~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hit the Market with Everything You've Got

Part Two

November 2009

Irish Wisdom Applied to Business
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The 98-year-old Mother Superior from Ireland was dying. The nuns gathered around her bed, trying to make her last journey comfortable. They gave her some warm milk to drink, but she refused.

One of the nuns took the glass back to the kitchen. Remembering a bottle of Irish whiskey received as a gift the previous Christmas, she opened it and poured a generous amount into the warm milk.

Back at Mother Superior's bed, she held the glass to her lips. Mother drank a little, then a little more and, before they knew it, she had drunk the whole glass down to the last drop.

"Mother Superior," the nuns asked with earnest, "please give us some wisdom before you die." Mother Superior raised herself up in bed and, with a pious look on her face, said, "Don't sell that cow!"

Lessons Learned

* When nothing works, try something different.
* If something works, try some more.
* If something works, keep using it.

When Nothing Works, Try Something Different
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* According to marketing guru Seth Godin, "We live in a world where consumers actively resist marketing. So it's imperative to stop marketing at people. The idea is to create an environment where consumers will market to one another."
* We also live in a time where time has become more valuable than money, where people in business compete on the basis of the myth that "I am busier than you are," and where we don't want other people wasting our time (but it's OK if we waste it ourselves, as long as no one else does).
* Reading an ad, or watching a commercial on TV, or paying attention to a pop-up on the internet, or listening to a telemarketer, and getting nothing out of it is becoming increasingly aggravating. We just don't want anybody else messing with our time and attention. That said, then how are we supposed to get anyone's attention for long enough to get a sales message across and maybe even close a sale?
* If your kitchen sink stopped up, what might you do? You might try to unplug it on your own or you might lookup a plumber in the Yellow Pages, or you might ask a neighbor if he or she knows the name of a good, reliable plumber. Which path would you most likely choose?
* Well, after trying to do it yourself and not succeeding, you could look in the Yellow Pages. The problem, however, is that there is no way of telling who would be the most reliable and reasonably priced. So, you decide to ask your neighbor. Why? Because you trust him more than the anonymous Yellow Pages;

Congratulations! You have uncovered Word of Mouth, or BUZZ!

If Something Works, Try Some More
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* You may have the answer to the question of how to get anyone's attention for long enough to get a sales message across. As for maybe closing the sale, that depends upon the quality and the persuasiveness of your message.
* So, first you must reach the potential customer through a source that he or she trusts more than traditional marketing and advertising. Then you must create and convey a message that offers compelling value and is credible.
* Of course, trying to contact every potential customer personally can be a very slow process. The Six Degrees of Separation of Kevin Bacon work well, but take too long to carry out on a one-to-one personal basis. You need to find something that is like Word of Mouth on steroids. What would that be? The Internet!
* According to the Direct Marketing Association, e-mailings draw more business than snail mailings, and the ROI is many times better. Does it work with all products and all customers? Of course not, but it is a very cost-effective method of getting information out to the right people. E-mail is the medium, but it is the message that sells. The message is what causes the buzz - provided it is the right product directed at the right people.
* What kinds of products and services sell best through e-mail? This should not come as a surprise: Exciting and Innovative products and services.
* What kinds of prospects are most influenced by e-mail campaigns? Consumers. Why? Because their purchasing decisions tend to be more emotional than reasoned.
* What if you are selling Business-to-Business? Business people are still people, but if the end users of their products and services have influence on the suppliers, then consumer-focused, buzz-generating, e-mail campaigns may have a powerful impact that companies cannot ignore.
* What if your product is excellent, but does not generate excitement? Well, we are talking about innovations that offer something new. If not exciting, it should at least offer appreciable value and must exceed expectations.

What if the Internet and e-mail campaigns don't work for your product or service, and don't reach the right prospects? Then, that brings us to the third lesson learned:

If Something Works, Keep Using It
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* According to marketing guru Philip Kotler, the purpose of marketing is to eliminate selling. As far as I am concerned, it is about getting the customer to buy; so, if there is a transaction, there is a sale. But, there is a place for traditional marketing in innovation when trying hit the market with everything you've got
* We have been taught that the Four P's of Marketing are Product, Place, Price, and Promotion. I think there are four more: Passion, People, Performance, and Perception.
* Passion. By the time you have competed the innovation/product development process, you should be feeling strongly about what you have to offer. It is vital to communicate that passion to potential prospects. Too often companies describe their products in ways that sound like the don't believe what they are saying. If you were trying to tell someone that you love her/him, you probably wouldn't say, "Oh, and by the way, I love you." My advice to you is SAY IT LIKE YOU MEAN IT! Put your passion into your message! People equate passion with sincerity. As you deliver on your promises, identify additional needs, and WOW your customers every time you interact with them. Remember, there are two kinds of WOW: Intellectual and Emotional. Intellectual WOWs are cool. Emotional WOWs are heartfelt. Cool WOWs fade away. Heartfelt WOWs stay with customers forever. You achieve emotional WOWs with customer experiences; as you hit the market, target people's hearts.
* People. In the end, it is all about people. Companies don't make buying decisions; people do. People have emotions, and those emotions drive their buying decisions, no matter how high they are in the company hierarchy. Never be so rational, logical, and scientific, that you message comes across as cold and unfeeling.
* Performance. A sale is a promise of performance, that the product or service delivers what it promises. The best policy is to underpromise and overdeliver. Do everything in your power to make sure that your product or service lives up to your customer's expectations, which - by the way - are pretty much based on your promises.
* Perception. People don't necessarily buy based on reality, but on perception, that is, what they believe the product or service will deliver. Therefore, during the marketing and sales processes, the focus must be on creating a powerful mental image of forthcoming satisfaction, in a word - Perception!

Getting People to Do Something
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In the end, marketing is about motivating people to do something. When you hit the market with everything you've got make sure it is a call to action and has a sense of urgency. What will prospects get from acting now, versus what they might lose by not acting now?

Hitting the market with an innovation is about getting attention. Developing a market is about building long-term relationships. Remember, Bottom Line growth comes only with long-term relationships...

Key Factor

Something to keep in mind.

When nothing works, try something different.
If something works, try some more.
If something works, keep using it.

Yes, but to know if something works, YOU MUST FIRST MEASURE IT! Because, what you don't measure, you don't get!

Note. There are many more marketing aspects to launching an innovative product or service, far more than we could ever include in a single issue of this newsletter. Incidentally, this issue ends the Innovation Series we began two years ago. Future issues will cover a much wider range of topics, many of which will deal with those other aspects mentioned above.

Attention. We are in the process of remodeling our website www.FreeProfitTips.com. It has a new look and some new features and benefits. Please check it out and give us some feedback; we'd really appreciate it.

Thank you for following this series on Innovation. Even though I have been innovative throughout my career, I learned a lot doing the research to produce these newsletters. The only way to survive and thrive in these tough times will be through extensive and intensive Innovation and Productivity. If you would like some help and guidance developing new products and services, feel free to contact me at (630) 420 3605 or at mykwyn@aol.com .