I anticipate presenting this information at numerous conferences in 2013 - demand is expected to be high. If you're a conference organizer, contact me by clicking here.
Time for your thoughts. What is missing? What did I say that resonated with you? What did I say that you believe is completely wrong?
Old school cataloging used to say that sales are "80% merch, 10% creative, 10% list selection". This seems to say that creative is bigger than that. Do you agree?
ReplyDeleteIn the short term, I agree with 80/10/10 or the myriad variations on the theory. Small companies get 50% from list selection.
ReplyDeleteIn the long term, creative is a major differentiator. Old school catalogers can tell you this - they've crafted a creative style that, when e-commerce pulled customers away, caused what is now a 55+ audience to stand firm. And now, catalogers are largely on an island, having the customer they wanted, unable to acquire the customer representing the future. Creative via channel preference caused this. In the long-term, it completely shapes the composition of the customer file ... 10% per year across 10 years yields a completely unique customer file.
One thing you said really struck a chord for me: "Technology changes- underlying behavior rarely changes."
ReplyDeleteThis is why marketers need to resist the new, shiny, thing that dissipates resources to unproductive activities.
Human nature leans two ways. We either resist change or we throw out the baby with the water.
Great stuff.
ReplyDeleteRe: your slide on Big Data. Certainly not enough smart business people. And definitely not enough smart marketers, especially outside of catalog businesses. Many of the concepts you talk about in your blog do not exist outside of direct businesses, even though they are highly applicable. Many of todays digital marketers do not have an understanding of the base concepts that are second nature to the LE, EB, Nordtrom et al experience. I like the success pyramid. And I agree on chemistry. LE in mid 90s had it. The most successful organizations I have been a part of had it.
Meant to say outside of traditional catalog businesses, even though many businesses are conducting so much direct-to-consumer business.
ReplyDeleteIn sports, folks talk about chemistry constantly. In business, not so much. Maybe that is something that QR codes can fix.
ReplyDeleteKevin, thanks for the link! I'm still dealing with ecommerce order fulfillment online, and thought I can use the tips you have here for a better ecommerce business. Two thumbs up for you!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the nice comment, Sam!
ReplyDeleteKevin, You are so interesting! I don't think I have read through anything like this before. So wonderful to find somebody with a few unique thoughts on this How Customers Interact With Advertising, Products, Brands, and Channels issue. Really.. thank you for starting this up.
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