Dealing with elevating the perception of value for our clients products and services is something we take great pride in. With that pride comes a level of respect for those who do a great job in the market. On the flip side, we also notice when things have gone wrong.

It’s no mystery that naming is important. Premium brands as well as others need to have a name that embodies the attributes that make it unique and remarkable.

That being said, what in the world is Behr Paint thinking when they created the name for their “premium” paint?

Behr Premium Plus Ultra? Are they serious? How many adjectives can possible be added to the name for a consumer to “get it”.

The beauty of luxury and premium products is the subtle touches and finesse used to portray the intended level of quality. Adding more fluff and screaming it at the consumer only destroys the perceived value they are hoping to obtain.

The title is a bit vague, but read on and you will find clarity for certain.

There is no doubt that Social Media has taken the internet world and overall communication by storm.   The amazing communication breakthroughs we see taking place everyday are truly remarkable and improving at an incredible rate.  Seems glaringly obvious why everyone would jump on the bandwagon.   We truly live in an amazing time, don’t you think?

Let’s take a little stroll south of the border for a moment.

Have you ever been to any number of tourist beaches in Mexico?  Have you ever been able to enjoy some relaxtion without getting hassled to buy a plate or some genuine Chanel sunglasses.  I swear.. they are real….  Perhaps your name on a piece of rice (very useful to have around)?

Now, we have Social Media and a Mexican beach.  WTF?

Here’s the deal.  Social Media handled poorly is very similar to the “sales people” on the beach.  They are relentless in their approach.  You could be gazing into your loved ones eyes (sucking face) and they will gladly interrupt you to see if you want what they are selling.  They don’t speak the same language and don’t even care if you have a need for their product.  Showing value is not on their list of priorities.  It is strictly a numbers game for them.  They know that if they approach enough people they will likely get a sale.  Pretty simple and elegant in some ways, but completely annoying and horrible for building relationships.

This exact approach is sweeping Social Media like a virus.  People are constantly trying to sell, up-sell, side-sell… you get the point.  They are not speaking the same language.  They are not providing value.  They are not sharing with the intent to engage in a conversation.  They are simply looking for numbers in hopes to get a sale.  If you are looking for numbers then be transparent about it.  Don’t even bother throwing in a worthless post about your weekend because you simply appear less authentic.  Be yourself and live up to your call center mentality.

However, if you truly want to create something worth spending all that time tweeting and posting about then shake their hands in the virtual world and mean it.  You don’t need 1 million friends or fans if you are using Social Media the way it is intended and most useful to you and those in your network.

Adios.

This is what I would like to call a RANT. I am not particularly angry tonight after coming back from vacation. On the contrary, I am clear-headed and insightful. It’s amazing what a sunburn and tequila can do for the soul. I do however feel that a couple points need to be made- best intentions of course.

If you know me personally you are likely to subscribe to the fact that I always have a point to make about something.

So here we go:

Attention: Business owners!

The economy is bad and has been bad for quite sometime. It’s no surprise and certainly not something you haven’t felt deeply. However, I was hoping to see it actually create more change, shift, innovation, etc., than it has. Let’s stop the marketer jargon of labeling it with “change” and “innovation” for a moment and go with this:

Hit the damn pedal on the right. If you don’t someone else will. You will be left in the dust with no one to blame.

Crush it or get smoked!

Sound harsh? Why? How could this be harsh. Businesses have had plenty of time by now to see what may be the End of Days, yet they are still paralyzed. I am not saying the current state of affairs is easy. Was it easy when you started your business? Was it easy to hire that first employee or signed your life away on that small business loan you personally guaranteed? Of course not. You are used to discomfort. In fact, entrepreneurs are the most uncomfortable group of yahoos you could ever hope to meet. It’s this discomfort that drives us to succeed and make a difference. Don’t let the current condition of the economy stop you from digging deep and finding solutions.

Guess what?

What you normally did, do or are thinking about doing may not ever work again. The rules are changing by the minute so grab your business by the horns and steer it in a new direction. Every business, no matter what the model is, can be redirected to a certain degree. Find your zen or whatever the hell you want to call it and get really outside the box on your thinking. Outside the box doesn’t mean you start printing a larger postcard for your mailer.

Here is an article by Seth Godin to illustrate some of the change I am referring to.

I am not advocating that everyone has the same situation or that everyone is suffering, but the status quo is what it is and it’s driving me crazy. There are businesses I see daily that could be doing so much more to move towards the BLACK it’s not even funny. Get out of the RED and get out of your mind. Go drink some tequila and enlighten yourself on the ideas that may lead to a complete reinvention of your business and more importantly, your life.

Good Luck!

There is something I like to call “being considerate”. It seems this often misunderstood phrase is Greek to far too many people.

How many people do you communicate with in a given week that show you zero response? Probably quite a few. It makes no difference what you sell, what your service it, who your market is, etc. It’s all the same. People dealing with people is the essence of our business culture. Not businesses dealing with businesses.

When someone takes the time out of their day to contact you via email, call, meet, text, tweet, etc. it is polite to show them the consideration they deserve by responding. Your response can be a middle finger for all I care. At least they will have received a response.

“I am too busy to respond to everyone” Bullshit. Being busy is such a lame excuse for being inconsiderate. If you are that busy where you are unable to communicate then you are doing a bad job and need to evaluate how you conduct your level of productivity.

A Champion:
Take Gary Vaynerchuk for example, this guy is blowing up on social media, mass media, you name it. He is the guy behind Wine Library TV. His fan base is growing like a virus because he not only tells his audience that he cares, but he backs it up. There is so much to be said for the integrity behind doing what you say you are going to do. Gary probably gets about 600+ emails a day and yet he responds to each one of them. I emailed him on Monday of this week and had a response by Tuesday. Do you have any idea how much more value he has in the eyes of his fans by being “considerate”? HUGE. gee, I wonder why he is blowing up?

Take a moment to be considerate to those around you and your business will soar. You can’t be perfect, but you don’t need to be. You simply need to try your best to show consideration to those around you. You never know where you might run into that guy who emailed you and you ignored it. Could be a large conference room or a dark alley. You simply never know.

Make your mother proud and be considerate.

Many of you have heard me yap on and on about innovation. Let me be the first to say that you will continue to hear it, read it, feel it, etc. Ya know why? Because the new economy demands that you do if you plan to thrive much less survive.

Ever wonder where most truly great ideas came from? It’s the guy tinkering in his garage while his wife yells at him to get to bed. It’s the single mother who thinks there must be a better way to get her kids to eat on the go… Innovation is planting its seeds everywhere, BUT..

There is one caveat that creates the critical inch to success. “Innovate” is a VERB and therefore it requires action. This means you must do more doing and less thinking.

Action? Hell, it’s Execution. That’s it! You must take your fleeting thoughts, hopes and dreams and execute.

While you are busy executing, spill some milk once in awhile. Don’t be so afraid to become remarkable that you stick with the status quo so your market feels safe. Make em laugh, make em cry, make em do something. Anything is better than nothing.

Speaking of innovation take a look at this.

Seriously, this is getting out of hand. I received my daily newsletter from a local publication of current stories and this is verbatim what it said in a section of their email. I did not strip anything out in between each story:

[Jeff Flake opposes bailout for U.S. automakers]
[California, Arizona take different approaches to fix mortgage mess]
[Van Velsor Wolf to chair American Cancer Society board]
[U.S. employment levels continue to drop]
[Lower mortgage rates fuel increase in applications]
[US Airways November traffic declines]
[Nation’s service sector shows November decline]

Is it any wonder people and businesses are freaking out right now?

I am not knocking the Business Journal because I feel they do a pretty good job. This has nothing to do with a particular publication. They all do it. It’s on the news, radio, newspaper, magazine, blogs, tweets, et al. You literally cannot get away from it. Being informed is one thing, but being inundated in completely different. If you want to feel better about where things are headed start by turning off the tv, close your email, listen to music, not radio and god forbid have a pleasant conversation with someone face to face.

Now, where is the marketing slant in this?

There isn’t! Turn your thoughts towards innovation and progress. Many great businesses are going to thrive in the coming years and those who turn away from this toxic thinking are certainly going to be the leaders. Market conditions aside, you cannot embrace progress when you are only diving deeper and deeper into the propaganda we call the “media”.

We share this thought with just about everyone we encounter from a marketing standpoint and it is amazing to see the response you get. I guess it will help to tell you what I mean by “make them uncomfortable”. Well, quite simply we want you to make someone unhappy with your business. No, we don’t want you pissing people off in a frantic rage, but we do want you to push your positioning in such a way that makes people despise you or at the very least wanna punch you in the face.

David, what the hell are you talking about?

Let me explain, so many businesses talk about targeting the right audience and “really connecting” with them. Bullocks. No they aren’t. They say that because its just what you are supposed to say. Odds are the message you are screaming from a mountaintop is so safe that although you are screaming loudly no one is hearing you. They aren’t hearing you because you are getting washed away by all the others. Your message sounds like a restaurant dining room….Great things are being said, but unless you are at the right table you aren’t being listened to.

If you try to appeal to everyone you will be compelling to no one!

Am I making sense? Solution! Craft your messaging in such a way that you truly resonate with your intended audience. Something that pinches their soul, knowing that others will feel pushed away and uncompelled. No, they won’t get their feelings hurt (not always), but they simply won’t notice you….Don’t worry! That’s ok. We don’t want everyone to notice you. We only want the specific niche you are shooting for. The others will not be your loyal customer in the end even if you grab their attention for the moment because your brand promise was never crafted for them to begin with.

I guess I could have been “SAFE” about this post and told you something like this “Make sure you have a really strategically, integrated solution for your potential customer base.” Would you have noticed it? Or even read it?

Go create some pins and needles!