Great 2012 Marketing You May Not Know About

University of Chicago – Call Me Maybe

Yes, anybody and everybody has done their take on this rather mind-numbing tune by Carly Rae Jepsen (to prove how mind-numbing it is, it is one of my 2-1/2 year old granddaughter’s favorite songs).  But the coolest  take was executed by my alma mater – the stuffy, staid University of Chicago, which students also have referred to as “where fun goes to die.”

This year, when prospective students inquired about admissions, the school’s suddenly hip Admissions Office sent out letters that were a take on the tune. 

“I know that we just met you – and this is crazy – but here are our numbers…” the letter says.

The school then reveals certain numbers from the sublime (seven Nobel Prize winners currently on faculty) to the inane (351 items in the 2012 Scavenger Hunt).  It ends with the obligatory “So call us, maybe”  (click http://quitzer.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/ct-talk-aj-call-me-maybe-0831-1.jpg-20120831.jpeg) to see the letter.)

According  to a U of C spokesperson: “that kind of wit is in the culture of this place.”  Well, my father’s store was located just off the U of C campus, and I did get my MBA there.  So my exposure to the school goes back 50 years, and, through those decades, “wit” is not a word I would have associated with the place.  Glad times have changed, maybe.

LDS Church – “I’ve Read the Book”

Perhaps as unexpected as it is to give the U of C plaudits for its humorous marketing, so too is praise for a marketing tactic employed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or LDS Church, or Mormons). 

As you undoubtedly know, the Tony Award winning and absolutely hysterical (without being mean) play “The Book of Mormon” (a must see by the way), pokes fun at the religion, along with just about everything else.

How would you expect the LDS Church to respond?  I would have expected it to be outraged and mount a campaign encouraging people not to see the show.  So imagine my surprise when I walked into the theater, started browsing through the Playbill, and saw an ad by the Church that said simply: "I've Read the Book."  (Click 

 http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865561906/LDS-Church-buys-ad-space-in-Book-of-Mormon-musical-playbill.html?pg=all to see the ad.)

The Church wisely saw this as an opportunity to spread its message (it also has run the ad in Playbills for other shows) in a simple and elegant manner.  So rather than ignore the play and pretend it did not exist, the Church used the play as an opportunity to reach out and educate without being judgmental of those attending the play. 

While I am not a Mormon nor will become one, the ad did prompt me to research the religion a little more, and gain a lot of respect for the leadership for their savvy perspective.

Leftovers

Since everything seems to be happening earlier and earlier…stores opening on Thanksgiving evening now, I figured I’d get the traditional “Leftovers” blog out early as well. 

Of course, I am talking about your marketing budget leftovers…those leftover dollars you’ll lose if you don't spend them by year-end. Here are some thoughts about consuming these "leftovers."

1. Don't do anything until you know you have authority to spend those dollars, even if you have budget. Organizational profitability requirements may prevent you from spending those dollars.

2. Don't spend just for the sake of spending. Figure out strategically how your money can be best spent. If you can't think of anything, don't spend the money.

3. Here are just a few things you can do:

a. Get all your online efforts for next year in line. Finalize your Website. Optimize it. Get your social media programs going. Get any videos done.

b. Instead of mailing your direct mail campaign just after Jan. 1, mail it just before Jan. 1 to expense the postage. But don't mail it too soon - you'll want it to hit after the first of the year.  And yes, direct mail still works.

c. Have any miscellaneous writing projects initiated in December.

d. Begin the process of initiating a market research project in December, and see how much of it you can pay for up front.

e. Prepay planned 2012 advertising expenditures. You might even be able to get a discount.

f. Talk to other providers about paying them in December with 2012 money, even if your schedule doesn't permit them to start working on a project until after the first of the year.

4. If you are a B2B company, try using this strategy with your clients. Have them commit to spend IT money, buy office supplies, whatever. It works.

What other ideas do you have? Let me know.

And most importantly, have a safe and happy Thanksgiving weekend.

The Keys to Successful Product Development

A successful product development is based on philosophy, process and management.

Philosophy

Successful product development ensures that a product will:

·         Excite and delight clients, and

·         Generate a meaningful return on investment, and

·         Do so with little if any disruption to the organizational culture

Process

The successful product development initiative includes the following three components (yes, this is VERY high level)

·         Concept development, including market research, financial analysis, and feasibility analysis

·         Product development, including, but not limited to, systems development, clinical development (for pharma and device), operations development, planning and analysis, legal, regulatory and compliance review, testing (for software and technology) sales development and marketing development.  Obviously, there are nuances by industry.

·          Launch, including final sign offs, training, and execution of all launch tactics

This process ensures that the product launch is rationale and subject to appropriate scrutiny, but that the product does get launched on time and on budget and is not hampered by inappropriate scrutiny.

Keys to success in the process include:

·            A sound project plan including detailed timelines and responsibilities, and strict adherence to it

·            Buy in and input from all key areas

·            Constant scheduled and unscheduled communication with all key areas

·            Painstaking attention to detail without losing sight of the big picture

·            Ability to form consensus and make decisions in extremely political and turf-guarding environments

·            THICK SKIN

As always, we invite you to respond.

The KitchenAid Tweet and Social Media Policies

By now, you have probably read about the KitchenAid tweet that was sent moments after President Obama talked about his grandmother during last night’s debate.  The tweet:

"Obamas gma even knew it was going 2 b bad! 'She died 3 days b4 he became president'."  Within nanoseconds, the tweet went viral.

KitchenAid immediately pulled the tweet, and apologized online.  Here is its Facebook post:

"Hello, everyone. My name is Cynthia Soledad, and I am the head of the KitchenAid brand. I would like to personally apologize to President Barack Obama, his family and everyone on Twitter for the offensive tweet sent earlier. It was carelessly sent in error by a member of our Twitter team who, needless to say, won't be tweeting for us anymore. That said, I take full responsibility for my team. Thank you for hearing me out."

To me, it is a great response…immediate…honest…apologetic…accepting responsibility.  It is really an excellent example of how to respond to a blunder.   My only question is to the statement that the tweeter “needless to say, won’t be tweeting for us anymore.”  Does that mean the tweeter was fired (my hope) or merely reassigned?  Can’t find anything definitive on that.  If you know, please share.

This reminds us again of the power of social media, and the inherent danger of abusing that power. You can have the best social media policies in the world, but if somebody wants to break them, he or she will.  But it does remind us of the importance of having, and then enforcing, a social media policy.  Such a policy should be put in employee manuals and signed by all employees.  Such a policy should be put in employee manuals and signed by all employees.  The policy should::

       1. Clearly state the objectives of the organization’s social media program.

       2. Clearly state who can post on the company’s social media sites (a very small number). 
 3. Clearly indicate if you are not a listed poster, you can't post.

         4. List in great detail the types of posts allowable. 
 5. Indicate that the policy extends to employees’ personal social media pages.    
 6. State what employees can and cannot say about the organization on those pages.

       7. State the penalty for violating the policy (first offense termination sounds reasonable)

    
 Of course, you should check with your legal counsel in preparing this policy.

 

What did you think of KitchenAid’s handling of this?  

Do You "Really, Really Care?"

Some thoughts on Web writing.

1. Website writing is now an art and science.  It is a science, because the site needs to be written with optimization in mind.  It is an art because it still needs to be written in a crisp and engaging manner.  Remember...the "science" gets people to your site; the "art" inspires them to interact.
2. The way it should work is the SEOer (I may have just made up a word) should provide the writer with relevant keywords.  The writer should review the content with the SEOer before the client sees it, to make sure the content is rich in keywords and will enhance SEO efforts.
3. Of course, the SEOer could go overboard.  So if you are doing a Website for a bowling alley, for example, the SEOer might tell you to make sure the phrase bowling alley shows up, like, a million times.  The writer as artist needs to determine how much is too much.
4. On the other hand, the content should be keyword rich.  That is good, because the more keywords you have, the less room you will have for those self-serving adjectives and adverbs (best, fastest, prettiest, newest, experienced, etc.) that nobody but you cares about.
5. Which leads to the next point.  The purpose of your Website isn't to gratify your ego by going on and on by how great you are.  People go to your Website to learn how you can help them, and why they should choose you instead of your competitors.  This is best done concisely and objectively, without superfluous hype.  You don't have to say you are great.
6. On the other hand, third party endorsements are wonderful.  For example, for a hospital to say it is great is not appropriate.  But for a hospital to say it is on the U.S. News and World Report Top 100 Hospital list is significant.
7. The most important page, of course, is the home page.  Keep the copy short.  Detailed descriptions of your services...employee profiles...your approach...these are all appropriate for subpages.  But keep the home page simply to what you do.  And try to keep the copy "above the fold."
8. And I would be remiss if I did not mention two of the most overused phrases on the Web.

• "We care."  That, folks, is assumed.  The fact that you care (even that you "really, really care") does not differentiate you.  If that phrase sounds gratuitous, that's because it is.
• "We customize solutions."  No you don't.  You sell products and services that help your customers meet a need.  You may even package some of those products and services together in a way that will best meet those needs.  But you sell stuff.  Don't insult your prospects' intelligence by saying otherwise.

I hope you found this of value.  Because I really, really care about you.

Seriously, I welcome and comments or thoughts.

Unlock Your Social Media Piano

With thanks to Judith Singer, system director of online marketing and media production for Presence Health for inspiring the title, and to Dr. Farris Timimi, medical director at the Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media, for the story that demonstrates the power of social media. 

Perhaps you can use this story to convince your organization to unlock its social media piano.  In other words, you have the instruments…play them!

Major league baseball player Jayson Werth was hit in the wrist during spring training in 2005.  More than a year later, still experiencing discomfort, Jayson visited The Mayo Clinic and was diagnosed with a “split tear” of the ulnotriquetal (UT) ligament.  Dr. Richard Berger, a leader in this field, performed successful surgery.

Since then, Jayson has won a World Series, and has become one of the best and highest paid players in baseball.

That is Jayson’s success story, but here is how Mayo Clinic made this a social media success story.


1. Jayson agreed to film three videos for Mayo Clinic.  All were posted on YouTube.  Here is the link to Part 1.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7DVzKk7RAI
2.      The Mayo Clinic posted the story on its “Sharing Mayo Clinic” blog and issued a press release based upon the YouTube videos.
3.      Dr, Berger hosted a Twitter chat.
4.      The Mayo Clinic provided a list of physicians from around the country who trained under Dr. Berger, and are qualified to perform the surgery.
5.      The Mayo Clinic posted other videos describing the pioneering treatment of the condition.

Some results.


1.      The Jayson Werth YouTube videos received more than 24,000 views.
2.      A local news station aired one of the videos.
3.      USA Today picked up the press release and wrote a substantial article on how The Mayo Clinic helped Jayson.
4.      The Mayo Clinic, as a result of the publicity, has treated numerous other people –people who may have never known about the treatment other than through social media.

The bottom line here is not only did social media help the Mayo Clinic generate awareness and increase business, but it helped educate the public on a matter of health and thus improve the health of the community. 

In fact, Dr. Timimi believes (as do I) that if your business can play a role to make people’s lives better in any way, it is almost a moral imperative that you use social media to engage them to do so.

Is your social media piano locked?  How do you plan on unlocking it?

The Game of the Name

This past week both Abbott and Kraft announced new names for the companies they are spinning off: Mondelez for the Kraft spinoff and AbbVie for the Abbott spinoff. Some thoughts:

1. First I understand that naming is not easy. In addition to getting customer feedback, the names have to work globally from a language perspective, and have to pass legal hurdles.
2. Both announcements apparently came with instructions on how to pronounce the name. That is not good right off the bat.
3. Apparently, both companies also saw the need to explain the names. That isn’t good either. If the reason for the name is not self-evident, maybe the name choice is not that good.
4. I am going to give both organizations the benefit of the doubt and assume they did research as part of this. This is not a given. I personally was involved with one U.S. brand with a lot of brand equity here that was acquired by a global brand. The global brand said it would not research the appropriate name in the U.S. The global company name was the brand everywhere else; it would be the brand here.
5. So even if the brands did research, the question is how aided the research was.

a) If people were just asked what they thought of the name on an open-ended basis, that is OK.

b) If people had to have the name explained to them before rendering an opinion, not so good. After all, these brands are not going to spend a lot of effort explaining the name in their marketing efforts.

6. For AbbVie specifically, it appears the company is really trying to leverage the Abbott connection with both the Abb, and the Vie. The Vie is based on the Latin for life, and ties into the existing great Abbott tagline of “A Promise for Life.” This may not be a bad strategy in the near term, as the Abbott brand is strong. But long-term it may hinder the organization’s name to establish its own identity.
7. Mondelez supposedly is meant to convey “delicious world,” using a derivation of the Latin word for world and “delez”, which apparently has Romance language roots signifying delicious. I am a pretty smart guy (IMHO), but if I do not get it, I am not sure who else would. Combined words and made up words are tough. Earlier this week, my daughter taught me the word “bracktastrophe,” which is an upset in the NCAA basketball tournament. I got that. I don’t get Mondelez.
8. In the end, these companies will spend hundreds of millions if not billions marketing these names, and the name itself might not make that much of a difference.
9. But if you don’t have hundreds of millions to market your name, do your due diligence, and make sure your name resonates with the target market.

Time will tell. Let me know what you think.

When the Easy Answer is the Right Answer

Recently, I was part of a team developing brand architecture for a healthcare organization. The organization had one hospital, and was in the process of building another hospital. For the sake of argument, let’s call the original hospital Brothers of Sisters. And let’s say the new hospital is being built in Northbrook.

So we brainstormed and came up with a bunch of different names to test. Some were geography-based, some were mission-based, some were competency-based.

Next step was to test the names in research. Research was conducted, and here is the winning name: Sisters of Brothers – Northbrook.

I told this story to someone, and it was greeted with a rolling of the eyes, a smirk, and a caustic “and how much did they pay for that?”

Frankly, I don’t know how much they paid for that. But I will tell you this – it was worth the price, and it is a fraction of what they will spend to communicate and promote the brand.

Maybe it is the easy answer. Maybe it is the obvious answer. Maybe it is not an especially creative answer. But here’s the point: It is the right answer.

We know it is the right answer because data tell us it is the right answer. So when millions are spent communicating and promoting the brand, there is confidence that the right brand is being promoted.

Which would you rather have: an obvious answer that has been tested and you know is right? Or some novel name that has not been tested, and you haven’t a clue whether you are right?

So when you hear what appears to be the easy answer, don’t ask: “How much did they pay for that?” Ask “Did they test it?” Until then, hold the smirk.

QR Codes – A Technology in Search of an Application?

A couple of weeks ago, I asked my 23-year-old daughter and her friends if they had ever scanned a QR code? The answer was a unanimous no, with a few of them asking me what a QR code is.

If you don’t know, QR codes are those ever-ubiquitous little squares that are appearing on anything and everything. Scan it with your smartphone, and it will quickly (the Q after all does stand for quick; the R for response) take you to a Web page.

QR codes are appearing on print ads, business cards, billboards, trade show displays, etc. They also show up online, although why people would put a QR code online and make you scan it with a smartphone when they could just give you the link is lost on me.

Research would tell you:

14 million people in the U.S. have scanned a QR code (do you believe that? I don’t)

• 60.5% of the people who scan QR codes are men. Or, depending on the research, 68% are women There is agreement that people who scan QR codes are younger and more affluent, but that is not exactly an earthshaking revelation.

I get the sense that QR codes are yet another technology in search of an application. Yes, we do put QR codes on client materials. And I think they make sense if done right. So here are some thoughts.

1. The QR code should take you to a compelling page. For example:
1. A performing arts client of ours directs the QR code to a clip of them performing
2. A healthcare client directs the code to a worksheet where potential clients input some information, and then estimates how much they can reduce their costs
3. A White Paper that demonstrates credibility
4. An order form, so they can buy on the spot

2. Include a call to action with the QR code that clearly explains the benefit of scanning it. For example: “Scan the QR code to calculate how much money we can save you.”

3. Be creative with how you use QR codes. A recent NY Times article had these examples:

1. A fashion designer put QR codes on gowns being worn by models at a fashion show.
2. Tiffany put QR codes on a cookie

4. Remember, your “landing page” will be viewed on a mobile phone. So make sure the page is mobile compatible.

Have you used QR codes? What is your experience?