Category: Risky marketing
-
Stories of self-deception
David Weinberger just came back from the Future of Story Telling conference wondering if we are falling into rut of telling stories to smooth over complexity and just give people the answers they want to hear. Yes and no (naturally). If your goal is applause, it's easier to tell a story that confirms people's expectations.…
-
Customer disloyalty
As transparency grows, fewer and fewer companies are going to get away with leaving their current customers at higher rates while they chase new customers. Loyalty is about submission, and companies will have to figure out how to give up something they want (new customers at any cost) to keep the customers they have. It's…
-
Who’s on your side? Loyalty is something we feel, not something we count.
At the GEL Conference in 2007, I heard restaurateur Danny Meyer give a presentation about hospitality. He said good service doesn't have to be 'flawless.' Good service occurs when you feel the waiter or host is 'on your side.' We don't expect our friends, family and service providers to give up their livelihoods for us,…
-
What if you could change the culture in your city? #li
Most of us just accept the 'normal behavior' of a place as something that's handed to us. We have to deal with it. But that's not true, as Grant McCracken has demonstrated. The challenge is having the ingenuity and patience to make changes. Harvard Business Review Blogs: Could a Social-Media Tool Increase Kindness? 2012-Jun-12, by Grant…
-
A Scientific approach to looking for customers #li
When I get frustrated about the difficulty of finding new customers, Rob May is a good person to help me get over it. Finding customers is one of the riskiest, most expensive, dangerous activities that a company undertakes. When someone tells you that you just have to keep your nose to the grindstone and meet…
-
Creativity is defined by constraints, a tribute to Norman Berry #li
When I was being taught how to provide direction for creative people at Oglivy & Mather, they said that a narrowly focused objective was crucial to a campaign's success. I'm proud to say that I actually heard Norman Berry say "Give me the freedom of a tightly defined strategy." He said it often. Wired: Need…
-
How to avoid customers that are too small
When deciding whether or not to work with someone, you must pay close attention to the context of their questions. Some people want to learn, and some people just really don't. For those of us who love to learn, it's mysterious but a very, very real concern. If your prospect doesn't understand what you do…
-
Straighten up and email right, says Jakob Nielsen
Like automobiles, email newsletters are powerful and dangerous. Usability expert Jakob Nielsen reminds us how challenging it can be as he picks apart these examples. useit.com Alertbox: UK Election Email Newsletters Rated, 2010-Apr-26, by Jakob Nielsen: Since our earliest user research into email newsletters 8 years ago, we've known that newsletters are a superb mechanism…
-
Before You Join the Social Media Party
Over at Brazen Careerist, Matt talks about what it takes for an individual to be successful in social media. If you think you'd like to join the rest of us using social media, or worse, if you feel competitive pressure to use Facebook, Twitter, or any other social media tool, please consider these 15 steps.…
-
Give then receive
Take a gamble on the value of the content on your web site. If it's actually valuable, your visitors will reward you by coming back, sharing and even registering. Another good point is that the people who register afterwards are a better match to what you provide (pre-qualified). FutureLab Marketing & Strategy Innovation blog: Collecting…
QVIews 