Peer pressure destroys the power of Advertising
The major consequence to marketers of the transfer of power from themselves to their customers is that the effectiveness of their marketing efforts has been deflated, irrespective of their mix of legacy and digital channels, by the power of peer pressure....
Is the supermarket business model developing terminal cracks?
Are the tiny cracks evident in the current supermarket business model just the beginning of what will become crevasses that will swallow supermarkets, or just annoyances that can be managed? My view is the former, although we are currently a long way from...
The real reason your marketing still sucks.
As a young marketer, then later in my corporate career, there was only one way to get close to your "market". You went there. In my case, it was into supermarkets, talking to consumers as they considered what they would buy, which of the choices they had...
8 unfortunate realities facing every small business entrepreneur
Every time I turn around I see another ad touting the 'laptop lifestyle'. Travel, work occasionally, and have the money rolling in, just because you have invested in yourself and bought a course from a self-styled guru. Of course it does happen, but very...
Branding matters: Best ever evidence.
The darling of the techies everywhere, Apple, is about to release new phones. They are the iPhone X, iPhone 8, and iPhone 8Plus for outrageous prices, when compared to the offerings from almost any of the other 300 plus companies that produce phones. The...
The three drivers of an effective business improvement project
For the last 22 years since leaving corporate life, I have worked at the intersection of Revenue generation, Operations and Performance improvement of medium sized manufacturing businesses. My entry point is almost always sales and marketing....
Googles 5 foundations for a successful team.
Teamwork, collaboration, and all sorts of clichés relate to the workings of teams. Over the last 25 years they have invaded and become pervasive in our workplaces, but most often they do not deliver the hoped for outcomes. On Saturday night, those of us...
Don’t believe everything you think
Leaders who are unable to see another point of view, listen to others, and absorb and engage with diversity are destined to make mistakes. Good leaders have a point of view, but they allow others to put theirs, see when their ideas can be improved,...
The single most common question I ask myself
How do I demonstrate value? As a senior marketing bloke in a large business, being heard around the board table was always a problem, as it is hard to quantify the impact of what you do. Try as hard as possible, there are still holes in the case, as the...
Is being ‘sticky’ the key to success.
Those flogging business coaching to the owners of medium sized businesses seem to focus on one of the oldest sales techniques in the book, the ‘Before & After' pitch. Describe the current situation, and make it as down and dirty as possible, then...