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Customer Loyalty and Retention … Is Loyalty Disappearing?

By Mike Schoultz

 

 

customer loyalty and retention

Is customer loyalty a thing of the past?

 

Making promises and keeping them is a great way to build a brand.

-       Seth Godin

 

Does it appear that customer loyalty and retention is disappearing in your business? Have you noticed a change over the past few years, especially with your younger customers?

 

For years, one of the watchwords for brand marketers has been loyalty. It has been a widely held belief that consumers who bought a brand and liked it would potentially become brand loyalists, demonstrating preference for that brand over competitors.

 

Some brand marketers took the concept of loyalty a step further, building programs that offered incentives for exhibiting brand loyalty in the form of various loyalty programs.

 

Well there’s a wakeup call for proponents of brand loyalty — the economy, in combination with online access to a wealth of brand information, is changing the notion of brand loyalty, at least for those consumers ages 25 to 49.

 

In a survey of 865 Gen X and Gen Y consumers, Boston-based marketing agency, AMP Agency, studied baby products, consumer electronics, food and beverage, health and beauty, and fashion. According to the study a meager 3% of consumers surveyed in this age group said they’re loyal to a particular brand.

 

In every category, it seems, consumers were doing a fair amount of research (primarily online) prior to purchasing a product, from a high of 64% before buying electronics, to a low of 25% before purchasing food or fashion.

 

A whopping 94% of those surveyed indicated that their decision to buy was “positively influenced” by research. Around half of consumers visit a brand’s website to research the brand prior to purchase, and 40% said they go to third-party review sites, but almost 75% rely on general consumer reviews as their first choice for research intelligence.

 

For half of the respondents, online consumer reviews “most influenced” their purchase. Interestingly, 30% claimed they couldn’t find as much information as they wanted about brands online.

 

Allison Marsh, VP, Consumer Insights at AMP Agency stated: “New consumer behavior is redefining what we view as contemporary loyalty. With more information, consumers have seized control and are more open to the wide choices in the marketplace.”

 

The results of the study suggest that purchase consideration is following a “new/modern path,” regardless of brand category. This presents new opportunities for brand marketers to make sure they are getting their products in front of real influencers (reviewers and consumers alike).

 

It also means brand marketers may have to take a whole new look at their previously held views on brand loyalty.

 

Remember you can only stand out from the crowd if you are a member of the crowd.

 

What stories of brand loyalty can you share with this community?

 

 

Like this story?   Follow Digital Spark Marketing on LinkedIn   for 3-4 short, interesting blogs, stories per week.

 

Digital Spark Marketing will stretch your thinking and your ability to adapt to change.  We also provide some fun and inspiration along the way.

 

 Reading from Digital Spark Marketing’s library:

Customer Complaints Are Valuable for Customer Retention Strategies

Optimum Market Branding through Customer Personalization

 

 

 

 

Starbucks Marketing Strategy … Making Social Media a Difference Maker

By Mike Schoultz
Starbucks marketing

Starbucks marketing

 

Social networking is not about farming followers, it’s a way of cultivating relationships.

-  Hubspot

 

Social Media and Starbucks marketing?

 

When choosing to learn from others social media strategies, it is always helpful to choose one of the top dogs in social media.

 

Meet Starbucks.  They have been successfully executing their social media marketing plan since the first days of social media and social commerce. For over 5 years, and their strategies have played a significant role in their growth.

 

An introduction to Starbucks is unnecessary.

 

With more than 18,000 retail locations in 60 countries, the coffeehouse is the picture of success.

 

Starbucks rode the baby boomer trend in the 1990s, the swelling ranks of mid-age professionals that created the need for a “third place,” an “affordable luxury” where people could share and enjoy a cup of coffee with friends and colleagues, away from work and home.

 

In our opinion, the company has inserted itself into the American urban landscape more quickly and craftily than any retail company in history. It has forever changed the way companies market themselves to customers. Here is how we feel they have been so successful:

 

Market segmentation

The company has stayed with the upper-scale of the coffee market, competing on comfort rather than convenience, which are the case with its closest competitors, McDonald’s and Dunkin Donuts.

 

Execution

The company continues to focus on its original product bundle that includes good coffee, quality service, and a nice environment to hang around. They keep their attention on paying attention to the details of great execution and service.

 

Social Media

One of the earliest adopters of the use of social media for marketing and social commerce, Starbucks has certainly taken a leadership position. Their social media strategy is built around their company web site and 6 additional social platforms, including Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, G+, Youtube, and My Starbucks Ideas. We will review Starbuck’s social media strategy in detail below.

 

Adaptation and Innovation

Starbuck’s business crowdsourcing, via its My Starbucks Idea website, has been a hugh success. Why you may ask? Because they have combined the concepts of change, experimentation, social media, customer engagement, and market research and made the results key components of both their brand as well as their marketing strategy. Have you given My Starbucks Idea a try? What did you think?

 

 

Starbucks has clearly embraced the digital realm. With a strong presence on multiple social networks, the brand has set a high bar when it comes to being social and engaging its customers. They are at or near the top of nearly every major brand ranking in social media.

 

Starbucks’ ability to wear so many hats—corporate success, “local” favorite, and Internet sensation—warrants strategic examination.

 

Why is Starbucks such a social media marketing success story? There are seven key reasons their social media strategy is a successful difference maker for their marketing campaign:

 

Here is our take on why:

 

Customer relationships

Instead of solely focusing efforts on accumulating new customers, it cultivates its current relationships. This ensures more fans/followers in the long run, as well as the continued existence of brand advocates. This holds true across the board: In-store experiences are highly valued—along with online engagement—emphasizing the importance of customer service.

 

Going to its customers

When Starbucks takes a photo, it shares it on Instagram, posts it to Facebook, tweets it on Twitter, and pins it on Pinterest. It clearly goes to where all its customers like to hang out. Cross-promotion is more valuable as the world becomes more digitally focused.

Each network provides an opportunity to reach a new audience, and integrating your strategy on each is crucial to increasing visibility and promoting the brand.

 

Customer engagement

They believe in letting customer engagement and conversation occur as naturally as possible.  They listen carefully, observe, and apply new ideas from what they learn.

 

Encourages sharing

Happy customers are eager to share good experiences and offers. For example, the Starbucks frequent promotions like “buy 1 get 1″ garner an extraordinary amount of engagement on social media through comments, “likes,” and shares.

 

My Starbucks Ideas

The My Starbucks Idea website, where Starbucks does its business crowdsourcing, has been actively engaging customers for over 4 years now.  It encourages customers to submit ideas for better products, improving the customer experience, and defining new community involvement, among other categories. Clearly, Starbucks has seen and believes what Peter Drucker has to say about business adaptability. 

 

Customers can submit, view, and discuss submitted ideas along with employees from various Starbucks departments – “Idea Partners”.  The company regularly polls its customers for their favorite products and has a leaderboard to track which customers are the most active in submitting ideas, comments, and poll participation.

 

The site is at once a crowdsourcing tool, a market research method that brings customer priorities to light, an on-line community, and an effective internet marketing tool.

 

Experience customization

Starbucks provides its unique experience through programs such as My Starbucks Rewards, personalized “signature” drinks, and localized store experiences. Their social sites, in particular Pinterest and Instagram, encourage users to share their Starbucks moments—whether it be the return of a favorite holiday drink or just an artsy coffee cup shot.

 

Taking a stand

Giving consumers a charitable reason to buy that steaming cup is beneficial for all. The takeaway from Starbucks is to know your customer and tie that in with what matters in the world—so, pay attention to how your brand can fit into trending topics.

 

Starbucks reflects a mission

Its mission is “to inspire and nurture the human spirit—one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time.” They believe lifting customers up will lead to more customer loyalty. It’s “The Way I See It” quote campaign is a perfect example.

 

 

Lots of ideas here that can be easily replicated … which ones do you feel could benefit your business?

How could you improve the Starbucks Coffee Social Media campaign concept for your business?

 

Starbucks is one of many businesses we can learn from. Please post your comments below, offering questions or your own great examples of social marketing strategies.

 

 

Like this story? Follow Digital Spark Marketing on LinkedIn or Google+ for 3-4 short, interesting blogs, stories per week.

 

 

More related reading from Digital Spark Marketing’s blog library:

The Story of Two Roads

Are You Aware of These Surprising Facts on Innovation?

Do You Practice These Habits of the Highly Creative?

 

 

Engage the Audience with the Magic of Creative Videos

By Mike Schoultz
creative videos

Videos are an increasingly important marketing component.

 

The best camera is the one with you. Images aren’t about dynamic ranges and megapixels. They’re about stories and moments.

-      Chase Jarvis

 

Magic?  Yes we do mean magic.

 

The magic that keeps you glued to your creative video. The magic that makes you remember what you just viewed. The magic that entices you to tell your friends about what you watched … and share it.

 

Have you ever seen the videos of Steve Jobs presenting the new product launch of the Mac, iPod, or iPad? He understood that something could be entertaining yet meaningful at the same time. Videos such as these work as well on the web as they do on television.  The simple objective … turn marketing into magical, entertaining content, not content into marketing.

 

So what is the magic of creating a potentially viral video?  Consider the following six elements we use to build award winning videos:

 

Engage the Audience

Grab attention … on some problem your audience shares, and then address the solution. This is the most important part of the video … the part of the video that compels viewers to want to see and hear the entire story/show!

 

Enlighten and Inform

Provide your key discriminating message woven into the central theme of the video. This is the second most important element of your video … convincing customers your story is the best and the reason to select you. Make sure you are addressing your most important target customers. And avoid selling at all costs!

 

Stylize the Experience

Design an experience that will be memorable … create the visual of your value, the core message. Take some risks here to stand out and be different … no risks, no rewards.

 

Resonate

Strike a nerve to grab attention and connect with your audience. What makes your video such a powerful marketing and branding tool is its ability to communicate on verbal, visual, and metaphoric levels. If you are not using all 3 levels of communications, you are missing opportunities to resonate and connect with your audience.

 

Entertain

Be memorable and bold … be worth the audience’s time and attention. Use subtle marketing techniques.  The challenge is to turn marketing into memorable content that informs, enlightens, and entertains at the same time.

 

Compel Action

We all understand the need for a call to action.  However, you can only deliver on the action call by a convincing story. A story catching attention and providing relevant messages for your target customers.

 

 

What are some of your experiences with creative videos as a component of an integrated marketing campaign?

 

 

Does your business use videos to engage your on-line customers?  Do you have a story to share on their effectiveness?

 

  

Read more:

The Samsung Galaxy S3 … Effective Marketing Strategy?

10 Key Enablers of Your Integrated Marketing Strategy

10 Tips for Creative Winning Business Differentiation

 

 

 

 

                    

 

The Samsung Galaxy S4 … Another Effective Marketing Strategy?

By Mike Schoultz
effective marketing strategy

Does Samsung have another winning marketing strategy?

 

The secret of all effective advertising is not the creation of new and tricky words and pictures, but one of putting familiar words and pictures into new relationships.

-      Leo Burnett

 

 

 

I have to admit. I am a big fan of Apple. So it pains me to evaluate such an effective marketing strategy as recently launched by Samsung for its new Galaxy S4. Is it a great product?  Yep.  It is an even better advertising campaign.

 

 

Have you seen any of the recent Samsung Galaxy S4 advertisements? If not, or in any case, here is the one we like best. All the ones we have seen are excellent. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LHv1FPd1Ec 

 

Marketing or advertising, you need to create information that your customers find interesting and worth talking about and remembering. This advertisement certainly achieves this goal, don’t you think?

  

 

Let’s evaluate why we believe this is such an effective advertising campaign:

 

 

Be relevant to your target market

Keep in mind that one message does not fit all. It starts with knowing your target market. Here the target market are millennials and are featured prominently in all of the ads. Most of the messages, and there are many good ones, are written for the young adult.

 

 

Define your positioning 

Your frame of reference.  Make comparisons to your competitors if you can. Galaxy certainly knows who its major competitor is … and took Apple on in the S3 ads. But not in this series. Tolally ignored the competition. A good move we believe, as there was nothing to be gained.

 

 

Grab and hold viewers’ attention 

Interesting information, well presented, always holds attention, yes?  Keep in mind that people don’t watch ads … they watch what interests them. These ads subtly  grabs and holds attention based on a great music sound track, no speaking, and a total reliance of suberb visuals. Letting the visuals totally carry the messages.

 

 

Strong value propositions

If you have a product that truly discriminates you from your competition, build your messages on these. Give your customers reasons to select you. Many new features to this phone … technology is moving at warp speed, isn’t it? We counted at least 15-20 new features that are highlighted in the four minute ad. And they don’t over-whelm you. Bringing them all together, it does illustrate Samsung as a company that is a technology leader, which is their objective in our opinion. It is here that they are very subtly taking on Apple without saying it. Good strategy.

 

 

 

Make your messages simple 

As we said, a four minute ad with 15-20 new features shown. No talking. And so simple that you quickly grasp them and don’t lose interest. Keep in mind that pictures are far more valuable than words. And the music has a way to keep you tied in. Creating customer interest does get any simpler than this, does it? A very simple, yet entertaining design, don’t you think.

 

 

 

Make your ad a component 

There are a series of similar ads in this campaign … all geared to address the S3’s discriminators. All follow the same theme … simply shine light on the value of the product. Great visuals. Entertaining music. And no talking. Definitely no selling. All the discriminators are grouped into four categories as shown in the image above:

Convenience – making your life easy and hassle free.

Fun – making life’s everyday moments fun and memorable.

Relationships – true connections bring people closer together.

Care – taking care of your health and quality of life.

 

 

Influence and persuasion … there is no better means of influence or persuasion than emotion. Hands down the best, in our opinion. This commercial focuses on emotional appeal in grand fashion. It is an important component of this commercial’s success. The other aspect that persuades is the great new features … creating the pull.

 

 

 

Samsung Galaxy S G4 will be released soon, we believe. Read an evaluation of the product launch marketing strategy.

 

 

 

Remember, it is not what advertising does with the consumer; it is what the consumer does after viewing the advertisement.

 

 

 

After looking over these product features and Samsung’s Galaxy S4 creative advertisement videos, we believe they have created a very effective marketing strategy. What do you think?

Does this commercial persuade you?

 

 

 

What are some of your experiences with advertising as a component of an integrated marketing campaign?

 

 

 

Read more:

The Samsung Galaxy S3 … Effective Marketing Strategy?

10 Key Enablers of Your Integrated Marketing Strategy

10 Tips for Creative Winning Business Differentiation

 

 

 

 

 

Secret to Volkswagen Advertisement … Effect Advertising Campaign?

By Mike Schoultz
Volkswagen advertisement

Emotion is the key to persuasion.

 

The secret of all effective advertising is not the creation of new and tricky words and pictures, but one of putting familiar words and pictures into new relationships.

-      Leo Burnett

 

 

Is it a secret? Probably not. But it seems like a hidden truth. Under wraps until the Volkswagen advertisement? Or camouflaged. Certainly something we can learn from however.

 

 

Have you seen the recent Volkswagen safety commercial? Let’s examine this commercial and what contributes to its strengths and weaknesses. And its ability to influence or persuade. 

 

 

Marketing or advertising, you need to create information that your customers find interesting and worth talking about and remembering. This advertisement certainly achieves this goal, don’t you think?  

 

 

Let’s evaluate other keys to effective marketing strategy in this advertisement:

 

 

Be relevant to your target market … keep in mind that one message does not fit all. It starts with knowing your target market. Here the target market is families with young children and people with a high focus on car safety. Certainly relevant to this market.

 

 

Define your positioning … your frame of reference.  Make comparisons to your competitors if you can. Volkswagen certainly knows who its major competitors are and but chooses to not take them on in this commercial. A good move we believe.

 

 

Grab and hold viewers’ attention … with interesting information.  Keep in mind that people don’t watch ads … they watch what interests them. Your ad messages must be interesting to your target communities. This message certainly grabs and holds attention based on simple emotion.

 

 

Define a value proposition … that truly discriminates you from your competition. Give your customers reasons to select you. Maybe not the most significant visible feature, it does illustrate Volkswagen as a company that puts high priority on passenger safety, which is their clear objective.

 

 

Make your messages simple … that the reader will quickly understand. Keep in mind that pictures are far more valuable than words. Creating customer emotion does get any simpler than this, does it?

 

 

Consider the end state values to your customers … customers and particularly the target customers are looking for new safety features. No reason to buy without these and the marketing strategy certainly is addressing this end state in our opinion. The commercial does not address any specific safety features or why the Jetta is the best. A weakness we believe.

 

 

Influence and persuasion … there is no better means of influence or persuasion than emotion. Hands down the best, in our opinion. This commercial focuses on emotional appeal in grand fashion. It is the secret of this commercial’s success.

 

 

Remember, it is not what advertising does with the consumer; it is what the consumer does after viewing the advertisement.

 

 

After looking over these enablers, we believe Volkswagen has created a very effective commercial. What do you think? Can this commercial persuade you?

 

 

What are some of your experiences with advertising as a component of an integrated marketing campaign?

 

 

Read more:

The Samsung Galaxy S3 … Effective Marketing Strategy?

10 Key Enablers of Your Integrated Marketing Strategy

10 Tips for Creative Winning Business Differentiation

Mobile Technology Use Results from Nielsen’s Social Media Report

By Mike Schoultz
mobile technology use

Mobile technology use.

 

We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble solutions.

-       Lee Iacocca

 

Have you had the opportunity to see and read the recent Nielsen Social Media Report yet? Lots of very interesting data and graphically presented so as to make reading and interpretation very easy. This blog will share some of the more significant results and their implications for businesses relying on social media and mobile technology use for engaging consumers.

 

Smartphones and tablets have led to ‘always on’ access to the Internet. So where are people spending all this time on the internet? According to this very interesting report, more and more of it is spent on social networking sites.

 

“Time spent on mobile apps and the mobile web account for 63 percent of the year-over-year growth in overall time spend using social media,” states the report. In addition, 46 percent of social media users access social networks via a mobile device. In regard to social media use overall, users in the US spent 121 billion minutes on social networking sites between July 2011 and July 2012, up from 88 billion the previous year.

 

Social Media Reliance is Positive for Brands

 

Whether on mobile devices, laptops or desktop computers, demand for social media engagement is good news for brands. A recent survey (PDF) from social media curation platform provider Mass Relevance revealed some interesting facts:

 

  • 75 percent of social networkers talk about brands; for 18-34 year-olds it’s 91 percent;
  • 62 percent are more likely to engage with social brands;
  • 60 percent are more likely to share the messages of brands that integrate social experiences into their own digital properties, such as a brand website or mobile app;
  • Where social commerce is concerned, nearly two-thirds (64 percent) have already made a purchase based on social content; that was true of 76 percent of 18-34 year-olds.

And finally …

  • 59 percent of respondents reported they are more likely to trust brands that integrate social media;

 

Recommendations for Brands

 

In summarizing the survey results, Mass Relevance found that consumers rely on social media in four ways:

 

  • They pay more attention to brands that integrate social media;
  • They are more likely to share social experiences;
  • They prefer to do business with social brands;
  • They use social information to make purchasing decisions.

 

Based on these findings, the company made the following recommendations:

 

Engaging with Consumers

 

“Consumers pay more attention to brands that create social media experiences and spend more time on websites when social media is integrated,” the survey said. Therefore:

 

Brands should integrate social media experiences into their own web properties (including mobile apps), as well as engage with consumers on social networks.

 

Amplifying Their Message

 

Not only do brands have audiences, each audience member has his or her own network of friends and followers. When a brand shares a message, chances are some of its fans will follow suit. When the audience shares, the message is amplified. 

”The good news is the audience wants to share the message of social brands,” stated the survey.

 

Promote Trust

 

Since more than half of survey respondents indicated that they are “more likely to trust brands that integrate social media,”

Brands should use it to foster such confidence.

 

Summary

 

The increased use of mobile technologies has made access to social media easier and more readily available and people are taking advantage of this access to talk about brands. Therefore, brands should welcome this trend by integrating social experiences to engage with fans and followers, amplify brand messaging, and promote trust.

 

“Your audience prefers and trusts social brands and is starting to use social information to make purchasing decisions. With the fragmentation of experiences, the explosion of digital experiences, and the desire for participation, the time to integrate social media into all facets of brand marketing is now,” the survey declares.

 

Brands that do so put themselves ahead of the sales cycle and create a presence at multiple touchpoints along the purchase funnel.

 

Remember … brands are verbs and what they do matters more than what they say.

 

Please share a story on your business’ brand design with this community.

 

 

Like this short blog? Follow Digital Spark Marketing on LinkedIn or add us to your circles for 3-4 short, interesting blogs, stories per week.

 

 

Read more from Digital Spark Marketing’s blog library:

8 Popular Social Media Initiatives for Customer Engagement

Social Commerce Business … What Ben and Jerry’s Knows That You Should Know

12 Ways to Build Social Commerce Business through Great Customer Service

 

Is Prudential’s Billboard Ad Engaging People and Grabbing Attention?

By Mike Schoultz
grabbing atention

Grabbing attention?

 

The secret of all effective advertising is not the creation of new and tricky words and pictures, but one of putting familiar words and pictures into new relationships.

-      Leo Burnett

 

Have you seen the new Prudential which they label the sticker billboard experiment?  It is a very interesting way to use graphics/visuals to make a simple point. In this commercial, Prudential’s objective is to convince target customers that they need to be prepared to pay for their retirement considerably longer than they would have a generation before. It is very effective at engaging people and grabbing attention as we will conclude in this analysis.

 

 In the commercial, a college professor asks many people from a very diverse group a simple question … what is the oldest person that you know? He then asks each person to put a sticker representing the age on a very large billboard, as shown in the picture above.

 

It has been said that advertising is the price to be paid for being unremarkable.  That may be true, but I have noticed that even remarkable businesses advertise.  It is a key component of a marketing campaign, for awareness or consumer education of a company product or service’s value. This blog’s objective is to give  an analysis of Prudential’s commercial.

 

 Marketing or advertising, you need to create information that your customers find interesting and worth talking about and remembering. It needs to raise awareness  or educate customers on a key point or product. In this case, Prudential sought to do both … on the fact that people will need to increase their retirement savings to pay for a much longer retirement period.  

 

Here are 9 important enablers we rely on to create effective advertisement messages. We will use them to evaluate the effectiveness of Prudential’s commercial:

 

Grab and hold viewers’ attention … with interesting information.  Keep in mind that people don’t read ads … they read what interests them. Your ad messages must be interesting to your target communities. This commercial does this well, by creating curiosity, with great visuals, and a simple question.

 

Define a value proposition … that truly discriminates you from your competition. Give your customers reasons to select you. This commercial has not done this yet … needs to be part of the continuous campaign.

 

Consider the end state values to your customers.  A good example of this is Dell’s fast delivery of a custom computer. This commercial definitely considers the end state needs of its customers …  the retirement needs of target customers are the objective of this commercial.

 

Make your messages simple … that the reader will quickly understand. Keep in mind that pictures are far more valuable than words. Scored big on these criteria, not only with a great visual, but a different type of graphic that engages people!

 

Be relevant to your target market.  Keep in mind that one message does not fit all. It starts with knowing your target market. Ultimately everyone that ever desires to retire is the target here … so Prudential uses a diverse group of people in the commercial.

 

Use visuals to get your message across  … your frame of reference.  Make comparisons to your competitors if you can. No comparisons yet drawn, as the value proposition is not part of this commercial’s objective. The message depends exclusively on the visual and graphical billboard however.

 

Clearly link your messages … to your brand. Remember the AFLAC duck … or E-Trade’s talking baby … these are great linkages to the brands. Not achieved with this commercial, as not a high priority. We believe this is the first in a series of an integrated campaign strategy.

 

Make your ad a component … of an integrated marketing campaign. Yet to come, but we definitely believe it will. We are very interested in evaluating the complete campaign.

 

Remember, it is not what advertising does with the consumer, it is what the consumer does after reading the advertisement.  After looking over these enablers and the commercial by Prudential … how do you think they did?

 

While this is a work in progress as far as the total integrated campaign, we believe Prudential has ‘teed up’ a winner! It is great at engaging people and grabbing their attention. We will wait to determine whether Prudential comes up with a good value proposition to give its product an edge.

 

What are some of your experiences with advertising as a component of an integrated marketing campaign?

 

Do you have an advertising experience to share with this community?

 

Like this story? Follow Digital Spark Marketing on LinkedIn for 3-4 short, interesting blogs, stories per week.

 

More reading from Digital Spark Marketing’s library:

 The Samsung Galaxy S3 … Effective Marketing Strategy?

10 Ways to Improve Storytelling

Creative Collaboration is the Solution for the Toughest Business Problems

 

 

 

The Samsung Galaxy S 4G Phone Launch … Effective Marketing Strategy?

By Mike Schoultz
Samsung Galaxy S 4G

Samsung Galaxy S 4G

 

You can’t just say it. You have to get people to say it to each other.

-       James Farley

 

Have you been keeping up with the press of the recent Samsung Galaxy S 4G launch strategy? Seen the details of the presentation at Radio City Music Hall in New York City?  In this blog we will evaluate whether Samsung has an effective marketing strategy with this launch and why we reach these conclusions.

 

In any marketing strategy, you need to create information and messages that your customers find interesting and worth talking about and remembering. You need to have the best unique selling points possible. If you have seen the press, or perhaps the launch show itself, this marketing strategy certainly achieves these goals, don’t you think?  

 

 Let’s evaluate the keys to this launch marketing strategy and why we believe it achieves its goals:

 

Pre-launch build up

A week after the official announcement of this event date, Samsung released a teaser video. In it, the company promised nothing short of the most amazing product to hit the market since TVs went color.

 

Anticipation around Samsung’s latest smartphone salvo had built sufficiently that attendees line up around Radio City Music Hall beforehand and eventually filled the venue up to its second mezzanine.

 

Even the tag line of the teasers is not coy about it – “Be ready 4 the next Galaxy”.

 

Launch location/venue

New York City and the Radio City Music Hall … Samsung could not have selected a setting to create better ‘pop’ or press. What do you think?

 

Broadway Show Story

After Samsung mobile chief J.K. Shin ran down some of the S4’s key capabilities, a cast of nearly 20 actors and a full orchestra performed four scenes depicting stories of how the Samsung cell phones can be used in everyday life.

In the first such vignette, a father at an elementary school talent show used the dual-camera functionality to photograph his family and his own reaction at the same time, superimposing his face onto the image of his son and wife.

 

The second scene demonstrated how the S4 can translate between nine different languages — 10 if you separate British and North American English — depicting a backpacker visiting Shanghai typing a question in English and playing a Chinese translation through the phone.

 

The next enactment showed a Broadway actor using the phone’s S Voice Drive feature while driving through Manhattan. S Voice allows users to take calls, check the weather, play music and perform other tasks without using their hands. Using just voice commands, the driver was able to get directions and receive a message from his agent about being cast in a Steven Spielberg movie.

 

The final scene portrayed a wedding party in Miami using the Group Play feature, which allows S4 owners to sync their phones to each play the same song at the same time. Group Play can also turn five phones into a five-channel surround sound system, according to Samsung director of product marketing Ryan Bidan.

 

A very distinctive way to convey the products best features we believe and certainly building on the distinct brand image.

Stories are a great way to convey marketing messages.

 

Keep in mind that people don’t watch ads … they watch what interests them. Rather than explicitly pitching the phone as an Apple alternative as it did with the Galaxy S III, however, Samsung argued that the new features will help users achieve a “richer, simpler, more full life.” The tagline for the phone was “Life companion.”

 

 This message certainly grabs and holds attention based on many novel, new features.

 

Target market relevancy

Keep in mind that one message does not fit all.

“We have listened to you to understand what a smartphone should do”

It starts with knowing your target market. Here the target market are millennials and were featured prominently in the in all elements of the strategy. 

 

Commitment to technology

We are committed to innovation. We have taken technology and innovation forward to help us get closer to what matters in life, to help us live a richer, simpler and more full life.

-       JK Shin, president and head of IT and mobile communications at Samsung

 

The hardware design doesn’t look that much different than the Galaxy S3, but the device is noticeably thinner and lighter than before. And even though Samsung stuck with a plastic casing, the materials don’t feel cheap.

 

The phone’s front-facing camera can tell when you’re looking at the device and automatically adjust the screen brightness based on the kind of content you’re looking at. (It will darken when you’re reading an e-book, for example.) 

 

Samsung also added a feature called Hover that lets you hold your finger a centimeter or two over the screen to view extra content. This was most useful in the email app. When you hold your finger over a message in the inbox, you get a pop-up preview of the message.

 

The Galaxy S4 also has an eye-tracking feature for scrolling through pages. When looking at the phone, you have to tilt the device to make the page scrolling.

 

Product tagline

Consider the end state values to your customers … customers and particularly the target customers are always looking for new technology features. It will take good ones to get them to upgrade to a new model. Not the key message Samsung used however.

 

Samsung message was simply that the new features will help users achieve a “richer, simpler, more full life.”

The tagline for the phone was “Life companion.” No reason to buy without these and the marketing strategy certainly is addressing this end state in our opinion. 

 

Positioning versus Apple 

Make comparisons to your competitors if you can. Galaxy certainly knows who its major competitor is and takes him head on as it strategy. Rather than explicitly pitching the phone as an Apple alternative as it did with the Galaxy S3, however, Samsung argues that the new features will help users achieve a “richer, simpler, more full life.”

A good move we believe.

 

Define unique selling points

Create ones that truly discriminates you from your competition. Give your customers reasons to select you.  With the S4 Samsung has added many new technological features to represent very good unique selling points. They illustrate Samsung as a company that is a technology leader, which is their objective in our opinion. 

 

Make your launch a component 

… of an integrated marketing campaign. While the entire marketing and advertising campaign lies ahead, a pervasive theme has been set with this launch. It is going to be interesting how Samsung builds on its tagline theme.

 

Samsung says the GS4 will launch in the second quarter of this year and will be available on all four major U.S. carriers. Samsung did not announce pricing or a specific launch date.

 

Remember, it is not what a marketing strategy does with the consumer; it is what the consumer does after viewing the marketing.

 

After reviewing the Samsung Galaxy S 4G launch, and while there is certainly a ways to go, we believe they have created the beginning of a very effective marketing strategy. What do you think? 

 

What are some of your experiences with a product launch as a component of an integrated marketing campaign?

 

Like this story? Follow Digital Spark Marketing on LinkedIn for 3-4 short, interesting blogs, stories per week.

 

Read more from Digital Spark Marketing’s blog library: 

The Samsung Galaxy S3 … Effective Marketing Strategy?

10 Key Enablers of Your Integrated Marketing Strategy

 The Samsung Galaxy S4 … Another Effective Marketing Strategy?

 

 

 

 

The Aim of Marketing and a Good Marketer Is to Sell Without Selling

By Mike Schoultz
aim of marketing

Success in marketing is to close the sale without selling.

 

The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product fits him and sells itself.

-          Peter Drucker

           

Today, my wife and I bought several Turkish rugs from Mehrdad Moghadam, Falasiri’s Oriental Rugs’ and Vero Beach’s Steve Jobs of Oriental rug merchants. Merhdad’s aim of marketing is to let his products do their own selling. He definitely believes in Peter Drucker’s philosophy of marketing.

 

If I could run my company as well he could sell, I’d have the most successful marketing agency in the state of Florida.

 

Technically, speaking, Mehrdad  didn’t really sell us anything. He simply created the conditions that allowed us to buy. I know many of you think this is really just a clever form of selling, but I would argue otherwise.

 

How did Mehrdad work these magic conditions, when we weren’t really sure we were ready to buy a rug, let alone 2?

 

He effortlessly … established rapport

 

He had beautiful rugs … and knew them better than most people know themselves

 

He loved … what he did

 

He shared his knowledge … with great emotion

 

He gave us … all the space we needed

 

He had a wonderful … sense of humor

 

He had kind eyes … and a big heart

 

He conducted the transaction … in the spirit of service

 

He knew what he was doing … and he did it with the perfect blend of flair and humility



Take a moment to think about the way that you currently sell your product or services. If it’s not going quite as well as you’d like, ask yourself: “What can I learn from Mehrdad the Rug Merchant?”

 

And always remember … selling is marketing BUT marketing is not selling.

 

Like this story? Follow Digital Spark Marketing on LinkedIn for 3-4 short, interesting blogs, stories per week.

  

Please share a story about a creative marketing campaign strategy with this community.

  

Read more from Digital Spark Marketing’s blog library:

 

The Samsung Galaxy S3 … Effective Marketing Strategy?

10 Key Enablers of Your Integrated Marketing Strategy

10 Tips for Creative Winning Business Differentiation

 

 

Effective Listening Skills: the Most Difficult Communication Skill

By Mike Schoultz
effective listening

Effective listening

 

 

 

I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.

-          Pablo Picasso

 

Which communication skill do you use most frequently? Which one are you most effective using?  One of the most critical skills of successful people whether in the business world or private life is their ability to communicate effectively. The most important component of effective communication … effective listening skills.

 

Listening is the communication skill most of us use the most frequently.

 

Various studies stress the importance of listening as a communication skill. A typical study points out that many of us spend 70 to 80 percent of our waking hours in some form of communication. Of that time, we spend about 9 percent writing, 16 percent reading, 30 percent speaking, and 45 percent listening.

 

 Studies also confirm that most of us are poor and inefficient listeners. Why?

Several reasons are likely:

 

Listening training is few and far between

 

Even though listening is the communication skill we use most frequently, it is also the skill in which we’ve had the least training. From personal experience, we know we’ve had much more formal training in other major communication skills — writing, reading, and speaking. In fact, very few persons have had any formal training in listening.

 

The same is true of informal training. It’s not difficult to find workshops and conferences that provide opportunities to improve our writing and speaking skills. But it is difficult to find similar training programs to sharpen listening skills.

 

Thought speed greater than speaking speed

 

Another reason for poor listening skills is that you and I can think faster than someone else can speak. Most of us speak at the rate of about 125 words per minute. However, we have the mental capacity to understand someone speaking at 400 words per minute (if that were possible).

 

This difference between speaking speed and thought speed means that when we listen to the average speaker, we’re using only 25 percent of our mental capacity. We still have 75 percent to do something else with. So, our minds will wander.

 

This means we need to make a real effort to listen carefully and concentrate more of our mental capacity on the listening act. If we don’t concentrate, we soon find that our minds have turned to other ideas.

 

Inefficient listeners

 

Numerous tests confirm that we are inefficient listeners. Studies have shown that immediately after listening to a 10-minute oral presentation, the average listener has heard, understood and retained 50 percent of what was said.

Within 48 hours, that drops off another 50 percent to a final level of 25 percent efficiency.

 

In other words, we often comprehend and retain only one fourth of what we hear. We all want to be more than 25 percent efficient. It’s not difficult to see the many problems inefficient listeners can create for themselves and others.

 

Listening skill suffers with age in learning cycle

 

Other studies indicate that our listening skill suffers as we get older. Ralph G. Nichols, long-time professor of rhetoric at the University of Minnesota (now retired), says in his book Are You Listening? that if we define the good listener as one giving full attention to the speaker, first-grade children are the best listeners of all.

 

Nichols describes an experiment conducted with the cooperation of Minneapolis teachers from first grade through high school. Each teacher involved was asked to interrupt classes and suddenly ask pupils “what were you thinking about?” or “what was I talking about?”

 

Results were discouraging but informative. The answers of first and second graders showed that more than 90 percent were listening. Percentages dropped in higher grades. In junior high school classes, only 44 percent of the students were listening. In high school classes, the average dropped to 28 percent.

 

Focused listening is difficult

 

Another likely reason for inefficient listening is that it’s difficult and hard work to listen intently. Have you been forced to listen intently for an extended period of time? Try to remember your feelings. You were probably physically and mentally tired after such a period of concentration.

 

Key Takeaways

 

Most of us are poor listeners for a variety of reasons. We have had little training and few training opportunities exist. We think faster than others speak. Listening is hard work.

It’s a challenge to be a good listener. But good listeners get big rewards. We will discuss several informal listening training techniques in a future post.

 

What are some of your experiences with listen skills in your business?

Please share an experience with this community.

  

Like this short blog? Follow Digital Spark Marketing on LinkedIn or add us to your circles for 3-4 short, interesting blogs, stories per week.

  

Read more from Digital Spark Marketing’s blog library:

 

Make Effective Listening Skills a Core Competency

What Little Things Businesses Can Do to Build Customer Relationships

Be a Better Communicator through Body Language Communications