Once Upon A Time when Service Firms discovered Branding Strategy

by | Jan 6, 2011 | Blog, Strategy

Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, services firms wanted more customers.

Without time or skills they wasted money on websites, collateral, and marketing in general, actually repelling prospects and making sales people’s jobs harder.

Like sand in an hourglass, opportunities passed. One day they found the lost wisdom of Peter Drucker, who said: “business is about two things and two things only; marketing and innovation”, but marketing communication and selling were becoming increasingly complex due to media fragmentation, increased competition and clients with A.D.D.

Copywriters, designers, SEO experts were engaged, budgets spent, yet they still weren’t getting results. They were missing out on “big picture” branding strategy and creative. Well meaning specialists lived in silos without the necessary skills to teach them that their brand was their biggest asset; not a logo, or their look and feel. They heard of Coco Chanel who coined a phrase “In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different”, and learned that their brand was what their customers thought, felt and said about them and this made sense.

Told to go to a “professional” advertising agency to develop their brand, they heard that awareness is key, from the Account Director who walked out the door to attend a long lunch with blue chip clients, never to be heard from again. Serviced by juniors who had little experience but a great desire to work on a more glamorous account, our heroes, from I.T., HR, accounting and law, to name a few, were still busy and stressed, and now confused by the jargon used to “impress” them. Meetings with pretty young things, free tickets to events, cool parties came and went.

When they took charge of their own brand and understood the basic principles of branding strategy, they discovered what made them truly unique, learned how to communicate effectively and within 6 months had increased sales. They focused on what they did best and made their customers happy, increasing their profits and enjoying life. But that’s the end of the story and we are only at the beginning…

Linked In: It is not how big it is but how you use it!

Linked In: It is not how big it is but how you use it!

by | Dec 13, 2010 | Blog, LinkedIn, LinkedIn Training

october-2013

A fascinating debate recently took place on the pages of Anthill, the summary of which can be described as follows:

  1. Should you aim to get as many connections as possible?
  2. Is Linked In suitable for B2C Marketing or only B2B?

You can find the article and readers responses here:
http://anthillonline.com/so-you-have-300-contacts-on-linkedin-well-im-not-impressed/

Doesn’t the question of how you should connect and with whom all depend on your product or service offering?

Although I see merit in both arguments, I am partial to side with Jen Bishop. Obviously by definition, Linked In is more suitable to B2B, however “all of us” are consumers and now there are 80+ million on there who are a marketer’s dream demographic! Which raises the question of reward v effort and ROI of targeted ads in this medium versus building your personal network…but that’s a whole other debate.

To support Tom’s point, I know of a Marketing Consultant (Self Proclaimed Linked In Guru) who has 17,000+ connections. Although he is undoubtedly a very smart guy who seems to be very successful and have his heart in the right place providing a lot of free education, I do not agree with some of his tactics and “teachings”, in fact I have reported one of his tactics to Linked In as I see them akin to “black hat SEO” …

I digress…the point being he is selling “educational product”, CD’s, Pod/Video Casts, PDF’s etc…The more connections he has the better for his business! In that respect he is doing a great job – satisfying customer demand and making a profit without doing anything wrong!

SO LET”S ALL BE CLEAR ABOUT OBJECTIVES – HORSES FOR COURSES! We should not make sweeping statements but instead spend a little time working on our strategy, value proposition and then worry about evaluating the media channel, it’s advantages and limitations and the process with which you will maintain DIALOGUE in your chosen channel.

Success on Linked In and in fact in all Social Media channels, to be specific VIA NETWORKING & WORD OF MOUTH, NOT ADVERTISING, relies on the principle of leveraging and building your reputation with your existing professional (and personal) connections as well as building new connections that will also hold you in high regard. Now how you will do that is the big challenge and not one of technology but strategy! What will you offer them to make their lives/jobs easy and what do you need to do to attract people to your profile in the first pace?

Many Linked In users damage their reputations because they forget the simple rules of engagement when it comes to interacting with their existing and prospective audience online.

I received two Linked In invitations in as many weeks, from individuals that indicated they were friends and gave no specific reason as to why they wanted to connect with me and used standard “templated” invites. In fact, having searched my electronic databases as well as my “super computer” called the human brain; I could not remember how or where I MAY have met these two people. These two invites were great examples of what not to do on Linked In. This doesn’t mean that these individuals can’t add value to my network or I to theirs. It does mean that I will wait to accept their invitation until such time that they can illustrate the value in connecting with them, and either choose to be more honest or learn how to better use the technology!

My Linked In connection policy is based around either one or both parties being able to POTENTIALLY add value to another. It’s a decision process that most PROFESSIONAL Linked In members should be able to answer in a matter of 30 seconds (in this case deciding whether to connect or not):

  1. Has the person inviting me illustrated a clear reason for doing so?
  2. Is this reason of value to me?
  3. If there was no clear reason stated, they have one last chance. I look at their profile for 20 seconds and decide for myself, read between the lines how connecting with them may benefit either me or them:
    – Are they a potential prospect or referrer for my business?
    – Am I a potential prospect for theirs? Is what they sell so unique (are they a real expert in their field) so as to interest me, even though they may not have given me an initially strong reason to connect.
    – Am I a potential referrer for their business?
  4. Finally, if the answers to most of those are negative, I will not connect with them, as they are likely to fill my inbox and those of my network with useless junk and be a time sucking vampire!

Your CONNECTION policy maybe vastly different, BASED ON YOUR SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES, but the bottom line is you NEED to have one, and the only way to do so is to have a well thought through strategy.

For a Free and No Obligation Discussion about your specific needs contact us today.

A Web Marketing Tip from Experts that ends up costing you money and time by lulling you into a false sense of security…

by | Dec 13, 2010 | Blog

Everybody wants to discover the “silver bullet”, THE solution to all their problems, whether it is to building a profitable online business or to losing weight! That’s the sort of society we live in – Quick Fix, Pop a Pill, so it is no wonder that the “expert marketers” serve up solutions that the market seems to be demanding!

Unfortunately, just like weight loss, developing a profitable online presence in form of a website or blog is not as easy as popping a pill!

During the last week I have come across 2 articles:

  1. Building buzz: low-cost and no-cost marketing tips http://www.theage.com.au/small-business/growing/building-buzz-lowcost-and-nocost-marketing-tips-20101011-16et5.html
  2. Small businesses yet to befriend social media http://www.theage.com.au/small-business/my-business-success/small-businesses-yet-to-befriend-social-media-20101208-18pik.html

that implied just such a piece of dangerous advice. The majority of the advice in the article was sound, however did raise the whole question of D.I.Y Marketing v getting a Professional Marketing solution delivered by the appropriate experts. This is a whole different topic and we have written a whole White Paper about it, which you can download here.

But this discussion focuses on the one piece of advice that is potentially “unhealthy for your business”. I am talking about CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS or CMS.

Here are the extracts from the offending articles and their authors:

  1. 1. Marketer Wendy Kenney, 43, is the author of Build Buzz for Your Business with Low Cost and No Cost Marketing Tips

Below Wendy Kenney answers the reporter’s question: “What virtual tool would you recommend?”

This might surprise you, but I recommend getting a WordPress site above anything else, given that 40 per cent of business owners still do not have an internet presence.  With the invention of the WordPress.com platform, any business can have a nice looking website for free – and no programming experience necessary. And for just a small investment, they can have their own customised domain for their website, about US$24 to purchase and then to have WordPress assign the domain to your site.

Wendy, please email me some of these “great looking websites” designed, built, promoted and maintained by your clients, and I’ll critique them for free for your clients or readers of your book!

  1. Ed Dale is one of Australia’s best known web evangelists. In 2005 he sold dozens of his own websites for $5 million. His latest venture, Melbourne-based 30DC Inc, recently listed in the US as a publicly traded over-the-counter (OTC) stock. It’s best known for The Challenge (formerly The 30 Day Challenge), a free online course aimed at people looking to set up businesses on the net. More than 150,000 people have taken the training.

Let’s be realistic, I’m sure your educational program is fantastic and value for money, but how many of your graduates have replicated your success Ed? Maybe more would be successful f they didn’t try to do it themselves, but used their knowledge to engage and manage the right suppliers!

Here Ed Dale provides his advice and makes some very interesting observations that fly in the face of his own advice:

“Small business in Australia has still not grappled with what happened online in 2002, let alone 2011,” he says supporting the reporter’s earlier point of:

  • Surveys find some owners are intimidated by the technology and others just don’t have the time. A significant minority simply can’t see the point of it all.

Wendy also says that 40% of business owners still do not have internet presence and an article in June this year states that 75% of all SME’s still don’t have their own website! http://www.theage.com.au/small-business/smallbiz-tech/threequarters-of-smes-dont-have-own-website-20100630-zl56.html

Here’s Ed’s offending statement in his interview:

Expensive web design and confusing technology are no longer barriers to entry. Dale believes a simple WordPress blog and Facebook page is enough for most businesses. “Honestly, a surly teenager can handle the technology requirements of a small business in 2011,” he says. “If they can pimp a Facebook page they are already over-qualified.”

No one could ever argue that a professional online presence is absolutely critical today for any business or that the actual technology costs a lot less, but why would Ed and Wendy “overpromise” so much to their “fans”?

Are they simply delusional and out of touch with the market, like our politicians or are they trying to peddle more of their books and courses?

The research shows that the average SME business owner is scared of the technology, is extremely time poor and hence has no time to learn the technology, no matter how simple the WISYWIG interface has become! Finally and more importantly most simply don’t want to!

Let me explain. Most if not all of us go into business because we love to do what we do – Provide financial advice, solve legal disputes, design and build houses, treat pets, manufacture, engineer and so it goes. All of a sudden the new business owner has to wear, according to the CPA Australia up to 11 different hats and most of us are only good at successfully wearing 2 – 4 of those hats! Yet Wendy and Dale want to “put another hat” on our entrepreneur and make him or her do something that they have no passion for! Here are some statistics and observations from my own experience in providing marketing advice over the last 5 years to the SME market and consulting to hundreds of business owners:

  1. Most business people are attracted to the idea of “being able to update and manage their own website”. 95% of them never do! I mean it, I have looked at 1000’s of websites and most of them have a CMS, that is gathering dust, with the average site’s update being 6 months ago or more! Forget about the quality of the design and copywriting!
  2. The CMS, if anything is of benefit to the Web Designers and Web Marketers – it does make their jobs easier.
  3. A 16 year old may be able to “pimp a Facebook page” but this does not make them an online marketing expert! In fact, web designers and “web marketing specialists” can not deliver the entire solution see our Success Online Diagram because they have no expertise in the other half of the solution – marketing strategy which eventually leads to quality content.
  4. The 5% of business owners who are capable of at least successfully maintaining their website in WordPress, have a Facebook page, or use some other type of CMS, still face the same challenge as the web designers and 16 year olds – they need a sound marketing strategy and the ability to creatively express it in words that sell – copywriting! Something else most don’t have the time, passion or skills for!

Stark Reality guidelines for marketing success online:

  1. Stick to what you know and have a passion for, the thing that made you go out and start your business in the first place.
  2. Learn enough about the “other hats” areas of business to keep your business partners / suppliers accountable. Know what questions to ask and how to check the answers!
  3. Then outsource as much as you can afford to so as to focus on what you do best.
  4. “Business is about 2 things and 2 things only, Marketing and Innovation” – Peter Drucker, Father of Modern Management. So focus your “education” on general marketing principles: satisfying their needs in new and interesting ways, delivering value that makes them say “WOW” and refer you more business.
  5. Leave the task of marketing communication to the experts, marketing consultancies, advertising agencies, design specialists, promotional specialists, PR specialists, etc
  6. Even if you are passionate about learning and / or already have the technical skills to Do It Yourself, weigh up the pros and cons of your time versus paying the professionals! It is much harder to design, write for yourself than it is for someone else as you are “too close” to your own business.
  7. If you do not have between $7,000-$15,000 to “get started” with your marketing strategy and professional online presence what the hell are you doing quitting your day job?

Just like weight loss, success online means doing some hard work, probably getting a personal trainer and watching what advice you consume!

Linked In: The Rules Of Engagement for Successfully Building Your Professional Network.

by | Dec 2, 2010 | Blog, LinkedIn

Success on Linked In and in fact in all Social Media channels relies on the principle of leveraging and building your reputation with your existing professional (and personal) connections as well as building new connections that will also hold you in high regard. Yet many Linked In users fail to do this effectively and damage their reputations because they forget the simple rules of engagement when it comes to interacting with their existing and prospective audience online.

This bog entry was prompted by two Linked In invitations in as many weeks, from individuals that indicated they were friends and gave no specific reason as to why they wanted to connect with me and used standard “templated” invites. In fact, having searched my electronic databases as well as my “super computer” called the human brain I could not remember how or where I MAY have met these two people. These two invites were great examples of what not to do on Linked In. This doesn’t mean that these individuals can’t add value to my network or I to theirs. It does mean that I will wait to accept their invitation until such time that they can illustrate the value in connecting with them. I am confident and hopeful they can do so after reading this.

Below are 5 great articles by Linked In “power users” that discuss the strategies of building your professional network on Linked In as well as the specific do’s and don’ts of Linked In Invitations.

I define Power Users as those that use Linked In to develop and grow their network (and consequently personal brand & business) in a strategic manner – they have objectives, systems and processes. They are thought leaders who have a deep understanding of the medium and the technology and use it to their fullest advantage.

Here is my long held view and summary of the below articles:

1. DO NOT write anything that you wouldn’t otherwise say in person, on the telephone or in an email. You wouldn’t call up anyone, regardless of your relationship to him or her and utter the standard Linked In template words “join my network” as your opening remark! Then why do so many people do so in the medium of Linked In?

2. Remember that everyone listens to radio W.I.I.F.M – What’s In It For Me? Have a compelling reason for connecting / sending an invitation (in marketing terms – your offer and call to action) or use one or multiple principles of persuasion. As you read the below you will see that appealing to one’s ego in the form of flattery works as well!

Prevalent attitude to accepting and refusing Linked In invitations as well as some great tips on social media networking etiquette:

The official Linked In view and procedure on “how and who to connect to” can be found here:

Perception is Reality. Make sure perceptions of who you are positive and profitable!

Gene Stark

http://au.linkedin.com/in/genestark

Linked In: The Rules Of Engagement for Successfully Building Your Professional Network.

by | Dec 2, 2010 | Blog, Promotion

Success on Linked In and in fact in all Social Media channels relies on the principle of leveraging and building your reputation with your existing professional (and personal) connections as well as building new connections that will also hold you in high regard. Yet many Linked In users fail to do this effectively and damage their reputations because they forget the simple rules of engagement when it comes to interacting with their existing and prospective audience online.

This blog entry was prompted by two Linked In invitations in as many weeks, from individuals that indicated they were friends and gave no specific reason as to why they wanted to connect with me and used standard “templated” invites. In fact, having searched my electronic databases as well as my “super computer” called the human brain, I could not remember how or where I MAY have met these two people. These two invites were great examples of what not to do on Linked In. This doesn’t mean that these individuals can’t add value to my network or I to theirs. It does mean that I will wait to accept their invitation until such time that they can illustrate the value in connecting with them. I am confident and hopeful they can do so after reading this.

Below are 5 great articles by Linked In “power users” that discuss the strategies of building your professional network on Linked In as well as the specific do’s and don’ts of Linked In Invitations.

I define Power Users as those that use Linked In to develop and grow their network (and consequently personal brand & business) in a strategic manner – they have objectives, systems and processes. They are thought leaders who have a deep understanding of the medium and the technology and use it to their fullest advantage. This is personal branding.

Here is my long held view and summary of the below articles:

1.     DO NOT write anything that you wouldn’t otherwise say in person, on the telephone or in an email. You wouldn’t call up anyone, regardless of your relationship to him or her and utter the standard Linked In template words “join my network” as your opening remark! Then why do so many people do so in the medium of Linked In?

2.     Remember that everyone listens to radio W.I.I.F.M – What’s In It For Me? Have a compelling reason for connecting / sending an invitation (in marketing terms – your offer and call to action) or use one or multiple principles of persuasion. As you read the below you will see that appealing to one’s ego in the form of flattery works as well!

Prevalent attitude to accepting and refusing Linked In invitations as well as some great tips on social media networking etiquette:

The official Linked In view and procedure on “how and who to connect to” can be found here:

Perception is Reality. Make sure perceptions of who you are positive and profitable!

Gene Stark

http://au.linkedin.com/in/genestark