Canadian Marketing Blog

2011 Reputation Management Trends

Smart b-to-b organizations start planning and budgeting well in advance of a new fiscal year. Part of the process requires evaluating strategies and tactics that have been employed during the past year, then deciding which to keep and which to replace. SiriusDecisions has identified key trends that will impact the b-to-b communications function in 2011.

1. Waterfall-Long Social Media: Many b-to-b organizations have experience using social media to monitor their brand, customer perception and sentiment; some are even trying to use it to seed demand creation. This isn’t enough; communications executives now must take a waterfall-length social media perspective. Recently, we outlined five waterfall-related task families that marketing can impact: seed, create, enable, accelerate and nurture. Adding social media into the tactic and offer delivery mix can help create new demand. On the enablement side, leveraging a social platform to build an internal community to facilitate collaboration and best practices sharing within direct and indirect sales channels can help drive incremental sales productivity. Finally, understanding the social preferences of prospects provides the knowledge to apply appropriate social efforts to the nurturing process.

2. The Communications Center: Similar to the value a demand center can provide, a communications center can pay significant dividends if created. Particularly when it comes to global communications, a centralized function can create leveraged programs for retaining key branding and messaging elements while enabling local customization based on defined guidelines. In addition, the approach allows companies to harness key expertise distributed throughout the communications organization and dynamically allocate it as needed, depending on the corporate initiative (e.g. new product launch or merger/acquisition).

3. Link to Demand: While we would like nothing more than not having this as a key issue for 2011, the reality remains that too few organizations – not even 40 percent according to our most recent surveying – tightly link their communications and demand creation efforts. We’ve written extensively on the topic that linking to demand is much more desirable that trying to link to revenue, and that the most effective measurements of this linkage should be results-oriented rather than activity-driven. More traditional communications roles (e.g. public relations, analyst relations) often have the perception that seeding or supporting demand creation is not their job; until the objectives that these roles are judged are changed, there is little reason for behavior to change.

A key theme for communications functions in 2011 will be the ability to deliver impact across the demand waterfall, rather than just at its top. However, this can be a thorny topic for professionals in more traditional roles who have become accustomed to only having to demonstrate activity levels. In addition, the ubiquitous nature of social media means it’s no longer a luxury, but rather an invaluable tool that every marketer can leverage. Those who embrace these two realities will be better positioned to not only build the proper linkages within their organizations; they will have a much better chance to prove their contribution.

Ally Motz

Channel Surfing for Influencers: Social Media

In my third of four posts about which channels work best to reach and engage influencers, I take a look at the new kid on the block: social media.

Marketers are sometimes torn between doing what has worked most effectively in the past and testing out new technologies and channels that have the potential to be real game-changers in the future.

The bright shiny object of the last few years is, of course, social media, a channel that’s still not completely understood but that has, in theory, the potential to radically change the way we market.

Why? Well, to start with, based on our research, influencers are spending 7 hours per week in the US and 9 in Canada on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and blogs. That’s already impressive but when you add to that the finding that influencers are connected, on average, to 108 (US) and 137 (Canada) people in their own social media network, that’s something that gets the attention of marketers – as it should.

While social media shares ease of use with the email channel, it’s this community or network that may hold the key to the channel’s true potential. These individuals have chosen to be connected based on an affinity for a particular community, and are actively engaged with others in it and outside that community too.

Bill McCloskey at ClickZ offers some fascinating examples about the potential power of social media, including this one:

“…look at Marvel Comics, which is one of the top performing ‘advertisers’ in the Twitter space. As of right now, Marvel has around 44,000 followers [63,000+ as I write this post]. But over the last few weeks, it sent out 151 Twitter offers. But more than that: 246 ‘influencers’ have directly rebroadcast that message to their followers. Add it all up and Marvel has exposed its offer to over 66 million eyeballs over the past few weeks!”

Those are some impressive numbers and just a hint of the potential opportunities social media offers marketers. However we do need to distinguish the difference between influencers: some will talk; others will pass along information (as per above) and of utmost value are those that truly influence others – by eliciting action. So whether on social media sites or via email or on the phone, you must understand what you are trying to achieve and ensure that you have designed appropriately.

One more thing bares repeating from my last two posts: even if some channels are better than others to reach particular consumers in particular ways, the fact is these channels work best for marketers when they work together.

For instance, email messages that offer a social-sharing option (like Twitter and Facebook) generate a 30% higher click-through rate than emails without it, according to a new study by email marketing company Get Response. And if the email includes three or more social-sharing options, that click-through rate jumps to 55%.

The bottom line? Social media offers a unique and advantageous opportunity to find, reach, engage and have a continuous dialogue with individuals – both within their social media communities and in their network at large. Just needs to be done right!

In the fourth and final part of this series, I’ll blog about the true answer to the question – which channel is most effective at finding, reaching, engaging and motivating influencers?

Gillian MacPherson

The Future of Planning

When Stanley Pollitt and Stephen King created the notion of "planning" back in the 1960's, they began the journey to what is now a very discombobulated discipline.

Let's have a look at the first description of account planning - "The account planner is that member of the agency's team who is the expert, through background, training, experience, and attitudes, at working with information and getting it used - not just marketing research but all the information available to help solve a client's advertising problems." - Stanley Pollitt

In the 1990's, Jay Chiat evolved the definition of planning to add a splash of creativity and flare, yet still remaining true to the discipline.

Fast forward to 2010. This is where I face a split opinion.

Many agencies are not familiar with the discipline of planning and try to create a role to fill an unfulfilled need. This role usually includes a planning title; created with little or no knowledge of what planning actually is. This direction dilutes the discipline of planning and builds confusion both internally and with the client. We now have client planning, creative planning, research planning, just plain planning, strategist, account planning strategist and most recently, digital planning or digital strategist. I'm sure I've left out a plethora of others.

On the other hand, It's my personal belief that a good account planner can be all of the above as long as the consumer is at the core root. It's all a matter of managing expectations with the employer/employee and client. Good planners have the ability to bridge together their understanding of the consumer and how they relate to the client's brand and visa versa. Because communication channels continuously multiply, it is crucial for planners to stay ahead of how consumers are engaging with brands.

I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic.

Jennifer Morozowich

The Intersection Between Mobile and Social Just Became Much Blurrier

Facebook announced “Places”, a tool that allows Facebook subscribers to essentially “check in” to locations and serendipitously discover friends who happen to be nearby. Momentum continues to build in location-based services, Geo-fencing, mobile social media etc.

Why this will work.
Facebook is the all-powerful Borg (for those non Trekkies out there – they assimilate, adapt and propagate). With 500 million subscribers (and reports that 150 million of these are mobile), sheer size makes Facebook the clear favourite. In my opinion, Foursquare, Gowalla, My Town, etc. are officially the underdogs (if they weren’t before). Naturally, Facebook is faced with the issue of privacy, and provided they allow users to self-provision and dictate terms, then chances of success are high. Reaching eyeballs via Facebook Places substantially increases the efficiency of ad dollars and brings us another step closer to the perfect delivery of WHEN and WHERE.

What does this mean from a marketer’s point of view?
The ecosystem has added a slew of new terms that strategists, planners, brand managers, and CMOs,must be aware of for water cooler chats. This announcement could mark the dawn of Facebook mobile monetization where ad products and services will emerge. I suspect Places may be the final straw that pushes those brands that don’t have a mobile friendly destination to get one, as those brands can leverage the open graph API to ensure their brand communities can enjoy a seamless mobile experience. Who knows? Facebook could be the first organization to really marry mobile commerce and social platforms – they have a great Trojan horse model to explore with other products and services. In the near-term, Vortex is anxious to socialize mobile properties and mobilize brand communities. New DIY tools and APIs will strengthen the value proposition for our partners, some simple use cases include:
• Consider a beer or spirit company that uses experiential marketing. Imagine a promotion where X number of people that check in win, or 1 in X who check in to a restaurant/bar are entered to win a trip. Participants earn bonus ballots for socializing their whereabouts via Places and ta-da, we have next generation swarming. Amplify this experience by posting user generated content (such as pictures and video) and let your Twitter followers and Facebook friends see your world on demand.. When boiled down, many marketing fundamentals still apply: LOCATION, EMOTIONS, LTO(limited time offers)/SENSE of URGENCY, SHARED CONNECTIONS and WORD OF MOUTH.

Carriers (and OEMs) could be X-factors in mobile/social media
There is no doubt that carriers and handset manufacturers want in on the action. Geo-fences and location-based alerts are on their radar, as they battle the perception that their place within the mobile ecosystem is simply as dump pipes and dummy terminals. Arguably carriers and manufacturers have some tricks up their sleeve. A Canadian trial called OneAPI could allow carriers to get in the game by providing client-side information all accessed through a web API. OneAPI has the potential to be a total game changer as it offers SMS+ MMS aggregation, billing services, and targeting, and with the right partnerships, could offer a location-based experience that is as seamless and accessible, if not more so, then one offered by Facebook. (Click HERE for more details about ONE API.) http://www.gsmworld.com/oneapi/

Brady Murphy

The Success of Marketing A Weekly Publication

The New York Times recently lauded the success of The Economist in marketing to the sophisticated. The Brits have always been perceived as 'cool', but a British weekly publication has been a marketing success even in the U.S.A.? That's almost unheard of.

Bankers read it in first-class seats; hipsters read it on the subway on their way to work; boomers and Gen-Xers both love it. The newsweekly, a bible of global affairs for those who want to aspire to be worldly, did not become a success overnight. It took 25 years of clever advertising that appeal to the status-seeking reader to help the magazine get there.

I've always been a big fan and a subscriber for the past three years – not for the status, per se, but for its global and big-picture editorial content. I've been telling my friends that not a week will pass in my life unless I've read both The Economist and Hello Canada - the former for my intellectual curiosity and the latter for my pop culture update! I like The Economist's formal, proper English writing style and the choice of its macro subject matters.

Since the magazine first began printing a North American edition in early 1981, its circulation has increased more than tenfold. When The Economist began reporting figures to the Audit Bureau of Circulations in 1982, it printed about 80,000 copies and sold fewer than 8,300 on the newsstand each week. As of its last accounting, for the first half of 2010, the magazine sold an average of about 52,000 on the newsstand each week and had a total weekly circulation of just under 823,000. When almost every other weekly publication has been suffering a decline in circulation numbers and is struggling for survivial, The Economist's success is impressive.

As an avid e-book reader, I don't understand why The Economist is not available on Amazon's Kindle. The Kindle has been touted as a single-purpose, electronic device designed for avid readers, and that's why there are no photos on the device. Ironicially, The Economist also focuses on the writing and the reporting, with very few photos in the entire publication. With the increasing popularity of e-books, It should be just a matter of time before these two find a match for each other!

Lina Ko

Workplace Dynamics

Our colleagues, core team and support systems at our workplace greatly influence our performance and consequently our career. It is vital to manage the workplace environment for a win-win - for the organization and us. This is not only for managers and supervisors but for all team members to contribute toward developing and maintaining a cordial, supportive and fun work environment. I see this as an important workplace requisite being forgotten so many times.

Well-honed interpersonal skills are required for maintaining a high-performing work environment and for handling different personality types. It is impossible to find an office where all people are friendly, helping and skilled at work. Sometimes you carry deadwood, at others not-nice-meeting-you people.

I find three types of people at work and call them:
a) Gate Openers
b) Gate Keepers and
c) May Bees - based on their work ethics displayed most of the time.

Gate Openers are friendly, supportive colleagues who go an extra mile to help. They know their job and do not feel insecure in empowering others. They are long-term thinkers and lead by example with or without a managerial title. It is in your best interest to surround yourself with gate openers – people who can open gates for you for growth. However, it is not easy because you need to be one to be among them, as birds of a feather flock together. You need to perform at the highest level and be a team player.

Gate Keepers are not friendly. They wouldn’t budge beyond their job description and show no initiative. They are generally stuck in a position and would tend to pull you back too. They are good at their work by being in there for long but lack creativity. It would be prudent to keep away from them and only interact on need-to-deal basis, being polite and proactive. Being in the same workplace, you may have to deal with them so cut down your losses by minimizing your interaction with gatekeepers.

May Bees are moody people. One day they are cool, another day they are horrid, depending on which side of the bed they got up in the morning, if they had an argument at home or their boss seems not so happy with them. They are generally reactive. You need to read them well and give them leeway on a bad day. Work with May Bees patiently through their mood swings, as this is a temporary phase.

It all boils down to developing excellent interpersonal skills, keeping a laser-sharp focus on work, adding value in what you do and thinking long-term. Try practicing the above and the workplace will be your oyster!

Fazal Siddiqi

Spicy Success

So unless you have been completely off the grid (which is possible) you have probably seen the Old Spice advertising campaign. Yes, the cheeky one which features former NFL football player Isaiah Mustafa playing the role of "Old Spice Guy."

A conservative guess is that Procter & Gamble (owners of the Old Spice brand) spent tens upon tens of millions of dollars on a massive advertising campaign according to an agency side friend of mine. The campaign was a recipient of the 2010 Cannes Lions Film Grand Prix and received an Emmy nomination for outstanding commercial. Yes, this is the very same brand that I previously associated with my beloved grandfather.

If that wasn't enough this campaign was then taken to the next level. What was done exactly? The agency responsible for Old Spice (Wieden & Kennedy) launched a terrific social media campaign that built on the previous campaign momentum.

For a limited time period, fans could interact with Old Spice guy via Twitter, Facebook and/or YouTube and ask questions. The Old Spice Guy then replied in personal manner to those blessed enough via a 30 second YouTube spot. The social media campaign is brilliant from a creative perspective and didn’t cost a lot (compared to prior media expenses) to engage with fans besides the cost of employing the actor, writers who scripted the responses, production expenses and other ancillary costs.

Here is an example of one answer by the Old Spice Guy to a question posed by the Chicago Blackhawks hockey team via Twitter.

You may not like hockey. You may not like Old Spice. But you must admit this is a brilliant concept. An agency team responded to roughly 200 questions in a personalized manner within a 48 hour timeframe. We’re talking real-time answers that were hilarious, in character and in keeping with the desired brand positioning and creative goals. As Leigh Himel points out, it would be pretty cool to see what the agency creative brief looked like. Especially when having to sell a typically conservative organization like P&G.

From personalized answers to celebrities to marriage proposals the whole gamut was covered. The agency also wisely leveraged momentum built up by previous mass media advertising and media coverage that created the persona of Old Spice Guy. They also did little things like leverage the promoted trending topic on Twitter. I don't suspect it cost that much and the agency probably didn't have to do it as the campaign became an organic trending topic all on its own but it's still a good type of marketing insurance to have.

There has been some debate as to whether this social media campaign was successful. The digital results according to P&G speak for themselves. Nearly 105 Million YouTube views, 1.2 Billion media impressions, 2700% increase in Twitter followers, 800% increase in Facebook fan interaction, 300% increase in traffic to the Old Spice website. Not to mention the countless sharing, promotion and mashups created by fans. In my view you have clearly hit a nerve when consumers start creating their own derivations of a commercial. (*Warning about the language contained in the aforementioned link as typically happens lately when Mel Gibson is involved.)

My friend Tamera is firmly of the belief that this social media campaign was a success. Other detractors take the view that digital metrics are window-dressing and the creative was very juvenile. Everyone has an opinion and rightly so.

So it really all comes down to sales, right? Show me the money! That's what P&G shareholders and executives ultimately care about. According to Neilsen, sales of Old Spice Body Wash rose significantly since they launched the campaign. Kind of tough to argue with those numbers even if they are projections. Ultimately the folks at P&G will know the truth.

But I think there are bigger questions in all this. For the agency folks, is your shop capable of pumping out this kind of quality content in a very short time frame for a digital campaign? We’re not talking about days or weeks but minutes and hours to engage with potential customers. We’re talking about your creative directors & content writers working closely with the social media marketers, talent and production team in a truly integrated manner. Do you have the creative juices that leverage previous marketing efforts and support them? Do you truly understand the philosophy of engagement and conversation with customers? Because that is exactly why the Old Spice social media campaign was successful.

And those of us on the client side need to face the music also. As Dave Stubbs aptly notes in a terrific post, P&G put a lot of trust in their agency to pull this off. To react with the speed required means there wasn’t time for 4 different layers of approvals. There wasn't time for a full financial audit about costs on a line by line basis. There wasn't time for every pixel and prop to be mercilessly scrutinized by the brand police. So here is the rub. Can you do that in your company? Do you empower your agency to make bold decisions without fear? Have you built up enough trust with agency partner(s) where you are willing to put your neck on the line when executives start asking pointed questions in the boardroom?

Those are the spicy questions we must all (including myself) ask ourselves. And no amount of Old Spice will cover that up.

Sulemaan Ahmed

Group Think is the Result of Groupthink

Group think is the nemesis of qualitative research. The more senior you go in any organization, the more dismissive of focus groups managers become because of "group think." And, indeed, watching focus groups, as I have done innumerable times, it could appear that group think is impacting the dynamic.

Of course, one manager's group think is another manager's consensus. I mention this as an aside, but it is true that when 6 people in a group like the concept, this is a sign of a great concept. When six people in a group dislike the concept, it's clearly group think. Of course, if you hate the concept, then this works the other way around. Which leads to:

Bernstein's First Law of Group Think: The intensity of group think in any focus group is indirectly proportionate to the degree that the group reflects the observers innate bias.

But, I digress.

Group think is the inevitable result of recruiting homogenous groups of people. Why are we surprised that people who are in the same targeted age group, same target education level and use the same products with the same frequency, share the same opinions about the brand, product, category, and so on. In fact, I would go so far as to say that if there is no group think, then the recruiters have done a lousy job. And, perhaps even more controversially, the reason why professional respondents (i.e. those who attend many focus groups and don't absolutely fit the criteria) are generally more interesting than actual respondents (those who do fit the criteria and have little or no experience withfocus groups) -- they are, in fact, not the same as everybody else in the room and are therefor are more likely to have different opinions!

Think of it like this:

In her brilliant (must read for all marketers) book, The Art of Choosing, Sheena Iyengar points out three aspects of personhood that help clarify this issue:
1. People are more alike than they think
2. What people believe about themselves (or what people would want other people to believe about them) does not vary much from person to person
3. Each person is convinced that he or she is unique

So, if this applies to all people, imagine how much these lack of differences are magnified in a homogenous group. Group think is not group think in the sense of people following a leader in spite of their own personal opinions. Group think is simply group agreement.

So what?

Couple of things.
1. The next time a client complains of group think, stick your finger in your ears and hum loudly
2. Don't recruit homogenous groups to focus groups. Try recruiting different people, try mixing the cohorts -- mix frequent users with terminal rejecters; mix 35 to 49 with 18 to 29; mix males with females; mix high income with low income. In any case you are better off doing two groups of mixed A and B than one group of A and one group of B
3. Read "The Art of Choosing" and get back to me .

And, for your added enjoyment, check out our new web site.

Laurence Bernstein

Channel Surfing for Influencers: Email

Part 2 of a 4 part series

Which channel is most effective at finding, reaching, engaging and motivating influencers to spread the word about your product? In this second of four posts, I take a look at email.

In part 1, I blogged about some of the reasons marketers still consider direct mail an effective way to reach influencers, but the truth is that was only part of the story. Because while DM still has a role to play in engaging influencers to spread the word about your brand, email is also a powerful channel and one that’s becoming more so all the time.

There are, of course, the obvious reasons email is so effective: it’s easy for consumers to forward – a sort of digital word of mouth – and, especially these days, it’s easily accessible whether you’re on your BlackBerry, iPhone, Mac or PC, at home, at work or on the run.

An email campaign may also be cheaper and less labour-intensive to launch: although these days consumers report opening up less of the vast amount of emails received so perhaps cheaper is an illusion. But we do know that recent technology has made targeting, tracking and offer redemption much easier than in the past.

Perhaps where email marketing can be most successful at reaching consumers and convincing influencers is in its interactivity. You can include a url link to your website or blog or Facebook page in which the consumer can immediately connect. And of course you can design an email to offer a level of animation to engage the senses.

Plus, based on a study we just conducted, people have very specific reasons why they like to be marketed via email, including:

• Speed: It’s in your inbox – or in your trash – in a flash
• Convenience: You can read it at work, at home, or anywhere in between
• Environmental: Unless you want to print it out to save or share, trees and our environment get a break

That said, the truth is DM and email can live with each other because they both have an important role to play, as ClickSquared’s Dan Smith explains:

Not all customers respond to communications in the same way… In certain industries – charities come to mind – direct mail remains the primary method for new donor acquisition. Email is used primarily to solicit renewals from existing donors – and in the absence of a response, is often followed by yet another direct mail piece.

The circle of life – marketing style.

In part 3 of this series, I’ll focus on the new kid on the block – social media.

Thoughts?

Gillian MacPhersen

It's All About the Experience

You’re driving in your car, sunroof open, enjoying the beautiful summer breeze. You see a billboard — a beautiful beach, a lady in a stunning bathing suit, and a name, Daniel’s Swimwear. You need a new bathing suit and this one looks like it’s just your style. You eagerly head downtown and find the location. The front window doesn’t look much like that billboard, but not deterred, you go inside. The blaring rap assaults your ears; you can barely walk through the aisles, crammed as they are with merchandise. A teen or even maybe a tween approaches you. Chewing gum, holding up a barely there bikini, she says, “Isn’t this sick.” At that point you’re getting a pounding headache and starting to feel, well, sick. How could you have been so naive, how could you get fooled again?

What you see is not always what you get.

If this has happened to you, you recall only too well the sting of feeling lied to and deceived. Nothing — I mean nothing — turns off a customer more than an inconsistent experience. It’s high time you conducted a touch point audit on your business, and I recommend bringing a pair of fresh eyes along for the ride. The challenge is that when we are in our business day in and day out, we stop seeing like our customers, particularly a first time customer that has their radar high tuned to spot a fraud. Pre-Internet, when mass marketing was all the rage, it didn’t matter so much. Lose a customer, no big deal. There’s plenty more where that one came from, and who can they tell anyway? Today, they can facebook or tweet their friends and those friends will tell other friends and so on and so on. I think you get the picture — news, the good, the bad and the ugly travels really, really fast.

So back to the audit. The term touch point refers to everything that “touches” your customer. To simplify, consider these three categories. Communications and Media – everything from your advertising to invoicing; Environment or Space – your location, offices, store etc.; and People – the ones that deliver the goods.

First, establish your positioning. Sit down and decide what message you want to convey. Then document it. Next, pull together samples in the three key categories and run them through your “positioning” filter. Are they on target or wandering off in a different direction? Prioritize and identify your biggest “touch point" offenders and plan to change them ASAP. You should set a three-month goal to get all of your offenders in line.

From there, conduct your “touch point” audit annually to make sure your brand and all its touch points are still in line. Your customers will thank you; most likely by providing you with a larger share of wallet!

Shelley McQuade