Strategy
1,155 posts
It Matters
The sign had been hastily scrawled in blue biro. The letters gone over and over again to make them more visible to the passer-by. A short cut, that in the end didn’t give the benefit of a short cut at all. It matters that your investment in recruiting doesn’t stretch to buying a sharpie to…
The Heart Of Customer Loyalty
Despite everything we know about the benefits of fostering customer loyalty, most of our marketing is designed to change what people think or do in the short term. We change the label from white to yellow to get a millisecond more attention. We offer discounts on product lines we want to shift and w
From Insights To Advantages
Chip Wilson discovered that women liked to look great when they exercised and feel comfortable when they didn’t. Lululemon pioneered the activewear trend way back in 1998—a market that is predicted to grow to $178 billion by 2019. Dave Gilboa worked out that we hate feeling ripped off and paying as
The Way We Do Things Matters
My boys are lucky enough to have eaten pasta in Rome, croissants in Paris and hamburgers in New York. Yet, when the conversation turns to food memories, the one they treasure most is eating potatoes next to the Aga in a friend’s kitchen in Scotland. They remember the story of the potatoes freshly du
How To Reach Your Customers
Here’s how our customer’s time was spent across the various media platforms in 2015. Print 4% Radio 13% TV 36% Internet 22% Mobile 25% Here’s where we spent our dollars trying to reach them. Print 16% Radio 10% TV 39% Internet 23% Mobile 12% While we’re spending money in places where fewer of our cu
Quiet Success
Success for my parents, was having a fair day’s work to do, for a fair day’s pay. Success was having money left in your pay packet at the end of the week after the bills were paid. Success was having the wherewithal to take care of your family and contribute to your community—often in ways…
What’s Your Big Idea?
Every great brand leads with one big idea. The big idea is what the brand stands for—it’s core belief. Articulating the big idea is harder than you think, living it every day is even harder than that. The brands that do have a much easier time differentiating themselves from the competition. Here ar
Where Do You Want Your Story To Land?
This is the story of two independent bookstores located on the same street, separated by a walkway and three cafes. The bigger store has a more spacious feel. They display most of their books face out in clearly labeled categories. New releases are showcased in easily accessible, neat piles on table
The Things You’re Not Measuring
The more data we have the more we think we need. We measure everything from email open rates to foot traffic. We obsess over numbers of followers and rates of growth. And yet we often forget to take stock of the things we’re proud to have done and the ways we’ve made a difference. Here’s…
Your One And Only Shot
Dave volunteered to fill in for another gym instructor at the last minute. He arrived late for class and was greeted by a full house of enthusiastic morning gym goers, weights at their feet, water bottles at the ready. He hit his first obstacle within minutes. The gym didn’t supply the workout music
A Question Of Attention
Have you noticed that more email marketers are trying to attract your attention at the weekend? Many weekly digests now hit inboxes outside office hours in the hope of getting traction when people are less busy. As marketers we’re using every trick in the book to capture attention in order to furthe
Patient Growth
My trusty blender died a couple of weeks ago, or rather I killed the thing with overwork and by overloading. The new blender had a lot to live up to. On the advice of the sales assistant I bought the most powerful one on the market, but was still frustrated by its performance. Why wouldn’t…
The Value Of Challenging Our Assumptions
It’s 6am, and a passer-by bends down to leave a couple of bananas next to the homeless guy who is turning over in his sleeping bag in the doorway of 7-Eleven. When he wakes, he gathers his things and the few coins in his tin. He drops the fruit in a nearby bin and heads…
Because We Can
It’s a brisk Autumn Monday. The city’s lunchtime trams are busy. As we turn into Collins Street the tram driver begins an unscripted dialogue. He tells us that we’re at “the Paris end” of Collins street in the world’s most liveable city, reminding us that this is “no flash in the pan” because Melbou
5 Questions To Consider Before Spending Your Marketing Budget
A colleague recently asked my advice about a five-figure advertising spend he was contemplating. Should he or shouldn’t he? We mapped out the risks vs. the rewards and also discussed alternatives. It turned out that he needed to ask a different set of questions entirely. 5 Questions To Ask Before Al
Beyond The Point Of Sale
Many marketing strategies focus on the point of sale. Most great brand stories focus on what happens before and after the point of sale. We win by considering who the customer is, and helping him to become who he wants to be. This happens by understanding his story beyond the point of sale. Image by
Optimising For Customer Delight And The Peak-End Rule
Jody and Jim (not their real names) run a small web design studio. Their initial pricing strategy was to keep base prices low, putting time caps on every deliverable during the website design and build. New clients were informed about this policy up front. Things like design time and content populat
The Importance Of Happy Endings
When we’re serving customers we tend to front-load our effort. Hotel reception staff are well-versed in making a great impression when the guest checks in. Good waiters quickly seat new diners and take orders promptly. Retailers station greeters at the store entrance to welcome and orient new custom
The Facts Are Overrated
Since the new Model 3 Tesla was unveiled just over two weeks ago 400,000 people (who have never test driven or sat in one) have paid $1000 to place an order. And while the price of this latest model makes it accessible to more people it’s clearly not what’s driving these organic sales. Think about…
Your Story Drives Behaviour
Jackie is a gifted web designer. Her inbox is full of enquiries from people who want to work with her. She loves what she does, but she gets worn down by clients asking for a discount on her already reasonable rates. This behaviour not only affects Jackie’s bottom line and the number of clients she…
