Saturday, March 10, 2012
Reversal of fortunes - Nokia and Apple
This is a guest post by Charles Galunic. Professor Charles Galunic works within the fields of Organisation Behaviour and
Strategy. His research concerns the social fabric of innovation and
change, and the processes
which help firms to adapt. He has published in the
Journal of Managerial and Decision Economics, Administrative Science
Quarterly, Academy of Management Journal, Organisation
Friday, March 9, 2012
Registration is now open
Registration is now open for the 2012 MarketMatch eCollege Series. This is designed to provide leading strategic and tactical ideas presented by the staff of MarketMatch. Each session is structured to meet the individual needs of the attendees throughout communication and surveys prior to the eCollege session. A comprehensive "ToolKit" will be provided to each attendee of every session. These will be actionable, targeted, strategic and tactical...ready for your implementation of ideas.
Each session will be a lively 90 minutes and are delivered via an interactive telephone webinar. That means no travel or hotel expenses and you don't have to leave your desk!
The sessions are delivered on five successive Tuesdays beginning at 1:00 pm EST and ending promptly at 2:30 pm EST.
Series one dates are:
April 10
April 17
April 24
May 1
May 8
Series two dates are:
September 11
September 18
September 25
October 2
October 9
For more information on topics, click here. The benefits of attending the MarketMatch eCollege sessions are endless. Join us on April 10 to learn more about "Creating an internal knowledge base."
Make it a great weekend,
Debbi
MarketMatch is a full-service marketing consulting firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community. We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate MOMENTUM and yield the greatest RESULTS for your bottom line.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
HELP! - When to Outsource Marketing
(This topic was requested by one of our readers.)
We are all asked to do more with less. How do you know when to outsource your marketing?
When the Twin Towers and the economy were devastated in 2001, my largest client opted to move their advertising in-house. Immediately, I became expendable to my ad agency – along with a dozen of my friends. I didn’t know at the time, but it was the best day of my professional life!
Within a week, I had an interview with a credit union to be their Marketing VP. My first step … learn what the heck a credit union is! Soon after, my life as a financial marketer launched.
Now here’s where the outsourcing comes in. On my third day as a CU marketer, I had a meeting with this company called MarketMatch (yes, I’m not just a consultant, I was a client). What I realized was that I knew how to be a marketer, but there were nuances to financial marketing that I needed help with. What’s more, I was a department of one (and a part time assistant) and I had a lot to learn about my market. I hired MarketMatch to conduct market research that I didn’t have time to conduct on my own. I also used them to turbo-charge my learning curve on financial marketing.
So, what’s the lesson in all of this?
When do you turn to help?
Sole Search
Understand what you and your department are best at. Also own up to where you’re weaker.
I am an idea guy. I have created concepts for several award winning campaigns, but I don’t even know how to open design software.
Look to bolster your weaknesses so you have more time to maximize your strengths.
Manage Your Resources
Prioritize the most important items that MUST get done to achieve your strategic objectives. Then list all of the day-to-day stuff that you simply can’t avoid (newsletters, meeting reports, non-marketing tasks that fall on you, etc.).
I knew that I needed market research before I could design a plan to help my CU grow. I wanted to understand our level of awareness in the market, perceptions about us, perceptions of our competition, if the market knew what the heck a credit union was … or cared. I didn’t have time to properly conduct and analyze the research AND run my department, so I turned to MarketMatch.
In most cases, you can hire a marketing firm of many individuals, each with their own unique strengths for less than the expense of hiring one qualified marketing professional in-house. When you analyze your list of “must dos” and compare it to your sole searching exercise, you’ll quickly see if you can justify outsourcing and where to focus your outsourcing search.
Know You Are Unique
Every town has a local ad agency. And every agency has its strengths. But look at their client list (past and present).
As an ad man, I’ve worked on an enormous variety of accounts: water parks, soccer shin guards, international container shipping, refrigeration air compressors, large-format ink jet printers, legal documents, helicopter share ownership. While many of the basics of marketing apply across the board, I can tell you first-hand that there is no industry like ours.
Your marketing partner can’t provide prudent recommendations without a firm understanding of your balance sheet. If your agency doesn’t understand the unique needs of banking, they’ll be reduced to order takers by default.
Do They Help You Sleep Well At Night
The job of any outsourced partner is to strengthen your efforts, to provide an outside perspective, to fill expertise gaps and to ultimately make you look like a hero!
This may be a good time to mention MarketMatch’s ROI Guarantee!!!
Check several references from institutions of similar size, target segments and project scope. Can your agency point to other successes that closely resemble your needs? The bottom line … are you confident that, when you lay awake at night – concerned about all that troubles you – your institution’s marketing efforts will not be amongst the worries?
(Do you have a topic you'd like to see in this blog? Please add a comment below.)
Want to learn more? Enroll in the MarketMatch eCollege! Smart learning online sessions delivered five consecutive Tuesdays with CFMP credits, tactical advice and a game plan for success! Enroll here!
MarketMatch is a full-service marketing firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community. We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate the greatest MOMENTUM for your organization and demonstrate RESULTS with our written ROI Guarantee.
MarketMatch is a full-service marketing firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community. We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate the greatest MOMENTUM for your organization and demonstrate RESULTS with our written ROI Guarantee.
Is it Plugged In yet? ...and other mystifying questions!
Yes...
The question came...right after I finished my explanation of my problem and my plea for help.
"Is it plugged in yet?"
Now, I consider myself a smart person. And I understand that this basic question can certainly offset lots of time spent on deeper troubleshooting, when dealing with a 1st time user. However, the REAL question is WHY ask this question to a customer that has a proven background and long history of purchases with the firm?
The answer will shock some ... and only shock others because OTHERS are shocked!
Sure, they had my name and account particulars. Probably had my purchase history handy. Indeed knew the model I had purchased. Certainly could access my past service calls.
Did they use that data?? Seems not.
So...my post for today centers around using organizational knowledge assets...seemingly important and routinely available data that can be transformed into knowledge!
When I speak, I frequently share stories about the Ritz Carlton hotel and experiences with their service. I share, because the stories are amazing... personal guidance to the coffee shop by a contractor, using the name of the guest by each associate, personal notes by the GM. Stuff of service legend and the envy of many companies.
However, the real essence is that the story HAPPENS because the staff is willing and able to act.
Willing and able...hmmm.
Willing means that staff is ENGAGED and feels empowered to act because they believe they are part of the solution and the team... and not simply an employee. Ritz Carlton gets it..and so does their staff!
Able means that the staff is trained, mentored, coached, evaluated and rewarded for their efforts.
Did you know that Zappos (the online retailer) actually offers new staff $2,000 if they quit AFTER the four-week training. Its designed to weed out those that are not committed to the Zappos way. Zappos knows that the cost will be immaterial to the potential service risk of a poor employee.
So, getting back to the "is it plugged in yet?" question... more than likely it is not the "fault" of the service rep, but the failure of the leaders to ensure their staff was "willing and able" to use the data at their fingertips and transform it into service knowledge.
Here is how that service call might have gone...
"Mr. Clapp I see that you are a frequent client of "ABC" and I appreciate your continued support. Knowing that you purchased the XTRA GOOD version, I will move straight into troubleshooting, well beyond simply powering the unit. Now, with your last call..."
See how the data available was transformed into service knowledge to both engage and delight the customer! Here is where the caution goes... you don't need a multi-million dollar Oracle database to manage the info...you need a willing and able staff. Technology certainly helps, but I have seen many expensive systems go unused because of poor training and a disengaged staff!
Next time...how to CREATE a willing and able staff.
Cheers!
Want to learn more? Enroll in the MarketMatch eCollege! Smart learning online sessions delivered five consecutive Tuesdays with CFMP credits, tactical advice and a game plan for success! Enroll here!
MarketMatch is a full-service marketing consulting firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community. We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate MOMENTUM and yield the greatest RESULTS for your bottom line.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Marketing is context
In 2007 The Washington Post carried an astonishing article describing a social experiment the newspaper had conducted. The Post had asked Joshua Bell to play in the Washington metro during the morning rush hour. As the newspaper describes it, “No one knew it, but the fiddler standing against a bare wall outside the Metro in an indoor arcade at the top of the escalators was one of the finest
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Getting Social (Part 3 of 3)
(PART 3 of 3)
We have a lot of community banks and credit unions asking us about Social Media. "How can we…?" "Should we…?" "Can you help…?"
Well, to all you community banks and credit unions … Yes we can! Yes you should (probably)! Here’s how…
As you consider Social Media, or as you craft your plan, consider the following:
RESPONSIBILITIES /RESOURCES
If social media is all about getting people talking, than the most important resource in social media are the people who DO the talking. The structure of each organization is different … some institutions allow tellers to post, some only allow management. Identify the structure that best fits your culture.
You must first identify your Social Media evangelists - those individuals that use the social media tools to engage a given audience and share ideas, service, solutions and company information. Then create an “Authority Flow Chart”: A hierarchy of responsibilities from those that contribute, to those that police and approve to those that handle negative comments.
RESPONDING TO NEGATIVE FEEDBACK
No one likes negative feedback. But negative comments will happen whether you’re on Facebook and Twitter or not. It is important to document who will respond, what your response will be, and the method you will use to respond -- on the site page or with a phone call -- if a negative comment is made by social media. This is an opportunity to proactively address issues and manage perceptions. The worst thing you can do is to ignore negativity and pretend it never happened. In general, you should view negative comments as a gift and take the opportunity to learn what is not working in your process. This can actually help you to provide better customer service.
No one likes negative feedback. But negative comments will happen whether you’re on Facebook and Twitter or not. It is important to document who will respond, what your response will be, and the method you will use to respond -- on the site page or with a phone call -- if a negative comment is made by social media. This is an opportunity to proactively address issues and manage perceptions. The worst thing you can do is to ignore negativity and pretend it never happened. In general, you should view negative comments as a gift and take the opportunity to learn what is not working in your process. This can actually help you to provide better customer service.
BUILDING A FOLLOWING
“Social,” by its very definition, is communal. It is at its most productive when you are reaching people and getting them talking. That said, a core objective of any social media initiative is to build a following.
“Social,” by its very definition, is communal. It is at its most productive when you are reaching people and getting them talking. That said, a core objective of any social media initiative is to build a following.
This does NOT mean that a single-minded focus on “Likes” is appropriate. It is better to build quality contacts over sheer quantity. To accomplish this, you must have a relationship focus to your communications rather than simply a transactional focus. Collecting “Likes” is one measurement … facilitating quality conversations is a much more important one.
TRAINING & GUIDELINES
Each employee is a representative of the bank or credit union brand - in and out of the office. The general rule of thumb is, “If you wouldn’t make a comment to the company president, don’t post it online.”
Your social media plan should include detailed guidelines including:
- Employee Code of Conduct for Online Communications
- Employee Personal Social Network Policy
- Corporate Social Networking Policy
- Corporate Blogging Policy
SOCIAL MEDIA MISTAKES
Avoid these common Social Media pitfalls:
- Running specials all the time
- Waiting for people to find you
- Running contests and games constantly
- Blocking negative feedback
- Waiting 24 hours to respond
- Not connecting your channels
- Not continually monitoring
- Simply focusing on “Likes”
MarketMatch is a full-service marketing firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community. We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate MOMENTUM and yield the greatest RESULTS for your bottom line.
Where to Find Your GOLD MINE of Market Data
Where is your richest resource within your company? It’s with your front-line managers and staff. They are the ones who:- Best understands your customers’ needs and wants,
- Know what and where service delivery is inefficient and not working,
- Have family and friend relationships within the community our customers live in,
- Possibly have friends or acquaintances that work for the competition.
These are just a few of many reasons why it’s important to engage your frontline personnel in your marketing analysis, planning and implementation. Make your frontline part of your marketing team and you will experience your richest resource – your gold mine of market data.
Best,
Melissa
Melissa
If you're going to be able to look back on something and laugh about it, you might as well laugh about it now. - Marie Osmond
MarketMatch is a full-service marketing consulting firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community. We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the efforts that will generate MOMENTUM and yield the greatest RESULTS for your bottom line.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)