Is your brand wearing pyjamas?

Today, my children went to school in their pyjamas - not because I got fed up asking them to get dressed, but to raise money for charity and mess with the minds of the public we passed en route.

This morning our school felt like a different place.  Same pupils, teaching and support staff, but the change of usual attire (i.e. everyone wearing pyjamas instead of uniform), seemed to cause a mass mind shift.  The generic sea of navy blue children, had given way to multi-coloured, man made fibres and an air of levity.  Nightwear it seems, is a great leveller.

As a marketer I often find brands which appear to be wearing pyjamas. They don't care which typeface they use or whether the colours on their flyer match those on their website. They write in capitals to get our attention and underline words which aren't hyperlinks. They don't bother with a spell checker or a copywriter and have no follow up plan on the rare occasion that someone should respond. Zzzzzzzzzz.

We all know how much first impressions count.  While some people do their best work in a onesie, the majority of us don the garb that best matches our chosen career, seeing it as a vital element in shaping how people perceive us.

Mark Twain once said, ‘Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society.’

Your brand may not be naked, but pyjama wearing is every bit as unnerving for your customers.

Why do you need Social Media? [Video evidence]

First there was economics, then freakonomics and now socialnomics, a term coined to show the impact of social media on our everyday lifes. Feel left behind yet?

Globally, more people now own a mobile device than own a toothbrush. Let's just hold that thought for a moment (especially if you're a dentist).

Unless electricity runs out, this trend to a wired world can only gather pace. And yet ... I'm still amazed at how many businesses have failed to join the social revolution, citing fear and irrelevance as the top two reasons to avoid joining the online masses.

If this sounds like you, take action TODAY.

A simple google search could get you up and running in your lunch hour and specific tools for mastering each social platform abound.

In case you still need a push, consider these fascinating facts

• 45% of internet users aged 65+ use Facebook
• 73% of US adults use social networks, daily
• 83% of US teenagers use Instagram
• There are more female than male users on Facebook but more males than females on Twitter
• 89% of 18-29 year olds access social media

Your customer is out there - expecting to find you.  Do you really want to disappoint them?

I'd be happy to get you started, just leave your burning social media question in the comments section below.

Do you work better under pressure?

It's been a long week.

Projects have started to pile up.

Deadlines are appearing in my diary.

Yet daily I flit between post holiday blues and crazily motivated new year productivity.

This schizophrenic state is not good and often leads to late night working and caffeine overload. Ironically, it also fuels some of my best work.

Thankfully, it seems I'm not alone.  Today I stumbled upon a link encouraging us all to ship something everyday for a week.  In this case it's write a blog post.  Find out more at http://yourturnchallenge.strikingly.com/  Seven days is enough to form a habit and this could just be the kick I/we/you need to make 2015 the best yet.

The cheerleader within has me clicking on the link, while the slipper wearing freelancer reminds me of the steadily increasing to-do list already on my desk.

Is this short term pain for long term gain?  Let's see.

Who's with me?

January is the best time to fail

Ignoring the youtube footage above, no one is watching.

Expectations are low.

We're all trying to get back on the treadmill, so cutting each other a little more slack than usual.

Kick off a new years resolution, if you fail, you can always start again in February.

Make a list, or even several.

Declutter your desk.  Bin the pens that don't work and buy some new stationery.

Anything that eases you into the year, focuses your mind and readies you for the challenges ahead.

Do it in January.

Storytelling - Invented authentic content?

This week, the UK celebrated Bonfire night (also known as Guy Fawkes). It's an excuse to party and set off fireworks in remembrance of a foiled plot to blow up parliament in 1605. Who knew that such a rebellious act, could result in a reason to celebrate? Maybe there were switched on content marketing folks even in ye olden days...

Consumers today still love a good story.  If you can make your audience care about your product, you're half way to the sale. Trouble is, we need to forge that emotional connection faster than most corporates can get their content through management, accounting and legal.

Guy Fawkes was a real person and the gunpowder plot an actual plan, but what if you don't have an event to write about? Could you make one up?  Inventing an authentic piece of content is all the rage.

Movember

National Boss Day

Take your children to work

National Grandparents Day

In each case above, the creators have manufactured a situation, to raise the visibility of their product or cause.  Their next task is to ensure the public engage, by showing them how to get involved while imprinting their message into the mindset at the same time. Think of it like a mass call to action.

As Kickstarter has shown time and again, involving your customers in content creation is the best form of engagement a company can hope for. That sense of personal responsibility drives word of mouth and builds a loyal following.  Rallying behind an event gives us a purpose, makes us part of the crowd and now through the wonder of social media, lets us share our efforts with the wider world, for extra credit. Win, win.

Be warned though, invented content will only work if it's true to your company values and brand.

By all means, capture imagination, but to be believed, your idea has to match the expectations your customers already have about your company. It should reinforce what they assume to be true, rewarding their decision to spend their hard earned money with you, rather than the competition.

Stories in keeping with your company values and your customers understanding of why you do what you do, have a way of ingraining themselves on public perception for generations to come.

Now, stop reading and go create!

Marketing tips from unlikely sources - dog breeders

Image from 123rf.com

Dog owners used to fall into one of two categories - pedigrees or mongrels. Recently a third category seems to have developed in the form of the pedigree hybrid. Such mutts would have been classed mongrels, were it not for the power of marketing.

Though the Kennel Club may be in denial of their existence, the world (or at least my little corner), has gone mad for Labradoodles (Labrador/Poodle), Cavapoos (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel/Poodle) and Pugels (Pug/Beagle).

What can we learn from this explosion of fluff?

1. Combining two products which are already popular into a whole new package, provides up-sell and can tap into an entirely new customer market

Think of the brands/products you buy regularly. If you see them paired with a new unknown name, you're more likely to give them a try because you already trust the original brand - in marketing speak, it's up-sell.

Yet even if you're not a regular buyer, but you know of a product or service by reputation, a 'two for one' type offer could encourage you to spend.  Afterall, it seems like a great deal and some of the cost risk has been removed by your familiarity with the brand, making you more likely to give it a try.

2. Customer led product development often produces new ideas

Labradoodles were originally bred in Australia as guidedogs for the blind.  A number of technical innovations came from customer feedback at places like Apple and companies are born everyday to fill niche demands.

What would your product/service look like if your customer designed it?

Are the features and benefits really features and benefits or just the pieces you could create in time for launch?

Have you ever asked your customers why they bought your product rather than an alternative?

Our world gets more hybrid everyday as people seek to distinguish themselves and their purchases. While people want choice, there will always be opportunity.  The trick is creating an opportunity for people to choose.

Shared fate - are you ready for the collaborative economy?

This week, I was fortunate enough to listen to a presentation by Jeremiah Owyang and his shocking predictions for the Collaborative Economy. Jeremiah's vision takes us from today's world where ownership is everything, to a future where sharing drives the economy.

You can read Jeremiah's full report, see his slides and have your mind blown here.

The premise is a simple one.  The crowd, i.e. you and me and all our friends, use social media to engage with one another, share ideas, critique goods and services, compare prices and basically do all that we can, to meet our wants and needs without ever consulting the corporations who used to dictate our aspirations.

This, always on, globally linked approach, is possible because in todays world, more people now have mobile phones than toilets (I know, I couldn't believe it either). Mobile phones, ipads, tablets and all those other internet connected devices, have made it easier than ever to access what we want, as we want it, so the crowd ultimately decides what's made, delivered and consumed.

If this sounds like futurology, consider how the crowd could currently be contributing to your business.

Need a presentation produced, questions for your focus group, an SEO action plan for your website?  Look no further than fiverr.com  This is collaboration in action.  Those with the skills offer their services for a small fee, usually $5, and hey presto that irksome little task that's been loitering on your to-do list since the start of the year, has been delegated to a safe pair of hands to complete.

Need a freelance copywriter, project manager or other short term team member then skills-hive.com could be the answer and there are any number of similar services worldwide.

If you're lucky enough to be a New York dweller, your office needs by the hour/day/week, could be met by liquidspace.com, without any of the search, overhead or relocation delays.  

It may seem a bit of a hippie throwback, but with an ever increasing global population, scarce resources and short attention spans, it's the obvious way ahead.

No doubt the lawyers are already worrying about what this means for intellectual property, copyright etc but for the rest of us, a brave new world of possibility awaits.

Bring it on.