Sometimes you start reading a book and quickly imagine it was written just for you and your situation. That is how I felt shortly after beginning to read "Do It Wrong Quickly", by Mike Moran.
Now, I am not about to critique the writing style or approach directly, you can check out the reviews for yourself on Amazon, but, what I am going to do is share with you my personal take-aways. As someone who has spent his entire online marketing career in CPG companies I can tell you that one of the biggest problems digital marketers have when working with traditional marketers is convincing them that in order to succeed you have to fail.
In other words, you're just not going to get it right the first time around, you're gonna have to test and re-test in order to not only succeed, but more importantly, understand 'why' you succeeded. Why is that? Because consumers have far more control over what information they consume than ever before.
They are more fragmented, and have become dependent on an array of ever-changing technologies. In short, digital consumer behaviors require new techniques, tactics, and strategies to reach them - and that requires marketers to constantly test their emails, web sites, and any other online properties in order to measure effectiveness.
No book I have found to date explains the importance of testing better than "Do It Wrong Quickly", by Mike Moran. He explains that due to the extensive means now available to measure the success and failure of just about anything on the Web, testing is more critical than ever. As Mike Moran explains in his book, ". . . the web allows you to measure everything - every tiny step in the process."
He goes on to say that the best model to represent the effectiveness of testing is that of Direct Marketing, but that the Web allows for an even better platform. Mike says, " You can know your response rate for every blessed step in the process, and you can experiment and tweak your marketing with far greater impact on the Web than any traditional direct marketing campaign."
Make no mistake however, this is not an easy sell to traditional marketers who are used to avoiding mistakes in the eyes of senior management. Failure, they have come to know, is not an option. They have spend their lives researching, calculating, seeking numerous approvals, number crunching, and deck writing all to please their bosses.
So, telling senior management that we're gonna start by making mistakes first, and then correct as we go just doesn't fly all that easy. As Mike Moran states, ". . . this requires a huge change in the way we (marketers) think. We are accustomed to spending months in meetings reaching consensus on every detail of 'the plan' and reviewing everything with executives for approval. - In the old marketing world, it is dangerous to make a mistake".
Unlike print advertising, where once the ad goes to print it's permanent, the Web allows for instant changes. As Mike says, "If (the ad) is not working in the morning, change it after lunch. Alter the offer or the words or the picture - even start from scratch if you have to. Above all, you must experiment and see what happens".
I can't say it better than that. All I'll add is that as long as you have a success metrics plan in place, go and make all the mistakes you can. "Do It Wrong Quickly", by Mike Moran. The only mistake is not reading the book.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Don't Forget "Welcome, how can I help you?"
I decided to buy my wife a digital camera for her birthday. My purchase criteria, or better yet my wife’s criteria, was it had to be easy-to-use, have a big viewing screen for reviewing pictures, be compact and durable, long battery life, and easy uploads to our home computer. Okay. So, I did what over 80% of Americans do, which is to go online and do some basic research.
I went to a big retailer site and found myself instantly bombarded with “Buy now and don't pay till January 2009”. Or, “Click here to open a credit card account and save 10%”.
Remember, all I wanted to know was some basic digital camera stuff, and instead got fifty reasons why I should ‘buy’ from their site. Worse, after 10 minutes I couldn’t find any information on the general use of the camera. Meaning, in this YouTube world we live in, I could not find a video demo on how to use the camera. All I got was bulleted features and benefits that left me needing bullets to explain what the bullets meant. Oh, by the way, what exactly does 2.5" color TFT-LCD monitor with auto image rotation and 172,000 pixels, mean, anyway?
What I am really saying here is where’s the customer service people? Just because it’s a web site doesn’t mean you still don’t have to say, “Welcome to our store. How may I help you?”
It’s the “How may I help you?” part that is missing. Had I been able to interact more with the products I probably would have stayed longer, bookmarked the site for future purchases, sent the link to a friend for their opinions, and maybe even ordered the camera right then and there. Instead, I left the site unsatisfied taking my inquiries, and my purchase intent, elsewhere.
The site broke one simple rule; it focused so much on the sale, it forgot about the customer. Despite the fact that more and more consumers complain that they can’t find the information they seek online, organizations continue to offer this ‘one-way marketing’ approach.
Now, the site owners might say, if you want to interact with the products – come on down to the store. Once again, thinking only about what they want. I don’t want to go to the store, that’s why I’m online. What every organization that interacts with consumers online should be doing is building solid, consumer-focused, mutually beneficial relationships with their customers.
So, why aren’t the retail/marketers getting the hint? Simple. Their marketing folks are still trapped in the old school of traditional methods where all they care about is to push their agenda onto the consumer. Thus, consumers are left with the, ‘Satisfaction Gap’, the deep chasm between what marketers want to say – and what consumers want to know.
All this focus on consumer targeting and consumer insights must not replace simply asking the consumer what they want or need. Or, better yet, let the consumer ask. Imagine the virtual equivalent to, “Does this come in red?”
If this idea seems strange, over-the-top, or just plain radical – wake up, because the Internet is all about consumer engagement, and engagement means participation.
It really can be as simple as opening your virtual door, smile and say, “Thank you for coming – how can we help you?”
And mean it!
I went to a big retailer site and found myself instantly bombarded with “Buy now and don't pay till January 2009”. Or, “Click here to open a credit card account and save 10%”.
Remember, all I wanted to know was some basic digital camera stuff, and instead got fifty reasons why I should ‘buy’ from their site. Worse, after 10 minutes I couldn’t find any information on the general use of the camera. Meaning, in this YouTube world we live in, I could not find a video demo on how to use the camera. All I got was bulleted features and benefits that left me needing bullets to explain what the bullets meant. Oh, by the way, what exactly does 2.5" color TFT-LCD monitor with auto image rotation and 172,000 pixels, mean, anyway?
What I am really saying here is where’s the customer service people? Just because it’s a web site doesn’t mean you still don’t have to say, “Welcome to our store. How may I help you?”
It’s the “How may I help you?” part that is missing. Had I been able to interact more with the products I probably would have stayed longer, bookmarked the site for future purchases, sent the link to a friend for their opinions, and maybe even ordered the camera right then and there. Instead, I left the site unsatisfied taking my inquiries, and my purchase intent, elsewhere.
The site broke one simple rule; it focused so much on the sale, it forgot about the customer. Despite the fact that more and more consumers complain that they can’t find the information they seek online, organizations continue to offer this ‘one-way marketing’ approach.
Now, the site owners might say, if you want to interact with the products – come on down to the store. Once again, thinking only about what they want. I don’t want to go to the store, that’s why I’m online. What every organization that interacts with consumers online should be doing is building solid, consumer-focused, mutually beneficial relationships with their customers.
So, why aren’t the retail/marketers getting the hint? Simple. Their marketing folks are still trapped in the old school of traditional methods where all they care about is to push their agenda onto the consumer. Thus, consumers are left with the, ‘Satisfaction Gap’, the deep chasm between what marketers want to say – and what consumers want to know.
All this focus on consumer targeting and consumer insights must not replace simply asking the consumer what they want or need. Or, better yet, let the consumer ask. Imagine the virtual equivalent to, “Does this come in red?”
If this idea seems strange, over-the-top, or just plain radical – wake up, because the Internet is all about consumer engagement, and engagement means participation.
It really can be as simple as opening your virtual door, smile and say, “Thank you for coming – how can we help you?”
And mean it!
Ever Miss a Boat?
It’s not fun is it?
Here you are – ticket in one hand, luggage in the other as you stand helpless and watch your transportation to some far-away place ride away without you. Even worse is when your business life depends on being on board – and there she goes – without you.
No, you say? You never missed a boat? Are you sure? Let me ask you this – are you taking full advantage of the social media opportunities going on out on the Internet?
Are you actively involved conversing with your consumers? Do you offer them surveys? Do you ask them their opinion on anything? Can they call you directly? Can they email you with questions? Chat with a representative of your company? No?
All right, how about this then, do you know who the visitors to your web site are? Why they came? How they got there? If they are existing customers – or did your web site convert them from a competitor? Do they have any intent to buy at all after visiting? Did they forward your web site to a friend?
Or, is all you know reflected in your useless site traffic reports?
If you answered ‘No’ to all but the last question, then you may have - missed the boat. The greatest marketing tool ever seen, ‘social marketing’ may be leaving port without you.
That’s right – maybe. There’s still hope.
Social marketing is really nothing more than old-fashioned customer service on Internet hormones.
Once marketers understand that the real power of the Internet is welcoming the consumer into business conversations, they will begin a fantastic journey of consumer immersion unseen ever before in history.
Forget panel surveys, in-home testing, and focus groups because the Internet is the biggest consumer research center the world has ever seen, and the tools of Web 2.0 have made that research center incredibly easy to access.
For instance, instead of going physically into a few consumer’s homes to observe how they interact with your products, host a two-way video session with 10s or even 100s of consumers. ”Oh my gosh, that’s so radical”, you say? Have you been to YouTube? Have you seen the insight average people are volunteering on the video web everyday?
Imagine what you could learn if those same people agreed to be part of a virtual in-home visit. The potential is huge. And, that is just the beginning.
All you have to do is accept the reality of the new world we live in. Be honest and transparent. And, above all – don’t just think outside the box – throw the box itself out the window and be imaginative.
Or, run the risk of being the person standing alone on that very traditional dock as the rest of the world sails into the virtual sunset - without – you.
Here you are – ticket in one hand, luggage in the other as you stand helpless and watch your transportation to some far-away place ride away without you. Even worse is when your business life depends on being on board – and there she goes – without you.
No, you say? You never missed a boat? Are you sure? Let me ask you this – are you taking full advantage of the social media opportunities going on out on the Internet?
Are you actively involved conversing with your consumers? Do you offer them surveys? Do you ask them their opinion on anything? Can they call you directly? Can they email you with questions? Chat with a representative of your company? No?
All right, how about this then, do you know who the visitors to your web site are? Why they came? How they got there? If they are existing customers – or did your web site convert them from a competitor? Do they have any intent to buy at all after visiting? Did they forward your web site to a friend?
Or, is all you know reflected in your useless site traffic reports?
If you answered ‘No’ to all but the last question, then you may have - missed the boat. The greatest marketing tool ever seen, ‘social marketing’ may be leaving port without you.
That’s right – maybe. There’s still hope.
Social marketing is really nothing more than old-fashioned customer service on Internet hormones.
Once marketers understand that the real power of the Internet is welcoming the consumer into business conversations, they will begin a fantastic journey of consumer immersion unseen ever before in history.
Forget panel surveys, in-home testing, and focus groups because the Internet is the biggest consumer research center the world has ever seen, and the tools of Web 2.0 have made that research center incredibly easy to access.
For instance, instead of going physically into a few consumer’s homes to observe how they interact with your products, host a two-way video session with 10s or even 100s of consumers. ”Oh my gosh, that’s so radical”, you say? Have you been to YouTube? Have you seen the insight average people are volunteering on the video web everyday?
Imagine what you could learn if those same people agreed to be part of a virtual in-home visit. The potential is huge. And, that is just the beginning.
All you have to do is accept the reality of the new world we live in. Be honest and transparent. And, above all – don’t just think outside the box – throw the box itself out the window and be imaginative.
Or, run the risk of being the person standing alone on that very traditional dock as the rest of the world sails into the virtual sunset - without – you.
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