Hi,
Radio personality Alan Jones wields immense political power. He has the ear of premiers and prime ministers because they think he can influence voters. But who can he influence? asked the Australia Institute in a web paper in June 2006. Jones listeners are far older than average, more likely to be pensioners, and more likely to be religious than the average listener, according to Roy Morgan figures. By a big margin. They are more likely to think fundamental Australian values are under threat and they also feel personally more under threat, ie. they feel crime is growing, contrary to the real trends. They are twice as likely to vote conservative than average. The study concludes that Alan Jones’s audience is small – about the same as a low rating TV show – and politically rusted-on to the conservatives. Therefore his influence is not based on his ability to shift votes, but fear of on air criticism. Marketers are aware of his power – not many major brands spend any money with his program. Could it be that there’s no one there worth talking to?
Cheers!
Michael
Friday, October 20, 2006
Thursday, October 19, 2006
I don't know you...
Hi,
There's a famous ad for McGraw-Hill Magazines from the 1960's.
A severe-looking purchasing officer looks directly at the reader and says:
"I don't know who you are.
"I don't know your company.
"I don't know your company's product.
"I don't know what your company stands for.
"I don't know your company's customers.
"I don't know your company's record.
"I don't know your company's reputation.
"Now - what was it you wanted to sell me?"
This was an ad for advertising. Corporate advertising. In those days everyone read magazines and newspapers and watched Television. Media was mass. We've still got to do this awareness and reassurance job, because human nature hasn't changed (and it never will). But we can't rely on ads. Instead, corporates must rely on "brand actions" to get their message across. "Brand actions" are behaviours that define the personality of the corporation - such as sponsorships, community initiatives (eg. Virgin's Richard Branson pledging US$3bn for climate change action), customer service philosophy, customer experience, and other actions which speak louder than words. The communications channels used are publicity via media reports, word of mouth networks, and signage at events - in other words, channels that have in the past been considered incidental. They are risky because you have less control. But get it right and you generate authenticity.
Cheers!
Michael
There's a famous ad for McGraw-Hill Magazines from the 1960's.
A severe-looking purchasing officer looks directly at the reader and says:
"I don't know who you are.
"I don't know your company.
"I don't know your company's product.
"I don't know what your company stands for.
"I don't know your company's customers.
"I don't know your company's record.
"I don't know your company's reputation.
"Now - what was it you wanted to sell me?"
This was an ad for advertising. Corporate advertising. In those days everyone read magazines and newspapers and watched Television. Media was mass. We've still got to do this awareness and reassurance job, because human nature hasn't changed (and it never will). But we can't rely on ads. Instead, corporates must rely on "brand actions" to get their message across. "Brand actions" are behaviours that define the personality of the corporation - such as sponsorships, community initiatives (eg. Virgin's Richard Branson pledging US$3bn for climate change action), customer service philosophy, customer experience, and other actions which speak louder than words. The communications channels used are publicity via media reports, word of mouth networks, and signage at events - in other words, channels that have in the past been considered incidental. They are risky because you have less control. But get it right and you generate authenticity.
Cheers!
Michael
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Fear Bad. Fear of Loss Good.
Hi,
Have you ever wondered why therearen't any insurance salesmen any more? It's because they used to try to
sell insurance by scaring people. "What would happen to your wife and the
children if you died in an accident, Mr Jones?" (Mr Jones thinks: I hate
you. Get away from me.) Fear is not good for sales. Fear of loss, however,
is good. "We might look at making some arrangements to protect your wealth
base no matter what happens, Mr Jones." (Mr Jones thinks: Damn right. Let's
do it right now.)
Cheers!
Michael
Have you ever wondered why therearen't any insurance salesmen any more? It's because they used to try to
sell insurance by scaring people. "What would happen to your wife and the
children if you died in an accident, Mr Jones?" (Mr Jones thinks: I hate
you. Get away from me.) Fear is not good for sales. Fear of loss, however,
is good. "We might look at making some arrangements to protect your wealth
base no matter what happens, Mr Jones." (Mr Jones thinks: Damn right. Let's
do it right now.)
Cheers!
Michael
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Opportunity knocks
Hi,
I just spent 3 weeks with some of the top scientists dealing with climate change in the USA and here's a fact they all agree on: no matter what we do about global warming, we can't stop it. We can only hope to reduce the speed of its increase and the maximum temperature it eventually hits. It won't be long before the real 'crisis' of Climate Change sets into the public mind. Inevitably we will have a fearful consumer. Lacking confidence in the future, they will be less inclined to spend. They will spend on entertainments (the Great Depression coincided with the rise of Hollywood's dream machine) and protection (survivalist products for coping in extreme weather events). Some areas will boom naturally. Some will be caught like rabbits in a spotlight. But the brands that have engaged their customers in the Climate Change story and shown they understand the issue, these brands will endure and contribute to the important work of maintaining morale. (See "Carbon Credited Opportunity" below.) As Franklin Delano Roosevelt told Americans deep in the Great Depression in 1933, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself."
Cheers!
Michael
I just spent 3 weeks with some of the top scientists dealing with climate change in the USA and here's a fact they all agree on: no matter what we do about global warming, we can't stop it. We can only hope to reduce the speed of its increase and the maximum temperature it eventually hits. It won't be long before the real 'crisis' of Climate Change sets into the public mind. Inevitably we will have a fearful consumer. Lacking confidence in the future, they will be less inclined to spend. They will spend on entertainments (the Great Depression coincided with the rise of Hollywood's dream machine) and protection (survivalist products for coping in extreme weather events). Some areas will boom naturally. Some will be caught like rabbits in a spotlight. But the brands that have engaged their customers in the Climate Change story and shown they understand the issue, these brands will endure and contribute to the important work of maintaining morale. (See "Carbon Credited Opportunity" below.) As Franklin Delano Roosevelt told Americans deep in the Great Depression in 1933, "We have nothing to fear but fear itself."
Cheers!
Michael
What have you been making?
Hi,
The death of Alfred Nobel was mistakenly reported in a newspaper before he had died. He was the inventor of dynamite and a major armaments manufacturer. "The merchant of death is dead," read the premature obituary. Given this premonition of how his reputation would be treated in death, he changed his will and left US$4.25m in the 1890's to establish the Nobel Prize Foundation. This year's Nobel Peace Prize was given to Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank. Yunus - a Bangladeshi businessman - invented microbanking, which means making small loans to poor people, mainly women, to start businesses so they can rise out of poverty. It has been a stunning success, making a profit and making a difference in the lives of thousands of Bangladeshis. Someone once said, "It's easy to make a buck; it's harder to make a difference." Both Yunus and Nobel made a buck. But they also made a difference. Someone else once said, "Some people spend their lives making a name for themselves; others make a difference." I guess Bill Gates, having given his fortune away to his philanthropic foundation, could prove that you can make a buck, and make a name for yourself, and make a difference. What are you making? Try the obituary test.
Cheers!
Michael
The death of Alfred Nobel was mistakenly reported in a newspaper before he had died. He was the inventor of dynamite and a major armaments manufacturer. "The merchant of death is dead," read the premature obituary. Given this premonition of how his reputation would be treated in death, he changed his will and left US$4.25m in the 1890's to establish the Nobel Prize Foundation. This year's Nobel Peace Prize was given to Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank. Yunus - a Bangladeshi businessman - invented microbanking, which means making small loans to poor people, mainly women, to start businesses so they can rise out of poverty. It has been a stunning success, making a profit and making a difference in the lives of thousands of Bangladeshis. Someone once said, "It's easy to make a buck; it's harder to make a difference." Both Yunus and Nobel made a buck. But they also made a difference. Someone else once said, "Some people spend their lives making a name for themselves; others make a difference." I guess Bill Gates, having given his fortune away to his philanthropic foundation, could prove that you can make a buck, and make a name for yourself, and make a difference. What are you making? Try the obituary test.
Cheers!
Michael
Friday, October 13, 2006
Carbon footprints to where?
Hi,
There are immediate marketing opportunities for companies wanting to leverage the NEXT BIG THING in consumer consciousness. Global Warming and Climate Change are real because more people believe in them, despite what the Government says. Every brand should be thinking of its response to their customers' question: "What are you doing to save the world?" News Ltd, Ford, Dupont, and Virgin are among the leaders in this issue. They are going 'carbon neutral' - reducing their emissions or paying others to 'sequester' or lock up carbon dioxide in amounts equivalent to their emissions. BP, Westpac, Origin Energy, and IAG are taking a leadership role. The front-foot approach involves the following: 1. Engage your CEO and Board. (McKinsey says: "The way a company manages its carbon exposure could create or destroy shareholder value." Goldman Sachs says, "Climate change is a topic that should be on the agenda of every Board of Directors.") 2. Audit your emissions. 3. Assess your potential for reductions by operational changes. 4. Estimate the offsets you will need to purchase to bring your "carbon footprint" down. 5. Engage your stakeholders - staff, suppliers, customers, shareholders - in the process. There are pitfalls to avoid: 1. As with any new market, there are many opportunists and snakeoil salespersons. 2. Some 'abatement offsets' being sold are 'junk', ie, not fit for the purpose for which they are offered for sale. 3. Companies that indulge in "greenwashing" (making a token effort, hoping to spin it out into an acceptable image of action) will be unmasked, and their deception will do them damage.
Cheers!
Michael
PS. I am available to advise your company on carbon-related issues.
There are immediate marketing opportunities for companies wanting to leverage the NEXT BIG THING in consumer consciousness. Global Warming and Climate Change are real because more people believe in them, despite what the Government says. Every brand should be thinking of its response to their customers' question: "What are you doing to save the world?" News Ltd, Ford, Dupont, and Virgin are among the leaders in this issue. They are going 'carbon neutral' - reducing their emissions or paying others to 'sequester' or lock up carbon dioxide in amounts equivalent to their emissions. BP, Westpac, Origin Energy, and IAG are taking a leadership role. The front-foot approach involves the following: 1. Engage your CEO and Board. (McKinsey says: "The way a company manages its carbon exposure could create or destroy shareholder value." Goldman Sachs says, "Climate change is a topic that should be on the agenda of every Board of Directors.") 2. Audit your emissions. 3. Assess your potential for reductions by operational changes. 4. Estimate the offsets you will need to purchase to bring your "carbon footprint" down. 5. Engage your stakeholders - staff, suppliers, customers, shareholders - in the process. There are pitfalls to avoid: 1. As with any new market, there are many opportunists and snakeoil salespersons. 2. Some 'abatement offsets' being sold are 'junk', ie, not fit for the purpose for which they are offered for sale. 3. Companies that indulge in "greenwashing" (making a token effort, hoping to spin it out into an acceptable image of action) will be unmasked, and their deception will do them damage.
Cheers!
Michael
PS. I am available to advise your company on carbon-related issues.
Thursday, October 12, 2006
Hey Al Gore – Less Is More
Hi,
Did you see An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore's movie about Al Gore and Climate
Change? An important message, the bit about climate change. The bits about
Al, his "green" credentials, his "almost the President of the USA" status,
and his family history were not necessary. In fact it gets in the way for
half his audience - his natural political enemies. I guess Al's speaking to
his supporter base, using this issue to reposition himself as relevant, as a
leader. But how much more powerful would it have been without the
biographical advertorial? David Attenborough has achieved almost Saintly
status without self-promotion. He just stands and delivers. Lesson: Don't
state the obvious. Let your audience draw the conclusion.
Cheers!
Michael
Did you see An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore's movie about Al Gore and Climate
Change? An important message, the bit about climate change. The bits about
Al, his "green" credentials, his "almost the President of the USA" status,
and his family history were not necessary. In fact it gets in the way for
half his audience - his natural political enemies. I guess Al's speaking to
his supporter base, using this issue to reposition himself as relevant, as a
leader. But how much more powerful would it have been without the
biographical advertorial? David Attenborough has achieved almost Saintly
status without self-promotion. He just stands and delivers. Lesson: Don't
state the obvious. Let your audience draw the conclusion.
Cheers!
Michael
The Price of Everything
Hi,
Churchill: Madam, would you sleep with me for five million pounds?
Socialite: My goodness, Mr. Churchill... Well, I suppose... we would have to discuss terms, of course...
Churchill: Would you sleep with me for five pounds?
Socialite: Mr. Churchill, what kind of woman do you think I am?!
Churchill: Madam, we've already established that. Now we are haggling about the price.
Two things happened to me in the last 2 days: 1. I was interviewed on ABC702 this morning about ambush marketing re Allan Border's resignation as an Australian test cricket selector yesterday (because he is fronting a beach cricket promotion for XXXX this season and VB "own" the test team). 2. On the flight back from the USA, I saw the movie Forty Legends starring comedian Ahn Do (and some of the turtles from our farm - Ahn's co-writer and wife Suzy is a friend of my daughter Jessica). In the movie Ahn's team of losers look like coming out on top when the sleazy coach of their biggest rival tries to poach the unemployed Ahn with an offer of a full time job (which would put an end to Child Welfare's attempt to take his little sister from his care - heart-breaking stuff). Of course, Ahn sticks with his mates and they win the day. Lesson for the kiddies: true loyalty can't be bought. But is that only in the movies? Has marketing put a price on everything?
Michael
Churchill: Madam, would you sleep with me for five million pounds?
Socialite: My goodness, Mr. Churchill... Well, I suppose... we would have to discuss terms, of course...
Churchill: Would you sleep with me for five pounds?
Socialite: Mr. Churchill, what kind of woman do you think I am?!
Churchill: Madam, we've already established that. Now we are haggling about the price.
Two things happened to me in the last 2 days: 1. I was interviewed on ABC702 this morning about ambush marketing re Allan Border's resignation as an Australian test cricket selector yesterday (because he is fronting a beach cricket promotion for XXXX this season and VB "own" the test team). 2. On the flight back from the USA, I saw the movie Forty Legends starring comedian Ahn Do (and some of the turtles from our farm - Ahn's co-writer and wife Suzy is a friend of my daughter Jessica). In the movie Ahn's team of losers look like coming out on top when the sleazy coach of their biggest rival tries to poach the unemployed Ahn with an offer of a full time job (which would put an end to Child Welfare's attempt to take his little sister from his care - heart-breaking stuff). Of course, Ahn sticks with his mates and they win the day. Lesson for the kiddies: true loyalty can't be bought. But is that only in the movies? Has marketing put a price on everything?
Michael
Attack Advertising
Hi,
The world's greatest democracy is in election mode right now and the TV screens are beaming out nasty ads trashing the reputations of everyone in the race for governor, judge, congressman, senator, sherrif, bus monitor, etc. They say dispicable things about their competitors because, apparently, it works.... The current President's dad used it to great effect against Michael Dukarkis. Well, it may work, but any fool can see that these ads are damaging the category. If everyone running is proved to be a liar, cheat, fraud, crook, etc. then it's no wonder Americans don't turn out to vote and it's not surprising that people have lost respect for public institutions. It's no wonder crime rates go up and young people take drugs. Their leaders are a bunch of crooks. According to their leaders.
Cheers!
Michael
………….
The world's greatest democracy is in election mode right now and the TV screens are beaming out nasty ads trashing the reputations of everyone in the race for governor, judge, congressman, senator, sherrif, bus monitor, etc. They say dispicable things about their competitors because, apparently, it works.... The current President's dad used it to great effect against Michael Dukarkis. Well, it may work, but any fool can see that these ads are damaging the category. If everyone running is proved to be a liar, cheat, fraud, crook, etc. then it's no wonder Americans don't turn out to vote and it's not surprising that people have lost respect for public institutions. It's no wonder crime rates go up and young people take drugs. Their leaders are a bunch of crooks. According to their leaders.
Cheers!
Michael
………….
You choose
Hi,
Spin doctoring may be an ethical wasteland and all its practitioners damned to Hell and karmic suffering for all eternity. But it's fun to watch. President Bush: "When we say war, we really mean peace." LOL. The movie "Thank You For Smoking" has some of the best spinning I have ever witnessed, defending the right of tobacco companies to poison children. It convinced me. His motivation: "I've got a mortgage to pay. Besides I'm good at it." Ethical? Ethics is about the right and wrong thing to do. But often the wrong thing can be masked in language of the right thing - to enable us to act unethically. Our spin doctor claimed he was interested in the rights of the individual. He fought for the individual's right to choose to smoke rather than their right to know of the dangers of smoking. Do we have a duty of care for the people who we sell to? As fellow human beings? Or are they simply units of consumption who have the duty to look out for themselves? Who decides this question? We do. We have the right to choose.
Michael
Spin doctoring may be an ethical wasteland and all its practitioners damned to Hell and karmic suffering for all eternity. But it's fun to watch. President Bush: "When we say war, we really mean peace." LOL. The movie "Thank You For Smoking" has some of the best spinning I have ever witnessed, defending the right of tobacco companies to poison children. It convinced me. His motivation: "I've got a mortgage to pay. Besides I'm good at it." Ethical? Ethics is about the right and wrong thing to do. But often the wrong thing can be masked in language of the right thing - to enable us to act unethically. Our spin doctor claimed he was interested in the rights of the individual. He fought for the individual's right to choose to smoke rather than their right to know of the dangers of smoking. Do we have a duty of care for the people who we sell to? As fellow human beings? Or are they simply units of consumption who have the duty to look out for themselves? Who decides this question? We do. We have the right to choose.
Michael
The Pursuit of Happiness
.
Hi,
The Declaration of Independence starts with these words: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The United States of America was the first nation to be founded on the principle of happiness. How has the experiment gone? Well, there have been multiple slayings at three schools in six days over here this week. The bookshops are full of books about depression which is epidemic. The newspapers are full of reports of official corruption and sleaze. Judges routinely take political contributions from parties to cases they are judging, then find in their favour. Members of Congress are expected to pay large amounts to their parties in order to 'purchase' the chairmanship of Congressional Committees. There is a section in one newspaper called "This Week At War" which lists the soldiers killed in a war that looks and smells more like Viet Nam every day. This is Happiness? I sense that ordinary people want to be able to believe in something again, something pure and good and bigger than themselves. They want to believe in each other, in their community, in their public institutions. They are sick of being lied to; they've heard so much spin that they are all spun out. They are ready to rebuild if someone points the way. I believe this applies in the USA and its dependencies (including Australia). Corporations have in many ways inherited the role of public institutions, as embodying values and showing leadership. Can you make the world a happier place?
Cheers!
Michael
…………..
Hi,
The Declaration of Independence starts with these words: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." The United States of America was the first nation to be founded on the principle of happiness. How has the experiment gone? Well, there have been multiple slayings at three schools in six days over here this week. The bookshops are full of books about depression which is epidemic. The newspapers are full of reports of official corruption and sleaze. Judges routinely take political contributions from parties to cases they are judging, then find in their favour. Members of Congress are expected to pay large amounts to their parties in order to 'purchase' the chairmanship of Congressional Committees. There is a section in one newspaper called "This Week At War" which lists the soldiers killed in a war that looks and smells more like Viet Nam every day. This is Happiness? I sense that ordinary people want to be able to believe in something again, something pure and good and bigger than themselves. They want to believe in each other, in their community, in their public institutions. They are sick of being lied to; they've heard so much spin that they are all spun out. They are ready to rebuild if someone points the way. I believe this applies in the USA and its dependencies (including Australia). Corporations have in many ways inherited the role of public institutions, as embodying values and showing leadership. Can you make the world a happier place?
Cheers!
Michael
…………..
Can do, can’t teach
Hi,
When I was a student, it was snidely remarked by other students, referring to one or other of our teachers, 'Those that can, do. Those that can't, teach.' Having spent a few days visiting academics in the USA, I was reminded of this saying. Academics worship at the altars of precedent and procedure. They engage in more critical rather than speculative thinking. They know the formulae and can apply them to standard situations. But my experience with academics (I wuz one) has taught me that they live in another dimension to me. I live in a zone where anything's possible. They live in a zone where nothing exists unless it has been proven in several double blind tests, under clincial conditions, published in a peer-reviewed journal, and replicated by several other researchers. They think they 'know' what's real. But they live in a world of models and theories - imaginary structures that approximate reality. The practitioners know what's real. It smacks them in the face every day. If your company hires an academic to guide strategy, you'd better hope that they have more than models and theories to offer. You'd better hope they have spent enough time in the 'real world' to know what's what. For every real thinker bearing the title "Professor" - a Porter or a Drucker - there is an army of "professors" professing to know what professionals do, but don't.
Cheers!
Michael
When I was a student, it was snidely remarked by other students, referring to one or other of our teachers, 'Those that can, do. Those that can't, teach.' Having spent a few days visiting academics in the USA, I was reminded of this saying. Academics worship at the altars of precedent and procedure. They engage in more critical rather than speculative thinking. They know the formulae and can apply them to standard situations. But my experience with academics (I wuz one) has taught me that they live in another dimension to me. I live in a zone where anything's possible. They live in a zone where nothing exists unless it has been proven in several double blind tests, under clincial conditions, published in a peer-reviewed journal, and replicated by several other researchers. They think they 'know' what's real. But they live in a world of models and theories - imaginary structures that approximate reality. The practitioners know what's real. It smacks them in the face every day. If your company hires an academic to guide strategy, you'd better hope that they have more than models and theories to offer. You'd better hope they have spent enough time in the 'real world' to know what's what. For every real thinker bearing the title "Professor" - a Porter or a Drucker - there is an army of "professors" professing to know what professionals do, but don't.
Cheers!
Michael
Outreach
Hi,
Today's sermon is about "Outreach". I am at Montana State University for a meeting of the Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership, an alliance of US Government agencies, scientists rom seven western states' universities and private companies and non-profits, preparing to tackle Global Warming by developing technologies for sucking CO2 out of the atmosphere and storing it in soils, in trees, in old oil wells, in coal seams, and under rock beds beneath the oceans. There's a lot of weird science involved and the public have got to be comfortable with the proposals when they are released, or 10 years of work and millions will have been spent for no outcome. For this reason, the Partnership has a full time "Outreach" officer. Now Pamela Tomski is actually the group's marketing director and public relations manager and in-house lobbyist. But she wears the label "Outreach" which is a useful term for marketers. "Outreach" is what religious bodies do - the seek to reach the great unwashed and bring them the good news of salvation. And convert them into true believers, taking them from a state of ignorance and initquity to a state of knowledge and belief. How does Pamela do "Outreach"? She spreads the word through every channel possible... including public meetings and education in schools. She doesn't sell anything. She brings good news. "Outreach" is marketing, but marketing with a difference - with passion for a cause, with advocacy, with urgency. If you ever find yourself a little jaded, trapped in a marketing job just 'flogging stuff to mugs', either you can try to find the good news for salvation in your product offering. Or, if there is none, go out to the highways and byways and find one that has. Outreach means going to work with a passion and a purpose everyday.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Today's sermon is about "Outreach". I am at Montana State University for a meeting of the Big Sky Carbon Sequestration Partnership, an alliance of US Government agencies, scientists rom seven western states' universities and private companies and non-profits, preparing to tackle Global Warming by developing technologies for sucking CO2 out of the atmosphere and storing it in soils, in trees, in old oil wells, in coal seams, and under rock beds beneath the oceans. There's a lot of weird science involved and the public have got to be comfortable with the proposals when they are released, or 10 years of work and millions will have been spent for no outcome. For this reason, the Partnership has a full time "Outreach" officer. Now Pamela Tomski is actually the group's marketing director and public relations manager and in-house lobbyist. But she wears the label "Outreach" which is a useful term for marketers. "Outreach" is what religious bodies do - the seek to reach the great unwashed and bring them the good news of salvation. And convert them into true believers, taking them from a state of ignorance and initquity to a state of knowledge and belief. How does Pamela do "Outreach"? She spreads the word through every channel possible... including public meetings and education in schools. She doesn't sell anything. She brings good news. "Outreach" is marketing, but marketing with a difference - with passion for a cause, with advocacy, with urgency. If you ever find yourself a little jaded, trapped in a marketing job just 'flogging stuff to mugs', either you can try to find the good news for salvation in your product offering. Or, if there is none, go out to the highways and byways and find one that has. Outreach means going to work with a passion and a purpose everyday.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Greetings From Washington
Hi,
My apologies for missing yesterday. I lost a day (and my mind) over the
Pacific flying to the USA for a study tour of the carbon credits market, a
special interest of mine. As I am paying my own way, we flew cattle class
which inspired today's "marketing thought".
To:
Managing Director
Qantas Airways
Dear Sir,
Have you flown your own airline economy class to an overseas destination
laytely? I can’t believe you have. No sane person would knowingly subject
fellow human beings to such discomfort. Only the rich and the footsoldiers
of the rich can afford comfortable air travel today. Forget the toxic food
and queues for the toilets. I can live with that. It’s space I need. As I
sit here on QF129 to LA (13 hours) I cant open my laptop far enough to see
the screen and type.
I know who decides how much space I have. You. Because you set the revenue
targets and they determine how many rows of seats you put in each aircraft
and therefore how little space is available to the passenger in each seat. I
can see those little rubber strips on the floor covering the train tracks
you slide the seats along. How do you determine how much space to allow
between seats? Measure out how much a normal human being would require for a
comfortable experience, and then shove it back far enough to guarantee no
sitting position is painless? If the aim is to cause sufficient pain that
you force us into business class for a fat margin, I can help you there.
Why not hire some really hard bastards with big sticks to whack economy
class passengers on the head until we agree to pay for an upgrade? This is
only slightly more ridiculous than what you do to us already.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
My apologies for missing yesterday. I lost a day (and my mind) over the
Pacific flying to the USA for a study tour of the carbon credits market, a
special interest of mine. As I am paying my own way, we flew cattle class
which inspired today's "marketing thought".
To:
Managing Director
Qantas Airways
Dear Sir,
Have you flown your own airline economy class to an overseas destination
laytely? I can’t believe you have. No sane person would knowingly subject
fellow human beings to such discomfort. Only the rich and the footsoldiers
of the rich can afford comfortable air travel today. Forget the toxic food
and queues for the toilets. I can live with that. It’s space I need. As I
sit here on QF129 to LA (13 hours) I cant open my laptop far enough to see
the screen and type.
I know who decides how much space I have. You. Because you set the revenue
targets and they determine how many rows of seats you put in each aircraft
and therefore how little space is available to the passenger in each seat. I
can see those little rubber strips on the floor covering the train tracks
you slide the seats along. How do you determine how much space to allow
between seats? Measure out how much a normal human being would require for a
comfortable experience, and then shove it back far enough to guarantee no
sitting position is painless? If the aim is to cause sufficient pain that
you force us into business class for a fat margin, I can help you there.
Why not hire some really hard bastards with big sticks to whack economy
class passengers on the head until we agree to pay for an upgrade? This is
only slightly more ridiculous than what you do to us already.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
How high is high involvement?
Michael,
I love your column, thanks for the daily lesson. I've got a question though and I'd love to get your thoughts.
I work in telecoms and thrash around with the conundrum of whether buying a mobile phone with a particular operator (Telstra for example) is a high involvement or low involvement purchase? I think that my colleagues and I fall into the trap of thinking it is a high involvement but I look at people int he street and think that it could be low involvement. Then again, younger people tend to spend a bucket of money and effort finding the coolest offer when older people don't.
As for the decision to choose which company for one's home phone, I think that different segments of the market probably differ as well.
You'd agree that this would change massively the type of marketing approach one would depending on the involvement level?
Perhaps this could be a subject of a future column - differing levels of involvement for the same product across age groups…
Cheers
Sean
Hi Sean,
Attitudes to a decision about a phone range from plugging in to a utility (land line connection for most people, except perhaps rural users for whom the phone is a life-or-death facility) to a life-changing milestone (a child getting their first mobile) and everything in between. The decision about the carrier is probably low involvement in cases where consumers don’t see a meaningful difference between you and your competitors. What differentiates carriers? Level of irritation, customer service ethic, cost, brand imagery, drop outs/coverage??? What determines the level of involvement of a brand choice? Risk? (Fear) Self esteem? (Craving approval) The level of emotion evoked in the consideration process would appear to be a key indicator of involvement. The context of the decision would appear to determine the level of emotion. You could segment consumers by how important brand is to them in your category. The importance of brand indicates level of involvement.
You could use my Quality Of A Sale Index (QOS) to reveal the level of brand involvement of your customer base vs competitors and consequently the long term stability of your market share. The QOS Index reveals the difference between sales that look the same on paper. A Low Quality Sale is driven by promotions, is churned from another brand, is likely to be followed by flight to yet another brand chasing yet another deal, generates no word of mouth, and does not represent an investment in the future of the brand. A High Quality Sale is not driven by a deal, is based on a brand choice, is a repeat sale to a customer, is likely to be followed by another repeat sale, generates advocacy and represents an investment in the future value of the brand. High concentrations of High Quality Sales indicates that a customer base is an appreciating asset. The reverse is the case with high concentrations of Low Quality Sales. Levels of involvement are also likely to be indicated as correlated with QOS. (I predicted the demise of Mitsubishi in Australia 6 years ago based on the QOS Index, as well as the decline of GMH and the rise of Toyota. QOS is a reliable measure of brand health.)
Cheers!
Michael
I love your column, thanks for the daily lesson. I've got a question though and I'd love to get your thoughts.
I work in telecoms and thrash around with the conundrum of whether buying a mobile phone with a particular operator (Telstra for example) is a high involvement or low involvement purchase? I think that my colleagues and I fall into the trap of thinking it is a high involvement but I look at people int he street and think that it could be low involvement. Then again, younger people tend to spend a bucket of money and effort finding the coolest offer when older people don't.
As for the decision to choose which company for one's home phone, I think that different segments of the market probably differ as well.
You'd agree that this would change massively the type of marketing approach one would depending on the involvement level?
Perhaps this could be a subject of a future column - differing levels of involvement for the same product across age groups…
Cheers
Sean
Hi Sean,
Attitudes to a decision about a phone range from plugging in to a utility (land line connection for most people, except perhaps rural users for whom the phone is a life-or-death facility) to a life-changing milestone (a child getting their first mobile) and everything in between. The decision about the carrier is probably low involvement in cases where consumers don’t see a meaningful difference between you and your competitors. What differentiates carriers? Level of irritation, customer service ethic, cost, brand imagery, drop outs/coverage??? What determines the level of involvement of a brand choice? Risk? (Fear) Self esteem? (Craving approval) The level of emotion evoked in the consideration process would appear to be a key indicator of involvement. The context of the decision would appear to determine the level of emotion. You could segment consumers by how important brand is to them in your category. The importance of brand indicates level of involvement.
You could use my Quality Of A Sale Index (QOS) to reveal the level of brand involvement of your customer base vs competitors and consequently the long term stability of your market share. The QOS Index reveals the difference between sales that look the same on paper. A Low Quality Sale is driven by promotions, is churned from another brand, is likely to be followed by flight to yet another brand chasing yet another deal, generates no word of mouth, and does not represent an investment in the future of the brand. A High Quality Sale is not driven by a deal, is based on a brand choice, is a repeat sale to a customer, is likely to be followed by another repeat sale, generates advocacy and represents an investment in the future value of the brand. High concentrations of High Quality Sales indicates that a customer base is an appreciating asset. The reverse is the case with high concentrations of Low Quality Sales. Levels of involvement are also likely to be indicated as correlated with QOS. (I predicted the demise of Mitsubishi in Australia 6 years ago based on the QOS Index, as well as the decline of GMH and the rise of Toyota. QOS is a reliable measure of brand health.)
Cheers!
Michael
Fakes, snakes and flakes
Hi,
On October 30, 1938, mass panic broke out across America and people hid in their cellars or jammed the roads leading out of towns and cities, trying the escape an attack from Martians. The stampede was set off by a radio play staged by Orson Welles. The production took the form of simulated news broadcasts with sound effects. Nearly 70 years later Lonelygirl15 is posting video on YouTube, slices of her life as a 16 year old which have shot her to the second most popular channel on the video blogsite, with 2.3 million viewings and 24,000 subscribers. Investigative journalists and online snoops smelled a rat and uncovered a Hollywood scam by a group of filmmakers who now claim to have invented “a new art form… [that will] usher in an era of interactive storytelling where the line between 'fan' and 'star' has been removed". Fakes. The online world is full of them. It is a viral marketing technique to spread your message far and wide by creating what purports to be reality footage of something amazing that will be passed on by the unsuspecting. Eventually, like the Blair Witch Project, all is revealed, and the marketers congratulate themselves on another successful scam. “Fooled you again,” they say. I have friends in the digital marketing industry who produce neatly packaged fakes for big brands. Can a brand afford to lie like that? How many times can a medium reveal itself to be a snakepit of simulated truth (aka lies) and not infect its image indelibly with the image of the snakeoil salesman and the porn site spammer. No, you can’t trust anything you see or hear on the Net.
PS. Americans are especially susceptible. 15% of them believe the Apollo moon landing took place in a Hollywood film set. And 20% of them believed The X Files was a documentary. And nearly a majority of them voted for an actor for President. (That’s right. George W. is really B-Grade actor Tolson Holmes from Jacksonville, Missouri, playing the President in a worldwide production called The End of Civilisation As We Know It.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
Morning Michael
Your emails are tops.
I'm currently working as a speech writer in the public sector, but hail from a fairly traditional marketing/advertising background...so your 'thought for the day' is a good way for me to stay plugged in to what's happening out on the street, in a way that my job often doesn't provide me the scope or time to do.
Marketing commentary, social commentary, WHATEVER - your words are looked forward to and enjoyed!
Cheers
Caitlin
On October 30, 1938, mass panic broke out across America and people hid in their cellars or jammed the roads leading out of towns and cities, trying the escape an attack from Martians. The stampede was set off by a radio play staged by Orson Welles. The production took the form of simulated news broadcasts with sound effects. Nearly 70 years later Lonelygirl15 is posting video on YouTube, slices of her life as a 16 year old which have shot her to the second most popular channel on the video blogsite, with 2.3 million viewings and 24,000 subscribers. Investigative journalists and online snoops smelled a rat and uncovered a Hollywood scam by a group of filmmakers who now claim to have invented “a new art form… [that will] usher in an era of interactive storytelling where the line between 'fan' and 'star' has been removed". Fakes. The online world is full of them. It is a viral marketing technique to spread your message far and wide by creating what purports to be reality footage of something amazing that will be passed on by the unsuspecting. Eventually, like the Blair Witch Project, all is revealed, and the marketers congratulate themselves on another successful scam. “Fooled you again,” they say. I have friends in the digital marketing industry who produce neatly packaged fakes for big brands. Can a brand afford to lie like that? How many times can a medium reveal itself to be a snakepit of simulated truth (aka lies) and not infect its image indelibly with the image of the snakeoil salesman and the porn site spammer. No, you can’t trust anything you see or hear on the Net.
PS. Americans are especially susceptible. 15% of them believe the Apollo moon landing took place in a Hollywood film set. And 20% of them believed The X Files was a documentary. And nearly a majority of them voted for an actor for President. (That’s right. George W. is really B-Grade actor Tolson Holmes from Jacksonville, Missouri, playing the President in a worldwide production called The End of Civilisation As We Know It.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
Morning Michael
Your emails are tops.
I'm currently working as a speech writer in the public sector, but hail from a fairly traditional marketing/advertising background...so your 'thought for the day' is a good way for me to stay plugged in to what's happening out on the street, in a way that my job often doesn't provide me the scope or time to do.
Marketing commentary, social commentary, WHATEVER - your words are looked forward to and enjoyed!
Cheers
Caitlin
No news is good news
Hi,
If ever you despair of the world, try my failproof remedy. Say to yourself: "There was a time before [here name what is bugging you] and there will be a time after it is gone." You can insert anything you like: feminism, John Howard, Alan Jones, George Bush, the ALP... It will make you feel better.
I choose to insert the word "newspapers". Last weekend I did something out of the ordinary: I bought a newspaper. A big fat newspaper. When I had skimmed it and read 2 or 3 items, I was finished with it and had the problem of what to do with it. Half a tonne of paper to go into the waste stream. I used to read 4 newspapers before breakfast each day. Now I get my news on radio, on websites or delivered in special interest newsletters online. And I'm no trend setter in media usage. Little wonder then that The Economist has predicted the death of the newspaper. It has shrunk 50% in 10 years. (Bloody boring rag, really. Bleak world view - money money money.) The Australian wrote an editorial (who reads editorials?) saying news content is king and that Rupert's favourite populist platform in Australia would survive. But news content isn't king anymore. More people every day are switching off the news - which makes them feel frightened and powerless - and amusing themselves with cookery, gardening, collecting, gossiping - live and in the studio (either doing it themselves or watching it on TV). They say that bad news is good news for newspapers. But I believe it's choking them to death. The flight to lifestyle chat is a desperate plea for media culture to be put out of its misery - anything that can make a star of "Kochy" has got to be bad for you. No, the newspaper will go the way of the Town Crier. (Noisy git in a bad costume.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
I think you're right, the average newspaper readers will wither away.
Information is too easily available these days.. Particularly for free..
But the mega publishing companies won't lay down without a fight.. Their
livelihood is at stake.. So I'm betting page 3 girls will start
appearing in the Herald-sun/Daily Telegraph within a couple of years..
To help prevent the rot
There will still be the die hard purist who would still buy a newspaper
and devour every inch of it (I'd like to think I'm probably one of them,
information junkie). There won't be many of these kinds, but they'll
keep making newspapers for us... However I'll look forward to being
charged $10 a copy. And what of train reading??.. An institution the world over for daily travellers.. However I guess with the introduction of digital novels and readers.. This will evolve to digital newspaper readers one day..
But ultimately the demise of newspapers will inconvenience millions..
What will children use on their paper mache's?.. How will serial killers
send their taunting letters to police with the words comprising of
letters cut from newspaper headlines?.. How are we going to move houses
without our cups and plates not smashing because they aren't stuffed
with newspapers anymore??
Oh the humanity!!!! Damn you evolution of media technology!!!
Luan
................
I am the biggest fan of this.
When I listen to the radio I change the channel when the news is on. I
also don't read newspapers because its all lies. And I also don't go to
news websites unless something has crashed into the world trade centre
or Steve Irwin has just died.
Give me targeted relevant content from gurus as opposed to junkie 3 day
researched reporters!
Fred
..........
Hope all is well. Just wanted to say I enjoy your daily "news"
broadcasts. Cheers, Michelle
If ever you despair of the world, try my failproof remedy. Say to yourself: "There was a time before [here name what is bugging you] and there will be a time after it is gone." You can insert anything you like: feminism, John Howard, Alan Jones, George Bush, the ALP... It will make you feel better.
I choose to insert the word "newspapers". Last weekend I did something out of the ordinary: I bought a newspaper. A big fat newspaper. When I had skimmed it and read 2 or 3 items, I was finished with it and had the problem of what to do with it. Half a tonne of paper to go into the waste stream. I used to read 4 newspapers before breakfast each day. Now I get my news on radio, on websites or delivered in special interest newsletters online. And I'm no trend setter in media usage. Little wonder then that The Economist has predicted the death of the newspaper. It has shrunk 50% in 10 years. (Bloody boring rag, really. Bleak world view - money money money.) The Australian wrote an editorial (who reads editorials?) saying news content is king and that Rupert's favourite populist platform in Australia would survive. But news content isn't king anymore. More people every day are switching off the news - which makes them feel frightened and powerless - and amusing themselves with cookery, gardening, collecting, gossiping - live and in the studio (either doing it themselves or watching it on TV). They say that bad news is good news for newspapers. But I believe it's choking them to death. The flight to lifestyle chat is a desperate plea for media culture to be put out of its misery - anything that can make a star of "Kochy" has got to be bad for you. No, the newspaper will go the way of the Town Crier. (Noisy git in a bad costume.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
I think you're right, the average newspaper readers will wither away.
Information is too easily available these days.. Particularly for free..
But the mega publishing companies won't lay down without a fight.. Their
livelihood is at stake.. So I'm betting page 3 girls will start
appearing in the Herald-sun/Daily Telegraph within a couple of years..
To help prevent the rot
There will still be the die hard purist who would still buy a newspaper
and devour every inch of it (I'd like to think I'm probably one of them,
information junkie). There won't be many of these kinds, but they'll
keep making newspapers for us... However I'll look forward to being
charged $10 a copy. And what of train reading??.. An institution the world over for daily travellers.. However I guess with the introduction of digital novels and readers.. This will evolve to digital newspaper readers one day..
But ultimately the demise of newspapers will inconvenience millions..
What will children use on their paper mache's?.. How will serial killers
send their taunting letters to police with the words comprising of
letters cut from newspaper headlines?.. How are we going to move houses
without our cups and plates not smashing because they aren't stuffed
with newspapers anymore??
Oh the humanity!!!! Damn you evolution of media technology!!!
Luan
................
I am the biggest fan of this.
When I listen to the radio I change the channel when the news is on. I
also don't read newspapers because its all lies. And I also don't go to
news websites unless something has crashed into the world trade centre
or Steve Irwin has just died.
Give me targeted relevant content from gurus as opposed to junkie 3 day
researched reporters!
Fred
..........
Hope all is well. Just wanted to say I enjoy your daily "news"
broadcasts. Cheers, Michelle
Cherchez le creneau!!!
Hi,
The French have a marketing saying: "Cherchez le creneau" which means 'look for the hole'. Look for the hole and fill it, say Jack Trout and Al Ries. In positioning your brand, cherchez le creneau in the head (brand mind map) of the marketplace. Size can be a creneau. VW's "Think small" campaign successfully exploited size to differentiate and win share. Age, price, distribution... There are many dimensions along which creneaus can be found. Finding a creneau is the first step to toppling a market leader. A successful creneau can be used to reposition the competition. By taking a "Good For You" position, a brand is saying the others (especially the leader) are not good for you. By taking a hip youth position, a brand says the rest are old and irrelevant. Without referring to the competitors,a brand can point to the future and say "We're going there! Follow us."
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The French have a marketing saying: "Cherchez le creneau" which means 'look for the hole'. Look for the hole and fill it, say Jack Trout and Al Ries. In positioning your brand, cherchez le creneau in the head (brand mind map) of the marketplace. Size can be a creneau. VW's "Think small" campaign successfully exploited size to differentiate and win share. Age, price, distribution... There are many dimensions along which creneaus can be found. Finding a creneau is the first step to toppling a market leader. A successful creneau can be used to reposition the competition. By taking a "Good For You" position, a brand is saying the others (especially the leader) are not good for you. By taking a hip youth position, a brand says the rest are old and irrelevant. Without referring to the competitors,a brand can point to the future and say "We're going there! Follow us."
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Create your own market
Hi,
The culmination of the last 3 or 4 emails dealing with marketing warfare concepts is this thought: the strategically smart way to defeat a market leader is to out-flank them by creating a new "market" that will grow in value to supercede the old order. Eg. computer hardware vs computer software. Where is the value today? Looking ahead and identifying the next big hill and capturing that hill rather than fighting for the old hill. You don't confront the Leader. You simply rob them of relevance to the future. Do it by defining a new market and aligning your offer to it. Simple.
......
The hysteria over Steve Irwin's death makes me wonder "why?" On the surface, he was a showman, a photogenic mug lair, using animals and reptiles as props for his sideshow. He spoke like Mick Dundee: "Crikey". He was packaged and promoted as a product. I loved the character he created. Sure, he had a message of conservation. But so do many others. Why is he being mourned so deeply? Because he was the genuine article. He was living his dharma. He used the word 'love' a lot and he meant it. In a world full of phonies, he was real. He wasn't putting it on. He was being himself. Being real is the best thing you can be, in marketing, in life. Don't be afraid to be real. There's a Steve Irwin in all of us.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The culmination of the last 3 or 4 emails dealing with marketing warfare concepts is this thought: the strategically smart way to defeat a market leader is to out-flank them by creating a new "market" that will grow in value to supercede the old order. Eg. computer hardware vs computer software. Where is the value today? Looking ahead and identifying the next big hill and capturing that hill rather than fighting for the old hill. You don't confront the Leader. You simply rob them of relevance to the future. Do it by defining a new market and aligning your offer to it. Simple.
......
The hysteria over Steve Irwin's death makes me wonder "why?" On the surface, he was a showman, a photogenic mug lair, using animals and reptiles as props for his sideshow. He spoke like Mick Dundee: "Crikey". He was packaged and promoted as a product. I loved the character he created. Sure, he had a message of conservation. But so do many others. Why is he being mourned so deeply? Because he was the genuine article. He was living his dharma. He used the word 'love' a lot and he meant it. In a world full of phonies, he was real. He wasn't putting it on. He was being himself. Being real is the best thing you can be, in marketing, in life. Don't be afraid to be real. There's a Steve Irwin in all of us.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Niche warriors
Hi,
The minnows in any market can't play Leader or Challenger roles. Instead the small player can fight a guerilla war, with hit and run raids on market niches that offer margins until the Leader blocks by entering and using predatory pricing to drive the guerillas out. Leaders who don't see the threat can allow a guerilla to get a foothold, forming a base for an assault on the market proper. IBM was once offered DOS, the operating system for personal computers, but they turned it down. The offer came from a young Bill Gates who had a vision of a computer on every desk in an era when mainframe computing dominated. Software was a tiny niche which Microsoft was left to establish. Microsoft nearly fell foul of the same "Leader's Blindness" re the Internet, leaving Netscape to dominate the browser market until the software giant was forced to use its monopoly power to establish Explorer as market leader. (The US Federal Court eventually forced Microsoft to decouple the browser from Windows.) IBM also left Intel to run away with the memory chip market. IBM's strategy was built on a vision that its founder had of a total world market for computers of around 30! IBM has survived by strong corporate focus and by dominating the emerging IT services market.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The minnows in any market can't play Leader or Challenger roles. Instead the small player can fight a guerilla war, with hit and run raids on market niches that offer margins until the Leader blocks by entering and using predatory pricing to drive the guerillas out. Leaders who don't see the threat can allow a guerilla to get a foothold, forming a base for an assault on the market proper. IBM was once offered DOS, the operating system for personal computers, but they turned it down. The offer came from a young Bill Gates who had a vision of a computer on every desk in an era when mainframe computing dominated. Software was a tiny niche which Microsoft was left to establish. Microsoft nearly fell foul of the same "Leader's Blindness" re the Internet, leaving Netscape to dominate the browser market until the software giant was forced to use its monopoly power to establish Explorer as market leader. (The US Federal Court eventually forced Microsoft to decouple the browser from Windows.) IBM also left Intel to run away with the memory chip market. IBM's strategy was built on a vision that its founder had of a total world market for computers of around 30! IBM has survived by strong corporate focus and by dominating the emerging IT services market.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Word of hairdresser marketing
Hi,
I heard this on BBC Worldwide in the early hours and traced it on bbc.com:
A British law firm is offering hairdressers money in return for referring customers to them who are considering divorce. Trethowans Solicitors sent letters to businesses in Southampton and Salisbury. Nail bars, estate agents, physiotherapists and chiropractors were also targeted. One businessman approached said the scheme was unethical. "I would not reveal anything a customer told me, whether it was for money or not. The hairdresser-customer relationship is personal," said Steve Hall, who runs Heaven Hair in Salisbury. Total mailed: 300. Results: 30 signed up. 2 complaints. Publicity: worldwide coverage on BBC.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I heard this on BBC Worldwide in the early hours and traced it on bbc.com:
A British law firm is offering hairdressers money in return for referring customers to them who are considering divorce. Trethowans Solicitors sent letters to businesses in Southampton and Salisbury. Nail bars, estate agents, physiotherapists and chiropractors were also targeted. One businessman approached said the scheme was unethical. "I would not reveal anything a customer told me, whether it was for money or not. The hairdresser-customer relationship is personal," said Steve Hall, who runs Heaven Hair in Salisbury. Total mailed: 300. Results: 30 signed up. 2 complaints. Publicity: worldwide coverage on BBC.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Maximum force at a strategic point
Hi,
Von Clausewitz said an army should not seek to meet an enemy front on across its entire front. Instead it should seek the weakest spot of its enemy's defences and concentrate all the forces it can afford to engage on that spot. The chances of breaking through are greatest. Once a breach has been made, the enemy's lines can be attacked from behind and routed.
The lesson for marketers is this: Concentrate your communications and brand messaging on a single-minded theme that strikes at the weakest spot in your competitor's marketing operation. "We're no. 2 so we try harder," was the positioning Avis took against market leader Hertz. Market leaders, when they become big and unwieldy, are often not leaders in service. Henry Ford said customers could have his T Model in any colour they liked, so long as it was black. IBM in corporate computing and Microsoft in software are not known for their customer focus. Common weak spots in market leaders include service, flexibility, range, price, relationship management, and access. Leaders hare a natural tendency towards arrogance and complacency which challengers can exploit.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Von Clausewitz said an army should not seek to meet an enemy front on across its entire front. Instead it should seek the weakest spot of its enemy's defences and concentrate all the forces it can afford to engage on that spot. The chances of breaking through are greatest. Once a breach has been made, the enemy's lines can be attacked from behind and routed.
The lesson for marketers is this: Concentrate your communications and brand messaging on a single-minded theme that strikes at the weakest spot in your competitor's marketing operation. "We're no. 2 so we try harder," was the positioning Avis took against market leader Hertz. Market leaders, when they become big and unwieldy, are often not leaders in service. Henry Ford said customers could have his T Model in any colour they liked, so long as it was black. IBM in corporate computing and Microsoft in software are not known for their customer focus. Common weak spots in market leaders include service, flexibility, range, price, relationship management, and access. Leaders hare a natural tendency towards arrogance and complacency which challengers can exploit.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
When you’re No. 2
Hi,
Every market has a No.1 (Leader) and a No.2 (Challenger). While a Leader need only defend, a challenger must attack. Challengers who take on the leader with a full frontal attack so run out of soldiers (budget). But Challengers more often by-pass the Leader's frontlines to attack on its flanks, on a weak spot, hoping to cause disarray in the ranks. Qantas was attacked by Virgin Blue and Impulse on price. Qantas - like a good leader - knew it need only defend its share by meeting the challenge with a blocking move. Hence JetStar. This gives Qantas a slice of the emerging budget airline market (built by Virgin and Impulse) and gave these intruders someone to fight with, to exhaust their resources. Flanking attacks explain the landscape of the Australian luxury car market. Mercedes was the category leader: it held the position "luxury motoring" based on its 'engineered like no other car'. BMW attacked Benz's stodgy handling and sluggish acceleration by adopting the 'driving experience' position - appealing to a younger market. Lexus attacked both on price and the 'ownership experience' (a lifestyle benefits program). Benz responded with a range of low end product to meet BMW in the younger market, and an expanded range of sporty models. Both blocking moves.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Every market has a No.1 (Leader) and a No.2 (Challenger). While a Leader need only defend, a challenger must attack. Challengers who take on the leader with a full frontal attack so run out of soldiers (budget). But Challengers more often by-pass the Leader's frontlines to attack on its flanks, on a weak spot, hoping to cause disarray in the ranks. Qantas was attacked by Virgin Blue and Impulse on price. Qantas - like a good leader - knew it need only defend its share by meeting the challenge with a blocking move. Hence JetStar. This gives Qantas a slice of the emerging budget airline market (built by Virgin and Impulse) and gave these intruders someone to fight with, to exhaust their resources. Flanking attacks explain the landscape of the Australian luxury car market. Mercedes was the category leader: it held the position "luxury motoring" based on its 'engineered like no other car'. BMW attacked Benz's stodgy handling and sluggish acceleration by adopting the 'driving experience' position - appealing to a younger market. Lexus attacked both on price and the 'ownership experience' (a lifestyle benefits program). Benz responded with a range of low end product to meet BMW in the younger market, and an expanded range of sporty models. Both blocking moves.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Marketing warfare 2
Hi,
Carl Von Clausewitz was a Prussian general who fought Napoleon and wrote the bible of military strategy that forms the basis for military education today, a book called "On War". In it he teaches that the greatest tactic of all is defence. Defence is the tactic most appropriate for the dominant force in a battle. The numerically superior force needs only block the advances of the challenger until they exhaust their energies and run away. Lesson: Market leaders should defend. Challengers should attack. Leaders who attack look like challengers. Leaders don't acknowledge that challengers exist. They don't mention them in ads - the don't do comparative ads. They just know that if they meet the challenger's challenge they won't lose much share. Who is the market leader? Who is challenger? The answer is hidden in the ground the battle is fought over - the mind of the customer. Which brand has highest unaided awareness? This will, in most cases, be market share leader
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Carl Von Clausewitz was a Prussian general who fought Napoleon and wrote the bible of military strategy that forms the basis for military education today, a book called "On War". In it he teaches that the greatest tactic of all is defence. Defence is the tactic most appropriate for the dominant force in a battle. The numerically superior force needs only block the advances of the challenger until they exhaust their energies and run away. Lesson: Market leaders should defend. Challengers should attack. Leaders who attack look like challengers. Leaders don't acknowledge that challengers exist. They don't mention them in ads - the don't do comparative ads. They just know that if they meet the challenger's challenge they won't lose much share. Who is the market leader? Who is challenger? The answer is hidden in the ground the battle is fought over - the mind of the customer. Which brand has highest unaided awareness? This will, in most cases, be market share leader
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Marketing warfare
Hi,
If you haven't already read it, grab a copy of Marketing Warfare by Trout and Ries. It is the easiest way to get a grip on grand strategy for marketers that I ever saw. The parallels between warfare and marketing are uncanny. We use the same language - campaign, tactic, strategy, attack, defend, etc. Military strategy is all about positioning your forces to outmanoeuvre the enemy. And in the final analysis, it is about brute strength - firepower. In most cases - all things being equal - "God is always on the side of the big battalions" (Voltaire) It stands to reason. If 10,000 soldiers are fighting 5,000 soldiers in an open field and they are killing each other at the same rate, there will be 5,000 left on one side and none on the other. LESSON: Never attack a bigger competitor front on.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses
Angelo,
I am loving your pieces here on Warfare. It is inspiring me.
Fred
...........
Michael,
I started receiving your daily emails a couple of months ago -
great idea and your thoughts have definetly given me some new ideas.
Being that you are a marketing guru, thought I would throw my current
challenge and a few questions your way....
Customer Service Week is coming up in October (October 2-6), and a
designated group of us have to come with some ways to engage head office
and branches across SA & VIC in celebrating/promoting customer service
week.
There is a golf day planned and our company will offer a round of
golf/dinner to 4 of our employees. I need to come up with a way for
employees to win this prize.
We came up with the idea of nominating peers..."Tell us who you think
provides superior customer service and if you enter you win a
voucher"....but we have done this in the past with limited success.
Any suggestions or ideas of what we could to to get people to
compete/get involved for this prize, keeping customer service as a
theme?
Any ideas on how to engage employees throughout the week and keep
customer service at top of mind (although really, it should be at top of
mind ALL THE TIME!).
I recently read Ries' The Origin of Brands - great read!!! I will have
to check out your recommendation of Marketing Warfare.
Cheers,
Adrian
....
Adrian,
This thought flashed into my mind while reading your request:
Give the prize to the member of staff who can contribute the most revealing customer insight.This is rewarding several important behaviours:
Listening actively to customers.
Engaging customers in conversation.
Thinking deeply about their emotional life.
Your organisation gains the following:
A bunch of customer insights to share among your customer relations people and communications executives.
A message to your staff that customer intimacy is important.
A message to your staff that customer knowledge is important.
I believe the most powerful activity you can engage in is one that reveals customers as human beings that staff can empathise with.
Michael
If you haven't already read it, grab a copy of Marketing Warfare by Trout and Ries. It is the easiest way to get a grip on grand strategy for marketers that I ever saw. The parallels between warfare and marketing are uncanny. We use the same language - campaign, tactic, strategy, attack, defend, etc. Military strategy is all about positioning your forces to outmanoeuvre the enemy. And in the final analysis, it is about brute strength - firepower. In most cases - all things being equal - "God is always on the side of the big battalions" (Voltaire) It stands to reason. If 10,000 soldiers are fighting 5,000 soldiers in an open field and they are killing each other at the same rate, there will be 5,000 left on one side and none on the other. LESSON: Never attack a bigger competitor front on.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses
Angelo,
I am loving your pieces here on Warfare. It is inspiring me.
Fred
...........
Michael,
I started receiving your daily emails a couple of months ago -
great idea and your thoughts have definetly given me some new ideas.
Being that you are a marketing guru, thought I would throw my current
challenge and a few questions your way....
Customer Service Week is coming up in October (October 2-6), and a
designated group of us have to come with some ways to engage head office
and branches across SA & VIC in celebrating/promoting customer service
week.
There is a golf day planned and our company will offer a round of
golf/dinner to 4 of our employees. I need to come up with a way for
employees to win this prize.
We came up with the idea of nominating peers..."Tell us who you think
provides superior customer service and if you enter you win a
voucher"....but we have done this in the past with limited success.
Any suggestions or ideas of what we could to to get people to
compete/get involved for this prize, keeping customer service as a
theme?
Any ideas on how to engage employees throughout the week and keep
customer service at top of mind (although really, it should be at top of
mind ALL THE TIME!).
I recently read Ries' The Origin of Brands - great read!!! I will have
to check out your recommendation of Marketing Warfare.
Cheers,
Adrian
....
Adrian,
This thought flashed into my mind while reading your request:
Give the prize to the member of staff who can contribute the most revealing customer insight.This is rewarding several important behaviours:
Listening actively to customers.
Engaging customers in conversation.
Thinking deeply about their emotional life.
Your organisation gains the following:
A bunch of customer insights to share among your customer relations people and communications executives.
A message to your staff that customer intimacy is important.
A message to your staff that customer knowledge is important.
I believe the most powerful activity you can engage in is one that reveals customers as human beings that staff can empathise with.
Michael
Own a word
Hi,
Positioning takes place in the mind. The mind works to sort through and simplify information coming in. It helps to secure a position in the mind if you can 'own' a word, said Jack Trout and Al Ries in 1981. Own the word so that when it is said, your brand comes to mind. What brand comes to mind when you see the word 'cola'? 'Flying'? 'Feeling'? Coke owns the category.
There can be a downside. Toyota gives each of its models a single word - called its 'one word equity' - that it can grow into. Hilux is "Unbreakable" and no one would question the vehicle's toughness. As a Hilux owner, I can say the tough positioning is unbreakable. But too narrow a positioning can also expose a brand to attack. "Uncomfortable" is another word Hilux could own, especially in the minds of owners with "Hilux back". When I asked a local farmer why he drove another make, he said "I spend so much time in it, and my back's dodgy already."
Lesson: choose a word that is flexible.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Positioning takes place in the mind. The mind works to sort through and simplify information coming in. It helps to secure a position in the mind if you can 'own' a word, said Jack Trout and Al Ries in 1981. Own the word so that when it is said, your brand comes to mind. What brand comes to mind when you see the word 'cola'? 'Flying'? 'Feeling'? Coke owns the category.
There can be a downside. Toyota gives each of its models a single word - called its 'one word equity' - that it can grow into. Hilux is "Unbreakable" and no one would question the vehicle's toughness. As a Hilux owner, I can say the tough positioning is unbreakable. But too narrow a positioning can also expose a brand to attack. "Uncomfortable" is another word Hilux could own, especially in the minds of owners with "Hilux back". When I asked a local farmer why he drove another make, he said "I spend so much time in it, and my back's dodgy already."
Lesson: choose a word that is flexible.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
First in…
Hi,
When I was getting into marketing I spent hours in the Library at UNSW going through back issues of old US magazines such as Sales & Marketing Management and Industrial Marketing. In a 1969 isssue of the latter I found an article called 'Positioning' by Jack Trout and Al Ries that blew my mind (in a 1969 kind of way). They were the first people in my experience who turned the telescope around and looked at marketing from the correct viewpoint - from the consumer's point of view. They said positioning (a term they introduced) took place inside the head of the consumer. Not on the blueprint of the marketing manager. They said the consumer's mind was like a series of filing cabinets, the drawers of which were product categories, and the files stored in little league ladders, from first to seventh or so. They said the first brand into the mind becomes the first or number 1 brand for awareness, recall, and usually preference and market share. Startling in 1984 when I read it and bought their first book, Positioning. I recommend that book and their next one, Marketing Warfare.
(BTW, if you can't be first in in your category, create your own category.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
However, it's very often that the ones that make the most money, are the ones that are not first to market. The first-to-market spend alot to create the category. Smart guys willfollow with a unique variation on the theme and clean up in the massmarket. Early adopter market is not as big as we all think. It might get more press, but probably less profit.
Jeff
When I was getting into marketing I spent hours in the Library at UNSW going through back issues of old US magazines such as Sales & Marketing Management and Industrial Marketing. In a 1969 isssue of the latter I found an article called 'Positioning' by Jack Trout and Al Ries that blew my mind (in a 1969 kind of way). They were the first people in my experience who turned the telescope around and looked at marketing from the correct viewpoint - from the consumer's point of view. They said positioning (a term they introduced) took place inside the head of the consumer. Not on the blueprint of the marketing manager. They said the consumer's mind was like a series of filing cabinets, the drawers of which were product categories, and the files stored in little league ladders, from first to seventh or so. They said the first brand into the mind becomes the first or number 1 brand for awareness, recall, and usually preference and market share. Startling in 1984 when I read it and bought their first book, Positioning. I recommend that book and their next one, Marketing Warfare.
(BTW, if you can't be first in in your category, create your own category.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
However, it's very often that the ones that make the most money, are the ones that are not first to market. The first-to-market spend alot to create the category. Smart guys willfollow with a unique variation on the theme and clean up in the massmarket. Early adopter market is not as big as we all think. It might get more press, but probably less profit.
Jeff
Walk a mile in my Hushpuppies
Hi,
I am often surprised by the low levels of 'consumer consciousness' among marketing people. IE. The ability to step into the consumer's shoes and take them for a walk through a piece of communication or a sales proposition or a buying environment. I guess when you spend most of your time down among the details of product specifications and entangled in corporate politics it's hard to step outside and assume someone else's persona and point of view. It's not a skill we are born with - the Dalai Lama says that empathy is something we should aspire to. I believe it is the essence of the marketing mindset - Theodore Levitt called it the Marketing Imagination. The ease with which you can slip into your customer's hushpuppies is a key indicator of your marketing skills. Why? Because if every aspect of a marketing organisation and its operations are planned from the consumer's point of view, you can't fail. The distance between your reality and theirs is the gap that your organisation must bridge if it is to achieve its goals.
The accuracy of your imagination - how well you know the internal reality of that other person - will determine how close to success you can come.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
email responses
That must be why I love watching people, especially children play with toys - and parents scolding "no dont touch that!"- trying to teach them you cant just do what you like with other peoples property. But interacting and playing is human nature, and so is our sense of novelty.
www.whatif.co.uk has the same sort of outlook in that they actually bring in the person/people (3D consumer insights) to gather insights. one of their best examples was for a skin cleanser- they went to Taronga zoo and interviewed animal cleaners and asked what they do when they go home eg. shower wise
They would definately be using cleaning products- not some glamourous showpony going to the races every month with a feather hat and diamond encrusted mobile phone... sorry- got a little carried away....
Jo
I am often surprised by the low levels of 'consumer consciousness' among marketing people. IE. The ability to step into the consumer's shoes and take them for a walk through a piece of communication or a sales proposition or a buying environment. I guess when you spend most of your time down among the details of product specifications and entangled in corporate politics it's hard to step outside and assume someone else's persona and point of view. It's not a skill we are born with - the Dalai Lama says that empathy is something we should aspire to. I believe it is the essence of the marketing mindset - Theodore Levitt called it the Marketing Imagination. The ease with which you can slip into your customer's hushpuppies is a key indicator of your marketing skills. Why? Because if every aspect of a marketing organisation and its operations are planned from the consumer's point of view, you can't fail. The distance between your reality and theirs is the gap that your organisation must bridge if it is to achieve its goals.
The accuracy of your imagination - how well you know the internal reality of that other person - will determine how close to success you can come.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
email responses
That must be why I love watching people, especially children play with toys - and parents scolding "no dont touch that!"- trying to teach them you cant just do what you like with other peoples property. But interacting and playing is human nature, and so is our sense of novelty.
www.whatif.co.uk
They would definately be using cleaning products- not some glamourous showpony going to the races every month with a feather hat and diamond encrusted mobile phone... sorry- got a little carried away....
Jo
Content is King!
Hi,
The future is finally here. For 20 years people have been predicting the demise of free to air television as the heavyweight champion of the media. Yesterday PBL announced that the Nine Network saw profits slump dramatically, while all its other businesses - even old fashioned magazines - are on the up. Free to air tv has been losing the important 17 to 21 segment for years. Podcasting, Youtube and other Internet services are eating up this audience. But there are other reasons. The channels have gone cheap on drama, replacing it with reality tv that has almost run out of steam. Then there's the Eddie factor. He is slashing costs at Nine, 'boning' presenters and looking for even cheaper programming. Here's where the old media can learn a lesson from the new media. Lesson: It's all about content. Eyeballs follow interest. It's not about old or new media. Harry Potter and The DaVinci Code proved the oldest medium in history - the book - could pull a decent crowd with a decent story. Why is the Australian film industry dying today? Because it has failed to deliver on content. Stories. Scripts. Simple.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
Hi Michael,
Here's a page that demonstrates the importance of content rather
effectively (if crudely):
http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=owned
Enjoy!
Dylan
..........
Well Put.
Jeff
The future is finally here. For 20 years people have been predicting the demise of free to air television as the heavyweight champion of the media. Yesterday PBL announced that the Nine Network saw profits slump dramatically, while all its other businesses - even old fashioned magazines - are on the up. Free to air tv has been losing the important 17 to 21 segment for years. Podcasting, Youtube and other Internet services are eating up this audience. But there are other reasons. The channels have gone cheap on drama, replacing it with reality tv that has almost run out of steam. Then there's the Eddie factor. He is slashing costs at Nine, 'boning' presenters and looking for even cheaper programming. Here's where the old media can learn a lesson from the new media. Lesson: It's all about content. Eyeballs follow interest. It's not about old or new media. Harry Potter and The DaVinci Code proved the oldest medium in history - the book - could pull a decent crowd with a decent story. Why is the Australian film industry dying today? Because it has failed to deliver on content. Stories. Scripts. Simple.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
Hi Michael,
Here's a page that demonstrates the importance of content rather
effectively (if crudely):
http://www.thebestpageintheuniverse.net/c.cgi?u=owned
Enjoy!
Dylan
..........
Well Put.
Jeff
Expensive advice
Hi,
AWB's strategy for 'managing' the crisis it faces over the charges that it bribed Saddam Hussein to sell wheat to Iraq is an object lesson in how NOT to act when caught red-handed breaking the rules. First deny everything. Then seek to justify your behaviour by saying 'everyone does it', 'it's standard practice in those markets'. Then defy authorities as they seek to drag the evidence out of you. Seek injunctions to deny the enquiry access to your documents. Drag the process out, proving your guilt and making a public spectacle of your refusal to admit it.
AWB hired a New York spin doctor to give them advice, then failed to take it. He advised them to come clean up front. Over-apologise. Take their medicine and move on. The media would have a one-off field day, then it would be history.
At $700 per hour it's expensive advice if you don't take it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
AWB's strategy for 'managing' the crisis it faces over the charges that it bribed Saddam Hussein to sell wheat to Iraq is an object lesson in how NOT to act when caught red-handed breaking the rules. First deny everything. Then seek to justify your behaviour by saying 'everyone does it', 'it's standard practice in those markets'. Then defy authorities as they seek to drag the evidence out of you. Seek injunctions to deny the enquiry access to your documents. Drag the process out, proving your guilt and making a public spectacle of your refusal to admit it.
AWB hired a New York spin doctor to give them advice, then failed to take it. He advised them to come clean up front. Over-apologise. Take their medicine and move on. The media would have a one-off field day, then it would be history.
At $700 per hour it's expensive advice if you don't take it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Picking a Publicist
Hi,
Denise asked me to recommend a PR agency. I couldn't. But I was able to offer the following advice:
.....
I wouldn't recommend anyone in particular because the agency that is just right for you is a very personal choice. But I can give you a strategy for finding and selecting a good PR supplier.
First identify the media outlets in which you want coverage. Then identify the writers and editors and producers and presenters you would like to take an interest in your company. Then contact them asking for their advice. Ask them to identify for you a PR operative they like dealing with. (Personal relationships are so important in that business.) The person they nominate will have won their trust and will therefore have good access (the most important thing they can offer you). Then, from that list, you will have people working with big PR firms, some in smaller firms, and a couple of solo operators. You should select the size of operation according to the size of your budget, your needs, and your own company - aiming to be big enough on the PR firm's client roster to be important to them. But most important is effectiveness - a combination of creativity, diligence and contacts. That can only be assessed by case studies. And speak with the firm's existing clients.
If you pick a dud after all that, I'll be amazed.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Denise asked me to recommend a PR agency. I couldn't. But I was able to offer the following advice:
.....
I wouldn't recommend anyone in particular because the agency that is just right for you is a very personal choice. But I can give you a strategy for finding and selecting a good PR supplier.
First identify the media outlets in which you want coverage. Then identify the writers and editors and producers and presenters you would like to take an interest in your company. Then contact them asking for their advice. Ask them to identify for you a PR operative they like dealing with. (Personal relationships are so important in that business.) The person they nominate will have won their trust and will therefore have good access (the most important thing they can offer you). Then, from that list, you will have people working with big PR firms, some in smaller firms, and a couple of solo operators. You should select the size of operation according to the size of your budget, your needs, and your own company - aiming to be big enough on the PR firm's client roster to be important to them. But most important is effectiveness - a combination of creativity, diligence and contacts. That can only be assessed by case studies. And speak with the firm's existing clients.
If you pick a dud after all that, I'll be amazed.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Ladies and Gentlemen
Hi,
I remember the Ritz Carlton in Macquarie Street, when it was still the Ritz Carlton, and I remember one of its general managers (an American whose name escapes me - Tom Collins?) who told me that the Ritz Carlton taught its staff to think of themselves as 'ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen'. A nice, genteel positioning.
How important is a person's understanding of their role in a service organisation? What a difference this makes.
"My role is to make money for the company."
"My role is to make customers happy."
"My role is to see that no one breaks the rules."
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I remember the Ritz Carlton in Macquarie Street, when it was still the Ritz Carlton, and I remember one of its general managers (an American whose name escapes me - Tom Collins?) who told me that the Ritz Carlton taught its staff to think of themselves as 'ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen'. A nice, genteel positioning.
How important is a person's understanding of their role in a service organisation? What a difference this makes.
"My role is to make money for the company."
"My role is to make customers happy."
"My role is to see that no one breaks the rules."
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Platinum Man!
Hi,
Who queues anymore? If I gotta queue, I'm not going. What's so good about being in a crowd? Let me drive in under the stadium and take the lift up to the box or I'm staying home. I'm sorry, I'm just that kind of guy. Platinum Man! (If only.) My point is: no matter what you are selling, there's a market for a Platinum version. (It used to be a Gold version, but that's inflation.) In every category and every market there is a significant segment of consumers willing to... No, demanding to pay a premium for an enhanced version of your offering. They need it to satisfy their urge to separate themselves from the herd (physically, socially, emotionally, whatever.) So don't deny them. There's margin in it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Who queues anymore? If I gotta queue, I'm not going. What's so good about being in a crowd? Let me drive in under the stadium and take the lift up to the box or I'm staying home. I'm sorry, I'm just that kind of guy. Platinum Man! (If only.) My point is: no matter what you are selling, there's a market for a Platinum version. (It used to be a Gold version, but that's inflation.) In every category and every market there is a significant segment of consumers willing to... No, demanding to pay a premium for an enhanced version of your offering. They need it to satisfy their urge to separate themselves from the herd (physically, socially, emotionally, whatever.) So don't deny them. There's margin in it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Society on speed
Hi,
Remember when you would heat food up in the oven, and wait 20 to 30 minutes for hot food? Now 3 minutes in the microwave passes like an eternity. Why? Because as, Einstein discovered, time is relative. As we get used to faster and faster Internet speeds, we're not gonna wait for 20 seconds while a page loads. More bandwidth! Fewer bytes! The mobile phone has taught us we can have it all, now... Expectation Inflation is infectious. It spreads from category to category. If I don't have to wait for this, why should I wait for that? I don't care if it tastes like cardboard and strangles my heart, give it to me fast!
You can speed time up. Edward de Bono once saved a company a fortune by adjusting people's sense of time while waiting for a lift. The lifts were too slow and faster lifts were too expensive. De Bono installed mirrors in the area, and people would check themselves out, passing the time without noticing. (Hard on the ugly ones.) Southwest Airlines would hire buskers off the street to play in departure lounges when they had long delays due to weather.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Perhaps in this hustle and bustle world, the only alone time one has is
waiting for your food. And even then this alone time you have to pay for
the pleasure.
Luan
.......
Mike,
Money is a major factor when it comes down to service...
A number of years ago, I like many of our esteemed countrymen worked at
McDonalds. I remember there were so many times when customers would
launch into fits or rage because their $1.75 Cheeseburger took 2 minutes
longer than the promised waiting time of one minute. Here were grown men
and women berating 15 year olds because they didn't have time to wait
for their fast food.
I guess this comes down to your expectations theory. McDonalds is
renowned the world over as "fast food" and when it's not fast, it must
be the little punk kids fault.
However the same person probably wouldn't bat an eyelid when waiting for
their $38 porterhouse steak hits the 20 minute mark.
Luan
...........
I love that example of Edward de bono. Hes the one with 6 hats right?
While I embrace technology whole heartedly- it has made me incredibly
impatient (whilst naturally have incredibly impatient parents who want me to
get a post grad degree now, have kids now, get married now, may as well plan
my funeral now too) - and this creates stress for others.
We are living in such a contradictory world, where we are trying to save and
maintain culture and tradition in some things-yet revolutionise so many
other things. This is possibly why the Western world is so in love with
Japan, which strives to do both in appreciating culture/history and yet
speeds on technology. Also several sister city relationships with japan
assist this Western appreciation.
I hope in the future more people in Australia appreciate/understand other
Asian cultures, which are not marketed as well as Japan is. We are all never
rude, just ignorant of other cultures/sub cultures, within which others act
in - thereby perceiving others as rude. It is only when we purposely act
rude within our own culture'- that we are rude'.
I love your blog.
Jo
Remember when you would heat food up in the oven, and wait 20 to 30 minutes for hot food? Now 3 minutes in the microwave passes like an eternity. Why? Because as, Einstein discovered, time is relative. As we get used to faster and faster Internet speeds, we're not gonna wait for 20 seconds while a page loads. More bandwidth! Fewer bytes! The mobile phone has taught us we can have it all, now... Expectation Inflation is infectious. It spreads from category to category. If I don't have to wait for this, why should I wait for that? I don't care if it tastes like cardboard and strangles my heart, give it to me fast!
You can speed time up. Edward de Bono once saved a company a fortune by adjusting people's sense of time while waiting for a lift. The lifts were too slow and faster lifts were too expensive. De Bono installed mirrors in the area, and people would check themselves out, passing the time without noticing. (Hard on the ugly ones.) Southwest Airlines would hire buskers off the street to play in departure lounges when they had long delays due to weather.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Perhaps in this hustle and bustle world, the only alone time one has is
waiting for your food. And even then this alone time you have to pay for
the pleasure.
Luan
.......
Mike,
Money is a major factor when it comes down to service...
A number of years ago, I like many of our esteemed countrymen worked at
McDonalds. I remember there were so many times when customers would
launch into fits or rage because their $1.75 Cheeseburger took 2 minutes
longer than the promised waiting time of one minute. Here were grown men
and women berating 15 year olds because they didn't have time to wait
for their fast food.
I guess this comes down to your expectations theory. McDonalds is
renowned the world over as "fast food" and when it's not fast, it must
be the little punk kids fault.
However the same person probably wouldn't bat an eyelid when waiting for
their $38 porterhouse steak hits the 20 minute mark.
Luan
...........
I love that example of Edward de bono. Hes the one with 6 hats right?
While I embrace technology whole heartedly- it has made me incredibly
impatient (whilst naturally have incredibly impatient parents who want me to
get a post grad degree now, have kids now, get married now, may as well plan
my funeral now too) - and this creates stress for others.
We are living in such a contradictory world, where we are trying to save and
maintain culture and tradition in some things-yet revolutionise so many
other things. This is possibly why the Western world is so in love with
Japan, which strives to do both in appreciating culture/history and yet
speeds on technology. Also several sister city relationships with japan
assist this Western appreciation.
I hope in the future more people in Australia appreciate/understand other
Asian cultures, which are not marketed as well as Japan is. We are all never
rude, just ignorant of other cultures/sub cultures, within which others act
in - thereby perceiving others as rude. It is only when we purposely act
rude within our own culture'- that we are rude'.
I love your blog.
Jo
Expectation Inflation
Hi,
Do you remember those lame slogans that people used to peddle about "Excellence"? Like "Excellence is a race without a finish line." Excellence emerged at the same time as the Customer Service Revolution and I think of both each time I encounter bad service. In the pre-Excellence days, bad service was expected and hardly raised an eyebrow. But now we have higher expectations. Today we encounter better general levels of service. But at the same time we are more likely to be upset by bad service. We are suffering from "Expectation Inflation" - which means consumers grow harder and harder to please as you increase your levels of service. A pretty dilemma.
Expectation Inflation affects your operation whenever you offer benefits to customers. I have been a Lexus owner for 6 years. I have enjoyed the highest levels of service available in Australia - until my last service when they failed to bleed the rear brakes and I was driving on outback roads pumping the brakes to slow down. It forced me to make a special trip back to the city to have it rectified. When it was returned, the service person refused to take my assurance that we routinely pay by invoice and insisted on a credit card for a $78 bill. (The original faulty service - for $1200+ - was invoiced.) And no apology for the original service failure. Very unLexus. The brand set the bar - and my expectations - so high when it was launched in 1990.
I used to be an Advocate. Now, what can I say?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Do you remember those lame slogans that people used to peddle about "Excellence"? Like "Excellence is a race without a finish line." Excellence emerged at the same time as the Customer Service Revolution and I think of both each time I encounter bad service. In the pre-Excellence days, bad service was expected and hardly raised an eyebrow. But now we have higher expectations. Today we encounter better general levels of service. But at the same time we are more likely to be upset by bad service. We are suffering from "Expectation Inflation" - which means consumers grow harder and harder to please as you increase your levels of service. A pretty dilemma.
Expectation Inflation affects your operation whenever you offer benefits to customers. I have been a Lexus owner for 6 years. I have enjoyed the highest levels of service available in Australia - until my last service when they failed to bleed the rear brakes and I was driving on outback roads pumping the brakes to slow down. It forced me to make a special trip back to the city to have it rectified. When it was returned, the service person refused to take my assurance that we routinely pay by invoice and insisted on a credit card for a $78 bill. (The original faulty service - for $1200+ - was invoiced.) And no apology for the original service failure. Very unLexus. The brand set the bar - and my expectations - so high when it was launched in 1990.
I used to be an Advocate. Now, what can I say?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Feedback? No thanks!
Hi,
I have just completed an exercise helping a client structure and manage a pitch by 8 agencies for his business. He has offered the 7 unsuccessful agencies a debrief so that they can improve. My bet for how many of them will take it up: 0%. Naturally they don't want to dwell on a failure. But how else can you learn?
For all his faults (and I never did work out what went wrong) Bob Ansett of Budget Rent-A-Car (it was the '80's, you had to be there) got the service proposition right. He actively fished for complaints from customers so he could discover areas where he could get a competitive advantage. He lapped up complaints.
Be like Bob. Face the music. It hurts. But when you learn from it, you grow.
BTW, I saw Bob in town a few months ago (for the opening of some swank hotel. I guess they were short on tall, greying Americans.) He deserves a place in the Australian Marketing Hall of Fame for his work in almost single-handedly evangelising the customer service ethic in Australia. Our new service economy and our long tourism boom couldn't have happened without that. "Australian Customer Service" used to be an oxymoron. (Look it up.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
Michael,
People at work might think it's a bit strange I ask for feedback all the
time, as I want to improve, learn, develop, become more efficient - so next
time I can tackle it faster/smarter.
Constructive criticism is great- but so often it is delivered to the person
in such a manner that it is not perceived as constructive. Then emotions set
in, and before you know it- staff retention drops a few percent.
Jo
..........
Of course the reverse also applies....on a number of occasions I've been asked to prop on some media training or PR only to find that my hour or two of work has gone into a black hole. Sometimes I suspect that I'm only there to make up the numbers so that the person they really want looks OK.
More to the point: as a trainer I think that quality feedback is hard to get, but it's also hard to give good quality feedback. And once you've been given bad (say, inappropriate rather than negative) feedback it can put you off being interested in it again.
Bob
........
Hey -
As any decent rock guitarist knows, feedback can be your friend.
When used properly, it can help get you from here to there with much
more drama and authority than if you didn't have it.
Just ask Pete Townshend!
Cheers.
Jeff
I have just completed an exercise helping a client structure and manage a pitch by 8 agencies for his business. He has offered the 7 unsuccessful agencies a debrief so that they can improve. My bet for how many of them will take it up: 0%. Naturally they don't want to dwell on a failure. But how else can you learn?
For all his faults (and I never did work out what went wrong) Bob Ansett of Budget Rent-A-Car (it was the '80's, you had to be there) got the service proposition right. He actively fished for complaints from customers so he could discover areas where he could get a competitive advantage. He lapped up complaints.
Be like Bob. Face the music. It hurts. But when you learn from it, you grow.
BTW, I saw Bob in town a few months ago (for the opening of some swank hotel. I guess they were short on tall, greying Americans.) He deserves a place in the Australian Marketing Hall of Fame for his work in almost single-handedly evangelising the customer service ethic in Australia. Our new service economy and our long tourism boom couldn't have happened without that. "Australian Customer Service" used to be an oxymoron. (Look it up.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email responses:
Michael,
People at work might think it's a bit strange I ask for feedback all the
time, as I want to improve, learn, develop, become more efficient - so next
time I can tackle it faster/smarter.
Constructive criticism is great- but so often it is delivered to the person
in such a manner that it is not perceived as constructive. Then emotions set
in, and before you know it- staff retention drops a few percent.
Jo
..........
Of course the reverse also applies....on a number of occasions I've been asked to prop on some media training or PR only to find that my hour or two of work has gone into a black hole. Sometimes I suspect that I'm only there to make up the numbers so that the person they really want looks OK.
More to the point: as a trainer I think that quality feedback is hard to get, but it's also hard to give good quality feedback. And once you've been given bad (say, inappropriate rather than negative) feedback it can put you off being interested in it again.
Bob
........
Hey -
As any decent rock guitarist knows, feedback can be your friend.
When used properly, it can help get you from here to there with much
more drama and authority than if you didn't have it.
Just ask Pete Townshend!
Cheers.
Jeff
When you are the problem...
Hi,
What do you do when you are the problem? I know of two cases in which the most senior marketing executive is the blockage to progress. Both lead dysfunctional teams that are divided into warring camps. Both organisations are struggling to meet their objectives. In one case - an agency - it's new business hit rate is dismal. Getting in the door, but failing at the presentation, led by the boss. ("He comes across as a used car salesman," said one prospective client.) The other guy is so out of touch with the principles of team building that he alienates his younger colleagues by making pronouncements as if they were law, refusing to share the evidence he says he has for his position (leading to suspicion that there is none).
More than any other corporate function, marketing is about team and team is about leadership. A leader needs a healthy ego to take on the job. But you also need a good dose of self critique daily because staff worried about their job security aren't going to deliver it. It takes a high degree of emotional intelligence to judge your own performance objectively and accept a negative report.
It's lonely at the top. A leader needs a feedback loop: a mentor who is close enough to the business to detect the subterranean rumblings, but far enough away to be able to see the whole picture. Someone you can trust to give you the bad news.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Hi Michael,
I have just signed up for your daily 'thoughts' and I love them! They are always useful and relevant. Yesterday's thought I found particularly interesting...
I am currently working in an organisation which has great potential but I feel is being managed in the exact way you describe below - divide, conquer and burn people out in the process. Do you have any practical advice (short of leaving the company) to deal with managers like those in your email? Pointing out problems with the current system and coming up with alternatives doesn't seem to be working.
Thanks
Nat
...........
Michael
Totally agree about Bob Ansett - great thought for the day.
Cheers
Shaun
..........
Hi Michael,
Great to hear someone revering Bob Ansett, I had the please of working for him for many years and miss his entrepreneurial leadership and zealous dedication to the customer. Having worked all over the world and for many different companies and management styles I must say Bobs code of marketing conduct still guides my personnel beliefs. I recall fondly one of his catch cries (possibly a quote from another inspirational person) "do the ordinary things extraordinary well" !
PS I read with interest your 57deadly marketing mistakes, I was delighted to read something objective and 'real" that mirrors many of my own thoughts! I applaude you for your passion!
Viva BOB viva Kiely
Christopher
What do you do when you are the problem? I know of two cases in which the most senior marketing executive is the blockage to progress. Both lead dysfunctional teams that are divided into warring camps. Both organisations are struggling to meet their objectives. In one case - an agency - it's new business hit rate is dismal. Getting in the door, but failing at the presentation, led by the boss. ("He comes across as a used car salesman," said one prospective client.) The other guy is so out of touch with the principles of team building that he alienates his younger colleagues by making pronouncements as if they were law, refusing to share the evidence he says he has for his position (leading to suspicion that there is none).
More than any other corporate function, marketing is about team and team is about leadership. A leader needs a healthy ego to take on the job. But you also need a good dose of self critique daily because staff worried about their job security aren't going to deliver it. It takes a high degree of emotional intelligence to judge your own performance objectively and accept a negative report.
It's lonely at the top. A leader needs a feedback loop: a mentor who is close enough to the business to detect the subterranean rumblings, but far enough away to be able to see the whole picture. Someone you can trust to give you the bad news.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Hi Michael,
I have just signed up for your daily 'thoughts' and I love them! They are always useful and relevant. Yesterday's thought I found particularly interesting...
I am currently working in an organisation which has great potential but I feel is being managed in the exact way you describe below - divide, conquer and burn people out in the process. Do you have any practical advice (short of leaving the company) to deal with managers like those in your email? Pointing out problems with the current system and coming up with alternatives doesn't seem to be working.
Thanks
Nat
...........
Michael
Totally agree about Bob Ansett - great thought for the day.
Cheers
Shaun
..........
Hi Michael,
Great to hear someone revering Bob Ansett, I had the please of working for him for many years and miss his entrepreneurial leadership and zealous dedication to the customer. Having worked all over the world and for many different companies and management styles I must say Bobs code of marketing conduct still guides my personnel beliefs. I recall fondly one of his catch cries (possibly a quote from another inspirational person) "do the ordinary things extraordinary well" !
PS I read with interest your 57deadly marketing mistakes, I was delighted to read something objective and 'real" that mirrors many of my own thoughts! I applaude you for your passion!
Viva BOB viva Kiely
Christopher
DIY PR?
Hi,
One of your fellow "subscribers" to this service submitted an interesting question (below). You may find the response interesting (further below).
...........
Michael,
In your experience did you have meetings with journalists and editors or
did you leave that up to PR types who work this channel? My thoughts are that if I were to have a regular discussion with them our company will get more editorial opportunities. We had a PR company working for us but we ended the relationship as we could not quantify the return. We now do our own when we have a decent enough story that we think will get press.
Reason I ask is that we have sales people calling us all the time
wanting to sell ad space (bless them!) but I think that we get better
mileage from editorial which does not cost us anything.
Richard
.....
Richard,
First, separate advertising and publicity in your mind. They are separate activities with different functions. Second, publicity is not free. It costs time and resources and money. Third, it is possible to quantify the value of press coverage. You assign a figure to the coverage relative to the same presence in advertising dollars (with a formula you can get from a competent PR type). Fourth, maintaining your own media contacts is a good strategy. 1. It frees you from dependence on PR types. (I used to be one. I know what they're like.) 2. It shortens the chain of communication, speeds things up, and can make journalists and editors more interested. 3. It can ensure that your message gets through undiluted. 4. It can save $$$. But downsides are: 1. It takes time when you should be playing other roles in the marketing function, reducing your effectiveness overall. 2. You may have skills in this area, but your successor may not. You leave and your company loses part of its marketing systems. 3. You may think you're good at it, but your performance might be sub-optimal (and nobody's willing to tell you). 4. Unless you have had training and/or experience in the function, you may not have the essential 'creative' side - the ability to see or invent news angles (or reasons for coverage) that editors need. 5. You might not get the access to journos/editors that a professional publicist can. (Not being as rat cunning.) 6. A lot of PR work is simply "grunt" - calling a list of people to confirm attendance at an event, etc. This can tie up internal resources and disrupt operations. Perhaps you could fashion a hybrid system, building your own contacts and working them, but taking advice from a mentoring senior professional pr operator as you go and using them for special projects.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
One of your fellow "subscribers" to this service submitted an interesting question (below). You may find the response interesting (further below).
...........
Michael,
In your experience did you have meetings with journalists and editors or
did you leave that up to PR types who work this channel? My thoughts are that if I were to have a regular discussion with them our company will get more editorial opportunities. We had a PR company working for us but we ended the relationship as we could not quantify the return. We now do our own when we have a decent enough story that we think will get press.
Reason I ask is that we have sales people calling us all the time
wanting to sell ad space (bless them!) but I think that we get better
mileage from editorial which does not cost us anything.
Richard
.....
Richard,
First, separate advertising and publicity in your mind. They are separate activities with different functions. Second, publicity is not free. It costs time and resources and money. Third, it is possible to quantify the value of press coverage. You assign a figure to the coverage relative to the same presence in advertising dollars (with a formula you can get from a competent PR type). Fourth, maintaining your own media contacts is a good strategy. 1. It frees you from dependence on PR types. (I used to be one. I know what they're like.) 2. It shortens the chain of communication, speeds things up, and can make journalists and editors more interested. 3. It can ensure that your message gets through undiluted. 4. It can save $$$. But downsides are: 1. It takes time when you should be playing other roles in the marketing function, reducing your effectiveness overall. 2. You may have skills in this area, but your successor may not. You leave and your company loses part of its marketing systems. 3. You may think you're good at it, but your performance might be sub-optimal (and nobody's willing to tell you). 4. Unless you have had training and/or experience in the function, you may not have the essential 'creative' side - the ability to see or invent news angles (or reasons for coverage) that editors need. 5. You might not get the access to journos/editors that a professional publicist can. (Not being as rat cunning.) 6. A lot of PR work is simply "grunt" - calling a list of people to confirm attendance at an event, etc. This can tie up internal resources and disrupt operations. Perhaps you could fashion a hybrid system, building your own contacts and working them, but taking advice from a mentoring senior professional pr operator as you go and using them for special projects.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Curse me with a blessing
Hi,
Confucious, when asked for a blessing that could contain a curse, hidden within its folds like a dagger, responded: "May you live in interesting times." We live in such times. Old securities are swept away. Living conditions are shifting. The world is in crisis at so many levels. But Confucious would tell you that the Chinese script for the word "crisis" is made of two characters, one representing 'danger' and one representing 'opportunity'. Instability creates opportunity. Every silver lining has to have a black cloud. The Industrial Revolution, which made our modern consumer society possible, was itself made possible by the Black Death, the plague which killed a third of the population of Europe. This disaster in turn made possible the agricultural surpluses which were converted into capital and invested in steam engine technology and factory production models. Shakespeare wrote: "Nothing is good or bad but thinking makes it so." The lesson: look for the silver lining, and patent it, secure distribution for it, promote it and sell truckloads of it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Mike,
Just wanted to let you know your thoughts of the days are brilliant.
Been receiving them for a couple of months now some are very useful, and
even the unuseful ones are good refreshers.
Keep on truckin
Luan
Confucious, when asked for a blessing that could contain a curse, hidden within its folds like a dagger, responded: "May you live in interesting times." We live in such times. Old securities are swept away. Living conditions are shifting. The world is in crisis at so many levels. But Confucious would tell you that the Chinese script for the word "crisis" is made of two characters, one representing 'danger' and one representing 'opportunity'. Instability creates opportunity. Every silver lining has to have a black cloud. The Industrial Revolution, which made our modern consumer society possible, was itself made possible by the Black Death, the plague which killed a third of the population of Europe. This disaster in turn made possible the agricultural surpluses which were converted into capital and invested in steam engine technology and factory production models. Shakespeare wrote: "Nothing is good or bad but thinking makes it so." The lesson: look for the silver lining, and patent it, secure distribution for it, promote it and sell truckloads of it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Mike,
Just wanted to let you know your thoughts of the days are brilliant.
Been receiving them for a couple of months now some are very useful, and
even the unuseful ones are good refreshers.
Keep on truckin
Luan
Tell me lies, sell me the truth
Hi,
This is not about politics. This is about marketing. The Australian public prefer as their leader a PM who they believe tells lies over his deputy who they believe tells the truth, according to a recent survey reported in the media. (Uh-oh...) Forty percent of Australian journalists say they can’t report the truth, according to a recent survey published on crikey.com. They have to shape their reports to suit their media company’s interests. The only organizations required by law to tell the truth are marketing companies. “Marketing” is a synonym for ‘rip off’, ‘rort’ and ‘con job’ in Australia. Yet if politicians and journalists were subject to the same regulatory regime, they’d have little to say. The Lesson: each one of us decides the price of truth and either pays it or is paid it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Thanks for the daily thought Michael, always gets the brain ticking over of
a morning.
Your piece puts me to mind of many arguments I've had over the years that
touch on your theme, but mainly conjures up something I once heard the
comedian Alexei Sayle say to an audience - 'I tell the truth and you laugh,
a politician lies and you elect them'.
Cheers
David
This is not about politics. This is about marketing. The Australian public prefer as their leader a PM who they believe tells lies over his deputy who they believe tells the truth, according to a recent survey reported in the media. (Uh-oh...) Forty percent of Australian journalists say they can’t report the truth, according to a recent survey published on crikey.com. They have to shape their reports to suit their media company’s interests. The only organizations required by law to tell the truth are marketing companies. “Marketing” is a synonym for ‘rip off’, ‘rort’ and ‘con job’ in Australia. Yet if politicians and journalists were subject to the same regulatory regime, they’d have little to say. The Lesson: each one of us decides the price of truth and either pays it or is paid it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Email response:
Thanks for the daily thought Michael, always gets the brain ticking over of
a morning.
Your piece puts me to mind of many arguments I've had over the years that
touch on your theme, but mainly conjures up something I once heard the
comedian Alexei Sayle say to an audience - 'I tell the truth and you laugh,
a politician lies and you elect them'.
Cheers
David
Make me famous!
Hi,
I go through an interesting process coming up with these 'Thoughts". Occasionally something will come up in my daily work with agencies and clients. Yesterday an agency asked me to help them formulate a "Mission Statement". I think the statement that came out of the process should be adopted by all agencies:
"Our mission is to make our clients famous."
That's it. All other statements to this effect are merely derivative. What does the individual marketing executive want, in the final analysis? Not just successful campaigns and high ROI and profits. They want to be recognised as the author of that success. They ultimately want to be heroes and rewarded as such. Career progress, esteem of colleagues, industry profile, and a feeling of having achieved a new level of personal growth - arriving at a new self-image, breathing the pure exhilarating air of success. The agency shouldn't try to take all the glory. (But they all do. Fools.) Reflected glory is all any agency can afford or deserves.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I go through an interesting process coming up with these 'Thoughts". Occasionally something will come up in my daily work with agencies and clients. Yesterday an agency asked me to help them formulate a "Mission Statement". I think the statement that came out of the process should be adopted by all agencies:
"Our mission is to make our clients famous."
That's it. All other statements to this effect are merely derivative. What does the individual marketing executive want, in the final analysis? Not just successful campaigns and high ROI and profits. They want to be recognised as the author of that success. They ultimately want to be heroes and rewarded as such. Career progress, esteem of colleagues, industry profile, and a feeling of having achieved a new level of personal growth - arriving at a new self-image, breathing the pure exhilarating air of success. The agency shouldn't try to take all the glory. (But they all do. Fools.) Reflected glory is all any agency can afford or deserves.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The War of the Flea
Hi,
There was a book written in the 1970s called 'The War of The Flea' about guerilla warfare of the type waged by the Vietnamese against the Americans and by the Iraqis and the Afghans and the Palestinians and the list goes on. Why the flea? Because there's and old story about a flea that could drive an elephant insane and send it packing. The little guy uses unconventional tactics to disrupt and eventually deter a much larger opponent. This is the strategy Richard Branson employs. Pick on a big, lumbering, self-indulgent market leader and harass his columns, set fire to his tents and destroy his baggage while his main force is arrayed in its splendor on the main battlefield. The guerilla decides where and when to engage the enemy, usually when they least expect it. He uses low cost weaponry. Branson's use of publicity stunts is a means of creating his own low cost media (eg. His law suits against British Airways, his round the world balloon flights, Sherman tanks down NY's Broadway announcing Virgin Cola's attack on Coke, etc.). Guerilla warriors use brain against brawn.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
There was a book written in the 1970s called 'The War of The Flea' about guerilla warfare of the type waged by the Vietnamese against the Americans and by the Iraqis and the Afghans and the Palestinians and the list goes on. Why the flea? Because there's and old story about a flea that could drive an elephant insane and send it packing. The little guy uses unconventional tactics to disrupt and eventually deter a much larger opponent. This is the strategy Richard Branson employs. Pick on a big, lumbering, self-indulgent market leader and harass his columns, set fire to his tents and destroy his baggage while his main force is arrayed in its splendor on the main battlefield. The guerilla decides where and when to engage the enemy, usually when they least expect it. He uses low cost weaponry. Branson's use of publicity stunts is a means of creating his own low cost media (eg. His law suits against British Airways, his round the world balloon flights, Sherman tanks down NY's Broadway announcing Virgin Cola's attack on Coke, etc.). Guerilla warriors use brain against brawn.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Marketing by walking around
Hi,
Who is your best prospect? Can you describe them? Can you say, without looking, what shoes they are likely to wear? Most companies don't know this fundamentally important piece of information. So you cannot afford expensive market research. There are alternatives. One is "marketing by walking around." At DJs, Brian Walsh - the man who ushered in "there's no other store like David Jones" - insisted that senior management man the tills for several hours per week, serving customers. American Express have been known to use senior management as telephonists when contacting large numbers of cardmembers by phone. Brian Walsh was able to spot a DJ's shopper walking down the street. Can you spot your prospects at 100 yards?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Who is your best prospect? Can you describe them? Can you say, without looking, what shoes they are likely to wear? Most companies don't know this fundamentally important piece of information. So you cannot afford expensive market research. There are alternatives. One is "marketing by walking around." At DJs, Brian Walsh - the man who ushered in "there's no other store like David Jones" - insisted that senior management man the tills for several hours per week, serving customers. American Express have been known to use senior management as telephonists when contacting large numbers of cardmembers by phone. Brian Walsh was able to spot a DJ's shopper walking down the street. Can you spot your prospects at 100 yards?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Are you in marketing?
Hi,
10 years ago Brandweek magazine offered the following seven tell-tale signs that a company is not marketing:
1. Sales are driven by price.
2. There is no other way of differentiating the offering from the competition.
3. A steady stream of disconnected sales gimmicks is used.
4. There is no unified plan for communicating the company's message to customers, the trade and the public.
5. Most sales leads come from the sale staff. Marketing exists to create a selling environment and generate prospects.
6. Longtime customers say "I didn't know you did that."
7. There is no customer or prospect database which can be used for marketing.
Now, are you in marketing? The key is having a plan and a program which aims to build equity in your business via growing customer relationships.
Every tactic you employ should in some way promote your move in that direction.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
10 years ago Brandweek magazine offered the following seven tell-tale signs that a company is not marketing:
1. Sales are driven by price.
2. There is no other way of differentiating the offering from the competition.
3. A steady stream of disconnected sales gimmicks is used.
4. There is no unified plan for communicating the company's message to customers, the trade and the public.
5. Most sales leads come from the sale staff. Marketing exists to create a selling environment and generate prospects.
6. Longtime customers say "I didn't know you did that."
7. There is no customer or prospect database which can be used for marketing.
Now, are you in marketing? The key is having a plan and a program which aims to build equity in your business via growing customer relationships.
Every tactic you employ should in some way promote your move in that direction.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
"Follow Me, Boys"
Hi,
The earliest form of ambient advertising was discovered in the ruins of Pompeii. A prostitute had 'stamps' made of the soles of her sandles which pressed into the dust of the streets of the city the words "Follow Me, Boys" wherever she went. The fresher the message, the nearer she was to be found. Lesson: Guerilla marketing makes a lot out of a little. Where are your sandals?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The earliest form of ambient advertising was discovered in the ruins of Pompeii. A prostitute had 'stamps' made of the soles of her sandles which pressed into the dust of the streets of the city the words "Follow Me, Boys" wherever she went. The fresher the message, the nearer she was to be found. Lesson: Guerilla marketing makes a lot out of a little. Where are your sandals?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Lead with your balls and get kicked
Hi,
The brainiacs at the ACTU got a clobbering by John Howard when he was able to "reveal" that the people appearing in the ad campaign against the Government's labour laws were not telling the truth. Greg Combet took a public kick in the balls when his failure to investigate the stories of his "talent" left the campaign open to a devastating attack. The Honorable John Howard was able to discredit the campaign by exploiting the smallest of discrepancies and accepting the employers' word in each case, not even consulting the employees concerned. The Office of Workplace Services concluded that none of the workers in the campaign had been sacked illegally. It said a worker who claimed to have been sacked via text message had previously been advised twice by telephone that her assignment had ended. And it found that a worker who was not paid redundancy did not have that provision in his work contract. The Government wins the encounter, even though the PM is saying it's alright to sack someone by telephone and to force workers onto contracts with no redundancy provisions. Lesson: don't give your competitor a free kick.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The brainiacs at the ACTU got a clobbering by John Howard when he was able to "reveal" that the people appearing in the ad campaign against the Government's labour laws were not telling the truth. Greg Combet took a public kick in the balls when his failure to investigate the stories of his "talent" left the campaign open to a devastating attack. The Honorable John Howard was able to discredit the campaign by exploiting the smallest of discrepancies and accepting the employers' word in each case, not even consulting the employees concerned. The Office of Workplace Services concluded that none of the workers in the campaign had been sacked illegally. It said a worker who claimed to have been sacked via text message had previously been advised twice by telephone that her assignment had ended. And it found that a worker who was not paid redundancy did not have that provision in his work contract. The Government wins the encounter, even though the PM is saying it's alright to sack someone by telephone and to force workers onto contracts with no redundancy provisions. Lesson: don't give your competitor a free kick.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Naming babies and brnads
Hi,
Choosing a name for a baby or a brand is a left brain/right brain thing. Emotion and Intellect. On the one hand it's a little bit practical - we first developed names for each other so we could tell each other apart from the others and talk about you behind your back (literally). Otherwise conversations would be cumbersome. "Go and tell that caveman with the beard and the club to come and help us kill the sabre tooth tiger." "Which one?" "The one who smells like he needs a bath." "But we all smell like that..." SO a name is for differentiation. (If you want a little differentiation - to say 'we're in the category, but we're the same as everyone else' - choose a name like all the others - the way pharmaceutical companies do: Zanadec,Zabadec, Zordec, Zordex, etc. If you want a lot of differentiation, call your son Sue and your airline Virgin.) On the other hand, choosing a name is a little bit creative - the name expresses some of the emotion and colour and personality of the child or brand. When it is to have emotional associations you have to think of the following: what are they? Do they fit the tone and manner statement attached to the Brand Positioning Strategy? (What? You don't have one? Better get one quick!) The name... What does it sound like when you say it? What does it look like on paper? On a business card? Does everything about it fit the image you want to portray? Because a name is forever...
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Choosing a name for a baby or a brand is a left brain/right brain thing. Emotion and Intellect. On the one hand it's a little bit practical - we first developed names for each other so we could tell each other apart from the others and talk about you behind your back (literally). Otherwise conversations would be cumbersome. "Go and tell that caveman with the beard and the club to come and help us kill the sabre tooth tiger." "Which one?" "The one who smells like he needs a bath." "But we all smell like that..." SO a name is for differentiation. (If you want a little differentiation - to say 'we're in the category, but we're the same as everyone else' - choose a name like all the others - the way pharmaceutical companies do: Zanadec,Zabadec, Zordec, Zordex, etc. If you want a lot of differentiation, call your son Sue and your airline Virgin.) On the other hand, choosing a name is a little bit creative - the name expresses some of the emotion and colour and personality of the child or brand. When it is to have emotional associations you have to think of the following: what are they? Do they fit the tone and manner statement attached to the Brand Positioning Strategy? (What? You don't have one? Better get one quick!) The name... What does it sound like when you say it? What does it look like on paper? On a business card? Does everything about it fit the image you want to portray? Because a name is forever...
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I'm Fantastic!
Hi,
I always wanted to call one of my kids "Fantastic". Fantastic Kiely. Now there's a name to live up to. Everyday they'd have to be Fantastic. "And who might you be, sonny?" "I'm Fantastic, Sir." A name is something you have to live up to.
Other babies' names I'll never get to assign to my children: Fabulous, Special, Loveable, Always Right, and Wow!
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I always wanted to call one of my kids "Fantastic". Fantastic Kiely. Now there's a name to live up to. Everyday they'd have to be Fantastic. "And who might you be, sonny?" "I'm Fantastic, Sir." A name is something you have to live up to.
Other babies' names I'll never get to assign to my children: Fabulous, Special, Loveable, Always Right, and Wow!
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Thursday, July 27, 2006
#@%&+?ƒ the Rules of Naming Brands
Hi,
I'm currently embroiled in an argument with an old style ad guy about naming a new company and product. He says we can't call the product a name that describes what it is. "It's against the rules!" he intones. Whose rules?
What about "Coca-Cola" for a cola drink originally made from cocoa when it was named. IBM was "International Business Machines" when it was launched. They were selling adding machines in many countries. "Microsoft" was a software company that aimed to focus on micro computers (later known as desktops and now laptops, etc.)
Here's a good reason to call your product a name that says what it is: your name is your most potent advertising vehicle. It will be seen by many people who won't know you. It will appear in phone listings and directories, on packages and boxes, on trucks, and in many other non-advertising surfaces. Places it has to be. It is your cheapest advertisement.
Old style ad guys think the world still burns old style ad budgets to build brands. That dream burst with the dot com bubble.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I'm currently embroiled in an argument with an old style ad guy about naming a new company and product. He says we can't call the product a name that describes what it is. "It's against the rules!" he intones. Whose rules?
What about "Coca-Cola" for a cola drink originally made from cocoa when it was named. IBM was "International Business Machines" when it was launched. They were selling adding machines in many countries. "Microsoft" was a software company that aimed to focus on micro computers (later known as desktops and now laptops, etc.)
Here's a good reason to call your product a name that says what it is: your name is your most potent advertising vehicle. It will be seen by many people who won't know you. It will appear in phone listings and directories, on packages and boxes, on trucks, and in many other non-advertising surfaces. Places it has to be. It is your cheapest advertisement.
Old style ad guys think the world still burns old style ad budgets to build brands. That dream burst with the dot com bubble.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The Rules of Creating Brand Names
Hi,
Sometime in your career you are going to face the challenge of creating or signing off on a new name for a product, company, or whatever. Very few people are skilled in this field. There are a lot of blowhards who will try to bluff you into thinking they know how to do it. But there is only one rule with naming: There are no rules.
Look at the names of the world’s leading brands, aka. Business Week and Interbrand’s "100 Best Global Brands": Coca-Cola, Microsoft, IBM, GE, Intel, Nokia, Disney, McDonald’s, Toyota and Marlboro. These brands make up the world’s "top ten" by value. See any patterns there, any 'best practice' re names? No? No. There is none. There are family names, like Disney and McDonald’s; initials, like IBM and GE; semi-descriptive and "associative" names, like Microsoft and Intel; and abstract names, like Nokia and Marlboro.
In fact, 46 of the 100 brands are named after their founders. There's not a lot of strategy in that. SO next time someone says, "You can't call a product that, it's against the rules...", just say: "I follow Kiely's Rule which says I can call it any damn thing I like."
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Sometime in your career you are going to face the challenge of creating or signing off on a new name for a product, company, or whatever. Very few people are skilled in this field. There are a lot of blowhards who will try to bluff you into thinking they know how to do it. But there is only one rule with naming: There are no rules.
Look at the names of the world’s leading brands, aka. Business Week and Interbrand’s "100 Best Global Brands": Coca-Cola, Microsoft, IBM, GE, Intel, Nokia, Disney, McDonald’s, Toyota and Marlboro. These brands make up the world’s "top ten" by value. See any patterns there, any 'best practice' re names? No? No. There is none. There are family names, like Disney and McDonald’s; initials, like IBM and GE; semi-descriptive and "associative" names, like Microsoft and Intel; and abstract names, like Nokia and Marlboro.
In fact, 46 of the 100 brands are named after their founders. There's not a lot of strategy in that. SO next time someone says, "You can't call a product that, it's against the rules...", just say: "I follow Kiely's Rule which says I can call it any damn thing I like."
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Crisis? What Crisis? 3
Hi,
You can plan for product tampering or any one of a thousand events just by playing 'what if' games.
Pepsi overcame a product tampering charge when it was able to prove the syringes weren't introduced to their cans during the production process. It had video surveillance of its entire production process. Smart.
The consumers who reported finding the syringes were eventually charged with criminal offences.
What if...
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
You can plan for product tampering or any one of a thousand events just by playing 'what if' games.
Pepsi overcame a product tampering charge when it was able to prove the syringes weren't introduced to their cans during the production process. It had video surveillance of its entire production process. Smart.
The consumers who reported finding the syringes were eventually charged with criminal offences.
What if...
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Crisis? What Crisis? 2
Hi,
Crisis management plans are fairly easy to put together.
Step 1. Appoint a Crisis Management team. They meet as soon as the crisis is detected.
Step 2. Decide who the single spokesperson/media point of contact will be (to avoid conflicting messages getting out).
Step 3. Map out your Rapid Response Plan under which, simultaneously, these things will happen:
A.) Inform the media of your company's policies in this area and that a statement about this incident will be forthcoming shortly.
B.) Investigate the situation.*
C.) Inform the staff and remind them of the Crisis Management Procedures which they would have been exposed to during staff training and induction.
D.) Formulate your response and 'fess up. Don't try to sandbag the media or spin your way out of it.
E.) Keep all stakeholders informed - shareholders, regulators, suppliers, customers, community, etc.
F.) Act quickly to protect the public - ie. In the case of product contamination, order a complete recall, regardless of proof of how extensive the problem might be. It proves you care.
*When this takes time, keep the media informed, unless you are involved in a police investigation (such as in a product tampering/extortion case).
Preparing for product tampering.... More tomorrow.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Crisis management plans are fairly easy to put together.
Step 1. Appoint a Crisis Management team. They meet as soon as the crisis is detected.
Step 2. Decide who the single spokesperson/media point of contact will be (to avoid conflicting messages getting out).
Step 3. Map out your Rapid Response Plan under which, simultaneously, these things will happen:
A.) Inform the media of your company's policies in this area and that a statement about this incident will be forthcoming shortly.
B.) Investigate the situation.*
C.) Inform the staff and remind them of the Crisis Management Procedures which they would have been exposed to during staff training and induction.
D.) Formulate your response and 'fess up. Don't try to sandbag the media or spin your way out of it.
E.) Keep all stakeholders informed - shareholders, regulators, suppliers, customers, community, etc.
F.) Act quickly to protect the public - ie. In the case of product contamination, order a complete recall, regardless of proof of how extensive the problem might be. It proves you care.
*When this takes time, keep the media informed, unless you are involved in a police investigation (such as in a product tampering/extortion case).
Preparing for product tampering.... More tomorrow.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Crisis? What Crisis?
Hi,
You are interrupted at lunch by a phone call from someone at work saying the switchboard is melting down due to a barrage of calls from journalists wanting to speak to someone about the fact that your company was named in a court case as having engaged in illegal activity. Your financial director has resigned and left the building. No one has heard from your operations manager all day. "What should I say to them?" says your receptionist.
You simply say: 'Activate the Crisis Management Plan.' The what? A Crisis Management Plan is what protects you from reacting to unexpected catastrophic events like a rabbit caught in a spotlight. Every organisation should have one as part of their risk management strategy. (The what?)
More tomorrow... (Fingers crossed nothing happens until then.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
You are interrupted at lunch by a phone call from someone at work saying the switchboard is melting down due to a barrage of calls from journalists wanting to speak to someone about the fact that your company was named in a court case as having engaged in illegal activity. Your financial director has resigned and left the building. No one has heard from your operations manager all day. "What should I say to them?" says your receptionist.
You simply say: 'Activate the Crisis Management Plan.' The what? A Crisis Management Plan is what protects you from reacting to unexpected catastrophic events like a rabbit caught in a spotlight. Every organisation should have one as part of their risk management strategy. (The what?)
More tomorrow... (Fingers crossed nothing happens until then.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
How's your press area?
Hi,
Professional operations - that are taken seriously by the media - have comprehensive "press areas" on their websites which cater to journalists. Latest press releases (plus archives), speeches, a full array of photographs of product and key people, product specifications, even video. Plus contact details.
You'll be surprised who'll go there - prospective clients, people looking to join you, regulators, etc. Not just journalists. Your press area is full of facts and is easily digested.
It surprises me a.) how many corporate websites don't have press areas and b.) how many that do keep non-journalists out by password protecting them.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Professional operations - that are taken seriously by the media - have comprehensive "press areas" on their websites which cater to journalists. Latest press releases (plus archives), speeches, a full array of photographs of product and key people, product specifications, even video. Plus contact details.
You'll be surprised who'll go there - prospective clients, people looking to join you, regulators, etc. Not just journalists. Your press area is full of facts and is easily digested.
It surprises me a.) how many corporate websites don't have press areas and b.) how many that do keep non-journalists out by password protecting them.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Caught in the spotlight?
Hi,
When I was conducting a brand audit for Macquarie Bank prior to developing the Bank's brand positioning, I made a fascinating discovery. The Bank has a simple method for alerting its executives to behaviour which is potentially dangerous to the Bank's good name. It suggests that the executives speak and act as though their words and actions could appear on the front page of the Financial Review... Because they could do just that.
Try applying the "Front Page of the Fin Review" Test to your daily activity.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
When I was conducting a brand audit for Macquarie Bank prior to developing the Bank's brand positioning, I made a fascinating discovery. The Bank has a simple method for alerting its executives to behaviour which is potentially dangerous to the Bank's good name. It suggests that the executives speak and act as though their words and actions could appear on the front page of the Financial Review... Because they could do just that.
Try applying the "Front Page of the Fin Review" Test to your daily activity.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
I "Watergated" John Singleton
Hi,
Larrikin Millionaire Adman John Singleton uses 'fruity' language in his everyday life and doesn't stop when being interviewed by journalists. He especially used the famous f---- word when I interviewed him for a cover story when I edited Marketing Magazine. Other journalists would edit out the word, but - as I wanted to give the reader the full "Singleton" experience - I left them in. When he opened the magazine for the first time at the luncheon where he spoke to launch the issue, he exclaimed: "You bastard, you Watergated me!" He invented the verb which, for young readers, refers to President Richard Nixon's habit of secretly recording every discussion that took place in the Oval Office at the White House. These tapes were played in the judicial enquiry into the break in to the Democratic campaign headquarters and the theft of documents that eventually saw the President leave office in disgrace. The tapes revealed that the President was a cussin' SOB.
The lesson? Assume the tape is rolling whenever you speak to a journalist. Assume every word you say could appear on the front page of the Australian Financial Review. Don't rely on any special understanding with a journalist. I've been Watergated myself. Treat a journalist as you would a snake. Cautiously.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Larrikin Millionaire Adman John Singleton uses 'fruity' language in his everyday life and doesn't stop when being interviewed by journalists. He especially used the famous f---- word when I interviewed him for a cover story when I edited Marketing Magazine. Other journalists would edit out the word, but - as I wanted to give the reader the full "Singleton" experience - I left them in. When he opened the magazine for the first time at the luncheon where he spoke to launch the issue, he exclaimed: "You bastard, you Watergated me!" He invented the verb which, for young readers, refers to President Richard Nixon's habit of secretly recording every discussion that took place in the Oval Office at the White House. These tapes were played in the judicial enquiry into the break in to the Democratic campaign headquarters and the theft of documents that eventually saw the President leave office in disgrace. The tapes revealed that the President was a cussin' SOB.
The lesson? Assume the tape is rolling whenever you speak to a journalist. Assume every word you say could appear on the front page of the Australian Financial Review. Don't rely on any special understanding with a journalist. I've been Watergated myself. Treat a journalist as you would a snake. Cautiously.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Scratching backs
My friend Robyn Henderson teaches networking skills. (More about that in a later post*.) She says the best way to start a two-way relationship with a good business contact is to send them some business... Simple. Direct. Compelling.
The same goes for editors or producers of media outlets. Send them story ideas. Not just glamour pieces on you or your product or your client. Real hard stories.
Analyse the outlet. What content do they use. Brainstorm some story suggestions. Some of them can involve you. You'll be helping them do the hardest part of their job. And you'll be noticed... And valued... And listened to. '
'Isn't that what you want?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The same goes for editors or producers of media outlets. Send them story ideas. Not just glamour pieces on you or your product or your client. Real hard stories.
Analyse the outlet. What content do they use. Brainstorm some story suggestions. Some of them can involve you. You'll be helping them do the hardest part of their job. And you'll be noticed... And valued... And listened to. '
'Isn't that what you want?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Saturday, July 15, 2006
"I was abducted by aliens!"
... And that's why I missed Friday's "Thought". Anyway they didn't make me have sex with anyone on the flying saucer.
Many popular (read: trashy) publications and programs have headlines like the one above... And your press release and your product story has to compete with that. A good publicist does the editor's job for them. They think like an editor. They think: "How can I spin this story to appeal to this readership? Could aliens abduct my client?"
Most failed attempts to get coverage in the media fail for one of two reasons:
1. There is insufficient excitement in the product story.
2. There is no attempt to make the story relevant to the audience.
Most press releases I have received in my 20+ years are as exciting and enticing as cold cabbage.
Read your company's press releases. What are they like? Do they excite you?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Many popular (read: trashy) publications and programs have headlines like the one above... And your press release and your product story has to compete with that. A good publicist does the editor's job for them. They think like an editor. They think: "How can I spin this story to appeal to this readership? Could aliens abduct my client?"
Most failed attempts to get coverage in the media fail for one of two reasons:
1. There is insufficient excitement in the product story.
2. There is no attempt to make the story relevant to the audience.
Most press releases I have received in my 20+ years are as exciting and enticing as cold cabbage.
Read your company's press releases. What are they like? Do they excite you?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Bad PR passes like a storm in a tea cup
Hi,
Zinedine Zidane delivered the most dramatic moment of the World Cup when he headbutted Italian defender Marco Materazzi in the solar plexus.
What do you do when the boss has a brain explosion? Macquarie Bank's Nicholas Moore described Alan Jones as just a radio announcer in the early stages of the Sydney Airport debacle. Now Nicholas was probably MD Allan Moss's successor-elect. But he singlehandedly forced the share price into a vortex. Good luck, Nicholas.
John Brogden was the next Premier of NSW (he'd have smashed Iemma) until he had a bad night and foolishly resigned over a silly comment about Premier Carr's wife. (Come back John. You're a politician, not a priest.)
If you or your boss ever make the mistake of being honest about your feelings, in public, remember the words of Winston Churchill: "Never never never never resign." Nothing is as bad as it seems. People have short memories. It's tomorrow's fish and chips paper. There'll be a new scandal in the headlines soon. Tough it out. Give an explanation, apologise, but don't be silly about it. Your supporters want you to be strong for them. Live to fight another day.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Zinedine Zidane delivered the most dramatic moment of the World Cup when he headbutted Italian defender Marco Materazzi in the solar plexus.
What do you do when the boss has a brain explosion? Macquarie Bank's Nicholas Moore described Alan Jones as just a radio announcer in the early stages of the Sydney Airport debacle. Now Nicholas was probably MD Allan Moss's successor-elect. But he singlehandedly forced the share price into a vortex. Good luck, Nicholas.
John Brogden was the next Premier of NSW (he'd have smashed Iemma) until he had a bad night and foolishly resigned over a silly comment about Premier Carr's wife. (Come back John. You're a politician, not a priest.)
If you or your boss ever make the mistake of being honest about your feelings, in public, remember the words of Winston Churchill: "Never never never never resign." Nothing is as bad as it seems. People have short memories. It's tomorrow's fish and chips paper. There'll be a new scandal in the headlines soon. Tough it out. Give an explanation, apologise, but don't be silly about it. Your supporters want you to be strong for them. Live to fight another day.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
PR Lessons from John and Peter, ex-buddies
Hi,
PR is not about covering up because the truth will always surface.
PM John Howard projects an image of honesty. In fact, he is not truthful. Remember the 'never ever GST'? 'Children overboard'? Despite all his skills, the truth has surfaced about John Howard. Peter Costello has revealed it in a king hit attempt to knock Howard out of the top job. Howard cannot suggest Ian McLauchlan is lying. He attended the 1994 meeting as Howard's witness and took notes. Costello sought only to make one point about Howard. Howard,in return, made one point about Costello. The Prime Ministership is not something to be bartered.* Anyone who thinks otherwise is guilty of "hubris and arrogance." Bingo. The truth about Peter Costello. Howard's counterpunch. What makes a government under Costello unelectable? His arrogance. Another lesson in PR from our leaders: choose your target well. Peter Costello is playing to anyone who'll listen, hoping we'll all turn away from a man who's word can't be trusted. Howard is playing to the 100 parliamentarians who elect the PM and whose continued seat in Government depends on the electability of the PM. Guess who'll win?
Cheers!
Michael
PS. One of our fellow readers wrote me to say this was just a storm in a tea cup. How many politicians cnca you fit inside as tea cup?
PR is not about covering up because the truth will always surface.
PM John Howard projects an image of honesty. In fact, he is not truthful. Remember the 'never ever GST'? 'Children overboard'? Despite all his skills, the truth has surfaced about John Howard. Peter Costello has revealed it in a king hit attempt to knock Howard out of the top job. Howard cannot suggest Ian McLauchlan is lying. He attended the 1994 meeting as Howard's witness and took notes. Costello sought only to make one point about Howard. Howard,in return, made one point about Costello. The Prime Ministership is not something to be bartered.* Anyone who thinks otherwise is guilty of "hubris and arrogance." Bingo. The truth about Peter Costello. Howard's counterpunch. What makes a government under Costello unelectable? His arrogance. Another lesson in PR from our leaders: choose your target well. Peter Costello is playing to anyone who'll listen, hoping we'll all turn away from a man who's word can't be trusted. Howard is playing to the 100 parliamentarians who elect the PM and whose continued seat in Government depends on the electability of the PM. Guess who'll win?
Cheers!
Michael
PS. One of our fellow readers wrote me to say this was just a storm in a tea cup. How many politicians cnca you fit inside as tea cup?
Monday, July 10, 2006
PR for ROI
Hi,
Public Relations started as Press Relations and that's what it does best. Publicity. Several years ago the PR industry claimed 70%-80% of everything that appears in the media is placed there by PR agencies.
Don't waste your time trying to run your own PR - get a professional. They'll be at it all the time whereas you'll be distracted.
Publicity isn't 'free ink'. Nothing's free. But it's better value for money than advertising. (Let's face it, anything's better value for money than advertising.)
Cheers!
Public Relations started as Press Relations and that's what it does best. Publicity. Several years ago the PR industry claimed 70%-80% of everything that appears in the media is placed there by PR agencies.
Don't waste your time trying to run your own PR - get a professional. They'll be at it all the time whereas you'll be distracted.
Publicity isn't 'free ink'. Nothing's free. But it's better value for money than advertising. (Let's face it, anything's better value for money than advertising.)
Cheers!
Friday, July 07, 2006
How public are your relations?
Hi,
Every individual, company or institution has public relations. Not everyone has MANAGED public relations. Channel 9's Eddie Maguire, for instance, appears to not have access to professional PR advice. Because if he did he'd be less likely to act like a boofhead in public, such as describing the reaction to his crisis-inducing management of the once great television network as 'harassment' and warning the people criticising him that "I have a long memory." This statement is all the public needs to confirm the image of Eddie as a graceless bullyboy who in every likelihood did say he was going to 'bone' Jessica Rowe (to 'bone' apparently meaning to dismiss or fire, at Channel 9 - very male/macho imagery, revealing of the PBL culture). He denies saying it. A CEO who thinks he can manage a crisis without professional guidance, shooting from the lip and believing in his infallibility, will soon end up ending up. Especially in listed companies, where the sharemarket can vote with its feet any minute of the trading day. Kerry Packer was able to run his own PR and win because, underneath the brutal shell was a great strategic mind. But Eddie's no Kerry.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Every individual, company or institution has public relations. Not everyone has MANAGED public relations. Channel 9's Eddie Maguire, for instance, appears to not have access to professional PR advice. Because if he did he'd be less likely to act like a boofhead in public, such as describing the reaction to his crisis-inducing management of the once great television network as 'harassment' and warning the people criticising him that "I have a long memory." This statement is all the public needs to confirm the image of Eddie as a graceless bullyboy who in every likelihood did say he was going to 'bone' Jessica Rowe (to 'bone' apparently meaning to dismiss or fire, at Channel 9 - very male/macho imagery, revealing of the PBL culture). He denies saying it. A CEO who thinks he can manage a crisis without professional guidance, shooting from the lip and believing in his infallibility, will soon end up ending up. Especially in listed companies, where the sharemarket can vote with its feet any minute of the trading day. Kerry Packer was able to run his own PR and win because, underneath the brutal shell was a great strategic mind. But Eddie's no Kerry.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Feed the word of mouth monster everyday
Hi,
You've identified your Influentials, you've run your product sampling campaign, the word is out and sales are ramping up. What next?
Was it just a one night stand? Or shouldn't you recognise the relationship and treat your new 'insiders' as true insiders? Backstage tours of your operation, special invitations to special events, insider briefings, etc.
You know they're talkers with power. Give them something to talk about. Continually.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
You've identified your Influentials, you've run your product sampling campaign, the word is out and sales are ramping up. What next?
Was it just a one night stand? Or shouldn't you recognise the relationship and treat your new 'insiders' as true insiders? Backstage tours of your operation, special invitations to special events, insider briefings, etc.
You know they're talkers with power. Give them something to talk about. Continually.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Getting outa hand
Hi,
How depressing is the thought that armies of "Influentials" are being recruited and incentivised to behave like AMWAY distributors - but without the disclosure. How will I know if my best friend isn't a "sleeper" - programmed by General Motors or General Mills or Generals from the Pentagon to recommend their patrons' product or point of view? Shades of Orwell's 1984. Has your lover been infected with the Nescafe virus?
What about the potential for "Reverse Influentials"? Jerks who go around spruiking a product and pissing people off? Or "Guerilla Influentials"? Social/Category/Industry trend setters paid to badmouth a competitor?
This Word of Mouth thing could get outa hand!
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
How depressing is the thought that armies of "Influentials" are being recruited and incentivised to behave like AMWAY distributors - but without the disclosure. How will I know if my best friend isn't a "sleeper" - programmed by General Motors or General Mills or Generals from the Pentagon to recommend their patrons' product or point of view? Shades of Orwell's 1984. Has your lover been infected with the Nescafe virus?
What about the potential for "Reverse Influentials"? Jerks who go around spruiking a product and pissing people off? Or "Guerilla Influentials"? Social/Category/Industry trend setters paid to badmouth a competitor?
This Word of Mouth thing could get outa hand!
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
"The Credibility League Ladder"
Hi.
I call the following "The Credibility League Ladder"
1. Personal experience
2. Friend’s recommendation
3. Stranger’s recommendation
4. News report
5. Expert opinion
6. Company newsletter
7. Direct mail
8. Advertising
9. Sales person
Which end is most credible and which is least?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I call the following "The Credibility League Ladder"
1. Personal experience
2. Friend’s recommendation
3. Stranger’s recommendation
4. News report
5. Expert opinion
6. Company newsletter
7. Direct mail
8. Advertising
9. Sales person
Which end is most credible and which is least?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Monday, July 03, 2006
Just ask...
Hi,
Word of Mouth "nodes" are easy to find. Just ask. You can use a 'sociometric
method' - ie. Map the networks by asking the members of a community who they
ask for recommendations. You can use a 'self designating method' - ie.
Identify nodes by asking people if they are one. "During the past 6 months,
have you told anyone about a new product, etc?" "Compared to your circle of
friends are you more likely to be asked advice about (XYZ) or less
likely..?" "When you and your friends discuss new ideas about (XYZ) do you
mainly listen or try to convince them of your ideas?"
Clunky but serviceable.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Word of Mouth "nodes" are easy to find. Just ask. You can use a 'sociometric
method' - ie. Map the networks by asking the members of a community who they
ask for recommendations. You can use a 'self designating method' - ie.
Identify nodes by asking people if they are one. "During the past 6 months,
have you told anyone about a new product, etc?" "Compared to your circle of
friends are you more likely to be asked advice about (XYZ) or less
likely..?" "When you and your friends discuss new ideas about (XYZ) do you
mainly listen or try to convince them of your ideas?"
Clunky but serviceable.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Friday, June 30, 2006
It's not a crime
Hi,
I met a man in Brisbane years ago. His father was mentioned in a Royal Commission as an organised criminal. (Not an efficient lawbreaker, but a member of an organised crime syndicate.) His name was Tony. Same as his father. Tony Jr was in the night club business legit. He was too smart for the crime business.
He told me a story. He opened a new night club in Brisbane, in the Valley. Didn't spend a cent on advertising, but the queues to get in on the first night of business stretched right around the block.
How did he do it? Well, Smart Tony (Big Tony's son) threw the best private party Brisbane had ever seen, two nights in a row before the opening night. And guess who was invited? Hairdressers. All the hip and happening hairdressers in Brisbane. They had a ball. And guess what they were talking about for days afterwards to those hip and happening girls trapped under their hairdryers? That's right: Smart Tony's new club.
And where do boys go? Where the girls gogo.
(This stuff is priceless. Tell your friends or they'll hate you.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
I met a man in Brisbane years ago. His father was mentioned in a Royal Commission as an organised criminal. (Not an efficient lawbreaker, but a member of an organised crime syndicate.) His name was Tony. Same as his father. Tony Jr was in the night club business legit. He was too smart for the crime business.
He told me a story. He opened a new night club in Brisbane, in the Valley. Didn't spend a cent on advertising, but the queues to get in on the first night of business stretched right around the block.
How did he do it? Well, Smart Tony (Big Tony's son) threw the best private party Brisbane had ever seen, two nights in a row before the opening night. And guess who was invited? Hairdressers. All the hip and happening hairdressers in Brisbane. They had a ball. And guess what they were talking about for days afterwards to those hip and happening girls trapped under their hairdryers? That's right: Smart Tony's new club.
And where do boys go? Where the girls gogo.
(This stuff is priceless. Tell your friends or they'll hate you.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Finding "Influentials"
Good morning,
Now we know that a small group of people within any community are word of mouth "nodes". Some call them 'influentials'.
Next challenge is to find them. There are three types of 'nodes' or 'network hubs': 1. 'Mavens' 2. 'Connectors' 3. 'Salespeople'
Mavens are information junkies. Connectors are highly connected socially and in business. Salespeople can't help selling their friends on the latest piece of 'the new' they have acquired.
A 'network hub' is usually a combination of all three.
How do you find them? They visit expos and trade shows. They volunteer for information, eg. sign up for updates. They subscribe to specialist magazines and websites. They join test panels and pilot schemes. They put up their hands for beta versions of product. They sign up for webinars. They go to networking functions. They are journalists and editors and event organisers and association executives and politicians and community organisations leaders and volunteers and church leaders...
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Now we know that a small group of people within any community are word of mouth "nodes". Some call them 'influentials'.
Next challenge is to find them. There are three types of 'nodes' or 'network hubs': 1. 'Mavens' 2. 'Connectors' 3. 'Salespeople'
Mavens are information junkies. Connectors are highly connected socially and in business. Salespeople can't help selling their friends on the latest piece of 'the new' they have acquired.
A 'network hub' is usually a combination of all three.
How do you find them? They visit expos and trade shows. They volunteer for information, eg. sign up for updates. They subscribe to specialist magazines and websites. They join test panels and pilot schemes. They put up their hands for beta versions of product. They sign up for webinars. They go to networking functions. They are journalists and editors and event organisers and association executives and politicians and community organisations leaders and volunteers and church leaders...
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The networked consumer
Hi,
One-to-one marketing is an old paradigm because it fails to account for social context. The average funeral has around 200 mourners. This means the average person knows around that many people well enough for them to bother turning up to say goodbye.
Humans are hardwired with 'social channel capacity', says British anthropologist. Our brains have a capacity to maintain 10-15 'intimate' relationships, 150 or so 'social' relationships, and between 500 and 1500 'acquaintances'.
So each individual you engage is actually the centre of a network. How does this change your perspective?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
One-to-one marketing is an old paradigm because it fails to account for social context. The average funeral has around 200 mourners. This means the average person knows around that many people well enough for them to bother turning up to say goodbye.
Humans are hardwired with 'social channel capacity', says British anthropologist. Our brains have a capacity to maintain 10-15 'intimate' relationships, 150 or so 'social' relationships, and between 500 and 1500 'acquaintances'.
So each individual you engage is actually the centre of a network. How does this change your perspective?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Not all mouths are valuable
Hi,
Remember Pareto's Principle - the 80:20 Rule?
It applies to word of mouth. Not everyone feels confident enough of their opinions to want to share them with others.
In fact, it is less than 20%, according to experts in the area who put it closer to 10%-15%.
Now that makes word of mouth marketing manageable.
So now we have Kiely's WOM Rule No. 1 - target talkers. (Rule No.2 - give them something to talk about. Rule No. 3 - encourage them to talk about it. Rule No. 4 - keep your ear to the ground.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Remember Pareto's Principle - the 80:20 Rule?
It applies to word of mouth. Not everyone feels confident enough of their opinions to want to share them with others.
In fact, it is less than 20%, according to experts in the area who put it closer to 10%-15%.
Now that makes word of mouth marketing manageable.
So now we have Kiely's WOM Rule No. 1 - target talkers. (Rule No.2 - give them something to talk about. Rule No. 3 - encourage them to talk about it. Rule No. 4 - keep your ear to the ground.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Low trust drives word of mouth
Hi,
The reason Word Of Mouth is gaining traction in the marketing community is because marketers need more credible channels of communication, having polluted the others with spin and bulldust. People are less likely to trust companies now than ever before. US figures reveal the percentage of consumers who consider information from companies is believable hovers at 18% for automotive companies, 16% for insurance companies.
Who do people trust more than companies? Each other.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
The reason Word Of Mouth is gaining traction in the marketing community is because marketers need more credible channels of communication, having polluted the others with spin and bulldust. People are less likely to trust companies now than ever before. US figures reveal the percentage of consumers who consider information from companies is believable hovers at 18% for automotive companies, 16% for insurance companies.
Who do people trust more than companies? Each other.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Infectious ideas
Hi,
Malcolm Gladwell in The Tipping Point talks of ideas spreading through society like an infectious disease. New ideas are like germs. Some of them reach critical mass and become epidemic. Some of them fizzle out and die.
Some products are more 'word of mouth worthy' than others. They include exciting entertainment products like books and movies, naturally innovative products such as new web tools, 'personal experience' products like hotels and airlines, complex products such as software and medical innovations, expensive products such as IT and electronics, and observable products such as fashion, cars, and cell phones (wearable technology).
If you need to be convinced, here is a selection of the evidence for word of mouth (WOM) that I have collected over the years:
65% of Palm Pilot buyers heard about it via WOM.
Friends and relatives are the No. 1 source for information about destinations, flights, hotel, etc., according to the American Travel Industry Association.
57% of one Californian car dealer’s customers heard about it by WOM.
70% of Americans rely on WOM when choosing doctors.
53% of US moviegoers rely on WOM recommendations.
In fact, movies live or die via early reports from friends and rels. It used to be that a dog of a movie could survive a week or so and make some money before the word of mouth tide came in. But now the 'dogs' die overnight in the US as viewers send text messages to their friends to give a bad movie the thumbs down while they watch it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Malcolm Gladwell in The Tipping Point talks of ideas spreading through society like an infectious disease. New ideas are like germs. Some of them reach critical mass and become epidemic. Some of them fizzle out and die.
Some products are more 'word of mouth worthy' than others. They include exciting entertainment products like books and movies, naturally innovative products such as new web tools, 'personal experience' products like hotels and airlines, complex products such as software and medical innovations, expensive products such as IT and electronics, and observable products such as fashion, cars, and cell phones (wearable technology).
If you need to be convinced, here is a selection of the evidence for word of mouth (WOM) that I have collected over the years:
65% of Palm Pilot buyers heard about it via WOM.
Friends and relatives are the No. 1 source for information about destinations, flights, hotel, etc., according to the American Travel Industry Association.
57% of one Californian car dealer’s customers heard about it by WOM.
70% of Americans rely on WOM when choosing doctors.
53% of US moviegoers rely on WOM recommendations.
In fact, movies live or die via early reports from friends and rels. It used to be that a dog of a movie could survive a week or so and make some money before the word of mouth tide came in. But now the 'dogs' die overnight in the US as viewers send text messages to their friends to give a bad movie the thumbs down while they watch it.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Will word of mouth work for you?
Hi,
Some categories are naturals for word of mouth. In fact, some have word of mouth built into them. Movies. Sports. Fashion. Pop music. These fields fuelled by and live or "the new". News is central to their essence. They are disposable. They have a use by date. Their uptake is nearly 100% driven by word of mouth. IT products come to life because geeks can't stop talking to each other about them. Some famous brands have been pure WOM, including Palm Pilot (very visible public usage), Walkman (ditto), HotMail (pass-it-on built in), Viagra (news for some), and Starbucks (a place to talk).
In fact a brand that relies on something as old-fashioned as advertising to launch it is as old-fashioned as advertising.
Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Netscape, said: “The myth is that brands get built by advertising. The evidence is exactly the opposite. Brands get reinforced by advertising, but they get built by grassroots adoption and word of mouth. That was true of Amazon, AOL and Yahoo.”
The new medium is social networks and you must learn how to use them if you are to remain relevant.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Some categories are naturals for word of mouth. In fact, some have word of mouth built into them. Movies. Sports. Fashion. Pop music. These fields fuelled by and live or "the new". News is central to their essence. They are disposable. They have a use by date. Their uptake is nearly 100% driven by word of mouth. IT products come to life because geeks can't stop talking to each other about them. Some famous brands have been pure WOM, including Palm Pilot (very visible public usage), Walkman (ditto), HotMail (pass-it-on built in), Viagra (news for some), and Starbucks (a place to talk).
In fact a brand that relies on something as old-fashioned as advertising to launch it is as old-fashioned as advertising.
Marc Andreessen, co-founder of Netscape, said: “The myth is that brands get built by advertising. The evidence is exactly the opposite. Brands get reinforced by advertising, but they get built by grassroots adoption and word of mouth. That was true of Amazon, AOL and Yahoo.”
The new medium is social networks and you must learn how to use them if you are to remain relevant.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Running off at the mouth
Hi,
In 1984, when I was looking for a first computer to buy, my friend Andrew showed me his 128k Apple Macintosh. I was captivated. It was so easy. I bought a 512k "Fat Mac". I took it to work in an multinational ad agency and, when the boss saw I could turn out presentable documents, they got all the copywriters Macs and "restructured" the typing pool who took the copywriters' typewritten copy and retyped it into a Wang word processor. When the President of the company from New York visited and saw our system, the company adopted it worldwide. Apple made millions and my friend Andrew never saw a cent for it. But he made the sale.
Word of mouth is the best advertising. People have been saying that ever since I can remember. But it's only recently that word of mouth has become a discipline and a channel of communication.
I collect data on word of mouth. In every case when it is measured fairly, it outperforms any other communications channel, including television. Word of mouth is powerful because it spreads rapidly, gets into places other media can't, carries with it the credibility of a personal endorsement.
But here's the rub. While every organisation doesn't have advertising, everyone has word of mouth. Because people talk. Word gets around. You can manage word of mouth, or you can let it manage you.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
In 1984, when I was looking for a first computer to buy, my friend Andrew showed me his 128k Apple Macintosh. I was captivated. It was so easy. I bought a 512k "Fat Mac". I took it to work in an multinational ad agency and, when the boss saw I could turn out presentable documents, they got all the copywriters Macs and "restructured" the typing pool who took the copywriters' typewritten copy and retyped it into a Wang word processor. When the President of the company from New York visited and saw our system, the company adopted it worldwide. Apple made millions and my friend Andrew never saw a cent for it. But he made the sale.
Word of mouth is the best advertising. People have been saying that ever since I can remember. But it's only recently that word of mouth has become a discipline and a channel of communication.
I collect data on word of mouth. In every case when it is measured fairly, it outperforms any other communications channel, including television. Word of mouth is powerful because it spreads rapidly, gets into places other media can't, carries with it the credibility of a personal endorsement.
But here's the rub. While every organisation doesn't have advertising, everyone has word of mouth. Because people talk. Word gets around. You can manage word of mouth, or you can let it manage you.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
A short, personal note
Hi,
One of the most effective mail pieces I have ever seen was created by my ex-partner Barry Groom. A postcard from Cannes, with handwriting in blue, including crossed-out mistakes, from Steve Visard, was sent to members of the Screen Producers' Association to goose numbers attending the annual conference. It had humour and personality, and the impact of 'faux' personalisation which wasn't hard to see through. But a personal post card is the first thing you look at when collecting your mail. Short. Personal. Usually from someone close.
The conference had its attendance records broken.
Do you see the theatre and dramatic potential of direct mail?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
One of the most effective mail pieces I have ever seen was created by my ex-partner Barry Groom. A postcard from Cannes, with handwriting in blue, including crossed-out mistakes, from Steve Visard, was sent to members of the Screen Producers' Association to goose numbers attending the annual conference. It had humour and personality, and the impact of 'faux' personalisation which wasn't hard to see through. But a personal post card is the first thing you look at when collecting your mail. Short. Personal. Usually from someone close.
The conference had its attendance records broken.
Do you see the theatre and dramatic potential of direct mail?
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Direct mail doesn't work
Hi,
Direct mail doesn't work if... IF...
1. You send it to the wrong people.
2. You don't have a compelling proposition to deliver.
3. You don't spend enough on compelling creative.
4. You don't compare the cost per sale arising from mail with that achieved by other channels.
Targeting will account for around 60% of the outcome of your mailing campaign. The Offer you deliver will account for around 30% of your outcome. And the creative around 10%.
(By the way, all these principles apply online as well as offline.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Direct mail doesn't work if... IF...
1. You send it to the wrong people.
2. You don't have a compelling proposition to deliver.
3. You don't spend enough on compelling creative.
4. You don't compare the cost per sale arising from mail with that achieved by other channels.
Targeting will account for around 60% of the outcome of your mailing campaign. The Offer you deliver will account for around 30% of your outcome. And the creative around 10%.
(By the way, all these principles apply online as well as offline.)
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
Why such a small list?
I promised to tell you why we chose to only mail 550 company directors to launch the Park Hyatt Sydney. They were mainly Sydney based as well.
We did our homework and at the time the cross-board membership in Australia's top echelon companies was so strong - everyone sitting on everyone else's board - that we calculated we could hit 2000 boards by targetting 550 directors. As the senior corporate traveller (inbound) was our core target, we felt the local senior corporates would WOM (word of mouth) them for us. And they did. The Hyatt opened at 75% occupancy during the "Recession We Had To Have" - ahead of the Regent's suite levels in both occupancy and rack rate. Unheard of.
The night we were assembling the mail pieces - at a total cost of $120 per impact - I took the client (Willi Martin) aside and confessed to him that I didn't think it was going to work. (What ad agency would do that?) I'd spent his budget on 550 people. And I was afraid it wouldn't work.
"Oh, it will work, Michael," he said in his melodic Swiss-German accent.
"I know it will work.".... And willi was right. Three mail bags full... And an award from the US direct marketing association (who cares?)
(For those who have joined us in the last few days - and new members are coming in at a dozen a day - I reproduce the episode below.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
We did our homework and at the time the cross-board membership in Australia's top echelon companies was so strong - everyone sitting on everyone else's board - that we calculated we could hit 2000 boards by targetting 550 directors. As the senior corporate traveller (inbound) was our core target, we felt the local senior corporates would WOM (word of mouth) them for us. And they did. The Hyatt opened at 75% occupancy during the "Recession We Had To Have" - ahead of the Regent's suite levels in both occupancy and rack rate. Unheard of.
The night we were assembling the mail pieces - at a total cost of $120 per impact - I took the client (Willi Martin) aside and confessed to him that I didn't think it was going to work. (What ad agency would do that?) I'd spent his budget on 550 people. And I was afraid it wouldn't work.
"Oh, it will work, Michael," he said in his melodic Swiss-German accent.
"I know it will work.".... And willi was right. Three mail bags full... And an award from the US direct marketing association (who cares?)
(For those who have joined us in the last few days - and new members are coming in at a dozen a day - I reproduce the episode below.
Cheers!
Michael Kiely
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