Strategy bought by idiots...
/A colleague's son is a great enthusiast for TED Talks. He enthusiastically shared a recent one by Ad Man, Rory Sutherland entitled “Sweat the small stuff” – thoroughly recommended.
Read more...
'Brand' and 'Branding' are not the same things.
/Many businesses still don't get that. They frequently ask us "How do we differentiate ourselves?" but we suspect that the question, and the hoped-for (and perhaps expected) response is rather superficial. Because they're thinking of 'branding' and not 'brand'.
Read more...
Welcome to the joined-up economy
/The most successful businesses have always understood the world in which they operate: its trends, its demands, its priorities and its opportunities. And then helped shape that world. So what should today's (and, therefore, tomorrow's) leaders be seeing around them? What do they need to be great at?
Read more:
http://www.redstoneconsultants.com/#!Welcome-to-the-Joined-Up-Economy/cv59/1
There might be a gap in the market, but is there a market in the gap?
/'Innovation'. Everybody's got to have some. Without it, businesses die. In fact, a whole new business sector has grown up because of it: text books, courses, job titles, the lot. Innovation is, without question, vital. But innovation shouldn't be without question. Read more...
The Bull Returns...
/Economies growing, stock markets registering sustained gains, IPOs and M&A activity on the rise, unemployment falling, business and investment confidence rising. The worst did not happen in Europe. The USA, the worlds largest economy is back on a roll. Economic and business indicators in many key markets appear to show that we have finally entered the start of the next bull market.
Having weathered the storm and focused hard, most companies and organisations are now in better shape than they have been for a long time. Great news.
Its probably only a matter of time before we make the same mistakes of the past bull runs (as a former student of economics and history and a current observer of human nature I would say future mistakes are a cast iron guarantee!), but for now, its time to be optimistic and enjoy the ride!
Benchmarking your customer service
/The approach to gathering high quality feedback from your clients will require a tailored approach depending on the nature of your customers, your services, your industry and where you are located in the world.
In the professional services industry there are a number of well established methods from which a business can draw on. One organisation may want to listen to its clients by gathering feedback after each major transaction or project. Another business may conduct annual client reviews. Another may gather feedback through an online client survey. Yet another may wish to mystery shop its services. Some Firms will do all of these things.
Few organisations in the professional services sector, however, benchmark their customer service externally, either against their peers or the best companies in the world. Yet it can be surprisingly easy and cost effective to do so, providing the business with benchmarks that can enable it to drive improvement relative to the marketplace.
Grow the Top Line has a wealth of experience in helping organisations to improve their customer service. If you would like to learn more about how to benchmark your customer service or make improvement in other respects, do get in touch.
Marco Smith
t: +44 (0)20 845 22922
marco@growthetopline.com
How many slaves work for you?
/While doing some research into what makes a great website, I stumbled across slaveryfootprint.org and took the survey that is core to the site. I was pretty shocked at the result and started to feel a little guilty about my recent purchase of an iphone to add to all of the other 'things' in my life. Having seen reports about the Foxconn suicides in China in recent years and actually having personally seen some pretty shocking manufacturing practices on a business trip to China (I am not just picking on China, its just that I have seen it first hand), I realise that there is no doubt a real human impact resulting from my consumption.
Go to slaveryfootprint.org and take this survey. It really makes you think. Its also a fantastic website.
Train your people in 'social selling'
/Every organisation now needs a social media policy to guide employees and protect the organisation. Firms should also be training their people in 'social selling' so that they can effectively use social media to build relationships and generate new business leads, while also ensuring their people adhere to the organisation's policy.
Contact marco@growthetopline.com if you would like to learn more about our 'social selling' program.
Want to read more on social media? If you have not yet checked out HubSpot, I recommend you take a look. Here is a great summary of how the B2B sector can use key social media channels:
Revolution in Marketing?
/Social media offer organisations extraordinary opportunities to build relationships and brand affinity with their customers, their people, their intermediaries and the media.
In developing a social media strategy and presence for your business, the most important aspect to consider is the value your customers will gain. There are four main ways to add value to your clients:
Connections. Like you, your clients use social media to get connected to people, organisations and groups. By focusing on the benefits to your clients, you can help them get connected to peers, potential hires, market influencers and even potential clients.
Developing knowledge. By selecting the right media, groups, forums and contacts to connect with, clients can use social media to gain access to a vast source of valuable information to add value to their business and their career. Are you adding value to your clients in this process or adding more noise?
Developing trust. Would you buy a large item such as a new computer or a holiday without first checking out reviews from sites and sources that you trust? The same has of course always been true for business services - clients frequently buy on recommendations and referrals from people they trust. Your social media presence enables your existing and potential clients to connect with your business through channels and people that they trust.
Brand affinity. Traditionally marketers have pushed information about their brand to their clients. Social media enables two way interaction that lets customers actively build a relationship with a brand. By enabling customers to make comments and give feedback, ask questions and connect with your team and other users, they build affinity with your brand while giving you valuable insights into their perceptions of your products and organisation.
If you would like to learn how Grow the Top Line can help you develop or execute your strategy, contact us.
Read this Harvard Business Review article for an interesting perspective on the new opportunities and challenges and comment here.