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February 28, 2007
It Ain't About the Money
"It is money -- and only money -- the reason we are leaving today." With that statement former Governor Tom Vilsack closed his campaign for the presidency in 2008. Sorry, Governor, it was not only money that drove you from the race. It was a host of other factors, including lack of a compelling vision, failure to connect with voters, and an ability to make your cause resonate with people outside of Iowa. Vilsack was by all accounts a good governor but he did not demonstrate what it takes to be president. That's why he's out. (Source: CNN )
Vilsack's money woes echo the complaints of far too many managers I have heard moaning the failure of their products. They are fond of launching into the "If only" lament which goes like this: "If only we could have spent more time in design... If only we could have afforded more engineering tests... If only we could have run more TV spots..." And on and on. True, money is vital the development of every new product. But money is not the sole basis for success. If it were, the Sultan of Brunei would be king of the world and not simply of his oil fields.
Success depends on factors like vision, execution, and perseverance.
Posted by John Baldoni at 2:34 PM
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Gap's "Forth and Towne" Debacle Being Misinterpreted; Blame AARP
The business press has been all over the Gap's decision to close their "Forth and Towne" division after having sunk $40 million into this ill-fated attempt to win over women 35+ who were -- or so the argument went -- disenfranchised by the fashion world's obsession with the youth market.
Looking for an explanation for what went wrong, the New York Times noted that "...analysts said merchants rushing to fill a perceived gap in the mall created too much competition in a niche market." Huh? The market is far from niche. As the Times reported only a few paragraphs later, "In slides for investors the executives...ticked off the numbers that seemed to ensure success: Baby boomers, they said, spent $42.7 billion on apparel last year, while teenagers spent $20 billion."
The problem wasn't that the niche market couldn't support the number of competitive stores, or that the merchandise assortment wasn't appealing. The problem was that baby boomers don't want to be addressed as baby boomers, and even women as young as 35 don't want to be put into the age box.
Posted by Adam Hanft at 1:45 PM
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Small Ideas Die
"Unless your advertising is built on a big idea, it will pass like a ship in the night." -- David Ogilvy (1911-1999), Legendary advertising executive
A friend of mine recently showed me his book of dreams. He's a residential real estate broker who's built a booming business on on the idea of "finding your dream home." Years ago I realized that everyone has a dream home whether they've articulated it or not," he explained to me. "So I put together a book of common elements in dream houses - lighting, space, bookshelves, greenery etc. I take it with me everywhere and add to it all the time. People love looking through it. It helps them reconnect with what they love about a home. In fact, I've had people call me just to look through the book. It's helped me open and close more doors than conventional sales techniques ever have."
Consider This:
Big ideas inspire. They engage people's hearts and minds. They ignite creative thinking and action. They have staying power. Above, Ogilvy is talking about advertising, but it goes for everything in life - your projects, your programs, your business. If you don't build them on a big idea, they become impossible to maintain - and pass like a ship in the night.
Continue reading "Small Ideas Die"Posted by Doug Sundheim at 1:00 PM
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Rules to Live By
Recently I came across an article by Bob Parsons where he talks about the 16 Rules he tries to live by. I thought it was brilliantly written and certainly an eye opener for anyone in any line of work, no line of work, trying to get a handle on life as, in some cases it seems to be getting away from them. If you're trying to get a handle on your life, then who or what is in control of it right now?
I would encourage all of you to read his rules and see if and how they're applicable to what you might be living. In the meantime I'd like to share my rules for getting the best in life, as they apply to life, work, relationships -- any and all aspects of putting life in perspective.
•Get the job done
•Recognize feelings, issues and circumstances that might stand in the way
•Rule 3 is Rule 2 NEVER gets in the way of Rule 1
Getting the job done might be keeping a commitment, or finishing a personal or professional goal for example. No matter what it is, remember intentions equal results. If you intend to do something, feel something, complete something, it will happen...good, bad or indifferent.
Continue reading "Rules to Live By"Posted by Donna Karlin at 11:56 AM
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Citizen Journalism
PBS' "Frontline" is doing a series called "News War: What's Happening to the News". Part 3 aired last night @ 9pm, but you can watch it online.
Segment 19 in part 3 is of particular interest to those of us involved in videoblogging, which is, on the simplest level, putting videos on a blog. These videos could be personal. They could be something created or acted out. They could be just about anything.... Except they could also be a documentation of something that happened. For some reason, there's a debate surrounding the importance of this. It seems completely obvious to me that if you document something and post it for people to see..... right now...... ALL around the world........ that makes your work just as valid, if not MORE SO than someone who has a job called "journalist" and took some courses explaining HOW they're supposed to report things and WHAT they're supposed to report. :/
The first part of Segment 19 features an interview with Andrew Baron, creator of Rocketboom, as well as clips featuring Joanne Colan, current Rocketboom anchor and Amanda Congdon, former Rocketboom anchor, subsequently of Amanda Across America, and now ABC News. There's also a clip of Amanda interviewing Josh Wolf, who's currently in jail because of "citizen journalism".
Continue reading "Citizen Journalism"Posted by Bill Cammack at 11:00 AM
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Working From Home Has Its Drawbacks
MY WORK-LIFE BALANCE SHEET
I thought it was going to be easy, a no-brainer. A guy’s not spending enough time with his family because he’s always at the office, well shove the office and work at home. It seemed like a simple mathematical equation, like if Suzie has three apples and Billy has 5 apples but gives one to Suzie and puts it on a train heading southbound from Penn Station ten minutes before a northbound train leaves Chicago for Newark, which conductor will be promoted first? As you can see, the “simple” part of that mathematical equation went out the window with Suzie’s apples, and my plan for Nirvana went off the rails. Before I knew it, I was on a very different train, headed straight to What Was I Thinking station.
Who wouldn’t be drawn by the allure of working out of your house? Bye-bye getting up early, bye-bye being stuck in hideous rush-hour traffic jams. Hello reading the Journal while watching The Price is Right, hello getting used to myself in nothing but a bathrobe and jock strap. Actually, that was one of the first pitfalls of my new at-home lifestyle. You sit splayed out in your office chair in a robe and a jock, well, you’re gonna scratch yourself (if you’re a guy anyway). And before you know it, that has a subtle effect on the way you conduct yourself on the phone. You get a little lazy, a little too off-the-cuff. I’m an executive recruiter, and very soon phrases like “this client’s skill set is right in line with the vision of your company” started coming out like “aaayy, listen, ‘dis guy’s a freakin’ stand-up guy, you don’t hire him you deserve everything you freakin’ get.”
Posted by Tom Stern at 8:00 AM
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February 27, 2007
Three Reasons Why I Will Still Fly JetBlue
Even before JetBlue left planefuls of customers stranded on the runway for hours, earlier this month, I had a bad JB experience that broke my heart. My flight left late for fueling reasons that are still beyond my comprehension, but that were totally preventable. With one of the lavatories out of order, the tension on the plane was palpable.
And you know what? I still plan to fly JetBlue!
Even though a silly planning snafu delayed my flight by hours, and I returned home from an already grueling business trip at 4am, even before David Neeleman's unpolished apology was made available on YouTube, I was willing to believe that JetBlue would fix what's broken. Here's why:
Continue reading "Three Reasons Why I Will Still Fly JetBlue"Posted by Jory Des Jardins at 7:43 PM
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Get off the Marketing Train
I recently heard one of those “What is this world coming to?” stories. A friend’s husband commutes to work in NYC by train and has trouble finding a place to stand, and forget about sitting. Turns out that commuters on his rush hour train mark their territory by reserving their little patch of floor to stand on. And God help anyone who takes their space.
It all makes sense in a peculiar way. Everyone wants to carve out their own little space. Unfortunately, when done at the expense of others, it’s simply rude, not just territorial.
All of which has application for personal branding. How do we put our stamp of individuality on what we do and carve out our own territory without putting barriers around ourselves?
As personal branders we need to clearly define what sets us apart. It can be a flair for numbers or efficiency or teamwork or sociability to name just a handful of characteristics. Ultimately, it’s anything that makes us special and gives us an edge so we’re not just clones of one another trying frantically to keep up with our colleagues.
Our brand is our personal signature. However, if we’re going to move beyond being “train territory marketers,” we need not only to define ourselves but also determine how we relate to others. Our personal brand is only powerful if it has the ability to engage others and add value for other people. It can’t be so different that it ropes us off.
Barak Obama, regardless of what you think of his politics, understands the need for inclusion by talking about his supporters’ “taking a journey to take our country back and change the fundamental nature of our politics.” He’s inviting everyone to be part of his public journey.
Obviously, we in our workaday lives don’t need to engage a nation, just the people we touch -- or want to touch.
Is your personal brand implicitly or explicitly inviting people to engage you? Are you making yourself available to people? Do others know they can count on you?
.Wendy Marx • Public Relations/Marketing Communications • President, Marx Communications, Inc. wendy@marxcommunications.com
Posted by Wendy Marx at 9:17 AM
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Dilbert Must Be Stopped
CEO DAD'S TUESDAY TIRADE
I know it’s been a little bit since I posted here, but I just spent a week hanging out with the intellectuals in Doonesbury, and not only do I now have even less faith in how you human beings run your government, but I’m all mixed up about where the hell the punch line is in a Garry Trudeau cartoon. I asked the guy who made me up, Tom Stern, to explain it to me, and he gave me some cop-out answer like “it’s satire, it’s dry wit,” but I could tell he was covering because, like most of us, he doesn’t want to admit that anything beyond Andy Rooney is as threatening as one of those Best Foreign Film nominees from Burkina-Faso.
At least I had a week to take my mind of Dilbert’s continuing dominance of the workplace-related comic strip market. I thought I made my case last week that he is actually destroying the very fabric of our nation, but I guess it can take a while for harsh truths to sink in. Like when I told Tom Stern that inventing me was just a backhanded way of flipping off his father…let’s just say he made several “outreach calls” before writing me into a strip that morning.
But, it’s clear to me now that I have to take matters into my own hands. I live in the comic strip universe and you don’t, so you can’t be expected to feel the same sense of urgency that I do. You’ve got your own busy lives involving stuff people in my world never get to do. Like download a video of Britney Spears “forgetting” to wear underwear, or ignoring global climate change. By the same token, you can’t magically project yourself into the panels of a daily cartoon and stop the carnage wrought by Dilbert and company each and every week. I, however, can. And I can tell you that Dilbert and all of his cronies can hear me right this very minute. And I am calling you out, Dilbert. CEO DAD is challenging you to admit your wrongdoings (see February 20th blog for full list of offenses), and either start being a better role model for the workforce, or step off, and give me my rightful place as the one who leads by example in the newsprint netherworld.
Get back to me at this space, Dorkbert, if you dare.
And to my readers, I remain,
Yours fictionally,
Frank Pitt, CEO DAD
Tom Stern is the founder of Stern Executive Search and the creator of CEO Dad, the syndicated comic strip about executive dysfuntion.
Posted by Tom Stern at 8:00 AM
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February 26, 2007
Neeleman Unplugged
On the heels of my last post concerning the poor record of airline customer communication, David Neeleman, the CEO of JetBlue has posted a video on YouTube and on the JetBlue website.
It's an interesting video for a number of reasons. Neeleman's performance is anything but polished but, for a change, I'm not bothered too much by it. He seems to be speaking in a somewhat impromptu manner with lots of umms, uhhs, swallows and lip smacking. The organization of his thoughts also seems a bit loose.
I'm surmising that Neeleman decided to do this video because despite his repeated apologies and expressions of shame during the past week and a half, the damage to JetBlue's image was too great to be left to the middlemen also known as the press. He did not want his words to be colored by other sources -- critics and pundits -- that reporters typically interview when putting together an article. Neeleman wanted to have a more direct impact. He felt, perhaps, that his apologia would be taken as more sincere if customers could see his facial expression, vocal inflection, hand gestures and other nonverbal cues. The question is, did he succeed?
Continue reading "Neeleman Unplugged"Posted by Ruth Sherman at 7:28 PM
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There are No Wrong Answers (Except Yours)
MY WORK-LIFE BALANCE SHEET
I suppose it says something about my problems with co-dependence that I’m thinking of lying to my computer screen. See, I just found this Web site called Quintessential Careers, founded by Dr. Randall Hansen, and on it is a work-life balance quiz The thing is, I was raised in a family of successful CEO’s whose idea of work-life balance was remembering not to back over the family on their way out of the garage. Needless to say, failing a test is not an option in this gene pool. But one look at the questions on Dr. Hansen’s quiz, and I know I’m going to be staring down the long barrel of defeat, or mired in the swamp of untapped potential, or some other metaphor that indicates severe choking in a clutch situation. (Once upon a time, I could have used the Boston Red Sox to drive this point home, but as of 2004, even that die-hard comparison went by the boards.)
So, even though this is an anonymous test, and the Quintessential Careers privacy policy guarantees that my e-mail will not be used for nefarious purposes, still I contemplate lying to a computer. What choice do I have? I mean, listen to some of these true-or-false questions: Number 6: “I feel stressed out most of the time.” Number 15: “I almost always bring work home with me.” Or unlucky Number 13: “I do what I do because so many people depend on me for their support.” Clearly, this test demands rigorous honesty, and clearly I must fudge my way out of that approach faster than you can say “Dr. Phil.” To do otherwise would be to let down my entire lineage. The proud Stern men did not raise a quitter. (No, they raised a recovering addict with ADD, but that’s another story.)
Continue reading "There are No Wrong Answers (Except Yours)"Posted by Tom Stern at 5:26 PM
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February 23, 2007
Who Made Urban
Urban culture is a something we've all heard about for a long time. But who created it? And what is it?
Largely "urban" means African American. But it us used to refer to some cultural trend (music, fashion, political, etc) that originates within African American culture but has moved to a broader audience and more racially inclusive audience: an urban audience.
These are the five most influential people and platforms without which there would be no urban (in order of impact):
1. Russell Simmons
Mr. Simmons created the culture or more accurately he was the best promoter this new culture could ever imagine. He built the house and showed the next generations how to do it. Future moguls would now have a blueprint. People like Lyor Cohen who is now at Warner Music Group added business acumen to Russell's instinct, and Rick Rubin added talent, but Simmons was the x-factor.
2. MTV and then BET
MTV enabled young people to create a common culture. Suddenly kids in Idaho could see what kids in the Bronx were doing and wearing and it looked like fun. There weren't an awful lot of brown-skinned people on MTV and that opened the door for another class-A entrepreneur Robert Johnson and he made a billion dollar business out of urban.
3. The Source and Vibe
Hate it or love it The Source was the Bible. If you were a fan, The Source gave you great edit. It was honest and seemed as much a part of the culture as the music. Vibe took that one step further -- Vibe "urbanized" the culture and crossed it over so white kids, and Latin kids, and Asian kids really could see themselves within in the pages and thus within the culture.
4. Dr. Dre
Well not just him, but a whole West Coast crew that picked up the business when it didn't know where to go next. And then things got a little too interesting and violent. But Dre was the glue and the business person that enabled that giant cultural leap out in the West to have credibility and staying power. He's still there.
5. Sean "Diddy" Combs.
Sean made hip hop into pop music. In some ways the "culture' hasn't recovered. He showed how deeply the culture could be mined. So there are bigger talents like Jay Z, but Jay Z is a talent, and an artist, and even now a businessman. But Sean changed the culture and broadened it in a way that only he could.
So that's it. Different people have different perspectives, but these are the pillars of the culture. What's next? I will be doing a series of interviews with some of the people involved in the creation of the culture and we'll see what they're thinking. Stay tuned.
John N. Pasmore • New York, NY • mailto:johnpasmore@gmail.com • www.nextthingsnext.com
Posted by John N. Pasmore at 9:37 PM
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innovation: A Rose By Any Other Name?
Names can be powerful. They can evoke an emotion, an ideal, even memories.
In business, the right name can convey character, bestow distinction, and make an impression that lasts. Names can send out vibes that subtly shape perception.
What this has to do with the technology shaping air travel is this: Like many of you, I enjoy getting to the airport about as much as getting a root canal. There is one glimmer on the horizon that may change this nightmare into a dream for both you and me.
That glimmer goes by a dream-name — "Dreamliner."
Continue reading "innovation: A Rose By Any Other Name?"Posted by Robert Buckman at 5:59 PM
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Are you a Kool Kid, a Gadgetier, or a Massive Passive?
An IBM consulting report titled "The End of Television As We Know It" divides viewers into three distinct groups: Kool Kids, Gadgetiers and the Massive Passives. It's an interesting shorthand with implications that go beyond television viewing habits.
According to the report, there's a "Generational Chasm" between older viewers who passively receive live television, and a younger "lean forward" group who demands more control, flexibility and portability. The lean forward group is divided into two segments, teenage "Kool Kids" who are tech savvy but cash poor, and twenty-something "Gadgetiers" with lots of disposable income to buy devices and services.
The distinction between the Gadgetiers and the Kool Kids is a helpful one. According to the report, the Kool Kids are into user generated content, instant messaging, filesharing and mobility. They know the workarounds to defeat copyright protection, because they have more time than money.
The Gadgetiers, on the other hand, are willing to buy hundreds of songs on iTunes and pay for advanced subscription services. They may use peer-to–peer or YouTube to access material they can't get through traditional means, but are willing to pay for content and convenience.
I think this typology applies equally well to the music space. A look at the best selling albums of 2006 makes it clear that the older demographic dominates the purchase of traditional CD's. The Gadgetiers are iTunes best customers, and the Kool Kids are ripping, burning and trading.
IBM's brain trust warns the media business that the Massive Passives and their fat wallets will not last forever. "The Massive Passives, the largest group today, represent the annity to fund the industry's future growth." From TV to Movies to Music to Newspapers, that sentence pretty well sums up the challenge.
Posted by Greg Spotts at 12:35 PM
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February 22, 2007
To Some, "Small Business" is Big Business
Language is a form of power. It is far more than simply communication. Its usage, evolution and application can confer or limit power and status like other forms of influence, bet they physical or mental.
Thus, we have to take great care how we wield language, and jargon is no exception. One such jargony term that so many Americans seem to use without any concern for its range of meaning to different people is "small business". And the reason I mention this term is because there are a whole host of assumptions that many of us make consciously and unconsciously that are germane to discussions of what is popularly viewed as "socially responsible" behavior.
If we were to poll 1,000 "average Americans" and ask them just a few questions on this subject, I wonder how they would respond. First instance, how about actually asking folks how they define "small business". And since I am not aware of any such national poll, I will go on the record and assuming that many -- if not a majority of those polled would essentially equate small businesses with "mom-and-pop" establishments -- the kind of family-owned neighborhood business that many Americans are familiar whose childhood predated the ubiquity of national chains and other big-box retailers.
Continue reading "To Some, "Small Business" is Big Business"Posted by Chris Rabb at 12:06 PM
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Customer Service is a Mindset
There is a special place in Heaven for the folks who invented automated answering systems. I’m sure you have stories to tell. How much time have you wasted trying to get a human being when you needed help from a provider?
I recently came across a database that includes the best-known numbers for companies. Find help from credit companies, government offices, software providers, shipping and travel companies. The list provides instructions on what to do when you reach the number so that you can get a human on the other side of the phone (e.g., press 0 and then say “customer service”).
As I looked through the list, I did not see an entry for ING Direct, where I bank. That’s quite all right, because as they say in their outdoor ads, “To Speak to a Person, press 1 then 800 ING Direct.” I had to call them yesterday: I had locked myself out of my online account. When I dialed their number, after one touch-tone selection, I got a person.
Continue reading "Customer Service is a Mindset"Posted by Valeria Maltoni at 9:44 AM
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February 21, 2007
Paying Attention to What Unfolds
...or as I call it walking in your own shadow.
As a Shadow Coach and teacher of Shadow Coaching I have to be doubly aware of what I do in order to be able to put words around reality and reproduce models, snapshots in time or contextual insights so they can be repeated. I need to articulate what I do in such a way others can almost reach out and touch it.
When I am able to teach my clients the same concepts of mindfulness, those dynamics are present and I love watching as the awareness sinks in. They not only learn how to go deeper and wider in the dynamics of working with others but their self-awareness or walking in their own shadows increases as well.
That’s what happens in every realm of life, isn’t it? Every day someone might say something to to of which you have no clue and if you pay attention and your interest is piqued, you will be eager to learn more. If you do let that happen there won't be a day where you won't grow and learn and become even more masterful in your role. If you don't pay attention to anything other than what you already know, it's the same as having a conversation of the deaf.
Paying attention creates interdevelopmentalism. Doing something with a seed that's planted can create the intermagical. If your relationships aren't interdevelopmental then you're looking at your world from a position of someone who knows it all. If that's the case you do in fact know very little as it's limited to you and only you.
Continue reading "Paying Attention to What Unfolds"Posted by Donna Karlin at 7:16 PM
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JetBlue and Merck: Whom do you trust?
JetBlue is having its own Katrina crisis, but they will emerge successfully not just because they have a CEO willing to listen and learn, but because they have so much goodwill in the image bank that there's enough reserve currency for them to draw upon. The full-page, full-on national mea culpa that ran today in the New York Times and other papers is a key step in their public repentence process.
The reason the will prove resilient is that they "saved" for a rainy -- or a snow and icy -- day, by years and years of innovation. It wasn't spin, but a revolutionary customer-first spirit that everyone who flew the airline could feel.
Even the fundamental reason for the breakdown -- an inadequate investment in infrastructure and communications -- can be rationalized by some as another example of the carrier's dedication to keeping costs down, an ultimate consumer benefit. They tried too hard for those they love.
Continue reading "JetBlue and Merck: Whom do you trust?"Posted by Adam Hanft at 2:36 PM
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What Does It Take to Aim Low
Is the lower end of the consumer segment really profitable? If yes, why are so few brands pursuing it? What does it take to make this segment really work for your brand? This is a sample of emailed questions I received to my previous blog. I am not the least bit surprised, because these are exactly the kind of questions some of my American clients are trying to answer, as they go about expanding their base in India.
Many a book may have been written on this subject, but the irony is that a successful marketing strategy for the lower-end consumer segment requires adherence to the simplest and most fundamental principles of marketing.
Posted by Anupam Mukerji at 10:24 AM
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Apologize? Who me?
You decide which apologist gets it right.
One said, “Yes, I regret it. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said I hate gay people…”
The other said, “I’m ready to bear all responsibility for what happened. You can’t hurt me any worse than I am right now.”
The first apology came from Tim Hardaway, a former NBA All-Star who told a sport talk radio show host that he never would wanted to have played with a gay player because such a player could not be trusted. A gay player “should not be in the locker room while we [straight players] are in the locker room.”
The second apology came from NASCAR driver, Michael Waltrip, assuming responsibility for his race team using a jet-fuel derived additive during qualification for the 2007 Daytona 500. Altered fuels are banned and considered verboten. Waltrip’s team was caught cheating by race officials, and his crew chief was suspended for an indefinite period.
Posted by John Baldoni at 10:00 AM
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February 20, 2007
Old Spice, MINI USA & Jeep As Media Companies
One of my big interests related to branded entertainment is in entertainment properties with which the brand owner essentially takes on the role of a media company. Recent examples that have caught my eye all turn out to focus on manliness in one form or another.
Old Spice recently announced a website that I assumed I would dislike before discovering that it's pretty darn entertaining.
The opening video/commercial at Experience Old Spice is essentially a spoken word performance by Bruce Campbell on the topic of experience occurring in an absurdist take on a old boy's club lounge and it's hilarious. A variety of little time wasters follow, from tests of one's experience to a blog with a whole crew of writers, and they seem like a great way to decrease productivity at the office.
What's also nice about the site is that its comic take on masculinity offers an alternative to such disturbing phenomenon as The Man Show.
This isn't Old Spice's first foray as a media company. Their When She's Hot site, which is a bit more Man Show-ish, is a great '05 example of a trendy, interactive site with "Beats & Scratches by the X-Ecutioners" that could be debuted in 2007.
Related efforts include Hammer & Coop for MINI USA and Jeep Patriot Comics, a partnership between Jeep and Marvel Comics.
Clyde Smith • ProHipHop • clyde(at)prohiphop(dot)com
Posted by Clyde Smith at 10:53 PM
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Hello, Smart Personal Brander
What can lousy customer service teach us about personal branding?
Quite a bit it turns out.
The recent catastrophe at Jet Blue where some customers were left stranded on runways for up to 10 hours is just the most glaring example of egregious customer service turning into a colossal branding disaster. Many companies large and small have their own mini Jet Blues all the time.
Recently, I’ve spent a seemingly gazillion hours battling customer service nightmares from the likes of Verizon Wireless and Hello Direct. In fairness, both telephone companies, once you escalate your complaints to supervisors and managers, try to help. Of course, why you should have to do that is another matter.
Both businesses, like so many others, put their reps on a treadmill so they repeat the same action over and over. Hello Direct kept sending me replacement phones – I must have six now – none of which work. Finally, a manager had the light bulb idea that someone actually test a phone before sending it. Hello, Direct!
Meanwhile, Verizon has the audacity now to charge for a copy of a bill. Here is part of an email I received from one of their reps:
I can send a copy of your current billing statement to the address on your account. There is a fee of $6.00 that will apply for each statement requested. Customers are entitled to a free billing statement once every six months.
Hello, Verizon!
These companies are forgetting an essential rule of corporate – and personal – branding: Any time you touch a customer, you have an opportunity to turn it into a positive branding experience. How differently I would have felt about both companies if I didn’t have to spend hours trying to correct problems that could have been solved at the get go -- or wasn’t initially charged for a service that should be free. Just ask the recent customers of Jet Blue what bad customer service can do to a brand.
In your own business or career, what can you do to insure that every time you touch a customer or employee, you are leaving the person more satisfied? Here are a few ideas:
• Provide extras. If you make a mistake, don’t just own up to it and fix it. Offer an additional helpful service, free product or at the least a “can do” attitude that shows you value the person you hurt.
• Guarantee satisfaction. Make a personal pledge that every customer or person you do business with is satisfied within reason. Every satisfied customer is a potential source of new business; while any dissatisfied customer can cost your business. Which type of customers do you want to create?
• Learn from your mistakes. Don’t be a robot repeating the same worthless action over and over. Instead ask yourself what you can do differently to prevent the same mistake. And make the necessary changes immediately.
Hello, Smart Personal Brander!
Wendy Marx • Public Relations/Marketing Communications
President, Marx Communications, Inc. • wendy@marxcommunications.com
Posted by Wendy Marx at 8:40 AM
| 6 Comments
February 19, 2007
Airline Turbulence
So now it's the flying high JetBlue that is being brought down to earth. Apparently, on Wednesday, February 14 -– Valentine's Day no less -- passengers on several JetBlue flights were kept waiting on the tarmac at JFK. And as I write this, it's not yet over. More than 850 flights have been cancelled including hundreds during this President's Day weekend. I just happen to be in Maine where JetBlue only recently began serving Portland. All JetBlue flights have been cancelled. Check out the gory and scary details in this New York Times article and and this one, too. In New York, JetBlue is everyone's favorite airline and is likely to be forgiven. Here in Maine, however, where the airline has not had a chance to establish a loyal following, it's going to be a long, hard slog.
We frequent travelers have all been there, trapped on a plane that desperately wants to take off. Food runs out, babies are screaming and young children (and adults) are losing control. Lately, reports from this incident and the other one involving American Airlines in late December have included overflowing lavatories. Yuck!
It happened to me twice. Once on a United Airlines evening flight from New York to Chicago and the other on a return trip from a really wonderful family vacation on America West. In the first case, the pilot communicated with us often and made us laugh a few times. We did finally get to Chicago 5 hours late, in the wee hours, but everyone remained in good humor. No news reports, no lawsuits. In the second instance, it was the usual lack of information from the cockpit. Everyone was given a travel voucher that hangs on my bulletin board to this day. But it didn't matter to me because after that experience I vowed to avoid America West Airlines like the plague. (The voucher quickly became unusable because AW gobbled up by US Airways shortly thereafter. What a surprise.)
Continue reading "Airline Turbulence"Posted by Ruth Sherman at 3:24 PM
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Hold the Mayo -- Part Two
MY WORK-LIFE BALANCE SHEET
Assume the Position
Hey, folks, I tried another Mayo Clinic technique. For those of you keeping track, it's in the section of the article called "Striking the Best Work-Life Balance," and it's about halfway down on the list: "Nurture Yourself." They suggest making time for a relaxing activity you enjoy, such as walking or listening to music. The prospect of a nice, dull walk seems like about as much fun as deliberately contracting mange, and listening to music is no good either, since it either pumps me up like the "Theme From Rocky" (and not that lame "Eye of the Tiger" one from Rocky II, either. I'm talking the original, the one that plays while he drinks raw eggs and pounds a freezer full of meat), or it makes me want to reach into my Ipod and throttle whoever's singing (Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, James Blunt...the list of potential crimes of passion is endless).
So, I figured I'd try their other suggestion, yoga. It kind of sucked right away since my instructor was not the bra-less New Age hottie I had envisioned, but a guy who combined the commanding physical presence of Drew Carey with Tom Hanks' hair from The DaVinci Code. We started with some basic breathing exercises, which were supposed to reduce stress and make you aware of your body's natural rhythms. This only made me more aware of my own nostrils, which was somewhere between unpleasant and just plain snarky. The Downward-Facing Dog finds you with your butt up in the air and your hands and feet planted firmly on the floor. All right, so maybe I shouldn't have quipped "this is exactly the pose I strike with my lawyer," but I think I heard one guy chuckle with understanding.
Finally, we were supposed to take ten minutes of silent meditation. I lasted about forty seconds, after which I used my time much more productively by going to the front desk and talking with the owner about ways to diversify. You'll be glad to know that he took my advice, and will soon be opening the world's first yoga center/fried chicken franchise. Not to brag about my business sense, but if I can bring a guy around who spends most of his time in a lotus position, think of what I can do for you.
Anyway, Mayo Clinic, so far you're "O" for two with your suggestions. I'll keep trying.
TOP THREE TAKEAWAYS
- Yoga is a thousands-year-old tradition designed to improve your health, and increase your connection to the universe. Oh, and a decent mat to do all this crap on will cost you $39.95.
- Being aware of your own breathing can put you in touch with your core energies. Or, it can simply freak you out.
- When it comes to being properly prepared for yoga, I've been told anything from the Men's Wearhouse does not qualify as "loose fitting clothing."
Tom Stern is the founder of Stern Executive Search and the creator of CEO Dad, the syndicated comic strip about executive dysfuntion.
Posted by Tom Stern at 12:05 PM
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Joost for Mac build pulled
The Joost for Mac build was pulled today [link: 19/02/07: Mac build pulled]. Fortunately, I already have mine. :D
Basically, the idea behind Joost is video on demand with extras like widgets for a clock, jabber chat, chat with others on the same channel you're watching, the ability to rate the video you're watching, a notice board and a news ticker.
Continue reading "Joost for Mac build pulled"Posted by Bill Cammack at 9:00 AM
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February 18, 2007
Meet the world
From brazilianartists:
Caro Doria is Brazilian, 25 and has been working for the magazine Grande Reportagem, in Lisbon, Portugal, for the last 3 years. He is part of the team that produced the flags campaign which has been circulating the Earth in chain letters via e-mail.
Angola
Brazil
Burkina
China
Columbia
EU
Somalia
United States
Nick Rice • Lexington, Ky • nick@cre8tivegroup.com • www.cre8tivegroup.com
Posted by Nick Rice at 4:54 PM
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February 16, 2007
Ten Ways to Inject Fun Into the Workplace
MY WORK-LIFE BALANCE SHEET
When I first heard that there was a book called "Work Like Your Dog," I had some unsavory visions of excusing myself from an important meeting to drink out of the toilet bowl, taking a moment out of a client lunch to rub against their leg, or simply getting caught cleaning myself when my assistant walked in. It turns out, Matt Weinstein and Luke Barber had something completely different in mind, and it concerns the notion that dogs are actually really energetic and good at play. My ongoing vision for my radio show "Opportunity Knocks" has been to combine business with a sense of humor, two things that are often mutually exclusive in our society.
According to a William M. Mercer survey, only 29 percent of employers nationwide encourage humor as part of their company culture, and only eight percent have a policy of using fun to reduce employee stress. Yet, research at California State University Long Beach showed that people who have fun at work are more creative, more productive, work better with others and call in sick less often. Indeed, we were privileged to have as our guest on the show recently Paul Orfalea, the founder of Kinko's, who encouraged a whole lot of wild stuff in the workplace to make his staff happier. Check out his book, "Copy This!" for the juicy details.
So what's everybody waiting for? Those who are ready to shake things up can take advantage of the Tom Stern, work-life balance, ten-point plan for making the job you go to every day a zanier, more exciting place to be.
Posted by Tom Stern at 4:55 PM
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Innovation: Something About the Weather
The last few weeks you haven't been able to turn on the news without reports of blizzards or some other massive storm clobbering the U.S. and even Europe. To say that bad weather has been taxing on travelers of late would be a gross understatement.
Everybody complains about the weather, but is anyone doing anything about it?
Actually, someone is.
Continue reading "Innovation: Something About the Weather"Posted by Robert Buckman at 4:30 PM
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February 15, 2007
The Charisma Myth
Now that some of the 2008 presidential candidates are out of the gate, it's been fun to see who is being labeled with that mysterious quality, charisma. Of course, we can't seem to hear Barack Obama's name mentioned without it being accompanied by some form of the word. The others aren't as lucky. Even John Edwards, who's pretty good on the platform, doesn't seem to fit the description. Neither does John McCain, Hillary Clinton or Rudolf Giuliani.
So what is it about people like Obama that makes us gush? Are there really winners and losers in the charisma game? First things first: there is a belief held by many people that charisma is inborn; you either have it or you don't and if you don't then you are just out of luck. But that is wrong. It's a myth! Charisma is not inborn, it is learned.
Now it could be argued that some people are born with a personality type that gives them an edge in the charisma department. But if we look closely at what these folks are actually doing, we can break it down into discrete behaviors.
Continue reading "The Charisma Myth"Posted by Ruth Sherman at 7:25 PM
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The End of Print?
The Internet continues to transform the way we think and interact with content. Unless you’re a magazine. To say that magazines have struggled in this Electronic Age is falling well short of the complete story. Yes there have been some success stories. But, the Bible of magazine publishing Folio gave fresh insight into the health of the industry with this headline,Twelve of the Top 25 Newsstand Publications Saw Declines in the Second Half of 2006.
Could the earlier and more severe slump in urban magazines have portended this greater slide or is the trouble with the urban and African American magazines unrelated? The last five years have seen giants such as Time Warner launch and quickly shutter Suede magazine, geared to young African American women after just four issues in 2005. The “Bible” of Hip Hop, The Source magazine seemed unstoppable, but now sits in bankruptcy. The magazine is still publishing, but with the founders gone it seems unlikely that it will ever regain the lead in the genre. The Source founders Dave Mays and Raymond Scott, now ousted, have launched a competing title – in print – Hip Hop Weekly.
I could go one, there’s Honey magazine gone for several years now, and rumored to be re-launching with former music exec Philmore Anderson at the helm. And many smaller titles, such as Oneworld, Ego Trip (transitioned to books and TV),and Stress have all stopped spilling ink for a variety of reasons.
It could be that the fundamental inefficiency of the print business is being exposed in the ever-efficient on-line pay per click world that has emerged since the dot-slump of 2000. In print most publications are doing well if 40% of the issues they place on newsstands are sold to consumers. In fact. 40% is a great number. Well, let’s look at Oprah’s magazine, O, which Folio says saw a decline in newsstand sales of 9.92% in the six months ending December 30, 2006. In order to sell its 867.000 magazines per issue they would have to print over 2,000,000 magazines for the newsstands. Yep, put them all on trucks and planes headed to every newsstand in every city all in the hope of selling four of ten copies. Who ultimately pays for that inefficiency? Advertisers.
Not subscribers. One thing you can find on the internet are discount magazine subscriptions. A yearly subscription to Cosmopolitan can be had for $16.96 versus a cover price of $42.00 (annually). African American stalwart Ebony magazine can be had for $16.00 at Mags Direct. And when you add the cost of manufacturing a magazine, maintaining the subscriber list, and then dropping each copy in the mail, well these home-delivered copies are subsidized…by advertisers. And as a publisher you hope these subs never call customer service, those calls can cost $.50 to $1.00 each!
So what do you do if you’re a magazine? I don’t think anyone has figured that out. ESPN has done a good job of moving their brand to the Internet. There are many niche urban magazines that aren’t necessarily African American that seem to be doing fine such as The Fader, Trace, YRB and even Mass Appeal. And some more African Amercan focused mags like XXL seem unfazed by the turmoil. And for those that appeal to the core African American audience? Hip Hop Weekly will be an interesting test to see if there is strength in the category on newsstands. Maybe urban mags are the canary in the proverbial coalmine. As they go so goes the industry?
On the Net advertisers can pay for exactly the response they want, they can gauge impressions with a fair amount of precision and can immerse a willing consumer in a multi-media experience. Print still offers the ultimate in untethered portability. But keep an eye on urban, if these targeted, and generally editorially streamlined books can’t make it then the car-service set at the bigger titles should be working on their Net resumes.
John N. Pasmore • New York, NY • mailto:johnpasmore@gmail.com • www.nextthingsnext.com
Posted by John N. Pasmore at 11:22 AM
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Chasing Customers Away
I used to carry a Chase Visa card. The name of the financial institution mattered to me, but it mattered more that the card they issued was a Visa. Since I did a lot of travel in Europe, both for work and vacation, having a Visa in my wallet was an advantage. My corporate card, American Express, was not accepted everywhere. So in my case, the old slogan: “Visa, it’s everywhere you want to be” was true.
If you carry any credit cards, you might be familiar with the various pieces of mail you receive from the financial institution that brands the cards – even if at the time of this story we did not yet have all the privacy statements, they were still many. At some point, I received one such communication from Chase that they were going to upgrade my card to platinum. That was the part of the news I got from the mailing in very fine print.
Putting the news aside for more mundane things, I did not think about the communication until I received my brand new platinum Chase MasterCard. Wait a moment, wasn’t it a Visa? You were paying attention, and yes it was. It so just happened that I was already a customer of MasterCard from another financial institution and did not particularly need more of them in my wallet.
Continue reading "Chasing Customers Away"Posted by Valeria Maltoni at 9:18 AM
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Leading Ideas: Take the time to encourage others
"A student asked Soen Nakagawa during a meditation retreat, "I am very discouraged. What should I do?" Soen replied, "Encourage others." -- Story from Essential Zen
Consider this:
Have you ever noticed that when you're feeling discouraged, continuing to focus on your problems makes them worse? The reason is simple. When problems dominate your consciousness, they keep your energy in a negative place. They color everything you see. To turn your energy around, shift your attention. A great way to do this is to encourage someone else. It takes you to a more positive place - and has a wonderful way of snapping you out of a funk.
Something I often tell my clients is that in addition to managing the activities of their organization, they've also got to manage the energy. As leaders, others take cues from them on how to think, act, and feel. "I've noticed that when I get down, everyone else gets down too," a client recently commented. "It becomes a negative spiral around the office. And while there may be many ways to reverse it, I've found none more effective than simply taking the time to acknowledge and encourage others."
Try this:
The next time you feel discouraged about a certain problem:
1. Recognize you're feeling discouraged (this is often the hardest step).
2. Physically move from where you are - take a walk.
3. Connect with someone who you know could use your help and lend an ear.
4. Help or encourage them.
5. Come back to your problem with a new perspective.
Questions to consider: How often to you encourage others? How do you do it?
Doug Sundheim • Executive Coach • New York, NY • dms@clarityconsulting.com • www.clarityconsulting.com
Posted by Doug Sundheim at 7:40 AM
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February 14, 2007
Get Your Heart On
The pressure to affirm one's love can be all-consuming, and if you don't believe me, ask Bennett Madison, author of I Hate Valentine's Day. The stress is particularly acute in people like me, who once paid to have an Italian violinist join the table with my wife and I at Valentine's. Oh, not to play the violin. I paid him to sit with us, because I couldn't think of anything romantic to say and I figured old Mario must have a gondola full of sweet nothings he could rattle off. Plus, it kept my wife occupied while I went outside and made a few business calls.
So last year about this time, I resolved to get the work-life balance right. February 14th started off like any other day. I got out of bed, stepped outside to fetch the Wall Street Journal, let the dog lick my face, and once again realized I had set aside a moment to kiss a germ-laden quadruped before planting my lips on the woman to whom I pledged a lifetime of tongue kisses. I was going to go back to the bedroom and wish her a Happy Valentine's, but I didn't want to disturb her, and besides I needed to get to the Mad Money I'd Tivo'd the night before. But I had a plan. I would finish up my work early, and surprise her with some gregarious outpouring of affection, guaranteeing a passionate evening of love and re-connection.
Posted by Tom Stern at 1:21 PM
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Bottom-line: Culture Matters
Want to improve your bottom line along with your sales growth and shareholder value? Pay attention to the culture within your organization.
A new study, conducted by Denison Consulting, shows that “firms with lower organizational culture scores versus those with higher scores underperformed a comparison group by 29 percent in return-on-assets (ROA) and by 20 percent in shareholder value.” Factors of organizational culture measured by Denison include adaptability, mission, consistency, and involvement. Included in those factors are things like creating change, customer focus, strategic direction, vision, empowerment, team work, and engagement.
By definition organization is comprised of the values, norms and behaviors that guide an organization. Adherence to culture produces the systems and processes by which the organization operates. So what does that mean to individuals and teams? Culture is what defines “what, how and why we do things.” Culture in high performing organizations ensures that employees know their jobs and can deliver on expectations secure in the knowledge that the systems and management supports them. The just opposite occurs in low performing organizations. Employees, management and systems work in opposition to one another.
Continue reading "Bottom-line: Culture Matters"Posted by John Baldoni at 10:33 AM
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Innovation: Foresight is 20/20
Futurists at best hope to give people glimpses of what will be.
Peering beyond the horizon, however speculative it might be, is standard operating procedure for the airlines, who have to know with some certitude how travel is changing, or go out of business.
If we were to translate what is happening in the air up there into futurist Alvin Toffler's "wave theory," we would see that one of the wavelets shifting the travel sands is demographics.
What kinds of people will populate the travel future? And how far into that future can we say who they will be with any accuracy?-
Continue reading "Innovation: Foresight is 20/20"Posted by Robert Buckman at 8:50 AM
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You Have To Know Something to Learn Something
People look at their worlds through the perspective of what they know. It’s obvious, right? What I love to see is when they discover what they didn’t know and then want to dive into the deep end of it and learn everything they can. That’s the best part of being a Shadow Coach; watching awareness as it dawns.
It happens to me on a regular basis. When I'm teaching seasoned experienced coaches and look at paradigms, concepts, ways of being and touch on something that had never occurred to them before, all of a sudden the energy in the room is tangible; enthusiasm so intense you can almost 'taste' it. Now what if leadership brought that to an organization?
Posted by Donna Karlin at 8:06 AM
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Will Resumes Become Obsolete?
Last spring I had the opportunity to speak to a room full of women--seniors in college who were attending my talk to learn about how to apply social media to growing their careers.
The name of my presentation: The Impact of Social Media on Entrepreneurial Careers: Why I am Jealous of All of You.
I wasn't trying to be (that) provocative; I meant it. When I was a college graduate in 1994 (I finished a semester early, actually, I was so anxious about the job market and wanted to get a head start), getting a job was a different proposition. Sure, it was still about whom you knew; in the end, that's how I found my first "real" job. But I also sent out reams of resumes, attempting to convince people who didn't know, care, or need me that my experience as Features Editor of my college paper meant that I was especially qualified to answer phones. Finding work that pertained to my limited background was besides the point, I thought. I'll just take what I can get and work my way toward the ultimate job.
This philosophy--I showed my audience with a convoluted slide that included many arrows to many misguided iterations of the "ultimate job"--led to years of sub-optimal experience. It was tantamount to throwing darts at the Want Ads and then begging for the job.
"You don't need to do this," I told my audience. "With the rise of social media you won't have to."
Continue reading "Will Resumes Become Obsolet