October 8th, 2009
According to the latest research, it seems that social media is now exploding in terms of users, but also content being uploaded on a daily basis. See Erik Qualman’s great video for inspiration.
The question is: How can companies use social media to build strategic differentiation?
One example could be the ongoing campaign from Danske Bank. They have desperately been trying to salvage their reputation by changing their strategic differentiation to customer satisfaction. In relation to this, they allowed users to freely comment the bank and its actions on a dedicated Danske Bank site. According to Danske Bank, 3500 people either commented or uploaded comments to the site – not bad for a couple of months of running in the Danish market!
The campaign has now turned into 23 specific actions and a twitter account. Time will tell if their new focus and media channel strategy will bring them closer to their customers.
Written by Michael Sherain, October 8th, 2009 in category Marketing |
No Comments yet!
October 7th, 2009
Even though economic recovery might be in sight, marketing budgets won’t bounce right back and there is certainly no room for waste. More than ever before, marketing needs to focus on that part of the business that differentiates you strategically. You’ll understand in which business areas marketing spend can be cut and which areas need extra investments. In essence, marketing investments need to become more efficient.
One of the weapons in the fight for increased efficiency is behavioral segmentation. While it has been around for some time, relatively few companies have actually discovered it. Many still stick to traditional, less insightful, and thus less effective segmentation methods - if they segment at all. The great advantage of behavioral segmentation is that it allows you to get into the mindset of a customer, and it will give new insights in how you should differentiate strategically. By doing so you can more effectively drive product development, sales initiatives, and marketing communication from it.
I recently read an article in the McKinsey Quarterly that zoomed in on the wealthy in China, underlining the benefit of behavioral segmentation. “…Easily obtained demographic information - age, gender, and income, for instance - offers little help in separating China’s wealthy into segments with differing attitudes toward, say, borrowing, fashion, or obvious displays of wealth… More meaningful differences emerged when we considered what respondents said about their needs - the need to feel unique, for example, or to feel financially secure.”
Tuning into customers’ needs will offer a much better way out of the recession than price dumping - a strategy used by many companies. A recent survey in the Netherlands showed that while supermarkets are aggressively offering discounts, the amount of the Dutch consumers that are price sensitive hasn’t changed due to the recession. According to Trendbox, whom conducted the survey, the only consequence the discounts have had, is that discounted products have replaced the purchase of normally priced products. However, the discounts did not bring any extra customers, as the choice of their supermarket is based on other, more valuable parameters.
Especially when combined with demographic segmentation, behavioral segmentation helps companies to truly move from being product oriented to being value oriented. It will give companies the opportunity to position themselves in a way that is true, relevant and high value to their customers. Once this is done, companies can focus on the right customers, with the right proposition, and make sure that the right customers stick around longer.
Written by Pim Schuitemaker, October 7th, 2009 in category Marketing |
44 Comments!
October 6th, 2009
In mid September Philips issued a press release, announcing that the total estimated value of the Philips brand in 2009 was USD 8.1bn. This represents a dramatic climb since Philips launched its “sense and simplicity” brand promise in 2004, when its brand was valued USD 4.4 billion. In 2008, Philips’ brand value value grew more than twice as fast as that of its closest competitors.
Is it just juggling with numbers, or is Philips able to translate “sense and simplicity” into a positive customer experience designed around their needs? According to a Philips investor relations presentation, a significant amount of sales is attributable to the brand alone:
- Healthcare 29%
- Consumer Lifestyle 24%
- Lighting 21%
“Sense and simplicity” has become the driver of a strong internal brand, with 83% of employees now mentioning that they are “proud to work for Philips”.
Clearly, the repositioning has enabled Philips to become true, relevant and of high value to everyone across the value chain.
Written by Pim Schuitemaker, October 6th, 2009 in category Operations, Philips |
No Comments yet!
