The Engaging Brand

Roz-ing to the Strategy Challenge

Good friend Roz Savage, who is rowing the pacific as I type, is teaching me a lot through her podcast and blogging whilst trying to become the first woman to row the Pacific Ocean. Phew, feel tired just typing about it.

She has a goal  - to row the pacific.

She has a plan to row it in 3 phases.

She is currently on her second phase from Hawaii to Tuvalu.

 

So what has she taught me about business strategy!

1. She has broken her overall goal into phases, to make it achievable.
2. She understands the value of the team around her in achieving the goal. OK it is Roz that rows but she understands the team make the whole adventure happen.
3. She understands that she will not go in a nice straight line to Australia. She understands that winds and weather will at times help, will at times hinder. She accepts this as part of the journey - enjoys the good days and ensures she doesn't lose too much ground on the bad.
4. She has a fixed goal however she is flexible with how she gets there...her aim is Tuvalu but if that becomes impossible then she will not fight the impossible, she will accept a backup phase 2 destination.
5. She understands that it is not the rowing that is the problem (she might dispute that!) instead it the mental attitude to the setbacks.
6. She also understands that birds...hmmmm...pooping on deck, sore bottoms, bites from fish etc are very irritating but are not major problems. How often in business do irritations get mistaken for major problems!
7. Just take a few minutes to look at her social media presence. Now remember she is in the middle of an ocean....reminds me if there is a will, there is a way.

I am following Roz not just because she is a friend but also she is helping me learn about how to plot a business strategy, how to face problems and how to manage risk.

(Again you can listen to the The Engaging Brand podcast I recorded with her earlier this year - Facing the Fear and part 2) 

What is your return on emotion?

The web, or more precisely social media, has changed the way consumers interact with brands whether we like it or not....

We know that in our busy lives we love brands who make our lives simpler, easier and bring value to our personal or business lives.

We know that emotion plays a huge part of the way human beings live..we know that there is an inner need to be valued, loved etc

We know that if we can use social media to bring these two factors together  - emotionally appealing and value adding then we are on the way to connecting with our consumers

So one thing I work on with clients is to think about your return on emotion? We need to measure all the hard work we put in to our social media strategy and I find part of the measurement has to be return on emotion.

I see return on emotion as how does your bottom line benefit from personalising your brand.....we sell on emotion, we buy on emotion therefore it is worth thinking for your business how emotionally engaging is your brand ?

 

Why ideas don't flow....

In a discussion with a client today I was reminded of what Dad used to say about ideas. The client was wondering why they did not have enough ideas, why people were not engaged in the idea "process". The process had about 20 stages, it involved backing your idea whilst others pulled it apart (they felt then only robust ideas would get through!) and at the end of all that...the Director took the credit rather than the individual - honestly! :)

Hmmm wonder why ideas weren't flowing....

Dad used to say to me

"Ideas are simple. Inventions are simple. There is a problem and you solve it. The trick is to remove all that surrounds the true issue.....find the pure problem and fix it. You say I am an inventor, I say I am not intelligent enough for that...I just solve problems. Then find the best way to produce that solution. The only barrier to ideas are politics....remove politics with positive enthusiasm and ideas will flow again"

Enthusiasm is contagious, passion for solving is contagious....ideas are contagious. To allow a brand to thrive creative thinking has to be valued - challenged yes, for practicality but never for office politics.

Show 251 - How connection determines our place in society Pt2

Show 251 of The Engaging Brand leadership and marketing podcast is ready just for you. To subscribe or listen on your PC now - both for free, you don't need to download anything - all explained at the end of the post and don't forget to try GoToMeeting for your 30 day free trial.

This is the second part of an interview with Iggy Pintado on his book Connection Generation a book which looks at the history of how we connect, how there are several connection profiles, how connection determines our place in society and then tips on how to be a "super- connector" If you haven't listened to the first podcast then you can listen here.

In this part of the interview we talk about

• Stop thinking about offline and online networking - think inline networking
• The 4 P's of great networking
• How do you embrace the technology within businesses across the different generations
• How to become a connected business
• It's not who you know, it is who you know who knows who you want to know!
• Thoughts on Linked In
• The balance between your professional and personal profile
• Having boundaries around your online personal profile
• The good and bad sides of connectedness

Don't forget to subcribe to the show so you don't miss Part 2 in iTunes or on the Blubrry site.

If you have feedback for me on the show or topics that you would like me to cover then e-mail me at anna@theengagingbrand.com or join me on twitter.

How you can listen to the Engaging Brand

1) You can listen on your PC now without downloading any software just click to hear the latest marketing podcast

2) You can subscribe to the show via iTunes or

3) If you use a different podcatcher then you can subscribe using the following  http://www.podcasternews.com/feeds/enbr.xml

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Show 250 - How connection determines our place in society Pt1

Show 250 of The Engaging Brand leadership and marketing podcast is ready just for you. To subscribe or listen on your PC now - both for free, you don't need to download anything - all explained at the end of the post and don't forget to try GoToMeeting for your 30 day free trial.

This is the first part of an interview with Iggy Pintado on his book Connection Generation. This book looks at the history of how we connect, how there are several connection profiles, how connection determines our place in society and then tips on how to be a "super- connector"

In this part of the interview we talk about

• How the internet has changed the way we think about connections
• Has the internet changed the way we connect or how we connect?
• Is the internet a new society?
• The different connection profiles (based on Iggy's research)
• Does everyone NEED to be a super connector?
• How to be an effective connector

Don't forget to subcribe to the show so you don't miss Part 2 in iTunes or on the Blubrry site.

If you have feedback for me on the show or topics that you would like me to cover then e-mail me at anna@theengagingbrand.com or join me on twitter.

How you can listen to the Engaging Brand

1) You can listen on your PC now without downloading any software just click to hear the latest marketing podcast

2) You can subscribe to the show via iTunes or

3) If you use a different podcatcher then you can subscribe using the following  http://www.podcasternews.com/feeds/enbr.xml

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Thoughts on Social Connections

Whilst reading Connection Generation I came across this quote by Craig Newmark from Craigslist. It reminded me of an earlier post I did about how connections are the new currency

"The internet is about people connecting to people, whether for business, politics, or socializing, That's something we've all been doing since long before the internet existed. The real accomplishment is to make those connections so versatile and different that they create a social network that not only reflects your life but expands it"

I love the idea of not only reflecting your life but expanding it. When you look at your social connections, are they expanding your life?

The Inn, The Isolated Blogger and The Connection Story

Iggy Pintado has just written a book called Connection Generation (watch out for a great conversation about how connection is changing on the next couple of The Engaging Brand podcasts).

Anyway I was reading his book whilst staying in an inn in South Wales. The irony really struck me....I was the only "stranger" in the local pub, everyone knew everybody and I felt completed isolated. I also felt silly that I was reading a book on how we are connecting and yet sat solo in a group of people??

What struck me was that whilst a few years ago I would have started talking naturally to the "locals", I felt uncomfortable...I felt shy. My immediate reaction was to rush upstairs to get online and feel part of my virtual community - how weird, how my comfort has changed.

The story continues as I used Twitter on my Blackberry to connect with my real life friends...and then a quiz started and seeing someone struggle with a question, I offered an answer or two :) I then joined the team and continued along quite happily.

The irony of reading a book about how the world is connecting through human needs, the irony of suddenly feeling uncomfortable in the real world as compared to the virtual world, shows me how quickly my attitude to social media has changed.

It also showed me that

What a community needs to bring it alive

Blog readers will know that I liken Social Media to Building a Town. Towns need people to give it energy, to give it a sense of community and to make it attractive to others as a place to live.

Social media is like that too - so how can social media be attractive, how can it attract consumers as a place to hang out.

• Be entertaining or informative. But even better be enterformative! Provide value in a fun way.
• Value the community, enjoy people. It is not about social media it is about finding new friends, it is about enjoying the company of others.
• Communities thrive when the diversity of people is valued and when the diversity of views are valued. You will have lurkers who want to merely soak in the information, people who want to contribute, people who want to comment, people who want to help, people who don't want to do any of these things. Social media is no different, enjoy the diversity.
• Communication thrives when it is nurtured, provide as many places and tools for people to communicate - both with each other and with you.

Show 249 - How Green is Your Strategy?

Show 249 of The Engaging Brand leadership and marketing podcast is ready just for you. To subscribe or listen on your PC now - both for free, you don't need to download anything - all explained at the end of the post and don't forget to try GoToMeeting for your 30 day free trial.

This is an interview with Andrew Winston who writes and speaks about how business should incorporate green into their business strategy. You can check out Andrew Winstons blog here and also his new book Green Recovery.

• Why it makes sense for business to be thinking green during a recession
• How business should approach a green strategy
• How green is not radical - just common business sense
• How you engage employees to make strategic changes
• How to craft a green marketing story
• How there are two appoaches to innovation towards a green approach
• How learning from older traditional methods can save money!
• How leaders and managers can learn from nature.
• How business needs to accelerate green innovation during the rescession

Don't forget to subcribe to the show in iTunes or on the Blubrry site.

If you have feedback for me on the show or topics that you would like me to cover then e-mail me at anna@theengagingbrand.com or join me on twitter.

How you can listen to the Engaging Brand

1) You can listen on your PC now without downloading any software just click to hear the latest marketing podcast

2) You can subscribe to the show via iTunes or

3) If you use a different podcatcher then you can subscribe using the following  http://www.podcasternews.com/feeds/enbr.xml

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“Online Meetings Made Easy with GoToMeeting Try it Free for 30 days use Promo Code Podcast”

How to make strong brand connections?

The web is about connections. Our life is about connections. Business is about connections. Mmm so connections are not new, connections are the way we live our life....

So why do we find establishing connections hard, why do we fail to make meaningful connections that can help us personally or help our brand?

• Connections are driven by emotional need - connections which matter, connect emotionally not through a click of a button.
• Connections are about quality not quantity.
• Connections are about giving, sharing, partnering.....not telling, persuading or expecting a return.
• Connections don't need money, they need something much more precious...time.

When you look at the above...emotion, time, giving, quality...they all personal, they all need a person to WANT to give a little of themselves, rather than merely "a role with a budget".

The best quote I believe is one from Dr Maya Angelou, which I read at the end of The Engaging Brand podcast each week

"People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did but people will never forget how you made them feel"

For me - Brands are not in the consumer business, they are in the feeling business!