Experiencing a brand
An sms’d command “Send me 30 topics you can speak about, by tomorrow”
Okaaaay. Well, that was start of a television series designed to create a new market segment among millions of viewers who saw it from March to May this year.
Producer had been exploring various markets for his skills and we’d been discussing how to satisfy the needs of his clients. Then came the break – a national television station wanted a new market segment and that command from him was my script-writing brief. The 30 topics were sent in, synopsis, segmentation and all, and YES! Approved. So – you know how it is - we had to begin shooting in a few days for broadcast ASAP.
The presenter and I began chatting about how best to flow with each other in front of the cameras. She had a lovely personality and we hit it off right away, sharing the same mindsets of how to appeal with our banter and repartee. We heard the Director and his crew and scrambled for wardrobes to arrive at the visual effects he wanted.
7am starts, midnight finishes, shifting locations, re-takes because a troop of sportsmen accidentally barged onto the set or the shopkeeper nearby s’ shutters or splashing swimmers made too much noise. Even more frustrating was when our mikes did not like where they were positioned on our clothes. Aaargh!!!! All these bonded us together and getting the series completed on time was lots of fun and worth every minute of very hard work!
The result: the station got its new segment of viewers as well as a new stream of advertising revenue + a timeless series that ensures repeat sales. All the topics were about ‘feelgood’ responses (that’s the station’s tagline) to everyday situations, promoting credible brand experiences to its viewers so that they would make it THE tv station of their choice.
Getting others to experience your brand is extremely powerful for attracting and retaining the type of customers you want, as a cycle that repeats itself and increases your profitability within your budget. You can choose mass, print or electronic media or a combination. Whether you are a personal brand or a company or corporate brand, I’ll be happy to work with you to identify that special quality that is YOU, and how to leverage on it to keep your competitors out, your existing customers in, and how to attract the type of new ones you want too. Just call +6-03-21697704 and say when you’d like to have a brief chat?
BRING ME THE BRAND, I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Just HOW old are you?
Personal Branding in Business
Emotional energy was still sky high and people were buzzing with mutual appreciation after a rip-roaring Convention. You know, just reading all the positive comments was uplifting in itself? One of the small groups exchanged verbal pats on the back fast and furiously on Face Book, and a particular post had me chuckling. It referred to its success being credited to its variety of members, describing some as 50 looking like 30 and others who were 30 looking like 40. Ha ha ha! Visual appearances carry so much weight don’t they? A whopping 55% of first impressions it’s said?
Then, a couple of days later I was conversing with a trainer who had been referred as being interested in what I was doing. She was thrilled by the benefits of blended learning, but, but, but, “I’m 60 you know – this is new” she said, as if chronological age matters. Hello? If you’re alive and well that’s all it takes to love what you’re doing and embrace it with gusto!
Just pick up any magazine (not talking sensational tabloids okay?) and you’ll see beautiful people of ALL ages, yes wrinkles, and all. In fact, with health care having improved, 60 is the new 40 in looks, and 50 is the new 30 – if you want it to be so. It’s an attitude, and not a number. And that’s not new either! My much admired late father was ever youthful and cheekily effervescent, bless him; that too without sacrificing being disciplined or serious as and when appropriate. I could easily understand what the writer of the post meant about not looking as could stereotypically be expected, as being a good thing.
So what are we on about here? The bottom line is, we project what we feel. When people feel decrepit they behave that way (even at 30!), and when they are internally exuberant, their youthfulness just permeates everything about them, even at 80. Ever met someone bubbly like that? And that’s a key part of personal branding – the personal impact that tells onlookers what to count on you to deliver! So attractive – and moreover, what a POWERFUL business tool!!
If you’d like a quick consultation on concerns you may have about your personal branding, call (6-03) 21697704 to set an appointment? I'd answer questions you may have about perceptions others may have about how you are going about projecting your business image and be happy to make suggestions on how to align what you are doing with how you'd like to be perceived.
BRING ME THE BRAND, I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Emotional energy was still sky high and people were buzzing with mutual appreciation after a rip-roaring Convention. You know, just reading all the positive comments was uplifting in itself? One of the small groups exchanged verbal pats on the back fast and furiously on Face Book, and a particular post had me chuckling. It referred to its success being credited to its variety of members, describing some as 50 looking like 30 and others who were 30 looking like 40. Ha ha ha! Visual appearances carry so much weight don’t they? A whopping 55% of first impressions it’s said?
Then, a couple of days later I was conversing with a trainer who had been referred as being interested in what I was doing. She was thrilled by the benefits of blended learning, but, but, but, “I’m 60 you know – this is new” she said, as if chronological age matters. Hello? If you’re alive and well that’s all it takes to love what you’re doing and embrace it with gusto!
Just pick up any magazine (not talking sensational tabloids okay?) and you’ll see beautiful people of ALL ages, yes wrinkles, and all. In fact, with health care having improved, 60 is the new 40 in looks, and 50 is the new 30 – if you want it to be so. It’s an attitude, and not a number. And that’s not new either! My much admired late father was ever youthful and cheekily effervescent, bless him; that too without sacrificing being disciplined or serious as and when appropriate. I could easily understand what the writer of the post meant about not looking as could stereotypically be expected, as being a good thing.
So what are we on about here? The bottom line is, we project what we feel. When people feel decrepit they behave that way (even at 30!), and when they are internally exuberant, their youthfulness just permeates everything about them, even at 80. Ever met someone bubbly like that? And that’s a key part of personal branding – the personal impact that tells onlookers what to count on you to deliver! So attractive – and moreover, what a POWERFUL business tool!!
If you’d like a quick consultation on concerns you may have about your personal branding, call (6-03) 21697704 to set an appointment? I'd answer questions you may have about perceptions others may have about how you are going about projecting your business image and be happy to make suggestions on how to align what you are doing with how you'd like to be perceived.
BRING ME THE BRAND, I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Monday, July 5, 2010
Are you rowing or sailing your business?
“So, did you get 100 referrals?” Colleague asked. I replied honestly “A potential worth of at least 100 thousand in business done”. Sigh of contentment. A group of us business people were basking in the afterglow of a powerful business-matching session, thrilled by the results. But you know what? We wanted differing outcomes, according to our particular business strategies.
Colleague is an internet marketer who engages in automated strategies attracting hundreds and thousands to buy from websites instantly. For him the number of transactions is the end result that leads to high profitability. Automation enables sailing through quality delivery of high volumes, and that is his brand’s value offering.
I am a Consultant-Trainer who looks for a few select transactions that deliver high value. The buying is not immediate and needs to be thought through. Quite honestly, receiving 100 referrals would have overwhelmed me. I would have had to either dilute (by outsourcing) or refuse some of them. Why? Because my brand’s value offering is the unique strategy that is carefully designed for each client to position their brand apart from competitors and involves analysis, intellectual property and not repetition. Quantity reduces my profits if the quality cannot be achieved.
Colleague and I belong to a 25-year old international referral organization BNI known to be the best of its kind. That’s because its focus is on members giving each other referrals based on credible relationships. It is a marketing platform that creates a pipeline of business (which means pleasantly sailing caressed and driven by the wind) and not a sales station (which means constantly rowing to keep going).
What’s the cutting difference? Branding is a marketing strategy. Marketing drives sustainable sales that ensure high profitability in the long term. Sales strategies outside of marketing plans result in an aerobic puff-and-pant rowboat effort that needs to be kept up and often results in burn-out, high staff turnovers and quick-changes that dilute brand offerings, just to stay in business.
Both Colleague and I rely on strategic marketing plans which promote our brands, cost little to design but result in high profitability when they are implemented well. They enable us to allow the seasonal winds to move us on track towards anchoring at the harbors of our business goals. What’s your branding strategy doing for YOU?
To get tips on how to strategize your business for more profits, call (603) 21697704. I'd be glad to offer suggestions on how you could fine-tune what you are doing at the moment, so that you get the levels of profitability that you want for your business.
BRING ME THE BRAND, I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Colleague is an internet marketer who engages in automated strategies attracting hundreds and thousands to buy from websites instantly. For him the number of transactions is the end result that leads to high profitability. Automation enables sailing through quality delivery of high volumes, and that is his brand’s value offering.
I am a Consultant-Trainer who looks for a few select transactions that deliver high value. The buying is not immediate and needs to be thought through. Quite honestly, receiving 100 referrals would have overwhelmed me. I would have had to either dilute (by outsourcing) or refuse some of them. Why? Because my brand’s value offering is the unique strategy that is carefully designed for each client to position their brand apart from competitors and involves analysis, intellectual property and not repetition. Quantity reduces my profits if the quality cannot be achieved.
Colleague and I belong to a 25-year old international referral organization BNI known to be the best of its kind. That’s because its focus is on members giving each other referrals based on credible relationships. It is a marketing platform that creates a pipeline of business (which means pleasantly sailing caressed and driven by the wind) and not a sales station (which means constantly rowing to keep going).
What’s the cutting difference? Branding is a marketing strategy. Marketing drives sustainable sales that ensure high profitability in the long term. Sales strategies outside of marketing plans result in an aerobic puff-and-pant rowboat effort that needs to be kept up and often results in burn-out, high staff turnovers and quick-changes that dilute brand offerings, just to stay in business.
Both Colleague and I rely on strategic marketing plans which promote our brands, cost little to design but result in high profitability when they are implemented well. They enable us to allow the seasonal winds to move us on track towards anchoring at the harbors of our business goals. What’s your branding strategy doing for YOU?
To get tips on how to strategize your business for more profits, call (603) 21697704. I'd be glad to offer suggestions on how you could fine-tune what you are doing at the moment, so that you get the levels of profitability that you want for your business.
BRING ME THE BRAND, I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Cackle, Quack, Honk, Gobble and Measured Swoops
Don’t trainers seem to have a penchant for using birds of the feathered kind to demonstrate behavior styles? A couple of days ago one of them used eagles, geese and turkeys to discuss behaviors within small groups. A couple of months ago another trainer used eagles, ducks and chickens, also to demonstrate the same thing. You know what struck me? Apart from the eagles, the other birds are known to be rather lip-smackingly tasty. Dicey to be easily desirable? Hmmmm. Hmmmm?
The geese symbolized having a great team-spirit, taking turns to lead during flight so that the team effort is sustainable. They were linked to people who engage in making decisions jointly, and communicate well, for the greater good. The turkeys were described as meticulous, grounded, calm, compliant, and lacking innovation – reliable and steady sorts. The chickens and ducks were compared to those who are noisy but stay close to where they are fed and don’t fly very far. Less demanding, easily appeased and cost less to buy than the other 2 varieties too!
Eagles on the other hand were the visionary loners, aggressive, high-achievers with a strong sense of planned purpose. Hmmmm again. Notice how eagles are often pictured as ever watchful & waiting to swoop?
Neither trainer depicted the 5 types as working together. So how – in small groups - might those personal brand-behaviors be influenced to cooperate to help each other and heal potential fragmentation? The missing link is the HR Manager who makes assessments of aptitude before assigning responsibilities. When done well, the ducks and chickens happily cluck and quack while scratching the ground to keep it well turned as it must be, the reliable turkeys ensure stability in the group, the geese-types organize operations and back-ups, while the eagles monitor, innovate and correct. Not delicious or to cozy up to – these are the seekers who set the pace with an eye on the purposes and objectives to ensure the others don’t get eaten. Those who stray? End up on someone's plate, don't they?
Hmmmm. So what survival strategies could each behavior type engage in to make the most of their personal brand affinities? More to come :)
For tips on how to align behaviors in small groups call (603) 21697704 and make an appointment. I'd be happy to give you an assessment of the personality types you are dealing with and make suggestions on how you can align them so that they behave in ways that project your brand.
BRING ME THE BRAND, I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
The geese symbolized having a great team-spirit, taking turns to lead during flight so that the team effort is sustainable. They were linked to people who engage in making decisions jointly, and communicate well, for the greater good. The turkeys were described as meticulous, grounded, calm, compliant, and lacking innovation – reliable and steady sorts. The chickens and ducks were compared to those who are noisy but stay close to where they are fed and don’t fly very far. Less demanding, easily appeased and cost less to buy than the other 2 varieties too!
Eagles on the other hand were the visionary loners, aggressive, high-achievers with a strong sense of planned purpose. Hmmmm again. Notice how eagles are often pictured as ever watchful & waiting to swoop?
Neither trainer depicted the 5 types as working together. So how – in small groups - might those personal brand-behaviors be influenced to cooperate to help each other and heal potential fragmentation? The missing link is the HR Manager who makes assessments of aptitude before assigning responsibilities. When done well, the ducks and chickens happily cluck and quack while scratching the ground to keep it well turned as it must be, the reliable turkeys ensure stability in the group, the geese-types organize operations and back-ups, while the eagles monitor, innovate and correct. Not delicious or to cozy up to – these are the seekers who set the pace with an eye on the purposes and objectives to ensure the others don’t get eaten. Those who stray? End up on someone's plate, don't they?
Hmmmm. So what survival strategies could each behavior type engage in to make the most of their personal brand affinities? More to come :)
For tips on how to align behaviors in small groups call (603) 21697704 and make an appointment. I'd be happy to give you an assessment of the personality types you are dealing with and make suggestions on how you can align them so that they behave in ways that project your brand.
BRING ME THE BRAND, I'LL INCREASE ITS PROFITS!
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