Simplicity

I was browsing the internet last week and came across a video interview with Ken Segall, author of Insanely Simple: The Obsessions that Drive Apple’s Success. While simple in nature, Segall, who had numerous interviews with Steve Jobs, talks how it’s not just your products and services that have to be simple, but the idea must be ingrained in your employees as well.

Before I go further, take a glance at the video.

The reason I want to talk about this is because I think any business, whether in marketing, accounting, retail or whatever, can take valuable lessons from Segall.

Keep things simple. We all know we should do it, but chances are, many don’t. Just look at an IKEA manual some time and you will see my point. Apple, on the other hand, despite being involved in one of the most innovative industries out there, never makes a product complicated or difficult to use. This idea of simplicity went as high as Steve Jobs and as low as their igeniuses in stores across the world. If the product isn’t simple to them, how would it be simple for their consumers?

In the video above, Segall referenced an image that really demonstrates how Apple stands out from the rest.

Why add more options when you could simplify things with fewer buttons? Why make your consumers work harder to use your products? If you, the company, works harder at designing and integrating your products into everyday life, that means less work for your consumers. If the idea of simplicity is ingrained in the company culture, that mindset will spread from the workers onto the fans.

Make your products easy to understand and easy to use. Make sure complexity is never a word someone would use to describe your product. Make sure your employees understand that making your products and/or service as simple as possible is as relevant as selling the brand itself. Do this, and who knows? Maybe Apple could actually have some competition.

Video source:iStrategy

What the Facebook Changes Mean to Marketers

Zuckerberg and the Facebook team are at it again, making he lives of consumers and marketers more engaging, hectic and controversial all at the same time.

A couple of weeks ago, Facebook announced that they will be completely revamping the news feed. To no surprise, they will be making the biggest social media platform more visual. To all those people who say imagery isn’t important, it’s about time you get on the winning team.

Another change that proves imagery is gaining significance is that when a friend likes a page, the news feed story will be bigger, pulling in the page’s cover photo and profile photo. Essentially, the actions of friends now play a more prominent role in what users see and what they don’t.

 But perhaps the biggest change that will occur, and likely piss off marketers, is that users will be able to choose different feeds ranging from the entire news feed, all friends, most recent, music, photos, games, following and close friends. Right away, marketers should take notice that now instead of unfollowing your brand, consumers can just hide you and you would never know.

However, there are also rumors that Facebook may get rid of the “unlike” function, something brands should be happy about.

So what does this mean for us?

It means that marketers need to come to realization that your Facebook marketing needs to have a purpose and that purpose does not revolve around sales. As I said yesterday, consumers are getting smarter every day. Even without hiding you, the second they smell a sales pitch coming on, they ignore you. With these new changes, they may not only ignore you, but take you off their screen completely. See why the lives of marketers are about to get tougher?

Therefore, we advocacy seekers need to find new ways to break through the clutter of baby pictures or viral videos to connect with our fans. Sharing a link to your blog will not cut it. Sharing images that encourage your fans to share will take priority. Sharing poll questions and answers to relevant news they care about must be done. Research on your following just moved up the totem pole.

Most importantly, strategy must take a front row seat to your Facebook marketing. If it doesn’t, you might as well say good bye to your fans.

Image source: HubSpot

3 Marketing Lessons from the NCAA Tournament

Like many others, this is my favorite time of the year. Gambling, basketball, upsets, TV and sports take over our lives during the NCAA tournament. Whether it is a Cinderella story like George Mason or the thrilling endings like Duke and Butler, there is very little to dislike. Sounds to me marketers should want their consumers to think the same way.

Its unpredictability, excitement, passion and joy are all reasons why marketers should treat their companies like the NCAA tournament. Doing so would bring out those influential advocates we all desire and need to succeed.

Below are my three lesson marketers should take from the NCAA tournament:

1. Expect the Unexpected

Perhaps the greatest asset the NCAA tournament has going for them is that the unexpected is expected. Up until a few years ago, the four No. 1 seeds never made it to the Final Four in the same year. Teams like George Mason, Iowa State and Butler were never even considered to get by their first opponent, but ended up making it as far as the finals. This year is no exception as Florida Gulf Coast took out No. 2 seed Georgetown in the first round. This is what makes the NCAA tournament so exciting and brands need to take notice. Disrupt the schema. Give your fans something new here and there (the unexpected), but make sure they expect it. This will keep them on their toes and when it does happen, that means you have confirmed their expectations for your brand and will continue to follow you. Instead of sending an email, send a postcard. Instead of a thank you card, send a salsa band to their house. Make them expect the unexpected.

2. Demonstrate Your Passion

We all love seeing the players dive in the stands, the coaches going off on their players or the fans cover their faces after that miracle 3-pointer. These athletes, coaches and fans would die for their teams. They love their sport, their brand, their players or their teams. The passion is not hidden behind cameras or locker rooms. It is all right there on their shirts. Brands can do the same. If you truly believe in your company’s values and ideas, let everyone know it. My roommate is a perfect example. David works for Verizon and whenever he has the chance to talk cellphone providers, he takes it because he truly believes Verizon is the best out there. Even if he had the chance to move to AT&T for more money, he wouldn’t consider it because he feels it is an inferior product. If you believe this much in your brand, show it off. If you aren’t passionate about your brand, how do you expect others to be?

3. Don’t Sell Too Much

Consumers are getting smarter by the day. The second they sniff out a sales pitch coming on, they turn you off. That is one of the many reasons content marketing has come on these past two years. The NCAA (keep in mind, they make billions on this tournament) doesn’t feel the need to sell their fans on tickets, schools or promotion (well, not too much) because they know people don’t want to hear it. All brands need to sell at one point or another, but when your fans come to expect it, they turn you off. The NCAA knows tournament time is not the time to sell because it would ruin what is already one of the best experiences they produce. Brands need to follow suit. There is always a place and a time to bring out the sales team. Chances are, they need to take a seat on the bench more often than you think.

Finding Amazing Content

Content marketing is starting to take shape. More and more companies are designating funds, people and time for real, timely, relevant and needed content their audiences desire. But what is that content and where can it be found.

Well known industry blogs that I will not name but know who they are talk about going out and finding the types of content that is relevant to their audiences. In order to that, you must listen to your fans. Given the great advancements in social analytics and offline advocacy, this has turned into a somewhat easy task.

But nonetheless, even after you figure out what your audience wants, companies think it is a walk in the park to produce this so-called amazing content. After all, it is this "amazing content" that will drive fans to your website.

But what happens if your 1% (those of you in the industry know what I mean), do not fully represent your entire fan base? That means you are gambling a huge portion of your time and money on chance that the 1% represents your audience as a whole.

Eve more disturbing  what happens if your fans ask for something you just can't produce. What if they want article in Pinterest, yet you don't even run your own Pinterest page? What happens if they wants stats on the ROI of your last "successful" social media plan and yet, that information can not be made public? What do you do then?

I am willing to bet the company would find other experts on Pinterest and share it with their fans. But that doesn't really make you the expert now does it.

My point is that great content does not grow on trees. Blogs out there that say just produce relevant content your fans desire and you will make some dough are not accurately describing the actions a company must take to get the job done.

I don't have the answer just yet, but until, I won't be the one going out and saying to do it before saying how to do it.

"Driving" Engagement; Or Is It?

One industry that continues to invest more and more into social engagement is the automobile business. Even with manufacturers investing a larger percentage of their budgets on social, how many can actually it is paying dividends to their ROI.

Honda, who recently won WOMMA's and the Chicago Automobile Trade Association (CATA) Driving Engagement Award for their "Honda Loves You Back" campaign, had a terrific idea that undoubtedly creative so much online buzz. In case you missed here, take a look.

The campaign, which featured the band Monsters Calling Home, who actually filmed an entire music video in their car. Honda showed their love by organizing a live show on the Jimmy Kimmel show.

As you can, this is a terrific idea. The video has over 1.4 Million views, but how many people saw this video and said, "Wow, Honda did that. I am going to buy one."

No I don't have access to their social media team or their sales team, but I truly wonder how they measured their ROI for this campaign. Did it lead to actual car sales?

If car companies are saying these types of campaigns are providing such dividends, shouldn't they share that with the public?

What do you think?

Selling: Do You Believe in It?

Today, I had the opportunity to leave the office for lunch and meet with a potential new member. Even if it wen badly, at least I was getting a free lunch out of it.

So JM and I met AW to talk about a potential WOMMA speaking gig. Anyone who knows me knows I hate selling. I was never trained to do it. It is not the popular profession in my family. I don't particularly enjoy talking so needless to say it does not fit my persona.

While JM took the lead in explaining all the great benefits of WOMMA, I sat there and admired the work she was doing. JM is just like me. She hates selling. Membership and marketing stay away from the sales jardon and sales conversation. Nonetheless, we let our passion for the brand bleed through.

Both of us truly believe in the power of word of mouth and the idea of what WOMMA stands for. Even if you are not a trained salesman, or women, when you believe in the brand, the conversation naturally flows. Instead of talking numbers and dues, you talk about instances, opportunities and people. You talk about the stuff people truly care about.

In certain instances, the brand just sells itself. Tobacco comes to mind. But, when the brand can't just sell itself, or even if you don't have anything tangible the lead can hold, you have to do the work at it. Believing in that brand makes the work seem like any other conversation,

Hello World

If you want to be a professional writer, it can't be all work and no play. This blog will be the play.

The blog will consist of; lessons I learn living in Chicago, stories I see and hear as a blog editor and marketing coordinator at the Word of Mouth Marketing Association, rules I feel need to be fixed or questioned, and just everyday happenings like riding the train or eating lunch.

To be honest, it may not be worthwhile to the avid reader, but this is my platform and I intent to use it.

Today, I want to talk about networking.

No matter where you are in your career, networking is a necessity  As I have learned at WOMMA, people trust their friends and family over anyone else. Any opportunity one has to meet and greet someone new should take advantage of it. Even if they are not in your industry, there is no telling what you can learn.

Today, I met with JH who left Edelman, the biggest PR firm in the world, to brew his own beer. JH also likes to write. He is even writing a novel. Despite having a decent job, he left to do what his heart desired. Therefore, tonight, I learned that appearances do not mean everything.

You would think a writer would love working at a PR firm, let alone Edelman. However, the agency life is not for everyone. Even if you are a writer at an agency, that doesn't mean you will get to show your creativity. That doesn't mean you will get to express yourself the way you desire. That doesn't mean you will get to do the writing you want to. HENCE, appearances are not everything.

Maybe agency life is different than we think.