Building a website is easy, but building an effective website is hard.
I have spend hours listening to the experts, reading articles and blogs and arguing with colleagues and friends on what makes a website great... and while i have collected many little pearls of wisdom on this topic over the years, a blog post i came across recently did a great job of consolidating the insights.. and not being afraid to say it like it is ...
Its no surprise that the blog i am referring to is that of marketing guru Seth Godin. You can read his complete post here...but here are my favorite pointers -
1. Fire the committee. No great website in history has been conceived of by more than three people. Not one. This is a deal breaker. I cant agree more. I recently worked on a web project that suffered from the "too many cooks" syndrome. The result - a shoddy website
2. Insight is good, clever is bad. Many websites say, “look at me.” Your goal ought to be to say, “here’s what you were looking for.”
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Monday, March 24, 2008
Direct Marketing and Common Sense: An Expert's Opinion
As I try to carve out and validate the role of “common sense” in the world of marketing, I thought it might be interesting to seek out experts in various marketing arenas to find out where common sense fit in their marketing philosophy…
My first victim in this endeavor is direct marketing expert Edward Hrybenko. As Vice President and Director of Marketing Communications and Investor Relations at OppenheimerFunds, Inc., Ed oversees direct marketing strategies and initiatives for over 75 mutual funds and various other investment products offered by the firm.
Here is what Ed has to say…
Dipti: In your opinion, does “common sense” matter world of marketing? Why?
Ed: Absolutely. Common sense keeps you from making significant mistakes and wasting marketing dollars. At times we are all caught up in what we need to sell/market or what we want to say, that we become blind the obvious. The key is stepping back from a project and putting yourself in the shoes of the recipient of your marketing message. That gives you the chance to re-think your message, your audience, your design, etc. Just ask yourself, “If I was a (insert target audience here), would I respond to this?” If not, ask yourself why.
Dipti: Where does common sense fit in the world of direct marketing?
Ed: Common sense is the counter-balance to data and science. I’ve seen people insist that a mailing must be successful because the data modeling says so. I’ve yet to see a model respond to marketing. You need “people” to respond to your message and fortunately we all have experience being people. While you need to know the science (how a person reads, how many times you need to convey a message for it to stick, etc) you also need to use your common sense and experience when marketing. The key is balancing the science and common sense. You can’t go too far the other way and let your personal biases guide all your decisions.
Dipti: What is your most favorite direct marketing blunder …one which could have been prevented with a little common sense?
Ed: I was working at a top direct marketing-oriented financial firm and they ran a full page product launch ad in the Wall Street Journal. The ad was great but the company forgot to turn on the phone number so consumers couldn’t respond. Had somebody put themselves in the shoes of the consumer they would have checked on the consumer’s experience when responding to the ad.
Dipti: What’s the best common sense tip that you have ever received?
Ed: Beware Murphy’s law. If something can go wrong, it will.
Dipti: Can you give us 5 common sense tips that can make a direct marketing campaign successful?
Ed:
1. Find time to step back from your project and put yourself in the shoes of the message recipient.
2. Make sure you get the basics right. There are many details in every marketing campaign, but the biggest mistakes happen on the basics.
3. Don’t be blinded by data. If you really don’t think something will work, don’t try to convince yourself it will.
4. Don’t be complacent with creative. “Good enough” is rarely good enough. Push for creativity.
Collaborate. Leveraging differing points of view can ensure marketing success.
My first victim in this endeavor is direct marketing expert Edward Hrybenko. As Vice President and Director of Marketing Communications and Investor Relations at OppenheimerFunds, Inc., Ed oversees direct marketing strategies and initiatives for over 75 mutual funds and various other investment products offered by the firm.
Here is what Ed has to say…
Dipti: In your opinion, does “common sense” matter world of marketing? Why?
Ed: Absolutely. Common sense keeps you from making significant mistakes and wasting marketing dollars. At times we are all caught up in what we need to sell/market or what we want to say, that we become blind the obvious. The key is stepping back from a project and putting yourself in the shoes of the recipient of your marketing message. That gives you the chance to re-think your message, your audience, your design, etc. Just ask yourself, “If I was a (insert target audience here), would I respond to this?” If not, ask yourself why.
Dipti: Where does common sense fit in the world of direct marketing?
Ed: Common sense is the counter-balance to data and science. I’ve seen people insist that a mailing must be successful because the data modeling says so. I’ve yet to see a model respond to marketing. You need “people” to respond to your message and fortunately we all have experience being people. While you need to know the science (how a person reads, how many times you need to convey a message for it to stick, etc) you also need to use your common sense and experience when marketing. The key is balancing the science and common sense. You can’t go too far the other way and let your personal biases guide all your decisions.
Dipti: What is your most favorite direct marketing blunder …one which could have been prevented with a little common sense?
Ed: I was working at a top direct marketing-oriented financial firm and they ran a full page product launch ad in the Wall Street Journal. The ad was great but the company forgot to turn on the phone number so consumers couldn’t respond. Had somebody put themselves in the shoes of the consumer they would have checked on the consumer’s experience when responding to the ad.
Dipti: What’s the best common sense tip that you have ever received?
Ed: Beware Murphy’s law. If something can go wrong, it will.
Dipti: Can you give us 5 common sense tips that can make a direct marketing campaign successful?
Ed:
1. Find time to step back from your project and put yourself in the shoes of the message recipient.
2. Make sure you get the basics right. There are many details in every marketing campaign, but the biggest mistakes happen on the basics.
3. Don’t be blinded by data. If you really don’t think something will work, don’t try to convince yourself it will.
4. Don’t be complacent with creative. “Good enough” is rarely good enough. Push for creativity.
Collaborate. Leveraging differing points of view can ensure marketing success.
Pushing the Envelope
How often do you get important looking envelopes from important looking addresses marked URGENT FINANCIAL INFORMATION or TIME SENSITIVE MATERIAL… and they contains nothing urgent at all?
I understand that the burden of whether or not a mailer will be opened falls mostly on the envelope. And having worked on over 100 direct mail campaigns over the years, I have sat in on many brainstorming sessions to decide not just what goes in the envelope but what goes on it. But getting your mailer opened by creating a false sense of urgency or just misrepresenting the content takes it too far. Do marketers really think that lying will help the brand sell?
Here are some common sense tips that don’t involve lying but may increase the likelihood of your mailer being opened.
- Try unusual color, odd sizes or shapes
- Personalize
- Make it relevant: develop content based on audience segmentation to ensure relevancy.
- Just simply define the benefit/offer if there is a strong one
- User a teaser
- Don’t target the same audience excessively….and if you do need to mail regularly, keep it fresh
I understand that the burden of whether or not a mailer will be opened falls mostly on the envelope. And having worked on over 100 direct mail campaigns over the years, I have sat in on many brainstorming sessions to decide not just what goes in the envelope but what goes on it. But getting your mailer opened by creating a false sense of urgency or just misrepresenting the content takes it too far. Do marketers really think that lying will help the brand sell?
Here are some common sense tips that don’t involve lying but may increase the likelihood of your mailer being opened.
- Try unusual color, odd sizes or shapes
- Personalize
- Make it relevant: develop content based on audience segmentation to ensure relevancy.
- Just simply define the benefit/offer if there is a strong one
- User a teaser
- Don’t target the same audience excessively….and if you do need to mail regularly, keep it fresh
Monday, March 10, 2008
Brand Extensions.... what to keep in mind...
As I continue to ramble, I want to reiterate (one more time) that most of what I say in this blog may not seem like rocket science. And its not. But as we strive to over perform in our professional/personal roles, it’s the very basic and seemingly mundane concepts that we take for granted....
That said; let’s go back to the world of brand extensions. What are the 5 things to keep in mind when considering a brand extension?
Top 5 things to consider:
1. The brand should have equity and awareness in the market....if the brand isn’t recognizable, the extension is pointless
2. The extension should be a logical fit for the consumer. There should be synergy (and that’s why Trump Steak didn’t work)
3. The extension should make business sense.
4. Look out for over-extension - avoid slapping the brand name on everything possible.
5. For the extension, select a permeable category - not an over-saturated category with strong market leaders.
That said; let’s go back to the world of brand extensions. What are the 5 things to keep in mind when considering a brand extension?
Top 5 things to consider:
1. The brand should have equity and awareness in the market....if the brand isn’t recognizable, the extension is pointless
2. The extension should be a logical fit for the consumer. There should be synergy (and that’s why Trump Steak didn’t work)
3. The extension should make business sense.
4. Look out for over-extension - avoid slapping the brand name on everything possible.
5. For the extension, select a permeable category - not an over-saturated category with strong market leaders.
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