Category Archives: Marketing

Navigating the Grey Space

When dealing with clients and relationships, there is hardly black and white. Either or. This or that.

There is all mostly grey space. And those who are able to navigate the grey space best are able to operate within the (loose) confines of day-to-day goings ons.

This is the way to make things happen.

Recognize it’s almost all grey. Then, navigate.

When We’ll Really Get to “Interactive” Out-of-Home

In order for us to really get to the point of interacting with the places and things around us, 2 things need to happen:

1. The technology has to be there. We’re getting closer and closer every day where those things that were previously not “on” are so now.

2. People have to be comfortable using it on that scale. On any given regular day, how many times do you see someone interacting with a poster or a billboard or a kiosk? Unless it’s an ATM, I don’t. Despite how far we’ve come in a short amount of time (read: mobile), we’re still uncomfortable with any new technology, particularly when it’s out in public spaces.

But we’re not far off.

Look no further than this:

McDonalds digital playground

The digital playground. For the generation growing up right now. Their world is shaped by technology. If they’re not carrying it around by the time they’re 8, they have it at their fingertips. In schools. At homes. On playgrounds.

In short order, the technology will be there. Also in short order, the comfort, familiarity, and even more, expectation will be that of a world turned “on” by those who live, work and play in it everyday.

If you have children or just observe, look at what they’re doing sometime, especially out in the public. Chances are, you’ll see some sort of technology at their fingertips. Like it or not, this is the world they know. Like it or not, this is the world they will expect. And like it or not, this is the world that technology will give them.

Soon. Very soon.

 

A Simple Word About Team

You can only hope to build a team who appreciates what team is about. Who knows that they only have to be their best selves to contribute. Who see the strengths in others around them. Who knows their day to shine will come as long as they push for greatness every single moment. Who believe in a common cause. And will do whatever they can to achieve it. Who has each others’ backs. Who genuinely likes each other. And holds each other accountable. On their terms. In their way. Outside of being told what or how to do it.

Teams work together to work. To solve problems. To function. To make greatness.

Teams can function when any one person leaves because the team is not about one person. It’s about the whole.

When your team can function (even thrive) in that scenario, know that you have an excellent team. Relish in it. It’s special.

A Simple Word About “The Big Idea”

Experience - Big Idea

I was preparing a team for a pitch last week where we were to present “The Big Idea.” An interesting thing happened – no one started with technology. That is to say, no one started by saying, “what if we had this huge display” or “let’s create an immersive touch experience” or “augmented reality would be cool in this way.”

Everyone started with the actual real-world experience, what people would actually do and get out of the “thing.” See, unless you are talking to a technologist and/or talking about a media buy of any scale, the technology only confuses matters. It muddies the core of the idea, which is what you’re selling.

Yes, there are specific technologies that are buzzy, but when you’re tasked with coming up with “the big idea,” do they really stand up by themselves? 9 times out of 10, no, they don’t.

There is an understanding that we can find whatever technology enables us to realize our idea. Some might be better than others, but at the end of the day, they are all a means to an end, and the same that way.

The end is the experience, one that transcends technology. It can be made better through technology most of the time, but not always. We don’t need technology for any “big idea.” That’s not what sells.

A Simple Word About Chemistry

Chemistry is something you feel right off the bat. Yes, you can grow to work well with someone or become fond of someone and can actually have a great relationship. Chemistry takes it to another level.

Recognize this, when you click with someone, when your gut is telling you how comfortable you are with them, when you find a true kindred spirit. It happens to us probably more than we ever give it notice.

It can be powerful. Great things can happen then.

A Simple Word About Communication

Communicate early and often. We hear this a lot in my world and we try to practice it as much as we can. Coming from brands and/or organizations, there are sometimes limitations on exactly what those communications can be. On a level, though, proactive (relatively speaking) and frequent communication makes people feel comfortable.

Same can and should be applied to person to person communications. People start to make assumptions when they have little or no information, especially in the wake of impending “news.” These assumptions can be extremely damaging, to both personal, emotional status and relationships. These assumptions can make people feel like you’re playing games with them.

Squash that by communicating. Face to face. As openly and honestly as you can. Might not be easy and might not be a message someone wants to hear, but it builds trust. Makes people feel comfortable.

 

 

Giving Thanks…

I’ve spent the last couple of days being deliberate about thanking individuals in my life. I like that about this time of the year, but the shame of it is that those sort of deliberate thanks are usually only reserved for this time of the year. And I don’t like that.

I am blessed to have so many things to be thankful for. My parents, my wife, my children, my close friends, my co-workers, my boss, my team – I have a life full of riches in the form of close, supportive, and loving relationships. Those deserve recognition and thanks every single day of the year.

You too, readers. I don’t thank you enough. Thank you for reading.

Now go tell someone how thankful you are for them. And why.

Believe in Macy’s Augmented Reality *Magical* Experience

Macy's Christmas Story

For anyone creating or thinking about creating an experience with any sort of enabling technology, look no further than Macy’s. With their new Believe-o-Magic Augmented Reality experience, they show us that when you use new technologies like this:

1. Don’t let the entire experience hinge on this technology

2. Do what you can to extend something that already exists

3. Anything that creates an emotional tie between people and/or people and a brand has a pretty good chance of use and success.

Macy’s hits at the heart of a deep cornerstone of Christmas – every little boy and girl’s belief in Santa Claus and the magic wrapped up in the whole wonder. And this year, they’re doing it through emerging technology. Beautiful.

I have written about Macy’s a few times before, primarily because of their Behind the Scenes QR Code campaign. I really liked what they did with that campaign in terms of using all their channels to raise awareness and promote the actual program. Their broadcast spots supported it, their social media efforts supported it, even their in-store supported it. It was a seemingly well-thought out campaign as opposed to so many that we see that seem like afterthoughts.

So, it made me smile when I saw their foray into another enabling technology – this time, Augmented Reality.

Fundamentally, I really like what they’re doing with this letters-to-Santa program. They’ve had a mailbox to Santa for the past few years, at least. It is a ritual for our family to go to Macy’s and let the kids write their letters to Santa. Our kids love it. (And oh by the way, they do make a donation to Make-a-Wish for every letter received up to $1 million. Say what you will about that, I think it’s a nice tie-in.)

At this time of the year, this is the thing that separates Macy’s from the other department stores at this time of the year. This is the reason that we go to Macy’s before any others. So, this is just a solid program without any of the fancy technology.

But it’s here, in this fancy technology that makes ME want to go and be a part of the experience myself. This year, they’ve created a Believe-o-Magic (great name, btw) mobile application that allows you to pose with characters from a Christmas narrative that they created, take a picture, make a virtual Christmas card, and send out to whoever you want, including those in your social network.

Now, I’ll be very interested to see if Macy’s audience (parents, more middle-class than not, who knows what their familiarity with emerging technologies like this is??) is the right audience for Augmented Reality, but what I love about it is this – they are now deepening the experience. Without ruining it. The experience is already special, just in the fact that kids can write letters to Santa and put them in a big, red mailbox. Add an enabling technology on top of it and you have an a) richer experience and b) one that creates a more interesting piece of social content.

This experience does not require this app or technology to exist. That’s a great thing. Take note, and as much as you can help, when you create an experience that uses any sort of emerging technology, don’t let the experience live and die with that technology. It should just be an extension, one that deepens and extends the experience.

Last week, I sat in on a session with Michael Tobin (VP, eCommerce Integration) of Macy’s and I walked away knowing that they are very in tune with connecting with consumers, on their terms, through whatever technology is best for them. They’re not afraid to experiment with these new technologies, but they’re measured and thoughtful about how they use them, too. In my opinion (based on their QR code campaign and now this), they’re very good at thinking strategically about implementing them.

This is another thing we can learn from them – how can you tie this new technology to programs that already exist? It’s (relatively) easy to create an Augmented Reality something-or-other. It’s an entirely different thing to use the technology to make something that already exists better.

It doesn’t seem like Macy’s does something just to do it. I think that’s a hard temptation to fight in today’s world, with all of this new technology around. It just screams for people to play with it and often times, spend big money doing it. But with a measured approach, you might just create believers in all sense of the word.

 

Morning Musings – Complicated Connections

We are swimming in new ways to connect and beyond that, what it all actually means.

Social. Mobile. Out of Home. Digital Out of Home. Connections. Experience.

This is a complicated world that we operate in, no doubt. As brand, marketers and communicators, this world is constantly changing. As consumers, we’re unlocking new ways to connect each day, ways that we did not know were there yesterday. This sort of evolution and discovery occurs every single day.

It’s as if the Pandora’s Box of technology has opened to the point of no closure.

On one hand, it’s exciting. On another hand, it’s maddening. It’s a bombard of variables to navigate and manipulate, all in an effort to get (or deliver) the right message at the right time to do the right thing. That’s what we all want, right?

“Screens” of old are just that – old. They’re ubiquitous. They’re a commodity. Even the one in our pocket. They’re only mechanisms of delivery and engagement, but it’s in this combination where the value comes in. Delivery + engagement should = value. I know that we all define “value” differently. For each consumer, it’s different. And for each shopping scenario, it’s different. Education, entertainment, discounts, points. All good “value propositions,” but all unique, not necessarily based on points in time in the shopping journey, but based on the individual.

The individual is the biggest variable that we have now. Their familiarity with technology, their use of it, their access to it, their view of what it enables them to do, their expectations of what it can and should do. It’s easy to automatically pin all these different technologies as the primary variable in ways to connect, but it’s not. It’s the consumer.

Each one of us, as consumers, now have the ability to reach out to someone, often times a group of distant someones, immediately and create, comment on, and/or consume content. This power has shifted what value is to each of us and, even more, elevated our expectations, in terms of what it takes and means to engage with brands.

As all this relates to the “screens” outside of our homes, be them physical screens or screens made out of the places and things around us – the game changer of the world that we live in is not the technology that enables all of these “screens” to be activated, it is in what they deliver and how people can engage with it. Messages/content just pushed is noise. It’s reason to ignore that particular “screen.” What can’t be ignored is something to actively engage in, something that delivers value to that person at that point in time. That’s the thing to figure out.

Then figure out how to do it.

And that’s not new.

Slow the Tornado Down

It’s easy to get caught up in the frenzy of business. The pace is fast, the stakes are high, tension and stress are always present. If there’s not a major deadline to meet, there’s a staff problem to address, or a forecast to deliver. Everyone is always getting pressed for something.

It’s easy to get caught up in the tornado. Many people get sucked right in and try to suck everyone else in with them.

Getting sucked up in the tornado for any length of time is a) not healthy and b) not needed. You can always step outside of the tornado, outside of the madness. You have the power to do that.

When things start moving fast, much faster than it needs to be or you can operate, stop it. Call timeout. Take a moment. Breathe. Collect yourself and your thoughts. Literally, stop. People can wait 5 minutes. And sometimes, that’s all it takes for you to slow the tornado down for you.

This does not trump delivery. Delivery must happen always. But you can control your part of the tornado. Always.