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Success Through Strategy!
Strategy Matters delivers news, tips and strategies for effective communications through traditional and social media.
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Marketing Research: It's All About Answering Questions
Can you think of the last time you were engaged in a marketing research project? If you're like most business people, when you hear that question you're probably thinking about some long-range, very intensive, data-gathering exercise that involved a lot of time, a lot of money and a lot of data analysis. And, yes, that is research.
But we're guessing that you are engaged in research far more frequently than you realize. Importantly, your research efforts don't have to be full-blown initiatives that involve extensive surveying, interviewing and quantitative analysis. Sometimes, yes--but, often, no. The trick is determining when you need to gather more information.
And that comes down to two important steps:
1) Understanding the level of risk/reward involved in the decision you're attempting to make
2) Clearly outlining what you need to know to make a decision--your "researchable question(s)"
I've been teaching courses in marketing research for a few years now and I work frequently with clients on projects involving research that ranges from online or secondary research to qualitative (focus groups, interviews) and quantitative (survey) research. Regardless of scope, the general research process involves predictable steps. Read more here.
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Direct Mail - Dead, or Poised to Make a Comeback?
A couple of years ago I proposed a book update to one of my publishers. I had written a book on direct mail marketing back in 1992 and, obviously, things have changed quite a bit since then. Not surprisingly, as I began my research, I discovered that the direct mail landscape had changed quite a big to accommodate--and capitalize on--new media. I found that my personal belief that traditional direct mail might be seeing somewhat of a resurgence was right on.
Effective marketers were beginning to seize upon the ability to communicate in a less-cluttered space. For example:According to marketing firm Epsilon Targeting's latest annual Consumer Channel Preference Study, direct mail continues to be the most preferred delivery method over other communication options. The study was done in 2012 and found that 6 out of 10 Americans report they "enjoy getting postal mail from brands about new products."
Another study done by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) in 2011 showed an uptick in traditional direct mail expenditures in 2011 over 2010 of 4.6%; these expenditures rose to more than $50 billion in 2011. The DMA is predicting continued growth of 2.4% over the next two years.
While these stats may initially seem a bit surprising, upon further consideration, they really make sense. In fact, if you think about your own interactions with both your traditional and online inboxes you would probably agree that your email box is much more cluttered these days and your "snail mail" box is much less cluttered. And, guess what? Savvy marketers are noticing this as well.
Related Blog Posts:
Sometimes "Snail Mail" is Still the Best Way to Go
Is Direct Mail - the "Snail Mail" Kind - Making a Comeback?
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CEOs and Social Media
I wrote an article recently for Econtent on CEOs and social media, considering the extent to which they are--or may not be--engaged with social media. What I learned surprised me, and may surprise you as well.
Since LinkedIn is the most business-oriented of the social media tools I'm familiar with (Google+ is quickly gaining ground), I decided to check LinkedIn to see how many Fortune 500 CEOs had LinkedIn profiles. I decided to start with the top 25 companies and their CEOs, using the Fortune list.
Of the Top 25 on the list, only one--Meg Whitman--had a LinkedIn profile. She actually has two of them: one from her former position as CEO of EBay, with 6 connections, and another one for her current role as CEO of Hewlett-Packard, with 257 connections.
But that's all I could find. Albeit, I didn't search for every possible name variation for each of these CEOs, but neither would most people I suppose. My takeaway: they're just not connected. At first that surprised me, but as I thought about it a little more, it actually began to make sense for a variety of reasons:
- If you're a Fortune 500 (or, in this case, Fortune 25) CEO so you really need to have a social media presence? Maybe you've already "arrived."
- If you're a CEO at this level, you're also probably too busy to be actively engaged with social media (although, of course, chances are that your staff would actually be managing your profile...)
- If you're a CEO at this level, maybe you don't want people--especially people you don't know--to be able to connect with you. Privacy comes at a premium even for "celebrities" of a business ilk.
Some more interesting "CEOs on LinkedIn" trivia, here.
Related blog posts:
Boosting the Power of Social Media
Are You Talking to Yourself on Social Media?
Are Your Social Media Efforts Addressing the Right Questions?
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Volume: 5 - Issue: 3
March, 2013 |
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Research Matters
Some recent news and research you may be interested in--we were! |
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