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Atricle Dump - The 7 Areas of Marketing Waste - Are You Committing These Marketing Sins?
When we envision a call center we visualize a big room full of cubicles, desks, and customer service reps (CSRs) answering their telephones with their headsets on. We envision clients and customers calling into a queue and waiting for the next available rep. We think of call center customer service as how fast the CSRs answer the telephone calls – the longer the wait time, the worse the customer service is perceived to be.But call center customer service goes far beyond that. A call center is a place where a business answers the phone when a client calls. It can be a small business with just one or two employees or a big business with thousands of CSRs manning the phones. It doesn’t matter; a call center isn’t necessarily what we all envision it to be. If you have ever answered the phone at your place of business you have provided customer service at a call center.Remember that - if you answer the phone, you are providing customer service. That means you need to be accessible to your customers, solve their problems, sell them what they need, and do it in a timely manner. Customer service is not only done by large businesses with an army of service reps, but also by every small business
To understand your present state you need to map the processes of communication, customer acquisition, customer processing and customer relationships. Then you need to make sure that there are no non-value adding activities. This will enable you to eliminate steps in the process that have literally become bad habits. We have a module called Moments Of Truth in our Toolbooks
Don't you love that title?Don't start thinking I'm an art hater...I'm married to an artist!I make you this promise...The "starving artist" you will be exploiting with this idea will think you are a genius.Today I want to show you how to find a local starving artist, partner with them and make a guaranteed killing on eBay.Stay calm all you art class flunkies...you don't have to paint, draw or even wear a smock to use this idea!Have you ever browsed the original art that is for sale on eBay? Not all of it sells well, BUT some of it is EASY to get your hands on and sells VERY WELL!Here's the summary:Most art does not sell well on eBay, but some categories sell AMAZINGLY well. For example, on eBay a VERY HIGH percentage of "abstract art by self-representing artists" sells. I'm talking 90% close rate! The price range I experimented in was the $300 to $600 range.With that knowledge you can now attend art festivals (tax write off?) and hand out your business cards to those "starving artists" selling abstract art! Abstract art priced in the $300+ range simply SELLS on eBay! I'll bet 90% of all "starving artists" don't know the first thing about se
1. Activity (over production)
2. People (over capacity)
3. Processes (over complication)
4. Waiting (poor communication)
5. Excessive Communication Costs
6. Trial and Error
7. Excessive Lead Costs
1. Activity (over production)
Too many people doing too many different things. Thousands of brochures produced with no clear plan how to get them in the right hands. Twenty different networking meetings on the horizon, with no time to follow up.
Over production and too much activity is usually a symptom of poor planning. You're not quite sure what you aim to achieve, but there is budget (or time) to spend and any marketing activity is seen as good activity.
Performing lots of different marketing activities without first having a clear vision and strategy in place is a massive area of waste. Your business may perform well as a result of so much effort (and cost), but how do you know what is working and what isn't?
Measuring ROI on activity is essential. This will enable you to focus more effectively on the successful activity and completely remove the need for unsuccessful or wasteful marketing approaches to free up capital as profit or to fund other business improvement initiatives.
2. People (over / under capacity)
Too many people involved in the marketing process can also be a big area of waste. In particular, full time marketing managers can waste a lot of time choosing where to spend your money on promotion.
The marketing director or CEO needs to be able to enlist good marketing advice and planning as it is needed and then allow experts outside the company to implement the necessary action. There is no need for an internal marketing manager to oversee this if you use the right marketing consultants. By carefully retaining the services of a marketing consultancy you can gain access to a range of experience that no single individual can ever hope to possess. You can then recruit a more junior but bright person from within your company to liaise with your consultants and yourself.
You can never truly know if your marketing manager is working at full steam and I'm certain that they won't tell you unless they want more budget to spend on the next CV enhancing fad.
If you are a marketing manager reading this, be honest, maybe you should talk to your boss about a more flexible retained position. This way you can look for other contracts and build your exposure to more businesses which will enhance your ability to perform well.
If you're a solo or very small business, then the "people" doing your marketing may be just you and you may be suffering from a serious lack of capacity. There comes a time when your lack of time causes waste for your business and holds you back. You must seriously look at the skills gap and address the needs of your business (and your sanity!).
3. Processes (over complication)
Lean Manufacturing (where we learned our trade) deals with the process of moving an order through your supply chain and to your customer. In this instance we're talking about the marketing process - this deals with acquiring the customer in the first place and how you handle your customers once you have them. For this we use the Lean Marketing Pipeline - would you like a copy? Just send an email to: leanpipeline@aweber.com with "Send Me The Pipeline - I'm Missing Out!" in the subject line and we'll send you a picture.
To understand your present state you need to map the processes of communication, customer acquisition, customer processing and customer relationships. Then you need to make sure that there are no non-value adding activities. This will enable you to eliminate steps in the process that have literally become bad habits. We have a module called Moments Of Truth in our Toolbooks s
Ok. You need service. You find the number on the company’s website, or maybe you have some literature from a recent purchase. Or, you have ordered something and are calling in to find a status or ship date. Maybe, you had a request, and were just checking to see if that request had been processed.Do you need to know WHY it did not get done? Or WHY the request had not been processed? Or WHY it did not ship yet? Or WHY the company had not fulfilled its promise?The answer is NO!When personnel start to offer an explanation or a reason as to Why something did not get done, they are beginning to break down the process of actually helping the person on the other end of the call.Let me explain.When we are requesting service or help, most times (if not all), we are not going to be repairing the problem.Whether it is a part that malfunctioned or a widget that stopped working or maybe, you had ordered something and it had not arrived, chances are the Customer is relying on the company to offer a solution and get the situation handled.You are not expecting your Customer to take the information you are providing them, break out their tool box and disassemble your wi
Performing lots of different marketing activities without first having a clear vision and strategy in place is a massive area of waste. Your business may perform well as a result of so much effort (and cost), but how do you know what is working and what isn't?
Measuring ROI on activity is essential. This will enable you to focus more effectively on the successful activity and completely remove the need for unsuccessful or wasteful marketing approaches to free up capital as profit or to fund other business improvement initiatives.
2. People (over / under capacity)
Too many people involved in the marketing process can also be a big area of waste. In particular, full time marketing managers can waste a lot of time choosing where to spend your money on promotion.
The marketing director or CEO needs to be able to enlist good marketing advice and planning as it is needed and then allow experts outside the company to implement the necessary action. There is no need for an internal marketing manager to oversee this if you use the right marketing consultants. By carefully retaining the services of a marketing consultancy you can gain access to a range of experience that no single individual can ever hope to possess. You can then recruit a more junior but bright person from within your company to liaise with your consultants and yourself.
You can never truly know if your marketing manager is working at full steam and I'm certain that they won't tell you unless they want more budget to spend on the next CV enhancing fad.
If you are a marketing manager reading this, be honest, maybe you should talk to your boss about a more flexible retained position. This way you can look for other contracts and build your exposure to more businesses which will enhance your ability to perform well.
If you're a solo or very small business, then the "people" doing your marketing may be just you and you may be suffering from a serious lack of capacity. There comes a time when your lack of time causes waste for your business and holds you back. You must seriously look at the skills gap and address the needs of your business (and your sanity!).
3. Processes (over complication)
Lean Manufacturing (where we learned our trade) deals with the process of moving an order through your supply chain and to your customer. In this instance we're talking about the marketing process - this deals with acquiring the customer in the first place and how you handle your customers once you have them. For this we use the Lean Marketing Pipeline - would you like a copy? Just send an email to: leanpipeline@aweber.com with "Send Me The Pipeline - I'm Missing Out!" in the subject line and we'll send you a picture.
To understand your present state you need to map the processes of communication, customer acquisition, customer processing and customer relationships. Then you need to make sure that there are no non-value adding activities. This will enable you to eliminate steps in the process that have literally become bad habits. We have a module called Moments Of Truth in our Toolbooks
Information is a powerful and under-utilized marketing tool that can set your business apart from the competition and dramatically increase revenues. By educating your prospects and customers, you can build credibility in your field, establish yourself as an expert, and demonstrate your company’s solutions without a hard-sell.Information can be delivered in a variety of formats including books, e-books, special reports, booklets, workbooks, newsletters, articles, teleseminars, and workshops. Many information marketers use a combination of methods.The goal is to offer value in your information products. When you provide useful information, the reader will typically want to learn more about your business. Unlike brochures and other marketing collateral, information products with practical information are more likely to be kept around and referenced over and over again.Following are some examples of ways you can use information to market your business and increase profits.E-books and Special ReportsAn e-book is an electronic book that can be downloaded from a Web site and read on a computer screen or hand-held device. A special report is typically shorter in length than
The marketing director or CEO needs to be able to enlist good marketing advice and planning as it is needed and then allow experts outside the company to implement the necessary action. There is no need for an internal marketing manager to oversee this if you use the right marketing consultants. By carefully retaining the services of a marketing consultancy you can gain access to a range of experience that no single individual can ever hope to possess. You can then recruit a more junior but bright person from within your company to liaise with your consultants and yourself.
You can never truly know if your marketing manager is working at full steam and I'm certain that they won't tell you unless they want more budget to spend on the next CV enhancing fad.
If you are a marketing manager reading this, be honest, maybe you should talk to your boss about a more flexible retained position. This way you can look for other contracts and build your exposure to more businesses which will enhance your ability to perform well.
If you're a solo or very small business, then the "people" doing your marketing may be just you and you may be suffering from a serious lack of capacity. There comes a time when your lack of time causes waste for your business and holds you back. You must seriously look at the skills gap and address the needs of your business (and your sanity!).
3. Processes (over complication)
Lean Manufacturing (where we learned our trade) deals with the process of moving an order through your supply chain and to your customer. In this instance we're talking about the marketing process - this deals with acquiring the customer in the first place and how you handle your customers once you have them. For this we use the Lean Marketing Pipeline - would you like a copy? Just send an email to: leanpipeline@aweber.com with "Send Me The Pipeline - I'm Missing Out!" in the subject line and we'll send you a picture.
To understand your present state you need to map the processes of communication, customer acquisition, customer processing and customer relationships. Then you need to make sure that there are no non-value adding activities. This will enable you to eliminate steps in the process that have literally become bad habits. We have a module called Moments Of Truth in our Toolbooks
Successful companies concentrate on one foreign market at a time, moving on to the next only after succeeding in the last. Demand and trend are the two key factors that determine which countries to select first and how to set priorities.Market research helps you identify promising markets through objective analysis of available facts and statistics. Its true, many companies start export whenever it receives unsolicited orders from abroad. Although this type of selling is valuable, the company may discover even more promising markets by conducting a systematic search. Primary and Secondary Market Research Market research is conducted by analysing primary or secondary data resources. In conducting primary market research, a company collects data directly from foreign marketplace through interviews, surveys, feedback and other such direct contact with potential buyers. Primary market research has the advantage of being tailored to the needs of the company and provides answers to specific questions, but it is invariably time consuming and very expensive.Secondary market research is based on analysis of statistical data such as trade statistics. To be effect
If you are a marketing manager reading this, be honest, maybe you should talk to your boss about a more flexible retained position. This way you can look for other contracts and build your exposure to more businesses which will enhance your ability to perform well.
If you're a solo or very small business, then the "people" doing your marketing may be just you and you may be suffering from a serious lack of capacity. There comes a time when your lack of time causes waste for your business and holds you back. You must seriously look at the skills gap and address the needs of your business (and your sanity!).
3. Processes (over complication)
Lean Manufacturing (where we learned our trade) deals with the process of moving an order through your supply chain and to your customer. In this instance we're talking about the marketing process - this deals with acquiring the customer in the first place and how you handle your customers once you have them. For this we use the Lean Marketing Pipeline - would you like a copy? Just send an email to: leanpipeline@aweber.com with "Send Me The Pipeline - I'm Missing Out!" in the subject line and we'll send you a picture.
To understand your present state you need to map the processes of communication, customer acquisition, customer processing and customer relationships. Then you need to make sure that there are no non-value adding activities. This will enable you to eliminate steps in the process that have literally become bad habits. We have a module called Moments Of Truth in our Toolbooks
Companies can survive the massive disruption of a pandemic—but only if they take steps now to inoculate against the threat of contagious misinformation and fatal chain-of-command breakdowns.That warning comes from one of Canada’s most experienced disaster managers, who says even where a company has developed an emergency plan, few employees know about it, fewer are familiar with it, and nobody has tested it.“The most comprehensive plan isn’t worth the paper it’s written on if no one has read it,” says Steve Armstrong, who worked on incident command protocols during his decades with the Canadian military, and subsequently managed disaster responses for the Canadian Red Cross. Now the principal of Paratus Group, a disaster management consultancy, he advises organizations on creating and exercising emergency plans.“It’s common to draft a plan and then put it on a shelf in somebody’s office. Some organizations might put it on their Intranet. But there’s no incentive to read it, so nobody does—until a crisis starts.” At that stage, he says, it’s too late to comprehend the plan or troubleshoot its flaws. Worse—and this he knows from military maneuvers—the chances of people misreading
To understand your present state you need to map the processes of communication, customer acquisition, customer processing and customer relationships. Then you need to make sure that there are no non-value adding activities. This will enable you to eliminate steps in the process that have literally become bad habits. We have a module called Moments Of Truth in our Toolbooks series, that deals thoroughly with this issue.
Getting your sales and marketing process right will enable you to reduce the cost of gaining new business, dealing with your customers and upselling new services and products.
Other important things to include when refining your processes are measurement tools. Once you begin to measure success against strategic key performance indicators you will have the information to continuously improve and reduce waste even further. If your customer facing processes work well you will also find that customer satisfaction will improve.
4. Waiting (poor communication)
An over hierarchical communication structure can make it very difficult to take action quickly. This lack of flexibility can cause waste in the form of missed opportunities and unnecessary inaction. If the people responsible for implementing marketing for your business are inactive then you are wasting money. We're not just talking about the hierarchy in your business (you may not have one) - we're talking about the hierarchies in your marketing consultancy, web developers or ad agency.
If you see marketing as a fundamental part of your business then waiting is rarely a problem. If the CEO or board view marketing as separate from the business, then lower priority will be given to spending and decision making in this area.
Changing communication policy or empowering people closer to your marketing activity with limited (and accountable) financial independence will help to overcome this problem.
5. Excessive Communication Costs
Traditional methods of communication - mail / fax / phone / in-person are relatively expensive, and though still essential, need to be mixed with other more cost effective methods. The Internet is a powerful way to reduce communication costs, but still far too few businesses embrace it as such.
Let's say that you produce a monthly printed newsletter for your customers. This will involve cost at the following stages: design; copywriting; editing; printing; packing; distribution. Now imagine the same idea using email. The cost areas are: design; copywriting; editing; distribution. Firstly, there are fewer steps (less time) in the email process, but when you look at the steps that are omitted you'll also find that they are the costs that escalate (stamps, envelopes, printing) as you communicate to a growing audience.
How many times do your people get asked the same questions? Every time they answer a frequently asked question they are performing a duty that does not add value but can't be ignored. Simply using your website to provide general advice and FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) could reduce your costs (Freephone support line) and free up your people's time to perform more productive, value added duties.
I'm wondering if... You Know Other People who should be reading this too? So do us all a favour (they get 2 free books - we get a new subscriber - you get to look good) when you Pass On This link... http://www.leanmarketing.co.uk
6. Trial and Error
Trial and error is the inherent waste involved in all marketing. But simply accepting this fact is not good enough.
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