Sensei Blogs - A Business Blog With a Point of View Socrates once said "education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel" and that's our guiding principle, to kindle the flames of discussion and debate around business strategy, operations and leadership.
ROI, simplified ROI. These three letters make Boardrooms question everything; make department heads scramble to justify everything; and make many a marketer tremble. But it's a simple mathematical equation this ROI (return on investment). That's it... Now, whether you are a mathematical genius, an accounting wizard, or an InDesign magician, the basic tenet of ROI is that it is a percentage.
The ability to innovate may not be required to run a profitable business but it's certainly a requirement for anyone who wishes to create an empire. Building businesses in the same league as a Ford, Amazon or Apple requires the ability to innovate beyond that which is imagined today.
In his book, The Halo Effect, author Phil Rosenzweig asserts that business strategists derive universal truths by synergizing a collection of facts, data, and scenarios, regardless of how related or unrelated they may be. In particular he targets those who establish business trends through their work in business books, magazines, and newspapers, arguing that their storytelling is not business strategy.
I have attended a few conferences lately where I've heard both presenters and attendees use the terms "customer loyalty" and "customer advocacy" interchangeably, which frustrates me to no end - especially when it's done by so-called "marketing experts." In my experience, customer loyalty and advocacy are not interchangeable concepts.
The editors at Big Think posted an article titled " Is the Internet Destroying the Middle Class?" that introduced an upcoming presentation by author Jaron Lanier at Techweek Chicago on June 29, 2013. Mr. Lanier's premise is that technology companies are taking over the North American economy, yet employ fewer people than the technology companies of old.
A few years ago, nobody really discussed customer experience, let alone implementing a whole team within an already-existing organization. Yet here we are, and a lot of companies are doing just that and many are beginning to experience the challenge of building a customer experience team.
Social media has led business astray. For all its promised benefits including faster, more effective access to larger communities, it has forced many marketers down a path that leads to lower business revenue. There, I said it. My name is Sam Fiorella, I'm a business owner and I have a problem.
We cannot turn on the computer these days without being inundated with "content is king" proclamations by marketers and social media strategists. Content marketing is touted as THE critical tactic in today's social media practice for businesses. It's defined as any type of marketing that involves the creation and public sharing of content in order to acquire customers.
It's a constant refrain and one I'm known to sing. Walk in your customer's shoes. Get to know the process from their perspective. Understand what they are going through in order to improve the experience. There are only a few small problems. Our brains won't let us. Our jobs won't let us.
Go to a marketing conference today and what do you see? On stage you'll witness many ego-laced presentations and thinly veiled sales pitches from so-called experts. You'll hear session leaders reiterating content from their blogs and, often, other people's case studies.
Last Wednesday, I hosted the 102 nd edition of Twitter's first debate hour: #Bizforum. The topic: Is "Customer Experience" the same as Marketing? I've also lately been debating the impact of a vocal CEO on customer experience (think Abercrombie & Fitch). In each conversation, I've heard a common refrain...
Earlier this year, along with family and friends, I made my annual pilgrimage to our condo is Orlando, Florida - with fear. It's not the long lines at Walt Disney World or the hectic Orlando International Airport that I dread; I don't look forward to flying an American airline with my children who have severe peanut allergies.
On Wednesday, May 22nd, 2013 Twitter's #bizforum debate turns 100 - 100 weeks old that is. I founded the #bizforum Twitter debate 100 weeks ago in response to both the growing popularity of Twitter chats but also my personal frustration at the levity or thinness of many of them.
Marketers, those experts at telling us what we really want, are now saying customer experience is the new marketing. I'm here to tell you it's not. So one of the challenges with customer experience, when done well, is how absolutely all-encompassing it is.
It's rare for a disaster in the poor parts of the planet to have any impact at all in the rich parts. There are probably two reasons that, together, can make the difference. One is its scale. The other is its connection. The news from Bangladesh that a multi-story factory had collapsed is still sending shock-waves.
Humans like things that make sense. Math. Logic. GPS Directions. Customer journeys are often represented in the same way. The sales funnel is so simple, in theory. We put the many prospects in the top, they travel willingly and orderly through the funnel, and POP! They exit into a converting customer.
So you've been a loyal Delta Airlines customer for 10 years, travelling almost 300,000 miles. You've chosen it over other airlines even when Delta's flight options require one- or two-stop layovers. When a competitive airline's price was lower, you remained loyal to Delta and paid the extra fees. You're a loyal customer.
We all nod our heads when someone talks about the need to deliver distinct, compelling value to our buyers. We just assume that our value is as distinct and compelling as it was last month, or six months ago or.... But is our value really distinct?
I hear that the N ational Association of Corporate Directors has been taking baby steps toward engaging its members in social media. Plainly, this is great news. But I did say baby steps. A standard talking-point in business schools is what is called the "principal-agent" problem.
When we interact online with people that we work with and hence talk to on a regular basis, we run into a few potential pitfalls that can negatively impact customer acquisition. This is an easy problem to experience. It is natural for us to gravitate towards people we know, especially if we can share experiences and conversations from the offline, "real" world.
My sister remembers when the "fancy" mall opened in our hometown. She and my mom would dress up to go. By the time I was ready to hang out at the mall, I trudged from one store to the next in jeans or even (oh goodness) sweat pants.
As the official launch date of Influence Marketing: How to Create, Manage, and Measure Brand Influencers in Social Media Marketing nears, Danny Brown and I have been releasing teasers that highlight the work we've been doing over the past year.
What does it take to be competitive today? I see dozens of articles and books each week that claim to have the answer. Is it becoming a social business, selling your product online, or offering the lowest price?
Last week, Facebook released a new feature that Slate magazine called a " fiendish plot." It referenced the new emoticons that Facebook users can now tag their social status updates with. Facebook, naturally, doesn't advertise the new feature as a fiendish plot but a customer experience improvement, calling it "a new, more visual way for people to share how [members are] feeling and what they're doing..."
