Marketing Wisdom

What is it?

Pragmatic Marketing is a unique way to “look” at products before they are born. If you go to www.pragmaticmarketing.com, you will see the “steps” and “ways” to do this.

The question is, why is this new or, more to me, why is this needed, in this way.

As I say to my wife all the time, THIS IS MARKETING.  Taking something that we do every day and making it into something that has to be purchased.  If not purchased, you are something lessor than other individuals.

So, pragmatic marketing is doing focus groups (they don’t call it that), talking with buyers about why or why not they will want this product, planning a branding and communications campaign, working with all the various divisions that will affect the product, expecially sales, and so on.

To me, pragmatic marketing is doing what any real knowledgeable marketer would do to make a product successful.

I can see why this would be useful to a marketer that a) doesn’t know marketing, or b) is new in marketing. But, if you have at least 10 years of marketing experience and you don’t know or do everything that pragmatic marketing “teaches”, then, you shouldn’t be in marketing.

In conclusion, don’t judge someone if they aren’t “certified” with the pragmatic marketing certificate – they probably have been doing what it teaches for longer then the term has been in existence.

I have been asked, especially in the past 10 years, “How do you keep up with today’s technology? It is moving so fast, how can you possibly understand it all?”
It is a great question, because you can’t.  You can’t keep up with all the technology going on out there; from new cell phone apps and services to enterprise apps or software as a service. There is so much out there and there is no way to keep up on it all.

So what do you do?

First – target and focus on what your industry is in – if you are in the mobile industry, read and study everything you can get your hands on to understand the technology, trends, and upcoming innovation in that market.

Second – take one step away from this target and study other outside influencer’s.  I have mentioned this before in my postings; imagine a target, with the inner circle being that of your market, the next circle out is influencer’s that can/may influence your current market. For example, let’s say you are in the magnetic storage industry (hard drives – both internal and external), the next circle out is enterprise storage solutions (because a) they use your magnetic hard drives, but, also have new technology that influences storage, like magneto-optical, or optical (and so on). This next circle is the MOST important area, outside of your main market, to study and be aware of. The next circle is other market influencer’s, like, new companies coming out with smaller storage (not just in technology, but also in capacity – like, for another example, the Apple Thin Notebook – Apple is providing a smaller hard drive so it will fit in the laptop – will consumers accept this? If so, how does this impact your market and your revenue?)

Third – Read outside the market publications, from the web to the paper to magazines. Read only those pubs that your customer may also read. A great example, and the basis for your marketing activities, is this: You want a company to purchase your product, but, the purchasing agent doesn’t want your product (either too costly (in their mind), doesn’t fit their need (because they are ignorant), and so on). But, the purchasing agent is not the person that is going to be using your product, the product is going to be used elsewhere in the organization. Target them. How? They read, they do research, they study, they talk to others. Get in their faces so that they can do the “pull” and tell the purchasing agent to purchase your product.

In other words, do research. Find out what they read and study and get in those pubs. Educate them on your solution and you will get the sale.

It’s basic marketing, but, it increases revenue.

So, back to technology – if you do the above steps, you will inherently understand what is affecting your market, what new technologies are coming out, and how to counter them and address them. Remember, your product is already obsolete when you come out with it, but, you need to make the sales. By keeping up with technology IN YOUR MARKET, you can counter it with your marketing efforts, and thus grow the company.

We all have only a limited amount of time in the day – and yes, this does keep you focused in a general marketing category – but, that category is wide and spread across a few industries, thus not locking you into one category (like only storage), but, all technology related to storage – therefore, you can move to other industries quite easily.

Marketing Strategy, Brand Strategy, Communications Strategy, etc.

We all need a strategy, right? For life, for family members, for work, for play, for whatever we are doing.  We get up in the morning and tell ourselves what we are going to do that day and the order we’re going to do it, right? Well, that’s a strategy.

But, let’s talk more about setting a Marketing Strategy and Marketing Plan.

What is it?

Well, you can read numerous books about setting a marketing strategy and almost everyone will say something different. So, I am here to tell you my definition.

First, your marketing plan is part of your business plan. Without a business plan, don’t start a marketing plan. Read a book on making a business plan (or read my blog sometime in the future and maybe I will talk about it).

Second, you must think LONG TERM. I mean five years, even if your business has only been around for five weeks. Find out, by reading your business plan, what new products and/or services you plan on offering in five years. If your management/board/c-level executives don’t now, then, QUIT YOUR JOB and go somewhere else. But, if they do know, integrate that into your plans, even if the product is something so new, so different, that you can’t address that today.

Third, you must think LONG TERM. I mean three years.

Fourth, you must think LONG TERM. I mean one year.

Okay, you get the idea. Your marketing strategy and plan must start today and integrate out to five years from now. Beleive me, if you are meeting with a partner or the press, they WILL ask you what you plan to do after this product is at the top of the bell-curve, and you better have an answer. Even if it is a totally new direction – for example “This is our new toothpaste, it fights cavities, blah blah blah”…”and yes, in two years, we are planning on getting into surfboards, using the technology we gained in making the toothpaste, blah blah blah”.

Fifth, how are you going to get your message out there? Your strategy needs to incorporate ALL of the marketing mediums available, from web to merchandising, from promotions to event marketing. List out events five years from now on that you are planning on attending, like CES in 2012 or CEBIT in 2013 or whatever. Put down brochures that you want to make, around products that are in the pipeline, that are dreams, etc.

Okay, that’s it. lol. No, there is alot more, but, this is a good start. Let me make it clear on one thing – the marketing strategy and marketing plan should be able to be read by a layperson and “see” what is happening today, next month, next year, and five years from now. By the way, it is sooo easy to “forget” to update the marketing plan and strategy one year from now, as you are then “in the mix” and “don’t have time” to update it. UPDATE IT!!!

Remember with a strategy, you must think about the “end goal” – increase in product sales, revenue, profit, etc. and HOW you are going to get there. What do you have to do to make that happen – and of course, the easy answer is “lots of money”, but, try it without money. How would you make the strategy a “winner” spending little or no money.

Your marketing strategy should be understood by everone, from the top top to the lowliest. What is it goint to take and how are you going to get there – and the “you” is each individual in the company and any vendors that you have.

Yes, we all know that the economy is hurting us, from placing ads to producing brochures to shipping product to to to, well, you get the idea.

As previously mentioned, the first thing that is cut in most organizations when money slows down is marketing. From cutting the ad budget to not sending out mailers to creative.

As I said then and I say now, I do disagree with this. Now is the time to keep (or increase) the budget, because people do have a limited amount of money to spend and you need to be front and center, not behind or gone. But, you can read that entry for more information on that.

I want to talk about the EMBRACING of the economy and owning it.

Now is the time to step up and show how your product will HELP consumers/partners through the lean times.

For example: a security company can say “with the economy getting worse and more people not working, some of those people will turn to the dark side (i.e. thievery) and our service(s) can help you cope (stop)”. You get the idea.

Another example: a CPG sells laundry detergent, so they can say “with our concentrated formula, you can do more wash with less detergent, saving you money”. Again, you get the idea.

But, what about web companies? Easy. “Instead of driving to a store, come to our site and shop here first and save on the cost of gas and environmental impact”.

Or, non-profits – now here is a case where the economy will truly hurt them, as their money is mostly made through donations and contributions. How can they appeal to the market to keep giving money? Well, they can’t do anything different then they already have been doing, i.e. begging. If they are large, then they probably have investments or an endowment that will see them through the lean times, but, otherwise, they have to “APPEAL” to the good in people. From “give blood, it may save your life” to “give money, it will continue to educate the world about xxx”.

And of course, there are companies that will definitely be affected and may have to shut down some or all of their operations because of lack of funds/revenue. As my grandfather always said “make a product or contribute a service that people must have, not like to have, as those that survived the great depression did just that – they made products that consumers needed (like food) or services (like being a doctor)”.

No, you can’t change your profession now, but, you can think about how you can appeal to someone’s pocketbook, not through thievery, but through honest to goodness quality goods and services.

The economy will certainly weed-out those companies that have been “hanging on” and “barely surviving”, but, that is a good thing.

Like a garden, you have to weed it every now and then to get the best vegetables.

I may have mentioned or spoken about this previously, but, again, it came up recently in a meeting that I had with a client.

The client was telling me how the staff that he had was not accomplishing all the tasks that he was assigning, that they were complaining about being “over worked”, and that he wished he had employee’s like me – who he thought would be able to accomplish all the tasks assigned. As a side note, he and two other guys worked together for many years and only recently (the last three years) did they start to grow their company (where they now have 40 employee’s).

I asked him what those tasks were – which I promptly numbered and put on a dry erase board. I then asked him to write on a piece of paper how long he thought the tasks should take to be accomplished and I would do the same (even though I did not have the full understanding of what the tasks entailed, I could and would probably come within 10-20% of the true time that would need to be committed).

One last caveat that I got from him – I wanted him to choose two employee’s, one that was his brightest star (meaning almost accomplished every task assigned) and one that stated that they were overworked and didn’t have enough time.

Here is just one example of a task.

Pull together a spreadsheet listing all the companies competitors, their products, their pricing, and the best analysis (guess) of their profit per product. Because the company was very focused in nature, the competitors didn’t number more then three companies and no more then 10 competitive products.

His answer was four hours.

Mine was 16 hours.

His “brightest star” answered 12 hours.

His “complainer” answered 20 hours.

After this was done, my client and I then discussed why there was such a difference of time between him and the rest of us. The three of us were at least 300% more to 500% more in need of time.

1) Was your answer of four hours because you have been in the business for 20 years and know the information, where, like any company, most employee’s have been in the position from one to two years and don’t have the same knowledge?

2) Was your answer because you expect everyone to be like you and have that same knowledge?

3) Was your answer unrealistic? (which didn’t go over to well with him.)

I asked him to step back and put himself in the position of his employee’s. This really didn’t work (as most CEO’s and Presidents think that they are the best and everyone else is out to milk them for money and not work).

So, I then took a different tact – picture yourself in the tool manufacturing business that makes hand tools. You only make hammers, screw drivers, wrenches, and pliers. How much time, based on the same assignment that you gave your employee’s, would it take for you to accomplish said task?

After alot of stuttering and stumbling, he said he could probably do it within 20 hours. I asked him to rethink the answer after working for the company for a year? and then for three years? Would the time change?

Of course he said it would, because knowledge would be gained and understanding on what the “boss” (i.e. me in this case) wanted would be better understood.

I then completed the loop and said “what difference is there between what you did to your employee’s and what I did to you?” He said there was none – and of course, you could see the light go off over his head.

I learned this the same way that he did, through years of management, that not everyone thinks like you do, nor do they approach the same task in the same way.

When I had employee’s (or staff), there was a golden rule that I lived by and expected my employee’s to live by also.

Do the best that you can in the time that you have.

I always expected my staff to work a minimum of eight hours a day, 40 hours a week. If they were willing to work more, then, I would assign tasks until I knew they were on the edge of “going under”. This isn’t bad, this is being a manager.

But, back to my statement above, I would assign tasks that I knew my staff could accomplish, and with their total buy-in on accomplishing that task in the time they needed.

For example – if you ever had work done on your house by a contractor, they, when bidding, would say “I can do this in three months”, and living in the Northeast, you knew that it would be accomplished in six months.

Same with your staff. Ask them how long it would take for them to accomplish the task. They may say – 40 hours. You think that it can be done in eight. STATE THIS to them. Then, renegotiate again. They will probably say 32 hours this time. You may relax and think 16 hours. Agree to their number of 32 hours (NOTE: This would be done with a new employee.) Then, see how they spend their time and how long it took and, of course, how well it was done. You may be surprised – you may get something that you didn’t expect – i.e. a finished assignment that not only does the three things you asked for, but, another 20 items that you didn’t think about (wow, you just discovered an employee who can be a help to you and the company and not a hindrance). And, of course, you can also, in the future, set the boundaries for what you need, so that the time being negotiated is more in tune with what you expect, not what they expect.

Remember something, they also may not go about the task the same way you do.

I always have said to my employee’s – “Do the best you can in the time you have – AND – I want “Z”, (with “Z” being the definition of the finished task). How you get from A – Z is up to you. But, I want “Z” on the date or hour that you committed to.”

This gives them the freedom to do the task, at their pace, and, ON THEIR TIME. You will be surprised how many of your staffers will work at home, think about it on the train, work through lunches, etc. Because you empowered them to finish the task their way, not instilled a framework and set “rules” on how they must accomplish it.

One last point. And this relates back to my statement – if you assign a task, are you the type of “boss” that, if it can’t be accomplished (or isn’t), that you would prefer nothing compared to something that is 80% finished?

Do the BEST that you can, in the time that you have.

I would appreciate the 80% and also learn about the capabilities of my staffer.

There was an article in the Harvard Business Review about insubordination and entrepreneurship (in a company) and how it a fine line (or gray area).

As most of you know, I have had the pleasure of working for some great technology companies, all of them at the beginning of their life, all of them in “start-up” mode, and all of them incredibly successful (or quickly became).

Throughout my career, if you spoke to my previous supervisors (from directors, to CEO’s), I have been insubordinate – because I believed in my cause/case so strongly, that I strongly voiced (over and over) what I believed. I would figure that 90% of the time, I was correct (and they would agree to this also).

The basis was that we had and were working in an entrepreneurial atmosphere. Because of this, we had to act and work like entrepreneurs. Meaning, we had to think of unorthodox marketing strategies – not your basic Marketing 101 strategies and plans.

Because of this, I helped all of these companies be successful – because I worked and thought like an entrepreneur, bringing new and innovative thinking to their marketing plans. I didn’t invent a physical product - I don’t have that great of a mind – but, the same entrepreneurs that invented the product, needed the same thinking that went into the product, and innovative marketing approach.

What am I trying to say? Just that, if you are involved with an incredible product, that you KNOW will be hugely successful, and you have a strategy to bring the product to market that you KNOW will succeed, then, stand up for what you want, don’t “fold” easily. Don’t give in. Even when I was an Asst. Marketing Manager, I stood up and stated what I believed.  If it fell on deaf ears, then, I said it again, until it was heard. After I knew that it was heard, and they still said “no”, then, I backed off.

Stand up for what you believe in, even if it comes to that fine line of insubordination. I’m NOT saying to sabotage the product or company (come on – then you SHOULD be fired!!!), but, make sure that your voice is heard. There are so many people out there who have incredible marketing idea’s, and don’t speak up, or speak up once and don’t do it again. Don’t be shy – your product may succeed more then you can imagine if you speak up.

What kind of boat are you?

Years and years ago, at my first job, I came up with a theory (analogy) that I still use to this day – with CEO’s, CMO’s, and the like.

What kind of boat are you?

An oil tanker, that takes forever to stop and change direction (I usually use this when speaking with someone about the bureaucracy in the company).

Or a huge yacht, that can turn, faster then an oil tanker, but, still takes time to dock, etc. and you definitely don’t want to bang it up, scratch it, etc. (especially if this is a new brand).

Or, are you a speedboat, that can change direction quickly and meet the markets ever changing environment.

Start-ups are mostly speedboats.

Small to mid-size companies are usually speedboats or yachts (and some are already oil tankers).

And most large companies are oil tankers. 

Don’t get me wrong, in todays market, allot of large companies are trying to become yachts (and some even speedboats), but, there are many difficulties along the way – but, more power to them, these are the companies that are succeeding today – look at Ford vs. Toyota.

What kind of company are you? Are you always trying to make your company a speedboat?

In closing, one sure way to know if you are an oil tanker or not is count how many lawyers you have on staff (key point here – STAFF – hi-tech companies have many lawyers for patents, etc., but, usually, as an outside firm – I am speaking about lawyers that work for the company, in the company). If you have more then one lawyer per 100 employee’s, then, most likely you are an oil tanker.

There is a big difference between Customer Service and Customer Satisfaction.

One is “being there” to answer questions, take orders, and help, if they can. The other is a the same thing, but, the customer walks away from the “service” with satisfaction, or, “above and beyond” the call of duty.

Every company has some form of Customer Service – and it can be as small as a “contact us” page on a website, or as large as thousands of people throughout the world answering phone calls.

Do they satisfy us? It depends.  Do they help? Do they provide a solution? Customer Service plays by pretty much the same rules with any product. Each company has different “beliefs” on how much they want to “help” a customers, but, most companies play by the same rules – returns (do we take or not), shipping (do we pay or not), you name it, there is an answer to almost every question or issue that a customer brings.

Why all this rambling? Recently, a family member of mine went through a very stressful situation with the loss of her child.

A mom and dad went to a mall with their 2 year old son.  In that mall there was a Nordstroms, which they went to to do their shopping.

Gathering some clothes (for the dad), they both went to the dressing room with their 2 yr old.  Dad went in and started trying on clothes and the mom and child waited in front of the room.

Dad said “hey, can you get me xxx size in these same pants”, throwing over the pants to the mom.

Mom grabbed them and ran out to get the new pants.

Mom came back with the new pants, passed them over to dad, and asked “do you have 2 yr old?”

“No.”

Mom dropped to the ground and took a quick scan under all the dressing room doors, but, no sign of the 2 yr old.

Jumping up, Mom ran out into the department, yelling the 2 yr olds name (and of course, dropping to the ground and quickly looking around).

Seeing a store employee, Mom ran over and said “Hi, I have lost my child. He is 2 yrs old, his name is xxx, he is wearing xxx. Can you help me?”

“Absolutely”, he said, as Mom started to run down the aisles yelling and looking for her son.

Less then a minute after speaking with the store employee, Mom hears over the stores speakers “Attention shoppers, there is a lost 2 yr old child wearing xxx.  If you see him, please notify a store employee. Thank you.”

It was now 10 minutes and the 2 yr old still had not been found. Mom ran out into the mall, looking down the hallways.  Running back into Nordstrom’s, she noticed a man leaning against the wall at the entrance of Nordstroms.

Running down another aisle inside Nordstroms, Mom ran out into the mall from another entrance/exit of Nordstrom’s.

Looking up and down the hallway, Mom ran back into Nordstroms, again noticing a woman standing in the entrance.

Running over to her, Mom asked “Hi, are you with Nordstroms?”

“Yes I am”, said the lady from Nordstroms.

“You are here to catch the 2 yr old from leaving the store?” asked Mom.

“Yes we are, every exit is being covered”, the Nordtrom lady responded, understanding that she was speaking to the 2 yr olds mother.

Running back into the store, the mom – now RELIEVED knowing that the child was not going to get out of the store – heard over the stores speakers  ”Attention mother of the 2 yr old, your child has been found, please come to the jewelry section”.

Mom and son (and dad) hooked up and learned a lesson in life.

But, more importantly, Nordstroms gained customers for life. And, as usual, Mom told 10 people, and they told 10 people, and so on.

So, was this just good customer service, or did it go to the next level of customer satisfaction?

Yes, Nordstroms takes all returns with no questions asked (which made me a customer for life), but, they went above and beyond – making sure that a current customer has the best experience possible – in ALL regards, even in area’s that most customers don’t even think about.

This is what makes satisfied customers. Which keeps revenue and profits around, for a long time.

There is a reason that they use these words, Start and Up.  It’s the start of a new business, and they better only go up.  Can you imagine if they were called “Start-Downs”?

Xbrand has been involved with over a dozen start-ups – some a new division in a company, others funded by VC’s, and still others, spin-offs of a larger company.

It all comes down to two things:

Management – a leader who understands the market, knows the goal that has to be achieved, and leads through example.

Sacrifice – Employee’s and management who are willing to sacrifice almost anything to make the company succeed – and no, it is not just time, but, money (i.e. rewards to the employee’s), and recognition.

How many times have I seen a manager of a start-up come into the office, have a “cheer leading” meeting, and then leave to go on vacation – while the employee’s work until midnight every night. You can argue, yes, that the CEO raised the money and has the “stress” of having VC’s breathing over his shoulder.  But, those CEO’s, that do what has been described, rarely have a successful company.  It is those CEO’s that shoulder the VC burden (along with everything else) and be in the office as late as the last employee and there when the first employee arrives that will have a company where the employee’s will sacrifice anything to bring success to that company.

It is amazing how many times upper management does not communicate to their employee’s and expects them to “appreciate that they even have a job”.  Without the employee’s, there would be no company.

Having worked for many companies that were based overseas and also sold products in many parts of the world, we consistently encounter companies that think they know the various cultures and what is “best for them”.

One company we worked for wanted to “crack” the Middle East market and sell their goods their.  The problem was that they were Israeli – and since most (well, all) of the nations in the Middle East are Muslim, they was no way that they were going to be able to get their products sold there.

We came up with a simple solution – in fact, it required two solutions.  1) The company had to realize that ego played no part in business and they even though they had much pride in their success as a small Israeli company, they would have to forego that part of their brand (i.e. give up their ego). 2) They would need to “re-brand” and “repackage” their goods from another part of the world.  We re-branded the product so the perception was that it came from Australia. It cost very little money (compared with the millions of dollars they made from this market).

But, that is one extreme of cultural influence and how it affects the purchasing intent of customers.

Another example, one that Xbrand recently helped a law firm with, was internal to North America. The law firm, based on the East Coast of the U.S., dealt with many clients in the Mid-West as well as the North-West of the U.S.  People who were laid-back, relaxed, and totally honest with their questions and issues.  North Easterners (particularly those from New York and Boston) are used to being gruff, short, and pointed, but, in a way that is interpreted as rudeness.

After a one-week training course on the various aspects of the various regions of the U.S. and how to approach each region, the law firm was able to quickly lower the many complaints and issues that were brought up because of the personalities of their lawyers; thus, they were able to quickly get to the law cases that they were called in for and gain the perception that they were compassionate and understanding of the local area and not someone from the “East Coast who didn’t care about what happened on the West Coast”.

When you are approaching a new market, pay particular attention to the various culture and personalities of the people in that market – it cannot be ignored. 

If you are already in a market, do an internal check and see if your staff, employee’s, sales people, etc. understand the market (a perfect example is if a sales person on the East Coast calls on an account or customer on the West Coast).

A rule that we live by at Xbrand – never speak about 1) Religion, 2) Politics, and 3) current affairs in the local region. Of course, many times, this is brought up by your counterpart – answer the question(s) and move onto the more relevant subject at hand (the selling of your product).