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November 28, 2008
On My Mind. Black Friday Morning.
It's Black Friday. This year, for obvious reasons, many people are presuming that the moniker will be appropriate, with an assumption of weak sales built into the nation's collective mindset.
Here are my quick thoughts:
- We sat around as a family last night (we're all grown adults, mind you) and watched "The Incredibles" on NBC last night. Here's what I thought was incredible...There were 3 minutes of commercials for every 10 minutes of TV time. If ever there was a user experience intended to piss a consumer off and drive Tivo sales, that was it.
- Despite a down economy, consumerism appears to be alive, if not well. Today's "big sales" start at 5 am, 4 am and other insane times. I guess when you have nothing big to say you just shout it louder and earlier? Gone are aspirational values in favor of marketing the value of our values. A sign of the times, but not a good one for earnings.
- My daughter was asking for thoughts on the sudden global stock market correlation. My thought...money is global. With global investment markets more transparent and goods/services fully international, institutional money travels to an investment opportunity at a click of a mouse, making individual market location less relevant. Personal money? Most personal money is locked in institutional vehicles (funds, etc.). I think there is an important message in there for marketers...
- The tragic events in India should remind us all why countries need to talk so that we can work together on terrorism before we all devolve. Unilateralism won't solve the problem any more.
Happy shopping.
Posted by jcioban at 7:49 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 26, 2008
All The Advertising In The World Couldn't Save GM.
Breaking news from eMarketer...Online ad spending is slowing. Yes, the growth is still better than traditional advertising, but I think the news should serve as a sobering reminder that businesses must build sustainable value. What's the point?
The blog community is wagging this AM about the loss of popular, but under-revenued, services "I Want Sandy" and "Stikkit". More casualities of a world ripe with invention, but sometimes short on a sustainable business model. (Hey, Twitter peeps, what's the model :-| )
WIth Google's success, there is a rush of businesses seeking to capture eyeballs then figure how to monetize them, or businesses that will be built on ad revenue. In a 90s redux...the more things change, the more they stay the same?
So, how does GM fit in? The auto makers were the largest ad spenders in the world, but all that is changing now that they too realize that you can't advertise your way out of a "crappy-product box." So, they like lots of other big-spenders are trimming those inflated ad budgets. Potentially, this leaves lots of smaller, ad-fueled businesses hanging by a lifeline. Advertising couldn't save GM, and it probably won't be the fuel that powers the new American economy.
I was talking to a colleague last night about the state of publishing. Beyond the Wall Street Journal, few publishers have figured how to turn online properties into monetized assets. By comparison, a MarketingSherpa subscription is $397 (a $250 savings off the "regular" price ;-). They gave away product for a while to build an audience, but then listened and figured out where the "value" was. For companies like GM with an established audience, listening to customers becomes the key to long-term survival. (That, and being adaptable and understanding the immersive and interactive nature of media today.) Along the way, lots of businesses will need to transform, or face the scary end-game that GM is facing now.
Posted by jcioban at 7:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 25, 2008
Starting A Print Production Optimization Program.
According to analyst InfoTrends, the total cost for document production/distribution in corporations, when accounting for both internally printed (i.e. office documents) and commercially printed documents, averages over 6% of total revenue, with industries such as healthcare (>8%), computer/data services (>10%), advertising/marketing (>14%), and government (>15%) even higher.* So, in budget pressured times, document production is a place people look closely for savings. All too often, however, the focus for savings is not correct.
The process costs associated with document creation and distribution far outweigh the print production costs. The data supporting the graphic to the left is drawn from InfoTrends' Michael O'Leary who presented at GraphExpo 2008 citing the InfoTrends report "Cost of Business Communications: A Look At The Business Document Lifecycle." This 6:1 cost ratio is a stark reminder that the real costs in those documents are not at the press or printer.
Using online display and e-delivery techniques helps reduce document costs...and companies are quickly looking at how to leverage Web tools to cut hard-copy costs. Another technology that has been growing rapidly because of its potential to address this cost issue, is digital printing. Using strategies such as "on-demand replenishment" (print a larger quantity that you know will be used, then do shorter replenishment runs via digital) or on-demand fulfillment (producing doucments in real-time as they are requested) can indeed produce measureable savings. However, neither technique is a universal solution, especially in a market where end-users truly define the best medium for communicating with them.
In fact, as we see daily in our work with clients, to really begin to optimize print production costs requires a wholistic view of document needs from the end-user perspective coupled with integration of all available production and distribution technologies. Getting the balance right can not only reduce costs, but also create measurable improvements in communication effectiveness by enhancing personalization and relevance of the delivered content.
We will explore this topic in more detail over the coming months, but an immediate takeaway is the need to establish a basic framework for assessing document use and production options, especially when the established production process involves large press runs or any inventory costs. Creating long-term optimization begins by creating near-term understanding of end-user rquirements and costs. By defining some low-hanging fruit opportunities for optimization (in marketing, customer support, internal communication, etc.), you can begin to establish the disciplines needed for broader optimization strategies.
* InfoTrends/CAP Ventures. Costs for Major Organizations Worldwide: Perception 3% vs. Reality 6% (http://www.capv.com/home/Press/2005/9.28.05.html)
Posted by jcioban at 8:54 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 23, 2008
The E-Mail Challenge. Or, Why Print Isn't Dead.
Today, I logged into my personal e-mail account and mercilessly deleted dozens of e-mails from companies whose e-mails I opted-in to receive. I used my caller ID to avoid any calls from numbers I did not want to talk to. I discarded a host of junk mail. BUT, I did keep the coupons and catalogs from the stores I enjoy shopping at or whose websites I use regularly.
Now, I am no Luddite. In fact, I am a dedicated online marketer. I blog, use Twitter, follow multiple blogs on my RSS reader, have accounts in multiple social networks. At work, we develop and support Web-based applications for marketing, so I spend every day immersed in online media.
In my personal life, I am a marketers dream. I am a proficient gourmet cook, enjoy fine wine, travel globally, pursue active sports including cycling and kayaking, am a decent carpenter/woodworker, an avid reader, and even find time to work out at least five days a week. So, I have lots of "things" I need. I read the NY Times, Wired, BusinessWeek and one or two other business journals in print...everything else I get from online.
The point? While I read some of the consumer-oriented e-mail I get, I am more likely activated by traditional media sources that provide solid sensory impact. I pour through e-mail at lightning speed and delete anything that is not top-of-mind...meaning if I have no pre-existing reason to be looking at REI merchandise, I won't even open their e-mail. Of course, when I when I need a new cycling jersey, I would be inclined to open an e-mail if one was in my Inbox. And, when I open it, I am really engaged. But, then again, I don't typically start shopping in e-mail. Usually, I just log onto the EMS or REI site first...
E-mail is a powerful medium, but to rely on it excessively (a common problem in B2B markets) -- whether in B2B or B2B context, is to risk missing opportunity. The most powerful marketing strategies cross media venues, and let users define the medium most preferred. Good advice as we approach the most clogged season for e-mail marketing!
Posted by jcioban at 8:17 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 20, 2008
Hubris, Blindness, and Marketing. Oh, And GM's Demise.
Joe Jaffe's Jaffe Juice posting today got me to laugh. He railed about many things automotive, but I was really amused by the venom for the Cadillac commerical staring Kate Walsh. For me, there is a real lesson for brand managers and marketers who are trying to understand the movements of markets in the dynamic world we live in.
Few times in business do you actually get to watch a company driving itself into the abyss while screaming its presumed virtues. The utterly ridiculous Kate Walsh commercial is frankly only one of the Cadillac commercials that seem (to many of us) to be aimed at inner-city drug kingpins, dominant pimps, people whose sole mission it is to destroy the earth, and women who apparently like the feel of a ... .
Modernista!, a highly skilled agency with plenty of knowledge about alternate media, had the assignment to breath life into a dying brand. That they did, albeit perhaps in a way that many of us find odd. The 30-second spot was prominent (but not exclusive) to their efforts. And in fact, they found the market niche that existed.
But because a niche exists, doesn't mean that smart managers in companies like GM should cater to it. Instead of pouring energy into the Cadillac CTS, if they had figured how to build and market the Volt, there might be people lining up to "save GM" in its time of need, (Amazing how helpful the market can be when it's on your side.) Instead, many of us look at the gas-guzzling CTS, see their over-the-top ads, and say "what a perfect target to kick right now."
GM needed to jettison brands (still does!) -- not hold onto them in their death-throes. Thanks in part to advertising, GM made it to November 2008. But in the end, a blend of hubris, blindness, and insular thinking have taken GM to the brink, and left most of us thinking we'd like to be the finger that pushes them over the edge. Anyone with the most minimal knowledge of social media has been able to feel the brand revulsion ages ago. Perhaps an even greater agency effort could have helped GM's clueless brand managers to read the writing on the 'Net.
P.S. Ford, Chrysler...don't even begin to get me started.... ;-)
Posted by jcioban at 7:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Marketing Strategy, Financial Strategy...Or No Strategy At All.
Between blogs, websites, salespeople desperate for orders, magazines, and other media, there is no shortage of advice for marketers these days. So many tactics, and so little time!
My biggest piece of advice continues to be: understand the client. So many people say "we want to migrate more of our marketing to online to control costs"....but that is not a "marketing" strategy. That is a financial strategy. In fact, it is not really a "strategy" at all...it is a tactical reflection of the decision to reduce marketing expenditures.
With so many media choices, the decision to migrate to online media should be accompanied by a clear plan to account for client-preferences, client needs, and client value. Moving online can help you create more cost-efficient touches with clients, but it does not inherently help you strengthen your relationships with clients, and thus, if done poorly, can end up being a big waste of money.
Posted by jcioban at 7:26 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 18, 2008
What Is An Application? iGoogle and Beyond.
This is the first in what will become a series of posts regarding the evolution of software applications and its relation to . I am very interested in the changes, in part because we deliver a number of applications tageting sales channel partners (i.e dealers, distributors, etc) for corporate clients, and have noticed how increasingly difficult it is to get the focused-attention of sales teams. Tough economic times are not going to help.
To fight "sales dis-attention", most companies use typical "sales" techniques...make the information into a game, throw lots of promotional contests up against the wall...and the list goes on. In reality, the answer is no defined by games or gimmicks (although they have a place). Especially in tough economic times, the focus needs to be on determining what "real" value is, and in making user environments both interesting and useful. Of course, "interesting" and "useful" are both relative and personal -- one size does not fit all users.
Which leads to what is an application today? Look at the Google Apps/iGoogle environment and you can see nascient world of new applications -- customer-configurable modules in a shell that let a user define "value" in their terms. Data feeds and tools are supplied as required, but users build the final screen.
Is this "usable" in classic terms? Perhaps not, but new Gen Y workforce entrants have grown up in this world, and even boomers are quickly adapting to software spaces where they can "mix their own." Classic definitions of delivering applications to employees and customers need not apply.
For us, this new environment is partly a technical challenge, but even more, it is a cultural one -- most customers are not only unfamiliar with the chnages, but are not informationally ready to support this new era. But the trend is well-defined and the future is closer than you think.
Posted by jcioban at 11:44 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 16, 2008
Selling Through Distribution.
I was in Whole Foods last night, buying food to prepare a dinner at my daughter's apartment. Whole Foods is not like a standard grocery store/supermarket. It is a cross between a gourmet specialty shop and a high-end supermarket. I bought golden beets, organic baby lettuce mix, lamb sausage, fresh swordfish, French picholine olives, Pyrenees cheese with green peppercorns, flaxseed crackers, and a decadent carrot cake.
I went to Whole Foods knowing it would be more expensive, but drawn by the wide selection, the variety of natural and organic products, and the freshness of its food. The staff there is friendly. They think of little things like having tape handy to secure the lid on the olive container before bagging. The experience at Whole Foods is something I look forward to.
For manufacturers whose products are on the shelves, Whole Foods attracts a consistent and motivated set of buyers. At the same time, it pits you against tough competition including the house brand in many categories. It represents both the promise and the challenge of selling through distribution in today's marketplace.
Whole Foods is under duress in the tough economy. Not as many people can afford the price premium that Whole Foods and the organic/natural category dictate. And more competitors are emerging, as chains like Safeway and Trader Joe's cut into the market. Whole Foods is looking for manufacturers to help it promote its baseline message of healthy, natural living to help drive in-store traffic. This symbiosis is essential in all channel distribution, but has been stripped away in many/most markets.
I was in Whole Foods last night...and in addition to a great dinner, I got a real reminder of the battle that is underway in channel distribution, as markets continue to evolve, e-commerce penetration increases, and brands struggle with innovation, cost control and distirbution efficiency.
Posted by jcioban at 10:51 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 15, 2008
Silver Lining Thinking. Fighting Back A Recession.
The economic news from this past week was abysmal, and next week holds the prospect of another monster layoff at Citi and continued erosion in Detroit. Now what?
Back on September 2, ComScore released study data on consumer spending in light of the housing meltdown and recession fears. In that report is a silver lining for those businesses with the ability to deliver on new options and points of presence for hard-pressed consumers.
"With consumers increasingly cost conscious, many are turning to the Internet for pricing information. The survey findings revealed that nearly three out of four consumers believe the Internet has made it 'a lot easier' or 'somewhat easier' to find better, more useful pricing information. "
Finding better prices is the tip of the iceberg. As in any time of great change, there will be technical, social and behavial inflections during this recession. One big widely apparent trend is that people are looking at how the Internet can help them...find jobs, shop smarter, learn new skills, etc., etc., etc. That translates into opportunity on the business side.
About two weeks, I did a Twitter posting spreading the word about a Seth Godin blog entry I though had some profound comments in it. With apologies to Seth, here are the words that caught me. (full posting is here)
"I believe that we're on the verge of some exponential increases in productivity. Productivity in marketing as the waste of reaching the masses goes away. Productivity in energy as we figure out how to make a renewable process that gives us incremental units of power for free (think about the impact of that for a moment) and productivity in group work and management as we allow the network to do more than let us watch stupid YouTube videos at work. The three biggest expenses of most endeavors (the energy to make it, the people who create it and the marketing that spreads the idea) are about to be overhauled."
This economic downturn is rapidly shaping up to be the most traumatic that many of us have experienced in our lives. But, getting out of the malaise takes positive action by lots of people and businesses. And finding the silver lining in the bad news is part of the positive action.
Posted by jcioban at 10:19 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 14, 2008
How Not To Gain Market Share
Starbucks announced a 97% drop in profits recently. In tough times, those expensive lattes and macchiatos just don't seem as necessary. All the more reason why you would expect Dunkin Donuts to really be emphasizing service right now.
So, when I went into one of the local Dunkin Donuts stores at 8 am yesterday to buy a dozen bagels for a meeting, I was expecting great service. I was surprised to find they had 13 bagels on the racks (that's total number, not varieties). When I asked the salesperson if that's all they had, she looked at me like I was speaking in tongues. In fact, of my last four stops at a Dunkin Donuts, I have gotten the experience above, a wrong order, a burned sandwich after the one person making them got no help from the 6 people standing around the cash registers, and a one correct order.
I understand how hard it is for large franchises to reach all the employees and to ensure consistent consumer experience. But with all the new social media options and tools available, there are so many NEW ways to reach, motivate, empower and train employees to deliver on a brand's promise. Not having bagels on hand at 8 am is a managerial problem. Having a bad consumer facing manner is an employee and managerial problem. Both are addressable if the company really cared to.
Starbucks has its own issues, but has made a living attempting to deliver a positive consumer attitude. Even when lines are long, Starbuck's baristas try to have a personality and make you feel valued. If DD expects to gain sustainable share at the higher end of the price specturm, I think an attitude adjustment is in order. Or perhaps they don't really want to gain share from Starbucks after all.
(P.S. I know that DD is likely gaining share thanks to the economy. But it won't be sustainable if the service does not warrant loyalty.)
Posted by jcioban at 12:11 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 11, 2008
Personalized Print...Getting It Right Matters.
I get a fair amount of creatively personalized mail lately. I especially like the ones where my name is spelled in cheerleaders or other interesting shapes. And typically, after admiring the lovely printing job, I throw the pieces out.
So it was (albeit less creatively personalized) with a recent insurance mailing. It was for smoking cessation programs. Admirable cause, but neither I nor my wife are smokers. It bothers me when my insurance carrier can't get my profile right so that I could get useful information, instead of wasting my premiums on mailings that I don't need.
Way back in 2004, in a white paper titled “Beyond the Storm: How Innovation Can Enhance Business Performance In the Insurance Industry”, Accenture noted:
“The most ambitious opportunity for insurance companies equipped with a wealth of information and the systems to use it, is to step into the role of information broker. As consumers try to find the happy medium between tailored offerings and invasions of privacy, they may welcome the help of a trusted broker to help them decide what insight to share and with whom. Insurance companies could step into that role, which is a natural extension of many companies’ brand identities as friends, neighbors, protectors.”
Because I am in the business of sales and marketing support, I know that it can be hard to get data gathered and organized. I also know that while e-mail is cheaper, I ignore lots and lots of e-mail. So, direct mail is a good way to periodically touch me. However, CRM programs are seriously undermined when you send people mis-information. From personal experience, I know that a little extra work upfront pays off in increased response. A little sloppiness can set a campaign back and eat away at precious ROI in the increasingly expense direct mail medium.
Posted by jcioban at 7:27 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 9, 2008
Nike Gets It (Again)
Recently a Gartner analyst projected that over 75% of Fortune 1000 companies will attempt some type of online social-networking initiative for marketing or customer relations, but that 50% of those programs will fail. Take a look at one that didn't....
An article in the current issue of BusinessWeek ("This Social Network Is Up and Running") profiles Nike's popular Nike+ social network. With over 800,000 users, it is a brand-building phenomenon and the article does a great job telling how Nike is monetizing the audience. So, why does it work so well?
Value. Social media relies on the brand/company being authentic, consistent and approachable...but first and foremost on delivering value. The Nike+ site touches the readers at an emotional level by supplying a platform for sharing and socializing...and for feeding the competitive beast inside the athlete...even the occassional one. As it turns out that is a big deal, as shown by the following text in a training tip posted on the site now -- "the stretching circle’s primary function was to refocus our attention from classwork to the workout and to provide a social outlet."
In some respects, the site is like my health club -- a social venue that helps me motivate to get my workout done. Along the way, Nike+ provides a few clever tools (online logs), products that support training, and a means for Nike to organize large group events across geographies that extend the socialization concept intot he physical world.
I am not a Nike+ user, but I am a GarminConnect subscriber -- a service which tries (in a much smaller way) to do similar thing for cyclists using Garmin's portable GPS, so I can relate. Garmin has tied me more tightly to its brand by delivering a suite of tools that help me catalog my cycling adventures while turning me into a brand ambassador.
Gartner's dire forecast is not surprising, since most companies have yet to create real dialogue with customers in order to define a true "value" for their initiatives. Instead, their social media experiments will be echo chambers for their boradcast sales messages. But, without value, social media sites are quickly relegated to the scrap heap of failures, no matter how much money may back them.
BTW...competitors for the loyalty of Nike+ subscribers is popping up. The Daily Mile is in private beta now. Of course, Nike has already gotten a bump from this phase of its effort. We'll see what's next!
Posted by jcioban at 9:19 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 7, 2008
Controlling The Message (Not)
Two recent consumer-side projects really illustrate how the trend toward consumer engagement is fully-established. Brian Eno and David Byrne's remix page on the Bush of Ghosts album page, and Umphrey's McGee prelaunch website both permit users access to exclusive content where they are encouraged to "create" instead of just "listen" or "buy". Admittedly, Byrne and Eno are icons of free-thinking and Umphrey's is a "new-age" band steeped in social media thinking, but the concepts remain valid given the traditional approach to control in the music industry.
Bush of Ghosts: 
Umphrey's McGee Page: 
By comparison, most B2B marketers (and frankly, most consumer marketers) are still trying to "control" the message instead of engaging in active dialogue or interaction with customers...and especially with channel partners, when it comes to Extranet communications. Given long enough, the mainstream will eventually adapt to the new thinking, but leadership opportunities abound for B2B marketers who can apply the concepts of content engagement and customer/channel dialogue into their marketing in the manner in which the leading edge of consumer marketers are today. Brian Eno and David Byrne are boomer-era musicians who are teaching a lot of savvy marketers about Web 2.0. How are you applying the lesson?
Posted by jcioban at 8:05 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 3, 2008
Tastes Great. Less Filling. It Was More Than An Ad Slogan.
Comedian Bill Cosby is quoted as saying "I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody." The wisdom in those words is no joke.
In a market filled with competitors, the challenge of differentiation is more critical than ever. Does your brand stand for something? Do you know what market segment constitutes your critical customer base? Do you understand the buying motivations of your core customers? These are not B2B or B2C issues. These are universal questions.
Recently, Subway introduced the $5 Footlong promotions and it has been methodically eating away at Quiznos market share ever since. Credit the economy for helping support the campaign by refocusing the buyers on what really mattered to them. Even when Quiznos matched the price, people went back to the value proposition that made sense to them. People don't eat Subway because it "tastes great". They eat Subway because it is convenient (read...fast and on nearly every block!), affordable, and reasonably healthy in comparison to many other fast-food options. When we were flush with cash, we were willing to experiment with taste, but when times got tough, we returned to the "authentic" original. The program was enhanced by the fast that Subway's distribution chain can support that price point while allowing franchisees to make money...something that the $5 price point doesn't allow at Quiznos.
Marketing today is all about developing messaging that reaches to the core of a buyer's wants and needs. The message won't be universal — segmentation and targeting are critical. The tools are available to reach wide audiences with targeted messaging, so the excuse can't be "we couldn't execute." If your programs aren't executing on targeted messaging, you may be spending lots on marketing, but it may be going unnoticed in a sea of undifferentiated pablum.
Posted by jcioban at 7:24 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
