"In science the credit goes to the man who convinces the world, not the man to whom the idea first occurs."
Sir Francis Darwin 1848-1925
(son of Charles Darwin and a recognized botanist on his own)
Even in science, everything is marketing!
Some recent posts you might enjoy:
4.6 Billion People Can't Read This Blog
Primary Elections and Local Ads
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
4.6 Billion People Can't Read This Blog
My wife and I came home from a trip recently to find that our land line and Internet service were not working. A call (on my cellphone) to the phone company indicated there was "a break in the line."
In addition to wondering why it was going to take them 4 days to get someone out to look into it, this has made me realize just how dependent we have become on the Internet. We use it to look up phone numbers, recent news, movie show times; to Skype with our kids in college; to retrieve documents from our computers at work; to write and post blogs...a lot of things. Is it any wonder that marketers want to be online?
Statistics from the US Census Bureau, Nielson Online and others indicate that Internet usage in North America has reached 78.6% and 32.7% worldwide. That is a lot. But is also means that means that 21.4% of North Americans (including us last weekend) and 67.3% of the population worldwide are NOT plugged into the Internet. That is more than 74 million people in North America and 4.6 billion worldwide who can't read this blog. Would you mind printing it out for them?
I can't think of any companies that would consciously thumb their noses at a market of more than 4.6 billion people. Not even Wal-Mart. I think that companies would be wise, as they engage their enthusiasm for the bright, shiny social media, to take a careful look at their market and make sure that a good portion of it isn't a part of the 4.6 billion.
In addition to wondering why it was going to take them 4 days to get someone out to look into it, this has made me realize just how dependent we have become on the Internet. We use it to look up phone numbers, recent news, movie show times; to Skype with our kids in college; to retrieve documents from our computers at work; to write and post blogs...a lot of things. Is it any wonder that marketers want to be online?
Statistics from the US Census Bureau, Nielson Online and others indicate that Internet usage in North America has reached 78.6% and 32.7% worldwide. That is a lot. But is also means that means that 21.4% of North Americans (including us last weekend) and 67.3% of the population worldwide are NOT plugged into the Internet. That is more than 74 million people in North America and 4.6 billion worldwide who can't read this blog. Would you mind printing it out for them?
I can't think of any companies that would consciously thumb their noses at a market of more than 4.6 billion people. Not even Wal-Mart. I think that companies would be wise, as they engage their enthusiasm for the bright, shiny social media, to take a careful look at their market and make sure that a good portion of it isn't a part of the 4.6 billion.
Sunday, March 25, 2012
The Boom and Bust of the Last Buggy Whip Manufacturer
The last buggy whip manufacturer must have done very well for a while.* Buggy whip purchases undoubtedly declined rapidly with the advent of the automobile. Nevertheless, there was still a demand for them as some people were reluctant to adapt to the new "iron horses," some people couldn't afford the new transportation option and others couldn't get one because there was no one selling automobiles in their area.
As demand for buggy whips faded, buggy whip manufacturers would go out of business, consolidating the market with fewer and fewer companies. At some point, there was probably only one company making the whips in a market. For a while, enjoying 100% market share, things were probably pretty good for that last company. But since demand continued to decline, eventually business would turn sour for that last company, eventually forcing them to close their doors.
Unless.
Unless that last buggy whip manufacturer looked up from their work long enough to see the dark clouds on the horizon. Unless that last company invested in the future, figuring out how they could leverage their expertise into something new. Perhaps manufacturing items for Mr. Ford's assembly line. Perhaps getting out of transportation altogether and finding a niche somewhere else.
Things haven't really changed that much in the last 120 years. We have a lot of buggy whip manufacturers these days. Some are thinking things are OK because market share keep going up, not even realizing they are the last one of their kind around. Others are innovating and changing their future. We live in times of rapid change. Just about the only thing you can be sure of these days is that sooner or later, you will be working for a buggy whip manufacturer. Be prepared.
*All buggy whip-related statements are pure conjecture on the part of the author. No research on the rise or fall of the buggy whip industry was conducted. If a reader HAS done such research and finds my conjecture lacking, I ask them to please explain my oversights and shortcomings in the comments. Please also explain why you are doing research into the rise and fall of the buggy whip industry.
As demand for buggy whips faded, buggy whip manufacturers would go out of business, consolidating the market with fewer and fewer companies. At some point, there was probably only one company making the whips in a market. For a while, enjoying 100% market share, things were probably pretty good for that last company. But since demand continued to decline, eventually business would turn sour for that last company, eventually forcing them to close their doors.
Unless.
Unless that last buggy whip manufacturer looked up from their work long enough to see the dark clouds on the horizon. Unless that last company invested in the future, figuring out how they could leverage their expertise into something new. Perhaps manufacturing items for Mr. Ford's assembly line. Perhaps getting out of transportation altogether and finding a niche somewhere else.
Things haven't really changed that much in the last 120 years. We have a lot of buggy whip manufacturers these days. Some are thinking things are OK because market share keep going up, not even realizing they are the last one of their kind around. Others are innovating and changing their future. We live in times of rapid change. Just about the only thing you can be sure of these days is that sooner or later, you will be working for a buggy whip manufacturer. Be prepared.
*All buggy whip-related statements are pure conjecture on the part of the author. No research on the rise or fall of the buggy whip industry was conducted. If a reader HAS done such research and finds my conjecture lacking, I ask them to please explain my oversights and shortcomings in the comments. Please also explain why you are doing research into the rise and fall of the buggy whip industry.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
11 year old boys
Everyone in marketing and public relations knows that they should be involved with social media and the internet. Every company that markets (which means every company) knows that they need to have a presence on the internet because 1) It makes them look modern and "with it," 2) that is where they think their customers might be, 3) everyone is talking about social media so that must be where things are happening, 4) it doesn't cost anything to send an email so why not? or 5) all of the above.
The trouble is knowing you should and knowing how are two different things. As I read recently in Fast Company magazine, "[companies and] brands on the internet are like 11 year old boys. They know that they want girls to talk to them, but when they do, they don't know what to say."
It seems to me, many companies are putting the cart before the horse. Instead of deciding you want to jump into social media and then figuring out what you should say, instead you should be deciding what your story is BEFORE thinking about the best venue or venues to tell it. Often the nature of the story will dictate the appropriate media to tell it in. While many stories work well on the internet, some are best told on radio, or by postcard, or an in-store display.
Like that 11 year old boy, you should figure out what you want to say before you start passing notes in class!
Some of my other posts you might enjoy:
The trouble is knowing you should and knowing how are two different things. As I read recently in Fast Company magazine, "[companies and] brands on the internet are like 11 year old boys. They know that they want girls to talk to them, but when they do, they don't know what to say."
It seems to me, many companies are putting the cart before the horse. Instead of deciding you want to jump into social media and then figuring out what you should say, instead you should be deciding what your story is BEFORE thinking about the best venue or venues to tell it. Often the nature of the story will dictate the appropriate media to tell it in. While many stories work well on the internet, some are best told on radio, or by postcard, or an in-store display.
Like that 11 year old boy, you should figure out what you want to say before you start passing notes in class!
Some of my other posts you might enjoy:
- The Marketing Value of Social Media http://allismarketing.blogspot.com/2012/03/marketing-value-of-social-media.html
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Smart "Phones"
I have been shopping for a new phone recently and decided to end my Luddite ways and get a smart phone. There is a lot of information available about the various and sundry "smart" phone options. The only thing I can't seem to get is which smart phone actually works well...as a phone. Hmmmm.
Other posts you might enjoy:
http://allismarketing.blogspot.com/2011/10/babies-and-bathwater.html
http://allismarketing.blogspot.com/2011/06/luddites.html
Other posts you might enjoy:
http://allismarketing.blogspot.com/2011/10/babies-and-bathwater.html
http://allismarketing.blogspot.com/2011/06/luddites.html
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Primary Elections and Local Ads
There was a primary election yesterday in my home state of Illinois. Voter turnout was extremely low, at around 24%. The CBS Chicago reported that it was the lowest turnout for a presidential primary in more than 70 years.
What I find interesting about voter turnout is it inverse relationship to the importance of the election. Turnout is always lowest for the elections that have the most direct impact on the voters' lives. Local elections, where we elect city and county officials, school board members and judges, are the elections which pick the people who will be passing the laws that determine speed limits, library hours, parking rights, community development, etc. In retrospect, the President, whose election always has the best voter turnout, really does little that directly impacts your day to day life.
I was thinking that this is not too different from how we look at ads. There is always a lot of conversation and discussion about the ads that run during the Super Bowl, when those ads are largely branding campaigns. These image ads are the topic of water cooler conversations and Yahoo articles for days or weeks after the big event. The ads that really make a difference in your day to day life, ads that tell you that grapes are on sale or that your favorite band is playing in town or what the phone number of your local barber is, are ads that you hardly even notice, even though you use them daily.
Perhaps we would start getting better voter turnout at local elections, if we could figure out a way to help people see the impact they have on their lives. I suspect the same is true of local ads.
What I find interesting about voter turnout is it inverse relationship to the importance of the election. Turnout is always lowest for the elections that have the most direct impact on the voters' lives. Local elections, where we elect city and county officials, school board members and judges, are the elections which pick the people who will be passing the laws that determine speed limits, library hours, parking rights, community development, etc. In retrospect, the President, whose election always has the best voter turnout, really does little that directly impacts your day to day life.
I was thinking that this is not too different from how we look at ads. There is always a lot of conversation and discussion about the ads that run during the Super Bowl, when those ads are largely branding campaigns. These image ads are the topic of water cooler conversations and Yahoo articles for days or weeks after the big event. The ads that really make a difference in your day to day life, ads that tell you that grapes are on sale or that your favorite band is playing in town or what the phone number of your local barber is, are ads that you hardly even notice, even though you use them daily.
Perhaps we would start getting better voter turnout at local elections, if we could figure out a way to help people see the impact they have on their lives. I suspect the same is true of local ads.
Mistakes: A great Opportunity for Great Customer Service
Obviously, when you are in business you want to avoid mistakes. Especially mistakes that involve customers. But mistakes, when they happen, are not the end of the world, or even the end of the relationship with that customer. Some of the best customer service opportunities come from problem resolution.
While I would NEVER suggest that companies should deliberately make mistakes just to create customer service opportunities, I would strongly recommend that we should run toward our mistakes, not away from them!
While I would NEVER suggest that companies should deliberately make mistakes just to create customer service opportunities, I would strongly recommend that we should run toward our mistakes, not away from them!
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