Proximity and personal marketing tools: the coming wave
It seems only a short time ago I stumbled across the reality that mobile devices and their GPS capabilities could be used as tools to entice customers in various ways, almost like spruikers outside "that" sort of establishment . Suddenly they are everywhere, and blogs...
Risk management feeds innovation
This appears to be a counter intuitive statement, but when you think about it, the outcome, innovation is all about directing resources to where they will deliver the best outcome, seeing the opportunity, managing towards a common goal, enhancing the customer...
The value of forced isolation
This note is being written on a plane, somewhere over Asia in the middle of a long flight to the UK to see a few who can contribute to my store of knowledge, and hopefully I to theirs. It is a time of few distractions, the phone is off, nobody at the door, no meetings...
Managing virtual teams.
Management structures have flattened and globalised at the same time, radically changing the way collaboration happens. Now virtual teams work across all sorts of boundaries, and have created a new set of challenges. Traditional management simply does not work...
Management and leadership
Management and leadership are not the same. For years I have advocated this self evident truth, and occasionally something comes along to confirm, again, the essential truth that leaders lead, and managers just take care of the details. Leadership in a tough place is...
Social media ad targeting.
Following on from yesterdays somewhat cynical observations about the supposed ease of using viral marketing as an advertising "strategy", driven often by cost considerations and dills who do not understand, it seems sensible to take a closer look at e-advertising, and...
Viral marketing, not so hard?
Bosses, often with no idea of marketing, and the social networks and how to engage them seem to be increasingly thinking forget the TV, (good idea that in most cases) "just make a silly/funny/outrageous video, and it will go viral". Voila, marketing success at...
Value of certainty
I've seen lots of customer service initiatives that promise "delivery by …….." and no matter how quick that may be, there is still uncertainty about when it will be delivered, and customers will be anxious. By contrast, "we will deliver at 3pm on the 25th" is very...
Counting only what counts
Social media can be seductive, the chase for the raw numbers, without considering the quality of the numbers. I am little different, I like to see the numbers, which whilst relatively low, are steadily building on this blog, as the scattered individuals who find value...
3 simple improvement questions.
The clarion call for improvement, in everything from the minor shop floor activities to big picture strategic implementation is clear. We all need to do more with less, and this requires that we identify which bits of our current activities should be changed,...