The greatest failure of marketing management.
The headline is a big call, competing as it does with some real doozies. Remember "New Coke" or the Ford 'Edsel' or perhaps Thomas Watsons declaration that there was a world market of no more than 5 for computers? This one is a general observation on the nature...
The most misused management quote ever
Benjamin Franklin said many worthwhile things, and a few bits on nonsense. However, amongst the best known, and perhaps most quoted is: "If you want something done, give it to a busy person" Absolute bollocks!! Acting on that advice is in my view a failure of...
To Social media or not, that is the question.
Many of the small and medium sized businesses I interact with still struggle with the notion that they should be investing in social media as a marketing strategy. Creating and sharing content of value to their customers, potential customers, and competitors runs...
Anatomy of a successful email
Email is still the most widely used marketing tool out there, and that is for a good reason. It works. Like most, I receive many emails, and having subscribed to all sorts of sites over the years, to see what works and what doesn’t, as well as to get my hands on their...
Are supermarket customers a means to an end, or the end?
Woolworths has delivered in spades to shareholders in the last 20 years, but the rot had set in a decade ago. The seeds of the rot were assisted in my view by a lack of credible competition, and management losing touch with the subtle changes happening in consumer...
The absolute best way to overcome objections to a sale
Over many years and considerable experience in developing sales programs, one of the regular stumbling blocks is how to respond to objections. The single best way I have ever seen to overcome a sales objection is to articulate the objection before the sales target...
7 thoughts on FMCG brand building by small suppliers
Competing in FMCG against the duopoly, rapidly becoming the 'Triopoly' as Aldi makes share inroads is not easy, never was. However, the optimist in me sees opportunities that few are leveraging, so set in 'process concrete' is the status quo. The driver of the great...
Is the supermarket model being disrupted, and nobody is noticing?
Business models are being disrupted all over the place. The new centre of business models has become the customer, and the way they perceive and receive value. It was supposed to be this way in the pre-digital days, but really was not, because the sellers held all...
The key to successful communication
Actually it is three keys, which taken together make for a potent mix. It should be easy, but it seems to be hard, judging by all the rubbish I see around. There is just so much messaging out there that fails to deliver any useful message, despite the money, time and...
How to build a brand with little money
Following is an edited version of a presentation given to a group of owners of small businesses struggling with the challenges of building a brand on very limited budgets in competitive markets. This is a challenge most of my readers can relate to. It is not easy, but...