Multichannel Magic

The death blow that leads to catastrophic business failure is rarely the cause. Companies built on solid foundations can withstand challenging economies, external events, and evolving marketplaces. Failure comes when the winds of change hit a shaky foundation. The warning signs appear long before the final closing of the doors.

Planning for every possible event is impossible. The best plans can be derailed by unforeseen events. How many companies along the Gulf Coast planned for the oil spill? The disaster was surprising because offshore oil rigs had been operating for a long time with few issues. What about Hurricane Sandy? People plan for storms. Super storms are unexpected.

In 2004, two hurricanes, Frances and Ivan, tag teamed Asheville, NC with 100 year floods. The streets of Biltmore Village, the tourist mecca of local shops and restaurants, became rivers. Elegant shops were flooded. It is doubtful that any of the businesses had a plan that included two major floods in a week apart. Most of them have bounced back. A few never reopened. The owners interviewed on the local television channel cited the storms as the reason.

The storms were the death blow. They were not the cause. Specific causes varied by store. Observant visitors to Biltmore prior to the storms noticed the shops with fewer patrons than others. Some had dated merchandise. The businesses were on life support long before the water started rising.

There are plenty of warning signs that a business is in trouble. Most are hidden beneath the surface. Due diligence is required by the management team to insure that their company is healthy. The following five warnings are signs that business failure is approaching:

Customer Apathy – When customers stop opening emails, reduce visits to storefronts, and fail to respond to great offers, apathy has set in. If your customers don’t care about your products, services, or offers, your business is on the ropes.

Misinformation – The data gathered is only as good as the interpretation. Justification of shifting metrics is a sign that there is trouble brewing and people are burying their heads in the sand. Monitor the numbers used to drive the business to insure that they are realistically portraying the situation.

Lack of Vision – Every business begins with a vision. Founders know what they want from their companies. Time and structure are necessary for growth. They are also the enemy of vision. People start looking at where they are instead of where they need to be. Failure to envision the future locks the doors of opportunity.

System Dysfunction – Processes and systems run companies. They start out as tools to improve efficiency and grow into monsters that interfere with service. Making systems and processes work together is critical to success in a multichannel world.

Employee Morale – Enthusiasm is contagious. When employees aren’t excited about their jobs and company, customer apathy sets in. It is the circle of business life. Low morale can be felt by everyone who enters the business or speaks to an employee via telephone, email, or social media.

Creating a foundation for success is the best thing you can do for your company. Are you ready?

For information on how to build a solid business foundation, email Debra at dellis@wilsonellisconsulting.com.

Is your company ready for the email war this holiday season? The competition in the inbox for consumers’ attention is increasing every day. According to a recent study by Experian, the second quarter of this year saw email volume increases of 22.8% for multichannel retailers, 24.4% for consumer products and services, and a whopping 31.7% for catalogers. The combination of overflowing emails with the Gmail effect will significantly reduce the effectiveness of email marketing this holiday season for some companies.

There are things that you can do to minimize the negative effect. If you do them now, you will increases sales and improve relationships this holiday season. Time is running out so take the quiz below to see how well your company is positioned to win the email war this holiday season. There are only 10 questions. You can take it in 5 minutes or less and you don’t have to share contact information. (There’s a special surprise at the end!)

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Note: The quiz is powered by Interact, a new service in development. A special shout out to Co-founder Josh Haynam for the opportunity to test the service.

The 10,000 hour rule popularized by Malcolm Galdwell’s book Outliers suggests that expertise takes 10,000 hours of practice in addition to natural talent. The foundation of this premise comes from a paper published in 1973 by Herbert Simon and William Chase. That issue of American Scientist launched extensive research that expanded on Simon and Chase’s observation.

Extensive debate about the validity of the 10,000 hour rule continues to surround Galdwell’s book. One article suggests that we aim for ten minutes instead of 10,000 hours. Research and debate aside, there is not one magic number that applies to everyone seeking expertise and success. Centuries before anyone tried to study the issue, Aristotle wrote, “We are what we repeatedly do.” It is my belief little bit of talent can be molded into greatness with deliberate practice and study.

The proliferation of content promoting marketing mastery in minimal time is dismaying. Marketing is a skill that is part art and science. It is relatively simple to learn but hard to master. I can’t think of a single person who has mastered all of the nuances involved in creating marketing that moves people to act. The addition of new channels adds to the challenge but it is not the real reason that mastery is illusive. Marketing is communication with people. Until we know exactly how the brain works, we will never be able to fully master marketing. Personally, I hope we never reach that day.

That hope doesn’t keep me from studying research and testing strategies to find better ways for our clients to connect with customers and prospects. Because, you see, I believe in the 10,000 plus hour rule. Perhaps it is the fact that I have the experience to know that a good marketing strategy that carefully targets the right people at the right time can go south in a heartbeat that makes me believe.

Or, maybe I should say “in a gunshot” instead of heartbeat.

We had a direct marketing campaign that launched in early January 1991. Everything was carefully planned from delivery of catalogs to fulfillment of orders. The first order to arrive is the start of a projected response curve that is used to plan activities from cash flow to staffing. Our curve was right on track and moving into the peak period. When I arrived at the office one day in mid-January, I immediately knew that something was wrong. There was an eerie silence in the building. Walking into the customer service department was like walking into a funeral. There were a few hushed whispers, but mostly it was quiet.

The manager looked up from her desk and said, “We have a problem. There are no calls.” We had a new telephone system. I thought that it had malfunctioned so I called our 800 number. It worked fine. I reasoned that maybe people were still asleep or on their way to work. After all, it was very early in the morning. A few minutes later, our warehouse manager popped her head into my office to ask if I had heard that we were at war. Desert Storm had begun in the night.

Our customers were not interested in anything but the war. Sales for that marketing campaign were down 40% when the final numbers were tallied. When people ask me about a magic marketing bullet, I have one to offer. It isn’t the one they want because this bullet can bankrupt a company.

External factors can derail the best marketing plans. Mastering marketing skills is more than knowing how to use a platform or design circulation plans. A master knows how to plan for things going south and what needs to happen if a plan gets completely derailed. This requires a combination of extensive knowledge and experience that cannot be acquired in a few days.

People naturally want the easy way to success. This is why titles like “How to Master Facebook Marketing in 10 Days” are popular. If well done, they can start the path to mastery but completion requires much more. The low entry threshold to new marketing channels has led people to think that this is an easy way to a new career. They hang out their shingle claiming expertise in marketing without realizing they need a background in business. The training for minimal marketing skills doesn’t include bottom line responsibility or risk management. It can’t. There isn’t time.

I’ve had the privilege to work with some of the brightest and best marketers at various stages in their careers. They have one thing in common – they are always seeking new knowledge and better ways to improve their skill. I’ve also had the challenge of hiring marketers and have come to this conclusion: I would rather have an aspiring marketer with a willingness to put in the hard work to learn more than most recognized marketing superstars. Things change. People evolve. Channels appear. And, marketers have to continue to learn and adapt while watching the bottom line.

For more information email Debra at dellis@wilsonellisconsulting.com.

Love it or hate it, social media is here to stay and the time will come that you have to deal with social media bullies. When that time comes, you have three choices, make it your marketing strategy, bury your head in the sand and hope it goes away, or deal with the problem. Surprisingly, all three options can work. Which one works best depends on your corporate culture, the people you serve, and the event that triggered the rising of the bullies.

I often wonder what it is about social media that makes people anti-social. Perhaps the empty dialogue box creates a discomfort similar to silence in a crowded room. Maybe it is the need for instant gratification and peer recognition that comes from outing a company’s poor service. Or, it could be that the Internet provides a safe venue for bullies to vent with minimal repercussions. Whatever the reason, people talking badly about companies create a lot of drama and headaches for corporate leaders.

Kenneth Cole purposely creates controversial posts that ignite firestorms. In 2011 he was chastised by the self-appointed Twitter police squad for his Cairo tweet that read, “Millions are in an uproar in #Cairo. Rumor is they heard our new spring collection is now available online at http://bit.ly/KCairo -KC.” Shortly after the Twitter feed went wild with protests and the company’s Facebook page was hijacked by disapproving people, he issued an apology.

According to his interview with Huffington Post, the company hired a crisis management firm to deal with the fallout. After the smoke cleared from the drama, Cole realize that his tweet had been read by billions of people, ecommerce and store business improved, the company stock went up, and he picked up a few thousand Twitter followers. What began as a bad online experience turned into a marketing strategy.

In September, he did it again with a “boots on the ground” tweet promoting his shoe line. The terminology emulated President Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry’s commentary about the conflict in Syria. This time, there was a video explanation instead of an apology. There is no reason to apologize if the act is intentional and part of your strategy. The lack of authenticity would do more damage than the original message.

Choosing controversy as a marketing strategy is too risky for most companies. It could backfire and do serious damage to the corporate reputation. Burying your head in the sand can also have ramifications. If people perceive your company as being unresponsive to real issues, you have a public relations nightmare that will hurt your business.

Ideally, responding to the problem in a positive, solution oriented manner would be the best approach. In the real world, things are different. Social media bullies respond to the oddest things. A solution oriented response can add fuel to the fire escalating the problem. When Kenneth Cole apologized for the Cairo tweet, Twitter and the blogosphere lit up with people condemning the apology. The added drama expanded the reach which turned out to be a good thing for the company. Your business may not fare so well.

Staying out of the social media channel doesn’t protect your company from social media bullies. A local dealership in Asheville found itself represented poorly on Twitter without having an account. An unhappy customer set up a Twitter page in the company’s name and filled it with tweets promoting great deals. All of the links were directed to bad reviews the customer had written all over the Internet. Twitter closed the account after being notified that it was a fake.

Bloggers love to share their bad experiences, no matter how small the slight. A delayed flight can launch a thousand tweets about the unresponsiveness of the airline. A misspelled word is fodder for a Facebook judgment session. Some do it to vent. Others use bad experiences to improve social activity. They know that beating up on companies generates commentary that improves their Klout scores. It is a win-win situation for them.

Once the story is on the Internet, no one can control it (not even the bully.) It is open for all to participate. Here are some tips that will minimize the power of social media bullies:

Have a plan – Even if your company isn’t participating on the social channel, have a plan of action to deal with social media bullies.

Monitor activity – Watch for company mentions across the Internet so you can respond when appropriate.

Think before responding – Many of the people who bully companies online don’t have anyone listening to their rant. There is little or no fallout without an audience.

Research the issue – If there is a real issue and your company has been unresponsive, you aren’t dealing with a bully. You have a frustrated customer that needs help.

Take it offline – When dealing with a frustrated customer, ask the person to communicate privately. Most people do not want to discuss issues publically.

Don’t get pulled in – Some frustrated customers are also online bullies. They think that because they have a forum, they have a right to demand more. Don’t play their game.

Always take the high road – That perfect take down retort is best left unsaid. If you remain calm and reasonable, the bully will lose.

Walk away when there is nothing left to do – Sometimes walking away is best done before the battle begins. If you have a plan in place, you’ll know when to let the rants go.

Direct questions about creating a plan of action for social media bullies to Debra at dellis@wilsonellisconsulting.com.