining that measure is hard, but essential. If you want people to follow you and take initiative, tell them what the core score is, so they know what to use to measure their progress. This also gives an additional benefit of people being able to manage their progress, so you don't have to be the one that always does it!

Question 4: What actions can we take today?Action is unambiguous. Actions are clear and they speak volumes. Actions let people know exactly what to do. As a leader, there are many actions that you can take each day. The question to ask is "what actions can I take today that will have the most meaningful impact on my people and those we serve, and will move us closer to achieving our goals?" Remember, choose your actions carefully, and choose just a few. Guided by the
clarity of your actions, your team can move into the future easily and without the fear of the unknown. This will not only instill confidence in you, but also raise the confidence of your people.

What can you do?

I strongly suggest you begin by answering the four questions above. If you think they already exist in your organization, go out and test that assumption with a group of people from all levels. Do their answers match your own? Do they match each other's? This is one way to know if you are bringing clarity to your organization as a leader.

One last thought:

In the military, the general leading the charge must be clear or his people die. In sports, the coach, quarterback or captain must be clear or the team loses. The same can be said in your businesses. If, as a leader, you are not clear, then the company runs the risk of losing – losing clients, market share or potentially dying and closing your doors. I encourage you (not by hollering at you) to look at all the messages you are sending - verbally, by e-mail, and in meetings - are they clear? Because as leaders, it's okay to be wrong, but it isn't okay to be unclear; the risks are too high – what you must be is clear.

The Beauty ENTROPY!

This morning I came across a very fascinating quote...

Joan Collins - "The problem with beauty is that it's like being born rich and getting poorer."

Reminded me of a concept I had studied many many years ago - ENTROPY. I feel strange even making a link to the definition/description on Wikipedia given the weight of the concept.

Just to get the weight off my chest one of my favorite print campaigns, to levitate the situation

A-to-S, par excellence!

I always wondered what "Engineered like no other car in the world" compares with "The ultimate driving machine"? It took a little thinking to realize that Engineering is about Comfort not necessarily or limited to driving. Guess what that means to me is you 'drive' one while you enjoy the comfort of a ride in the other? Anyway... that was not the point of my post, the philosophical discussion seems to have beleaguered the point I intended to make.

I was fascinated by the Engineering excellence in the interactive marketing site for Mercedes Benz.