$50,000

Every Tuesday at 7am, I post another chapter to the Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo. Click here to go there tomorrow.

In the meantime, here's the latest from last week:


In the "good old days" of advertising and marketing, a company would often develop a plan for the year and stick with it. That plan would include a budget for this, for that, and have expectations of growth base on doing better than last year, etc.

I still have companies that plan for things annually, which is smarter than not planning at all.

But if you don't allow for some wiggle room, you could be missing out.

Missing out on an opportunity that you were not aware of when you had your planning meeting 6 months ago.

And what happens when you say, "No, it's not in the budget"?

Someone else says, "Yes, I'll do it."

How does that add up when it is your competitor?

Here's the math:

Let's assign a value of $1000/per year to a new customer. Your numbers could be much, much higher. Let's also assume that the opportunity could have brought you 50 new customers.

You say no. That means you are saying no to inviting potential customers to spend money with you. Using the numbers above, you said no to $1000, 50 times or $50,000.

Well, you still have your original plan, so everything should be fine and dandy.

Try and ignore the fact you turned down an additional $50,000.

But that $50,000 has also been taken out of the marketplace that perhaps you were counting on in your original marketing plan.

Now instead of losing out on increasing by $50,000; you've lost $50,000 in business that you were counting on coming your way.

How rigid do you want to be?

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Breaking the Business Cycles

Here's the latest from the Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo. Tomorrow a new chapter will be available when you click here.


In my radio station life, we have ups and downs that are predictable, as far as advertising revenue is concerned.

Most businesses have cycles that are predictable but what it the reason for those ups and downs?

Is the pattern breakable?

Is it worth trying?

Granted, some businesses like the slow months, that's when they take 3 day weekends, or vacations, but what if you could increase the revenue during those slow times?

Restaurants are typically slower on Monday and Tuesday and pick up as they get closer to the weekends and paydays. Is there something different you can create that your customers and clients will pay you for during the slow times?

By the way, I believe the reason that advertising sales is slower in the 1st quarter is due to the activities of the advertising sales people, not the businesses we serve. We are often so busy in October and November taking care of the December rush, that our prospecting falls off and we start the new year from scratch.

This year for me is different than 2010. Yes there was a drop in January, but it only took 3 weeks instead of 9 to be back up to speed.

Your thoughts are always welcome..

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It takes A System

And does your system work for you?

From The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo:


Each of us has a system for doing the things we do. These systems include your morning wake up routine and the various systems we have in place for our work activities.

If the systems and routines we are using in our personal life need tweaking, we often do so without much thought. Setting the alarm 5 minutes earlier, driving a different way to work, all pretty simple.

But what I see a lot of resistance to is changing work related systems.

The bigger the company, the more resistance is pretty common. Too many people involved including the "nay-sayers" who say no to everything; the "Don't fix it until it's broken" group who still use AOL; and the other extremes... the ones who want to throw everything out that we are doing and start from scratch, and those that always want to "wing it".

Each of us are responsible for our own systems, if you work for a big company, and you find a way that conforms to their standards, but also helps you to do your job better, Go For It!

The past few years I have set up a few systems and am in the process of setting up even more in the social media world that I live part of my life in.

When I was the V-P of Communication for the Fort Wayne Advertising Federation, I would create an email that was sent to members and interested parties. I had a couple of templates that I would customize for each month, and then modify slightly as we got closer to the event we were inviting people to attend. The email service provider allowed us to both personalize the invites and schedule when the invites were being delivered.

I post between 35 and 50 blog posts a week. This blog you are reading is updated at least once a week on Tuesdays. Three other blogs get a total of 6 to 7 updates a day! And there is only one way to accomplish this, and that is with a system.

My System is a form of automation. But it requires a personal, hands on touch too.

I can write posts and schedule them to appear online in the future. Currently I have some scheduled for February 2012, which would be really freaky if something tragic were to happen and I met an early demise before they all post!

I usually have between 20 and 120 blog posts scheduled and they will automatically appear online when I have scheduled them.

I could set up an auto-Tweet or auto-post-to-Facebook, or auto-post-to-LinkedIn.

But I don't want those automated. Instead I want those to be personalized for each of those services, to promote the blog postings in a more conversational manner. And do to the fact that I'm not online when every new post appears on my blog, I may promote it a few hours after it is published.

I urge you to automate when you can, but beware of being too impersonal.

I also urge you to review what works, and what doesn't. You may be too close to your own situation and need someone without an insiders knowledge to challenge your thinking and challenge the status quo.

Are you ready for that?

If you are in the Fort Wayne Indiana area, contact me. If you are outside the area, I have contacts that I recommend. My email is Scott @ ScLoHo.net

Another update on The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo Tuesday at 7am here.

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What Kind of Mail Marketing works Best?

Pat Mcgraw has some answers:

The Death of Direct Mail

Posted: 03 Dec 2010 06:00 AM PST

The list broker immediately began talking about email lists, so I had to ask about direct mail.

“You know, most of my clients aren’t doing direct mail anymore,” replied the list broker.

“They have found out that direct mail doesn’t work – it’s email that’s delivering the results they need.”

Now, I have been a direct marketer for 3 decades and I have heard about the ‘Death of Direct Mail’ from too many over the years. And typically the reason for the poor performance can be traced back to direct mail 101 – the list, the message, the offer, the timing…

So, if you’re one of those folks that isn’t happy with the results of your direct mail, here are a couple of resources that might be of value.

• 4 Keys to Successful Direct Mail to the C-Suite
• 11 Steps to More Effective Direct Mail

If you are looking for some great blogs that offer incredibly valuable tips and practical recommendations, check out Direct Creative Blog.

And if you’re one of those that believe that more email means better results, check out this post and this post.

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Are you Daring Enough?

from Drew:

Sometimes the toughest sell is inside

by Drew McLellan

A huge number of brilliant marketing ideas never get exposed to the light of day. Why? It's usually not budget or audience apathy. It's internal fear.

Let's face it, there are a lot of frightened senior managers out there. Afraid to be different. Afraid to actually take a stand. Afraid to differentiate and potentially lose a sale. Afraid to make a bold decision.

Afraid of owning and celebrating their brand.

The result? A whole lot of sameness. Much like teenagers who would die rather than stand out, these decision makers block any attempts to do something unique enough to capture our attention or our hearts.

Which is why I loved listening to Ogilvy & Mather's Chairman Shelly Lazarus (at The Conference Board's Senior Marketing Executive Conference) tell the story of how Dove's True Beauty campaign got the green light.

Watch the spot (first released during the Super Bowl of all places!) and then I'll relate the story to you.

Internally, the Dove marketing team knew this campaign had the potential to be so much more than a marketing campaign. It was about embracing and owning their brand. It was recognizing that they had the culture and the responsibility to address the issue of self esteem among girls. (Much like Dawn did during the oil spill)

But, they knew it would be a tough sell internally. They believed in their idea enough to take a risk. (Maybe that's the litmus test?)

They scheduled the meeting with their senior management to pitch the new TV spot (and the new direction for their brand) and then they did a sneaky thing. A few days before the big meeting, they grabbed a video camera and interviewed the daughters of the men who would later be sitting around the conference room table.

The spot you just watched actually contains some of the sentiments that those daughters uttered. Imagine sitting back, ready to critique a TV spot and seeing your 8-year old daughter say she hates her freckles or that she thinks she's fat. Suddenly you are a father and the issue of self esteem and body image among girls is very, very real. And very personal.

And the rest is history. The campaign has been brilliantly executed, Dove products have enjoyed a spike in sales and research/workshops like the Self-Esteem Report exist because of the Dove Self Esteem Fund.

All because someone had the courage to fight for an idea they believed in. Next time you grumble about a client or boss who squashed a good idea, ask yourself how much fight you put into the battle.

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Stop & Focus

I know, I know... it's one of the busiest times of the year, right between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

But you and I need to do this.

From Marketing Profs:

Protect Profitability: Start Each Day With a Mission Statement

"Many business owners have dutifully written their vision and mission statements, working hard to craft statements with impact and importance," writes Marla Tabaka at Inc. "But what happens to those statements?"

All too often, they're shuffled out of sight—and out of mind. In Tabaka's experience, many clients can't articulate a mission statement; often, they've simply forgotten what they wrote in the first place.

So how can you regain—and maintain—a laser-sharp focus on your company's raison d'être? Tabaka recommends this three-step process:

Define your true and full vision. Almost everyone starts a business with the purpose of turning a profit, but you might have additional humanitarian or environmental goals. "Certainly this isn't true for everyone," she notes, "but don't negate the importance of your higher purpose if you have one."

Use imagery to communicate the big picture. Sometimes a written statement isn't enough. Tabaka suggests the creation of a poster board that keeps your mission front-and-center with drawings, photos or collages. "Too often the rewards connected to our goals get lost in the passion and dream of carrying out our mission," she notes. "Give yourself permission to include meaningful symbols of the rewards you seek; money, travel, fame, respect, or whatever is important to you."

Make your vision a daily reality. Take a few minutes each morning to ponder your visual mission statement. "Still your mind and gaze at your images, allowing your body and mind to feel and live your success," she advises.

The Po!nt: Focus. To achieve your goals—especially in tumultuous economic times—stay true to your purpose by keeping it at the front of your mind.

Source: Inc.

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The New Normal in Car Sales

There's a young man named Brian who works at one of the most recognized car dealerships in Northeast Indiana, as the General Sales Manager.

Over the past 9 months, I've learned a lot from Brian about changes in his business. His dealership has lost inventory, because G.M. scaled back the number of brands they carry.

Gone is Saturn. Gone is Hummer. Gone is Pontiac.

What's left? Cadillac, Buick, and GMC Trucks.

And three empty buildings.

Brian has learned how to manage, though. He was recently promoted to GSM for the used cars along with his other duties.

There's a lesson for all of us. Our old ways of doing business are changing, and often those changes are beyond our control.

How we adapt however, IS in our control.

Check out this story about the auto business and perhaps you'll get some ideas on what you can do in your business:

Life At 11 Million U.S. Transactions

What To Do When You Lose 6 Million Sales? Shake Things Up, Top To Bottom

So how does the car business cope with the loss of nearly 6 million annual sales in the space of three years? It reinvents itself -- top to bottom.

Look around and you see a different auto industry taking shape -- a "transformational moment," says AutoNation Inc. CEO Mike Jackson.

Why are companies that struggled in 16 million sales years doing just fine in a market of 11 million? Because discipline is breaking out all over -- at manufacturers, suppliers and dealerships. A pragmatic, tightly controlled approach has evolved from the recession, and the changes touch almost everything.

Incentives are smaller, simpler and more tactical. No-haggle and limited-negotiation pricing are getting a real tryout across the country. And inventories are lean and balanced.

Here's how that's playing out in the showroom:

Pete DeLongchamps, head of manufacturer relations at retailer Group 1 Automotive, tells of a neighbor who said he planned to stop by his dealership, trade in his 140,000-mile Chevrolet Suburban SUV and drive out in a new one.

DeLongchamps gently explained the new reality: "The factory's working 10-hour shifts," he told his neighbor. "You can't get Suburbans."

So the guy ordered one with exactly the equipment he wanted and drove his old Suburban for eight weeks until delivery.

"Instead of walking the lot, we sit with our customers, talk about their needs, place orders and take deposits," DeLongchamps says.

That anecdote illustrates how the "push" system of building and selling vehicles is fading. Automakers are closely matching production to sales -- a dramatic change for the Detroit 3.

That means U.S. inventories are hovering near record lows -- 2.1 million cars and trucks on July 1, half of the 4.2 million that were in stock on July 1, 2004.

General Motors Co. -- which used to run its factories at any cost, trying to create demand with hefty incentives and high, low-profit fleet sales -- now is underproducing hot models. On July 1, Chevrolet had just a 22-day supply of the Equinox crossover, a 31-day supply of the Traverse crossover and a 37-day supply of the Suburban -- all well below the pre-crisis norm of 60 days.

GM wants dealers to operate with much lower inventories and turn their stock faster. But one executive says many are having trouble adjusting to the new paradigm and regularly scream for more inventory. The exceptions, he says, tend to be dealers who also have Toyota franchises and understand how to function with fewer vehicles on the lot.

Dennis Egglefield, owner of Egglefield Bros. Ford in Elizabethtown, N.Y., says he is forced to live with lower inventory.

That means he risks not getting Mustangs in time for his spring-summer season or four-wheel-drives before the snow flies. To compensate, the dealership is encouraging regular customers to order in advance and also is trading vehicles more often with surrounding dealerships.

"Our floorplan is down," he says, "not from necessity but because we can't get the merchandise. We do a lot more dealer swaps than we used to."

For manufacturers, leaner inventories mean lower incentives. Average June incentives were down more than $300 from the industry's peak of $3,165 per vehicle in March 2009, Edmunds.com says.

"There is no faster way to profitability than to cut incentives," says Dave Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research.

Structural change
Carmakers -- and not just Chapter 11 survivors GM and Chrysler Group -- have taken advantage of the crisis to fix structural problems.

Toyota, for example, had too many factories below capacity in 2008. This year it has closed NUMMI in California, consolidated Tundra pickup production in San Antonio and revamped plans at its new Tupelo, Miss., plant. Instead of the Prius hybrid, Toyota will make the high-volume Corolla in Mississippi.

Supplier relationships are changing, too. All three Detroit 3 purchasing bosses -- recognizing the difficulty of getting by without the technology and expertise of key partners -- have vowed to collaborate more closely with suppliers.

For instance, Chrysler this summer began offering more formal protections to suppliers. Previously, says purchasing boss Dan Knott, "I could pull the trigger at the last minute" and drop a supplier because "I didn't like the way you look."

Conversely, some old loyalties are crumbling. Auto advertising was once known for its stability, but a few of the oldest ties between carmakers and agencies -- Campbell-Ewald and Chevrolet, for example -- were severed this year as automakers struggle to re-establish brands and shake off tired stereotypes.

Dealers' new approach
Nowhere is the change more profound than at dealerships. Dealers have slashed costs in every corner of their stores to focus on the bottom line. Because of those cuts, many say they'll be profitable this year no matter what.

The combination of lower sales and shrinking margins has led dealers to experiment with new ways of paying salespeople. The traditional straight commission of 20 percent of gross profit has so squeezed salespeople that dealers fear a wave of departures.

A common switch: Pay a base salary plus commission.

With finance and insurance revenue falling as a result of lower sales, some dealers have cut dedicated F&I staff and let salespeople share some F&I commissions.

Some dealers are pushing their service departments to compete with repair chains such as Jiffy Lube. And they are tinkering with new pricing models, testing variations of no-haggle selling. By the middle of this decade, AutoNation plans to have all of its 200-plus stores using low everyday prices and limited negotiations.

Smarter suppliers
Suppliers that happily used to accept jobs with razor-thin margins just to keep their factories running are concentrating on contracts that are sure winners.

"You can't just launch 10 different car platforms (and have) four of them be winners and six of them losers," says BorgWarner CEO Tim Manganello. "That's a recipe for disaster. You need nine out of 10 winners."

Behr America CEO Heinz Otto says suppliers are chasing margins above 5 percent of sales. In the past they were OK with 2 or 3 percent, he says.

There's a dark side to the new emphasis on the bottom line: Many suppliers are moving engineering jobs out of the United States.

"You always have to look at your engineering structure -- and how possible is it to use engineering resources that are offshore," says James Rosseau, CEO of Magneti Marelli USA. "We offshore certain administration functions to reduce costs. I don't think we'll revert. The support functions, I believe, are gone."

With their lower breakevens, parts makers are poised for strong profits at today's volumes of 11 million to 12 million units annually.

That could be critical. Rebecca Lindland, head of auto research for the Americas at IHS Automotive, says current low sales are not building future demand but instead are working off the excess supply of the past.

"There's very little pent-up demand," she says.

Permanent? Or just a blip?
Are these changes permanent, or will they disappear with the first sign that things are back to "normal"?

It's a crucial question, since analysts say the industry's long-term health rests on continued discipline.

"We have a greater opportunity to make change that's permanent," says Jeff Schuster, head auto forecaster for J.D. Power and Associates.

"But as the sun comes out, it's easy to let go of some things you have learned."

(Source: Automotive News, 08/02/10)

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Outrage

In Fort Wayne, we recently had a conference designed to create a community growth vision for the next 10 years.

I was unable to attend in person but was able to follow along on Twitter as they used the hash tag #BeOutrageous.

Terms such as Outrage, Outrageous, or even Out-Of-The Box are used to describe things that are not normal.

Harvey Mackay wrote about this a couple days ago:

Harvey Mackay's Column This Week

Outrageous advertising for outrageous results

By Harvey Mackay

"Outrageous" is rarely a way we'd like to be described. It implies that we are way over the top, attention-seeking, bold, wild, defying convention, and a few other descriptions that we might prefer not to be called.

Apply that term to your advertising, however, and what you have is an over-the-top, attention-grabbing, bold, wild, unconventional message that people notice -- and that gets results!

Bill Glazer, one of the most sought-after marketing strategists in the world -- clients routinely pay more than $25,000 -- is offering his outrageously successful system in a new book, "Outrageous Advertising That's Outrageously Successful" for a tiny fraction of his usual fee. It's one of the best bargains of the year.

Bill wrote this book for the "99 percent of small business owners who are dissatisfied with the results they get from their current advertising." He summarizes his system in six points:

1. Outrageous works. Why it does is irrelevant. It does.
2. Outrageous works in any media for any product.
3. People are bored and overwhelmed and want to be amused.
4. People love outrageous advertising.
5. Always be on the lookout for the next outrageous idea.
6. Discover that outrageous advertising is the number one most fun thing you'll do in your career.

Building on these ideas, he has built a system that works on ads in a wide variety of media, including websites, email, newspapers and magazines, yellow pages, business cards, signs, voicemail, trade shop marketing, help wanted and direct mail. He offers hundreds of examples as well as resources for even more ideas.

Bill has a very distinctive business card that I'm guessing few people file away and never look at again. It looks like a folded hundred-dollar bill on one side. The card folds out to reveal six quick selling points about what he offers. Even if the recipient never uses Bill's services, that card gets shown over and over again because it is so novel. Perhaps one of the people who see it will require Bill's services. Sure, it's outrageous, but it works!

Where do these outrageous ideas come from? It all starts with a headline, no matter what the medium, he says. Print ad headlines are obvious. In radio, the headline is the very first thing you hear. Bill warns not to jump at the first headline you think of: "When writing a marketing piece, I will never write less than ten headlines. I have written as many as 100 headlines before I have chosen one I wanted to use."

Bill says whenever he is stumped on an idea or just to get his brain working, "I look at a list of 350 of the best headlines ever written. These are great to turn into templates and create your own ideas. They serve as an Outrageous shortcut." So convinced of this inspiration, he includes 100 of his favorite headlines to get the reader started.

In addition to a killer headline, the ad also must contain an offer and a deadline. Bill's examples are clear, easy to follow and plentiful. He covers the importance of photos and illustrations, graphics and testimonials, which he says are "at least ten times more believable than what you say about yourself."

I was already pretty convinced that Bill knew what he was doing when I read his views on envelopes -- and how outrageous mail advertising starts with the outside of the envelope. The man must have been reading my mind! Everyone gets mail, he reminds us, and unusual-looking mail gets noticed.

In addition to all the good advice and outside resources to study, there's even a list of holidays (like National Hat Day) to connect your advertising to. National Hat Day? That is pretty outrageous. But if it helps you sell your product, would you still think it outrageous?

Bill describes his system this way:

• More outrageous gets more attention.
• Know your audience; don't be offensive but never be boring.
• You can advertise really outrageously in some really outrageous places.
• You can be really outrageous without spending a lot of money by identifying opportunities you already have such as an on-hold message, vehicles, signs, etc.
• You can be really outrageous by using the senses of hearing, seeing, feeling and even smelling.

Mackay's Moral: If you want outrageous results, you need to try outrageous advertising.

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Foolin' Yourself

Be careful that you don't get too distracted by things that don't really matter. Words of wisdom from Seth Godin:

The distraction, the tail and the dog

Your business has a core, a goal, a challenge and a deliverable. There is probably one thing that would transform your project, one success that changes things, one hurdle that's tougher than the others. What's difficult, what would respond to overwhelming attention? That's the core.

Getting from here to there involves making sales, delivering on promises, overcoming the Dip and shipping.

Along the way, there are supporting tasks you can engage in, things you can do to make the goal easier to achieve.

A popular blog might gain attention and then trust and ultimately help you sell more widgets.

A lot of followers online might give you permission to tell a story that gets you better employees.

A vibrant party at SXSW can create buzz that gives your salespeople entree to important meetings.

These aren't trivial activities. In fact, they're part of what marketing means today. But...

But if they give you and your team an outlet to avoid the difficult work of achieving your goal ("I can't go to that sales call, I'm busy uploading pictures of last night's party to the blog and then tweeting out the url") then you're not building, you're hiding. Rich calls this playing with turtles. The thing is, the turtles are alive, and they're going to demand a lot from you.

There's a huge downside here: once your side activity gets going, it will lead to crises (we have an urgent email we have to answer), to feelings of abandonment (hey, you haven't been on the forum lately!), to irresistible offers to have the CEO speak or get people involved. There will always be a feeling of sunk cost, of opportunities missed and of things on the verge because these are human movements, not paid ads.

Two choices: 1. find a way to make your goal completely aligned with the tactics you use to achieve it. What's good for your blog is good for your business. or 2. Now that these approaches are working, and working incredibly well, it's time to come up with boundaries so the tail doesn't end up wagging the dog.

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Words or Actions

There are too many cliches in the advertising we see and hear. Please do yourself and your business a favor and follow this advice from the THINKing blog:

We Care. No, Really!

Listening to the radio today I heard an ad that actually said “because we care.” That was their brand promise. I hear or see lame marketing statements like this too often.

Truth is that company on the radio does not care. If it really cared, they’d spend enough time thinking about why people should do business with them and then develop a brand promise around that.

You can tell me that you care until the cows come home and I won’t believe you. It’s empty chest-thumping. But I know caring when I see it. If you and your people demonstrate to me that they care, then I’ll spread the message for you and it will become part of your brand promise.

Take the time to do the research, define your audience, hone your message and then develop relevant, impactful and original advertising and marketing programs to spread the word. Otherwise, it is clear to all that you just don’t care.

What do you think?

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Who Benefits from Tax Refund Checks?

As I checked with various members of my family, I noticed a pattern for those who file their own taxes and were getting refunds; we filed early.

Gotta pay? We filed last week, April 15th. I did both and used money from the Feds to pay my state taxes.

According to this report from Mediapost, here's what we are doing with our checks this year:

A Bird In The Hand

According to a new Bankrate.com poll by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, recession-weary taxpayers awaiting a tax refund check from Uncle Sam will not indulge in unbridled consumer spending this year. Instead, 84% of Americans receiving refunds intend to pay down debt, save or invest their windfall or use it for everyday necessities.

Plans For Refund
Plan	% of Respondents
Pay down debt	30%
Save of invest	28
Spend on necessities	26
Splurge on vacation or shopping spree	7
Something else/don't know	9
Source: Bankrate, April 2010

Bryan Pukoff, CPA and principal at Rehmann, says "... there is still a lot of uncertainty out there... different than what we have seen in the past... people generally... spend it on something for themselves... the percentages surprise me... "

On the other hand, 40% of those who believe they owe taxes say they are not prepared to pay up. Nevertheless, only 6% plan to borrow money, though 17% say they intend to set up an installment plan with the IRS. 63% of respondents will pay their taxes with funds straight from their bank accounts.

Tax Day Expectations
Expectation	% of Respondents
Expect to receive a tax refund	46%
Have to pay additional taxes	22
Don't expect a refund; don't have to pay	12
Already received refund	9
Don't know/no response	9
Source: Bankrate, April 2010

Greg McBride, Bankrate.com's senior financial analyst, points out that regardless of economic conditions, putting the money directly into an IRA would be a smart move from a financial planning point of view.

"... the Employee Benefit Research Institute showed that 54% of Americans have less than $25,000 saved for retirement. The tax refund is the biggest windfall people are going to get all year," McBride says.

The vast majority of Americans, 88%, will receive their refunds via check or direct deposit from the U.S. Treasury. 3% of respondents plan to have their refund deposited into multiple accounts, including an IRA. 3% of those getting a refund took a refund anticipation loan. For people with incomes under $30,000, that number jumps to 6%.

For additional information, please visit Bankrate here.

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Buy this Book or

... NO ANIMALS WERE HURT IN THE CREATION OF THIS BLOG.

Despite the magazine cover...

I've been meaning to do a review of Seth Godin's latest book, but...

I have not yet finished reading it.

I'll read a few pages and then I have to stop and reflect.

I even received an advance copy 2 weeks before it was available to the public.

I recommended it to a class of college students after reading the first 15 pages.

This is an important book for you and those around you.

But I don't want you to wait for me to finish reading it before you start reading it...

So:





Earlier this week, I found this in my email from the Church of the Customer Blog:

Why it's important to be a linchpin and an artist

Posted: 07 Jan 2010 02:11 PM PST

If you want to succeed in today's world of work, author Seth Godin says you should focus on being a "linchpin." That's the title of his new book, so we asked him a few questions about it.

Q: What is a linchpin, and why is it important to become one?

A linchpin is the part you can't live without, the thing that makes a difference. In every organization there are one (or several) people like this. It might be the brilliant inventor who creates the impossible, but it's far more likely to be the great sales rep or customer service person who makes a connection, or the marketer who knows how to tell a story that resonates.

In a post-factory world, manning the assembly line isn't so critical. Stuffing the candies into the boxes, running the punch press, following the manual... these are easily replaced roles, ones where neither the worker nor the organization gains much on the margin. If you want real job satisfaction and security, then, you need to figure out how to do the unexpected, to do work that matters and to create human interactions.

Q: You talk about linchpins being artists. What's the difference between a conventional marketer and one who thinks like an artist? Can you give an example of a marketer who is an artist?

Art, by my definition, has nothing to do with painting and everything to do with connecting with people in a generous way and causing a change to take place. A movie director is making art when she makes you cry. A product designer creates art when the UI is better than it needs to be and it creates efficiency or even joy. Marketers can find plenty of Dummies books and manuals and insider PDFs that demonstrate, step by step, how to follow the rules. That's easy and not particularly valuable. A marketer becomes an artist when she goes out on a limb, does the unexpected or the risky and makes a difference.

I'd argue that you two do art when you stand up and give a talk about the 1%. Or Biz Stone was an artist when he figured out how to launch and scale Twitter's marketing. Or Scott Monty at Ford when he does a car show rollout that bypasses the cocktail parties at AutoWeek in favor of individual interviews with social media mavens. The second time someone does something, it's a copy. The first time, it's art.

Q: We understand the concept of "physical labor" when it comes to work, but you stress the importance of "emotional labor." What do you mean by that, and can you give us an example?

I don't know about you, but I haven't gotten paid to do physical labor in a really long time. Maybe typing.

Emotional labor is the act of smiling when you're scared, or getting on a plane when you're tired. It's dreaming when you don't feel like dreaming, caring when the other person is (frankly) acting like a jerk. Emotional labor is work with your heart and your soul and your feelings. We seem to feel it should be easy, but it's not. It is, though, important.

Q: We love this quote in the book: "The easier it is to quantify, the less it's worth." Can you tell us, and our MBA friends, why this is true?

If you can quantify it, then probably someone before you figured out a why to grind it out. And if you can grind it out, someone can grind it out cheaper than you can.

On the other hand, the really valuable stuff, the stuff we pay a lot for, is unquantified. Things like creating joy or security or happiness. No easy measurements for those, thus they are art, and art is always worth more than the predicted.

We measure the quantified because we can. But we should create the unquantified because it's so rare.

Q: Our lizard brain tells us to "Shut up. Don't stand out. Don't speak out. Blend in." If we want to be a linchpin, how do we silence this negative part of our brain?

Steve Pressfield calls this the resistance. The voice in your head that destroys your art. There are a myriad of ways to defeat it. You can distract it. You can trick it. You can steamroll it. You can seduce it with small steps. I'm not sure there's one best technique, but I know for certain that it must be done. My book has only one goal: to sell you on committing to this very task.

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Did The Ads Work?

Tonight and tomorrow, all the gifts will be opened that were purchased for Christmas. Traditionally, it is a time of heavy advertising, but look at this survey from AdAge:

In Holiday Retail Sales, the Best Ad Doesn't Always Win

New Survey Says Favorite TV Campaigns Have Limited Influence on Consumer Spending

By Natalie Zmuda

Published: December 15, 2009

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Retailers shell out big bucks on holiday ads. And while consumers like them, that doesn't mean they're influenced by them. A new survey has found that half of consumers say they're not inspired to shop at the retailer whose holiday TV commercial or online promotion they liked best.

TOP TEN MEDIA INFLUENCERS
Coupons	45%
Word-of-mouth	27%
Advertising inserts	27%
Broadcast TV	23%
Newspaper	22%
Direct mail	21%
In-store promotion	18%
E-mail advertising	16%
Cable TV	12%
Magazines	11%
Internet advertising	11%
Radio	10%
Source: Retail Advertising and Marketing Association

"It goes along with the old adage that I know half my marketing dollars are wasted, I just don't know what half," said Mike Gatti, executive director at the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association survey, which was conducted by Big Research. "[Consumers] probably still get a kick out of the commercials, but there are a lot of brand loyalties out there. ... [But it] does position [retailers] in the minds of people whether they shop there or not."

When asked to choose their favorite holiday TV commercial, 26% of consumers chose one from Walmart, upsetting Target's holiday-ad dominance. Target had taken the top slot on the survey for the past three years, but this year it only garnered 16% of the vote. Perhaps that's not surprising, considering that consumers took to Facebook to complain about one commercial that seemed to cast doubt on the existence of Santa Claus and another that put a damper on Christmas morning with talk of finances.

The Martin Agency is Walmart's creative shop, while Wieden & Kennedy handled Target's holiday ads. Crispin Porter & Bogusky had the best showing of any agency, as it works with three of the retailers found on the Top 10 list: Best Buy, Gap and Old Navy.

Still, only 17% of consumers said their favorite ad motivated them to shop at a particular retailer, while 50% said it did not. One-third of consumers said their favorite ad didn't have an impact, because they already shop at that retailer.

Walmart again took top billing online, with 20% of consumers saying it had the best online holiday promotion. Amazon came in a close second, with 18% of the vote.

Again, half of consumers said the promotions didn't influence their shopping, while 22% said the promotion they deemed best caused them to shop at that retailer. About 28% of consumers said they weren't affected, because they regularly shop at a particular retailer.

When it came to what does influence holiday shoppers, coupons emerged as the most influential, with 45% of consumers citing them. Word of mouth and advertising inserts influence 27% of consumers, while broadcast TV and newspapers influence 23% and 22% of shoppers, respectively.

"Shoppers aren't only relying on traditional advertising to find the best deals," said Phil Rist, exec VP-strategic initiatives at Big Research. "Whether they were saving on shipping or using an in-store coupon, shoppers dug through every avenue of potential savings before choosing to commit."

Top ten holiday commercials
RETAILER	AGENCY
Walmart	Martin Agency
Target	Wieden & Kennedy
Best Buy	Crispin Porter & Bogusky
Gap	Crispin Porter & Bogusky
Macy's	JWT
Old Navy	Crispin Porter & Bogusky
Kmart	DraftFCB
Sears	Y&R
Hallmark	Leo Burnett
Kohl's	McCann Erickson
Source: Retail Advertising and Marketing Association

Direct mail, radio and outdoor billboards were all deemed more influential this holiday season, while newspapers, advertising inserts, broadcast TV, word of mouth and in-store promotions were less influential with shoppers.

"There's so much more out there to decide from," said Mr. Gatti, explaining why more areas fell in influence than gained. "This could also be due to the shift over the last year away from some traditional media into a lot of the new media."

In terms of the rise in direct mail's influence, Mr. Gatti suggested that retailers could be doing a better job of targeting consumers or they could be offering attractive pricing incentives and promotions through direct mail.

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Guts, Nerve, Conviction

As I was reading this post from Drew, I thought of what words to describe it and came up with the three I mentioned above.

Read more and click on the links, unless you want to stay mediocre:

To find your nerve, find your core

Posted: 20 Oct 2009 02:54 AM PDT

A few months ago, I received an intriguing e-mail from a guy named Steve McKee. He had an idea.

He wanted to build "a website dedicated to supporting the community of corporate professionals who want to move beyond the economic morass and return their companies to the growth path. This grass roots effort is intended to help jump start corporations and, therefore, the economy."

Each day of the 4th quarter, they would have a different guest author address the issue of how do you get back your nerve and get back to some semblance of business as usual. As you know, I've been rallying against the paralysis caused by the recession (here, here and here) for quite some time so I jumped at the opportunity.

My contribution went live today and I'd like to:

• Share it with you
• Get your feedback
• Ask you to share it with others

Here's how I started....

When the recession hit, many companies lost their nerve. They began to second-guess their own decisions. They compromised on what they believed was right because right was too expensive. They chased after business that wasn't really a good fit — because any business was better than the potential of no business.

And they lost their way. A side effect of being lost is being scared. Sometimes being scared leads to being paralyzed. In my opinion, that's why this recession got so bad.

We got scared and we got stuck.

It's time for us to find our nerve and get ourselves out of this recession. I highly doubt there's going to be a bailout for any of us.

So how do we break loose from our fear and get some nerve? We get back to our core.

Please check out the FindYourNerve.com site to read the rest.

While you're there, check out the rest of the site. There are polls, plenty of blog posts from some very smart folks, and some eye opening facts about the recession and advertising/marketing.

Also note that this is a very savvy effort on Steve's part to promote and sell his new book, When Growth Stalls. Rally the troops around something they're passionate about and they'll do whatever it takes to get the word out. And sell some books along the way.

The site is well done, Steve's intentions are honorable and I encourage you to check out the guest posts.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.com

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How Long Until it Works?

Good stuff from the Marketing Minute:

How long will it take to get marketing results?

Posted: 16 Sep 2009 06:41 PM PDT

We get asked this question all the time. Prospects and clients alike want to know when they can expect to see results from their marketing efforts. Ah, if only it were that cut and dried.

There are many factors that influence reaction time to a marketing tactic. Let’s take a look at a few of them and you’ll begin to see that this is not an exact science but there are things you can do to impact your effectiveness.

How often do people need/want it? If you run a restaurant or sell ice cream – you’re in luck. Mail a coupon on Tuesday and you might see the family, coupon in hand, by Saturday. But on average, someone buys a car every 3-5 years. Own a car dealership and you might wait 18+ months after your first ad or tweet to see that person in your door.

Who the heck are you? Does the consumer recognize your brand? Do they know what you are all about? Do they know what makes you different from your competitors?

Who else is talking? Just like at a party, if you are the only voice talking, it’s a lot easier to be heard. But, if you are one of many and others are talking louder and faster – you can easily get lost in the din.

Where are you talking? What would happen if you stood up right in the middle of a church service and started talking? You’d get noticed, wouldn’t you? That’s because you are doing something unexpected in an unexpected place.

What are you saying? The most important factor of all. Are you talking about what the consumer cares about or are you talking about you?

How are you poised to influence any or all of these factors?

(If you want to read a really smart book on the topic of consumers and their own sense of timing, check out Stopwatch Marketing by John Rosen.)

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Who's spending $$

From MarketingCharts.com. Click on the charts to make them BIGGER:

Amex: Young Professionals Most Optimistic About Economy

A majority of US consumers are likely to maintain or increase current spending levels - especially on basics - in the next 30 days, while young professionals and the affluent will up their spending in a broader number of discretionary categories, according to results from the newly introduced American Express Spending and Saving Tracker (pdf) study.

The survey, which asked consumers to compare spending priorities now vs. a year ago, revealed that 60% of overall respondents are willing to spend the same or more in the next 30 days (compared with the past 30 days), while 40% plan to spend less. However, the general population is increasingly willing to spend more on essentials such as groceries and car maintenance, while young professionals and the affluent also put a high priority on non-essentials such as travel and dining out.

Young Professionals, Affluents Open Wallets Wider

Young professionals are most optimistic about the current state of the economy and most likely to increase spending during the next 30 days, with 24% indicating they will do so, writes Retailer Daily. Those who plan to spend more intend to increase spending on clothing (65%), dining out (54%) and travel (53%).

Similarly, 14% of the affluent plan to increase spending during the next 30 days, compared with 10% of the general population, Amex said. The affluent who expect to spend more say their increased spending will be on travel (56%), dining out (47%) and clothing (43%).

General Population Focuses Mostly on Needs

Among the general population, about one-half of consumers who expect to spend more said they are putting priority on groceries and clothes (49% each).

Additional findings:

• Of the general population, 42% named car maintenance as a high priority this year, compared with 5% last year.
• Interestingly, one luxury expense, salon hairstyling and grooming (as opposed to a more basic haircut), was a high priority for 46% of the general population this year, compared with 18% last year.

• Among the general population, the greatest number of consumers said their top priority expenses one year ago were vacations (25%) and dining out (24%). Today, only 7% named vacations as a high priority and dining was named as a high priority for only 8%.
• Pet care, sports activities and home cleaning are also areas consumers said they are putting less spending priority on this year:

• Health and home expenses - such as buying organic food and home maintenance - are on the rise even as consumers trade down or out on other items.

Young Professionals Make Large Purchases

Young professionals are most willing to make large purchases of more than $500, with 38% saying they plan a large purchase in the next 30 days, compared with 24% of the affluent and 15% of the general population.

Young professionals also plan to spend more on large purchases ($2,460) than the affluent ($2,170), the study revealed.

Holidays Won’t Come Early

Consumers also appear to be showing restraint when it comes to early holiday shopping. When asked what discount level would motivate them to begin their holiday shopping at retail stores in the next 30 days, the overwhelming majority (69%) say they would not be motivated by a department store discount. Of that group, 44% feel it is too early to start holiday shopping, including 52% of affluent and 48% of young professionals.

From Spenders to Savers

Mirroring the fact that US personal savings rates have moved from negative territory to 4% in July, the survey found that consumers’ intend to strengthen their household balance sheet. When asked what they would do with $500 of found money, one-third of consumers said they would pay off their regular monthly bills. One-in-four said they would apply it to pay off credit card debt or save it (26% each).

When comparing responses of the affluent with the young professionals:

• 33% of young professionals would put found money toward their credit card debt, compared with 26% of the affluent.
• More young professionals than affluents would use the money to go on a shopping spree (16% vs. 6%).

Among the 40% of respondents who said they would spend less in the next 30 days, the top three reasons were “trying to save money,” “reducing debt,” and that they “have the money but feel now is not the time to spend.”

Empathy Breeds Frugality

When asked what has been the most significant impact of the economic downturn, the overwhelming majority of the general population (74%) cited “seeing family and friends affected by the recession.” More people cited this reason than “losing their job” (30%), “losses in the stock market” (54%), and “losses in retirement or 401K savings” (56%), said Amex.

Other consumer spending and expectations indices mirror the findings from Amex’s spending tracker. September results from the RBC CASH Index reveal that consumers remain cautious about spending and pessimistic about employment. The majority (63%) have themselves, or have had someone in their inner circle, affected by job loss.

Another private consumer index, the Deloitte Consumer Spending Index, also gives an optimistic view of consumer spending trends. The Deloitte Consumer Spending Index rose 23% in August 2009, climbing from 2.39% to 2.94%. This is the highest mark the Index, which attempts to track consumer cash flow as an indicator of future consumer spending, has hit since reaching 3.07% in October 2007.

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index increased from 47.4 in July 2009 to 54.1 in August 2009, driven in large part by the performance of the Expectations Index, which measures consumer expectations for the next six months. The Expectations Index rose from 63.4 in July to 73.5 in August, with more consumers taking a positive view of short-term business conditions and employment prospects.

However, some recent data released by the federal government is less rosy in its outlook on consumer spending. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. consumers showed little change in their personal spending or earning habits, although personal saving dropped 5.6%, indicating possible increased willingness to spend.

Recent consumer credit and borrowing figures indicate that consumers are having a harder time obtaining lines of credit to finance purchases. Total US consumer, revolving and non-revolving credit rates all fell dramatically in July 2009, while consumer borrowing fell about 20% in June 2009.

About the index: The American Express Spending & Saving Tracker research was completed online among a random sample of consumers aged 18 and older. The research sample of 2,032 adults surveyed the general U.S. population, as well as two sub-groups—the affluent and young professionals. Interviewing was conducted by Echo Research between August 28- 30, 2009. Affluent respondents are defined as having a minimum annual household income of $100K. Young professional respondents are defined as those less than 30 years old with a college degree and a minimum annual household income of $50K.

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Getting Real

Here's an interesting checklist from the Church of the Customer Blog:

Hype vs. excitement: expanded

Posted: 14 Jul 2009 10:52 AM PDT

We had nifty comments to the original hype vs. excitement post, so here's an enhanced version of the chart featuring them.

Hype is:	Excitement is:
An impossible promise	A realistic promise
Sales-driven	Value-driven
Exclamation points	Passion
Obnoxious	Contagious
Cause for mistrust	Cause for belief
Overuse of adverbs	Adverb-free
Narcissistic	Optimistic
Segway	Bike Friday
Contrived	Authentic
Unsustainable	Fuel for the future
From COTC readers:
Bound to burn out quickly	Bound to improve ROI (Zoltan Devai)
Overpromising	Overdelivering (Dan Limbach)
"Some restrictions apply"	Free (Bob Poole)
Mob mentality	Individual thrill (Jeannie Walters)
Artificially colored cornstarch	Top sirloin steak, medium-well (Jon Nichols)
Showing off	Showing up (Maria Reyes-McDavis)
Focused on yourself	Focused on your customer (Bruce Kaechele)

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You are Creative

For the last couple of months, I took over as the acting General Sales Manager for my group of radio stations. I had to un-do a few things that the previous General Sales Manager had done and one of those was to show our sales staff that they were creative and capable of doing more than they had previously been told.

The area was creativity. Specifically, commercial writing. Our previous GSM was convinced that he could not write and so he found some creative ways to avoid writing such as hiring someone else to write his commercials.

Yet, I knew that everyone is capable if they are given a little guidance, so my training for a couple of days to our sales staff was designed to open their eyes to their own abilities and now they are working on doing their own writing.

What about you? Are you stuck? Need a fresh perspective? Here's a great article from Roundpeg to stir up, shake up, and wake you up:

Turn Off Auto-Pilot! Turn On Creative Thinking!

Posted by Lorraine on May 3rd, 2009

Do you sit in the same place everyday? Drive to and from work along the same route? Tackle problems in the same manner?

Habits are easy, and they help us get through the day. Do them too often, however, and you end up in a rut. Let the ruts get too deep and it is hard to find a new solution to a problem or challenge. Sometimes drastic measures are needed to break out of the rut

This is especially true for small business owners, looking for ways to take their business in new directions. Sometimes the best thing to do is Break the Habit!

If you need a fresh idea, try a new direction. Consider using a technique called “Random Input.” This technique helps you break away from restrictive thinking patterns. It opens a conversation about new solutions you normally might not associate with the problem.

You can do this anywhere, but my favorite location, is an outdoor cafe, with sunshine, a Latte, blank sheet of paper, and a pen. To get started, select a random noun from the dictionary or any noun which pops into your head. Since it works best if the noun is something you can see or touch like a car, or hat, I usually look for something on the street around me as a starting point for my brainstorm.

Next, look for ways to connect the noun to the challenge at hand. As you brainstorm, do not eliminate or evaluate ideas. Let your mind wander. Capture every idea. Yes, you will have some useless ones. Others may lead to valuable insights. And at least one is likely to make a startling, creative leap.

Here is an example of how Random Input can work. Imagine your challenge is to find a new fundraising project for a teen soccer team. You have considered all the conventional solutions, but nothing really exciting comes to mind.

Now is a good time to try random input. You see your favorite plant on your desk and decide to use the word “plants.” Brainstorming may lead to some of these ideas:

• Plant seeds in the spring, and selling the young trees in the fall
• Offer lawn care services instead of the typical car
• Sell decorative floral arrangements for holidays
• Solicit sponsors for the trees around the playing fields

You will generate even more ideas if you brainstorm with others. Invite 3 - 5 people to join you for short (20 - 30 minute) sessions. When it comes to brainstorming, two heads are definately better than one!

The ideas will be sketchy at first. Many will be may be useless or impractical. Yet, one might be original enough for the basis of an entirely new concept. Try it! Random input is a great new habit to develop.

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Are you Dying from the Inside Out?

Yesterday I met with a client whom I had not seen in a couple of months, and found out why he's been unavailable.

A couple months ago he was not feeling well and thought it was a flu bug. Turns out his appendix had burst. But he didn't realize what was going on inside and continued to try and live as if nothing was seriously wrong.

Finally after a few weeks his wife convinced him to visit the doctor who discovered how serious his condition was and he was off to surgery. They opened him up and had to clean out all the resulting infection from organs that were dying inside of him.

If he had not eventually gotten checked out, I would have been attending his funeral instead of talking about his business plan yesterday.

I have seen many businesses that are dying from the inside out too. Here's some help from the THINKing blog:

THINKing

Tap Employee Passion

Posted: 13 Apr 2009 05:14 AM PDT

Meriwether Lewis set the stage for the Corps of Discovery’s success before one single “employee” had been hired. From the outset Lewis and Clark engendered a communications culture that brought in the right prospects, then kept morale high and increased the productivity of those eventually hired.

More important, Lewis’ communication culture not only outlined the day-to-day duties of Corps member, it imbued “employees” with a sense of mission and meaning.

He ruthlessly searched for just the right recruits. Lewis sought the strong, skilled and eager, rejecting the weak, ignorant, and unmanageable. And through properly communicating his needs, he was able to get the people who could learn and live his “brand” to apply.

Prospects were told openly and honestly about working conditions: you will be in hostile territory, surrounded by hostile people. You must rely on your own devices for food and shelter, and you could die.

They learned about benefits: “great personal rewards will be bestowed upon you by a grateful government,” if you are selected.

Lewis took his “employees” one step farther: you will go, he told them, where no non-natives have gone before. You will help find the Northwest Passage. You will aid in the advancement of science, discovering new places, new species and new peoples. The mission is one of critical importance to the security of the new nation.

It was this open, honest communication of the emotional aspects, the meaning of the job that unleashed the potential of the Corps of Discovery as “brand emissaries.”

Why Bother Communicating With Employees?

Sure, you’re saying, when it’s a matter of life and death, and you must depend on the person next to you for your survival, it makes sense. But, we’re just talking about business here.

The same goes for business. Employees are your most important audience, and that they hold the keys to your organization’s success. Let’s examine the facts to find out why this assertion is true.

Companies spend millions of dollars each year developing mission and vision statements, identifying their brand, and then communicating their brand promise through various media.

Employees are the primary “media” in the majority of brand contacts. In most companies, employees don’t understand the brand promise well enough to communicate it, let alone live it and articulate it clearly.

Gallup research of 300,000 businesses indicates that 75% to 80% of your people are achieving much less and feeling far less enthusiastic about their work than they could be. If all your employees were “fully engaged”, Gallup says, your customers would be 70% more loyal, your turnover would drop by 70%, and your profits would jump 40%.

The research also found that consumers who felt fast food restaurant employees did a great job were five to six times more likely to come back to that brand. At banks where employees stood out, the customer was six to 20 times more likely to continue the relationship.

Additionally, great employees also tend to engender “passionate” customers. For example, customers who praised store-level associates were 16 times more likely to be passionate about the retailer’s brand.

Get employees on board from an emotional perspective and they carry their passion out to customers. Passionate customers carry it beyond to prospects through word-of-mouth.

Need an example? Let’s look at SAS Institute, a company with a clear mission. In its mission, SAS embraces lifelong learning for employees and service that is focused on customers with improvements driven by those customers.

Employees want a company that understands they have a life outside of work, that they have a need for learning and development beyond the strictly job-related.

Recognizing this, the company built a 200-acre corporate campus, landscaped to encourage outdoor leisure. Thousands of acres adjacent to the SAS campus were bought and made available for employees to buy and build their homes. A private junior and senior high has been opened on campus so parents can have lunch with their kids.

Employees are treated like university faculty and are helped by the company to pursue their own intellectual interests, as well as their job-related ones.

As a result, instead of the typical 20 percent turnover of software companies, SAS has had turnover of less than four percent. SAS has a 95 percent annual renewal rate among its customers, and revenues increased from $653 million in 1996 to $1.13 billion in 2001.

So, take a lesson from Meriwether Lewis: communicate your brand position with your employees, tell them openly and honestly what’s happening inside the company, and unleash some passionate results of your own. What do you think? Are employees integral to success or just another piece of equipment?

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