What’s Your “Nike Swoosh” (aka, Competitive Advantage)?

You very easily recognize Nike’s swoosh with its message and tagline, “Just do it.” That statement embodies the company’s mission and lifestyle – to name just a few sports: golf, basketball, jogging – above all, an active lifestyle. During Nike’s existence, it has embraced its competition and surpassed each and every one of them in terms of brand recognition and revenues. Who even remembers Nike’s competitors: Fila, Keds, LA Gear, Puma, and Vans? What about your business: do you have a competitive advantage, and is it articulated to all employees?

Answers to these questions will assist you as you build your business from concept stage into a mature company. A competitive advantage that is clearly articulated by top management allows all employees to understand the product or service. They will be able to answer questions, they will be able to improve customer interactions, and they will become an extension of your brand.

Consider Disney theme park employees, or in Disney-speak, cast members. Based on their actions, demeanors, or uniforms (or in Disney-speak, costumes), they understand their mission: to provide a quality guest experience. The cast member employees embody the Disney brand, and that is their most important competitive advantage.

So, what is your competitive advantage? If you cannot express it easily, perhaps, you should go back to the drawing board.

The Nike logo is a registered trademark of Nike. Use of the logo here does not imply endorsement of the organization by this site.

Post-Transaction Marketing: Does Your Company Do It?

You may not recognize it by its name, but you definitely experience it. Once you purchase something from either an online or bricks and mortar store (for example, Amazon or Sears or Staples), and you have provided an email address, you will receive emails with “recommended” items to purchase that may correspond to your initial purchase. For example, if you purchased a book by John Grisham on Amazon, you would receive emails listing other books by John Grisham or other legal thrillers.

This is post-transaction marketing – and it leads to increased revenues if the customer does, indeed, purchase the recommended products. According to the U.S. Senate Commerce Committee, the most successful companies in post-transaction marketing during the last ten years are:
• 1-800-Flowers.com
• Expedia/Hotels.com
• Fandango
• FTD
• Hotwire
• MovieTickets.com
• Orbitz
• Priceline
• Shutterfly
• Travelocity
• US Airways

The repeat items comprising the list are flowers, movie tickets, and travel. Therefore, people are repeat buyers of these items. The emails that they receive from these websites and/or companies recommend products or services that are appealing, have a reasonable cost, have acceptable delivery time frames, and most importantly, have demonstrated a familiarity and level of service that the customers appreciate.

So, what about your company? Is post-transaction marketing part of your annual marketing strategy? Can it lead to increased revenues with limited upfront time and automated emails over the long term? Many businesses discuss ways to reach their customers, but post-transaction marketing offers an inexpensive option – especially since everyone welcomes recommendations. So, try it.

How can the ATM impact your business?

You may or may not have heard that an important inventor died recently. While this passing did not make news around the world, this inventor’s innovation made a world-wide impact and transformed the entire banking industry. The inventor was John Shepherd-Barron from Scotland, and his invention was the automated teller machine (ATM). During the 1960’s, Shepherd-Barron created the ATM because he was frustrated that he could not cash a check when his bank was closed. Today, there are more than 1.7 million ATM’s worldwide, according to the ATM Industry Association.

Think back to the pre-ATM world. In order to get cash, people had to walk into banks and wait in line – not out of choice, but out of necessity. There were no machines at supermarkets, airports, sporting events, or movie theater lobbies. In order to cash checks, make deposits, and change currency denominations, face-to-face interactions were necessary inside a bank.

But, today, thanks to Shepherd-Barron, the ATM has transformed the entire banking experience. Simple tasks, such as, deposits, withdrawals, and even postage stamp purchases, can all be completed in a matter of seconds at external bank ATM’s, stand-alone ATM’s scattered at a myriad of locations from gas stations to shopping malls to airports, etc., or while seated in your car at drive-thru ATM’s.

There is no doubt that many in the banking industry were not as exuberant about the invention of the ATM as customers were. But today, there are still customers in banks, and there are still “live” tellers. While some may have predicted the death of banking, the ATM has become an important aspect of the overall banking experience.

Now, consider your company and your industry. How can you create a product or service with the potential to transform your industry? Despite naysayers, there are always improvements that have yet to be developed, and customers are always eager to embrace improvements. So, at your next brainstorming session, think about the ATM, and maybe, your company will introduce this century’s greatest invention.

Top 10 Resources for Teamwork and Organizational Behavior

Teamwork – everyone talks about, but how many people genuinely embrace it? How many times has a supervisor said “there is no I in teamwork” but you would have preferred to work on a project on your own? You don’t have to answer. The simple truth is that the creation of effective teams is one of the hardest jobs a leader has. And, more often than not, leaders are unsuccessful in this area, which is the reason that many management/C-level executives change companies so often. Here are some resources to assist with team-building at all levels within a business (small, mid-sized, or large) in any segment (B2B, B2C, or non-profit), which will also improve organizational behavior and corporate culture.

X-Teams: How to Build Teams That Lead, Innovate and Succeed
By Deborah Ancona and Henrik Bresman
c. 2007

Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Field Guide for Leaders, Managers and Facilitators
By Patrick Lencioni
c. 2005

The 17 Essential Qualities of a Team Player: Becoming the Kind of Person Every Team Wants
By John C. Maxwell
c. 2002

Teamwork 101: What Every Leader Needs to Know
By John C. Maxwell
c. 2008

How NASA Builds Teams: Mission Critical Soft Skills for Scientists, Engineers and Project Teams
By Charles J. Pellerin
c. 2009

Extraordinary Groups: How Ordinary Teams Achieve Amazing Results
By Geoffrey M. Bellman and Kathleen D. Ryan
c. 2009

Results Without Authority: Controlling a Project When the Team Doesn’t Report to You – A Project Manager’s Guide
By Tom Kendrick, PMP
c. 2006

Radical Collaboration: Five Essential Skills to Overcome Defensiveness and Build Successful Relationships
By James W. Tamm and Ronald J. Luyet
c. 2005

Organizational Behavior
By John R. Schermerhorn, Jr., Dr. James G. Hunt, and Dr. Richard N. Osborn
c. 2008

Organizational Behavior: A Strategic Approach
By Michael A. Hitt, C. Chet Miller, and Adrienne Colella
c. 2005

Lastly, in the words of H.E. Luccock: “No one can whistle a symphony. It takes an orchestra to play it.”

Customer Service Geniuses – How Do They Do It, and Can You?

When someone talks about customer service, do you roll your eyes? Or, do you happily recall an experience with a company that transcended all of your expectations? Did you have a delicious meal where waiters constantly refilled your beverage glasses without interrupting your conversation? Did you ever lease or buy a car as a result of a helpful salesman? Or, by contrast, did you ever stay at home for ten hours waiting for a TV repair person who never showed up? The truth is, many companies state in their collateral and on their websites that they provide “quality customer service,” but sadly, many fall short because they don’t understand how valuable this competitive advantage is and how it creates loyal customers for the long-term.

Here are some great books to help your company develop excellent customer service – so that you can add quality customer service to your list of competitive advantages.

The Cult of the Customer: Create an Amazing Customer Experience That Turns Satisfied Customers into Customer Evangelists
By Shep Hyken
c. 2009

The New Gold Standard: 5 Leadership Principles for Creating a Legendary Customer Experience, Courtesy of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company
By Joseph A. Michelli
c. 2008

Lexus: the Relentless Pursuit
By Chester Dawson
c. 2004

How Dell Does It – Using Speed and Innovation to Achieve Extraordinary Results
By Steven Holzner
c. 2005

The Perfect Thing: How the iPod Shuffles Commerce, Culture and Coolness
By Steven Levy
c. 2007

Blue Streak: Inside jetBlue, the Upstart that Rocked an Industry
By Barbara S. Peterson
c. 2006

The Southwest Airlines Way – Using the Power of Relationships to Achieve High Performance
By Jody Hoffer Gittell
c. 2005

The Starbucks Experience: 5 Principles for Turning Ordinary into Extraordinary
By Joseph A. Michelli
c. 2006

The Nordstrom Way to Customer Service Excellence: A Handbook for Implementing Great Service in Your Organization
By Robert Spector
c. 2005

The Wonderful World of Customer Service at Disney
By J. Jeff Kober
c. 2009

Ben & Jerry’s: The Inside Scoop: How Two Real Guys Built a Business with a Social Conscience and a Sense of Humor
By Fred Lager
c. 1995

And, for some amusing final thoughts:

What to Say to a Porcupine – 20 Humorous Tales That Get to the Heart of Great Customer Service
By Richard S. Gallagher
c. 2008

Top 10 Management Books

There is an old saying that “management is easy, except for the people.” While that statement may be amusing, it definitely contains an element of truth because there is an art to effective management. But sadly, many individuals don't understand how to be good managers, and more often than not, companies don't spend the time to train people to become good managers.

Just think, how often have you been asked or even spent the time to consider:
• How long have you been the manager of a team or department?
• How would you describe your management style?
• How many employees are you directly responsible for?
• What is most important for you to see in the employees that work for you?
• How do you measure the success of your employees?
• Do you mentor your employees?

A quote from “Becoming a Successful Manager” by Jack H. Grossman says it all, “Now you’ve earned your reward: a staff to manage. [But] from now on, your success no longer depends on just your technical abilities and specialized knowledge. You will only prosper if other people do their jobs well.”

Here are some great management books to assist you as you build your management skills and become an effective and inspiring manager!

First, Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently
By Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman
c. 1999

Now, Discover Your Strengths
By Marcus Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton
c. 2001

The First-Time Manager
By Loren B. Belker and Gary S. Topchik
c. 2005

What to Do When You Become the Boss: How New Managers Become Successful Managers
By Bob Selden
c. 2007

Becoming a Successful Manager: How to Make a Smooth Transition from Managing Yourself to Managing Others
By Jack H. Grossman and J. Robert Parkinson
c. 2001

The New Manager’s Handbook: 24 Lessons for Mastering Your New Role
By Morey Stettner
c. 2006

101 Biggest Mistakes Managers Make and How to Avoid Them
By Mary Albright and Clay Carr
c. 1997

Managing
By Henry Mintzberg
c. 2009

The No Complaining Rule: Positive Ways to Deal with Negativity at Work
By Jon Gordon
c. 2008

The Disney Way: Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company
By Bill Capodagli and Lynn Jackson
c. 2006

Lastly, if you would like to avoid new manager mistakes, check out this list of the top 10 common mistakes: http://bit.ly/df05Kk.

Top 10 Website Development and Design Resources

Everyone is online, and that’s great, but how often have you visited a website and thought, “WHAT were they thinking?” Either the company’s mission was hard to understand, the product display was disorganized, links didn’t work, contact details for customer service or tech support were missing, or the site was just ugly. How many times have you visited a website and wondered who created it (the marketing department, the tech department, or the second-cousin of the owner’s wife)?

To assist with your website development and design initiatives, here is a list of my top 10 resources. Enjoy!

70 Website Marketing Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
By Raynay Valles
c. 2010

Letting Go of the Words – Writing Web Content that Works
By Janice (Ginny) Redish
c. 2007

Building Findable Websites – Web Standards, SEO, and Beyond
By Aarron Walter
c. 2008
http://buildingfindablewebsites.com/

Web Design and Marketing Solutions for Business Websites
By Kevin Potts
c. 2007

Communicating Design: Developing Web Site Documentation for Design and Planning
By Dan Brown
c. 2006

Neuro Web Design – What Makes Them Click?
By Susan M. Weinschenk, Ph.D.
c. 2009

Content Strategy for the Web
By Kristina Halvorson
c. 2009

The Complete Guide to Affiliate Marketing on the Web
By Bruce C. Brown
c. 2008

Web Analytics 2.0: The Art of Online Accountability and Science of Customer Centricity
By Avinash Kaushik
c. 2009

Website Marketing Association & Annual WebAward Competition
http://www.webmarketingassociation.org/
http://www.webaward.org/