Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Best "Compelling Call to Action" I've seen to date

Last week I attended a presentation by Lori Wizdo, Principle Analyst at Forrester on A plan for Buyer Obsession in the Age of the Customer.

I honestly planned (and still do) on writing several blogs on the key take-a-ways from the event. But tonight I became really distracted, then totally amused, by the host company's website - Reachforce.

I clicked around, I scanned and for some reason I always look at website footers (always). I have no idea why, but I do. On the Reachforce site, I saw this:


I couldn't help but click. And what I found was totally amusing.

Well done, Reachforce, well done.

Heather

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Facts and figures are interesting, but tell me why I should care…

Data, statistical analysis and evidence-based conjecture is running rampant in today's business world. The sheer volume of information alone has companies and instutitions on a hot and heavy quest to cash in. 

The people who can drive adoption of a concept, product or vision and move it forward don't just rely on data. They rely on the ability to articulate a vision grounded in fact yet pushes the boundaries of what is possible. 

This is why I believe there is an art, not a mathmatical formula, for those who can who figure out what's important to today's buyers while sprinkling tomorrow's possiblility within a construct that is believable.
Leaders draw on their experiences and observations to articulate the current environment (market trends, data), build relevant customers or prospect messaging (target articulation), and drive the desired behavior for the culture, brand, or product (mavens/believers).
Let me put it into a formula (since we all love them these days):

Market trends + target articulation + storytelling competencies = market voice + believe-ability, trust
(Key variable = personality acceptance by target market) 

IMHO: In Hi-tech, bleeding-edge, or super-smart markets - these storytellers are – gasp – engineers.

Marketers: Your job is to help get engineer’s expertise and translate that into something consumable by the target market, and make the technical rockstars awesome with being on point.
Engineers/IT/Tech: Stop shying from the light. Pick someone you trust to help you on the journey of understanding all the business inflection points, ramifications, or more importantly, how you (or your team) can drive top-line revenue.

Can this formula work? What are your thoughts?