Email Software Delves Into Employees' Contacts

If you have a subscription to WSJ online--you can access the full article..but the story ( in excerpted fashion), brings to light the most integral element with respect to Sales. Its all about leveraging (some say 'exploiting') internal relationships.....at www.JLCgroup.net--resident guru Jay Berkman opines that "every single one of your employees is a salesperson--even if their job title is miles apart from traditional sales roles--and that secondarily...your most valued clients are the best third party sales executives..."

The article does point out that privacy concerns remain an impediment to full scale exploitation---but gee whiz golly gosh...contact information acquired by employees in the course of doing their job belongs to the company---NOT to the individual--and it merely requires a pragmatic, rational and mature business executive to determine the most appropriate way to leverage this data---taking into account relationships that exist between employees and their counterparts/relationships at other enterprises...

Bytes from WSJ article:

Companies are rolling out software that allows them to mine their employees' emails and electronic address books for contact information, in a bid to make it easier to establish relationships with potential clients and others.

The products work by examining the contact lists on employees' email programs, as well as other information such as lawyers' billing records or contacts stored on special programs for managing customer relationships. Then it checks how often individuals email the contacts and whether they have appointments for face-to-face meetings or phone calls on their calendars. The software uses that information to determine how strong a relationship a person has with the contact. For example, individual emails that get replies rank higher than a blast email sent to many people.

"We're able to infer where people have relationships, based on their electronic vapor trail of activities," said Geoffrey Hyatt, founder of Contact Networks in Boston. The company, whose product is called ContactNet, said the program is used at about 40 law firms, including Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, both in New York.

If an attorney at a firm using ContactNet wants to pitch his expertise to a particular company, he can type in the name of the company or perhaps the general counsel. The system responds by saying how many of his fellow employees have relationships with the general counsel or other people at the company. The lawyer can then ask his fellow employee to introduce him to the contact. At other firms, the program reveals which employee has the contact, but details like phone numbers aren't shown. The employee may offer to share just an email address, or they may advise against pursuing business with that contact altogether.

Google_ Mystifying billing practices to be uncovered?

We're hearing from lots of Google advertisers that they are incurring charges for clicks that are not documented within Google's own analytic reports.
Here's an example of a complaint we just rec'd a copy of:

i have repeatedly brought this to your attention, and i have not been provided any type of adequate explanation
1. Site targeted campaign name :(blocked)
2. Campaign manager displays (1) Click for period mar 20-mar 23 I had selected approximately 500 different sites.
Your ad manager indicates i received 1 click from 1 site (www.legacy.com)
3. Despite above #2, when scrolling down the admin page, it indicates that (9) different ads resulted in 16 clicks, and I have been charged for those clicks, despite the fact that you are reporting to me only 1 click was made during this period.

I would like a credit for the 15 clicks that I was fraudulently charged for.
Thanks


Actually, we asked three different clients to take a close look at their monthly billing from Google adwords campaigns--each of which run both CPC and site-targeted campaigns (also CPC). In each case, clients reported an inexplicable discrepency between what GOOG reported as the number of clicks and the number of clicks that clients were charged for.

No surprise that in each case, clients are apparently being charged for more than the actual number of clicks---the dollar amounts are relatively inane (approximately 8-10% of total monthly spend)...wait a minute, that's not inane--that's INSANE.
We're guessing this is something that Wall Street analysts are going to take a closer look at.

Name That Firm: What Should You Call Your Business?

We're in the midst of trying to come up with a name for a boutique product licensing/distribution firm that started out specializing in licensing and manufacturing rights to innovative/disruptive technology products, and has since grown to the point where we have multiple products under our umbrella; extending across environmentally- friendly consumer goods, health care products, eco-friendly cleaning products for commercial application, food, and some technology widgets.

At the moment, the firm has a next generation, alcohol-free hand sanitizer product line, a lubricant made from mineral oil that is Green Seal certified and best described as the eco-friendly alternative to WD 40 (making it a great product for both the consumer and commerical marketplace), and some food products that are Fair Trade certified. We also continue to look at software and hardware products.

My partners and I have been trying to come up with a moniker (which is currently Mata Global Solutions) to a name that will resonate i.e.--encompass the unique nature of products that we are licensing/distributing, can perhaps be universally applied to the products we are licensing (a tough one considering the breadth of products), and can be easily incorporated into a URL for optimal search engine strategies.

Today's WSJ profile "Name That Firm" is a solid primer do's and don't(s) when it comes to putting up a marquee for a business.

Here are good excerpts from the WSJ article:

FIND THE UNIQUE

The first step is usually pinpointing the company's unique value or service. Companies should ask themselves, "What are you doing to bring value to potential customers and what's your vision?" says Scott Kuehl, president of BrandResolve LLC, a St. Cloud, Minn., brand-consulting firm.

BUT DON'T BE OBSCURE

AVOID THE MUNDANE

Indeed, companies trying to create a unique brand sometimes err by choosing a name that describes too closely what they do. "When a company tries to describe its services, it usually makes the company sound generic," says Mr. Montoya. The names of many successful companies don't describe what they do, he says.

Josh Robbins of Geckotech.

Names that describe a company also require a greater investment to promote the name in the marketplace, says Steven Winokur, CEO and founder of Turning Point Strategies, an Atlanta-based branding consultancy. "The only way I know how to do that is through repetition," he says. "You have to get people to see it many times."

GET REACTIONS

The best way to gauge the effectiveness of a small-business name is to find out how it resonates with people outside the company. It's an "ask people" question, says BrandResolve's Mr. Kuehl.

If people respond using phrases that echo the company's mission, that's good, he says. A catering company whose goal is to create irresistible, sinfully delicious food, for example, would know a name was right if people said it made them think of food that is "wicked good" or "devilishly tasty," he says.

Mr. Montoya says that people also should find a name memorable and easy to look up, either in phone listings or on the Web. The easier a name is to remember, the more it will benefit from referrals, he says. Similarly, a name that's hard to spell makes a company hard to find.

David Placek, president and founder of Lexicon Branding Inc. in Sausalito, Calif., notes: "You want to make people think a little bit -- not a lot. But if we don't make them think at all, they will walk past."

DOMAIN DO'S AND DON'TS

Check on the availability of a domain name, as Pacific Biosciences did, before making a final decision. An Internet domain name should be closely related to the company's name and make sense to users, says Mr. Winokur

Mr. Placek, however, cautions against sacrificing an effective name if the domain isn't available. He notes that many people surfing the Web don't look for corporate Web sites by remembering a domain name. Instead, he says, they type the company's name into Google, and then click on a link that is listed.

"Companies shouldn't sacrifice memorability and creativity [in a name] just to have a URL," he says.

Spitzer: A Marketing/Communications Classic

Eliot Spitzer. Former NY Attorney General turned politician (actually one and the same) . Qualities: Self righteous, sanctimonious, zealot, narcissist...and now a self-confessed criminal.

This is a guy that proclaimed to stand at the top of mountain in terms of ethics and morality, spending the last decade prosecuting, extorting and bullying anyone he felt like like, regardless of whether he had evidence of a crime, in order to advance his career--financed in part by his wealthy family.

Resigning in disgrace is great, what should happen is that he be prosecuted (pick a crime: abuse of office, fraud, using taxpayer money to commit a crime (hey, he's on the govt payroll, and no doubt that its a crime in the State of New York to procure sex for money--and if he paid, then we can assume that it was government money that hey paid with).

And of course, he should be sentenced to whatever the maximum jail is for the crimes he'll hopefully be charged and convicted of. US Attorneys investigating the case are no doubt going to be politically influenced by those that will dangle carrots in front of their face. Prosecuting Spitzer for violation of the Mann Act would be poetic justice.

And yes, its heart breaking to his wife and daughters. But Eliot wannabee Ness broke more hearts and families under the guise of ill-conceived prosecutions--without any concern or care for what the impact might be on innocent family members.

First came SpotRunner-Now Comes TalkMarket

Last summer we told you about SpotRunner--a "create your own TV commercial' platform targeting small businesses that have limited budgets. It was and remains a brilliant idea--and it includes a module for advertisers to use SpotRunner templates for creating a 30-second spot, and to place those spots on local and cable TV. Instead of spending tens of thousands to create the commercial, and thousands more for placement time, SpotRunner is a turnkey solution that can cost an advertiser as little as $3000 to reach wide audiences.

Now comes The Talk Market--billed as the "QVC for the Masses". Instead of provid9ing templates for videomercials as SpotRunner does, advertisers can jump on the YouTube style approach by creating their own spot, then uploading it the Talk Market platform. TalkMarket's business model is based on 5% commission on sales (mapped to clicking on a link imbedded in the commercial).

Brilliant--we wish you lots of success!

Say it Ain't So! Video Doomed in the Workplace

As reported by the WSJ this week, it appears that web-centric video-based applications within the workplace, which I've been rooting for since before they became ubiquitous, is now destined to be doomed.

Apparently, video email and video presentations, the apps that I've been championing, have been overshadowed by office workers logging on and surfing the net to consume entertainment and other video content completely unrelated to work. This type of activity has overwhelmed IT networks, impacted worker productivity, and imposing a massive cost increase to business, as internet connectivity is priced to companies based on bandwith usage.

As a result, corporations across the spectrum are now banning employees from downloading the type of content that has made Google's YouTube.com and News Corp's MySpace so rich in advertising revenue. Oops.

Lightbulb of An Idea: Its About The Packaging, Not The Product, Stupid!

Courtesy of last week's NY Times
Proving once again that retailers, marketers and manufacturers recognize that its all about the packaging--especially in mass merchandising. Getting onto a shelf is relatively easy, but having a beacon on your package will hopefully get the consumer's eyeball magnetized to it.

Getting consumers to buy products with gimmicky packaging is another thing. Especially when creating the packaging has a big negative impact i.e. 'environmentally friendly". A package that "shouts" or in this case, illuminates using battery-operated technology ain't so e-friendly. And obviously the fancy packaging is what you're paying for, the deodarant costs a few pennies to make and stuff into the dispenser.
A+ To NXT for a fun idea!. C for being e-friendly, and D for your investors believing this will make NXT an unforgettable brand within the minds of the consumers. Unless of course, you keep inventing other fad-based packaging and other fun stunts before the battery runs out

---

March 4, 2008

Advertising

A Package That Lights Up the Shelf

By ANDREW ADAM NEWMAN

ABOUT a year ago, when Jamie Leventhal was trying to convince big chain stores to stock his new line of shaving gels for young men, a buyer for Target asked a crucial question: How much would he spend on advertising?

“I told him we would not spend a single dollar,” Mr. Leventhal said.

The buyer was stunned until Mr. Leventhal pulled a prototype out of his briefcase. The product, called NXT, is sold in an arresting triangular container that lights up from the bottom, illuminating air bubbles suspended in the clear gel. The plastic is tinted blue, and when the AAA batteries in its base are lighted, the whole thing looks like a miniature lava lamp or a tiny fishless aquarium.

The novelty of the light-up container worked, and NXT shaving gel — as well as its after-shave and face wash, similarly packaged — will hit the shelves at Target this month. It will also arrive at other retailers like Wal-Mart, CVS, Duane Reade, Winn-Dixie and Fred Meyer.

To call attention to themselves, the products, which are aimed at 18- to 24-year-old men, will glow on the shelves, inviting customers to pick them up. Every 15 seconds, a light-emitting diode (LED) in the bottom of the container flares on, stays lighted for a few seconds, then fades out.

Comic Books: Leveraging The Success of Graphic Novels within a Marketing Message

Last year, after noting a bulging trend out of Japan, we pontificated that "comic book-style" messaging would proliferate into mainstream marketing and assorted publications, including How-To books and mags.

Last week BusinessWeek Magazine re-affirmed that notion ""Graphic books on bsuiness are already a hit in Japan. With Johnny Bunko, the genre heads for the U.S..."

Why is this trend gaining traction? Pretty simple, really. We're inundated with txt msgs, overloaded with blackberry correspondences, and overwhelmed with email. Our eyeballs are looking at millions of alpha, symbol, and numeric characters, and for many, elevating premature ADD.

Putting a message within a visually appealing and easy to connect with format is a concept that started with the caveman. Expect to see lots more series-based messaging delivered within graphic novel aka comic book elements.

Retailers Perplexed :Branded Products Vs. Private Label

Guru marketers in the corner offices of major retailers continue to throw darts when it comes to merchandising private label vs. branded products.

Maybe everyone should take a hint from today's WSJ profile of Cott Corp--the private label soda manufacturer whose shares are falling flat--much in part because Wal-Mart has determined that its customers are more interested in branded products vs. the Sam's label.

We all know that manufacturers have been hammered over the past several years as retailers seek to introduce lower cost, higher margin goods. Private labeling necessarily accomplishes that goal, especially when faced with declining revenue from slotting fees that are part and parcel to many chain store business models.

But a funny thing seems to be happening on the way to the checkout counter--other than the most rudimentary staple items (i.e. napkins, nails, or the most highly commoditized), consumers still cherish a branded product--and the lower priced "house brands" within the food, beverage, personal care categories are simply not appealing, even to the most price sensitive shoppers.

Marcomm 201: Its All About The Customer

Stellar observation from JEFFREY FOX of Fox And Company:
Too many companies that sell directly to consumers think marketing is advertising. Too many business-to-business sellers think marketing is trade shows and literature. Marketing involves the profitable identification, attraction, getting, and then keeping of the most highly desired customers. It is the heart and lungs for every organization. Without customers, members, patients, parishioners, donors, the organization will die. Every single function, every single job, in every single organization must, directly or indirectly, today or tomorrow, be laser-beamed on the getting and keeping of customers. Every single job in every business must be a marketing job. Every single job must be tied to profitable revenue- without exception. If someone does not know how his or her job gets or keeps customers then, that person is either ill-managed, ill-trained, or, as the Europeans say, redundant