I recently read an excellent book called The Discipline of Market Leaders: Choose Your Customers, Narrow Your Focus, Dominate Your Market. Although a little dated – published in 1995 – the content still holds very true. According to the book, there are one of three value disciplines that a company can pursue: Product Innovation – offer products that stay ahead of the curve and push performance. Examples include 3M, Intel, and Apple. Operational Excellence – offer the lowest price in the most convenient way. Examples include McDonalds, Wal-Mart, and Toyota. Customer Intimacy – offer customized, customer-centric solutions that focus on retaining customers long-term by meeting their specific needs. Examples include Nordstrom, Airborne Express, and Four Seasons. The question is, which Continue Reading

CNet asked me and a few others one of the biggest questions looming in social media circles today: “How can MySpace Beat Facebook?” MySpace has lost a fifth of it’s US traffic since June of this year and there doesn’t appear to be a quick remedy to stop the bleeding. Facebook has overtaken the once mighty social media giant and continues to rapidly grow its user base. In the meantime, new management has come in at MySpace with the goal of regaining it’s early luster. So, I was asked the question, “If you were running MySpace, what would you do to compete with Facebook?” Here was my response as it appears in the article: “I would fully embrace the counter-culture perception it has, focus on appealing to the 18-to-24 crowd, and create an avenue for major commercial brands and advertisers Continue Reading

I attended the ad:tech Digital Marketing event in London back in September and sat in on an intriguing presentation by ComScore about online banner advertising and how more and more people are clicking on less and less of them. In fact, only 8% of Internet users account for 85% of all clicks according to their study. Compared to search engine marketing (SEM), click-through on banner ads seem pitiful and almost a waste of resources and money. But wait. Before you decide to kill your banner ad campaign, consider this: using just click-through to measure the performance of your banner ad campaign is a mistake. Here’s why. The vast majority of Internet users do not click on banners, but are still very active on search and they’re buying. The most interesting finding from ComScore’s research is Continue Reading

“Convenience acts like anti-matter to fidelity. The more convenient something becomes — the easier it is to get — the more its aura dissipates. The more convenient something becomes, the less that item identifies its owner as someone unique and special. For Starbucks, excessive convenience dragged down the brand and made it commonplace.” And so explains Kevin Maney, author of Trade-Off: Why Some Things Catch On, and Others Don’t, why coffee giant Starbucks came to a crossroads in 2007 with a major drop in its share price and customer store visits; the company still hasn’t fully recaptured its early luster. Starbucks increasingly traded its high fidelity for high convenience which rarely, if ever, works. Companies need to be one or the other, or risk confusing their brand. Starbucks stood Continue Reading

The most inexpensive yet impacting way for small businesses to compete with the big boys is to lead with remarkable customer service. I know you’ve heard this before, and I’m almost certain you’ve made a similar claim – “We have great service” or “Our service is why people buy from us” – and yet more often than not, the service isn’t that remarkable. In fact, it’s fairly ordinary. Many mistake providing friendly, attentive service as exceptional when it’s actually the simple expectation or norm. So, what does remarkable service look like? In an article titled Service-Led Battle Plan by Growing Business, business operator and customer service evangelist, Dominic Monkhouse reveals his approach to taking on his former Internet company (and industry leader) with a commitment to delivering remarkable Continue Reading

You can never underestimate the power of a word. Seth Godin wrote a post about marketing HR (human resources) and how the terminology “HR” brings it with a legacy of treating people like replaceable and interchangeable resources. Almost every business operator agrees that their biggest assets are their people and the skills, knowledge and expertise they bring to the table. So why not change the department name of HR to “Talent” as Seth argues? May sound like a spin at first, but I agree with his assessment that the word brings along with it a new mind set on how the recruit, manage and grow talented people. Read more Continue Reading

In the competitive world of air transportation, Singapore Airlines has jumped ahead as the first to add the new Airbus A380, the world’s biggest jumbo jet. The plane, among other things, boasts 12 first-class suites complete with double beds. Comfortable? Yes, but perhaps a little too comfortable for Singapore Airlines who is now asking customers to refrain from using the beds to join the mile high club. The cabins are private, but are not sealed or sound proof. Could be live entertainment for some, a triple-X nuisance for others. “So they’ll sell you a double bed, and give you privacy and endless champagne and then say you can’t do what comes naturally?” Tony Elwood, who traveled with wife Julie in a suite aboard the inaugural flight, told the Times of London. And who said men don’t understand Continue Reading

It’s nice to see the hotel industry innovating to respond better to the marketplace, particularly the business traveler. Martina sent me this post on Relactions outlining a new wave of affordable “no-frill chic” hotels being launched that provide safe, comfortable and clean hotels that appeal to the traveler on the move who values this over space and amenities. Some examples include Yotel, EasyHotel.com, CitizenM, and the highly anticipated Aloft. This is a great trend that seems to have already taken off in Europe and will soon spread across North America. Westin’s launch of heavenly beds and showers a decade ago has spawned some much needed energy in the placid hotel industry – guests value a good night sleep and a relaxing shower over room service and flat screens, go figure. This latest Continue Reading