For B2B, Google+ May Be Your Best Friend

Facts & Figures, Infographics, Social Business, Social Media

For years I worked in business to business marketing in one form or another. I understood how all the different channels worked, loved the way that the newly emerging web brought immediacy to my communications and got a sense that the concept of “branding” was shifting under my feet.

And then I landed in the world of business to consumer marketing – working for an agency on big FMCG/entertainment and QSR brands. Despite years of experience I felt out of my depth. And one of the most challenging aspects was understanding the nature of SCALE. In the B2B world, your focus is on much more narrowly defined audiences – whereas for large consumer brands, scale is what works.

Over the last 10 years there has been a lot of cross-pollinating between B2B and B2C. Much of this has been driven by social media – or by our new appreciation of audiences that are a by-product of social media. Yet, I can’t help feeling a little disappointed that we haven’t learned another lesson of social media – that it’s not scale or reach that is important. It’s the engagement – and the potential to impact BEHAVIOUR – that is vital.

Take a look at this infographic from Pardot comparing Google+ and Facebook brand pages. The numbers are huge. The scale is amazing. But think about it – in B2B you often know WHO you want to reach (I don’t mean “who” in terms of a persona – I mean actual people working in actual businesses). The challenge is to find innovative and creative ways to not just reach, but to engage and prompt them to action. And if you think about that rather than the being dazzled by statistics, you might just find that Google+ is your new best friend.

Pages-vs-Plus11

Internet Trends 2012

Facts & Figures, FutureVisions

Each year, venture capital firm, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield Byers release their research and analysis into the trends they are observing across the web. Compiled by Mary Meeker, it’s packed with statistics and pithy one liners – and will provide plenty of fodder for your upcoming client presentations – especially where you need to reinforce the reports key themes – “internet growth remains robust and rapid mobile adoption is still in early stages”.

There were a few items that caught my attention:

  • Growth in internet user numbers is being driven by emerging markets – with China, India and Indonesia in the top 3, with the USA down the list at number 8
  • Australia ranks 14th in terms of mobile 3G subscribers – with 76% penetration and 21% year-on-year growth
  • While iPad adoption is astonishing (3x the iPhone) – Android is outpacing all devices currently running at 4x the iPhone
  • Mobile web traffic now accounts for 10% of all internet traffic

And while the statistics are fascinating – especially for the data nerds out there – the compelling part of this presentation is the focus on the “Reimagination of almost everything”. The report covers a wide variety of consumption habits, technologies, cultural and artistic production, information and so on – announcing what many of us already know – that the magnitude of change that is coming (or is already upon us) will be stunning.

KPCB Internet Trends 2012

A Coffee Morning Interlude this Friday

Coffee Mornings

When we first started regularly holding our coffee mornings in Sydney, we didn’t know what would happen. We didn’t know what it would be like to actually meet this amorphous collection of “online connections”. But within minutes, we knew we were onto a winning formula – interesting people, good coffee and a sense of curiosity all round.

One of my favourite wildcards in the whole coffee morning experience was Gavin, the guy behind the Single Origin cafe where we hung out. A passionate and energetic coffee lover, he ensured there was always an element of surprise in every roast and every cup.

Now, after a break, Gavin’s back roasting coffee in Sydney. And this week he is letting his first batch loose on the world. So this week – rather than the usual Single Origin destination – I’ll be heading down to Shop 6, 81 Macleay St, Potts Point to sample his latest labour of love. I’d love for you to join me.

CoffeeMorningInterlude

And in case you are wondering what coffee mornings are really about … take a quick flip through this presentation. It tries to capture just a little of what makes it all so special. See you from 8am!

Creative Sydney: Creative Networking: Coffee Mornings Sydney

View another webinar from Gavin Heaton

Five Must-Read Posts from Last Week

5 Must-Read Posts

Saturn V RocketsTowards the end of each summer I start thinking about the joys of cooler weather that come with winter. But last summer in Australia was so wet, I really was just waiting for summer to start when winter abruptly arrived. And normally winter is a time of reading – but over the last couple of weeks – a series of colds and fevers has kept me well away from such lovely pursuits. So it was nice over the weekend to start feeling better – and to find that so many smart people around the world keep sharing their insight, intelligence and creativity. It’s like a pep-shot for creative lethargy. Hope you enjoy these:

  1. In marketing, we have become much more focused on niche networks and the power of influence. Neil Perkin explains why you should choose your friends carefully. Especially when they are Friends not friends
  2. Kris Hoet ponders the nature of value and the power of creative work. Sharing a video of TBWA/Chiat/Day’s Lee Clow, he asks how do we create value and value creative?
  3. Are you on Twitter? Does it have a strange hold over you? Does it make you feel alive, connected and energised? Kate Carruthers suggests that this constant ambient connection is creating a new kind of normal
  4. We all talk about the power of stories – and their importance in the life of a brand. But how do you create a brand with values that allow stories to resonate with your customers and audiences? Jonah Sachs has some ideas
  5. Do we want fame or do we want community? Most brands confuse the two – pushing for fans to “like” their Facebook pages or subscribe to their newsletter. But the two are very different. Chris Guillebeau explains some of the distinctions.

Mobile Youth: Cigarettes, Cell Phones and Cars

Audience 2.0, FutureVisions, Social Media, The Social Way

I first came across Graham Brown many years ago when I was working in youth marketing. I loved the way that he applied serious, insight driven analysis to the fast moving youth markets. And I loved the way that he understood and articulated the tribal nature of youth culture.

In this video introduction to his new book The Mobile Youth, Graham reveals an astonishing connection between the reduction in smoking in young people and the rise of smartphones. Despite widespread public health advertising, it was not until the social value of cigarette smoking (ie not the product but the social by-product of the act of smoking) was able to be released towards another social tool of similar or greater value, that young people began to shift their behaviour.

And this – for me – is the important lesson. So much advertising and marketing is directed towards product with very little focus on the desired behaviour. It’s like we are constantly pushing a “message” without any regard for the “context” in which our audiences live and work. This applies not only to youth segments but to any and all. Until we start to address what Graham calls “the social meaning” we will continue to see advertising and marketing failing to do its job.

You can start to remedy this situation by asking two important questions. Where do you customers belong. And what is the significance of that (to them)? The answers you find will tell you a whole lot about your marketing. You’ve just got to be sure to listen for the answer – even when it’s not what you want to hear.

Get Your VIP Pass to FailCon

Conferences

failconspeakers I have always been a fan of learning from others. Even as a child I would watch friends and family members get into trouble and then work backwards to find the first point of failure – the moment from which there was no return. As far as possible I wanted to make sure that my own mischief would not land me in trouble.

This sneaky, almost surreptitious, level of observation became useful in the corporate world, where failure can mean the difference between having a job and not. In the world of startups, however, failure is seen not as an end point, but as a building block for future success.

Next week, as part of Vivid Sydney, the Vivid Ideas Exchange is hosting FailCon – “a one day conference for technology entrepreneurs, investors, developers and designers to study their own and others’ failures and prepare for success”.

There are some fantastic speakers, including:

One of the things I like about this conference is that there are plenty of Australians speaking. Too often we feel the need to jet in speakers from overseas – overlooking that talent that is right here beneath our noses. Having said that, it is a conference about failure … 😉

Get 50% off the ticket price!

For a short time, you can get a VIP pass to FailCon for only $52. Just use this SECRET LINK with the password FAILCONVIP.

Get your ticket before they are all sold out!

Lots of Trends, But the Direction is Mobile

Audience 2.0, Future of Work, Mobility, Social Business, Social Media, Web/Tech

In the marketing world, we love trends. We use them to help us spot and understand what is happening in our marketplaces and what is shifting in the worlds of our customers. They can also be used to help us identify where we have gaps in our customer engagement strategy or where a competitive advantage is opening up.

But so often we focus only on the trend and miss the greater underlying movement that is taking place.

Take a look at this presentation from Edelman Digital. The focus is on trends across Asia Pacific – but the reality of this is, that the same can be easily applied to any country. We are, after all, globally connected. And when I say “we”, I mean “consumers”.

Edelman Digital APAC 2012 Trends

As the presentation points out, trends like “touch (see) and go” and “convergence emergence” are not just on the horizon – they are happening and visible in our marketplace now. And tying this to the Edelman Trust Barometer – a measure of the trustworthiness of our institutions – shows precisely why social networks and dominating the thinking of so many business executives.

But for my money, it’s not the trends that are important for us all to consider. It’s the direction. The report touches on this under “Trend 8: Device Freedom” – but reading between the lines, it’s clear that there is a substantial shift in consumer behaviour underway. And it will impact every angle, every industry, every message and every business – whether we like it or not. It’s the ever increasing ubiquity of the mobile phone (particularly the smart phone). It’s already changing the way we shop and the way we work, but it’s going to go further than most businesses are ready for.

Those that prepare and move earlier will be well placed to guide the customer experience and transform the notion of trust that is at the heart of our often fragile sense of brand loyalty. Those that fail to move may find that they fail in more ways than one. It’s taken well over 10 years to get to the year of the mobile, but the trending time is over – the direction is clear and it’s in the palm of your hand.

Five Must-Read Posts from Last Week

5 Must-Read Posts

I was out most of last week with a bad, bad cold. It seems it’s going around (ie the really viral). But I was still able to find a few gems to read in between heavy nanna naps.

  1. Some snappy writing and a barb in the tail of Jim Parker’s writing. He explains why journalists fear academics and shines a light on the process of opinion making and influence wielding in the Australian media. You’ll love it.
  2. Greg Verdino takes us behind the scenes with the American Express OPEN Forum and shares the four principles that keep it fresh and focused.
  3. Is branding something that only your customers experience? What if you treated your employees first? In Let’s Go to Work, Katie Chatfield talks about what this might mean.
  4. Despite our interest in authenticity, it can be hard to live by. Mark Schaefer shares a recent conference experience and explains why.
  5. Is Facebook the New Big Mac? Tim Longhurst casts an accusatory eye across the over-hyped Facebook IPO to tease out the sense, if not the dollars, underlying the valuation and market expectation.

Oh and if you are looking for one more, here’s my post on the future of work and the need to think like a teenager.

Influencing Design with Frank Chimero

Conferences, Design, Innovation

One of the biggest challenges we face in the business world is – in my opinion – not generating more sales, cutting more costs or improving productivity. It’s more fundamental  and goes to the heart of our human condition. It’s harnessing our logic AND our creativity in such a way that it solves the problems that our work, business, social and creative endeavours throw in our path. I call it The Social Way.

So, the chance to hear Frank Chimero speak in Sydney in June looks too good to pass up. He has worked as a designer, illustrator and strategist for brands such as the New York Times, Facebook and WIRED. His recent book The Shape of Design suggests that logic may not always to be the best way to solve design problems (which obviously is right up my alley) – and his inclusive style promises a lively keynote and Q&A forum.

Here courtesy of Portable and VIVID Ideas, he is also slated for talks in Brisbane and Melbourne. Book in while you can!

Out and About? Turn Your Mobile On. It’s the Future of Work

Future of Work

I am old enough to remember using a bundy clock to mark the beginning and end of my work day. Each day, at 8:45am I would pick out the card with my name typewritten (yes typed by a typewriter) at the top and I would slot it into the machine which would time stamp my attendance. And then again, at 5:00pm, I would walk down the stairs, select my card and “bundy out”. If I think about it I can still feel the rhythm that would vibrate up the card into my fingers.

The reason I started work at 8:45am was to create enough time in our working schedule for a fortnightly “early afternoon”. Every two weeks the office closed early and we all rushed off to nearby shops to pay bills, bank cheques and so on. It afforded a small amount of flexibility in our otherwise regimented working lives.

Clearly, this was a time before 24 hour shopping. It was a world that stopped after 6pm.

Inside the office, the decor of the moment was beige. Office landscapes were designed like wagon trains – the management encircling the worker who eeked out their existence in brown hessian covered partitions surrounded by inboxes, outboxes, reading materials and filing cabinets. The only piece of technology to be seen was the Commander telephone. And yes, your desktop really was a desktop – there was not a computer in sight.

And while this environment looked and felt safe, conservative and controlled – it was anything but – for technology was about to create a massive disruption within the workplace – one from which we would never recover.

It began with green screen – or orange screen – computers. Hovering over our desks, they looked like alien eyes peering back at us from unimagined future. Suddenly the activity of “work” shifted from the pad and pen – from the desk – onto the screen connected to a mainframe locked away in a climate controlled room in the basement. We were trained, supported and performance KPI’d. And then slowly it started.

A business case here and a business case there, and soon “desktop computers” began to sprout across the office. They were like great silent triffids gobbling up our old work practices and expectations. Some of my older colleagues gave up and took early retirement. Others retreated further up the management chain, defending their positions with computer-literate PAs and assistants.

Eventually the desk was replaced with the desktop.

We now face yet another wave of disruptive change. Many now cling as tightly to their laptop computers and email as my colleagues once did with their pens, pads and sense of tradition. But those days are over. The future of work isn’t about desks or even offices. It’s mobile and it’s already here. It’s time to turn it on.