Time To Take A Cold Hard Look At Yourself

Whilst many companies look at the festive season as a time to wind down and enjoy the fruits of the year, there still are a few of us that take this time to have a cold hard look at ourselves and make some very tough decisions.

If you notice, there are alot of big corporates doing the latter with large lay-offs over Xmas and a review of expenditure.

Today, I took the liberty of catching up with a good friend, someone I admire immensely who has been incredibly successful in business and in life. I talked about my vision for my business for the next 12 months, 2 years and 5 years and how I thought I would achieve it.

What is really good about friends who know you well, is that they tell you the truth. They don't sugar coat answers and they don't tell you what they think you want to hear. They're your friends and you have come to them to ask their opinion.

Whilst its great to hire external consultants, sometimes they have their own agendas or need to appease you so that you continue to hire their services.

My vision for 2010;

To help 50 new companies market their business in an affordable way with no hidden costs.

How I am going to achieve this;

By giving 50 companies an all inclusive package that has marketing, graphic design, branding, public relations and web development and campaigns as part of the services they receive for just $17.95 per day.

Why;

Because every business deserves every chance of survival.

How;

To do marketing for cost and allow customers to pay off their marketing services over a period of 2 years. No interest. No hidden costs.

When;

We will sign companies up in December and will take companies only over the January to June period.

What is a typical Marketing Eye in a company;

Someone who develops your strategy, website and brand and communicates it to your target audience leading to sales, brand building and ultimately profits.

How do you find out about it;

Ring 1300 300 080 and speak with Jacob Scott.

The downside;

There is no downside for businesses as it is the same successful service Marketing Eye has provided for the past 5 years, but it allows for a payment plan that is affordable to all small businesses.

For Marketing Eye the upside is;

We get to work with companies that are passionate about growing.

It's a typical WIN WIN...

Now, my good friend said to me,"Mel, so there are no surprises when they receive their invoices."

"No".

"Marketing Eye includes all the normal additional costs that agencies charge like design, web development and maintenance, public relations etc."

"Yes"
"No extra costs and they get to pay it over 2 years."

"Yes"

"Why don't you charge more?"

"Because we want to give businesses every opportunity to succeed. They succeed, we succeed."

"Great!"

And that was it. An endorsement that Marketing Eye in 2010 will be doing something that the market wants and needs that is a win, win for everyone.

www.marketingeye.com.au

Australia's number one small business marketing team that helps businesses grow and succeed.

CXO Magazine Interviews Mellissah Smith, CEO, Marketing Eye

http://www.cxo.com.au/people/531725/qa-mellissah-smith-ceo-marketing-eye/

SMALL BUSINESSES DEVELOP STRATEGIC MARKETING PLANS FOR JUST $299

Strategic Marketing, once touted as just for large corporations, is now being applied to businesses across all levels and of all sizes. Becoming increasingly more affordable and less standardiSed, strategic marketing has been heralded as the most important element of the marketing mix for many businesses that are looking for sales acquisition and growth. Without it, marketing activities remain unmeasured and lack appropriate ROI.

What has emerged is a need for businesses of any size to develop strategic marketing plans based on their overall business strategy with key performance indicators ranked according to desired ROI calculators.

There are many reasons to engage in strategic marketing rather than adhoc marketing initiatives that have no set deliverables or KPI’s and are not aligned to the overall business strategy.

It’s like closing your eye’s and hoping that your marketing dollar lands where you want it to at that particular time and produces the results to keep going. The ‘blind-folded’ approach is well known in small business as many companies feel that hiring a marketing consultancy is too expensive and that they are not quite ready to hire a marketing manager in terms of commitment to a fulltime resource and affordability of $100k+ salaries.

The basis of strategic marketing is being able to:

(1) Articulate specific business goals,
(2) Succinctly define target audience or key customers,
(3) Develop campaigns to support core business goals, and
(4) Maximize ROI.

The issue arises for small business owners when ascertaining how they can operate with much more limited resources than their larger counterparts if in fact a marketing strategy actually works. The answer is that small businesses can if their marketing strategy addresses the specific growth and retention needs that are unique to the business.

Global corporations use strategic marketing to communicate initiatives and messaging across the entire company. A small business can use strategic marketing to help shape growth, develop advertising campaigns, public relations, client retention, customer acquisition and manage resources. Implementing strategic marketing into business practices can help business owners target key customers, effectively allocate resources, and improve business processes with more quality results at a lower implementation cost of both monetary and personnel resources.

With the growing trend of freelance consultants and small, highly specialised marketing consulting firms, small businesses are now able to contract a marketing professional to develop a strategic marketing plan and help implement the necessary business structure.

Affordability is key for small businesses when looking at outsourcing their marketing strategy development, but let’s face it, who can afford not to have this in place?

Marketing Eye is helping 10 businesses develop their own marketing strategies with the guidance of a marketing manager who has worked with over 200 companies on developing marketing programs.

All businesses have to do is register to be part of this day of strategic marketing on http://www.marketingeye.com.au/menew/eventform.html and for a small fee that is affordable to every business from a startup, you will walk away with a strategic marketing plan.

Mellissah Smith is the founder of 4 businesses and works as the Chief Executive Officer of Marketing Eye Pty Ltd. Marketing Eye has helped over 200 companies develop marketing programs aimed at growth, expansion and customer retention. A strategic marketing plan is integral to achieving these goals and 10 lucky companies will have the opportunity to explore their businesses in details and develop a strategic marketing plan with the guidance of Marketing Eye.

The Power of Customer Demands

Having just received information pertaining to a client of Marketing Eye's that had a section on their website whereby visitors could lobby to have their local shop store a particular beer, I was surprised by the number of people who are loyal to a brand. To actually go into your local bottleshop and demand they stock a particular beer brand so you can buy it - is one hell of a loyal customer.

The search around Australia for an effen great bloke has been interesting to say the least. We all know an effen great bloke and fortunately the competition takes exactly 32 seconds to complete (I timed it!).

The good news is that the bottleshop in question, listened to their customers after repeated requests from a number of customers and will now stock the beer.

Great job!

It's Australia's last opportunity to find an effen great bloke, so if you know one, enter him in the competition.

Women are welcome!

www.effengreatbloke.com.au

Don't Discard Twitter for B2B Marketing

Marketing Eye is always the last to market ourselves, but having put together some 'hairy audacious goals' for 2010, we are looking at every possible avenue to market our business to small to medium sized businesses.

There are so many ways to market a small business in the b2b environment and so the choice is limitless however, when you have limited budget and not alot of time, it's integral that the marketing platforms that you use are in fact the best 'bang for your buck' and the least amount of effort.

To me, unless you are doing consumer based marketing, Twitter can be very time consuming.

With writing ongoing tweets, finding people to follow and to follow you, replying to direct messages and in general keeping up to date with what's going on - it's pretty time consuming.

What really is twitter? Wikipedia does an apt definition that is easy to understand
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter)and most people don't need to look too much further than this to understand exactly what twitter is.

Last Friday, I did an experiment. Time limit on twitter was 2 hours from start to finish and I had to achieve something - anything - that was relevant to my lead generation requirements.

So I found a few people who had twitter accounts that had a similar demographic to Marketing Eye and followed people following them. A tongue twister - I know! 200 in total were followed for the sake of this experiment.

I then wrote a few tweets about marketing including some interesting marketing stories that I found online.

Additionally, I added a few personal tweets - to ensure that the tweet followers got to know me as well. "Hugh Grant is coming to Australia on 22 December to promote his new movie". I am a huge fan of Hugh Grant and desperately want to play a round of golf with him. I am hopeless and he is really good. Almost at a level of being a professional! Needless to say, it would be one long round all in my favour!

THE RESPONSE

Within a couple of hours, I received direct tweets;

- From a journalist wanting to write a story on me
- A small business wanting to know more about Marketing Eye's marketing services
- An individual wanting a website that is cost effective
- Reconnection with an old client
- 100 extra people who are relevant following my tweets!To me, this is an amazing response! 2 hours work and no added costs other than time -and this was my result.

To all those people who slam twitter as a waste of time, think again!

IF YOUR TARGET MARKET IS B2B, HERE'S SOME TIPS:

1. Set up a twitter account immediately
2. Tweet about relevant topics, opinions and offers your business has
3. Follow people who are relevant to your business
4. Find people who have the same demographic as your client base and go through their list and follow their followers
5. Make sure you respond to all direct messages
6. Make sure you thank people who are following you. It's the first touch point of many to come
7. If someone following you is relevant to your business, follow them back
8. Don't waste time on Twitter. Use this time as a direct marketing effort to engage your audience, communicate your unique selling proposition and position you as an industry leader
9. Add the odd personal tweet so people get to know you
10. Make sure your Twitter account is giving your business a ROI.

Marketing Eye is a leading national marketing consulting firm for small to medium sized businesses in Australia. All Marketing Eye consultants are trained on web 2.0 to ensure that if your business can benefit from social networks, then you are leveraging this medium.

Find out more on Marketing Eye's new website www.marketingeye.com.au

Small Business Marketing

Small Business Marketing

What typifies a small business varies from country to country but there are almost 2 million in Australia if you incorporate sole operators and consultants in the mix - or at least so they tell me.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (2006 figures), 71% are born in Australia, 68% are male, and a staggering 58% are aged between 30 and 50 years. Important statistics if you are thinking about marketing to them, let me assure you.

Given the economic climate over the past 18 months, I imagine that there are a lot of small business operators that aren’t too busy at all and in that lies a problem.
What do you do when times are tough, there aren’t many clients that are out there or at least ones that are finding you and you need to make a living?

Starving isn't an option, and there are no jobs available to get back into the workforce.

No matter how small you are, many of the strategies used by larger organizations to go to market, create sales opportunities and promote a brand, can still be achieved by a small business for little or no cost.

That is of course, if you don’t count time as a cost, which for the record - I do!

No matter what you sell, or service you provide to your customers, there are a series of proven, effective growth strategies you can apply to your business - many right away, and many with little to no cost to implement - that can immediately have an impact on customer growth, loyalty, frequency and revenue.

It’s about having access to the information and using it in a way that is effective.

Many of the small businesses that come to Marketing Eye are ready to take that leap and create opportunities for sales, growth for their brand and engagement of their customers more frequently.

Some however, don’t understand the idea of marketing and what it can do for their business. They don’t take into account who is their target audience and what they need to hear, see and feel to make the decision that the small business wants them to make.

They do ‘marketing’ according to what ‘they’ like, not taking into consideration their target audience.

Profiling who your client is and what they look like is imperative to strategic marketing. Look at who has bought your services or products before and ask them why. Did they do it because of your relationship, the read about you on the internet, searched google for relevant services or products or heard about your brand through word of mouth. Whatever the reason, you need to know to ensure better use of your marketing dollars.

Marketing Eye can offer small businesses a ‘marketing eye’, key marketing strategies and coaching tools to help get your business focused on what's most important to drive sales & marketing success.

These include:

• Coaching: Marketing Eye will work with you personally to understand your business better, develop business goals, and to create and help you implement a successful marketing plan that helps you grow your business. We treat your business like it's our own, and work hard to help you achieve the results that you have been looking for.

• Customer Acquisition: Need more leads to your business? More appointments? More visitors to your Web site? Marketing Eye can help.

• Customer Loyalty & Frequency: When new customers make their first purchase, that should be just the beginning of a long, mutually-beneficial and profitable relationship. We'll make sure you have the tools, products and strategy in place to turn new and current customers into frequent visitors, regular customers and brand ambassadors.

• Business Development & Product Strategy: What else will your customers buy? How can you increase your share of wallet with current customers, and open ourself up to new revenue from even more customers? Marketing Eye will help you ask the right answers to give you a blueprint for where to take your business.

To learn more about using Marketing Eye to accelerate the success and revenue of your small business call 1300 300 080 today.

If you are a small business and are in desperate need of marketing, but can't see how you are able to afford it, why not consider Marketing Eye's Leasing Plan? For just 17.95 per day, you can have a Marketing Eye in your business.

And if you just need a beer to think about it, why not enter www.effengreatbloke.com.au to win a year's supply of beer for you and a friend.

Not Interested in Customer Service or Feedback?

I had the most unusual experience today with Prism Colour in Melbourne which is run by a guy (who I have never met) by the name of Greg McHenry.

As a marketing company, our job is to ensure that our clients printing goals are achieved in terms of quality and timely delivery.

Firstly, Prism Colour delivered brochures for our client 4 days late after sending it 2 days late to the wrong address. The right details were quoted on by them to the right address, but instead they sent to a local address. Completely their error and their production guys confirmed that they would correct the error at no charge to the client.

Secondly, I have to say when it finally arrived (too late for the purpose it was intended for), I looked at them and thought they looked cheap and that the printing was perhaps not as good as I would expect. However, I did say that I would check it off with our production department to confirm that the job was as I had thought.

Their sales guy that annoyingly just pops in when he feels like it to the office (obviously hasn't heard that he needs to make an appointment) came in a week later and asked if I liked the job. I told him my thoughts but said regardless we are happy to pay for it, but may not use them for that type of job again.

He then rung up and asked if he could have the name of a friend who owns a marketing company so that they could 'sell' their services into them.

I said that I could not do that as I wanted to be sure that if I recommended someone that they would be getting a quality job and delivered when they say it will be delivered.

Now, all of this is fine other than the invoice error whereby they tried to charge us for two deliveries until...

I speak to this guy Greg McHenry who was incredibly rude, spoke over me and certainly had more than a bee in his bonnet.

Rude, Rude, Rude.

I sat their dumbfounded by just how rude and arrogant this man was to a 'customer' who hasn't queried paying (other than for the transport cost) and who may have used them for areas that they had proven to be good at.

Not all companies are good at everything. Certainly I would have 20 or so friends who own marketing companies and their biggest issue is consistent quality with printers.

Consistency is companies like Worldwide Printing, Half Price Printing, Green Printing... all pretty much consistent.

Now, if a company said that to me, knowing that there is no issue with paying but it was just feedback, I would say that I would look into it and then if I believed that it was quality, I would then give them examples of similar jobs. Easy and good customer service.

No, this company has no idea about customer service and certainly isn't interested in customer feedback and repeat business.

Well, you have now lost a customer and certainly won't be recommended by me!

It doesn't take much to provide good customer service and in most cases, people are reasonable. Maybe I should send him a few customer service books to read up on... might be helpful to their business.

Great Blokes Come Last?

There is much debate amongst my colleagues, friends and clients on what is an 'effen great bloke' because through Marketing Eye's promotion of effen Beer, we have all been absorbed with the entries that have been rolling in for the competition.

Everyone has their own idea of what an effen great bloke is and I am sure by December 1, 2009, all of Australia will know what the general consensus is on the topic.

Whilst we all have an opinion, the reality is that there is no right or wrong answer. Afterall, it's just an opinion.

Ask around your office and find out what each person in your office thinks about what an effen great bloke is. Then log onto www.effengreatbloke.com.au and enter. I am keen to hear what you have to say.

For your efforts, you may just win a year's supply of beer for you and a mate.

It doesn't matter if you are a woman or a man. We all drink beer and if you don't, it's always handy to have beer in the fridge for when someone comes to visit and particularly if you are thinking about having a Xmas Party.

Mellissah Smith
Marketing Eye

Marketing Eye promotes brands we believe in. effen is a great tasting beer that is smooth and reminds me of a quality Belgium beer. Recently, it won an award in Melbourne for the best Lager at the Micro Brewery Showcase. Now the many thousands attending this event can't all be wrong - right?

THE DEATH OF A PUBLICIST

Whilst we all espouse to work with companies that have the same ethics, culture, and key set of values - it doesn't always happen that way for a variety of reasons.

Firstly, when times are busy, we don't always do the due diligence that we should on clients and take them on board because it means more revenue and hopefully more profits, rather than a good fit.

Secondly, often we take things on face value and when someone needs your services and you believe you can help them, it appears on face value to be a 'no brainer'.

And last, but not least, no matter how hard we try to be ahead of the game and how often we hear people try to fool us, it still happens. No-one, no matter how many knocks they have had, seems to be immune.

A couple of weeks ago, I met with a company that I really thought we could make a difference to. They needed PR and marketing, but in the first instance, wanted to get some good press for undisclosed reasons.

I met with them and was somewhat enthusiastic about what Marketing Eye could do. Afterall, improving people's brands through the media and through our marketing efforts is what we do best.

After a secondary meeting and after Marketing Eye's services were engaged, I was introduced to the newly appointed CEO, and have to say I was disappointed. Very disappointed.

Not only did she lack the 'oomph' of any CEO I have previously worked with, but there was a real issue with being misleading. Now, when you are dealing with media, this type of thing is something they see all the time and it doesn't take them long to work it out. When they do, its disaster for any publicist.

I was dismayed after reminding the new CEO of what she said either on the phone or in person minutes ago and how the story kept changing, but she was completely unnerved and kept going and going. All taped I might add because I was meant to be getting content.

Other than a few body language indicators like scratching of her nose and pulling of her ear - if I didn't have such a good memory, I would have let it just go by.

Ultimately, it is important that the product or service you market, is something that you wholeheartedly believe in.

It has to be something you can proudly talk about to journalists and stand by through good and bad press.

However, if the product or service is not quite right to start off with, you're typically the wrong person/company to be representing it.

Honesty is important to me in business, in friendship and as a key value of each and every employee that Marketing Eye employs.

We have built a successful company where this has never been compromised.

Years ago, I worked with a dodgy property developer (or marketeer) who I didn't have a clue about their dealings. We achieved remarkable good press for the owner in all the key editorials - The Australian, BRW etc and they were particularly focused on press about wealth creation and their 'new found toys', so I had an overwhelmed client and was giving myself some pats on the back for every win.

I thought this was all ego centric to be getting so much press about how rich this guy was and how many toys he had but at the time, there were a few of those around doing the same things, so I put it down to 'new money'.

Then one fatal day, a journalist did their research to find that this person was not what they seemed.

They rung me and told me the facts and I was completely shocked.

I then rung the client and said that I could no longer represent them. They were taking none of that and threatened me with big muscly men. My youth at the time made this more amusing than scary, but I suppose in hindsight, I should have taken it a tad more seriously.

Whilst I was pondering what to do (and at the time was only 27 years old might I add), the journalist rung me (who was a Murdoch employee) and said that he and his family had just been threatened. I was mortified! I apologised profusely over and over again for introducing them, of which the journalist was ever so nice. I then basically crawled under a rock swearing that I would never deal with anyone that I have not done due diligence with again and if my gut instinct said 'no' it was 'no!'.

Nevertheless back to my current story, I made a decision immediately that I could not represent this company with a CEO that couldn't get their story straight. I had a conversation with her later in the week and advised her as much.

It's these valuable lessons we learn in business that ensures that there is no 'death of a publicist' trying to promote the wrong brand for the wrong reasons.

The Marketing Eye brand is as much impacted by the quality service we provide as the clients we keep. It is important that we work with businesses that are aligned to our key values and that see honesty as being important.

www.marketingeye.com.au

Marketing Eye is a leading national marketing consultancy firm that specialises in helping small to medium sized businesses grow through marketing.

IS THERE A NEW LOOK LIBERAL PARTY?

Last night I was invited to attend a dinner for a up and coming politician that has just won pre-selection in the seat of Kooyong.

Joshua Frydenberg is a Director, Melbourne Corporate Finance for German bank, Deutsche Bank. He is giving up his high profile and incredibly successful career for public service. His motive - to make a difference.

After listening to Joshua talk about his vision, what he thinks of the current political climate and in general, his thoughts on the world, it struck me that this is no normal wanna be Politician.

Here we have a smart, articulate and driven man who really wants to make a difference. He isn't misled in thinking that any of the Political parties are perfect, but he is committed to a significant pay cut and a future in door knocking and campaigning for what he believes to be the best direction and policies for the Australian public and for now, the people in the seat of Kooyong.

I am impressed as was the 18 people who were at this dinner that introduced Joshua Frydenberg to some young and energetic business people.

www.marketingeye.com.au

Marketing Eye is a leading national marketing consultancy firm that helps businesses grow through marketing. 1300 300 080

THE RACE THAT STOPS A NATION

A last minute decision to attend the 'race that stops a nation' reminded me why gossip magazines sell so well and how gen-y is absorbed with the idea of celebrity, so much more than I remember my generation ever being.

Melbourne Cup is recognised as one of the top racing carnivals in the world. It's well branded and attracts every celebrity and their hanger-on in abundance.

Typically, I am not a gambler and putting a bet on a horse is to me, an uneducated gamble that usually ends in me donating my hard earned cash to Tabcorp. So, it is with great trepidation that I chose to put money on a horse, but in the spirit of Melbourne Cup and so that I am not the odd one out, I put a few dollars on a couple of horses that didn't win.

I asked a good friend of mine (Mad Punter!) who to tip and generally speaking, he is pretty good. Not on this particular day to my dismay. I bet of horse 20, 1, 3, and 4. I never knew their names - just their numbers, but like everyone else who joined me in the Lavazza marquee in the Birdcage on Melbourne Cup Day, I jumped up and down as the horses raced and for a second thought one of my horses may come in.

Unfortunately, it didn't, so I had to console myself with champagne courtesy of Lavazza and a boogie or two on the dance floor.

Lavazza has long been known as the place to be during the Spring Racing Carnival. It is full of celebrities and who's who of society, in which the owner, the Valmorbida's are very acquainted with.

The food, the champagne and the entertainment is second to none. There is no more prized invitation than this high profile Lavazza branded marquee - and I have to say, I was very pleased about being there, out of the weather and enjoying a few good tunes.

Michael Klim and his lovely wife Lindy were there. As were Good Charlotte and a few Idols. A carefully sectioned off area gave the celebrities some reprieve from the hordes of people wanting a photograph or a signed autograph. Yes, even celebrities were asking other celebrities of their photo to my astonishment.

Lindy then showed off her DJ skills and belted out some tunes that had the entire marquee on the dance floor going off. John Valmorbida then put on a few old tunes that he was obviously partial to with 60's music not causing too much of a stir but in fact keeping the invited guests very entertained and producing some very high pitched vocals.

Other than the inconvenience of not being able to go to the restrooms without having to wait in line, I have to say Melbourne Cup was thoroughly enjoyable. And yes, I will now go out and buy George Clooney's Coffee machine from Lavazza. Not only was their hospitality exceptional, my brand association with this company acknowledges that they are very hip and happening - and definately a brand that I want to be associated with.

As for the celebrities, I am not one to care about what job one person has over another, so it doesn't really affect me but I have to say, I can't believe how many people where falling over themselves to get to Good Charlotte. What is that about? I know they sing a few good songs, but please, embarrassing yourselves and interrupting people from their conversations for a photograph or autograph is bad manners. Have these people not learnt how to be polite?

Maybe I just don't understand celebrity but typically, the people in question were gen-y, and they had no qualms about elbowing people out of the road for a photo of someone they got to stand next to for only a few seconds.

Melbourne Cup did stop a nation but Lavazza ensured it rocked on!

www.marketingeye.com.au

Marketing Eye is a leading national marketing consultancy firm that helps companies grow.

Carbon Market Expo Gold Coast Event A Huge Success

Carbon Market Expo Austalasia 2009 has been lauded a huge success with the highest number of participants for any carbon market expo for 2009. The event has attracted almost 1000 delegates and all the key carbon market influencers in attendance. Today at 12 noon, Brett Janissen, the Executive Director, Asia Pacific, Emissions Trading Forum (AETF) will give a Background briefing on the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme (CPRS), policy and market developments with the Deputy Secretary, ACCRA Group, Australian Government Department of Climate Change. ABC's Land Line will be filming this briefing along with a contingency of more than 50 journalists. Michael Whitehead has spearheaded this very important event at what is seen as the most critical time for carbon market announcements with updates saturating the news. A second workshop at 12 noon will include Ilona Millar, Senior Associate, Baker and McKenzie and Richard Doyle, Division Director, Macquarie Bank Environmental Financial Products as key note speakers. They will provide a very important background briefing on the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme. Whilst the bustle of the corridors at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre is full of people eagerly awaiting the key note speakers and their views and announcements on the topic, people are expecting to walk away for this event better informed and more up-to-date with carbon markets. Don't miss the 2.30pm sessions with John Marlow from London (Macquarie Bank, London, Global Head, Environmental Financial Products, and India's Global Lead Partner, CDM, Ernst and Young, Sudipta Das. These two international speakers will join Martijn Wilder, Partner at Baker and McKenzie, Michael Wiener, Director Operations, Perenia, Arek Sinanian, Asia Pacific Technical Executive, Climate Change, Parsons Brinckerhoff, Garth Taylor, Trade Commissioner for ASEAN, Austrade, Kuala Lumpur and the Hon. Kate Jones, Queensland Minister for Climate Change and Sustainability, to discuss The Clean Devleopment Mechanism and the Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme. Check out the days events and updates on www.carbonexpo.com.au. Mellissah Smith Marketing Eye

Friday - and I am pissed off!

It's Friday and everyone should be happy, but guess what? I am not!

Firstly the day starts with this second rate web development company that has been working on a simple website for an education company for more than 6 months and still it is incomplete. The design was crap, the attention to detail - non existent and customer service - terrible.

Here we are trying to fix the mess... and keep the client from ringing the web companies neck. Hard work let me assure you.

Then, I am reminded by a man in his 70's just how great Paris Hilton is. According to this elderly gentleman, she is good looking and runs a great business. To his credit, he is right on both accounts. However, I am tired of being reminded about people who make it by walking the 'easy road'.

Here I am slogging it out in front of my computer 12 hours a day and being zapped of energy by the demands of staff, clients and sometimes friends.

On the flip side, I love my job. I can't wait to get to the office every morning and I dream of the next great marketing campaign that I am going to work on.

Mostly, my clients are adorable. They always engage in banter with me on topics ranging from the newest marketing technique to the colour of my shoes or my dogs behaviour.

Currently we are engaged in a pretty big PR campaign for Carbon Expo Market on the Gold Coast next week. Over 50 journalists are in attendance and after giving lessons to my inhouse PR team on effective ways in which to get media to respond, they have now been inundated with calls. He he... us older marketers still have a few tricks up our sleeves.

Next week I am off on a road trip to see two clients that are intelligent, enthusiastic and full of life. Should I really be complaining? Possibly not.

With a company that is currently recording 20 - 30% growth year on year and boasts some pretty talented individuals, I think I am fairly lucky.

So, what is there to complain about? Not too much. It's all in a days work and things are getting done.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Liberals need some serious marketing

I had the pleasure of attending the Malcolm Turnbull Dinner last night held at the Crown Casino in Melbourne to raise money for the Australian Liberal Party.

It's a sad day when one party outshines the other, not because of performance, but due to the fact one is better at marketing themselves than the other.

At the end of the day, the Coalition Government left billions in the bank and took just 11 years to get rid of the deficit that Labor handed them of $96 billion dollars and turn it into a surplus.

My generation will never be able to repay what debt the current Labor Government has handed our future generations. They are so big on spending for votes and like all other instances in which they have come into power, taken our Federal finances into the red - that I just don't seem to get why they get voted in.

Is the average Australian not good at basic mathematics or is it that they have bought the marketing 'bullshit' that spin doctors put in the papers we read and the television we watch.

How embarrassing is it that our Prime Minister tries badly to make jokes on Rove. Now if you are going to do Rove then you should do every other talk back as it is very un-Australian to pick one show over another.

I don't have a personal problem with Labor and to be honest, their PR job is so far superior of that of the Coalition Government that it is laughable. From a marketing prespective, I have to applaud that.

But I am not a numbers person and I don't want to pretend to be, but if the information that went up on the screens last night about Hon Peter Costello's very impressive track record is in fact true, then I am scared. How much more are we going to get in debt before everyone wakes up?

I don't pay too much attention to Politics and I was an invited guest, so I don't actively participate but sitting in front row forced me to listen and some of the information coming out which I know is one-sided was concerning.

Coalition really needs to;

- Get better PR people
- Present themselves better
- Engage in communicating their key messages repetitively to Australians
- Choose a leader like a Joe Hocking who always looks fresh faced and trustworthy. We all know Malcolm Turnbull can do the job, but the public are not going to vote him in so move aside. It's not personal.
- Engage more in Web 2.0
- Get new speech writers - the speech from Turnbull was long-winded and boring. Never bore the socks off your audience.

Simple, but true.

Marketing Eye could help but we are A-Political and know too little about Politics!

How profitable is your talent?

We all have talents, but some are harder to find than others.

Mine took many years to work out and eventually I was able to turn that talent into a money making enterprise. Luckily for me, my talent is aligned to my passion and everything is pretty much honky dory.

Today, I was needing a little direction. Many people ring their friends, colleagues or see a counsellor. I ring a Clairvoyant. Go figure.

Being a person that is willing to try anything once, it's not unlike me to go and see a Clairvoyant who may or may not motivate me, make me happy or at the least provide some entertainment for myself and my girlfriends for the next couple of days.

So, off I trotted in the middle of the day to a Clairvoyant, referred by a friend, in Malvern East.

On the way, I rung another friend and they said, 'Save your money. I can tell you exactly what they are going to say.' Although that provided me with a good laugh, it really wasn't an option. Giving away $90 to a complete stranger that espouses to tell me my future is easy, but paying $90 for a new dress that I really want is something I need to think about for at least a couple of days. Madness really.

Now, I am told, that this Clairvoyant is spooky. She is accurate, names names and very blunt, so I go in prepared to hear it all.

So she starts...

'You are lacking drive and start many things but don't finish them. You are going to get married at 37 years of age to someone I have met or know. You have back problems, your parents separated when you were 21, you are going to have children (2 - either twins or quickly after each other), guy in my life who is stuck in the past and still bangs on about an ex that he used to date and can't move forward, London connection and basically cutting to the chase - I meet a guy, get married, have two children, he is going to be in a family business, a total gentleman, sophisticated, supportive and travels alot.

Now seriously, what single girl at 36 doesn't want to hear this?

Of course, I am hoping it's all true, but if it isn't I not about to go back and ask for my money back am I?

Because I choose to, I am going to focus on this information being correct at the time of the reading - I am a positive person, so by nature this is what I would always do.

However, what a great business! Say she does 6 readings a day, 6 days per week... not a bad income earner I say. Cash in hand, no strings attached.

How profitable is her talent? Very!

We all want the good news and shy away from bad news. She allows you to opt for just good news. Why wouldn't you go to someone who is going to give you good news?

I am a fan because I have walked out of her house on cloud 9. My life is going to be good - actually great! Fantastic!

I can't be happier.

Fortune telling is a talent and I am not sure whether I am a believer or whether I think that some people can read your mind and tell you want you want to hear. But it is something that requires a minimal qualification, good money and your own hours with people like me only too happy to hand over $90 for a reading from a complete stranger.

Not bad I say!

In Search for an Effen Great Bloke

Today is D - Day. The search for an Effen Great Bloke and his mates is on.

All you have to do is log onto www.effengreatbloke.com.au and register your details and that of your mate's to have a chance to win a year's supply of beer for you and your mate. How awesome is that!

What is an effen Great Bloke? He is many things - he shares a drink or two with you, he doesn't shag your missus, he is there when he needs to be, he doesn't dump you for the first chick that comes along, he likes to hang out, watches the football and more. www.youtube.com/effengreatbloke - check it out! I bet you can do better.

Become a fan on facebook, twitter, myspace and flickr and make sure you enter the competition and share www.effengreatbloke.com.au with your mates.

Most of all, have an effen great time!

Marketing Eye is proud to be associated with this promotion about mates having an effen good time. Isn't that what life is all about?

www.marketingeye.com.au

Who is an Effen Great Bloke?

In the past 4 months, I have learnt alot about beer. Too much, some would say.

After being approached by another agency to work with them on a beer brand, and then eventually taking over the account to launch the brand through a digital marketing campaign, Marketing Eye has pulled together to understand exactly how this market works.

There are literally thousands of beer brands out there, yet only a few are on our shelves.

The bigger companies like Fosters and XXXX (you can tell I am a Queenslander) claim much of the market share and they are complemented by hundreds of craft beer brewers who have done exceptionally well with their aromic flavours and creative marketing spin.

There's Little Creatures, Barons and Effen that really stand out from the crowd. If you haven't tried all three, then it's a must. Drop everything and go out and buy these beers - you won't regret it.

With craft beer, it's not so much about the loyalty that VB and XXXX drinkers take pride in that makes them a must have, but more the uniqueness of flavours and the sheer enjoyment of drinking a well-brewed beer in limited stock.

After substantial taste testing, I am pleased to say, that even though I have never really been a beer drinker, effen beer tastes really good. In fact, great!

It's an easy drink that everyone must try at least once - or perhaps twice. Get the picture?

With craft beer, it's all about marketing, because if you don't market your beer and people don't demand it from their bottleshops and the bars they frequent, it won't last.

Effen is unique, and the Engineer behind it, Ryan Leslie, has put alot of blood, sweat and tears into making sure it is an effen great beer for effen great blokes.

Marketing Eye is pleased to be working with effen to launch their 'effen great bloke' campaign.

Everybody knows an effen great bloke and now is the time to reward them for being there when you need them to, making you laugh and knowing that with them, you will always have an effen great time.

Become a fan of effen - Live the Oath! on Facebook, twitter, myspace, flickr and youtube. Read about what others have to say about effen and why not write what you think of this effen great beer on a blog yourself? And, very importantly, enter the competition to win a year's supply of beer for you and a mate.

I know I will be!

www.effengreatbloke.com

www.marketingeye.com.au

'I'm on a boat' viralling to success

This week, on my return from an overseas holiday, on a boat, I have had an office full of creatives brainstorming viral campaigns for clients at least 12 hours per day.

Whilst, everybody is different and it really comes down to individual preferences on what is a good viral and what is in fact, not, I am continually surprised by what is a hit and what is a miss.

A viral, for those who can't think beyond health related meanings, is a phrase used to describe popular email-forwarded or word-of-mouth propelled video clips on the Internet and as a business that promotes companies in the b2b and b2c sectors, we are destined to do quite a few viral video clips each year.

It gives our young creatives a way of unleashing their inner-most out-of-the-box creativity and ultimately sense of humour - or lack of it!

At the ripe old age of 36, I am less likely to be spending evenings or weekends looking at virals but I guess, I am not really the ultimate target audience for many of the very successful virals that have been staged on the internet. My ability to consume such things is limited as away from the workforce, I live a fairly sheltered life from the various media mediums.

Having said that, I do remember vividly the humour that came from the Mastercard virals 10 years ago and how successful they were amongst my peers and the world over.

And more recently, having been on a boat with a few guys that were avid consumers of viral videos, I had the opportunity to see 'I'm on a boat' which coincidently, I was. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_YlkEUOonI&feature=related)

A group of 7 people in their mid thirties all engaged by a video that is somewhat silly, but humourous, taking the 'piss' out of people 'on a boat'.

Even though I am a person who often misses the punchline in a joke (I definately inherited this skill from my mother), I could see the value in this viral email. Here I was, on this glorious boat in the South of France, enjoying the sunshine, and there we all were, looking at a computer screen watching a video. What is that about? Seriously, I wasn't bored soaking up the rays of sunshine, yet, even I spent the 5 minutes looking at this viral that ultimately promoted Vodka.

We were all engaged and we couldn't stop talking about it. So much so, after a few glasses of wine we were all ready to do our own clip (and thankfully that moment passed quickly and there are no videos floating around that I would be a tad embarrassed about).

Virals are a cost-effective way in which to promote certain products and services. If done well, they can achieve millions of hits and the word-of-mouth value for those ones that are successful, are often in the tens of millions.

Companies that do it well, reap the rewards... but if you fail to ignite a sense with the recipient of your viral video to pass it on, then it is a waste of money, time and effort and can ultimately damage your brand.

Youtube (how did we survive without this?) gives even those backyard videos a level playing field. Some of the most creative and funny virals are done by Mum's and Dad's at home having a good time. Anyone can do it, anytime, anywhere.

Television programs like Britian's Got Talent have been tens of millions of dollars worth of publicity through the viral promotion of Susan Boyle (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OcQ9A-5noM&feature=PlayList&p=41424DCD1015CA16&index=0&playnext=1.

www.marketingeye.com.au

Greek One Hat Wonder

When a bunch of marketers get together and one happens to be Greek - anything can happen. Not only great ideas, but in this particular case, even better food.

L'Oliver is a restaurant in the third district of Paris and is run by a Greek family who have just been given One Hat by the Michellin Guide. Affordable food, great atmosphere and not too imposing for those of us who tire of eating at the high end of town.

The food is to die for. Commencing with a starter of Fromage Chypriote au Lait de brebis poele sesame and miel au safran (Fried goats cheese with saffron honey and sesame), followed by Croussillant d' aubergines en feuillete, viande de boeuf and bechamel a la mozzarello (eggplant gratin in leaf of crust, beef mince meat and mozzarello) and completed by an orgasmic special chocolate mousse with blueberries, the menu in spectacular.

Our table could not stop raving about how good the food is and for Paris, it is incredibly affordable.

The problem is that no-one knows this restaurant exists. The chef is a food scientist with his appetite for creative food combinations that leave your mouth watering.

The business is in a bad location and has never been promoted until the faithful day that a Michellin reviewer came in. Now, of course, this is all about to change with the new guide coming out in early 2010.

Why do some restaurants succeed whilst others fail even when their food and service is second to none?

The answer is marketing and location. Located close to Republique on the Boulevard de Temple, L'Oliver is quaint with many personal touches. But for some, not as conveniently located as it could be.

Vassilis Alexiou, the chef, is kind, respected and immensely talented. His wife, who tends to the restaurants customers works hard and is committed to every single person in the restaurant.

They are for now, the small guy but in time thanks to a chance meeting and subsequent review, they won't be a hidden secret but instead the Greek Restaurant of choice in Paris.

Go visit next time you are in town. It's a must see and do experience in Paris that you will not regret.

The A-List

On Friday 21st August 2009, The Armani Dinner for the STC Foundation event was held at the Sydney Theatre Company to raise much needed funds for the Foundation.

Having been to this event previously, I knew what to expect. The event and the companies associated with it belong to a brand group. This brand group is what I call the A-List group of companies.

They are brands that are all leaders in their fields in terms of quality, people, community and brand association. They do not sponsor something that doesn't fit directly into their brand paradigm and they don't let their brand be bastardised will-nilly with every event or opportunity that crosses their path.

People want to be associated with their brands. They want to belong, want to be invited and want to have some association in which to leverage their own personal brands.

The two brands that host the event are Armani and the Sydney Theatre Company. Armani is a globally dominant iconic fashion label only the mega wealthy, fashionable and deliciously sophisticated care to wear.

Sydney Theatre Company has over the years been the number one theatre group in Australia but was catapulted into another stratosphere when Oscar Winner and internationally recognised actress Cate Blanchett and her charismatic husband became the Artistic Directors.

Cate as we all know is one of the most loved actresses of our generation and is known as the Meryl Streep of modern times. She is in blockbusters and in low budget films and is known for her integrity as an actress and person.

Her husband Andrew Upton is well regarded, very talented and incredibly intelligent. He has vision, creativity and the love of a superstar. What more can one ask for?

Giorgio Armani is an icon. I can't say more than that in fear that the words are not expressed as highly as I would like them to be, so I won't try.

Together Armani and STC put on a yearly event and have done so for the past 3 years to raise funds. There are no B-Grade celebrities in sight like many events that invite celebrities just to have them there.

In the room there are business leaders, cultural experts, creatives, talented actors and singers. Each and every one of these people have something to contribute to the community and to the people around them.

As I looked around, I felt incredibly privileged to have been an invited guest at such an event.

There was Pink who incredibly generously donated her money to the tune of $42k along with her musical talents to sing a song for a donation of over $30k. She was beautiful, fun and looked like she really had a good time with the people who were there.

There were the Packers, Joel Edgerton, Mathew Newton and a host of other equally impressive and talented people.

People talked freely with each other on subjects such as child poverty and of course the arts. Not so much about fashion as one would expect although I couldn't help myself but lead into a conversation about how much of a fan I am of Mr Armani.

We had a delightful young actress at our table, who was a shining example of the people that STC nurture. One day I am sure we will see her on the silver screen. She kindly complemented all the actors who performed that night and clearly is someone who is not only an actress but a good person with no airs or graces.

Companies represented in the room were not just any company, but ones that are aware of the benefits of arts to the community and are generous in their donations to the cause.

I can't ever see this event exploding into one that has 1000's of attendees. It is intimate, private and professional.

I can't help but admire how well it was all orchestrated from the time of arrival to the hilarious MC's, Cate and Andrew's entertaining and meaningful speeches, Justin Millers brilliant auctioning skills (who else knows every name in the room and can coerce anyone into giving a generous donation through his charming and often cheeky demeanour) and the ensemble of talented actors that work for STC.

They even had an office band, who had only practiced their set that day. Oh, my gosh! I could have sat and watched them all day. They were brilliant.

The food was fabulous, the entertainment, simply the best and the company was intelligent, purposeful and genuine.

I do hope to be invited next year and thank both Armani and STC for the good they do for our community.

www.marketingeye.com.au

$17.99 per day and get a Marketing Manager for 12 months!

Wow! When you get a bunch of marketers in a room - ideas fly.

They come up with some of the most amazing ideas, many that need to stay at the bottom of the pile, but one that I am going to bring right to the top.

Think... same as our Marketing Eye great offer of having a Marketing Eye in your business for 12 months, 2 days per month to develop your marketing strategy and implement it... but for just $17.99 per day*.

Exclusive to startup businesses and micro businesses - people who need to use their money for other purposes. No interest. No hidden costs. Same high quality as usual.

* Contract for services lasts for 12 months, Payments of $17.99 per day for 2 years with a balloon of $10,867.30 at the end.

Find out more by ringing 03 9692 7600

Saying No To A Prospect

How many times in business have you wished you never took on a new client? They were a bad fit, they weren't on the same page, they didn't have the same code of ethics or perhaps they had unrealistic expectations. Everyone at some stage has experienced a situation where a client or potential client is not a good fit for their organisation.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to meet with a very enthusiastic couple who own a small printing company on the outskirts of Melbourne. They, like many small businesses, want to grow their business.

They come armed with a new website, which in many ways is quite good, and in another, needs quite a bit of work.

What many small businesses don't realise is that if you are ready to engage a marketing manager in your business, then its time to let them do what they do best. By all means, check out their references and make sure they have the skills to make a difference to your business, but ultimately, you are investing in their skill of marketing.

I can say with confidence, that I have spent the past 18 years in marketing and I am across every area of the marketing mix. Within minutes, I can tell a client information that will aid them in achieving their marketing goals.

The two people who headed this company that had called Marketing Eye after viewing our company website, were ambitious, proud and had taken a few steps in which to improve their business. They had hired a business coach, a web developer (or online guru as they repeated over and over again) and now were interviewing marketing companies.

In addition, according to the owner he had many years of experience in senior marketing roles with some large Australian companies and come armed with a marketing degree.

As they explained their business and their hairy audacious goals (think Verne Harnish)it became apparent that they were a long way off hiring a marketing company. They needed more than a business coach too.

In business, its important that when you are communicating what you do, you are considering the audience you are communicating to. That what information you are telling them, is in fact relevant.

In addition, if you are about to hire a marketing company, then don't say you are a marketing guru - because that has trouble written all over it. Why, because micro management in marketing will kill even the best campaign and if you are hiring a agency, then don't hire them if you don't think they can do the job.

Also, be realistic. Hairy audacious goals are good and business coaches love it! But when they have no basis, and no leg work has been done - save it for a later date.

I too am an entrepreneur and I get very excited when I come up with a good idea, but I know that telling the world every time I have a good idea has bad written all over it.

Sure, when I was in my twenties I had not been banged over the head enough and freely told people my dreams for my career and business, but after a permanent 'googie egg' mounted on the top of my head, I finally realised for it to go down, I had to think before I spoke.

When you meet with a new client or a new service provider - think about how you want to position your company, what you want them to think about your brand and what you actually want them to gain from the meeting.

Time is valuable. Yours and theirs. Don't waste it on information that is not directly integral to the outcome of the meeting.

Even if you think that your idea that you want to share is the only one of its type in the world - think it - don't say it. The amount of entrepreneurs that are proven wrong every day with this comment is very high.

I meet with hundreds of business owners each year and so often they think that their business is the only one of its type or that they in fact do not have any competitors.

Whilst companies may not do it exactly how you do, the reality is that we all have competitors, and to compete we need to understand this reality.

Enthusiasm is good and contagious - but think about your audience and what you want them to take away from your meeting.

Yesterday, I sent an email to a prospect who I had met with hours earlier and said thank you but unfortunately our businesses are not able to work together.

It didn't feel good. After all, it is the GFC and turning back business seems ludicrous, but sometimes it costs more to take on a new client that doesn't fit.

Our brand is worth more than that and ultimately, every client we work with, we want to make a difference to their business. Our expertise in marketing is where we can add value to any organisation and if there are external factors that would influence this value-adding proposition - it is time to say no.

www.marketingeye.com.au

Marketing Eye Embraces Twitter To Find New Clients

Who would have thought, that one social media medium would take precedent over another just because of usability, ease of functionality and a more aligned target audience joined by the fact that it is achieving better results for our clients.

When Marketing Eye embraced twitter, I wasn’t too sure what the results would be like. I totally get b2c marketing and the dependence on twitter and alike, but when it comes to b2b – it’s a whole different story.

‘Follow me’ is replacing ‘friend me’ because if we are doing business, quite frankly, I don’t want you to ‘friend me’. We are not ‘friends’ who hang out on Saturdays. I would rather hide under a blanket all day then have embarrassing high school photos with my 80’s perm, white stockings and shoulder pads on display. I don’t want a client or prospect seeing photographs of me with a glass of champagne and definitely not in the endless stream of photographs that tend to be openly on display on facebook by people who have no idea what impact it can possibly have.

‘Follow me’ saves me from embarrassment. In a few words, I can tell you exactly what I want to say, without boring you to tears with what the weathers like and how bored I am on a cold, rainy day in Melbourne.

Whilst Facebook has its place, I am reluctant to share my page with the rest of the world. I value my privacy and that of my friends, so I don’t want them spammed with information that does not directly affect them.

And… I am not alone. In July 2009 there was a study of Fortune 100 companies that found that more had a presence on Twitter (54%) than on Facebook (29%). Surprisingly, only 32% had a corporate blog – of which, I am a big fan. (Source Burson-Marsteller)

Burson-Marsteller found that these top companies were using Twitter for several purposes: company news, customer service, marketing promotions and employee recruitment.

Quite simply, Marketing Eye is not unlike many of our marketing peers who overwhelmingly are choosing Twitter for their clients.

We welcomed the whole Web 2.0 with open arms and saw the dream come alive for many of our clients who chose this path to marketing success.

Low cost, effective and targeted - social networks have provided a platform for even the smallest company to excel.

www.marketingeye.com.au

What is the best job in the world?

Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef is as my good friend Steve would say 'sweet' but after a day or two , I have to best honest - what's next?

Having spent 3 days in glorious Townsville recently where the sky was the perfect shade of blue, the temperature was 27 degrees, the sun was shining and the sea was incredibly inviting - I lapped up a day down at the beach, hopped on a ferry to Magnetic Island and in general had an idyllic winters day - who could possibly complain? This is paradise after all. Every Melburnians dream winters day particularly as we are expecting a very chilly 9 degrees this Friday and unless you are on the slopes, this is not too appealing.

By day 2 in the Sunshine State it became apparent that there was little to do and I was in fact bored. I can't believe I am saying this, but it's the truth. There wasn't a good golf course in site (http://www.womensgolflife.com/) simply because the good ones are in the suburbs in Townsville, and let's be honest Townsville isn't known for its shopping (although there is one good shop called Avanti that looks like it belongs in Paris rather than Townsville - I bet the very gorgeous Rachel Finch shops here!). On top of this, the sun is quite harsh on my lilly white skin and having worked on an advertising campaign for The Melanoma Foundation a few years ago, I am acutely aware of the dangers of too much sun. It's fashionable to be white I keep telling myself every time I am lured into the warmth of a summers day although I am green with envy at the bronzed lifesavers who strut up and down the beaches in their speedos.

So, for me... I don't think it was actually the best job in the world. In fact, I can't imagine why anyone would think it is. After a week of holidaying in a beach resort, how many of us actually want to stay? Chances are we enjoy our holiday but also can't wait to get back home to friends and family and the entertainment options that are available to us in the big city.

From a marketing perspective, however, this is 'the best job in the world' as whoever came up with the campaign deserves every accolade that they have received.

Statistics as at 6 July 2009 were that the campaign attracted 8 million visitors to http://www.islandreefjob.com/, 94,000 subscribers to receive Best Job in the World Updates and the winner has more than 2000 followers on Twitter. Very impressive.

As a marketer we are always praying that this good fortune will happen to us on the next campaign we are working on.

Having recently won a beer account - yep, that is almost the best job in the world for most men I suspect - I can't help but think that getting a job as a beer tester wouldn't be too bad... but like our tourism counterparts, after day one, what's next?

What is your idea of the best job in the world? Mine... sad but true... is exactly what I am doing right now.

http://www.marketingeye.com.au/

Getting your database right

Whether due to lack of knowledge, time, budget or planning, many companies fall short of the mark when it comes to targeting the right audience.

It is essential that business owners, marketers or the person driving a direct marketing campaign know exactly how to define, segment and target prospects in order to maximise ROI.

Today, many businesses realise the importance of segmentation - the process of subdividing customers and prospects according to common attributes and characteristics relevant to a product or service.

With tools like Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and other social networking platforms, segmentation has become the most valuable and lucrative industry in the world - all with good reason. Collating information on a market segment that is valuable to marketers and alike - is priceless!

A segment is a part of the market consisting of a group of customers or prospects which is homogeneous to itself, has a similar need and which can be addressed in the same way, using the same strategy and distribution channel.

It is also very much about identifying which product or service a customer or prospect is likely to buy and exactly how best to communicate with them.

Many companies still treat all customers and prospects the same.

Know how big your segments are, what the size of the market is and ascertain what opportunities exist for your company in each channel.

Importantly, put your resources where it is most needed.

"The realism is that getting information to segment in depth is a challenge," said Marketing Eye, CEO, Mellissah Smith.

"The difference between b2b and b2c is very complex."

4 Steps to segmentation

1. Clean data: Data must be clean, current and comprehensive in a universal format. Create one master file by merging information from different areas to enable you to assess the state of the market and create a cusotmer-centric view.

2. Identify variables: Segments can be compiled by using a multitude of factors like geographic location, purchasing behaviour, business size, type etc.

3. Divide and Analyse: Determine what each company needs and divide it into segments of businesses with similar profiles then enlist a data specialist to conduct a statistical analysis. This will help identify trends and determine important charactistics of each segment.

4. Apply: Match the segments against your business objectives and use the segmentation as an ongoing part of your marketing strategy ensuring you have the market intelligence to fine tune your database and turn customer information into your competitive advantage.

ROI is very important when it comes to delivering direct marketing campaigns and market segmentation will not only help you deliver a more targeted campaign to your audience, but also work in your favour to achieve sales outcomes and a higher return on investment for your marketing dollar.

www.marketingeye.com.au

Is It Criminal Not To Be Creative?

When one fancies themselves as a bit of a creative, it's hard to ignore that urge that consumes you when an opportunity to pitch for a relatively large account comes your way.

Creative has alot of up-side - it can often be memorable, evoke a laugh or perhaps two, be passed on to others that may not normally have received a sample and for the person who has actually come up with the clever and insightful creative - some old fashion back patting from colleagues, bosses and importantly, the client.

Today, no matter how much I wanted to be creative - I knew it wasn't the time, the place or the right market in which to do so.

For tomorrow's pitch to a building supplies company, I am going back to marketing 101. Sometimes, you just have to bite the bullet and give a client exactly what they need to connect with their customers.

Sure, we make more money out of outlantish creative and possibly could win some awards, but the reality is, the client has to sell their products or services and we have to provide the platform for this to occur.

The incumbent company has had the account for quite some time and I have to say, with many of their other clients they are very clever, very creative and I am immensely jealous of their ability to secure sexy and fashionable clients - that if I was in the b2c space I would love to have.

In the not so glam b2b space, we are restricted to say the least with what we do. There is no high end fashion shoots with supermodels in bikini's happening down at Marketing Eye headquarters - although we do have one fashion client that is quite a bit of fun for the gen-y marketing executives we employ.

What the current agency has done I presume is to be far too comfortable with the client and to produce same old, same old collateral and marketing activites. They aren't looking outside the box or perhaps the client has asked them not to. I am unsure, but tomorrow no doubt I will find out.

Pitching is a funny thing - putting your credientials out there, presenting in a room of people who may or may not like you or your ideas, being questioned on areas that often to the arrogant marketing professional common sense and being judged on your performance on that particular day - rather than on that week, month or year.

It's disheartening to lose a pitch and although this has not happened to me too often (mainly because I cannot handle rejection and therefore do not put myself in the position to pitch to organisations relying very heavily on client referrals and repeat business) in the current environment we all have to put ourselves out of our comfort zones.

We're prepared as a company and have been talking of nothing else for the last 2 days. The enthusiasm amongst the team is contagious and lively - so I do hope that the choice not to go creative, but to go back to basics wins on the day.

Marketing is my passion and I believe in the value it represents.

Fingers crossed... maybe toes too!

www.marketingeye.com.au

MELBOURNE CITY COUNCIL - YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF!

Not often do I find myself caught in a debate on a case of 'should they or shouldn't they' spend money on branding or marketing.

Having read the Herald Sun on Thursday, I have to say, I can't help myself! It is one of those times where quite frankly, I can't keep my mouth shut. I am disgusted and downright appalled that the Melbourne City Council that we voted in so frivolously a) spent $240,000 on a logo; and b) spent it with a US company so profits (and there are big profits in a job like this) go offshore.

Is there no company in Victoria good enough to do your logo identity Melbourne City Council? No up and coming students, who would no doubt happily do it for their portfolio for FREE that you would give an opportunity of a lifetime to? Is there no internationally award winning branding experts in Melbourne in your directory?

In this day and age, when the Government is trying in earnest to generate local spending to keep our retailers and businesses alive (and of course a few pokie operators) Melbourne City Council quite clearly has not thought twice about spending a few hundred thousand dollars on a logo that sucks (yes, I have not used this word since I was 14 years of age - but have you seen the new logo?) with a US company.

Whilst I own two marketing companies, not for a second do I think I should be in the running to do this job, but I am happy to sell the praises of my branding counterparts in competitive companies that are as talented as any agency you will find in the world. In addition, in case the Melbourne City Council were not aware, Melbourne is widely recognised as having the best branding experts in Australia, who win international awards regularly and are continually commissioned by yes, US companies, to do their branding work.

And... Melbourne City Council... I agree wholeheartedly with the comments made by the journalist who wrote the story, Matt Johnston, who has slammed the Council in his article and given many good reasons why spending this sort of money is just not on. Feed the homeless, clean up the graffiti or help fight crime - are just some suggestions that were featured in the article.

Who agreed to this type of expenditure anyway? They need to be sacked? Not only are they not in touch with their local community, they have no clue on the current economic climate and its effects on Australians who are in hardship.

Do they know families are losing their homes - not able to afford to feed their children let alone pay school fees? Whilst the Melbourne City Council sits in their Ivory Tower maybe a reality check is required.

A new Council please! We need people who represent our best interests - not clueless, money spending bureaucrats who have cushy jobs and happily spend almost a quarter of a million dollars on a logo. Now I wonder how much the US company who won the cushy gig will be paid to roll out this campaign?

All I can say is SHAME ON YOU!

http://www.marketingeye.com.au/

Campaign of the Year

What takes a corporation to take notice?

Money? Sales decline?

Infoactiv, a multiparty logistics company headquartered in Melbourne has been educating corporates for the past 5 years on Greenscaping their businesses. There are a few that are proactive and have taken the ‘bull by the horns’ so to speak, but there still are quite a few that have held back, waiting to see what others do, or what the Government’s next move may be.

Greenscaping isn’t just about Government legislation although that has to be part of it. It’s about ‘greenscaping’ the entire enterprise to not only realise efficiencies and save money, but to also save the environment.

So many companies talk the talk but don’t walk the walk.

Infoactiv’s Managing Director, Helen Jarman’s passion for bringing businesses and environmental issues together and developing plans within organisation’s that encapsulate an end-to-end greenscaping strategy across the entire supply chain in an organisation, will ultimately lead to a mind-shift in the CEO’s of today.

“The truth of the matter is there won’t be anything left for our grandchildren if we don’t make radical changes in our businesses. It’s not just about recycling paper or plastic containers. Greenscaping is so much more than that and touches so many areas previously ignored in a businesses lifecycle.”

“Getting CEO’s to champion greenscaping unfortunately tends to be a business decision led by either government legislation or cost-savings.”

“Yes, cost-savings are a real benefit of Greenscaping, but the fundamental decision making process needs to be more human.”

“Al Gore has done a lot for the educating on Climate Change but without me personally knocking on every big corporate’s door and telling them what more they can be doing more – change may not occur at a pace required to save the environment for our future generations.”

“There is a lot of work to be done and it’s going to be challenging. Businesses need to take greater ownership of what they are doing and the impact they have,” said Ms Jarman.

Infoactiv’s release of ‘Time, runs out’ will provoke a greater thinking of the consequences of not greenscaping amongst our current generation. We will be that old lady in the local park surrounded by waste pictured in the campaign if we don’t take action now. What sort of price can corporations place on the events that lead to this?

The campaign is one of the most 'in your face' campaigns to corporate that I have seen that doesn't involve abuse, alcoholism or cigarette smoking.

It's message is loud and clear. 'Time, Runs Out' - and it does. There is going to be a time when it is too late. Large corporates and smaller businesses need to do more and be educated on how much more there is to be done. It isn't just the obvious - recycling of tins, glass etc or just eWaste. It's all of it and alot more.

Sitting down for 30 minutes with expert Helen Jarman will give everyone a snapshot of what they should be doing enterprise-wide.

I applaud people like this that are making a difference! Congratulations!

http://www.infoactiv.com.au/

http://www.marketingeye.com.au/

Big Corporates Know When To Support An Event

It always amazes me that from the corridors of a big corporation that consistently moves with the times, that they in fact always know what to support and what not to. Does the CEO talk to other CEO's to see what they are doing, or are the marketing departments so switched on that they just don't miss a beat?

Today, I noticed that the millionaire’s factory, Macquarie Bank has secured the high profile Carbon Market Expo Australasia event on the Gold Coast as a major sponsor alongside international law firm, Baker and McKenzie.

How pertinent! In this current economic environment, when every paper I pick up has a story on carbon trading, greenscaping, green companies, carbon footprints and alike, that a major investment bank that has always been known for being ahead of the curve is lending its support and corporate sponsorship to the headline event for the industry in 2009. I bet there were quite a few banks queuing for the top billing because even when people are cutting expenditure in other areas, this area hasn't hurt a bit.

Unlike many other events, carbon trading events such as Carbon Market Expo Australasia, keeps going from strength to strength and who's who of carbon trading and all the services that surround this billion dollar business are flocking to the Gold Coast in droves.

The people to expect are everyone from carbon asset investors and managers to businesses with corporate or product emissions reduction strategies who need to know what is happening, when it’s happening and how.

There will be Government at all levels participating and I am sure sponsoring this high profile event, businesses in manufacturing and retailing low carbon emission technologies, carbon offset project managers, wholesalers and retailers, carbon accountants, auditors and of course research and education institutions - they will all be there to hear everything there is to know about carbon market trading.

Who would have thought ten years ago that so many businesses would build their new business strategies around their carbon footprint?

I am keen to attend as the whispers are already going crazy on some big Government announcements that are expected to be leaked at the event - and of course, to see who else is out there.

The best business is the networking at events such as this. Where else can you network with the Top 500 companies at one event?
http://www.carbonexpo.com.au/
http://www.marketingeye.com.au/
http://www.infoactiv.com.au/

The Odds On Winning A Car At A Charity Function

Last Friday I was kindly invited by one of my best friends to attend the Long Rugby Breast Cancer Charity Lunch held at the Hilton Hotel in Sydney.

There are many things dear to my heart and breast cancer and the effects of it are one of them.

There have been many people over the years who have touched my life that have been diagnosed with Cancer and I have watched them and their families be effected by this heart wrenching disease.

To donate to a charity such as this is an honour and when I am invited to a charity lunch or function that requires me to donate, I am only too happy to oblige.

Lunches such as this are about giving to a good cause and also having a great time. I was at a table hosted by Sharon-Lee, the eyebrow guru, who is not only stunning outside but inside too. Her family has been affected by breast cancer and she kindly donated goods to the cause and encouraged her friends to attend. May I also add, her eyebrows were perfectly arched and plucked - much to the envy of the tables of women that surround our table. Who would have thought 10 years ago that an empire would be built on eyebrows?

Another person at my table, Michelle, was a successful investment banker and my close friend Sam, is a radio announcer and television presenter who has built a successful career. There are so many women out there that are successful, charitable and have so much to offer the world. Whilst I am not an advocate for Women's Awards as I do believe in equal billing, I do take time out to admire my female counterparts and applaud their successes.

There are so many amazingly talented women out there that to be able to spend an afternoon in their company is both invigorating and inspiring.

There were silent auctions and raffle tickets - all of which I participated in with vigour. Sam and I decided that we wanted to win the car to spend the proceeds on a girls holiday at Xmas, so we quickly departed with $500 to buy 6 tickets in the draw.

Sam was so sure that we would win that she was spending the money on everything from helicopter flights through to shopping sprees.

As they asked people to stay standing if their numbers were from 100 to 500, our excitement built. Then they asked to remain standing anyone between 100 and 200 - and all of a sudden I realised we were in for a chance! A sweat bead on my forehead started to trickle down the side of my perfectly made up face and I began to get nervous, then they called out a number ... and it wasn't mine! How many times have we all been in this predicament whereby we believe we are going to win something and the excitement mounts, only to be disappointed by the wrong number or name coming out? Some lucky young Irish man had won the car and they aren't even good a rugby! How does that happen?

Trying not to be too disappointed, I sat down and both Sam and I talked about what we could have done with the money for the next hour or so.

It was kind of like when I put in the lotto for the first time 2 weeks ago for the $96 million dollar draw. I had spent that money in my mind pretty fast that time too.

$90 million for charity, $6 million for my expenses for the rest of my life.

What else would one do with that sort of money?

The odds of winning anything is quite slim - particularly in my case. As always, it seems the same people win things over and over again. They are called 'just plain lucky!'

I on the other hand I am not so lucky. I have to work for everything I achieve and do - which really isn't so bad. I feel privileged that to date I have had good health, a loving family and the most interesting and diverse group of good friends one could ever hope for.

The odds of winning a car at a charity are 1000 to 1, but the odds of having a good life, are all about what you make of it.

I have a business that I am proud of, a career that has spanned 18 years and I care about those around me.

What more can I ask for?

www.marketingeye.com.au

Launches That Make An Impact

Last night I was invited to attend the launch of a new film production and distribution company at MTV in East Sydney.

I had many reasons for being there. Firstly, I have a film production company of my own www.insomniafilms.com that does mainly corporate and charity related work. Secondly, my good friend John is involved in the company on a number of levels and I wanted to be there to support him.

On arrival, I was blown away by the sheer magnitude of the event. I expected an event with 60 to 80 people, drinking champagne (isn't that what all launches are about?) and eating canapes.

Well, was I in for a surprise. There were around 700 people (apparently, 750 people rsvp'ed), and there was an electic mix of extreme sportspeople, celebrities, business people, tv types and of course hot chicks. When I am talking hot... I am talking smokin'.

I was there with my cousin who was mesmerised by the number of attractive women amongst the 700 strong crowd at the event. For him, this is the best event launch he had ever been to. Some people are really easy to please.

The company has the rights to US entertainment giant, VAS Entertainment, in Australia and Asia.

They use content and turn it into television programs and movies, and also make television shows and movies having bought the rights to various novels.

Interestingly, the guys behind VAS Entertainment have previously worked with the highly successful Bra Boys Documentary in the capacity of producers.

The launch had copious amounts of drinks, great food (loved the cupcakes touch!), entertainment (I thought I was in a club in St Tropez for a moment!)and the largest group of interesting and different people I have ever seen at a launch in Australia.

It was mesmerising to say the least. I could have stayed all night and people watched.

The extreme sportspeople mingled freely with the business-types and everyone quite simply had a good time. The speeches were 2 minutes if that and the vision on the screens at the MTV Studio's highlighted some of the group's work.

If you find time, check out www.vasaustralia.comm.au - worth the look!

www.marketingeye.com.au

Great Ideas Come In The Shower

This morning I didn't want to get out of bed. It's cold, my bed's warm and the TV was on.

Eventually after my alarm bell rang for the 9th time, I hopped out of my snuggly bed and headed for the shower as I do 7 mornings a week.

I am one of those people who likes to take long hot scaulding showers. I often use this time to think about the day ahead, what I have and haven't done, about life and on the odd occasion, about clients.

Being naked and thinking about clients probably doesn't put a good image in one's mind, but if you forget the fact that I am naked which isn't a great site I might add, and focus on free flowing thoughts, quite often a pearler does comes to mind.

I am a strong believer that when you are relaxed and least expect it, you can come up with some of the most brilliant ideas.

I once listened to Bryce Courteney talk at an event and he told the story of how he came up with one of the most famous television commercials in history.

50 years ago Bryce Courtenay was desperately trying to avoid the sack, actor Ross Higgins was battling to earn a quid and the boss of Mortein, was ready to dump his ad agency because his fly spray wasn't selling.

After hopping into a cab to attend an urgent meeting, Courtenay was told to arrive with an idea. In the short ride to the ad agency he composed a rough jingle to be sung by an animated fly named after the cab driver Louie.

The boss of Mortein, Graham, bought it and Louie the Fly was born, going "straight from rubbish tip" to become possibly the longest continuously running television advertising campaign.

This morning, an idea for a client that sells a craft beer in Victoria was born. They have a brilliant, character brand name that takes away from the new metro male versions that are now flooding the market. It has attitude, charisma and above all, an ability to bring the brand name alive in the mindset of the target audience, like no other brand I have seen in years.

I must admit, I have always been in love with the old VB commercials from 1984 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wfgi9hGx1) "a hard earned thirst, needs a big cold beer, and the best cold beer is Vic, Vic Bitter...." so I would say it's hard to beat... but there is one that everyone needs to watch.

Great marketing ideas don't need to be forced. The best ideas come from free flowing thoughts and occasion from people you least expect.

Getting hung up on trying to come up with a great idea and ending up with something 'that will do' isn't a good option.

www.marketingeye.com.au