You Have to Hit it Full Throttle This Summer

While gathering around the barbecue with a cold beverage in hand this Holiday weekend, take a few moments to enjoy your good fortune. The weather is warm. You can swim outside in most parts of the country and week by week, month by month, the good news is outpacing the bad news.

According to a recent Business Confidence Survey by Insperity, small business owners are showing a willingness to hire more employees amid signs of expanding business activity.

·         More than 40 percent of the nearly 5,000 respondents said they are adding employees, up from 28 percent last October;

·         55 percent are maintaining current staffing levels, versus 63 percent last fall;

·         Only 5 percent are laying off employees, down from 9 percent in October and

·         28 percent think an economic rebound is currently in process versus 20 percent last fall.

Here’s what’s worrisome about this otherwise optimistic report; nearly three in four business owners STILL aren’t convinced that the economy’s on the mend. What else do you want?  A memo from the Commerce Department declaring, “Recession Officially Over—OK to Start Making Decisions”? Don’t hold your breath.

Financial markets are at historical highs, housing prices are at their loftiest level in 3-1/2 years, interest rates are at their lowest levels since most business owners have been alive and domestic business travel is up 5 percent over last year and above the all-time high reached in 2007 (Source: US Travel Association). That’s not enough for you?

Not only has economic rebound been “in process” for at least two years, it may be fading into the rear view mirror. When you think (and really feel) that everything’s fine, it’s usually too late. Your toughest competitors are way ahead of you anyway.

Sure the economy leads the list of short-term concerns for 62 percent of business owners, while government health care reform, and rising health care costs, are tied for second on the list at 51 percent, followed by hiring the right people, at 42 percent. Yet almost the same number (59 percent) expect sales to increase and 85 percent expect to maintain or increase employee compensation.

An Oxford Economics study found that companies that invested the most in business travel during the recession have grown faster than those that cut back on travel. Same goes for those that invested in marketing, product development, business development and hiring. You’ve got to keep your foot on the gas at all times and keep the pipeline full.

Macro View

Despite all the noise and confusion coming out of Washington (and the IRS), home prices rose to the highest level in three and a half years in April—up 11 percent over the same period last year. It was the fifth consecutive month of double-digit gains according to the National Association of Realtors. We were even more encouraged by this stat—the median time on market declined to 46 days from 62 days the previous month--which means properties are selling more quickly and inventory is shrinking.

Conclusion

As Seneca the ancient Roman philosopher once quipped. “Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” Whether it’s war, business, sports or courtship, nothing’s really changed that much in 2,000 years. Have a great barbecue this weekend and rest up. Summer’s the time to hit it full throttle. Waiting till after Labor Day to make decisions, isn’t going to cut it anymore.

Tags: National Association of Realtors, Insperity, Oxford Economics, US Travel Association

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Time to Take a Break from Tech?

We’re so hyper-connected and tech-addicted these days that even some of the elite technorati are finding a need to unplug. Take Nick Bolton, popular New York Times technology pundit.  He wrote Monday that one of his tech compadres intentionally drives out of cell service range, so he and his wife can spend weekends together engaged with “all things analog.” Another of Bolton’s pals still uses a notepad and pen when he really has to be creative and not spend his “idle minutes” checking e-mail and tweets all day long. When Bolton dines with other technologists, he plays a form of chicken. They all put their smartphones in a pile in the middle of the table and the first one who touches his or her device has to pay the bill.

The meal probably doesn’t last past the appetizer, but at least it’s a step in the right direction.

When used correctly and in moderation, technology gives us tremendous power to connect, create, communicate, collaborate and otherwise GSD (get shit done). But it’s just a tool and you can’t become a slave to it. When’s the last time you saw a carpenter sleep with his or her hammer by the nightstand or pick it up every five minutes to check for new heads, peens, wedges and claws to attach?

Did you get my email?

How long can you go without emailing, or calling someone on the phone to ask, “Did you get my email” if they haven’t responded instantaneously? Some companies, such as employment screening services firm e-Verifile, have email-free Fridays. On the last day of each workweek, employees can use email only for external communications. If they want to contact fellow employees, they have to use the phone or even scarier, meet face to face. We know that’s frightening for some of you in the under-40 crowd, but at least you’ll reduce many of the misunderstandings that come with email as it doesn’t allow for nuance, voice inflection or visual clues.

Our blog has more

Burnout Busters

Reducing our over-reliance on technology should also help alleviate symptoms of burnout. I received a lot of feedback to this article I wrote last year about recognizing and reducing signs of burnout. It was intended for executives of trade associations, but many of the tips and coping mechanisms could be valuable for you.

Here are some other techniques that have helped my colleagues and me:

·        

• Leave the headphones at home next time you go for a run. Just focus on your breathing and take in the scenery. The run won’t take as long as expected and you’ll be brimming with new ideas.

·         Turn off the TV monitor when you’re using the stairclimber or treadmill. That’s right. Just stare into the blank screen or admire some of the well-toned “scenery” around you.  Again, you’ll come back to your desk with dozens of new ideas and possibly a new “friend” or two.

·         Mow the lawn or wack the weeds. It’s a great way to burn off some steam and the steady hum of a high revving power tool will surely drown out any noise around you. Thinks of it as free use of outdoor sensory deprivation tank. You can’t possibly hear your smartphone under these circumstances. You’ll come back inside with plenty of clear-headed ideas and a highly appreciative spouse.

Macro View

Stocks rose yesterday, with the Dow and Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index rising to new highs and the Nasdaq reached its highest point since November 2000—that right, 13 years ago.  “The main things driving the market — the Fed, earnings, consumer confidence — are holding up, and people put money in the market on any down day. I still see a lot of value,” he said.

In signs that the rally may strengthen from current levels, the Credit Suisse Fear Barometer, known as the CSFB Index, fell 11.4 points over the last two weeks — the largest decline on record — and was now at a one-year low of 21.73.

And, if you still don’t think the fear/greed pendulum has officially swung over to the avarice side, it seems the IPO market is back—in a big way. U.S. companies are on track to raise the most money through initial public offerings since before the financial crisis, driven by the same thirst for risk among investors that has pushed the stock market to new highs. According to Dealogic, 64 U.S.-listed public offerings have raised $16.8 billion already this year. In the same period in 2012, the biggest year in dollars since the financial crisis, 73 companies raised a total of $13.1 billion. Last week alone brought 11 U.S.-listed IPOs, making it the busiest week for such deals since December 2007.

Conclusion

Technology is not going away. The trick is to stay up to speed on as many tools, apps and devices as you can, without becoming a slave to them or feeling like you’re constantly behind the curve. Don’t do it alone. Ask as many smart people as you can, and make sure you have a few friends, confidants or advisors who are significantly younger and more intrepid than you. Regardless of your age, there’s always a smart person in your circle who’s a little younger, more plugged in, and who has more free time for experimentation than you. As Tino Mantella, head of the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) told me the other day, “You don’t have to be first on the wave, you just have to be ready to catch it when it comes.”

Tags: CSFB fear index, Dealogic, e-Verifile, no email Fridays, Tino Mantella, TAG


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Is video advertising worth it?

Nearly 10 Billion Video Ads Viewed in February
But, web users increasingly fed up with lousy ads

If you think advertising is starting to intrude on your favorite video sites like springtime dandelions on your lawn, you’re not alone. According to comScore, 178 million Americans watched 33 billion online content videos in February, while the number of video ad views reached 9.9 billion and time spent watching video ads totaled 3.8 billion minutes. Video ads reached more than 50 percent of the total U.S. population an average of 63 times during the month and video ads accounted for 23 percent of all videos viewed.

But, before you put all your marketing eggs into the video basket, please make sure you can deliver high quality, relevant video messages to your target market or be prepared for backlash—fast and furious backlash and negative brand equity. Hint to do-it-yourselfers: don’t forget about the importance of good lighting and high quality sound. Invest a few bucks in a tabletop or lavaliere microphone.

According to InsightsOne, with Harris Interactive, the vast majority of American adults 18 and over (87%) are putting their foot down on the number of irrelevant ads they are willing to tolerate before they ignore a company completely. One in four Americans (23%) say they will do so after seeing just one spam email or online ad, and 43 percent say they will ignore a company completely after seeing as many as two.
Annoying ads are pervasive, says the report, with 91 percent of Americans reporting they see them. While email spam and junk mail tend to get the most attention, many Americans are annoyed by website ad spam, email spam/sidebar ads, postal junk mail, television ads and ads on social media.

If you advertise or promote your firm on the web take note: 36 percent of web users who’ve been flooded with online ad spam say they will leave a website because of too many irrelevant ads, and many more feel that the company doing the advertising doesn’t respect their time. In terms of email, 60 percent will unsubscribe from future messages, but 45 percent will simply ignore future communications.

Men less tolerant than women

According to InsightsOne research, Men were statistically more likely than women to take certain actions, including:

• Stop using the product (17% vs. 11%)
• Boycott the company doing the advertising (16% vs. 10%)
• Respond angrily (7% vs. 3%)
• Hit their computer or mobile device in frustration (5% vs. 3%)
• Feel the company doesn’t respect their time (30% vs. 22%)

Macro View

With interest rates low and corporate earnings surprisingly solid, the equity markets continue to flirt with record highs. Weekly applications for jobless benefits fell to a five year low. U.S. employers maintained steady hiring in April, alleviating widespread concerns about the economy heading into a spring slowdown. Economists say the job gains don't reflect a rapidly growing economy, but they provided enough relief to markets Friday to boost stocks into record territory.

Conclusion

The web is one of the most powerful, cost-effective tools ever invented for reaching your target market. But, if you don’t respect your target market’s time or really understand what your clients/prospects are interested in—at their current stage in the purchase consideration cycle—then it can be devastating to your firm’s brand name and reputation.

Tags: InsightOne, Harris interactive, video advertising, intrusive advertising

A great time to be self-motivated. Are you up for it?

If you think you’ve been making more and more important decisions on your own these days, you’re not alone. From your 401(k), to your healthcare, to the clients your retain, to where and how you live, work and worship, we live in an increasingly self-directed world.

As Thomas Friedman (The World Is Flat), noted in an op-ed piece today, “something really big happened in the world’s wiring in the last decade, but it was obscured by the financial crisis and post-9/11.” Thanks to social media, 4G, iProducts, broadband, wireless, the cloud,  Big Data, Skype and apps, we’re now more connected than ever, Friedman observes, so there are more ways for people to “start stuff, collaborate on stuff, learn stuff, make stuff (and destroy stuff) with more people than ever before.”

Friedman and others have noted that if you’re self-motivated, it’s a great time to be alive. Many of the barriers that used to slow you down are gone, but a lot more responsibility rests on you. A big, company, firm, union, or government isn’t there to hold your hand as much anymore.

Warning shot to those ‘mailing it in’

“But, if you’re not self-motivated, this world will be a challenge, because the walls, ceilings and floors that protected people are also disappearing,” observed Friedman.

Now most of you on this distribution list are among the most highly motivated, highly creative, highly caffeinated people we know. If not, you would have opted-out a long time ago and that’s why we love you.

Our blog and the conclusion to this post has more.

Macro View

Whether or not you think the market’s run into record territory is sustainable, we’re starting to see signs of real support (not because there’s nowhere else for investors to put their money). Average single family home prices rose 9.3 percent in February, their fastest rate in almost seven years according to the S&P/Case Shiller index yesterday. Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said Monday that consumer spending rose another 0.2 percent in March, following a 1 percent increase in the January to February period. Personal income and after-tax income also rose in March. Experts say higher incomes are helping to offset the end of the two-year (2%) Social Security tax holiday on workers’ paychecks. What’s more, this week’s stock market rise has been fueled by tech companies, which had been laggards earlier in the year due to investor concern over weak business spending and concerns over sluggish overseas sales.

Conclusion

While many businesses, economists and market watchers are waiting for a rebound from this slow growth economy, we see today’s environment as the new normal. There are still big opportunities in a slow-growth economy, and the winners will be those firms who can increase their margins, not necessarily their topline revenue or billings. While others see threats, danger, disintermediation and loss of turf in this self-directed world, you see opportunity. No single firm, company or product really owns the marketplace anymore--and if they do, they don’t get to own it for long. Celebrate your agility, not your lack of resources.

It’s on you now. Don’t ever take your foot off the accelerator. Just stay focused and keep your eyes on the road at all times.

Tags: Thomas Friedman, The World Is Flat, S&P/Case Shiller index, 4G, iProducts, broadband, wireless, the cloud,  Big Data, Skype and apps

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Which marketing content delivers the best ROI?

We’ve talked about the rapid adoption of content marketing lately, but not all thought leadership content has the same perceived value. When it comes to featured articles, new research finds that “who said it” is just as important as “what was said” if not more so. Let me explain.

According to the new Copy Press State of Content Marketing Study, two-thirds (65.6%) of the 329 surveyed marketing decision makers said that authorship played a key role in their strategies. They preferred articles that contained a byline as opposed to articles posted under a brand name only. In fact, 41 percent said they would pay at least TWICE as much more for content created by a popular author. And with all due respect to popular social networking platforms, the word “authorship” is far more likely to be associated with blogging (56% agree), than with Google (31%), Facebook (9%), Twitter (3%) or Tumblr (1%).

Thought leadership content with best ROI

In terms of ROI, bylined feature articles topped the list, cited by 62 percent of respondents. Video was next at 52 percent, followed by white papers (46%), photos (38%) and interactive media (36%).

·       
 -- Bylined articles 62%
--Video 52%
--White papers 46%
--Photos 38%
--Interactive media 36%

Note: While video and interactive media scored high on ROI scale, they also topped the list of content considered “Difficult and expensive to create, but we want to do more.” You don’t have to overpay to get great results. Our Free Resources page has examples of low-cost, high impact videos that we’ve created for clients.

Macro View

Markets quickly swung back into record territory yesterday, shrugging off a series of bogus Associated Press tweets alleging that there had been an explosion at the White House and that the President had been injured. All BS of course, but enough to spook traders temporarily.

More good economic news: The National Association of Realtors (NAR) said that existing home sales in March were 10.3 percent higher than a year earlier. Housing analysts said low supply, combined with rising demand for housing, could accelerate construction in the months ahead. According to NAR, buyer traffic was 25 percent higher than a year ago.

Meanwhile, the median home price rose 11.8 percent from February to March to $184,300, the biggest one-month gain since 2005. Things look even rosier at the high end of the market where many of your clients and prospects reside. For instance, sales of homes priced from $500,000 to $750,000 jumped 25.3 percent from a year earlier. By contrast, sales of homes priced from $100,000 to $250,000 rose just 7.1 percent.

What’s more, according to the American Affluence Research Center’s semi-annual tracking study of the nation’s wealthiest households, more than half said they do NOT plan to reduce their expenditures in major categories over the next year (including autos, homes, home improvements, vacations and travel) and 60 percent expect their incomes to be the same or higher over the next year.


Conclusion

Whether it’s an article, video, white paper, research report or tweet, putting your name behind what you say substantially increases your credibility and the potential for being shared by your clients, prospects and professional colleagues. If you decide to enlist the services of high profile authors or content production experts, don’t be cheap. Quality always wins out in the long run, but remember everything these days is negotiable. Get the best help you can possibly afford, but always cut yourself a good deal. You’ll be glad you did.

Tags: Fake tweets, White House Explosion, American Affluence Research Center, blogging, Copy Press State of Content Marketing Study 

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Life Is a Marathon, Not a Sprint

Yesterday’s tragic events at the finish line of the venerable Boston Marathon will do little too diminish the spirit of the international running community, large city event organizers and the American public at large. If you’re currently training for a marathon or other major personal goal, don’t let yesterday’s senseless tragedy curtail your plans. If you’ve ever considered training for a marathon or major personal goal, now might be a good time to do so. If a friend or loved one is soon planning to participate in a major milestone test of their mettle, don’t be afraid to go out and cheer them on. They need you out there. We need you out there. Otherwise the coward(s) who planned yesterday's events will have won. 

You can’t live your life in fear. No matter how diligently we try to secure, insure, lock down and risk-manage our public spaces, there’s no place that can be made 100 percent safe. Humans are social animals and they’ll continue to congregate in large numbers to cheer their everyday heroes on. The coward(s) who tried to derail Boston’s largest annual celebration of human achievement will soon be forgotten like a blister on a proud finisher’s instep or the 4 year-old smelly sneakers at the back of your closet. Unlike the runners, the wannabe terrorists who cooked up yesterday’s disruption fell far short of their intended goals. Hats off to Boston’s race organizers, emergency personnel and good Samaritans in the crowd for that.

What B2B professionals can learn from runners

From the international elite runners to back-of-the-packers, marathon runners are a hard-boiled, nose-to-the grindstone resourceful lot. They train mostly in obscurity, battling their inner demons more so than their competitors. They draw attention to themselves only begrudgingly. They thrive on consistency, goal-setting and perseverance, pushing their limits both mentally and physically.

Distance runners generally don’t have super-human size, strength, blazing speed or extraordinary leaping ability. They don’t slam dunk, hit home runs, do touchdown dances, hit holes-in-one or throw down 720s from the top of the half-pipe. They’ve simply found a way to get the most of the endurance gene we all have inside of us and put one foot in front of the other on days when others hit the snooze button, pull the covers over their heads, skip the gym and go out for brunch.

Like any successful marketing campaign, runners know you need to be consistent, stick to your discipline, make midcourse corrections when needed and suck it up when things go wrong. No excuses.

Conclusion

Like B2B marketing, running’s an incredibly simple thing to do. It’s also a very hard thing to do well. What the bad guys don’t get is that all 25,000 runners accomplished their goal just by making it to the starting line. The race itself was simply  the icing--the reward for months of personal sacrifice, nagging injuries and long lonely miles leading up to the event. And for those who were senselessly injured yesterday, they’ll find a way to recover and come back stronger and more determined than ever to toe the line. That’s something the bad guys can never take away.

Disclosure: The author of today’s post is a former national class age-group runner who has completed 18 marathons, including Boston twice and is listed in Who’s Who in USA Track & Field.

Tags: Boston Marathon, #boston marathon explosion, Overcoming adversity. What B2B marketers can learn from runners.

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Sponsored Content Is Here to Stay

Do it the right way and you’ll be rewarded in spades. Disrespect the rules and your brand, or firm reputation will be punished.
Whether you call it branded content, brand journalism, advertorial, sponsored editorial or native advertising, sponsored content is gaining more and more adoption as an effective way for marketers to tell your story to an audience that’s increasingly immune to intrusive banner ads, broadcast commercials, sponsored links and social media.

In this form of marketing, an advertiser/sponsor will create, or hire outside writers to create, articles, videos, blog posts or white papers and more that talk about solving a problem that your industry peers face. You can hint at the benefits of your product or service category without specifically touting your brand or company name. In many cases the sponsored content can run alongside or commingled with the regular editorial content.

Sunday’s New York Times addressed this trend (“Sponsors Now Pay for Online Articles, Not Just Ads”). While geared toward a consumer audience and big media enterprises, the article contained some valuable lessons for those of you in B2B marketing, particularly technology, finance and professional services.

While traditional journalists find this approach a violation of “church and state,” sponsored content is proving to be very effective when executed well and as readers, viewers and followers become increasingly comfortable with this medium.

Here are some reasons why you should consider adding sponsored content to your overall marketing mix:

·         Fill a content hole. Many of the outlets in which you would consider advertising are in need of high value content. Staffs are being cut back at a time when their news cycle is increasing.

·         Expertise. It’s very simple. Follow the money. Many of the top experts in your field work for the best paying companies or firms in your business—they’re  not journalists, analysts or academics who simply follow the business. They’re in the trenches every day, just like their peers.

·         Sharpen your message. Creating sponsored content, or helping your outside contractors create it for you, forces you to really nail down your messaging points and key value proposition. It’s a great exercise.

·         Gain a following. Creating high-value sponsored content consistently for a respected publication or website will keep you on the radar as an industry thought leader.  Twitter followers, Facebook Likes and Pinterest pins are nice, but nothing’s going to bring you client leads like being a “published author” or “frequent commentator” for an industry-leading media outlet.

*** IMPORTANT: When utilizing sponsored content, always keep it above board—the way you would if presenting at an industry conference. If you do, you’ll be perceived as sharing knowledge with your profession, not shilling your product. Whatever you do, just don’t insult the reader’s intelligence or disrespect their time. Kindly spend the time to create an accurate headline, subhead and some key bullet points at the top, so your piece can be quickly scanned for future consideration. Don’t waste time with a lengthy abstract

Macro View

As earning season gets under way, the stock markets passed a good early test this week, recovering most of its losses from last week to close midweek at or near their all-time highs. Three other things caught our eye this week. First, wholesalers may have reduced their inventories too much in February the Commerce Department said, suggesting that businesses had underestimated consumer demand.
Second, many analysts are projecting that consumer spending rose at a 3-percent annual rate in Q1/2013, far ahead of the 0.4 percent pace in the first quarter of 2012.

Finally, collector car sales are booming in the luxury market. For the year ahead, as all the major auction houses have sales in Arizona. Statistics from the 2013 Scottsdale/Phoenix sales indicate that the year is shaping up to show strong results:

• Number of auctions: six over five days
• Number of lots sold: 2,234
• Total sales: $223.8 million, up 22% from 2012
• Average sale price: $100,176, up 18% from 2012
• Total sales neared the record 2007 levels
• Knight Frank, a UK based consultancy, published a luxury index in March 2013 which noted that vintage car prices rose 395 percent in ten years leading up to September 2012. That growth outpaced gold coins, fine art and collectible wine. The current ten year return on the S&P 500 is roughly 80 percent.

Conclusion

Writing is easy. Writing well is hard work. Who knew? Take the time to tell your story right, respect your audience’s time and intelligence and the benefits will come back to you in spades.


Tags: Sponsored content, content marketing, car collectors, 2013 Scottsdale/Phoenix sales, Knight Frank luxury car index

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Generation Gap or Gap in Understanding?

For marketers, it’s not who they are, but what makes them tick

Bill Schroer, head of social marketing firm WJSchroer Company has new definitions of the generations that make up our diverse population. Since many of you are in financial services, technology or trade associations, these generational differences can have significant implications for how your sell, market and support your services. Again, these age year cut-offs do not strictly distinguish one group from the next, but we’ve found they can be  very helpful for your long term planning and budgeting. If nothing else, see how these different age groupings vary when it comes to how they view things like trust, respecting authority and the word “join.”

1.The Depression Era: Born 1912-1921
(11-12 million population and declining rapidly)

Depression era individuals came of age in the 1930s. These 90-somethings tend to be conservative, compulsive savers, maintain low debt and use more secure financial products. Tend to be patriotic, oriented toward work before pleasure, respect for authority, have a sense of moral obligation.

2. World War II: Born 1922 to 1927
(11 million population declining quickly)

People in this group, aged 86 to 90, which came of age in the early 1940s, shared in a common goal of defeating the Axis powers. There was an accepted sense of “deferment” among this group, contrasted with the emphasis on “me” in more recent cohorts.

3. Post-War Cohort: Born 1928-1945
(41 million population, declining)

This generation, aged 68 to 85, had significant opportunities in jobs and education as the War ended and a post-war economic boom struck America. The growth in Cold War tensions, the potential for nuclear war and other never before seen threats, led to levels of discomfort and uncertainty throughout the generation. Members of this group value security, comfort, and familiar, known activities and environments.

4. Boomers I or The Baby Boomers: Born 1946-1954
(33 million population)

The much-celebrated Baby Boomers are really two groups, according to Schroer. Boomers I, aged 59 to 67, were born between 1945 and 1964. It doesn’t make sense to compare those born in 1964 with those born in 1946, he argues. Attitudes, behaviors and society are vastly different. The first Boomer segment is bounded by the Kennedy and Martin Luther King assassinations, the Civil Rights movements and the Vietnam War. Boomers I were in or protested the War. Boomers I had good economic opportunities and were largely optimistic about the potential for America and their own lives.

Boomers II or Generation Jones: Born 1955-1965
(49 million population)

This first post-Watergate generation, aged 48 to 58, lost much of its trust in government and optimistic views the Boomers I maintained. Economic struggles including the oil embargo of 1979 reinforced a sense of “I’m out for me” and narcissism and a focus on self-help and skepticism over media and institutions is representative of attitudes of this cohort. While Boomers I had Vietnam, Boomers II had AIDS as part of their rites of passage.

5.Generation X: Born 1966-1976
(41 million population)

Sometimes referred to as the “lost” generation or “latchkey” kids, these 37 to 47 year-olds were exposed to lots of daycare and divorce growing up. Known as the generation with the lowest voting participation rate of any generation, Gen Xers were quoted by Newsweek as “the generation that dropped out without ever turning on the news or tuning in to the social issues around them.” Gen X is often characterized by high levels of skepticism, “what’s in it for me” attitudes and a reputation for some of the worst music to ever gain popularity. William Morrow cited the childhood divorce of many Gen Xers as “one of the most decisive experiences influencing how Gen Xers will shape their own families.”

7. Generation Y, Echo Boomers or Millenniums: Born 1977-1994
(71 million population)

The largest cohort since the Baby Boomers. Gen Y kids, aged 19 to 36,are known as incredibly sophisticated, technology wise, immune to most traditional marketing and sales pitches...as they not only grew up with it all, they’ve seen it all and been exposed to it all since early childhood. Gen Y members are more racially and ethnically diverse and more segmented as an audience aided by the rapid expansion in Cable TV channels, satellite radio, the Internet, e-zines, etc. Gen Y are less brand loyal and the speed of the Internet has led the cohort to be flexible and changing in its fashion, style consciousness and where and how it is communicated with. One in nine Gen Yers has a credit card co-signed by a parent.

8. Generation Z: Born 1995-2012 (23 million and growing rapidly)

While we don’t know much about Gen Z yet, says Schroer, we know a lot about the environment in which these kids 18 and under are growing up. Their highly diverse environment will make the grade schools of the next generation the most diverse ever. Higher levels of technology will make significant inroads in academics allowing for customized instruction, data mining of student histories to enable pinpoint diagnostics and remediation or accelerated achievement opportunities. Gen Z kids will grow up with a highly sophisticated media and computer environment and will be more Internet savvy and expert than their Gen Y forerunners.

Macro View

Auto sales in March surged to the highest level in five years and the factories orders rose to the highest level in five months, according to the Commerce Department. So, with this positive news on the “tangible goods” side and stock markets trading at or near their all-time highs, many wonder why unemployment is still persistently high (U.S. and abroad).

Jeffrey D. Sachs, a professor of sustainable development and director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University, cited “deeply disruptive forces” in his New York Time op-ed piece Monday. According to Sachs, “rapidly evolving information technology, globalization and environmental stresses — are radically reshaping the jobs market. Decent jobs for low-skilled workers have virtually disappeared. Some have been relegated to China and emerging economies, while others have been lost to robotics and computerization.” As a result, we have two sharply diverging jobless measures. According to Sachs, 3.1 million new jobs have been created for college graduates since 2008, while 4.3 million jobs have disappeared for high-school graduates and those without a high school diploma. He predicts this education and employment gap will continue and become even more severe.

Conclusion

Now more than ever, there’s no longer a one-size-fits-all marketing solution for your products and services and there’s no longer a one-statistic-fits-all measure for the health (or lack thereof) of our complex global economy. Be smart and do your homework making any important business decisions. Even in this hyper-competitive business climate, it’s still better to be right than to be first.


Tags: Jeffrey Sachs, Earth Institute, Columbia University, Boomers, Generation X,Y,Z, Echo

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Before Bashing Banner Ads

They’re a symptom of the problem--not THE problem

Brian Morrissey’s post on Digiday last week (“15 Alarming Stats About Banner Ads”) has sparked a lot of controversy from the marketing community. Here is a sampling of the distressing stats he shared:

* 50 percent of clicks are accidental
* The 468 x 60 banner has a .04 percent click rate
* An estimated 31 percent of ad impressions can’t be viewed by users

Oy.

Before we weigh in, take a peek at this online discussion related to Morrissey’s post

One commenter stressed the importance of balance: “Make sure the banners are limited, targeted for the specific needs of your audience, and are unobtrusive. Respect your space and your audience.” Amen.
Another commenter disagreed with the Morrissey’s stats arguing that for those in businesses “where a single new client can generate enough revenue to pay for years of banner ads they are great! The trick is to use good banner ads.” Right on.

Said another, “My peers and I stopped using the CTR to measure the performance of display ads around 3 years ago because it is not an accurate determinant of performance. A good example is a study by Google TechTarget which demonstrated that 44 percent of people who click on paid search were exposed to a banner ad prior to that click. However, most marketers and agencies simply use the first and or last click to measure the performance of digital marketing and in that case display was not getting any performance attribution to the campaigns. They’re selling themselves and their marketing activities short.” Amen again.

Morrissey’s stats are disturbing, but rather than throwing in the towel on banner ads, let’s throw in the towel on ineffective online advertising. Remember that banner ads are one of the cheapest, fastest, least complicated forms of online advertising. They’ve made it easy for armies of lazy, overworked, inexperienced or otherwise unprofessional marketers to get into the game. So what you’re seeing on a lot of websites is a dumping ground for poorly executed and untargeted creative out there by the B and C team. In other words, it’s not the creative assigned to the A team who focuses on the higher priority, more expensive media channels.

Remember, banner ads are just one device in a B2B marketer’s bulging tool kit. And whether or not someone clicks on a banner, hovers over it, or takes further action on it, such as downloading or purchasing from the advertiser, the result of that action is not necessarily the result of the single banner the consumer just viewed.

As far back as 2002-2003, my colleague Rick Telberg and I starting exploring the “latency” effect of online advertising and other cause and effect relationships. Our report “Beyond the Click” still gets plenty of inquiries.

Macro View

The S&P 500 index is now at or near its all-time peak reached in October 2007. Interest rates appear holding steady and housing continues to rebound in all major metro areas around the country. With a 10.2 percent gain over last year’s level, existing home sales continued to climb in February. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the sales rate was the highest since November 2009 when a federal tax credit was propping up home sales. Economists say inventory has been tightening because construction levels are still low, adding little new housing stock, and homeowners are waiting to sell until they have more positive equity.

That’s the big picture, but drilling down, two statistical nuggets caught our eye:

1) First, sales of distressed homes — foreclosures and short sales — accounted for 25 percent of sales, that still a lot, but quite a bit better than 34 percent at this time a year ago.

2) Second, homes were on the market for a median of 74 days. That’s 24 percent better than year-ago levels, according to NAR.

Conclusion

In this era of Big Data and obsessive measurement, it’s easy to suffer from analysis paralysis. Let’s put away the spreadsheets and algorithms for a while and get back to being creative. That doesn’t mean tricking a consumer into clicking (or scanning) on your ad creative. It means finding an emotional connection that draws them to you because you have something to offer them of value at a time when they really need it. Budgets should be loosening up a little in 2013. Let’s not waste this opportunity.

Tags: Brian Morrissey, Digiday, National Association of Realtors, banner ads not working, TechTarget

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Know Everything About Email? Think Again

Intro lines just as important as subject lines. Facebook burnout on the horizon?
We’ve all spent hours agonizing over our email subject lines—and it’s true—they do matter. But, don’t forget about the intro line of your client or customer emails. That’s the first two or three lines of text that users see immediately after the subject line. Intro lines are even more important for mobile users since subject lines are typically cut off for mobile users. According to Incentivibe, which specializes in shared giveaways for business, marketers should use the intro line to hammer home the offer and the benefit in 65 to 85 words. That’s long enough to convey your message and call to action, but not too long to lose your recipients’ interest.

Getting ‘inactives’ re-engaged

Like most B2B marketers, you probably have tons of inactive subscribers on your lists and it’s not helping your deliverability stats to keep them on the list. Some of you are probably trying to re-engage them from time to time, but sending a once-a-year “we want you back” email does little good, according to digital marketing company, Silverpop. Experts say that’s waiting way too long.

It’s better to identify inactives and cull them out after a few months of inactivity. But instead of deep-sixing, put them on a separate “activation track” in which you try to engage them by sending different types of content than you’d send your main list. For instance: Ask them to update their preferences in one email and send a survey of white paper in the next. Also try to find out why they’re inactive. Are there any patterns? See if your inactives fall into a particular demographic group, geographic group or industry category. See if they tend to come from one or two activation sources. Those are red flags that savvy B2B marketers will remedy ASAP.

Facebook burnout?

New research indicates that Facebook may be losing its luster for many users. How do you like that? More than one fourth of users (27%) say they plan to spend less time on the site according to a new study from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. Only 3 percent expect to spend more time on the site. And here’s what really got our attention: the group most likely to cut back their Facebook time are the 18-29 year olds. While more than two in five (41%) of FB’s one billion global users access the site multiple times per day, we know that large numbers of users rarely or never access the site—it’s probably moving to the 80/20 rule—the 20 percent most active users account for 80 percent of the regular usage.

Conclusion

There’s no substitute for a snappy, relevant subject line, but no matter how clever your marketing team is, if they don’t follow it up with a relevant intro line, you’re like a baseball team that can’t score runs after it gets runners to third base. With 82 percent of marketers planning to increase their investment in mobile this year (Source: American Marketing Association and Aquent poll of U.S. marketing professionals), can you afford email copy that’s not optimized for your on-the-go clients and prospects?

TAGS: Facebook burnout, American Marketing Association, Aquent, Incentivibe, Pew Research Center, Silverpop

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We’re Recovering, but Not Fully Recovered

Why B2B marketers need to be on LinkedIn

Social media doesn’t kill businesses. Lousy posts do. So whether you love it or hate it, you can’t ignore social media. But at the same time, you can’t be all things to all people. If you’re overwhelmed and a little frustrated by the amount and time and effort it takes to keep up with all your business and professional networks, we suggest keeping LinkedIn on your “must save” list before you start trimming. A recent HubSpot study of more than 5,000 businesses found that, LinkedIn was 277 percent more effective for lead generation than Facebook and Twitter.

We’re not bashing the other popular social networking channels, but if you have to “heavy up” on a single social networking channel, then LinkedIn will probably give you the best bang for your time buck if you’re at least reasonably well-established in your profession or industry.

As Wall Street Journal’s Kate Mitchell reported yesterday, “the quickest way to earn respect and build a reputation on all social media, including LinkedIn, is to showcase your knowledge on topics relevant to your business. Don’t confuse this with only pushing your own agenda, but rather contributing a distinct point of view on topics relevant to your industry.”

LinkedIn has an extensive network of groups where thought leaders post discussions relevant to a particular market or topic. Furthermore, you can create your own groups to lead discussions. For example, a  report by Forrester and LinkedIn notes that nearly three in five (59%) IT decision makers “rely” on social networks for purchasing decisions, yet many companies don’t take advantage of the lead generation that can come from customizing their LinkedIn page.

Macro View

With all the hype surrounding the record stock market highs, the one number that jumped out at us the most was that CBOE Volatility Index. That’s the so-called “fear gauge” and it just fell to its lowest level since February 2007. Market watchers say this indicates the market is no longer as easily unnerved by small corrections or by turmoil in other parts of the world. For now, the recovery in housing, the stock market and the overall economy has gained some solid footing, even though economists argue the Big 3 indicators are not specifically related to each other.

So just as we kept telling to maintain hope throughout the dark days of 2008-2009, now we’re telling you to keep your eyes on the road as there are plenty of potholes that could derail this recovery (i.e. perceived recovery). Congress can’t seem to make any progress on the budget crisis and the national debt. The full impact of the March 1 sequester won’t be felt immediately and hot spots in Europe, Asia and the Middle East could easily deflate the confidence of businesses and consumers large and small.

Conclusion

You can’t stop marketing right now just because you’re flush with leads and cash. Just choose your investments wisely and pick your fights where you can win them. And by all means, if you haven’t given your best employees the raises and promotions they deserve. Do so ASAP or they’ll be out the door before you can say, “brain drain.”

A recent article in the New York Times shared the harrowing tales of job seekers who’ve had excessive interviews with companies that never hired them (or anyone else). We have a couple of important takeaways for both job seekers and companies if anything like this sounds familiar to you:

1) For employers: There is no such thing as a "perfect candidate" because businesses (and non profits) have to evolve much faster than they did before. A perfect candidate today, may not have the skill set (and right cultural fit) for your organization a year or two down the road.

2) If you are a job seeker and have been invited back for interviews half a dozen times or more, that's probably a red flag that the hiring company cannot make decisions in other areas of its business. Chances are you will be stifled in that kind of inertia-driven environment if you're "lucky" enough to get the job.

Disregard our advice if you're applying for Supreme Court Justice, CIA head or Fortune 500 CEO. More on that later.

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TAGS: LinkedIn, lead gen, B2B, CBOE volatility, fear gauge, Forrester Research

Surviving the Sequester

Important numbers for B2B marketers

Just like Y2K, 12/21/12 and the Fiscal Cliff, the world didn’t come to an end on March 1 when Congress failed to come to a consensus on the budget. The resulting “sequester” may actually be a silver lining to the economic clouds (see below). Key learning point here: Don’t let any of your clients or prospects use the prospect of automatic federal spending cuts as an excuse to delay a decision. By the time they get the all clear signal, it will be too late for them to regain market share they lost by not investing appropriately in their marketing, advertising and demand generation programs.

Important numbers for B2B marketers

Like it or not, most of you who read this blog regularly are numbers people. You may not think of yourself as a “quant” or a “cruncher,” but you’re measured regularly by your clients, prospects, superiors and board by quantifiable measures of the return on your marketing investments. Here are some quick stats that we think you’ll find useful in your next planning session.

Tweet the numbers. Market research firm Compendium says including numbers with your tweets will result in 50 percent more clicks for B2B marketers. Again, you’re not in the consumer space where tweeting with numbers provides only a 3.5 percent lift.

Tweet with substance. Sure Twitter’s character limit is pretty, uh limiting, but Compendium found that B2B buyers were drawn to tweets of 11 to 15 words, not the 1-to-5 word tweets that resonate with consumer marketers. If you can produce 11 to 15 meaningful word in just 144 characters, that’s where your skill comes out.

Blog 300. According to Internet Marketing Report (IMR), Google rates blog posts of more than 300 words as valuable content and posts of less than 300 words as “fringe content.” If your goal is to improve your search engine optimization and overall Google presence, then go long (provided you can remain relevant) and try to publish on the same day(s) each week.

Blog 1-2x. According to IMR, One or two well-crafted blog posts each week will do more than daily or more frequent posts that don’t have any substance.

Macro View
Despite mandatory federal spending cuts imposed by the sequester, it’s hard to argue that the overall economic outlook is trending upward. Not a sharp hockey stick mind you, but a gradual upward slope nonetheless. Here are some signs we like:

·         * Banks are lending more to business and industry.

·         * Consumers are more confident and are buying more new homes (and fixing them up).

·         * Sales of new homes jumped nearly 16 percent in January to their highest level in 4-1/2 years.

·         * Home prices were almost 7 percent higher in December 2012 than they were in December 2011.That was the
  biggest year-over-year increase since July 2006.

·         *  Residential fixed investment, which includes spending on home improvements, advanced 17.5 percent in the  
  fourth quarter

      * The Commerce Department revised its stats upward on business spending in Q4—to a 9.7 percent gain, from
  its initial estimate of an 8.4 percent gain        

             * The financial markets continued the momentum started in January and are near their all-time highs

·         * The Conference Board consumer confidence index surged to 69.6 in February from 58.4 January suggesting that     

        consumers are getting used to their 2-percent smaller paychecks.

Surviving the Sequester

The $85 billion in automatic U.S. federal spending cuts may not be all that bad. In an interview on the DJ FX Trader podcast, Sri-Kumar, president of Sri-Kumar Global Strategies said the so-called sequester is actually a longer-term positive for both the U.S. economy and the U.S. dollar. Say again?!?

"This is a pain which ought not to be avoided,” he said. For one, the equity market needs to see a significant correction that reflects the “fundamental problems” the U.S. economy has, and that could happen Friday, Sri-Kumar said. More importantly, the U.S. needs to get its fiscal act together, and the sequester is one way to do it, despite the likely negative short-term impact.

Conclusion

The government may finally do something that cash-strapped homeowners have been forced to do for years—get their house in order and then spruce it up. Check out the lines this weekend at your local Home Depot or gardening center. Bet they’re longer than usual.

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TAGS: Sri-Kumar Global Strategies, housing market, sequester, business confidence