In days of old, mariners steered their course by the stars, often picking out one particular star to follow.
Today's companies often have a mission statement which should (but seldom does) serve the same purpose. A mission statement is like a compass, which can keep your company from veering back and forth as the makeup of your management team changes.
Republicans recently read the US Constitution out loud to start the new congressional session. They obviously felt that the country was off course, and were trying to focus attention back on what they considered to be the "national mission statement." If there is this kind of disagreement over our country's direction, how much easier is it for a company to drift off course?
Unfortunately, for many companies, the mission statement doesn't get much attention once it's created. It's dusted off once a year for the annual report, and may appear in a customer presentation or two, but no one really pays much attention to it.
An impressive exception is Johnson & Johnson's CREDO. It's worth a look. This 300 word mission statement addresses the company's relationship with its four most important constituencies: customers, employees, the community, and stockholders. It does this in plain language, and explains why it says what it says. For example, when it states that costs should be kept low, it specifies that this is not to bolster profits, but to hold prices down.
Here at the beginning of a new year, and in the midst of challenging economic times, it might make sense to exhume your mission statement and think about breathing some new life into it. Right now it may be a toothless lion. But if you develop a meaningful mission statement and give it the ongoing attention it deserves, it can be a compass that will help your company sail through troublesome times without expensive and unproductive zigs and zags.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Unconscious Consumption
Just like a computer, our brains have a limited amount of processing capability. If we had to consciously think about things like tying our shoes or buying our daily pack of chewing gum, that processing capability would be used up very quickly, and we’d end up standing around literally “lost in thought.”
To prevent this, most of us tend to hardwire frequent, less important decisions and processes. We turn them into ‘habits’ or ‘routines.’ Which has major implications for us as marketers. We tend to think of purchasing and usage as conscious decisions, when the truth is they often are not. In many cases, logic may have nothing to do with it.
So what needs to change? We need to recognize the unconscious nature of those consumer purchasing choices, and work on understanding the cues that consumers employ to enable these unconscious decisions.
Consumers won’t be able to articulate why they make these choices. To understand the unconscious behavior and gain a competitive advantage, you have to identify the cues that lead the consumer to (unconsciously) behave the way they do. Insights can be found by observing reactions to varying stimuli such as the packaging size, color or weight, or product cost, or shelf position. For example, coffee is perceived as more robust if packaged in dark colored containers. And the higher cereal is placed on the grocery store shelves, the healthier it is assumed to be.
Ferreting out subliminal cues is going to be expensive and time consuming. But less so than wasting your money on advertising that is trying to appeal to logic where it doesn’t apply. Forget the “voice of the consumer.” The consumer can’t tell you why they’re doing what they’re doing, because they aren’t doing it consciously. They’re going to have to show you, through observation and controlled testing. Good luck!
If you’d like some help in figuring out how to interpret and influence your consumers’ unconscious buying decisions, give Your CMO a call!
To prevent this, most of us tend to hardwire frequent, less important decisions and processes. We turn them into ‘habits’ or ‘routines.’ Which has major implications for us as marketers. We tend to think of purchasing and usage as conscious decisions, when the truth is they often are not. In many cases, logic may have nothing to do with it.
So what needs to change? We need to recognize the unconscious nature of those consumer purchasing choices, and work on understanding the cues that consumers employ to enable these unconscious decisions.
Consumers won’t be able to articulate why they make these choices. To understand the unconscious behavior and gain a competitive advantage, you have to identify the cues that lead the consumer to (unconsciously) behave the way they do. Insights can be found by observing reactions to varying stimuli such as the packaging size, color or weight, or product cost, or shelf position. For example, coffee is perceived as more robust if packaged in dark colored containers. And the higher cereal is placed on the grocery store shelves, the healthier it is assumed to be.
Ferreting out subliminal cues is going to be expensive and time consuming. But less so than wasting your money on advertising that is trying to appeal to logic where it doesn’t apply. Forget the “voice of the consumer.” The consumer can’t tell you why they’re doing what they’re doing, because they aren’t doing it consciously. They’re going to have to show you, through observation and controlled testing. Good luck!
If you’d like some help in figuring out how to interpret and influence your consumers’ unconscious buying decisions, give Your CMO a call!
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Four critical stress points in planning
I was reading an article by Elder and Paul (With Implications for Instruction) recently. It was a little involved, but in a list at the end of the article I saw four things that, in my experience, are prime reasons why plans fail. These may be something to keep in mind as you’re preparing for 2011.
1) Clearly state your goal(s): It’s not so much that you don’t know what you want. But plans usually require the cooperation of other people, and words are slippery things. If you don’t nail them down, you may find that they are interpreted differently by your co-workers. And that makes it difficult-to-impossible to define and execute implementation steps.
2) Clearly differentiate between facts and assumptions: Erase the words “Everyone knows…” from your lexicon. Hard as it is to believe, not everyone shares the same understanding of the world that you do. If you and they realize this, it can be relatively easy to come to agreement. But if you proceed thinking the light is green while they think it’s red, you’re facing confusion at best, and failure at worst. Your plan is, of necessity, based on information. Make sure that information is accurate (ie. provable and unarguable) before you place your bet.
3) Consider alternate points of view: Don’t get me wrong, I think confidence is a good thing. But the smartest people I know keep in mind the possibility, however upsetting it may be, that they might occasionally be wrong. Before they irretrievably commit themselves, they pilot test, reconsider, double-check, think twice, or otherwise consider the consequences of being incorrect. Anyone who thinks they are the sole repository of “right”…isn’t.
4) Distinguish between the significant and the insignificant: When you’re making plans, try to keep it all at the same strategic and/or tactical level. This helps you decide where you should be dedicating your (finite) time and money. A plan for realigning the company’s product portfolio should not also be dealing with redesigning the logo on the letterhead. It’s kind of like political earmarks--don’t let someone tack a grant for the local public television station onto your military appropriation bill!
1) Clearly state your goal(s): It’s not so much that you don’t know what you want. But plans usually require the cooperation of other people, and words are slippery things. If you don’t nail them down, you may find that they are interpreted differently by your co-workers. And that makes it difficult-to-impossible to define and execute implementation steps.
2) Clearly differentiate between facts and assumptions: Erase the words “Everyone knows…” from your lexicon. Hard as it is to believe, not everyone shares the same understanding of the world that you do. If you and they realize this, it can be relatively easy to come to agreement. But if you proceed thinking the light is green while they think it’s red, you’re facing confusion at best, and failure at worst. Your plan is, of necessity, based on information. Make sure that information is accurate (ie. provable and unarguable) before you place your bet.
3) Consider alternate points of view: Don’t get me wrong, I think confidence is a good thing. But the smartest people I know keep in mind the possibility, however upsetting it may be, that they might occasionally be wrong. Before they irretrievably commit themselves, they pilot test, reconsider, double-check, think twice, or otherwise consider the consequences of being incorrect. Anyone who thinks they are the sole repository of “right”…isn’t.
4) Distinguish between the significant and the insignificant: When you’re making plans, try to keep it all at the same strategic and/or tactical level. This helps you decide where you should be dedicating your (finite) time and money. A plan for realigning the company’s product portfolio should not also be dealing with redesigning the logo on the letterhead. It’s kind of like political earmarks--don’t let someone tack a grant for the local public television station onto your military appropriation bill!
Three steps to STAYING ON MESSAGE!
No, although the current election brought the thought to mind, I’m not talking about politics. I’m talking about how every year it gets harder to make sure that your company’s (or brand’s, or product’s) message is being consistently communicated.
Even before advertising and mass communication, companies worked hard to keep their individual salespeople singing out of the same hymnal. Then we added in print and broadcast media. And today we’ve piled on the internet and social media. And it’s not just the different mediums. You also have to consider the type of communication--promotional versus brand-building versus public relations.
In today’s attention-challenged world, it makes sense that you want your company’s message confined to a handful of easily understood and remembered points (hopefully focused on competitive advantages). Frankly, you’re doing well if you can communicate that much!
So here are three steps you should ensure are being taken by your marketing team:
1) Know what your message is.
Keep it simple-- no more than two to three points.
Focus on competitive advantages--if your points are generic, they’re just as likely to be associated with the competition in consumers’ minds.
Make sure you’ve got internal buy-in for your messaging (you don’t need co-workers sabotaging you by delivering by communicating conflicting information)
2) Make sure everyone in your company knows what your message is. EVERYONE! The service department, manufacturing, billing, the company lawyers, the distribution department, and your mother. Because if they don’t know what the official message is, they will make up their own. And you won’t necessarily be happy with what they choose.
3) Make it someone’s responsibility to continually monitor what’s being said about your company to ensure it is consistent with your message. Not just online (although that’s an important venue), but in any communication and on any materials your company disseminates. Advertisements, news releases, promotional items, trade show literature, letterheads-- everything! If you’re not vigilant, you’ll be surprised how fast and how far you can drift off message.
In any competitive situation, it matters what you say. Make sure you’re saying what you want to about your company, brand or product. It will pay off!
If you’d like assistance in staying on message, YOUR CMO is here, and happy to help
Even before advertising and mass communication, companies worked hard to keep their individual salespeople singing out of the same hymnal. Then we added in print and broadcast media. And today we’ve piled on the internet and social media. And it’s not just the different mediums. You also have to consider the type of communication--promotional versus brand-building versus public relations.
In today’s attention-challenged world, it makes sense that you want your company’s message confined to a handful of easily understood and remembered points (hopefully focused on competitive advantages). Frankly, you’re doing well if you can communicate that much!
So here are three steps you should ensure are being taken by your marketing team:
1) Know what your message is.
Keep it simple-- no more than two to three points.
Focus on competitive advantages--if your points are generic, they’re just as likely to be associated with the competition in consumers’ minds.
Make sure you’ve got internal buy-in for your messaging (you don’t need co-workers sabotaging you by delivering by communicating conflicting information)
2) Make sure everyone in your company knows what your message is. EVERYONE! The service department, manufacturing, billing, the company lawyers, the distribution department, and your mother. Because if they don’t know what the official message is, they will make up their own. And you won’t necessarily be happy with what they choose.
3) Make it someone’s responsibility to continually monitor what’s being said about your company to ensure it is consistent with your message. Not just online (although that’s an important venue), but in any communication and on any materials your company disseminates. Advertisements, news releases, promotional items, trade show literature, letterheads-- everything! If you’re not vigilant, you’ll be surprised how fast and how far you can drift off message.
In any competitive situation, it matters what you say. Make sure you’re saying what you want to about your company, brand or product. It will pay off!
If you’d like assistance in staying on message, YOUR CMO is here, and happy to help
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Are you evolving?
If you haven’t noticed, we’re living in a time of accelerated evolution.
You remember evolution. Darwin goes sailing and ends up rocking the establishment by proposing “only the strong survive” (made into a popular song by Jerry Butler in 1968).
EVOLVING TECHNOLOGY
Physical evolutionary changes still take millennia. But technological evolution has gone from taking centuries to decades to years to months. Mobile phones are replacing laptops which replaced desktops which replaced mainframes. 3D movies are succeeding 2D movies, digital recording has made film extinct, email has almost replaced snail mail, and so on. New technology can be outmoded before it is even introduced.
Since the pace of technology is unlikely to slow at our request, it behooves us to learn how to surf the technology wave. Those who succeed will “evolve” and prosper. Those who do not will join the Neanderthals.
EVOLVING MARKETERS
Evolving marketers don’t need to master every new tool or technique. They just need to know enough about it to fit it into their marketing toolkits. Is Twitter appropriate for every business? No. But marketers need to know enough about Twitter, or Search Engine Advertising, or Foursquare, or whatever, to understand when it is appropriate.
The evolving marketer is the proverbial “jack of all trades, master of none.” Instead of mastering specific tools or techniques, this marketer concentrates on building a network of experts who can be called on to execute programs. This marketer taps opportunities to stay abreast of change, and learn the pros and cons of the options it provides. And this marketer develop the ability to analyze problems so that he or she can select the right options to provide a profitable solution.
If you feel like your marketing is living in the past, remember Your CMO has the analytic ability, up-to-date knowledge, and expert network to provide evolutionary marketing for any of your needs.
You remember evolution. Darwin goes sailing and ends up rocking the establishment by proposing “only the strong survive” (made into a popular song by Jerry Butler in 1968).
EVOLVING TECHNOLOGY
Physical evolutionary changes still take millennia. But technological evolution has gone from taking centuries to decades to years to months. Mobile phones are replacing laptops which replaced desktops which replaced mainframes. 3D movies are succeeding 2D movies, digital recording has made film extinct, email has almost replaced snail mail, and so on. New technology can be outmoded before it is even introduced.
Since the pace of technology is unlikely to slow at our request, it behooves us to learn how to surf the technology wave. Those who succeed will “evolve” and prosper. Those who do not will join the Neanderthals.
EVOLVING MARKETERS
Evolving marketers don’t need to master every new tool or technique. They just need to know enough about it to fit it into their marketing toolkits. Is Twitter appropriate for every business? No. But marketers need to know enough about Twitter, or Search Engine Advertising, or Foursquare, or whatever, to understand when it is appropriate.
The evolving marketer is the proverbial “jack of all trades, master of none.” Instead of mastering specific tools or techniques, this marketer concentrates on building a network of experts who can be called on to execute programs. This marketer taps opportunities to stay abreast of change, and learn the pros and cons of the options it provides. And this marketer develop the ability to analyze problems so that he or she can select the right options to provide a profitable solution.
If you feel like your marketing is living in the past, remember Your CMO has the analytic ability, up-to-date knowledge, and expert network to provide evolutionary marketing for any of your needs.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
“80% of Success is Showing Up…”
…is a famous Woody Allen quote. You can apply it in several ways.
During a recent sales brainstorming session, two of these applications jumped out at me.
1. You need a presence. Like the lottery commercials say, if you don’t play, you can’t win.
2. You can’t just “phone it in.” You have to give it your best effort.
Staying in touch with prospects is hard, and requires a disciplined partnership between sales and marketing. Once the seller has identified the right person for the right product, MARKETING can provide the automated touches to maintain awareness and build credibility until the right time occurs and the prospect (hopefully) raises their hand. Meanwhile, through periodic face-to-face meetings, SALES refines the seller’s understanding of the prospect’s needs and wants, and closes the sale when the time is right.
Back to Woody’s quote, and the two applications identified above. You have to stay in touch with the prospect. You need an ongoing presence--mailings, calls, and occasional face-to-face meetings.
And your presence has to be meaningful. I’m talking about tailoring my communications to the prospect’s needs and stressing your product’s benefits at every opportunity. Sending someone a generic ‘newsletter’ once a quarter doesn’t cut it. Neither does a phone call or lunch to “see how things are going.”
We’re all pressed for time and we’re all being pushed for results. But developing a customer relationship is something you cannot rush. You have to “show up” regularly in a meaningful way. Remember, that’s 80% of success!
During a recent sales brainstorming session, two of these applications jumped out at me.
1. You need a presence. Like the lottery commercials say, if you don’t play, you can’t win.
2. You can’t just “phone it in.” You have to give it your best effort.
Staying in touch with prospects is hard, and requires a disciplined partnership between sales and marketing. Once the seller has identified the right person for the right product, MARKETING can provide the automated touches to maintain awareness and build credibility until the right time occurs and the prospect (hopefully) raises their hand. Meanwhile, through periodic face-to-face meetings, SALES refines the seller’s understanding of the prospect’s needs and wants, and closes the sale when the time is right.
Back to Woody’s quote, and the two applications identified above. You have to stay in touch with the prospect. You need an ongoing presence--mailings, calls, and occasional face-to-face meetings.
And your presence has to be meaningful. I’m talking about tailoring my communications to the prospect’s needs and stressing your product’s benefits at every opportunity. Sending someone a generic ‘newsletter’ once a quarter doesn’t cut it. Neither does a phone call or lunch to “see how things are going.”
We’re all pressed for time and we’re all being pushed for results. But developing a customer relationship is something you cannot rush. You have to “show up” regularly in a meaningful way. Remember, that’s 80% of success!
Start with the easiest or hardest problems first?
You’ve probably heard the saying: “When you’ve got a hammer, everything looks like a nail.”
Each of us has developed a toolkit of tools and processes which have worked for us in the past. And those are what we use to solve new problems as we encounter them. In fact, we tend to prioritize problems based on how easily we think they can be solved using this toolkit. Problems that don’t “fit” our toolkit tend to get pushed to the bottom of the list. And why not? Subconsciously, we’re prioritizing from “most likely to solve” to “least likely to solve.”
I’d like to suggest that if you want to be successful--both personally and corporately--you need to reverse those priorities. Anyone can use common tools to solve common problems. What you want to specialize in is finding new tools to solve uncommon problems.
Apple faced the seemingly insoluble challenge of trying to survive as a very weak #2 in a PC world. Instead of going head-to-head using conventional tools, they began redefining computers by use--creating the I-POD, the I-PHONE, and the I-PAD. Wouldn’t you like those successes on your resume?
Dealing with the little, common problems can be very satisfying. We all like to ACCOMPLISH. But solving little problems isn’t going help you build a competitive advantage. And solving little problems isn’t going to give your career that quantum leap you dream about.
So when you’re prioritizing, move the “insoluble” problems up the list. You won’t solve all of them; but then, it only takes one to turn you into a hero. Warning: These problems probably won’t respond to a “hammer.” So you’ll need to discover or design new tools. But then you’ll have a bigger toolkit than the rest of the pack, and isn’t that a good thing?
Looking for some help with your “insoluble” problems? Give me a call. I may have something in my toolkit that can help. And if not, we’ll invent something!
Each of us has developed a toolkit of tools and processes which have worked for us in the past. And those are what we use to solve new problems as we encounter them. In fact, we tend to prioritize problems based on how easily we think they can be solved using this toolkit. Problems that don’t “fit” our toolkit tend to get pushed to the bottom of the list. And why not? Subconsciously, we’re prioritizing from “most likely to solve” to “least likely to solve.”
I’d like to suggest that if you want to be successful--both personally and corporately--you need to reverse those priorities. Anyone can use common tools to solve common problems. What you want to specialize in is finding new tools to solve uncommon problems.
Apple faced the seemingly insoluble challenge of trying to survive as a very weak #2 in a PC world. Instead of going head-to-head using conventional tools, they began redefining computers by use--creating the I-POD, the I-PHONE, and the I-PAD. Wouldn’t you like those successes on your resume?
Dealing with the little, common problems can be very satisfying. We all like to ACCOMPLISH. But solving little problems isn’t going help you build a competitive advantage. And solving little problems isn’t going to give your career that quantum leap you dream about.
So when you’re prioritizing, move the “insoluble” problems up the list. You won’t solve all of them; but then, it only takes one to turn you into a hero. Warning: These problems probably won’t respond to a “hammer.” So you’ll need to discover or design new tools. But then you’ll have a bigger toolkit than the rest of the pack, and isn’t that a good thing?
Looking for some help with your “insoluble” problems? Give me a call. I may have something in my toolkit that can help. And if not, we’ll invent something!
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