October 16, 2006
Bureaucracy
This post by Sun CEO Jonathan Schwartz resonated with me today. If a startup can build a worldwide infrastructure that supports 100,000,000 videos viewed each day within just eighteen months, what the heck could our companies accomplish if it weren't for the internal processes we've created?
ESPN: The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network
My wife and I are enjoying teriyaki for dinner, watching Monday Night Football (when my beloved Packers are this bad, the next-best-thing to do is to cheer against Chicago and Minnesota), when we observe a new video by Jay-Z, featuring NASCAR and IRL drivers Dale Earnhardt, Jr. and Danica Patrick. Tossed-in for good measure are scantily clad women, and clips from yesterday's NFL games.
I'm a football purist, so this isn't how I'd prefer to spend halftime. However, I can see the genius of the person who decided to name this network "ESPN" instead of "SPN" back in 1979.
ESPN stands for the "Entertainment and Sports Programming Network". That "E", as my wife points out, gives ESPN the permission to offer you "Entertainment" during Monday Night Football. ESPN takes advantage of the letter "E" with much of their programming.
All of the companies we work for have little quirks that allow employees to take risks. Google's "Do No Evil" provides boundaries for employees, but also provides unlimited opportunities for doing good. What are examples of company quirks that allow you to take risks you otherwise wouldn't take?
I'm a football purist, so this isn't how I'd prefer to spend halftime. However, I can see the genius of the person who decided to name this network "ESPN" instead of "SPN" back in 1979.
ESPN stands for the "Entertainment and Sports Programming Network". That "E", as my wife points out, gives ESPN the permission to offer you "Entertainment" during Monday Night Football. ESPN takes advantage of the letter "E" with much of their programming.
All of the companies we work for have little quirks that allow employees to take risks. Google's "Do No Evil" provides boundaries for employees, but also provides unlimited opportunities for doing good. What are examples of company quirks that allow you to take risks you otherwise wouldn't take?
October 15, 2006
Allstate Insurance, Earthquakes, and CRM
My wife and I received a letter in the mail Saturday, informing us that Allstate will no longer provide earthquake coverage on our home. Having lived through the 6.8 quake in 2001, it is a good idea to have earthquake coverage in the Pacific Northwest. Conversely, having lived through Hurricane Katrina, it is probably a good idea for Allstate to drop coverage of this nature.
Several years ago, I was in an accident in a rental car, one where I totaled two vehicles. Allstate cleaned up the whole mess for me in as professional and wonderful a manner as I could ever hope for. As a result, I have a soft spot in my heart for Allstate.
Still, there is something unsettling about this. I was told of this change in policy via a form letter. One might think a call from my agent would be nice. Oh well, yet another win for big business.
CRM experts, here is your chance to shine. If you were part of the management team at Allstate, how you do you handle communication of delicate news like this in a way that makes sure that I continue to sink my hard-earned dollars into endeavors that Allstate views as being highly profitable? How should Allstate have communicated this issue?
Several years ago, I was in an accident in a rental car, one where I totaled two vehicles. Allstate cleaned up the whole mess for me in as professional and wonderful a manner as I could ever hope for. As a result, I have a soft spot in my heart for Allstate.
Still, there is something unsettling about this. I was told of this change in policy via a form letter. One might think a call from my agent would be nice. Oh well, yet another win for big business.
CRM experts, here is your chance to shine. If you were part of the management team at Allstate, how you do you handle communication of delicate news like this in a way that makes sure that I continue to sink my hard-earned dollars into endeavors that Allstate views as being highly profitable? How should Allstate have communicated this issue?
Who Drives A Multichannel Strategy?
Last week's parable of multichannel marketing wrankled many of you. Good!
It is important to consider who is telling you that you must be "multichannel". Is your customer telling you what they want to see, or are vendors who provide solutions telling you how you should implement "multichannel" strategies?
The latter can be troubling. There are many vendors who genuinely want to do what is best for your business. There are other vendors that want you to purchase expensive products, services and solutions that provide multichannel functionality, including:
I am not saying that we shouldn't implement any/all multichannel strategies.
We should, however, pay close attention to what our customers really want, and how much it costs to serve our customers. We shouldn't do something because a vendor tells us that our customers demand it, or because a research company who makes money via consulting or the sale of research reports weaves a compelling story.
Look at all of the multichannel marketing opportunities that exist, then pick and choose the things your customer demands, or pick strategies you perceive your customers will demand but aren't educated about yet. Base your strategies around your business model and customer interests, not around a pundit telling you what you should do. All too often, the latter is happening. I perceive there are too few success stories to justify what we are hearing.
Lastly, think for a few moments about your experiences as a customer. On an annual basis, how often would you truly order an item online, then invest the time to drive twenty miles to a store, and pick up the merchandise? Would you do that with an $1,800 television? Would you do that with a $19 t-shirt? How often do you truly watch a television commercial, then see the same brand advertise with a catalog, then advertise via e-mail, then maintain the look-and-feel on the website, and say "wow, that's great integrated marketing, I'm getting in the car to go to the store to buy that product?" We need to do a better job of thinking like the customers we are when we aren't at work.
Lastly, we need to understand customer behavior before doing the next "flavor of the week" multichannel strategy. Circuit City customers might see the website as a compliment to the retail channel. The Territory Ahead might see the website and stores as a compliment of their catalog channel. Knowing how customers migrate across channels, and are retained by channel, determine what the appropriate multichannel strategy is. We spend too much time on the tactics, and not enough time understanding the customer behavior that drives the tactics.
These are the reasons why the parable was written.
Ok, time for your opinion. I want to hear it. We should all be able to agree with points, and disagree with other comments, and be able to share our thoughts here.
It is important to consider who is telling you that you must be "multichannel". Is your customer telling you what they want to see, or are vendors who provide solutions telling you how you should implement "multichannel" strategies?
The latter can be troubling. There are many vendors who genuinely want to do what is best for your business. There are other vendors that want you to purchase expensive products, services and solutions that provide multichannel functionality, including:
- Integrating inventory systems across all channels.
- Same product available in all channels at the same price.
- Integrated advertising/marketing across all channels, advertising/marketing with the same look and feel.
- Integrating ROI measurement across all channels.
- Vendors providing services from evolving industries like compiled lists, paper, television, magazines and newspaper, who want to maintain market share.
I am not saying that we shouldn't implement any/all multichannel strategies.
We should, however, pay close attention to what our customers really want, and how much it costs to serve our customers. We shouldn't do something because a vendor tells us that our customers demand it, or because a research company who makes money via consulting or the sale of research reports weaves a compelling story.
Look at all of the multichannel marketing opportunities that exist, then pick and choose the things your customer demands, or pick strategies you perceive your customers will demand but aren't educated about yet. Base your strategies around your business model and customer interests, not around a pundit telling you what you should do. All too often, the latter is happening. I perceive there are too few success stories to justify what we are hearing.
Lastly, think for a few moments about your experiences as a customer. On an annual basis, how often would you truly order an item online, then invest the time to drive twenty miles to a store, and pick up the merchandise? Would you do that with an $1,800 television? Would you do that with a $19 t-shirt? How often do you truly watch a television commercial, then see the same brand advertise with a catalog, then advertise via e-mail, then maintain the look-and-feel on the website, and say "wow, that's great integrated marketing, I'm getting in the car to go to the store to buy that product?" We need to do a better job of thinking like the customers we are when we aren't at work.
Lastly, we need to understand customer behavior before doing the next "flavor of the week" multichannel strategy. Circuit City customers might see the website as a compliment to the retail channel. The Territory Ahead might see the website and stores as a compliment of their catalog channel. Knowing how customers migrate across channels, and are retained by channel, determine what the appropriate multichannel strategy is. We spend too much time on the tactics, and not enough time understanding the customer behavior that drives the tactics.
These are the reasons why the parable was written.
Ok, time for your opinion. I want to hear it. We should all be able to agree with points, and disagree with other comments, and be able to share our thoughts here.
Apple and The Masked Blogger
An interesting topic in the blogosphere has been the introduction of The Masked Blogger, an Apple employee speaking about the company on the condition of anonymity. The blogger promises to not speak about SEC-related facts. The blogger instead chooses to talk about every-day topics, giving insight into how Apple works. His contributions have been met with glee and disgust.
How do you feel about this? Should your company have a real, authentic, public blog about what happens in your company? If the answer to that question is no, is it ok for employees to talk about the company anonymously? If the answer to that question is no, is it ok for employees to have blogs talking about the industry they work in, never including anything about the company they work for?
How do you feel about this? Should your company have a real, authentic, public blog about what happens in your company? If the answer to that question is no, is it ok for employees to talk about the company anonymously? If the answer to that question is no, is it ok for employees to have blogs talking about the industry they work in, never including anything about the company they work for?
October 12, 2006
Taking Multichannel Marketing Too Far
Time to write something fun. I was working on my next book, and needed to find a way to communicate how multichannel pundits take suggestions about running a multichannel business too far. I conceived the following parable to make my point.
There are three fields (like catalog, retail and online) where cats (consumers) like to eat mice (merchandise). There are many different breeds of mice, including white mice, brown mice, black mice and mixed fur color mice. The fields are diverse. One has hills where the sun shines. One has a river flowing through it. The other field features beautiful valleys. A multichannel pundit stumbles across the field, and immediately sees opportunities to improve the hunting experience of the cats (customers) in the field. He notices that there are big differences between the fields. As a result, the pundit contracts with a heavy equipment operator. All hills are removed from the fields. The soil from the hills is used to fill the valleys. The river that went through one field is diverted into the other two fields. The multichannel pundit smiles, realizing that all fields now have the same look and feel.
Next, the multichannel pundit looks at the mice (merchandise). Some fields had too many white mice, while others had too many brown mice. The multichannel pundit makes sure that each field has equal numbers of each breed of mice. If any field runs low on one particular breed, the multichannel pundit moves the remaining breeds between fields. At any time, the multichannel pundit knows how many of each breed of mice are in each field. He smiles, knowing his cats demand to have access to all breeds of mice, wherever his cats wish to hunt.
With each field looking and feeling the same, and mice evenly distributed across all fields, the multichannel pundit wants to make it as easy as possible for the cats to hunt mice. The multichannel pundit brings in flocks of hawks, who squawk messages to the cats each time a tasty mouse is in the vicinity of the cat. This works really well, at first, as the hawks make life easy for the cats. But then, competing multichannel pundits hire their own hawks, and before you know it, the cats are being harassed mercilessly by hawks squawking about mice in competing fields. Many hawks squawk about other things that the cats never wanted to hear about. They squawk about the needs that toads have, or how fish like the newly created river system. Eventually, the multichannel pundit promotes a permission program, where hawks must ask the cats for permission before squawking about the wildlife in their fields.
Having solved this problem, the multichannel pundit finally decides to do some research, to see what makes cats happy. He notices that a fat cat is a happy cat, and the fattest cats tend to hunt in multiple fields. Figuring that every cat could be happy and fat if they hunted in every field, the multichannel pundit hires dogs to chase the cats. Within minutes, dogs are barking at cats, cats are hissing at dogs, dogs are chasing cats into adjacent fields. The ensuing chaos does not appear to make the cats any happier. In fact, some cats are completely exhausted. They no longer want to hunt in their own field, and they know that a dog will eventually chase them to an adjacent field.
The multichannel pundit brings in eagles. The cats are able to point out the mice they want to eat, the eagles search out the mice, kill them, and transfer the deceased rodent to an adjacent field, where the cat, after being chased into the adjacent field, has the freshly murdered mouse awaiting pickup, courtesy of the eagle.
The multichannel pundit looks down on his creation, and smiles. All fields have the same look and feel now, without topography. All fields have an equal distribution of white, brown and black mice. Hawks fly overhead, asking cats permission to share where mice are in adjacent fields. Dogs bark at and chase cats everywhere, pushing the cats into adjacent fields, because cats who eat mice in multiple fields tend to be the fattest and happiest cats. Eagles kill the mice for the cats, and deliver the deceased rodents to adjacent fields so that our exhausted cats, being chased by dogs, can order a snack from one field and eat the deceased rodent in the adjacent field.
What was a chaotic and unorganized ecosystem where cats had to hunt for mice, without the promise of ever finding what they wanted, where they wanted it, has been replaced by a world conceived by the multichannel pundit. The multichannel pundit smiles, watching his cats adapt to this brave, new world.
There are three fields (like catalog, retail and online) where cats (consumers) like to eat mice (merchandise). There are many different breeds of mice, including white mice, brown mice, black mice and mixed fur color mice. The fields are diverse. One has hills where the sun shines. One has a river flowing through it. The other field features beautiful valleys. A multichannel pundit stumbles across the field, and immediately sees opportunities to improve the hunting experience of the cats (customers) in the field. He notices that there are big differences between the fields. As a result, the pundit contracts with a heavy equipment operator. All hills are removed from the fields. The soil from the hills is used to fill the valleys. The river that went through one field is diverted into the other two fields. The multichannel pundit smiles, realizing that all fields now have the same look and feel.
Next, the multichannel pundit looks at the mice (merchandise). Some fields had too many white mice, while others had too many brown mice. The multichannel pundit makes sure that each field has equal numbers of each breed of mice. If any field runs low on one particular breed, the multichannel pundit moves the remaining breeds between fields. At any time, the multichannel pundit knows how many of each breed of mice are in each field. He smiles, knowing his cats demand to have access to all breeds of mice, wherever his cats wish to hunt.
With each field looking and feeling the same, and mice evenly distributed across all fields, the multichannel pundit wants to make it as easy as possible for the cats to hunt mice. The multichannel pundit brings in flocks of hawks, who squawk messages to the cats each time a tasty mouse is in the vicinity of the cat. This works really well, at first, as the hawks make life easy for the cats. But then, competing multichannel pundits hire their own hawks, and before you know it, the cats are being harassed mercilessly by hawks squawking about mice in competing fields. Many hawks squawk about other things that the cats never wanted to hear about. They squawk about the needs that toads have, or how fish like the newly created river system. Eventually, the multichannel pundit promotes a permission program, where hawks must ask the cats for permission before squawking about the wildlife in their fields.
Having solved this problem, the multichannel pundit finally decides to do some research, to see what makes cats happy. He notices that a fat cat is a happy cat, and the fattest cats tend to hunt in multiple fields. Figuring that every cat could be happy and fat if they hunted in every field, the multichannel pundit hires dogs to chase the cats. Within minutes, dogs are barking at cats, cats are hissing at dogs, dogs are chasing cats into adjacent fields. The ensuing chaos does not appear to make the cats any happier. In fact, some cats are completely exhausted. They no longer want to hunt in their own field, and they know that a dog will eventually chase them to an adjacent field.
The multichannel pundit brings in eagles. The cats are able to point out the mice they want to eat, the eagles search out the mice, kill them, and transfer the deceased rodent to an adjacent field, where the cat, after being chased into the adjacent field, has the freshly murdered mouse awaiting pickup, courtesy of the eagle.
The multichannel pundit looks down on his creation, and smiles. All fields have the same look and feel now, without topography. All fields have an equal distribution of white, brown and black mice. Hawks fly overhead, asking cats permission to share where mice are in adjacent fields. Dogs bark at and chase cats everywhere, pushing the cats into adjacent fields, because cats who eat mice in multiple fields tend to be the fattest and happiest cats. Eagles kill the mice for the cats, and deliver the deceased rodents to adjacent fields so that our exhausted cats, being chased by dogs, can order a snack from one field and eat the deceased rodent in the adjacent field.
What was a chaotic and unorganized ecosystem where cats had to hunt for mice, without the promise of ever finding what they wanted, where they wanted it, has been replaced by a world conceived by the multichannel pundit. The multichannel pundit smiles, watching his cats adapt to this brave, new world.
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