Scorch Talk

I have a theory, and it goes something like this “Those who have the capacity to effect change, have a responsibility to do so”.

Have a think about that for a minute.

If you have the capacity to effect change, in other words, make things happen, bring people together, lead a project, start something great? Then I believe you have a responsibility to do so.

Imagine if more people in the world that DO have the capacity to make things happen, thought this same way? (And I believe that is A LOT of us). Wow there’d really be some good stuff happening.

So don’t say NO straight away to someone’s idea, consider it. If it’s a good idea, then get on board. Sometimes think YES before you think NO! Move ahead and make things happen. And what about your own ideas? We’re only on this earth once, so don’t keep stuff to yourself, get it out there…..its 2010 and we have more avenues than ever before to share our ideas and make things happen.

And you might be surprised at the result.

….And for those of you interested in delving further, Seth Godin has written a mini-book called Insubordinate, which encompasses similar thinking. Here’s a short excerpt:

“I’ve figured out that there are three kinds of people:

Linchpins

Supporters

Leeches, Advocates for the Devil, and Bystanders (aka people in a pre-linchpin state)

 I lump the last three together as one kind, because I don’t think they deserve categories of their own. Even though they’re the majority in terms of numbers, they don’t matter so much in terms of getting things done.

 The first group, the Linchpins, are the people who make a difference, the ones that ship, the rare ones that truly have an impact. This group of people, in that moment of time, change everything.

 The second group, the Supporters, are eager and willing to help. They respect and admire the work the linchpin is doing, and they’re ready to supply leverage or money or just a smile to help get the job done. Even better, they challenge the linchpin to do more, dig deeper and make an even bigger difference.

 The third group, as you’ve probably guessed, are the pessimists, the obstructionists and the protectors of the status quo. Driven largely by fear, they set out to slow you down, whittle you down and average you down. Mostly, it’s not their fault, though, because they’ve been brainwashed and don’t yet realized how powerful and productive it is to take a different route.”

What do you do on the long haul flight from Perth to Dubai (after watching two movies on demand and giving up trying to sleep sitting up that is)? …write a blog post about your latest fixation, in this case social media marketing. (I am hopeful that using my brain might deaden the pain of sitting in one spot for 10 hours.)

There is so much information out there now, about the web, blogging, social media and marketing that it’s easy to get overwhelmed, and many businesses put it all in the too hard basket for another day. But like the initial foray we all had to make into emailing (remember the old timers kicking and screaming), embracing the web and social media networking will be imperative. They are a powerful tool for communication and marketing, and can give your business the opportunity to develop a brand and culture like never before.

So here we go……take some baby steps!

Blogging

Creating a blog can be a great way to increase your brand visibility and show some of your business’ ‘personality’. But beware – a blog is not merely another avenue to spruik your products and services…..in the online world, content is king (closely followed by personality!), and if you bore people with mind numbing marketing spiel they’ll switch off without a second thought.

A blog is a storytelling platform about your business or brand, or perhaps about your industry or community – So make sure your information is relevant, interesting or useful…or a combination of all 3! Keep your focus so people get relevance and consistency from your blogging, and show your personality and have some fun with it.

Create the Echo effect

Once you have a story to tell, social networking sites can share those messages and links like tentacles – spreading out from a central point and creating an echo effect. Remember this process is content driven – if it’s not interesting or relevant it won’t echo anywhere – and if you’re doing it well will start to include two way communications with your customers.

And remember this is the point of social media – talking WITH your customers and industry, not AT them. Whether you choose to be on Facebook page,  twitter or any other networking sites, you need to be a part of that community and provide value to the community. Establish your business as a source of content, and expert within your industry, by interacting and providing this valuable content. Businesses can’t just drop in with a product offer every now and then and hope to gather a following.

Have a destination

I wouldn’t recommend using your twitter account or Facebook page as your main/only destination to draw people to. Once of the downfalls of this is you are leaving you fate in the hands or the “popularity” of that particular site – what if that site becomes yesterday’s news and the community you’ve built goes with it?

Make sure it’s your website (or even blog if you haven’t got a website) that is actually at the centre of your Social Media strategy, and use the social networking sites as a tool to develop your community and draw people to your business or brand.

These are just a few broad starting points – shortly i will delve deeper into Social Media Marketing Strategy and it’s place with your communication strategy. And we’ll also touch soon in websites and SEO….

p.s for those that are interested in the latest from Europe in furniture and design…stay tuned, as i’m at the Milan fair for next 3 days and my next blog will have all the news

It’s interesting how when you’re asked to analyse a business’s marketing needs, you often find real opportunity in the business strategy. Many businesses evolve from a great idea or a necessary product, but if you ask about the 5 year plan, or vision for their organisational culture, you might be met with a blank stare.

And this is where the question becomes interesting…..is marketing really the 2^nd step in the process, needed to effectively communicate the message, or is branding now so important that marketing and strategy go hand in hand?

The effectiveness of a business depends on the alignment of the brand;

Vision, Image, Culture

With the internal business capabilities;

People, Technology, Processes

Each will play a different, yet synergistic role in the success of your organisation.

Vision defines where the business wants to be. Consequently, it stands to reason that to know where you want to be, you have to know where you are now. Have insights into consumer wants and needs and surprise your customers by showing that you know them.

Image is the view your customers and prospects, suppliers and employees have of your brand. It’s developed through the style and tone, content and design of your business through internal/external communications. It is necessary to have the right mix of communication and design.

Culture is no longer an activity performed on the sidelines of an organisation. Culture is your people. Evidence shows that there is a strong relationship between culture and performance.
Internal business capabilities are, of course, vital to the effectiveness of your business. But it is the vision, image and culture that will make your brand complete.

It doesn’t take a genius to see the direct link between the expansion of the internet and the fall in newspaper circulation, as Gen Y’s (and almost everyone else for that matter) turns to news websites for the latest updates throughout the day. So the question then begs to be asked “Who is going to save the humble newspaper?”

The short answer is no one. The days of the newspaper print on your fingers are numbered.

So whilst news will always be relevant (in fact now more than ever, content in king) the dwindling readership and diminishing resources of newspapers prove the generational preference is online. And why not? Instant updates through the day on everything from Brangelina’s marriage status to the ASX 200, without having to leave your desk.  And even better…it’s free.

Which leads us to the next dilemma – how will these news services make money from readers when they’ve been giving it away for free? Have newspaper groups rushed too quickly into providing comprehensive free news websites? And will they have to somehow turn it around to charge subscription?

News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch thinks they will. He said in a recent interview that newspapers will start charging readers on the web, and the digital future is only a few years away. Apparently we’ll be seeing “newspapers looking very different” with digital news sent to blackberrys, palms or panels, superseding analogue print in the next 10 to 15 years.

Wow, can’t you just wait for the day when our grandkids ask us if we ever read those old fashioned newspapers they’ve seen in photos from the “olden days”? The good news is we will still be reading, still being inspired, and being touched by the stories of the day. But the status quo has left building. A revolution is coming and you might as well get on board.

I read an interesting blog by Seth Godin yesterday which likened the Marketing effort to “what happens between the frames of a comic book story”. His theory being that in the same way our imagination helps to create the story / fill the gaps between the frames of a comic, the Marketing effort is actually what happens in between your tangible Marketing activities.

So it’s not just the ad spruiking your latest product or service, or the website you slavishly updated. It’s the feeling your client had when she got better service than expected, or the realisation your prices were lower as you promised, or the chat between friends about how your product/service/business helped change their day/skin/house/life.

So all this leads me to ponder the question… if the actual Marketing effort is rounded out by what happens in between the frames, how do we ensure the whole story is getting told right?

1) Live the Marketing strategy - the message in your marketing strategy has a far greater chance of being received if everyone in your business is on board with (and maybe even inspired by) the concept. No point spending thousands on advertising a message if the team doesn’t feel any ownership or desire to help tell the story.

2) It’s all about culture – does your organisation have a culture that promotes the principles, standards and/or ethics you believe in? Does each person within your business consider the values and goals of the organisations as their own?Every interaction a customer has with your business, whether it be good or bad, are the unseen results of your organisational culture (or sometimes lack thereof).

3) Listen, Listen, Listen. The obvious premise of any business is having a customer or clientèle with a need for your product or service, but what are their needs, really? only one way to find out. Then on each level – from customer service, to the retail offer, and everything in between, listen to what your market wants and try to deliver.

…And if you’re wondering who’s getting it right, check out the latest Marketing strategy of the Commonwealth bank. i was amazingly surprised over the last month to actually get the very” un-bank-like conversations” with a few different tellers, and be greeted like a friend, as suggested you might in their “determined to do so” campaign. It would seem they may have the culture right, and the team all (seemingly) living the strategy. Who would have thought?