Fan of thumb twiddling marketing?

Are you a fan of thumbs twiddling marketing?

As a marketer, there are various tactics and strategies from marketer’ playbook to solve various funnel problems. The marketer needs to be crystal clear with what problem is he/she solving? And not get swayed by the means or solve being deployed.

In today’s world, everything can get swayed to creation of content. Content that moves the audience so much that they like, comment, share, trend your brand. Marketers keep thumping thier chests with numerous anecdotes, comments people are saying about the coolness of the brand and get into the spiral of mindless engagement.

The ad that you put out in the newspaper (a lot more cerebral in nature and yes edgy n creative), so much so that it creates conversations across marketing eco chambers and platforms start circulating ‘how this brand gone viral’ across marketing fraternity. And may be win a few awards too.

But the biggest peril of all the above is that if the consumer completely misses seeing it or worst, sees but doesn’t understand your edgy piece of content (that got so many likes and comments from junta that may be not your target audience or still sitting on the other side of fence) and hence doesn’t ring the cash registers, then you are doomed.

Then, you look back and ask where did it go wrong? The answer being in the questions of ‘who is my customer’ and ‘what barriers or fears they have for your brand stories to actually solve’. Then, you realise what you call your brand and awareness and engagement, is all not passing the smell test of classical marketing -

#Marketing is the art and science of making your product first ‘sell’ and, as early as possible or eventually at a ‘profit’!

Its easy to get swayed by shiny bling things that engagement can bring and lose the core objective of any initiative. 'we got something' doesnt work. Once, the core objective, outputs, measures are defined it is much clearer on 'why' to deploy any tool from the marketer toolkit.

Thoughts?

#digitalamarketing #contentmarketing

Building memorable Consumer Experiences - Recipe

Recipe of building a memorable #consumer experience?

Case study - Indian Weddings

Indian Weddings try thier level best to have elements which make the experience memorable for the couple in question. How?

1. Raised stakes - Its not a get together of few but a large display of strength. There is an inherent element of social display and publicity that X & Y are getting married. A procession of hundreds on the road, a dinner for thousands!

2. Heightened sensory appeal - Its about decoration, stage (revolving, jutting out, techno and what not), multi-cusine food, dance programs and more. All trying to make you remember this peak event in your life. The gather

3. Elevation for key people - For the couple, there needs to be an experience which is so heightened that it stays forever.  The groom is put on a horse in the middle of the road while bride walks amongst hundreds with a garland & leaves in a hand-driven Doli! How arbitrary these might be, but i wow at the thinking of the designer.

4. Breaking the script - An experience stays with us longer if it challenges are linear thinking and does something unexpected - be it positive or negative. The marriage is a moment of breaking the script - you no longer are solo - You walk into the house with a small ceremony with bride knocking off a vessel filled with rice. You get involved in rituals which might seem inane but add to breaking off from routine - 7 feras or games couple play after feras!

Not to say i support some of the above given a lot of these defy logic and principles of minimalism & simple living, however i see learnings on what goes into designing peaks in consumer experiences by businesses!

In the book, 'power of moments', authors Chip & Dan heath talk about a budget hotel called Magic Castle Hotel in LA which is has 3000+ reviews with people rating it as best hotel in LA. It doesnt have any of the fancy things a Four Seasons or the iconic Bel-Air offers - grand building, luxurious rooms, grand pools, landscaping and what not.

What it offered to guests staying was a surprising popsicle moment by the pool - You have a red phone called The Popsicle hotline by the pool where once ordered, you get a butler delivering colourful popsicles in a silver tray while wearing butler uniform and white gloves..as you sit by the pool. And many more such unusual experiences.

Its a great book for all #CX/UX practitioners especially for those who design a #brand story with experiences (stores, services..) vs who just measure feedback and #NPS! And thats not just #consumerexperience all about, only.

Fintech - A $10Tn opportunity in India

Which app do you open to scan a QR?

Fintech in India is flourishing with so many tailwinds-

1. Changed User behaviour - To change user, one needs to build category education, drive incentives and acquire customers to adopt the new bahaviour. This herculean task got done partially thanks to demonetization earlier and then covid. So, sight of a QR on a thela (handridden cart) is not an unusual sight anymore.
> #Digital txns now make up ~40% of all value of transactions, up by 33% in FY22 over 21.

2. Increasing Smartphones penetration - 62% penetration and increased internet usage ( 74 cr smartphones out of 118 cr phones) is clearly the enabler. Govt now is even thinking low internet BW transactions and even offline payment platform for feature phones. This is bound to go up.

3. Realised convenience - This one is killer. Given the charges and fees are nil for users and merchants at least on #UPI (which is the biggest of them - 46%), both parties are happy to use this convenience offered to them. With time stickiness will ensure that difficult things like insurance, loans etc can be availed via apps itself...obviously thats the goal for fintech companies.

#Fintech is estimated to $3Tn currently as per a recent report and supposed to more than triple to $10Tn by 2026.

However, most apps are trying to be the ONE app while for consumer its just a scan app. So we have seen incentivization, Gamification and what not.

In long run, it will be about intuitive UI/UX that can get things done in seconds for consumers. And even solve a problem of say keeping track of cashback, reversals, etc.

For merchants also is about getting one app that can help maintain a proper ledger, no delayed status confirmations, less failures etc. Frequent dialoguing, helpdesk, education on problem solving are other facets of thier experience and thus retention ...And yes, larger the merchant penetration of any app, better the chances of having a larger pie of future!

Otherwise, #consumer doesnt give a damn to which app to open and scan the QR with? Do you? Thoughts?

#CX

Book Review - The ride of a lifetime by Robert Iger

Book Review - The Ride of a Lifetime by Robert Iger, ex CEO of The Walt Disney Company 

Great book on understanding the journey Robert (Bob) took from his early days as starting ranks in sports division of ABC entertainment to the CEO of ABC to COO of Disney and becoming one of the longest serving (15 yrs) CEO of Disney conglomerate.

He takes you through the mental models and decision frameworks that he used while a concoction of emotions of self/others tried to get the best of him; but didnt succeed. How he dealt with various crises over the years - a crocodile attack at a kid in Disney theme park to a fight with the disney family successor (during his appointment for being CEO) to a series of thrilling mergers and acquisitions (Pixar, Marvel, Fox).

The book also mentions how he treaded his way through impending change needed at Disney when world was embracing change. How he approached Steve Jobs and got Pixar acquired with intense conversations about future with the undisputable creative supremo.

A must read for #media industry folks as well as creative professionals. Top 5 gems from the thriller -

1. It talked about how he always embraced people & cultures in each acquisition without throwing away the secret sauce - from as silly a thing as how people celebrate new joinees & games they play.

2. He cited an example of a disaster on one of the main sport events that they didnt get much coverage (ABC). Next day in a boardroom full of hierarchy, when the CEO demanded who did this blunder; nobody said anything (including the heads responsible) but he raised his hand being in middle/entry level mgmt that I did it 🤚, the accountability he took, went a long way in his career.

3. In his discussions with Steve, the whiteboarding excercise that Steve did comparing pros and cons of Disney Pixar deal, brought in crystal clear clarity on why the acquisition should happen and who would benefit.

4. When Pixar animation was giving a run for Disney's money (due to superior creative talent and processes), Bob on contrary decided to think if Steve will sell Pixar to him - which was unthinkable especially with how Jobs had been critical of Disney & how expensive it could be. But bob still decided to give a shot to the impossible! Asking is very importat. No ask no get!

5. Bob always embraced change...when steve shown him his video ipod prototype, he thought that content distribution is going tp change forever and started working towards this distant future...today Disney+Hotstar is one of the leading content apps in the world!

Which book have you been reading lately and would recommend me?

#books #disney #hotstar

5 iconic brand logo/name stories I didnt know!

5 iconic brand logo/name stories I didnt know!

1. #Evernote - Why elephant in the logo?The primary work of the app is to store and remember the notes your write and it's for that reason it uses the Elephant symbol because the elephants have impressive ability to store the memory!

2. #Volkswagen - It means 'People's car' in German. There was a time when only very expensive cars used to be there on German roads. Volkswagen was a revolution.

3. #Budweiser: Named basis origin. Beer has been brewed in Budweis, Bohemia, since 1245. Budweiser means 'of Budweis'.

4. #Vodafone - This I had noted earlier…but unbelievable as to how a simple a+b+c name became a famous brand. It’s Voice + Data + Phone = Vodafone.

5. #Adidas - We all know it’s named after founder, Adolf Dassler. However, the story behind logo of 3 stripes is that they represent a mountain, pointing out towards challenges and goals people need to overcome.

Any other fascinating brand logo stories you came across? 

#brand #logo #marketing

Williams sisters & art of learning from a movie

#Inspiration from my son

Cajoled my 11 yr old son to watch this beautiful family movie - "King Richard". Will Smith obviously is a great actor (Pursuit of Happyness, Seven Pounds, ..) in my books despite his questionable actions this oscar.

However, apart from Acting, this movie (real story) about a parent's dedication to his daughters. This story of Williams sisters goes in great depths and details of how the family pulled this 'unimaginable dream' come true.

In the movie and in real life, the father has displayed some awesome qualities like great steadfastness despite difficulties (like rejecting the first multimillion deal when they were living off on coach' expenses ).

Not giving any spoilers, but in the movie Richard (father) makes family time for a screening of a movie - "Cinderella" and literally asks his daughters to share what you learnt from it - some say 'dream come true', 'attitude' etc and debates it with kids on nuances of learning.

I loved the idea, so much that i asked my son to write actionables from the movie 😎. And boy, he did write and shared with us. And some of those were much deep. Felt awesome when i read those.

Learning - "Never underestimate the power of a common..err little man!"

Here are few lines my son wrote -

1. Dont think about the result, think about the quality of your game.
2. Never be greedy of money, if you work hard it will follow you.
3. Always believe you can do better.
4. Never underestimate your opponent or fear him because of his age/rating (he plays chess).
5. If you watch something, take a learning or its a waste of time.

Its a must watch for the same reasons, the profound effect it can have on young minds of how to deal with tough times in life & stay still on the path!

#parenting #life #kids #thinkingbytes

Why going LONG is LIFE?

Going LONG is the most undisputable law of Life!

Here is why, we are told-

1. Don’t setup goals but a system. Don’t wait for irrational motivation, build habits for the long haul! Daily habits will take it over from you for auto mode for long term.

2. Don’t invest for short term, good companies take time to deliver. Invest diligently month on month via SIPs for long term.

3. Don’t expect all personal finance advice to deliver in short term, plan for long - buy term insurance, health cover, emergency fund, pension, PF all from a perspective of long term sustainable and power of compounding to help.

4. Between right and wrong, shortcut or long; choose the path that is helping you develop yourself into a principle led judgement system for decision making through life (long term).

5. Build your body with habits on a daily basis for a long sustenance - through right food, exercise, meditation and the works. Fast food vs Slow food, sprint vs marathon, and so on.

6. Meaningful conversations vs like/comment ones on social media. Instant gratification on social apps vs deep slow insightful conversations. Long courses with case studies vs crash courses. Test match vs T20, one is boring vs super exciting.

So, Time my friend is a friend that can help you develop for long term - be it wealth, health, learning, value & belief system and so on.

Wherever in life I look at, I increasingly find a fight between ‘long but difficult, untasty stuff’ vs ‘ fast & tasty shiny stuff’.

It’s up to you to condition your mind and help it to determine, which one wins.

#thinkingbytes #life #wealth #health #long #short

This connect with the thought that power of compounding is applicable in life everywhere. Find my post on that here -Eighth Wonder - Compounding

Laurels of Past - Relevant?

Basking in Laurels of distant past - Justified?

A lot of brands continue with decades old campaigns thinking that customers remember them for that and hence they should keep doing the same thing.

Eg - Onida's Devil, Flipkart's kids playing adults.

Apart from instant recognition, do you think there are downsides of such elongated repetition?

IMO, few aspects one should consider-

1. Is the idea still relevant?

Neighbour's envy Owner's Pride by Onida was a classic line in 90s for a TV market with few brands. New wave of liberalisation was bringing consumerism in people's lives and importantly what brand of color TV u own. And those days, people used to frequently mingle with neighbours.

With current times, that bonhomie is over. Millenials and later gen spend time more within themselves.

Flipkart made its point super clear of "kids kind easy way of shopping online" decade back with thier campaign. But at times, they still show it despite being #1 ecommerce player today & that too in same markets where consumers frequently use thier app (they understand its easy). Why we stretch too far without much freshness?

But others do it well in retaining legacy or great ideas. For eg, Daag Acche hain by Surf Excel. I dont know, i am seeing it for at least 15 yrs and they keep refreshing the context. And idea is still relevant!

2. Do mascots still work?

With media mix changing from large screens/Print to smaller forms, consumer directly clicks logo to land wherever you want him to. The mascots were emotional/human symbols for brands to convey retention of the story. Does it lose to clicks or QRs? Relevant?
Dont remember mascots in recent times other than kids categories where clicks/devices are away.

What do you think?

#brand #mascot #consumer #marketing  

Power of Will?

Just do it!
Where there is a Will, there is a way!

Lot of such slogans or sayings, exhort us to simply move ahead and accomplish any task.

The ability to control oneself to determine one’s actions is powerful. Base it on training, we call it discipline. But do it because you simply can, that’s raw power. Also, called as “Willpower”.

Heard of Marshmallow Test? Where kids were locked in a room with a marshmallow and given a task of delayed gratification (u can eat this marshmallow now or if u wait for 15 min and don’t eat it, you get one more). The test told the world that kids who passed or ‘gratification delayers’ were far more successful in life throughout. There in that test again it’s about willpower - to delay gratification.

But, when I try this in my life, I realised that my resolve to not have that unhealthy food/drink, when it’s sitting in the kitchen isn’t uniform all through. I can easily resist in first half and eat that apple but in evening I give in to cookies. The willpower is gone.

Willpower has a battery life, it drops through the day, and needs recharging with downtime.

Heard of “Eat that big frog first thing in the morning”? Essentially, manage willpower and use it in the morning (when it’s full) to do most important & difficult stuff.

In this book, “The One Thing”, author suggests evidences how decisions made by judges drop to easy/default verdict as the time passes through the day, essentially suggesting dropping willpower. “Take best decisions early or we drop to default/easy levels of decision making”.

Do you feel you have the Will to accomplish, but you give up thru the day? Manage your willpower like a mobile battery. Make important calls earlier on, when it’s full :)

#life #learning #productivity

Productivity Hack - Self Whatsapp Group!

Self Whatsapp Group!

This happens to all of us:

1.We browse, we find important links, we bookmark or use apps like pocket.

2.Important PDF you got on a whatsapp group, you download it; but its difficult to find later.

3.Download images from linkedin, get saved somewhere else.

4. Key thoughts or insights that u get while reading...write in phone notes.

But this all can be done with a great tip, i found thanks to Ankur Warikoo.

- Make a self whatsapp group, add a friend and once done, remove the friend. Pin the group to the top and viola! You have your own SELF whatsapp group to keep putting what all you find important - links, pdf, images etc.

Do share your goto productivity tip or tools?

#productivity #hacks #life #ideas #tip