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Jan 22 2012
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retail, business, small business, independent retailers

Retail Reversals and Rallies

Laurel Tielis

What’s greater than an electric company’s power surge and more forceful than a hot flash? The power of the people combined with the power of the purse.

With social media, consumers have a voice. And whether it’s the fight against SOPA, the Occupy movement, or retail arrogance, what they’re using it to say is, “I’m mad as Hell, and I’m not going to take this any more.”

Brands that don’t get It, will get it where it hurts. Look at Netflix, Bank of America, and Verizon. Not since the Three Stooges has there been anything so dopey. But while the Stooges were funny, these companies are sad.

As for Amazon, nobody likes a bully–whether it’s in the schoolyard or on the business playing field, Amazon showed it didn’t care at all about the little guy, which was an opportunity for everyone else to say they did. 

Successful Companies Understand Consumers Count

Today, the companies that will be around tomorrow, understand that  it’s a conversation between brands and consumers. Businesses can no longer make decisions without taking consumers into account.The Internet, and social media, make everything visible. There are no secrets. Everyone knows who’s naughty and who’s nice, and they respond accordingly.

That said, companies can make mistakes and learn from them. I think these two “retail rallies” have the potential for customer engagement and retention.

Some Retail Rallies

Target missed the mark when it overpromised and underdelivered on the Missoni collection. But now it’s back with The Shops of Target, a new promotion set to begin May 6th, where the retailer will be teaming up with five small businesses from across the country for a six week run. This is a win for customers who will be able to purchase special items, its a win for the boutiques, whose products will go out to an enormous audience, and it’s a win for Target–if the company executes it properly.

Walmart is also showing that it understands how to engage and retain customers. It made a good start when it brought back layaway for the Christmas season, and now it’s got a great promotion underway called Get on the Shelf. The company has created a contest open to anyone with a product that fits its product categories. Contestants need to submit an online video, and voters will select the three winners. Their products will be sold at www.walmart.com. The grand prize winner will also have his/her products sold in selected stores.

It’s an enormous opportunity for small business owners, it’s a great way for Walmart to position itself as a champion of the little guy, and it’s fun for the rest of us.

If  you want more ideas about bringing in business, I can heIp. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Connect with me at LinkedIn, or follow me on Twitter @laureltielis.

You can also get in touch at Ask Laurel (one word) at laureltielis.com. For easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2012 Laurel Tielis

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Jan 14 2012
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business, entrepreneurs, independent retailers, retail, small business

Have You Got a Big “BUT”?

Laurel Tielis

Two weeks into the new year is a great time to get started on making changes. After all, by now you’ve moved on from holiday-mode to really getting down to business.

Having a big BUT though, will get in your way. It’s the kind of thinking that is as unhealthy for your emotional well-being and business success, as obesity is to your physical health. When your mind substitutes BUT for ”sure,” or “good idea,” it gets in the way of your going forward. Here’s a simple test to see if you suffer from big BUT syndrome.

Do Any of These Excuses Sound Like You?

  • Social media seems to work for other people BUT….
  • Networking seems like a good idea BUT….
  • I know blogs bring in business BUT….
  • The store down the street wants to cross promote BUT….
  • I’d like to plan an event BUT….

Happily, there are ways to get past that big BUT. To maintain the weight analogy, dieters go wrong when they think in terms of the total amount of weight they need to lose, rather than thinking of losing weight one pound at a time. In the same way, it will be simpler, and you will be more successful, if you think about going forward one step at a time.

Simple Ways to Get Past that Big BUT

If you haven’t yet committed to social media, try choosing one form–maybe Twitter–to get familiar with. The sign up is simple, and you can start by following other people in your industry. Watch them to see what works for you. Then try tweeting those kinds of things yourself.

Networking is a great way to get ahead in business, and an easy trick to being successful at it is counterintuitive. If there’s a networking event that appeals to you, go on your own and get there early. That way, you’re sure to have it pay off.

By being one of the first arrivals, anyone else who’s there early will be eager to talk to you. By the time the mass of people arrive, you’ll be in conversation and comfortable in the crowd. People will come up to you to ask you questions, and guess what? You’ll have the answers.

Blogging is another good way to bring in business, and you don’t have to write lengthy posts to have a successful blog. Just like you curate the items you sell in your store, you can curate articles you’ve read online, write a quick synopis of each, and add the link. By sharing valuable information, you’ve taken a small step and made a big difference in your business. You’ve become an authority and as you know, people want to do business with authorities.

If you’re tempted by the idea of cross promoting, and you’re also interested in planning an event, combine the two for maximum results. Again, take baby steps. Try teaming up on a single, simple event like a coffee hour or a wine and cheese party, to see just how useful it will be to go further. Like the lottery though, you can’t win if you don’t buy a ticket. So go for something with little down side and lots of potential.

This year, everyone’s moving toward green. Give yourself the green light and move forward. Take a risk; get a reward. Here’s to losing your big BUT and increasing your bottom line.

If you want more ideas about bringing in business, I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Connect with me at LinkedIn, or follow me on Twitter @laureltielis.

You can also get in touch at Ask Laurel (one word) at laureltielis.com. For easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2012 Laurel Tielis

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Jan 08 2012
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business, entrepreneurs, retail

You Can Quote Me on That

Laurel Tielis

Keeping your Twitter stream relevant and fun, your website up to date, and your newsletter entertaining as well as informative, is less of a challenge if you take advantage of the wit and wisdom of others–especially celebrities. And yes, you can quote me on that.

You might be surprised at just how many well-known names have talked about business, retail, stores, and shopping. Take billionaire Warren Buffett: “I buy expensive suits. They just look cheap on me.” What an opportunity for anyone involved in the menswear business or any image consultant to comment on that, and ask their followers to help the poor guy.

One of my favorite lines, and perfect for anyone in home furnishings or design is Oscar Wilde‘s reputed death bed quote: “Either this wallpaper, goes or I do.” (I’ve also read the quote as “Either this lamp goes, or I do.”) In either case, it gives you an opportunity to have some fun with you followers. You can ask them for their favorite quotes, or for what they would most like to change in their homes, and so on.

Rita Rudner offers some sage advice that’s useful to anyone in the jewelry business or in the bridal industry. “I think men who have a pierced ear are better prepared for marriage,” Rudner says. “They’ve experienced pain and bought jewelry.” Follow up by asking questions like, Hey guys, What would make the shopping experience easier for you?

Cameron Diaz is clearly a foodie. According to the actress: “I can spend hours in a grocery store. I get so excited when I see food, I go crazy. I spend hours arranging my baskets so that everything fits in and nothing gets squashed. I’m really anal about it, actually.”

Groceries, supermarkets, and gourmet shops should find food for thought in that remark (not to mention therapists!). Even better, it’s too long for one tweet, so you get the opportunity to send half off at a time. You can play up the fact that at your store packers do a great job with all items, but especially fragile ones. Or ask fellow tweeps what foods feed their fancies?

Stand-up comic Jay London weighed in with “I saw a stationery store move.” Anyone who makes or sells paper products can play off the joke–I’ve seen a house fly, a horsefly and a dragon fly–or take advantage of it to talk about the best-moving items in their business.

Parenthood star Lauren Graham shares these thoughts about shopping: “These days,” she says,  “I have to be extra nice in stores. It never fails that whenever I look as bad as I can possibly look or I am sort of cranky because the store is out of something, that is precisely the time when someone one will recognize me and say: ‘I really like your show.’” Would that all customers get Lauren’s message about the importance of being especially nice in public, and that all merchants take the time and put out the energy to keep shoppers sweet!

Got a quote you’d like to share? Can I quote you on anything in the business world? Tell me, and I’ll pass it along.

If you want more ideas about bringing in business, I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker, writer, or  consultant? Get in touch at Ask Laurel (one word) at laureltielis.com.

You can also connect with me at LinkedIn, or follow me on Twitter @laureltielis. For easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2012 Laurel Tielis

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Nov 06 2011
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business, retail

Speed Up Sales By Using QR Codes

Laurel Tielis

In addition to sushi and bonsai trees, we can thank the Japanese for QR codes, those black-and-white patterned squares that have become ubiquitous.They were created in the 1990s by a subsidiary of Toyota, to track cars as they moved down the manufacturing line.They’ve been popular for some time there, but have only recently begun to be used in the U.S.

They’re not all that different from the barcodes used on items in the supermarket, or from those on the back of books. What makes them more valuable though, is that they offer far more information in a similar amount of space.

Why All the Hoopla Now?

QR codes have finally come into their own because they’ve have moved from the province of the manufacturer or retailer, to that of the consumer. Mobile apps have made them customer centric. A shopper on a smartphone downloads a free app, like Red Laser, then uses it to snap a picture of a code, et voilà, the phone screen displays a wealth of information about a product or a service.

If you’re a retailer, as you’ve already discovered with barcodes, this offers both positives and negatives.The downside is that armed with all that information, shoppers can quickly and easily find the same merchandise you’re selling elsewhere, and possibly at a better price. Which of course means, they’ll buy elsewhere.

But the upside is a stronger one, especially if you own a brick and mortar store. QR codes let you sell your merchandise 24/7.

Benefits to Retailers of Using QR Codes

For example, a window shopper out for a late night stroll or a pet owner up early taking care of Fido’s needs, attracted by a display can easily find out out more about what caught her eye by simply scanning a QR code. That means, even when you’re not officially open for business, you can still be selling.

You can also use them to create customer engagement, and possibly loyalty. When shoppers text your QR code, you can give them a discount coupon, or a free sweepstakes entry in exchange for their information.

Want to promote your business without making it so obvious that no one will want to use the product? Rather than run an ad all over a T-shirt or a coffee mug, a simple QR code, especially one inserted cleverly into a picture, will get the word out about your business.

No matter what you retail, you can use a code to fine tune the information you want to share about your merchandise. If you sell food or drink, you can include a recipe in the code. Apparel sellers can include a tip about how to dress for success. Own an art gallery? Give some information about the artist, or the particular piece, on a QR code.

They’re inexpensive and easy to produce, and can be used on walls, windows, print ads, giveaways, social media sites, kiosks, or wherever you’re imaginative enough to place them. They can even be used as a part of, or  in place of business cards.

When you’re ready to move to the next level of business, I suggest you check out QR codes.

If you want more ideas about bringing in business, I can help. I’ve been a retail eporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Connect with me at LinkedIn, or follow me on Twitter @laureltielis.

You can also get in touch at Ask Laurel (one word) at laureltielis.com. For easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2011 Laurel Tielis

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Oct 02 2011
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business, entrepreneurs, retail

Maximizing Your Email Marketing

Laurel Tielis

Social media is growing, and businesses, both large and small, need to participate in the online conversation to stay front of mind. But doing that doesn’t mean giving up one of the most powerful tools for contacting others–email.

Statistics continue to show the strength of email. It leads the way as a method of conversion–turning contacts into customers. It’s a winner because the people on your mailing list have already shown an interest in your business, by specifically allowing you to contact them.

Benefit by reaching out to customers

To ready yourself for the holiday season–from Halloween to Thanksgiving to Christmas–reach out to your customers and clients through Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and LinkedIn and ask them about their holiday wish list.

That will do several good things for you: it will help you engage with your fans and followers; it will allow you to ramp up merchandise in areas whose importance you might not have recognized, and it will serve as the basis of your email campaign.

Use Email to Engage and Convert

When you send out your emails, let people know what others find hot this year, so they’ll be able to buy while there’s still availability. Provide gift suggestions and let your contacts know about gift cards, layaway (if you’re offering it ), as well as inexpensive stocking-stuffers.

Of course, you want to send out coupons, info on special offers like BOGOs (buy one get one) or two-for-one opportunities, as well as other promotions that are available in-store or online. Since shoppers tend to purchase more in-store, you might offer the option to buy products online and pick them up at your store, or create an online holiday contest, where the entry form has to be dropped off at your brick and mortar location.

Promote specific events you’re sponsoring. For example, if you’re a small business supporting Small Business Saturday, get the word out through social media and email.

As far as shipping, you want to email customers to make it clear the last possible day they can make a purchase so that goods will arrive on time for the holiday. Also, let shoppers know if you’re offering free shipping on certain days, or throughout the holiday season. Ditto on gift wrapping.

Activating your email list will help ensure you reach your sales goals and achieve the profits you’ve been working toward all year.

How important is email to your business? How do you use it to bring in more traffic?

If you want more ideas about bringing in business, I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Connect with me at LinkedIn, or follow me on Twitter @laureltielis.

You can also get in touch at Ask Laurel (one word) at laureltielis.com. For easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2011 Laurel Tielis

 

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Aug 18 2011
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business, retail

Passion Pays Off for Retail Businesses

Laurel Tielis

Hot, steamy sex is one definition of passion. But a powerful or compelling emotion is another. And in business, it’s the second definition you want to convey to customers or clients. You want them to know how intensely you feel about working with them, and how dedicated you are to doing it.

Because it’s the enthusiasm you bring to your store and your story that differentiates you from competitors. You can’t be halfhearted at a time when the economy is in turmoil, and brick and mortar stores are challenged by online retailers.

Remember Show and Tell?

So how do you let people know how much you value them and their business? You “show” your passion in everything from the way you listen to, and learn from, your customers. It’s there in how you merchandise your store, and display products. It shows from the attractive and eye-catching entryway and window, to the appealing dressing or seating areas, to the cleanliness of the restrooms.

It’s also the way you answer the phone, and how promptly you return messages. It’s in your smile and your service. You show your passion for you business in everything you do.

You also convey the intensity of your connection to your customers by aligning with other retailers in your area, by sharing your expertise through presentations in your community, and by supporting and partnering with a local charity.

Tell Your Story to Increase Sales

You “tell” your passion in mainstream and social media. Anything you do that’s out of the ordinary, that contributes to your brand, to making you a destination—whether it’s a theme party, a special service, or a change in your hours or your venue—needs to be written about on Twitter, posted on your Facebook page, discussed in your blog, covered in your e-newsletter (extra points for creating a hard-copy one that you distribute in-store and mail out to your clientele),  mentioned on your website, and distributed through press releases.

Set up Google alerts so you’ll know when your business is being discussed online. In addition, respond promptly to comments or criticisms on social media.  Check your Facebook wall, read tweets that mention you as well as direct mail on Twitter, reach out to Yelpers and Citysearch commentators, and keep your eye on YouTube.

If you’re not happy with a comment, respond to it and see if you can mitigate it. Or, get satisfied clients, customers, colleagues, vendors, and suppliers to post information that supports you.

Want to make people you sell to feel heard? Establish a “moan-phone,” a direct contact line for people to share their concerns or problems with you. If you can’t set up a dedicated line, initiate a specific time for customers to call when they know they can get direct assistance.

You need to be a good communicator to build business. Start with a good story, tell it in an interesting fashion, and keep the focus on What’s In It for the Customer/Client.

Establish one-on-one relationships with a wide range of people–everyone from
journalists to bloggers to other influencers; people who are known in the book business as “big mouths.” If you create good relationships with one or two well-known bloggers, you can parlay that to getting attention from others at that level.

Whether or not you’re a football fan, think about this advice from winning coach Vince Lombardi, “If you aren’t fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm.”

Want more ideas about bringing in business? I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Get in touch at ringupmoresales@gmail.com. Or, for easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2011 Laurel Tielis

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Aug 01 2011
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Small Business Social Media Success

Laurel Tielis

Remember Stop the Insanity! Susan Powter’s 1993 book on overambitious dieters? That’s where small business owners are today, in terms of social media. They’re overwhelmed.

I cover a lot of events–from the NY Times Small Business Summit to the National Retail Federation’s Innovate Conference, to my last post about  Inc. magazine’s panel in San Francisco, Using Technology to Drive Growth--and meet a lot of small business owners. Most are already wearing a myriad of hats. Social media is just one more, and sadly, it’s one that doesn’t fit very well.

What’s the problem?

There’s an abundance, maybe even an overabundance, of social media choices. New ones come along daily. Let’s just start with Twitter. To tweet or not to tweet? And if so, what to tweet? And how often to do it?

How about Facebook? Should it be a site solely for reaching out and engaging with customers or clients, or should it be a home for e-commerce?

Then there’s blogging, LinkedIn, Groupon, and Foursquare. And coming down the pike, Google+. What’s a business owner to do? How does a retailer separate the sites to find social media success?

Think of a Smorgasbord 

Smorgasbords are great; they offer a tremendous variety of foods. But as you know, when you load your plate with everything, you walk away full, but dissatisfied. It’s wiser to sample several  items, and then choose what suits your palate.

Pick your social media choices as wisely as your food choices. If someone at your table is extolling the sausages, and you’re a vegetarian, as good as they may be, they’re still not right for you. Do what’s right for you.

Make Social Media Work for You

Start your social media campaign slowly, and invest your time and energy wisely. For example, if you keep on top of what’s happening in your business through online articles, share the links with others. Brief tweets several times a  day will keep followers following–put in a promotional tweet only after eight or 10 informational one .

Have a story to tell and not interested in the Reader’s Digest condensed version? Create a blog that you publish regularly (mine, for example, goes out twice weekly on Mondays and Thursdays).

The point is, don’t do everything. Choose one form of social media and get good at it. Add a second only when you have a comfort level with the first. And remember, while the message has to be in your voice, you don’t have to write it. You can oversee someone on staff, or hire someone who specializes in writing about your industry to do it.

If you want your customer base to really “like” you, give them a reason to do so. Give them information, entertain them, or try an online event–like a webinar or a flash sale. Make sure your audience sees you value them, and then they’ll value you.

Want more ideas about bringing in business? I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at Peoplemagazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Get in touch at ringupmoresales@gmail.com. Or, for easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2011 Laurel Tielis

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Jun 20 2011
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Bloomsday Breakfast at Bryant Park Creates Buzz for Ireland

Laurel Tielis

NEW YORK–With all of the less-than-happy stories in the news, how do you brand a country, create community involvement, and make people happy?

Ireland, through the auspices of Imagine Ireland and the Irish Arts Center, hosted a Bloomsday breakfast smack in the middle of the city at Bryant Park, on 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue.

It was a perfect location because the park backs on to the main library, and the breakfast was in honor of James Joyce and his groundbreaking work Ulysses. The novel chronicles a day in the life of Leopold Bloom, and his travels around Dublin on June 16, 1904.

One hundred and seven years later to the day, in a leafy enclave with a backdrop of skyscrapers, New Yorkers (and lots of visitors to the city) were entertained by Songs of Joyce and the Darrah Carr Dance company.

Performers, and many of the attendees, dressed for the celebration in clothing that would have been appropriate in Dublin at the beginning of the 20th century. Women carried lace parasols and wore street-length skirts, and hats with flowers. Men looked handsome in striped jackets and boaters. Of course you knew it was the 21st century–people were snapping photos of the event with their cellphones.

Celebrants lined up for tea and coffee, while breakfast hors d’oeuvres, courtesy of food purveyor Tommy Moloney, were butlered. Among the items passed were Bloom’s Beast and Fowls, which consisted of black pudding, white pudding, and sausage, and Tommy Tucker’s Bread and Butter, toasted Irish black bread, creamer potato, organic egg, and spring onion butter sauce.

The highlight of the two-hour event (which began at 8 a.m. and finished promptly at 10 a.m.) were readings. Most of the presenters were people prominent in the theater. Fionnula Flanagan opened the book, and Aedin Moloney closed it.

James Newman, Charlotte Moore, Terry George, Michael Noonan, T.D., Minister for Finance, Ireland, and Isaiah Sheffer also read. Sheffer, artistic director of Symphony Space, has been hosting a 13-hour reading of the book at the upper Westside location, every year for the last 30!

It was a glorious morning honoring one of the most important novels ever written, and leaving people with only good to say about Ireland and the Irish. Clearly, sales of all thing Irish will increase, as more people buy the book, purchase the comestibles, and visit the country, after participating in the event.

Want more ideas about bringing in business? I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Get in touch at ringupmoresales@gmail.com. Or, for easy and effective ways to bring in more business, read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2011 Laurel Tielis

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Jun 09 2011
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Smart Marketing Increases Retail Customer Sales

Laurel Tielis

Every day there’s a new opportunity to connect with customers and boost sales in your store. Of course, you want to offer an enticing window, well-edited merchandise, an attractive sales space, and superior service. And then, there’s that special something, that je ne sais quoi, that separates the ho-hum from the well-done.

Here are two companies that used business savvy, in entirely different ways, to promote their brands and reach their customer base.

Make it Fun

You’ve heard about singing for your supper? Well, through September, Joie de Vivre is offering guests at five Southern California hotels in their chain, the opportunity to get a free upgrade.

Each day, the first person to belt out a California-themed song at check-in, wins. But wait; there’s more. Performances are caught on video and sent to YouTube and Facebook.

All is not lost  for guests who miss being first. They, too, can vocalize on camera, and have their star turn uploaded to the social media sites. The performer who receives the most votes will get a free two-night stay.

Show You Care

In the wake of disasters across the country, most recently the tornado in Joplin, MO, consumer goods giant Proctor & Gamble went beyond sending money for disaster relief, they went straight to the site to help, bringing two of the products in their stable–Tide and Duracell.

The Duracell trailer distributed flashlight and batteries. It also served as a charging station for laptops and cellphones.

Tide offered a mobile laundry for residents. Called Tide Loads of Hope, it consists of a truck with 32 washers and dryers, and a fleet of vans to ferry clothes to local laundries. They generally clean 300 loads of laundry onsite each day. But on May 26, according to the New York Times, the need was so great that 764 loads were processed.

They washed, dried, folded, and tied a ribbon around the clean clothes, because as they say on their website, “sometimes even the littlest things can make a big, big difference.”

The praise they received on their Facebook page and at their Twitter account, reflected that it did. People across the country and around the world saw the company as a good neighbor, one from whom they would be happy to buy.

Want more ideas about bringing in business? I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Need a speaker or a consultant? Contact me at  ringupmoresales@gmail.com. Or, for easy and effective ways to bring in more business read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales.

Copyright © 2011 Laurel Tielis

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May 05 2011
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Forrester’s Julie Ask on Using Mobile Marketing Strategically

Laurel Tielis

Just how important is mobile? According to Julie Ask, a vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research, mobile will be transformational.

Ask, speaking at the Mobile Marketing Strategies Summit in San Francisco, called mobile  “the primary digital connection for both existing and new customers.”

As overall consumer spending is increasing in the U.S., Ask said companies are also increasing their ad spend and investment in mobile services. Estimated direct spending on mobile was $5B in 2010,  and that number is expected to double by the end of 2012 .

The State of Mobile Marketing Today

Mobile marketing is in its infancy, she said, and pointed out that a lot of companies have the intent, but have yet to go forward. Very few have a dedicated budget for it, Ask said, and, because they’re not clear about the ROI of mobile, are still testing and learning.

Ask advised attendees “You need to jump in–especially in Asia or with younger consumers” because mobile is the “most important channel to connect directly with consumers.”

Five Key Imperatives for Mobile

1. Drive toward convenience–A product or service is convenient if the sum of the benefits exceed the sum of inhibitors. Mobile marketing needs to include these core benefits:

a. Immediacy (daily deals)
b. Simplicity (ease of use)
c. Context (restaurant on restaurant offerings)

2. Focus on consumer needs
Everything from replenishing medicine; depositing checks; filing taxes; security issues. Fulfill customer needs you haven’t met online.

3. Mobile is a channel as well as a product
Keep in mind that marketing doesn’t end with a sale–it continues through product ownership or service experiences.

4. Divorce the PC
A phone is completely different from a PC. Companies will develop location-ware marketing strategies to help customers with questions such as: What aisle am I in?

Intelligence added to location will dictate a consumer’s experiences on mobile

5. Be nimble because mobile is very dynamic
Mobile will replace a raft of existing devices. Car keys are just one example. User context will  be multidimensional.

Developing a Successful Mobile Strategy

Ask queried the audience, Will you be leader?A fast follower? A conservative?

Wherever your business falls, she said, mobile will be creating experiences beyond today’s average marketer. She laid out a plan, called POST, to help companies go forward.

P.O.S.T.

Begin the process by focusing on People,  the target audience.

Decide on Objectives; what goals need to be reached?

Use Strategy to figure out the best approach to reach your goals.

Opt for the Technology that will move the business forward.

Ask concluded by saying to maximize mobile, a company needs collaboration among departments, clarity about its degree of flexibility, an ongoing plan of testing, analyzing, and learning, as well as leadership from product strategy and development professionals.

Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales

Want more ideas about bringing in business? I can help. I’ve been a retail reporter at Women’s Wear Daily and Home Furnishings News, a columnist at the Miami Herald and a correspondent at People magazine.

I’ve also handled the marketing and public relations at major corporations and small businesses. Read Ka-Ching! How to Ring Up More Sales or contact me for a consultation at ringupmoresales@gmail.com.

Copyright © 2011 Laurel Tielis

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