Michigan

This is the propaganda piece to get the alums excited about strength and conditioning. In reality, it’ll take 3 years before they get up to speed. In the meantime, ND will be rolling to a National Title…

“Over a million. Over a million dollars,” Rodriguez said. “To [athletic director] Bill Martin’s credit, he teases me about it. I had gone to the weight room after I got hired, and I said, ‘There’s probably going to be a few changes, a few new pieces of equipment.’ He was probably expecting a hundred, hundred fifty thousand dollars worth. A million dollars later,” Rodriguez said, laughing, “thankfully, we have the Big House.”

Cue the fawning Michigan fans.

This could be the best thing to happen to ND football since Lou Holtz. More posts on ND to come as we get closer to spring football.

P&G Gets Better

Proctor & Gamble just gets it.

I’ve often said that CPG companies are typically at the leading edge of marketing and P&G continues to prove it over and over again. Not only do they get it, but that seems to seep into their many brand teams. There are numerous examples that could be cited, but here are a few articles that caught my eye in the news today alone for Clairol and the growing legend A.G. Lafley.

MBA No Longer = BMW

Following up on a previous post about the shifting models of work and how people work, this article sums up my belief on the pursuit of the advanced degree. While I wish I would have done this much younger in my career before marriage and kids get the best of my free time, I also think there is definite validity to the notion that the MBA simply is not what it was worth years ago or a requirement for advancement in organizations.

In the information economy, simply put, possessing knowledge is critical. Do I need to go sit through two years of evenings and weekends to get that information? I think not. Going forward, I think if a person feels particularly deficient in an area that they need to round out all they have to do is dedicate to time towards learning. I am a big proponent in the growth of Executive Education courses, which gives you the access, information and satisfaction in less time and commitment, which for me is what it is all about and likely where it will be in the future.

Hungry, Hungry HIPPO

I may have been under a rock, but I have never heard the phrase ‘hippo’ as Highest Paid Person’s Opinion. You see this phenomena frequently, but I think a few factors are beginning to level the playing field. First, generationally, I think there is less desire for hierarchy and online marketing in general makes it somewhat moot because usually the highest paid person in many organizations doesn’t know much about it.

I think you’ll continue to see online based data-driven decision making seep its way into larger organizations and help shape marketing programs and drive, micro-segmentation and highly targeted programs to not only new customers but as a component of loyalty programs to the most valuable customers. In marketing, where else can you measure results so effectively?

Loyalty

Loyalty is interesting, with new media it is increasingly difficult to achieve. In most cases almost impossible except for the most powerful of brands and products. Do loyalty programs work? Do they they provide enough incentive for you to to become and stay loyal to a product?

I think it requires a superior product, a superior service level and a very deft touch in relationship management. Most companies don't and won't get it, it simply requires too much effort to implement a smart retention strategy and I would guess that money spent on acquiring new customers exceeds retaining current customers easily by 4 to 1 in most organizations.

So what does it take? Embracing the Internet as the primary channel for marketing and information. I still don't see that occurring in mass, although it is shifting. And investing in the time and resources to establish the right processes, technology and business rules to understand your customers and provide the right information at the right time and only when the customer wants to receive it.

It's the simple things like putting their name in the email, it's talking to them in a familiar voice, it's understanding how they want to be contacted, it's providing value and recognizing the customer regardless of the channel they contact you in. It's getting better, but in my business I still see very little investment in marketing through the channel where it is the easiest to target, segment and deliver measurable value--the Internet.