The 6 "p"s of marketing - open for debate

OK - here's a topic that's surely up for debate: I believe there are 6 "p"s of marketing.

Those of us that studied marketing in university/college some ____ years ago learned the 4 "p"s of marketing: Product | Pricing | Promotions | Place.

The dominance of the internet in the marketing mix has expanded that list to 6, in my opinion. There are articles that talk about 4, 5, 6, 7 and even 8 "p"s, and the words that start with "p" aren't always the same. I've seen 'People' and 'Process' included in many lists, but I don't believe they contribute to the act of creating demand (the definition of marketing) as much as the other categories (open to debate!). I've also seen 'Physical Evidence', described (by valuebasedmanagement.net) as 'the ability and environment in which the service is delivered, both tangible goods that help to communicate and perform the service and intangible experience of existing customers and the ability of the business to relay that customer satisfaction to potential customers.' ... HUH?!?!?

Here's my list:

1. Product (How do you shape your offering to match consumer needs and build demand?)
2. Pricing (How does your pricing strategy support your positioning and generate demand?)
3. Place (Where do you need to be to reach your audience?)
4. Promotions (How do you tell people what you have to offer?)
5. (new) Positioning (What is your reputation? How do people describe your company? Why would anyone buy from you?)
6. (new) Conversations (Are you participating in the conversations that are taking place about you and your industry?)

OK, that last one doesn't start with "p", but I couldn't find an applicable and adequately descriptive word that did. The best I could come up with is "People Talking". Yep, I thought it was lame too. We've got 5 "p"s and a "c". Deal with it.

Social media, in case you were curious, fits clearly into the Conversations category. In fact, it was the catalyst in creating the category. Social media participation is just as important to the marketing mix as promotions or anything else. Deal with it. Embrace it.

LESSON FOR SMALL BUSINESS MARKETERS

As you create a marketing plan for your business, or as you make decisions to help build interest and demand, be sure to consider all 6 marketing categories. Promotions alone, which many businesses confuse for marketing, is insufficient for driving significant demand. You need to be creative and intentional in all 6 categories to be giving marketing the attention it deserves.

It also means you're that much more likely to build demand for your products and services, and what is there that's more important than that?

YOUR TURN

How is your list different, if at all?

Sure, you only have 140 characters, but you're still talking

The first thing to remember about social networking, and Twitter in particular, is that you are having conversations. Many try to promote with social tools, but first and foremost, social networking is about starting and participating in conversations.

In the case of Twitter, you are limited in what you "say" to 140 characters (which would be a nice limit for live conversations with some people!), but you still need to remember that real people are "listening", which should guide your tweets.

Go ahead and use shrtfrms & spcl chars, but remember, you are what you say.

For example, this tweeter includes in his tweet: "... a great post from me..."

A bit on the arrogant side, wouldn't you say?

TAKEAWAY FOR BUSINESSES

• Remember that you are what you tweet.
• If you have people in your business tweeting on the business' behalf, are they supported with guidelines and policies for tweeting?
• Think of social networking interactions as real conversations with real people

Social Media "Experts" and pizza delivery drivers - the similarities

Social Media Expert. Sounds good, doesn't it?

If I had a nickel for every Social Media Expert I came across, this blog post would be about how close I came to an ace back on 16.

"Expert" is a term used very loosely, which intrigues me.

To me, an expert is someone with unique, specialized knowledge that is practically inaccessible to the average person.

Neurosurgeons. Laser Scientists. Nuclear Chemists. Those are experts.

Dominos Pizza, I noticed, is referring to themselves as "Pizza Delivery Experts". Really? Is it especially difficult to acquire the knowledge needed to put a pizza in a car and find an address?

Though not to the same extent, I feel the same way about "Social Media Experts". It is not especially difficult to acquire the knowledge needed to participate in online conversations. The difference between simply doing it and doing it well is noticeable. But the point is, with a little effort and dedication, anyone can do it. Some will be better than others because they possess that charisma and appeal (yes, it's evident even online) that makes them popular and respected. Others will be successful because they engage in the online experience more frequently, and for longer periods of time. But all that being said, there's no reason to think that everyday people can't discover the keys to social networking prominence.

I call myself an Advisor. I have advice that I can offer to people and organizations less inclined to make the effort that I have made. If I do my job well, I will share with them all the techniques I have come to embrace in a manner that inspires them to participate in the movement.

My good friend @HiDavidHicks has a blog called hibasme, which is an acronym for How I Became A Social Media Enthusiast. I like that.

I also like that Subway Restaurants now refers to their minimum-wage, behind-the-counter staff as "Sandwich Artists" rather than "Sandwich Experts".

TAKEAWAY FOR YOU:

• You will come across many Social Media Experts. Some much better than others. The best you can do is determine for yourself what you want to take from them, then have them convince you they can do that.
• The next best thing you can do is try it for yourself. If you have the inclination and the (ever-elusive) time, set up some profiles/accounts/pages and play around. Listen. Engage. Take notice of what you like and apply that to your business.
• Finally, in your own company, be careful about labeling yourself as something that you aren't. Your customers will notice and you will lose valuable credibility and brand respect.

Always interested in opinion... especially from Experts!

We are never free of SPAM! An ugly example of Twitter spam.

I continue to have mixed emotions about Twitter.

Don't get me wrong - I like Twitter. I think it allows people... and business... to interact, share, learn and grow. Never before in our history have we been able to share thoughts and content so quickly to so many people. There is good in that on its own.

There are just too many examples of Twitter abuse which continue to taint my impression of its value slightly. Mostly, I see through the abuse and place blame on the Tweeter, not on Twitter. But my Twitter experience is still diminished slightly.

Case in point: this example of Twitter spam.

This is further proof that we are NEVER free of unwanted messages, no matter where we are.

This Tweeter follows NO ONE, has 568 Tweets (at time of writing), each about a topic they are hoping will catch someone's attention. The theory is, if the Tweet is interesting, someone will click on the link. Then they have you - they've directed your interest to their site, where they bombard you with whatever message (unwanted, at that) they choose to promote. Spam. What's more, they've included a random Twitter address. This increases the likelihood someone will notice the Tweet and click on the link (since those random addresses will show up in the "Mentions" section of that person's Home page). It's just another obtrusive tactic to insincerely get your attention.

They have no interest in engaging in a conversation, which is the purpose of Twitter (and other social sites). Their only interest is pushing a message out to you (surreptitiously) when you didn't really want it.

That's spam.

Shame on you, Trixa, and the others like you.

You're giving Twitter a bad name, which it does not deserve.

I really don't know what to make of Twitter, in many cases!

I have written a number of posts now about the peculiarities of Twitter that sometimes make me wonder if Twitter deserves all the credit it is receiving.

Now, I have to admit that Twitter has obviously, with 100 million users, reached a point where it's ingrained in our collective online experience. These peculiarities will not adversely affect its popularity or importance. But, if I can bring some attention to these things that bother me a bit, perhaps I can make a minor contribution to improving the experience for people.

Or at least I might feel better getting some of these things off my chest.

This tweeter has 3 lousy tweets, yet 14,000 followers. There is no chance 14,000 people are interested in what this person has to say. The fact that he follows 14,000 people leads me to believe he's part of the auto-follow community - tweeters who follow auto-followers to build their follower list. They share nothing and gain nothing. They only build their follower list to feel good about themselves.

To me it's an obvious abuse of the application's main feature.

TAKEAWAY FOR YOU:

1. ONLY FOLLOW TWEETERS THAT INTEREST YOU.
2. There's no point in growing a list of auto-followers, because they're not interested in you, so they won't read anything you have to say anyway.
3. Say something interesting!
4. Some people will say that maximizing your following is manageable by creating "lists" of followers and people you follow. OK, but you still need to say something interesting (see #3)!

Kevin Smith blasts SWA - a lesson in Twitter and PR damage control

As I'm sure you know from glancing at the tabloids in the supermarket checkout, Kevin Smith was refused a seat on the plane because they said he needed to buy two seats.

On May 17 he agreed to call in to 102.1 in Toronto, and had plenty to say about the incident. Here's the podcast.

He feels he was treated unfairly and used Twitter to host a serious rant. They (SouthWest Airlines) attempted PR damage control with social media as well, but were essentially sticking by their policies.

What do you think? Should companies be bullied by... or "accommodate" tweeters and bloggers or should they hold their ground in the face of serious PR damage via social media?

TAKEAWAY FOR YOU:

1. Track mentions of your business in the internet - it's easy! (start with Google Alerts)
   
2. Have a policy for responding to negative press, particularly when it comes via social networking
3. A little latitude in your policies, please!
4. Always take a step back and consider whether or not you're being reasonable! What would a normal person expect to hear from you / expect you to do?

It has started: the death of web sites as we know them!

Check out this online ad for Heineken Light

















Notice anything odd?

1) Prominence of Facebook link
2) ABSENCE of any Heineken brand web address

Not even the slightest reference to www.heineken.com.

This is not the only example I've seen lately. Many brands are using Facebook as their landing page for ad campaigns. And it's not limited to online campaigns - I'm noticing this development on TV too.

Wow.

The power of Facebook.


TAKEAWAY FOR YOU:

Get a Facebook page... NOW! If you have one already, use it more!

Avatar as an examination of marketing

According to BoxOfficeMojo, Avatar has grossed more than $1.4 BILLION, and counting! There is no definitive answer at the time of writing this, but production costs for the movie appear to be close to $300 million, and marketing costs close to $200 million.

So, here's a question (for which there is probably no answer):

How much would the movie gross if they had spent less on marketing? Or more on marketing? How much would the movie gross if they had spent less on production (presumably weakening the quality of the product)?

This is a very common question - one that we grapple with all the time. Will more marketing lead to enough sales to earn our money back? Is the product good enough on its own to be successful without extensive marketing?

And here's another thing business owners and marketers need to keep in mind: It's possible that the movie would have grossed, say, $1.25 billion with no marketing, putting them $50 million ahead of where they are now (saving $200 million on marketing but earning $150 million less). Would that mean the marketing was a waste? It's tempting to say yes, but think of all the awareness for the movie and for James Cameron and for Fox that was generated!


All marketing has benefits beyond its direct impact on sales.


Remember that as you consider investing in marketing.


Your turn: What's your guess about the box office sales with more (or less) spending on the product or on the marketing?

More Twitter abuse, but this is also good... sort of.

Here's something I noticed on Twitter that can also be classified as "abuse" (although some of you might argue that).

These two people sent EXACTLY the same tweet (not identified as re-tweets) at EXACTLY the same time.

There are two reasons that's bad, and one reason that's good:

1. BAD: These people have nothing interesting of their own to say about this particular piece of internet content - they're simply regurgitating.
   
2. BAD: It appears that they're just re-purposing other content as quickly as they can and as often as they can, so as to create an impression that they're connected and socially active (at least online!). That's why I referred to this as "abuse".
   
3. GOOD: The 'Bones' story is apparently interesting enough that people want to share it, which is one of the primary benefits of Twitter. If you have something interesting to say, say it. The more interesting it is, the more people will see it (which applies to more social networking sites, by the way).

So, where do you stand? Abusive regurgitation? Or meaningful viral activity?

More evidence of Twitter abuse

As a follow up to my last post, in which I call into question the intentions of certain Twitterers, here is another example of abuse.








This is a phony Jennifer Aniston account, called jenifferaniston (notice the incorrect spelling). This is not the real Jennifer Aniston. This person is following exactly 0 other people, and has exactly 0 Tweets. Yet almost 120,000 people are following this fake celebrity that is NOT EVEN TWEETING!

That's 120,000 people that are either clueless, or trying to get other jenifferaniston followers to follow them (as part of a popularity contest I referred to in the original post). Again, neither of those are good reasons to follow this bogus account.

Twitter abuse, in my opinion. And again, not Twitter's fault.

Twitter still being abused

Twitter has done enough little things to preserve its relevance and importance and make it the tool it has become today, but it's not free of faults. And I should clarify that the faults aren't Twitter's, they are Twitter users' faults.







Twitter has many benefits and applications, but like many social network marketing tools, has become nothing more than a popularity contest for so many. I see far too many examples of users simply trying to maximize the number of followers they have, as though it is some measure of importance. More on that in another post. Today I am referring to the blind followers - those that follow anyone - presumably in hopes of finding new followers (assuming the people they follow will in turn follow them).

To me that's evidence that they are doing nothing more than seeking to maximize followers. That's why I refer to it as a popularity contest.

Here is the most dramatic example I have found so far: A Twitterer called YouIsMe. This account makes no secret of the fact that they are just an experiment in Twitter popularity. Their description spells it out for everyone: "Mysterious Twitter Social Experiment". They have only one tweet that reads "Is this even possible?" Yet they have more than 12,000 followers at the time of this post.

That's 12,000 people that have signed up to learn absolutely nothing.

They've decided to follow because they think it's funny, or (more likely) because they're blindly following as part of their popularity effort. Neither reason is a good one.

There is lots of Twitter abuse out there, and this is an obvious example.

Clarity in advertising

Doesn't this ad just say it all?
















I know it's not that different from the other training ads, but most of them say "get the body you want...". This one comes right out and says it: "get THIS body".

It also appeals to a very specific audience. If you've seen 300, you'll get it right away. If not, well, you won't be tempted to click on the ad (and the advertiser won't pay a dime).

Clarity and simplicity are good. Especially in crowded advertising spaces like FaceBook.


Your turn: Any examples of "clarity" ads?

Email Best Practices

A couple of weeks ago I attended MarketingSherpa's Email Summit in Miami. Conferences like these are always so inspiring. In fact, there are 10 things I want to share with you from the conference. These are ideas and themes that will help you build business through email marketing. Some of these things will be familiar to you, some will be new thoughts. I hope you find something that will help you get more share!

Here they are: the Top 10 Things I Took Away From the Email Summit (full article can be read at shareofmarketing.com):

10) Email Marketing and Social Media Marketing are the ONLY TWO marketing tactics receiving bigger budgets by more companies than not.
9) If your email fails, try it again (but differently, of course)!
8) Email Marketing is a science as much as it's an art. Test your new emails using control groups.
7) Think about what your customers are reading (e.g. do you really want them to 'submit' to you?).
6) Put email technology tools to work. And keep tweaking to improve response.
5) A simple test to evaluate your email content: "Where am I?"; "What am I supposed to do?"; "Why should I?"
4) Analytics are a given.
3) Landing pages are a given.
2) Testing is a given.
1) People are NOT sick of emails. They're sick of receiving emails that aren't relevant to them. So keep sending them, but make them important, relevant, valuable and compelling!

Again, you can click here to read the full article, which includes commentary for each of the thoughts above. Enjoy!

Chew on this thought for a bit...

Do you have your fax number on your business card? If yes... why?

Do you have your blog address on your business card? If no... why not?