Medios Marketing Blog

I recently came across a post showcasing 15 clever guerrilla-marketing ideas on Bored Panda. Guerrilla marketing, as the name implies, refers to marketing done in a non-conventional way. Jay Conrad Levinson first coined the phrase asserting that marketing should be waged as if it was a war.

In short the principle of guerrilla marketing encourages us to be innovative. Looking at the examples in the post, I realised that most of us continue to fall into the same groove that leads us to produce mundane advertising and marketing.

The 15 ideas posted vary in budget and goal, but they all have one thing in common; a simple message. Which gets me to the point of this blog. Innovation is about making things easier and not more complex. I think this theme is especially appropriate at a time when the world is singing the praises of the late Steve Jobs. For all that he gets credit for, his greatest gift to humanity was making technology easier to use.

 This Greenpeace ad is powerful and ironic. It depicts how bad print media is by adding an extra page to a magazine. The message is however clear as daylight and simple.

This is not an ad, simply a funny greeting card. The message is funny and super simple.

This one is my favourite. Who can doubt that the owner of this business card is a plastic surgeon? Sheer brilliance.

Note the little “buy” and “sell” on either side of this card. Not bad for an stockbroker.

This last effort proves that a good idea beats any budget. A perfect strategy for what is undoubtedly a low budget business.

I have not posted all the images provided by Bored Panda. Follow the link at the beginning of the blog to see the rest.

Go to Tom Fishburn.com for excellent marketing cartoons.

“What people want is to … “ If another pseudo marketing expert starts a sentence like that I am going to punch them. The most recent candidate for a clobbering was the new sales rep of a client. I had heard the story before from all the other reps I deal with at one time or another.

The problem with the sentence that starts with your declaration of what you know to be true is that it is exactly that. A declaration of what you know. We all tend to focus on our own frame of reference rather than facts at hand.

In this particular case the genius giving me his sage advice is adamant about which sports I should sponsor and how the kids eat up everything that these sports stars wear. The facts that he were ignorant of are;

• That the client does not view the particular brand as key to its strategy.
• The client has a limited budget
• The sports that he wants to see sponsored has little exposure to the key audience
• Sponsorship on its own is ineffective, you need back-up from social media, branding, events etc
• His knowledge of how the kids communicate is out of date
• The kids in question are more savvy then he gives them credit for
• Many of the brand’s competitors followed the same strategy with little success

Truth is few of us, experts included, know what people want. People themselves don’t know what they want. It is the nature of the zeitgeist. Viral and popular cannot be manufactured. It like the Beatles said, “Can’t buy me love.” Except in this case can’t buy me love for the brand.

Branding is the same. You have to ply your wares, present your offering and make sure there is something in it. Be clear and honest and then rely on those who have benefited from your product to tell their friends.

Of course you can’t just put it out there and hope someone does the work for you. You have to use the platforms, ask the market, punt when you can punt, be respectful when you can’t. You have to see the opportunities, add the value where possible.

It all comes back to the opening statement. To know what the market wants you have to ask them. Engage.

So pretty please with sugar on top, don’t say you know what the market wants.

If gold were plentiful it would be worthless. These days experts on every topic imaginable are plentiful.

The problem is that these experts contradict each other. It makes it difficult to gain insight into the issue in which you seek the expert advice in the first place. It also makes it obvious that the expert is dispensing advice not in pursuit of the truth or knowledge but rather in pursuit of their own agenda.

Take global warming. We follow the debate quite closely because we have a client to whom it is relevant. On the one side we have the humans-are-burning-too-much-carbon-and-causing-a-greenhouse-effect camp and on the other side you have the its-all-part-of-the-earth’s-natural-cycle-and-anyway-volcanoes-do-more-damage camp.

Both point to the other camp’s motives for optimising their findings. Finger-pointing and the reasons for adapting the results or doing the type of research that will give the results they seek is not relevant to this blog. Suffice it to say that neither side is untarnished.

At least there are still some barriers to entry for scientists. They need some academic credentials. Not so for social media, marketing, business, human nature, relationship, pet psychology and a host of other experts. For many of them the barrier to entry is setting up a blog and a Twitter account. I promote myself as an expert. All I have to back up my claim is four years of study and 15 hard years in the trenches, some awesome mentors and a few clients who have benefitted from my advice.

We live in the reality TV version of experts. People are famous for being famous. Similarly we have experts who are experts on being experts. The bar for entertainment is so low that we will people clean other people’s houses. Similarly, the bar for expert advice is low. We are taking advice from anybody that can critique the status quo in a harsh enough voice and generalise the problems of one industry so it sounds like a global business catastrophe.

Many of the experts I see giving business advice on how social media will double your business have not been in business long enough to know the true meaning of a customer’s need.

So where to from here? The fact is that we do need experts. The level of specialisation required to function dictates that we cannot be expert at everything. We need input from people who have more experience in fields that we are less familiar with.

To me the only way to get reliable advice is to get it from many sources, understand the basis of the advice and to measure it based on the experience of others who have used the same resource. Fortunately the web and social media means that everybody can be compared, measured, reviewed and analysed. The disadvantage is that there are so many different points-of-view that it can be hard to tell who is right and who is wrong.

As always the solution is customised. Here is a four-step plan to choosing your expert.

Step one: Choose an expert whose advice relates to problems you personally experience. The expert’s advice and experience must mirror your needs. I run a smaller business. For me to take Tom Peters’ advice as gospel is useless. His clients are multi-billion dollar global enterprises.

Step two: Each expert will have detractors and fans. Look at who they are. See if you can determine the balance of opinion. Look at who more closely resembles you – the detractors or the promoters.

Step three: Follow your gut. If the advice makes sense, follow it.

Step four: Be a cynic. Pay for the advice on a benefit to your organisation-basis rather than on a per hour basis. Check the research they quote and always, always have them commit to timeframes and ROI.

So there you have expert advice on how to choose an expert to give you advice. Whether you should trust my advice or not I will leave up to you.

The one question that every marketing agency hears more than any other is, “How much does marketing cost?” Because Medios is a return on investment (ROI) driven agency the question is often relatively easy to answer. The answer always starts with another question; “ What are your goals?”

What is the goal?

In many cases Medios’ clients want improved sales. This is a good starting point. Most media coverage is measurable and has averaged ratios. This is especially true of social media.

QBCon, a business solution developer and Medios client, uses ratios and sales cycles extensively during the sales process. This enables them to determine the real cost of each sale, which makes the Medios service easy to cost.

Lets take a hypothetical example:

Assume that QBCon, using their current sales technique has to cold call 500 companies to gain 50 appointments. Of those 50 prospects 5 will have B.A.N.T (budget-authority-need-timing) and enter the negotiating phase. Of these five QBCon typically makes one sale.

Let’s assume that the process takes about 18 months. The company can calculate the opportunity cost of this sale. The amount of time a salesperson spent with the prospect, the overhead allocated to the sales process, etc. QBCon can easily determine the exact cost of a sale.

How much can Medios charge?

In order for Medios to sell its service to QBCon, it must demonstrate that it can make the process cheaper. We can do this by improving the ratio from 500 to 250 calls for a net result of 50 prospects. Such a saving is easy to value for a client. They simply have to compare the opportunity cost of making the additional 250 calls.

The second benefit that Medios can deliver is shortening the sales cycle. Once again the cost benefit is easy to calculate. A shorter sales cycle implies less time required from the sales team, fewer miles driven and similar expenses.

The Medios value proposition then simply comes down to explaining to the customer how we will address the company’s needs and reduce its costs. Working out by how much we will reduce those costs determines the maximum fee we can charge.

Because we always aim for a win-win result, Medios charges less than the customer will save. That way there is an incentive for the customer to retain Medios.

This blog is a simple example where the costing is based on the need for a lower cost of sale, also known as the quest for better leads. In subsequent blogs I will illustrate the costing for brand awareness, reputation management and improved sales volumes.

Medios recently learnt two essential lessons in the art of maintaining a customer’s website. The first lesson is stick to what you know. As it turns out Medios knows a lot about generating and updating content for websites, the strategic role a website plays in a marketing strategy and how to make a website effective (three-click rule, SEO, links, blogs, etc).

What Medios does not know is how to build a website. In fact, we suck at it. We found this out the hard way. We tried to build a website for a friend using the Joomla content management system. Joomla is a breeze to update. It is a bitch if you are to build it from scratch.

We had to go to a web designer for help. Our search took us to many designers. It immediately struck me how few web developers develop with any consideration for goals, strategy or the longevity of the website. Most of the ones we spoke to wanted to do a fast, once-off solution that fits into their template.

As it turns out they are as bad at maintaining websites as we are at building them. Smaller web developers are experiencing severe pressure on margins. They need to get in and get out quickly. The easiest way to do this is to produce websites the way you would produce a widget in a factory: quickly and using a mould you already have. Web developers therefore use templates that they customise with minimum effort. They add modules and put them all on some sort of CMS platform.

They have no real strategy for your website. Sure they will add a few modules to cover your needs but really they could care less. It simply is not profitable for them to spend too much time working out what you need to get from a website.

From what we can gather from these developers this approach suits their clients just fine. The majority of clients seem to know they need a website but no idea of why or what to do with it once they have it.

This is where a good agency can add value. By answering the question ‘Why?’ and translating it into the brief they can guide the developer to produce a website that suits the client, not the manufacturing process.

A good agency will then advise their clients on how to manage the site to keep it relevant and to make sure it achieves its goals.

This week’s blog is difficult because it cuts a bit close to the bone. I had to learn some key lessons in managing a communications firm. As you will see these are not easy lessons to have learnt. Good thing I like a bit of drama every now and again.

Recently one of my employees walked into my office and announced her resignation as well as that she will be taking over two of my bigger accounts. Both the accounts are linked to one company with whom she has family connections. The battle is on but a clear winner has not emerged yet.

Here are the lessons:

• Do not let a single employee get too close to a single client.
  • Split the jobs for a client among your staff. This way there are many people who know what is happening with a client.
  • The client also benefits because you can allocate tasks based on individual strengths. Finally splitting jobs will put the employee’s ability and skills in context for the client.
• Be careful how you share your pricing information with your employees.
  • Do the invoicing yourself and keep it between you and the client and those who signed end-of-the-world-if-you-breach-non-disclosure agreements.
• Contracts are key. Make sure that the terms in the event of breach are stipulated.
• The law does protect you if someone conducts him/herself unethically/criminally, even if there is no employment contract.
  • Common law frowns upon stealing.
  • Your actions are sometimes measured by what we would describe as common sense.
• The client will understand.
  • It has happened to the client as well.
• The client may nevertheless use the opportunity to negotiate.
  • Why not? They are in business to do the best for themselves.
• If your former employee uses your pricing information against you, you have recourse but it will be too late.
• Familiarity breeds contempt.
  • This is a hard one. Being a nice guy just means the kick in the balls will hurt more. Boohoo!
  • Being nice won’t stop someone from stealing from you. If they want to steal, they will.
• To retain the client, you have to have a plan.
  • You’ve sold to the client once before. They have seen value in you. Sell it again. You know the client’s needs better than anybody else. You have the skill and the experience to do the job right. You know what the former employee knows.
  • You have the experience the former employ lacks.
  • It is probable that the former employee does not understand the full scope of everything you do for the client. Make sure the client knows this.
• Don’t bad-mouth anybody, but be clear about the facts.
• Don’t defend yourself against anything you suspect the former employee said. Whomever they told either believes them or doesn’t. Whatever you say won’t make a difference.
• “Why?” doesn’t matter to the client.
  • It shouldn’t matter to you either. It happened. Deal with it.
• Big crocodile tears and “it’s the hardest thing I have ever had to do” won’t stop the former employee from stealing your information and using it to gain your client. That’s just their own guilt.
• Defending against such a hostile attack is very expensive.
  • It will cost you a lot. There may be a way to get it back with law suits etc. but it will take time and effort.
• Don’t feel too sorry for yourself.
  • It doesn’t help. Besides, a little excitement is a good thing.
  • Change is not easy but you always learn something and then you are stronger.

Some of these lessons I knew before hand and applied. Some other lessons…let’s just say I took a few courses at the university of life.

I always believe in the clichés. In this case one failed me; keep your friends close but your enemies closer. Jeez Louise, keep your enemies well out of your affairs. And then there is: play your cards close to your chest. Guess that makes this blog a little ironic. How very emo.

Leave it to Nando’s to capitalise on another company’s advertising campaign. Cell C is currently at the receiving end of the tongue-in-cheek advertisements of the chicken franchise.

Comedian Trevor Noah has been on almost every billboard and TV screen as Cell C’s Customer Experience Officer, or CEO. The billboards tell the audience how he is watching Cell C to see if they make good one their promise to change and improve their service and product offering.

Nando’s parody the Cell C ad with its own CEO or Chicken Excellence Officer comedian. True to form, Nando’s manages to fit their own message into the parody, highlighting their flame-grilled heritage, 5G’s (five new sauces) and promising to keep things the same.

What impresses me most about this campaign, however, is Cell C’s response. Their campaign was not well received and caused them much trouble since its launch. Initially, social network users criticized them for faking an attack by comedian Trevor Noah so that they could make a PR response. The company also had some trouble with their logo, which many consider being too close to the copyright symbol.

Many would have attacked Nando’s, but Cell C knows better. An attack would only give the Nando’s ad more legs and make Cell C look like a bully. Instead they sent two Cell C USB Dongles to Nando’s and said they enjoyed the ad.
Well done, Cell C. You did the right thing. But were still watching you. Like a chicken.

An outsourced marketer’s guide to a happy business marriage
I am married. As you may suspect there is friction between the missus and I from time to time. On the whole we work well together, but the road is not without its bumps.

The same is true of business relationships. Times are tough and the claws have come out. Medios has had – what would be a good euphemism? – intense discussions with some of its clients. As with any relationship the discussions are sometimes justifiable and sometimes they are a symptom of an issue entirely unrelated to the actual argument.

In our case is usually the latter. Medios is very close to most of its clients. They depend on us not only for the measurable activities, but also for advice and consulting. We know our customers’ businesses intimately. In order to give good advice and be useful as an outsourced marketing solution, we have to understand each business and industry.

As with my marriage I can usually trace the unhappiness back to one culprit: poor communication. Friction between parties is almost always related to a misunderstanding of roles or a misrepresentation of probable outcomes. In other words the friction starts with, “But you said you would do A-B-C!” and is answered by, “You never said you wanted X-Y-Z as well!”

By the time a contentious issue ends up with the lawyers, both parties have lost. It’s a divorce. Unless one party is clearly malicious this should never be the case. Fortunately for Medios this is unlikely.

I mentioned earlier that times are tough. In marriage terms Medios and its customers are moving house, dealing with a death in the family, renovating and trying to house-train a puppy all in one go.

In some cases it is just pressure and clients want to vent. Most people vent to the innocent. In other cases we neglected to communicate well. When times were good, Medios did favours, accepted jobs without renegotiating deliverables and fees. In some instances we became complacent, as did our clients.

The fix is difficult, but if you follow these five golden rules it becomes easier.

1) Listen to the other party
2) Be honest
3) Accept responsibility
4) Describe the fix, and have the client explain there understanding of the fix
5) Be fair and stand your ground when required

When the talking is done and you have followed the golden rules, there may be a single understanding. In our case it will mean that Medios does a little more than it thought it ought to, and that our clients will pay a little more than they thought they ought to. In the end both parties will come out winners. Both Medios and its clients will be back on the same page, to use a cliché. We will be communicating again.

The tough times won’t disappear but at least we’ll know who has to clean up after the puppy.

Posted by Jacques van den Bergh for Medios Marketing Communications

Guest Blogger Grace Kang

My name’s Grace Kang and I’m from the Central Desktop marketing team. I was delighted to hear about Medios recently joining the CD community. As an internet marketer myself, I know firsthand just how useful Central Desktop can be for managing, tracking, and most importantly, measuring, several marketing campaigns at once.

Getting started with any new software can be difficult, so here’s a 7 day plan for getting on board with Central Desktop quickly.

Day 1: Explore the Help Center, which is filled with video tutorials, articles and user tips & tricks. This is the best way to understand how each of the powerful features in CD work.

Day 2: Attend a training webinar. These webinars are free, given on a weekly basis by our client services experts, and they will leave you feeling more comfortable and knowledgeable about navigating around Central Desktop.

Day 3: Read through the Central Desktop Blog, where we share tips and tricks for CD users.

Day 4: Check out the User Adoption Report, created by collaboration strategist Michael Sampson, which teaches adoption best practices, strategies and also provides a roadmap to successful company-wide user adoption.

Day 5: Create a Sandbox workspace. Simply log in, create a new workspace, label it Sandbox and start testing it out! Try setting up calendars, folders, an intranet, discussion threads and blogs, without the fear of affecting real work or projects.

Day 6: Download Central Desktop add-on tools, such as:
- Central Desktop for Office
- Central Desktop for Outlook
- Web Folders

Day 7: Have a little fun with CD Labs, which houses various experimental CD features. Currently brewing in the Labs are Stickies, which are like Post it Notes for your screen, and Multimedia Player, which enables an integrated multimedia player using HTML5 or Flash for audio and video file types.

I hope this helps! You should now be well on your way to becoming a Central Desktop pro in no time. If you have any questions or would like to connect, we’re also on Twitter – @CentralDesktop.

posted by Grace Kang from Central Desktop for Medios Marketing Communication

A lot of people have difficulty in deciding what product or service they are going to offer and, even more so, how to sell it. This is one of the most common mistakes people make when starting or expanding an existing venture.

Before you start planning or implementing a venture, you need to understand the market in which you are going to operate. You need to know your target market and its particular needs and wants. In doing this you will be able to develop a product or service that the market finds beneficial. You will also give yourself the flexibility to completely alter your sales outlook, if necessary, whether it is for an existing business or a brand new venture.

Be careful not to spend too much time in developing a product or service before answering these three critical questions:

1) Who would want to buy your product and why would they buy it?
2) How much are they willing to pay?
3) How will you convince them to buy from you instead of your competitors?

You need to pinpoint the ideal customer. You can identify your ideal customer by understanding your target market’s needs. The next step is to identify which of your competitors are already satisfying the need you’re addressing and how. Try to find a market searching for a product rather than a product searching for a market.

Never enter a market unless you know you can produce and sell your product according to what your customers are willing to pay. In other words, ensure that you get your pricing in line. To do this you have to find a way to introduce your product at a similar price to the market price. If, at a later stage, you feel your product is superior to others you can gradually increase your price. Ensure your price is never more than three times of your competitor.

Lastly you will need to build credibility by spending time, money and energy to convince your customers to purchase from you instead of your competitors. This means developing an advertising plan, content-rich website and online marketing that includes public relations and social networking.

By marketing aggressively, you’ll sustain sales for the duration of your product’s life. Remember, marketing exists to support sales.

Posted by Claudio Silva for Medios Marketing Communications