Power Up - Marketing and Selling for Greater Success

Sarah Palin and how not to break BIG news

Sarah Palin has resigned as Governor of Alaska.  The news is on the major stations and the Internet but her announcement sadly reflects a lack of sophistication about how to market your message effectively.

When a big announcement is made, and this is a BIG announcement due to her rabid fans and avid detractors, one needs to position the message, the timing, and the staging.  The staging was great - her home town with her loving family by her side.  The timing was not optimum.  Many people were already on their 4th of July vacation on Friday and her coverage was done by the second string of reporters.  The message was not tightly scripted.  Her extemporaneous comments left too much up to the reporters to misinterpret.

What Governor Palin should have done was wait until the middle of next week when the media was back to their desks and call a press conference.  Then staging the same way she did she should have laid out the deep concerns she has about Alaska, the plight of the poor and unemployed and uninsured, and the concern she has for "the lower 49 states."  She would acknowledge that she loves being Governor but that she has a bigger obligation to its citizens and that she needs to address the mis-direction that is being taken on so many issues nationally.

A crisp statement with her big smile her family hugs and the flag waving in the background would have made a stronger statement about her professional commitment that we are going to hear so much more about.

It will be a fun road trip with Sarah and her fans for the next several months.  I hope she assembles a communication team that is top notch and avoids the little missteps of the past.

Go get 'em Sarah!

Sugar Cookie Solutions

The current economic situation is perplexing for every business person.  Some are surviving and thriving, albeit  apprehensively, while others are flummoxed and looking for a solution to the market that has disappeared or dried up for their products and services. 

At times like this it is often tempting to reach for the nearest sugar cookie solution and think that it will be your salvation.  This has caused companies in the past to suffer even greater loses than they needed to.

The problem with sugar cookie solutions is that they are very tempting but not satisfying over the long run.  In fact, by the time you implement them you come to realize the shortsightedness of the decision.

Tough times require more introspection and action than simplistic steps.  I coach business owners that they need to take a step back to reflect on what has happened within their business over time and has it been structured correctly to meet the needs of their market.   I then tell them to step out of their business and into their customer shoes and those of their prospects and determine why they would want to buy from the company.  These two simple exercises allow for some profound insights by the business owner.

Often the new strategy that we develop takes more effort than a quick simplistic action, but the results are more meaningful, substantial, and sustainable.  That leads to greater sales and profitability.

Take a moment to reflect on your business.  The time will be well spent.

Improved results requries action

The heading of this post may seem like an obvious statement, but it is not.  If it was obvious then the business decision makers would be more underatnsing hta they need to play an active role in improving performance of their organizations. 

Too often what is seen is inaction preceded with many words of how the organization will take steps to improve --- (filling the word: profits, personnel practices, sales, etc.).  My comments are not meant to be cynical but thought provoking .  How often do you and your peers acknowledge that what you want will require effort and action not just hope and words. 

One way that organizations can improve their results is to put in place a "Required Action Steps" document that individuals sign-off on and accept responsibility for.  Without such individual accountability there is a common willlingness to support any new goal along with a willingness for everyone to look to the other guy to make the goal a reality.  This pattern is seen all too often and it undermines the organization since the lack of accountability and falling short of stated goals produces a shrug when new goals are announced. 

If you are serious, define the steps that produce results.  Without defined action steps results will fall short.  Consider adopting the "Required Action Steps " for your next initiative and see the difference it produces.

All the best in achieving your goals.

Yum Sponsorship of the Kentucky Derby

I enjoyed watching the Kentucky Derby from the comfort of my couch.  The build up to the race was educational with the various interviews and perspectives on the horses and riders.  The finish was spectacular by Big Brown and tragic for Eight Belles.  If you have not heard about Eight Belles, I will not address it here but you may wish to check the news reports.

What I did not enjoy, nor understand was the sponsorship by Yum Companies.  It is a holding company for fast food restaurants: KFC, Taco Bell, A&W, etc.  The message that I heard was, "We are the biggest restaurant company in the world and we are growing fast."   My response, So What !

• Do people visit fast food restaurants because they are part of a huge conglomerate?  NO!   
• Do people want to feel a part of huge fast food conglomerates?  I don't think so.

Therefore, the target market was not, I hope, the consumer but the investing community.  And, if that was the case, and the Yum Co. wants to boost their stock price, etc. then the message was weak.  Once again the advertising was trying, it seemed, to do two different things and it failed at both.  The ads did not generate interest for me to invest in this company nor to eat its fast food.  Yum Co. spent millions and the ego stroke that the CEO got when he introduced the winner was a very expensive one.  The ad agency I am sure loved their work.  The client, Yum Co., got their ego stroked.  The consumer/investor was left confused and unmotivated.

This is just one more example of advertising waste.  Too much money to produce an ineffective message to a mixed audience.  Not a yum, yum investment.

Don't let the same happen to your marketing efforts.

Where are you standing - can you see what I see?

My wife has this notion that when spring arrives it is time to clean the house, wash windows, etc.  You understand my dilemma I am sure.  I want spring to arrive but, I hate doing the Spring Cleaning Game.

The other day after I washed the front window and polished it with a clean cloth, I stepped back and admired my excellent work.  My wife came by and asked if I was done cleaning the window.  The audacity!  "Of course I am," I replied.  "Well you missed a spot, or two," came her response.

The window was perfectly clean from where I stood.  I even moved a little and the glass gleamed reflecting my excellent work.  However, when I shifted to the spot where my wife was standing I saw the smudge, the streak and the remaining spots.

It depends on where you are standing as to what you see.  And, as I got out my cleaning equipment and readdressed the window, I reflected (pun intended) on the similarity this is to the customer dynamics in the business world.

Management can say, and I have heard them, the job is completed and we did a great job.  But, there is no outside verification of that conclusion. 

• What does the customer feel about the new phone system? 
• How does the customer feel about the new packaging? 
• What does the new invoicing design do to make our customer job's easier to understand the payment process?

When we are viewing our business processes through a distorted lens of our own choosing we are not getting, at all times, a totally accurate assessment of our business.  We need to step out and get an independent view of the situation, talk with customers, and change our focus to accurately assess the job.

Where do you stand on this issue?