Marketing

What About “Women on the Web?”


 Some fantastic research was published on June 30 by the folks at comScore, Inc. in their study “Women on the Web.”

You can download the entire white paper here.

I’m just now digesting it, but here are some key take-aways:

  • Though (slightly) still trailing men in overall internet use globally, women are now more engaged than men on the internet
  • The average 15+ female spends 8 percent more time online than her male counterpart
  • Women have responded rapidly and strongly to social media, though not as quickly to mobile internet (they own less smart phones than their geeky male counterparts)
  • These facts, coupled with the prime-shopper authority most women have in households makes the emerging realm of “Social Commerce” a high-potential area
  • In the realm of search, women prefer Bing more than their male counterparts

Moral of the story:  You’d better be including women in your requirements sessions,  focus groups, user communities, etc. – or you’re missing half of the market!

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Uncategorized

Go To War With Your Own Systems – YES!


I love Tom Peters.  If you have not read his extensive body of work, you are cheating yourself.  One of my favorites is “Re-Imagine!: Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age” which touches on some of the absurdities and opportunities to improve business in the 21st century.  It really resonated with me and continues to remind me why I chose a career in consulting to help clients improve their businesses.

I ran across this video from Tom Peters from a recent tweet of his.  It’s a snippet from his new book, “The Little Big Things: 163 Ways to Pursue EXCELLENCE,”  and it really stuck with me.  At first, this seems like an upside-down concept.  Why would I attack the very systems I’ve worked to put in place?  But it’s genius.  This type of self-analysis is what will keep a company ahead of its competitors (and protect it from itself)!

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Marketing, Social Media

Neuroeconomics – Social Networking “Feels” Like Falling in Love


Fresh from the July issue of Fast Company comes this fascinating article that should make all marketers think when it comes to their use of social media in their marketing mix.   Citation: This post is a direct summary of Fast Company’s excellent article by Adam L. Penenberg (who’s other work you should check out immediately).

Paul J. Zak, a.k.a “Dr. Love,” is a professor at Claremont Graduate University who popularized “neuroeconomics,” an emerging field that combines economics with biology, neuroscience, and psychology. 

His angle? Some best-selling behavioral economists such as Dan Ariely (Predictably Irrational) and Steven D. Levitt (half of the Freakonomics duo) ponder how we make economic decisions.  Zak wants to figure out why we do what we do.                                    

 In a word – “Oxytocin.”

“…Known for years as the hormone forging the unshakable bond between mothers and their babies, oxytocin is now, thanks largely to Zak, recognized as the human stimulant of empathy, generosity, trust, and more. It is, Zak says, the “social glue” that adheres families, communities, and societies, and as such, acts as an “economic lubricant” that enables us to engage in all sorts of transactions…”

 “…Your brain interpreted tweeting as if you were directly interacting with people you cared about or had empathy for,” Zak says. “E-connection is processed in the brain like an in-person connection…”

“…In a world of social networks, then, this much seems clear: Companies that can connect with us and raise our oxytocin levels should prosper. Those that can’t, won’t…”

Very interesting…

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Sales

The Art of Selling Is in the Heart, Not the Brain


It is all too easy to forget this fundamental in our age of ROI, NPV and Cost/Benefit, but it is critical to remember –  At it’s core, buying is an EMOTIONAL decision.

I was reminded of this today when I picked up a tweet from the Harvard Business Review that mentioned the concept in a blog post by Clif Reichard.   Cliff is a 55 year veteran of sales and customer service.  We can all learn a lot from that type of experience.

Cliff says that  “…Many sales organizations do little to create an emotional connection with prospective customers and concentrate instead on hype-filled sales pitches. We do the opposite: By conveying our warm feelings, we create an emotional bond without appearing phony or insincere. Then, by making an objective presentation, we show that we respect our customers’ ability to make their own judgments. The art of selling is in the heart, not the brain…”

Being honest with yourself, when is the last time that you and your team put as much energy into the heart of a pursuit as the brain?

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Marketing, Sales

Ah, The Dog Days of Summer!


Been a while  between posts  –  I just returned from some vacation.  The prep time before and digging out after have been significant, as always.   But, should be back on track for posting now…

It’s great to unplug and step away from the daily grind and see the forest for the trees though.  When you realize what you’re working for – it makes it so much easier get back and hit it.  It was a great time off with my wife and kids: hiking, swimming, fishing.  My son caught his first Musky…thought he won the Superbowl!

One of my take-aways this time was that I really love what I do.  Not everyone can say that.  There is a real vocational dimension to helping people with their most important projects that motivates me to do the best for my clients. 

Also, although some people automatically think technology is extremely cool and fun (guilty) it is also continuing to change the game for everyone, so you need to pay attention. 

On that note, I was reviewing some of my favorite blog reads while away and I think this one from Seth Godin wins.  It’s a concise summary about the transition from the production > information > “information about information” economy and gets you thinking about all the opportunities yet to be seized…  

Better get back to work!

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Marketing, Sales

Voicemail or eMail?…The Answer is Yes!


Let’s face it.  Most of us are in meetings (even if some are virtual – phone/web) most of the day. 

Reaching someone live between the hours of 8am-5pm in today’s business world has become a near impossibility.

Just for fun let’s say you do get someone to pick up the phone.  Odds are, you have just distracted that person from a task they believe to  be a priority over whatever it is that you have called about.  Just think of your own experience.  How long does it take you to pick up an inbound call when you do not recognize the caller ID?  Don’t hold your breath, right?

It is for this reason I now almost always leave BOTH a voicemail and email message when contacting a client or partner, particularly if this subject is important to them.

Try for a live discussion via phone first, of course.  When you get their voicemail, leave a brief message and tell them that you will also send an email if that is a more convenient mode of communication for them.  Then, send the email with “My Voicemail” included in the subject.

But don’t take my word for it.  Marketing firm CCSI has this to say in their recent blog post…”Lead generation strategies that put e-mail and direct mail before telemarketing may be putting the cart before the horse and missing out on the optimal impact of each vehicle….”  The gist of their post?  Leave a voicemail before sending email.

Doing both has increased my response ratio significantly.

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Sales

Friday Strategy: Make it a 10-Point Day


It’s the end of the week.  Depending on how yours went, you either have 20 pounds of sand and a 10 pound bag and you’re wondering how your going to get it done, or maybe you are at the end of a long week and wondering if you have the steam to keep going and finish strong. 

Either way, here’s an idea:  Make it a 10-point day.

Give yourself a weighted value for key activities accomplished.  Specifics may vary here, just make it a stretch.  For example: 5 points for a contract, 3 points for an executive meeting, 2 points for an executive phone conversation, 1 point for any buyer touch-point like a nice email/voicemail combo.  Now, try to  reach or beat a total of 10 points today.

Hope you need a calculator!

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Sales

Sales Lessons from The Blackhawks? You Bet!


For Chicagoans,  last night’s Stanley Cup victory by the Blackhawks was an incredible end to an incredible season. When you win your first championship since JFK was in office – it’s a big deal.  We’ll be celebrating for a while here.  But can you take away any sales lessons from this team?  You bet…

1. You can’t score if you don’t come out shooting.  These guys were firing at the net the entire game, and the entire season for that matter.  You have to be playing offense, always focused on the next play, or your competitors will take the momentum.

2. Defend your goal.  Antti Niemi was awesome this year.  He made some incredible stops (as a rookie!) . Without him shutting down the opponents, the wins would not have come.  Are you protecting your existing clients as ferociously? 

3. It’s a contact sport.  If you’re playing it right, you may even lose some teeth!  You need to know your strengths and play them hard to give your clients outstanding service – bump the competitors out of play.

4. The refs don’t always see it your way.  There were a few tough calls on Chicago last night (goaltender interference? – I don’t think so!),  but you have to roll with it and play with the calls delivered.  There is no such thing as reality – only your clients’ perception counts!  You can think you’re doing great.  What do the refs (your clients) think?

5. You’ve got to win the home and away games.  The Blackhawks had an awesome record on the road.  Hockey is a tough game to win when you’re not on your home ice.  Remember, to win over the long-term, you need to win with existing clients (home) and net new clients (away) as well!

6. The cup is worth the fight!  It sometimes seems like the sales battle is getting the best of you.  But if you give it all you have – and then give some more, truly serving your clients and stunning them with results, then you may get to kiss the 118 year-old trophy!

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Sales

Folks, This is a “Pens-Down Moment”


I’ve had it with people who don’t take notes in client meetings.  In fact, unless you have a miraculous photographic memory or a tape recorder, if you’re not taking notes in a client meeting, you should probably not be having one.

Note-taking is a lost art.  I had a CEO in a prior life who was minted at Xerox.  He understood this principle and tried to pound it into our heads.  During critical meetings with staffers, he was famous for calling people on the carpet and literally saying, “Folks, this is pens-down moment!”  Translation:  “You idiots, you should be taking notes.  Otherwise, I have no idea that you are understanding the importance of what I’m saying.”

If you are sitting through critical client/prospect meetings taking no notes, isn’t this what your clients are thinking too?  Will you really remember all the action items, much less the owners or due dates without notes?  What if you learn some key information about the alma mater of that key executive, or how many kids they have, or their pet (and budgeted) project coming up in 6 months?  Will you remember the critical details?  I don’t think so.

You’ll never catch me without my Moleskine notebook and a nice pen ready to jot some key take-aways.  I can still hear Paul, “…Folks, this is a pens-down moment…”

Take copious notes in client meetings!

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Marketing

…No More Strangers


Seth Godin’s blog post today is worth echoing…in it he proposes a hierarchy of relationships and reminds us that it takes an exorbitant amount of energy to acquire and transform a “stranger” into a customer who is a “true fan,” –  as in, it’s not worth it. 

We all know the route of penetrating and extending from existing clients is much more efficient and successful, but sometimes we just can’t resist the temptation to burn energy and resources trying for that elusive stranger.

Instead, Seth says, consider the option to “…absolutely delight and overwhelm”  [you true fans].

Great perspective!

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Sales

Yeah, It’s a Number Game Too…


Like success in any professional career, there are many ingredients to success in selling.  Accurate opportunity targeting – as my friends at Selling To Zebras will tell you, is a critical one.  Chase the right prey and your hunt will be more successful.  

Another key element is using a solid framework (pick a methodology that fits your situation) for high-gain conversations with prospects to elicit their needs and to link your solutions in meaningful ways.  

Also important are elements like pre-call planning, lead-nurturing, compelling proposal creation, Ferocious Follow-up – the list is too long to discuss in one post.

One inescapable success factor is activity.  A wise sales mentor once told me that activity yields opportunity which yields results.  Sometimes hearing that sales is a “numbers game” is a turn off.  It makes the sales process seem cheesy or pushy in some way.  But the fact that you need to produce quantity as well as target quality is not a contradiction.  It takes both. You can have the best targets in the world, but unless you are acting on them daily, all you have is a glorified list.  Go ahead – put up some numbers today!

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Sales

Is Your Follow Up Ferocious?


We’ve just crawled out of one of the toughest patches in business that any of us can remember.  Thankfully, things seem to be stabilizing and even slowly beginning to grow again.  However, every opportunity will be harder fought – tougher to find, tougher to close. 

Yet, I see the cardinal sin being committed –  A lack of priority follow-up on business leads.

In this fragile recovery, you must execute strong follow-up – no – Ferocious follow-up.

In his fantastic sales blog, Sales and Sales Management, I recently discovered this post from Paul McCord in which he explains that he has experienced the same.  He says, “…A quality lead has a very short shelf-life—whether we’re talking about the retail situations above or a long sales cycle, sophisticated product or service.  Someone–you or your company–has paid good money to get the phone to ring, to get a lead card mailed back, or get a form filled out on the internet.  Every minute you wait to contact a prospect is a minute you’re giving the competition to close the deal before you even get there…”

Get Ferocious.  You competitors are!

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Marketing, Social Media

Socialnomics Video Update


Erik Qualman, author of Socialnomics, has updated the stats in this now famous video.  Yes, it’s funny that a recently published book needs its stats refreshed – but that’s how fast this stuff is moving!  I like the new version even better.

I have found it  an invaluable tool in firing up an audience before a social media meeting, getting the troops excited within our own interactive practice, or just generally communicating the importance of this revolution.   Make it part of your repertoire.

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Marketing, Social Media

Social Media David v. Goliath…


This is an excellent example of fighting a PR conflict using social media.  Who looks like the cool victim here and who looks like the big, cold corporation?  Method will even let YOU DECIDE!  Check out the microsite they stood up which includes the video above. 

Talk about making lemonade from lemons – AND they simultaneously take on a giant competitor and reinforce their brand story!  Smart!

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Marketing, Social Media

“…Dealing with Haters…”


Nice post in Mashable last week.  Main idea is that you can benefit from discord and negativity around your social media efforts out there as well as the positive.  Idea is from Tim Ferriss, autor of “The Four Hour Work Week.”  So, what do you do with haters?  Here are some gems from Tim: 

“…you only need to pick your first 1,000 fans — and carefully. “As long as you’re accomplishing your objectives, that 1,000 will lead to a cascading effect,” Ferriss explains. “The 10 million that don’t get it don’t matter.,,”

“10% of people will find a way to take anything personally. Expect it…”

“The bigger your impact, explains Ferriss (whose book is a New York Times, WSJ and BusinessWeek bestseller), and the larger the ambition and scale of your project, the more negativity you’ll encounter…”

The slogan “Keep Calm and Carry On” was originally produced by the British government during the Second World War as a propaganda message to comfort people in the face of Nazi invasion. Ferriss takes the message and applies it to today’s world. “Focus on impact, not approval…

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Sales

“10 By 10”


I am a relentless for citing authors of great ideas.   I picked this one up from a blog post in the past few days, but for the life of me, I can not find where I picked it up.  So my apologies to the author (I’ll keep looking and give you your kudos soon) – but the idea is too AWESOME not to share… 

Challenge yourself to complete 10 outbound client touches toward advancing the deals in your funnel by 10am each day.

Sounds easy, right? 

Try it for a week and get back to me when you hit 8 for the first time!

Enjoy.

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Marketing, Sales

Handouts, All But Worthless? —– I Think So…


In a blog post yesterday by HR Specialist Rebecca Masin in allbusiness.com, the author makes a great case that handouts are no longer worth it for a myriad of reasons including cost, economic impact, and efficacy. 
 
Her favorite reason, from a book called “Saving the World at Work” is that “Over the course of the last few decades, we’ve gotten into a habit: We print, then think. Instead, we should think first and only then print-maybe.”
 
I agree with Rebecca’s rationale – AND, I would add a sales and marketing twist to the list of reasons not to use handouts – handouts don’t work.  If you’re deal comes down to handing out (or mailing) a piece of paper to get your point across, you need to seek a fresher alternative.
 
I rely on social media, email, and voicemail combinations to get critical points across.  In rare instances, a customized slide show (not printed but distributed via email or USB drive) does the trick. 
 
For more information, please request a handout of this blog post at tim@salesandmarketingmashup.com KIDDING!
 
What are your thoughts on handouts?
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Marketing, Social Media

The POTUS and PPC


Caught this from @EyeTraffic on Twitter…

Dallas Lawrence of BulletProofBlog reports in Forbes.com that President Obama and his team are leveraging social media to make their case for financial industry reforms – and they’re using social media (namely PPC advertising, Facebook and Twitter) to bring it to the people.  Check out his article in Forbes.com. 

Here’s a quote:  “…The strategy of going after Wall Street may seem obvious in a midterm election year dominated by economic concerns, but the tactics being deployed at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. are anything but–especially for issue advocates and corporate reputation managers, who have yet to fully embrace what our president and his aides learned some time ago, that the Internet is now the strategic high ground of the political battlefield, and that therefore whoever controls it controls the debate…”

Are you more like the POTUS and team or like the “slower-on-the-uptake corporate reputation managers,” who “…have yet to fully embrace [the internet and social media]?”

Wake up!

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