Blog - Page 79 of 181 - McLellan Marketing Group

Are you keeping an eye on your bucket?

March 2, 2010

No….not that bucket!

Many of us are burning the candle at both ends and in the middle. Our companies have been “right-sized” which is a nice way of saying — same amount of work, fewer people to do it.

We’re trying to keep up on the trends and changes in our industry, use social media to create a personal brand (and grow our companies) and stay connected to our customers.

Then, there’s that little thing called new business. We’re all trying to hold and grow our market share, our market presence and build the brand.

Oh right…don’t forget about the charity boards, volunteering at our kid’s school and just managing our personal lives.

And we’re on call 24/7. Our devices makes sure of that.

Whew! No wonder we feel like we’re running on empty much of the time.

So here’s my question for you. How do you re-fill your bucket? How do you make sure you have enough in the tank to keep going? How do you stay physically, mentally and emotionally replenished?

Here are some of the things that work for me, but I’m looking forward to hearing your tips and tricks.

I serve others: Part of the reason I volunteer my time and share my talents is because it fills me up to know that I am using my gifts the way I believe God wants me to — in service of others. I only volunteer and sit on boards for organizations that I genuinely believe in — and care deeply about. That way, I can take immense pride in the work they ultimately do and my small role in it.

I have professional support squads: I learned a long time ago that I needed to bond and hang with other business owners who understood my worries, pains and joys. Through the years, I have either created or joined a small handful of groups that serve as my sounding board, my safe place to vent and my think tank.

But…perhaps most of all — they are some of my biggest cheerleaders. They believe in me and my abilities and when I am feeling like I can’t quite cross the finish line — their encouragement helps me push through.

I’m a dad: First and foremost — at the core of my being, I am my daughter’s dad. Having declared her as my absolute priority helps me find balance and give me permission to never miss a play, or pick her up after school and hang with her rather than schedule yet one more meeting that day.

I travel: My job affords me the opportunity to get on a plane and go somewhere at least once a month. I know for some people, traveling is a huge hassle but I like it. I’m rarely gone for more than 3 days — but in those few days, I am gloriously alone. It is more than a rare treat. It is absolutely replenishing.

I create an oasis where I can: I know I’m not going to get big blocks of “me” time. I’m not going to sit and watch an entire baseball game without multi-tasking or just do nothing for a couple hours. My life isn’t structured that way.

So I take little mini-breaks where I can get them. Music is healing for me, so I will often turn off my phone’s ringer, really crank up my car stereo and just let the music fill me. I’ll take the dog for a walk just to breathe in the fresh air and get some think time in. Or I’ll watch some ridiculous show on VH1 to laugh with my daughter.

It’s hardly perfect. And it’s probably not enough. But those are some of the ways I stay sane and re-fuel myself so I can keep at it. How about you — how do you make sure that your bucket is full?

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How to create an iPhone or Droid app for your business

February 28, 2010

Last week I announced that the Drew McLellan iPhone and Droid apps were available. I also promised that I’d walk you through the process I went through to create the apps.

To give you the kind of detail I want to share, this is going to end up being a few blog posts, rather than one novella of a post! Today, let’s focus on who I was going to partner with to get the app done.

Exploring the options

Once I decided that I had better jump on the mobile bandwagon, I sought out Mike Sansone — who many of you may know, was my blog coach when I got started and is still my Go-To guy when I need to learn something new in the space.

I asked Mike to take me on a tour of the potential vendors and help me gauge the pros and cons of each. (A side note… there are many brilliant app designers out there but I knew I didn’t need or want something that custom. So I wanted an off the shelf solution that I could customize a bit to make it my own.)

Mike showed me the following sites:

iSites (http://isites.us): This is a new player to the space.

Pros:

Price was right… One time $25 fee if they got to choose the ads that appeared in your app’s footer banner (all family friendly) or $99 a year if you selected the ads you’d allow.
They’d do all the work of submission to Apple etc.
Also would build a Droid version
Allowed the app user to share your content via Facebook & Twitter
With the $99 version, you could monetize your app if you wanted

Cons:

You had to have ads on your footer banner
They are new in the space…not a lot of feedback (good or bad) about them yet
No push (send messages to app subscribers) yet

Mother Apps (http://www.motherapp.com/)

Pros:

Clearly vetted — Guy Kawasaki and Chris Brogan among others use them
Free if you allow ads (which you can share in the revenue), $99 a year for the no ad version
They’d do all the work of submission to Apple etc.
fast — you could have your app in the Apple Store within 7-10 days of submission

Cons:

Not a lot of customizing can be done — pretty much your blog feed, your Twitter feed and one other option (most use YouTube it seems)
No push (send messages to app subscribers) yet
No Droid or Blackberry versions yet (but their site says they are coming soon)

AppMakr (http://www.appmakr.com/)

Pros:

Lots of big names are using them (Inc., Seth Godin, AllTop)
Very fast turnaround (Could be available in a day or two)
$200 one time fee
They’d do all the work of submission to Apple etc.
Phone tech support available ($120/hour)
Can customize the app’s tabs

Cons:

No push (send messages to app subscribers)
No Droid or Blackberry versions yet

Mobile Roadie (http://www.mobileroadie.com/)

Pros:

Vetted and used by people like Dan Pink and Ashton Kutcher
Incredibly easy interface and content management tool
Publishes with built in multi-language support
Has push capabilities
Already building Droid apps too
They do all the work of submission to Apple, Droid, etc.
Lots of viral features — users can share your content via Facebook, Twitter, e-mail
No ads

Cons:

Most expensive of the bunch — $500 set up fee ($200 more if you want push)
$29/month fee

I’m sure there are other vendors out there — these are just the ones we looked at. As I learned more about what was available, I was also able to sort out my own priorities. Here’s how they shook out:

Ease of use — I wanted a content management system that I could handle on my own
I wanted to be able to share more than just my blog feed and tweets
I didn’t want to be limited to iPhone users so I wanted to publish for other platforms like the Droid
I wanted the push functionality
I wanted to be able to customize the navigation (both labels and order)
I wanted users to be able to share (Facebook, Twitter etc.) my content from the app
I wanted to be able to link to my books (with easy access to buy)

In the end, despite the higher cost — I decided on Mobile Roadie. They offered more customization and the ability for me to really include a wider variety of content in my app. But it was their content management system that really won me over.

In another post this week, I’ll give you a tour of just how easy it was for me to add content and create the look/feel of my app.

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How social media has changed my world

February 27, 2010

When I get into a conversation about social media — one of the questions people ask is "how do you find the time?" The truth is…I can't afford not to find the time. It's simply a part of my life/routine now.

Why? Because like the other things that are a part of my life — it matters.

It adds value.

Deborah Chaddock Brown recently wrote a post about the 7 things she loves about social media. She then asked a few of us to do the same.

(By the way…I'm pretty sure you could make the exact same 7 statements. If you couldn't — I challenge you to figure out how to change that ASAP.)

Thanks to social media, I'm smarter: Never before have I had more information at my fingertips. And when I have a question or want more — I just comment and voila, I get more.

Thanks to social media, I'm better connected: Social media removes artificial barriers. Bloggers, Tweeters, authors, experts — all willing to pick up their phone, answer an e-mail or fire back a text. Incredible.

Thanks to social media, I'm more informed: Different from smart — this is about immediacy. Remember when we had to wait for the evening news? That seems so archaic now.

Thanks to social media, I'm speaking across the country: Sure, I was doing this before social media…but now it's much easier. Conferences and event organizers find me rather than me having to market myself to them. I'm not longer a stranger — I'm Drew from the Marketing Minute blog.

Thanks to social media, I'm an author/editor of 3 additional books: Age of Conversation I, II and soon to be released III. If I had not met my friend (and co-editor) Gavin Heaton from Australia — it would have never happened. Not to mention meeting the 200+ authors from all three editions.

Thanks to social media,I'm more accessible: I love that people reach out to me on Facebook, LinkedIn, via e-mail and sometimes — just pick up the phone. There's probably not a city in the world where I couldn't travel and find a reader, collaborator and SM friend to grab a drink or get help if I needed it.

Thanks to social media, I've met all of you: I can't imagine not knowing you. Or not seeing you at a conference and getting a huge hug. Or getting a direct tweet with a question or atta boy now and then.

Social media has not only changed my world… it has rocked my world!

Thanks for being part of the ride!

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5 ways to building a committed team

February 26, 2010

If you want a powerful, profitable company — create a powerful team. If you want to create love affairs with your customers — create a passionate team. If you want to leave a legacy — create a committed team.

Your team. Nothing reflects on a business owner/leader more than the team they build around them.

So in this world of disposable everything — how do you, with genuine intention, bring that mythical team to life?

Let them have a voice: There are few things more frustrating than having no control over your environment. Whether it's how to handle summer hours, what charities your company will support or how a customer service policy should be amended — ask them. Ask them and listen.

At MMG, 90% of the company decisions are made collectively. I toss the problem/opportunity on the table and we talk about it. When we think we've covered all the bases, we find consensus and move forward. About 10% of the time, it's a decision I feel I have to ultimately make — but I want the team's input first. So I ask. And listen.

Don't be afraid to use the "L" word: My friend Steve Farber teaches us in his brilliant book Radical Leap that the word and the emotion love belong in business. That there's nothing wrong with loving your team, your clients and your work. In fact, I'd worry if you don't.

Make it mean something: I don't care what you do — it has a higher purpose. Jim Collins calls it a big, hairy audacious goal. A true BHAG is clear and compelling, serves as unifying focal point of effort, and acts as a clear catalyst for team spirit. It has a clear finish line, so the organization can know when it has achieved the goal; people like to shoot for finish lines. If you don't have one….your team needs you to create one.

Celebrate the big and little wins: This doesn't have to be "send the sales force to Vegas" sort of celebrations although there's nothing wrong with those either. It can be as simple as gathering everyone together for a quick high five. At MMG, we have a drum that when someone has big news (new client, big project successfully completed etc.) — we bang the drum and everyone comes to the conference room to hear what's up. It's about taking the moment. (And we're not always good at it either, so cut yourself some slack…but make it part of your culture!)

Thank them in surprising ways: Again — this doesn't have to be a grand gesture. Part of the fun of it is the surprise element. One of the goofier ones that I've done is this simple. Go buy gift cards for various places (iTunes, restaurants, your local grocery store etc.). Get enough so you have one for each person on your team. Then go buy the same number of Pringle's cans of chips. On the bottom of each Pringle's can — write a number 1- how many ever you bought. Spread the gift cards all over the conference room table and put all the Pringle's cans in the middle of the table, so no one can read the numbers.

Call in your team and tell them (with love) how proud you are of them or congratulate them on some client accomplishment or whatever. But…set the mood and tell them why you're doing this. Then, let each person randomly pick a Pringle's can. Whoever got the #1 can gets to pick among the gift cards first, etc.

It will take you 10 minutes, but they'll remember it for much longer than that.

Bottom line — building a rock solid team doesn't happen by accident. It is borne from love, gratitude and sharing a vision that matters. The good news is — it costs very little and the rewards for you, your team and your clients — is huge!

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Drew McLellan iPhone App: In case you want to carry me in your pocket!

February 24, 2010

True confession time….I feel a little silly. And yet a little smart at the same time.

Let me get to the smart part first. Here’s what I know to be true:

Our interaction with the web is shifting very quickly to mobile devices. It’s predicted by 2020 it will be the prevailing tool we use to access the internet.
The new iPad (released in March/April) will bring a new slew of people to the Apple platforms, including the world of apps.
For those who turn up their nose at Apple, the Droid smartphone is taking off like a rocket.
I create a fair amount of content but it’s tough to find it all in one place.
Apps are going to be a vital mainstream marketing tool soon and MMG needs to understand that world.
I am too big to fit into your pocket.

Now the silly part. I’m not a celebrity, famous or even one of social media’s superstars like Chris Brogan, Seth Godin or Dan Pink. So to announce that you should download me onto your iPhone or iTouch (or Droid) feels a bit presumptuous. (BTW — it’s free if that helps!)

But…I predict this will become commonplace shortly and then I’ll just be an early adopter. Besides, it really is the only way I’ll fit into your pocket!

And to entice you to download it… I’ve started creating some Marketing Minute podcasts. The easiest way to get them — the app. Short and sweet — now you can even take my voice along with you.

On my app, you’ll find:

The new podcasts
My blog posts
My posterous journal
My tweets
Links to my books
My guest posts on IowaBiz and Marketing Profs Daily Fix
Links to my Facebook, LinkedIn and FriendFeed accounts
God only knows what else!

I hope you’ll indulge me and give it a try. You can access it here (clicking on this link will launch iTunes).

If you’ve got a Droid, you can see your version of the app here (to download, just search for my name in your apps market.

Other smart marketing folks with iPhone Apps:

Jay Heyman (click here to see his app)

C.C. Chapman (click here to see his app)

Seth Godin (click here to see his app)

Chris Brogan (click here to see his app)

Dan Pink (click here to see his app)

Later this week, I’ll tell you how Mike Sansone helped me figure all of this out and some of the options out there for all of us geeky enough to want our own app.

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A marketing tip from Tiger Woods

February 22, 2010

The world is abuzz about the Tiger Woods apology. It seems like the big question is…"was it sincere?"

What a remarkable marketing reminder for all of us.

We're going to mess up with a client, prospect or employee. It's inevitable. Whether it was the result of a bad but conscious choice or human error — for this conversation, is irrelevant. Let's just nod and agree, sooner or later, we're going to screw up.

Now we can write or verbally deliver the most eloquent apology known to man, but that alone doesn't cut it. Words are lovely but you know what they're waiting for….a behavioral apology.

Otherwise, it was just gratuitous lip service. (Which by the way, only compounds the problem!)

What do I mean by a behavioral apology? It can come in several forms but basically, they want to be able to trust you again. Being sorry is swell but what they really want is to know it won't happen again. After all, isn't that the implied promise in any apology. Not only are you sorry about what you did…but that you're also going to fix it and prevent a repeat occurrence?

So there's the real marketing (and perhaps human) challenge. How do we genuinely demonstrate our apology and our pledge that we'll do all that we can to prevent it from happening again?

Change a policy/process: If something in the way you do business caused the problem — then why not learn from the mistake and make an adjustment. The key here is communicating back to the disgruntled customer that their experience triggered an internal audit and based on what you learned — you've made a change.

Fix it x 2: You delivered the flowers to the wrong address or on the wrong day? Don't just re-send what they ordered — up the ante. If they ordered a dozen roses, deliver two. Or offer to correct the problem now with an accurate delivery AND say you'll deliver a dozen red roses on Valentine's Day to the person of their choice. This is about going above and beyond so get creative.

Follow up: After you've made good on whatever your mistake was — pick up the phone or drop by their office. Demonstrate that days/weeks later — you are still concerned about having done them wrong.

Thank them: I know it sounds weird but it's good manners. You might thank them for helping you discover a flaw in your process. Or you might thank them for their patience in letting you work out the proper solution. You might say thank you for how they handled their complaint (no yelling, biting or kicking) or that they gave you a second chance.

While the reason for doing any of these is to truly impress upon the other person that our apology wasn't just fluff, it shouldn't go unsaid that when you craft a meaningful behavioral apology — you can also generate remarkable buzz and good will.

Our clients and employees will forgive our humanness and mistakes but they will celebrate and talk about our heroics when we rise to the occasion and craft a behavioral apology of note.

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Marketing Executives Group names Social Media Counsel of Advisors

February 16, 2010

The Marketing Executives Networking Group (MENG) announced this morning that it has formed a Social Media Council of Advisors to provide strategic guidance on social media trends and issues to the MENG Board and its membership of nearly 2000 executive marketers.

Much to my delight, I will join Mack Collier, Paul Dunay, Beth Harte, Amber Naslund and Joe Pulizzi to form this new advisory group. (You can see their handsome mugs above). All five of my co-advisors are incredibly generous and insightful people that I've been learning from for quite a while. It will be awesome to work along side them and soak in their smarts!

Our duties will be varied…but they will include advising members and the MENG board, doing some writing for the collective and conducting quarterly webinars together (that should be quite the talk fest!) I'm really looking forward to it.

If you don't know much about MENG, it's the premiere international community of executive-level marketers and it provides networking opportunities and the ability to share knowledge and best practices. Members must have reached at least the VP level in their organization. Eighty four percent of members have Fortune 500 experience and 70% have earned graduate degrees.

Stay tuned…it should get interesting!

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How do you evaluate your brand?

February 16, 2010

At McLellan Marketing Group, we live and breathe branding. We believe that branding is the cornerstone to a small business' success or lack thereof. You either brand yourself or you become a commodity. And a commodity has to compete on price.

If you want my views on why branding matters…check out these posts:

But let's assume you agree with me — branding matters. If you think your company has a brand…how do you evaluate whether or not it's a good one?

Here are some criteria we use with clients when helping them either discover their brand or critique the one they have in place.

It's evergreen (this is not something you'll need to change on a regular basis. It will always be true about you.)
It's not a duh (if consumers already assume this about everyone in your category — it can't be your brand.)
Memorable (If it doesn't stick, it won't work.)
The flag to rally around for your employees (Will they be excited and proud to help you achieve this brand?)
True – inside and out (You can't be one company to your customers and another to your employees)
A why or a how – not the what (how you create widgets differently or why you do it builds a brand..not that you make widgets. Everyone in your category makes widgets.)
Makes you a little nervous (A brand needs to be a bold promise to get noticed and to matter.)
Emotion based (We buy everything based on emotions. If your brand doesn't trigger an emotion, it will also not trigger a sale.)
Differentiate you (Isn't that what a brand is all about. It sets you apart from everyone else.)
Should dovetail with your mission/vision (Your internal goals and your public brand should be aligned or else one of them is off base.)
From the consumer's point of view (it's about them after all!)
I can tell — it matters to me (the consumer has to be able to recognize and evaluate your brand promise. If you make the promise but I can't figure out if you kept it or not, we have trouble.)
Big enough to trigger a buying decision (your point of difference has to be significant enough that I'd open my wallet)

If you can say "yes, that's my brand" to most of these criteria — you have a brand that will endure and that your employees, customers and community will embrace and support. But if you can't get a 10 out of 12 on this little test (it requires quite a bit of candor) then you know it's back to the drawing board.

Want a PDF of our brand criteria to keep handy? Click on the words brand criteria to download.

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We have a Colfax Mainstreet logo winner!

February 12, 2010

Wow…the process of getting the community of Colfax a new logo has been a winding road! In a nutshell, here's what happened:

If you want to follow the saga, here are the links.

We now have a winner!! (check out all 23 logos here) The Colfax Mainstreet team selected #13 (see above) designed by Heather Haaland. #11 was their close 2nd choice.

Many, many thanks to all 6 designers:

Heather Haaland (design 13)
Jim Hill (designs 1,3,5 and 6)
Alvin McCoy (18-23)
Cyndi Wiley ( designs 7-9)
Dan Lester (designs 2 and 4)
Robin Blake (designs 10-12)

But the work is not done. Now Heather and the Colfax Mainstreet team need to work through decisions like color and usage in things like letterhead, business cards etc. So stay tuned. We'll share their results in the near future!

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Are you playing your competitor’s game?

February 10, 2010

I'm not good at sitting idle. So if I am stuck waiting for some reason, I get antsy. To kill that time, I'll fire up my smart phone and play a game (or two) of Hearts. In the game, by default I am player south. (4 players sitting around a table, each designated by a direction.)

My arch nemesis is player north. He is the shrewdest of the computerized players and if anyone is going to beat me, it's him. (Stay with me, I promise there is a marketing message in here!)

I have played Hearts (usually with real people so don't feel too sorry for me!) for many years and I'm pretty good. I have a sound strategy that has been time tested so I rarely need to vary from it. But…the fact that north is good and is my most worthy opponent throws me off that track.

I find that I play differently when I am overly-conscious of trying to beat him in particular. And in fact, the more I purposely change the way I play to thwart him….the more I lose. If I stay disciplined enough to play my own game my own way — I rarely lose.

(Did you notice the marketing message I snuck in there?)

We all run the same risk in running our businesses and planning our marketing. Way too many businesses invest too much time and energy worrying about what their competitor is doing. Then, they change their own game plan to chase after the other guy — emulating or trying to outdo.

It's a game you are destined to lose. One of three things is going to happen.

Your competitor is doing something in their sweet spot and you can't really compete so you look second rate.
Everyone recognizes that you're reacting/copying your competitor and you look like a 'me too" brand.
You spend so much of your time and money executing their tactics that you never have the resources to do what you know will advance your business.

The only way to win marketshare, customers' love and brand dominance is to do it your way. All the time. Regardless of what the competition is doing. Reacting to the other guy rarely plays out in your favor.

Look at the recent TV commercial war between Verizon and AT&T. (watch their commercials by clicking on their names) Who do you think is winning? AT&T looks like they're whining and making excuses. Why? Because Verizon sucked them into their game.

Should you know what your competition is up to? Yes. But only if you can then be disciplined enough to stay your own course. If you can't resist playing their game…you're actually better off staying in the dark.

Always play your game. That's the only way companies like Apple, Zappos and Southwest Airlines won. Same goes for you.

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.com

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