1000 true fans?

Power of 1000 true fans > Power of mass media?

In times of efficient and ROI driven #marketing, power of #community is a big lever.

Kevin kelly wrote an essay in 2008 stating the power of first 1000 fans -

"A true fan is defined as a fan that will buy anything you produce. These diehard fans will drive 200 miles to see you sing; they will buy the hardback and paperback and audible versions of your book and so on.

If you have roughly a thousand of true fans (also known as super fans), you can make a living — if you are content to make a living but not a fortune."

And here is how it works. You need to meet two criteria -

1. You have to create enough each year that you can earn, on average, $100 profit from each true fan.

2. You must have a direct relationship with your fans. That is, they must pay you directly.

If you keep the full $100 of each true fan, then you need only 1,000 of them to earn $100,000 per year. That’s a living for most folks.

Earlier this phenomenon was difficult to achieve because of lack of direct relationship/transaction with customers, but with #ecommerce, D2C and p2p digital payments, this concept is the backbone behind many brands globally.

Thats why brands of today aspire global demand because they now have this power of a connected world!

These brands focus on direct contact with customers to leverage this principle of true 1000 fans!

And yes, more often than not, you dont see these brands spend on mass media because the community helps them grow. They dish out challenges, rewards, parties first to those fans and then to the world at large!

#D2C enables efficiency in marketing and #sales and business!

Have you experienced the power of thousand true fans yet? Not customers, but fans.

Book Review - Good to Great by Jim Collins

Books worth enough to share your life with -

"Good to Great" by Jim Collins

This is like a book '7 habits of highly effective people' applied to companies! It traces progress of ~1500 companies to come up with 11 which beat competition consistently for 15 years in his research.

And filtered the 'reason why' into a behaviour model of 'Good to Great' shown in the picture split into disciplined people, desciplined thought, desciplined action. 

Apart from doggedness to keep at doing things, he defines discipline around 'clarity and focus' which is a gem nuance. wavering strategy or doing multiple things, back and forth is example of indiscipline.

The #audible version has voice of author himself and the way he narrates the book, he is so passionate in his work, it seems as if you are part of the discussion! Must listen.

However, apart from the company's behaviour aspects; i felt same can be applied to individuals in thier lives & careers -

1. Level 5 #leadership - A humble but firm leadership behaviour. Not flamboyant, not charming but simple people with no egos dedicated to the objective. None of these companies have those celeb leaders!

2. First who, then what - While embarking on a vision, its important yo figure who is on the bus (like-minded) & then decide to what to do next. Else, you falter easily as people leave the bus if mis-aligned.

3. Confront the brutal facts - Running away from reality doesnt help. And quoting future vision without confronting reality is like ostrich with his neck under sand.

4. Hedgehog concept - This is crux of this book. We should figure the intersection of 

-what we are passionate about, 

-what are our skills/talent that we are good at, and

-what is our economic engine ( how we can make money out of the two by figuring a matket and a metric that uniquely drives us to the vision)

5. Culture of #descipline, not hierarchical. Descipline by auto mode vs forced; enabled by disciplined thinking and disciplined control. No bureaucracy.

6. #Technology as accelerator, not as 'the' thing to change fortunes. First figure hedgehog concept and then apply technology if it helps you accelerate the focus via hedgehog. For eg. Clarity of thought boosted by tech is a dangerous thing.

7. #Flywheel - The good to great transformation is not like a revolution, its like slow and steady evolution. It builds up turn by turn on a steering wheel till you pass through a breakthrough. Its like a decade long overnight sensation!

Loved it to the core. Become a fan of Jim Collins. Its like those re-reads kind of books.

Which #book have you loved recently? Share your recommendations for a business book for my next read.

How to remember things for ever?

How to learn, to apply forever?

‘Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.’ – Benjamin Franklin

We all accept that learning is the no 1 #skill to grow - in #life, #career; everywhere. But have you thought about right model of learning? Learning that sticks with you, vs a hazy memory that I did read something about this but currently it’s failing me. Learning should result in a skill adoption that doesn’t require conscious thinking - like in case of riding a cycle. Once you learn it with deliberate practise, next time you just need a cycle and your brain takes over.

A model by trio authors (McDaniel, Roediger and Brown) of ‘Made to Stick’ suggest 3 steps to such learning -

1. ‘Encoding’ - is the first stage which is about conversion of perceptions into meaningful patterns in the brain. Like drawing rough sketches in the brain, giving you a hazy silhouette of what you are trying to learn.

2. ‘Consolidation’ - is like the process of tidying up the notes you scribbled during class—typing them up neatly in a document, adding examples and charts for clarity. With this stage, brain strengthens the hazy silhouette by rearranging the earlier patterns to make sense of them.

3. ‘Retrieval’ - is accessing the learnt information using cues that help us recall it. Methods such as quizzing on the material, teaching the concept to someone else or applying in a real-life situation help strengthen this stage. Every time we retrieve and apply what we have learnt, the skill and associated memory become stronger until it is almost effortless.

So, now you have a model to learn sth for permanency!

If you realise, my #linkedin posts are part of the stage 3 of this model. And that’s how small efforts like posts, add to my #learning!

Thanks for being my audience and helping me learn, everyday. 🙏

50 years of Eno in India - From antigas to dhokhla

50 years of ENO in India - A tale of Acidity & Dhokla!

#ENO antacid dates back to the 19th Century, when James Crossley Eno first introduced it as a “fruit salt” to help sailors stay healthy on long journeys.

The pharmacy from where it was sold was situated on a seaport with a lot of sea traffic. This was a boon for ENO as sailors used to eat large quantities of food on return and faced acidity issues.

India is the largest market for ENO. We know it as the no 1 remedy for acidity issues thanks to its ‘fastest acidity solve’ claim, hammered over the years into consumer psyche via brilliant #advertising. Lines like -

ENO ON, Acidity Gone.

ENO gets to work in 6 seconds.

ENO ON, gadbad Gone.

show that the consistency on #positioning and great creative executions have ensured that consumers can’t think anything else. 

Do you remember the no 2 brand in quick relief antacid salts?

Its a great legacy brand known worldwide for its 100+ years of history and its focus on consumers acidity issues.

But if you dive deep in India, the kicker is the use of ‘lemon’ ENO in a dish called dhokla. As per popular recipes for the dish, one can use lemon ENO in place of baking soda + citric acid for this popular dish. Not sure how much sales it commands for this end use; but YouTube is replete with recipes of eno Khama dhokla. Statewise per capita sales share might validate whether in states where the dish is popular, is there any correlation or not. 

As a composite result of all, it commands ~45-50% market share, with ~600-700 cr sales and is now celebrating 50 years in India!

#marketing #brand 

Pic credits - tastecooking.com

Heart & Soul of a brand?

Heart & Soul of a brand?

1. Belong anywhere

2. Authentic Athletic Performance

3. Fun Family Entertainment

4. Rewarding Everyday Moments

5. Everyday low prices

Do these phrases ring any brand names in your mind?

These phrases or group of words are never shown in public or to the customers.

Marketers first craft thier brand strategy (a few frameworks to define positioning, persona, etc).

Then apply thier toolkit of ATL, BTL & 360 degree touchpoint experience to evoke this feeling or impression in minds of customers aligned to these phrases.

These phrases are called the heart & soul of the brand. Also called as #BrandEssence. 

We as marketers even look at each image/copy/video and assess whether the outcome thought/feeling after seeing/reading; lands there most of the times - in those group of words.

We ponder questions like -

Do a bunch of boys in the shot generate a feeling of friends having fun or they are just a group?

Do the shoe video talking about the show or the feeling of 'doing sth' when you wear it?

Does the store ambience and lighting evoke seclusion or friendliness? Dark & yellow or Bright & White?

And so on.

If as marketers, we can evoke this feeling in mind & heart of the customers, which is = heart & soul of the brand. We feel on the top of the world!!

#marketing #positioning #brand 

PS - Did you got all 5 brands right?

Why do you check that app frequently?

Why do you check that app frequently? 

Because u know u will see something new?

Or, Because u just might see something new?

Read that again!

Yes, ‘MIGHT’ signify the concept of the variable reward. 

This concept was discovered by psychologist B.F. Skinner in 1950s when he put a bunch of pigeons in a cage. There was a lever in the cage, every time a pigeon tapped a lever, a pellet of food was delivered. 

Skinner then introduced variability: food pellets were not delivered at every tap of the lever, but at random intervals. 

And this made pigeons go 😜 , the number of times they tapped the lever increased dramatically!

This was Unpredictable/Variable rewards at play. 

Our habit to go back to that app is a result of our brain’s craving for novelty and pattern identification. 

When we know what the reward is going to be every time, we grow uninterested, but when there is no obviously apparent pattern, we get hooked.

Every app wants to become a slot machine!

Have you got over that app addiction yet?

 #marketing #product #habits

Book Review - The great mental models by Shane Parrish

Finished this #book recently - The great #mentalmodels by Shane Parrish.

The premise for one to read the book is - In life and business, the person with the fewest blind spots wins. 

Blind spots are areas which which we don’t know that we don’t know. 

Until, we figure multiple mental models which people apply across disciplines, we would be at the mercy of our default mental models. 

Mental models describe the way the world works. They shape how we think, understand, and form beliefs. These are largely at play in subconscious!

Some of the key Mental Models from the book:

#firstprinciples Thinking

Break a complicated concept/problem to building blocks, the first principles. Remove all existing beliefs or assumptions. What remains are the essentials. 

First-principles expose the boundaries that you have to work within. From this, you can challenge the fundamental assumptions of the situation more effectively. It’s a must have Recipie for disruption.

How to arrive at them - 5 Why’s is a good approach. Keep asking why at each level till u have at least five whys. 

#SecondOrderThinking

When making choices, consider not just immediate; but distantsecond and subsequent order consequences that help you avoid future problems. When making a decision, ask this question: And then what?

#Inversion

Inversion means approaching a situation from the opposite end of the natural starting point. Start by assuming that what you’re trying to prove is either true or false, then show what else would have to be true. 

Sherlock homes was assigned a task of finding x is having a valuable picture. Straight approach is to first assess if x has that picture - Search the house to figure etc. 

Inversion is to assume x has the picture. He burns nearby area to create panic for x to leave house. X runs out with valuable picture out herself! Power of inversion!

Any other book on mental models you recommend?

Should brands bow down for advising a story of change?

Should brands bow down for advising a story of change?

Brands tell stories.

Stories that reflect the society at times, and stories that defy the society.

Ultimately storied to land a message - might be aligned to existing norms of the society, or might be suggesting a change.

Change to break away. And start something new.

Change is difficult. But change is the only constant. Change at times, or most of the times is progress. Or at least a strong effort to think different.

However, there are things which nobody would want to change. And things which are open to be thought of at least.

Who decides that? Audience does.

And that’s why -

A section of audience would like the way current things are.

A section will like a new and fresh thinking.

Some will boycott. Some will not.

Some will remember the brand for pushing boundaries and challenge status quo. Some will hate it for doing it.

But brands need to stand by thier narratives and stories. Not bow down under pressure.

I remember Nike’s ad on taking a stand around racism by bringing -Colin Kaepernick, an outcast American football player and civil rights activist .

Despite pressures from media and thier share price going down under furore - Did they take it off? No

Did the brand wither away? No. It’s stands stronger. And I guess that’s fans expected from thier brand that is thier mentor on pushing human limits around athletics.

What do you think from a #brand perspective?

#marketing #advertising

PS - The recent AUFinanceBank Ad featuring Aamir & Kiara talks about groom entering the bride’s house after wedding for Pelham Kadam vs bride. Earlier, Manyavar had a narrative around kanyadan. Tanishq had one talking about adoption of cross-religion customs.

Metaverse - a fad?

Metaverse - a new wave like Social media?

Back in 2006-07, there was a new wave of social media & digital marketing trying to redefine how brands communicated and engaged with people. 

It started as a fad, when brands ignored it first, then adopted like experiments with 1% of budgets to today, where it is one of the top 2 spend channels.

Metaverse, is in the same zone as social/digital was back then.

Brands created pages on social media platforms. Then, they added interactive stuff via various widgets and apps to build engagement. Then came idea of selling via social.

Even customers first created thier profiles. Then they connected with friends, built communities. Then, they started reading news. And today, it is a complete entertainment package, where people open these apps to see some random byte sized content (call it reels or shorts).

Same trend seems building for Metaverse. People are creating thier avatars. Kids are already used to such parallel places via games like roblox or minecraft. Adults have had this virtual reality life (WFH)during COVID via zoom and are now living a hybrid work life already.

Brands are creating Metaverse stores, buying retail space in Metaverse (will you call it ‘un’real estate 🙄) - Samsung, Adidas in Metaverse like Decentraland, The Sandbox. 

CPG Brands like Coca Cola, Nike etc have done various events in Metaverse to promote a new product line or special events. Walmart has a Walmartland in Roblox and has released a video on how they imagine shopping at walmart in Metaverse (it’s interesting if you haven’t seen it yet - link in comment).

And yes people can buy from brands in these Metaverses. So, the proposition is that consumer can shop from say Macy’s physical store in NY from Bangalore by visiting its Metaverse store and get the purchase delivered in real world! 

Sounds exciting?

#metaverse #marketing #ecommerce #social

Brand Signage stunts- from Lucy Pizza to NolhtaceD?

Brand Signage stunts- from Lucy Pizza to NolhtaceD?

Brands are about stories. Stories that connect. And if stories, translate into reality; nothing like it! 

Here is how two brands - Domino’s and Declathon played with thier signage for few stores to tell beautiful stories.

#Domino's rebranded one of its stores in order to honor Lucy Bronze, an English woman footballer ahead of the Euro 2022 final. Lucy Bronze worked as a chef at Domino's in Headingley while studying at Leeds Beckett University in the early 2010s.

French sports apparel brand #Decathlon changed its signage of 3 stores in Belgium to promote "reverse shopping", through which people in the country can sell their sporting products to the company to support environment friendly practice of reuse. So, the brand literally reversed thier logo!

Do you remember any other such story of #logo change?

#marketing

New Modern Sarees from Tata, Birla & Ambani

Indian modern Sarees - now from Tata, Birla and Ambanis!

India sells ~50000 cr worth of Sarees annually. Out of which ~27% was organized market in FY20, which is slated to grow to 40% by FY25.

New cool brands have been growing with modernised play on sarees. Taniera by Tata, Navyasa by Birla and Avantea by Ambanis are some those new brand launched in last 5 years. 

The erstwhile biggies - Nallis, Kalyan Silks, Pothys, Chennai Silks have been there since ages selling buildings full of traditional sarees.

Interesting play in retail with again expansion of exclusive stores by each of the new brands. 

Definitely, there is a gap in the market with the dearth of modern sari specific brands, contrasting to plethora of western wear brands. 

W and Biba capitalised on this gap earlier in non-saree ethnic market earlier.

Interesting to see, how things pan out.

Where do you buy your sarees from?

#fashion #retail #brand #sarees 

Startups & Leap of faith?

Startups & Leap of faith?

From leap of faith, the best example that comes to my mind is that of Hanuman doing a leap over the Indian ocean to lanka in our mythology epic Ramayana.

At first, he just had a problem at hand that he had to find the whereabouts of Sita. He was confounded as to how he will reach lanka which cant be seen from naked eyes and its only water everywhere in sight.

He didn't remember any of his magical power giving him confidence that he could do it. He was made to remember his might, later by his team members. He gained strength, but still wasn't sure.

Later, its the leap of faith. Faith in his idol Ram. He then believed in himself and jumped off over the ocean. He needed to believe that he HAS to find Sita. He defied gravity by believing that he has the rocket fuel(magical powers) within him to sail through!

Similarly, #Startup culture is all about believing in yourself (irrespective of your earlier experiences) and taking the plunge in something you might not have done earlier.

You generally set out to do the impossible or something big that looks impossible under constraints of time. And once you achieve the same, you wonder, how we did it.

One key trait in this playbook is to try things which are different from convention itself. For eg, if the normal industry does this for ages, who can we defy those assumptions or constraints and then think fron there. This #firstprinciples thinking is at the heart of startup thinking and should be in #career and #life as well.

Believe in yourselves!

Defy assumption!

Take that leap of faith.

Happy #diwali !