Yes according to a recent study by Capital Consulting in London. I came across this short little article from Workforce Management in a newsletter. It is a short artice so I will reproduce it in it’s entirety (emphasis is mine): At Least Say Thank You: Shoddy recruiting does more than chase away potential high performers. New research suggests it also may cost companies in the marketplace. Capital Consulting in London says nearly one-quarter of job seekers have been poorly treated when applying for a job, and they frequently take out their frustrations by broadcasting the news far and wide: 31 percent share the bad experience with three to five people,… Read More
Continue ReadingCoffee Culture Marketing
I graduated with a degree in psychology and I have a coffee addiction so abcnews.com’s article was irresistible: Starbuck’s Psychology. The article points to some specific, subtle marketing principles incorporated by the ever-expanding Starbuck’s chain: It has everything to do with the marketing strategy behind this designer coffee chain, which devised a clever way of creating its own community. It also pinpointed one key aspect of caffeine shoppers: They want their coffee immediately. “Designer coffee” for certain. Knowing this fact, they devised their strategy: Across the United States, there are 9,814 stores with a total of 13,728 worldwide. The Starbucks management has watched coffee drinks, and figured out exactly what… Read More
Continue ReadingHow To Get Your Sales Copy Read
Writing effective sales copy is difficult, time-consuming and financially rewarding once you master it. We have not mastered it at Select Metrix. Earlier I posted on the effectiveness of using “P.S.” in your voicemails and written correspondence. Now MarketingProfs.com offers Want Better Sales Copy? Take a Tip From Zig Ziglar. There are many tips in this article, but I want to focus on one tip about what not to do: Want to set your sales copy and your business apart from the overwhelming majority of organizations you’re competing against? Here’s a simple but powerful strategy you can start implementing today. Specify exactly what you mean when you use such words… Read More
Continue ReadingDoes Your Website Help Your Salespeople?
Our website is a constant topic of discussion for us – one of the subjects is how much information should we be publishing. I came across a post relating to this topic on the B2B Lead Generation Blog. There are a number of very good points made in this entry, but a couple really stand out. People use the web for research; they are looking for fresh ideas, insight and actionable information. Intellectual property is difficult to protect and is quickly commoditized by the market. Why not leverage some of your IP to your advantage? Leverage it and demonstrate your thought leadership. I have read numerous articles in the past… Read More
Continue ReadingProfit Over Market Share
Selling Power offers up Forget Market Share; Go for the Profits in their sales management newsletter and it is a compelling read. The problem with going after market share as a primary goal is that companies wind up sacrificing profitability in the process. When your whole marketing strategy is about preserving or increasing market share, it€™s easy to get wrapped up in aggressive bidding wars. And it€™s a downward spiral: customers learn to take advantage of that aggressiveness, demanding lower prices, which further erodes profits. It is a slippery slope because in essence a discount in price immediately discounts your value distinction. Businesses that not only articulate their value differentiation… Read More
Continue Reading21st Century Marketing
After the Cartoon Network debacle of last month in Boston, it now appears another company is attempting more moronic marketing in the same manner. A clue in a Dr Pepper promotion suggested a coin that might be worth as much as $1 million was buried in the 347-year-old Granary Burying Ground, the final resting place of John Hancock, Paul Revere, Samuel Adams and other historic figures. After contestants showed up at the cemetery gates early Tuesday, the city closed it, concerned that it would be damaged by treasure hunters. It is obvious that this company knew what it was doing. Placing a coin in a national cemetery is pathetic. I… Read More
Continue ReadingStrategy vs. Tactics
Seth Godin offers a clear delineation between strategy and tactics. This post reminds me of a company I used to work for that provided sales training. The tactical level of the training was excellent and provided the salespeople with a toolbox of powerful moves. Unfortunately, the strategy behind the process was never coherent and the salespeople never grasped the process. The end result was salespeople who could use one or two of the tactics, but would then get shut down by the prospect. The frustration in the salespeople manifested itself in their concise criticism, “I don’t know what to do next.” Mr. Godin speaks in marketing terms, but this point… Read More
Continue ReadingGet Your Gun Here
This may be a stretch, but I enjoyed the story too much to ignore it. Since we have had much to say about rewards and motivations today, check out this headline – Buy a House, Get a Glock: Real Estate Agent Offers Guns as Incentive. Now that is a unique incentive indeed. If you read the short article, you will find the Glock is only for police offers who buy a house through the realtor. Still, give her kudos for some creative thinking and marketing.
Continue ReadingMarketing to Baby-Boomers Part 2
From this week’s SHRM Newsletter: EEOC Backs Targeted Recruitment of Older Workers. We have written several posts related to this subject (Marketing to Baby-Boomers, 76 and 44). The article contains several points of valuable information. EEOC’s Aug. 11 proposed rule change is in response to a Supreme Court decision two years ago (General Dynamics Land Systems Inc. v. Cline, 540 U.S. 581 (2004)), which concluded that there is no such thing under the ADEA as reverse age discrimination. While the current rule prohibits job advertisements favoring older persons, the proposed rule would make it permissible to encourage older people to apply. Employers may post help wanted notices or advertisements expressing… Read More
Continue ReadingMarketing on Eggs…seriously
I just read CBS to Launch Offbeat Promotion on Eggs. CBS is going to advertise on eggs that you purchase in the supermarket. At first I was taken aback by the entire ubiquitous marketing approach of our society. Then I thought I would probably be intrigued if I opened the carton of eggs and saw the CBS eye logo on it. It goes deeper. I googled the company that places the ad on to the eggshell. Eggfusion’s site revealed this: Without affecting the contents or durability of an egg, Eggfusion’s proprietary laser-etching technology safely places tamperproof marks directly into the eggshell as it passes through the packaging process. Apparently, it… Read More
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