Brand

  • CEO Speak by Guy Kawasaki

    Posted January 24, 2009 By in Brand With | 2 Comments

    I almost spilled my coffee this morning when I read this recommendation from Guy Kawasaki in a post entitled Tough Talk for Tough Times: What CEOs Should Be Saying Now over at OPEN Forum.

    ?The marketing budget is now $0, and we will figure out a way to get to market.? Maybe you have more than $0, but if you adopt a much better mindset. How can you use free resources, social media (Facebook, Twitter, Friendfeed, etc) to market your product on a shoestring budget?

    Fortunately I contained myself, put the cup down, and placed all my focus on his post.? What the hell is Guy trying to do here?

    Now I agree that adopting a mindset that you need to maximize your available resources – that’s what marketing optimization is all about and that’s how I make my living.? And I completely agree with incorporating social media and free resources into an integrated marketing campaign because you need to use all available resources in order to succeed -today, tomorrow and beyond.

    Then I got to Guy’s next comment and I smiled…

    ?Engineering needs to make something so compelling that a $0 marketing budget isn?t a problem.? The pressure isn?t only on marketing?engineering needs to create something so great that the marketing doesn?t matter.

    DAMN RIGHT!? Blah products are not required and shouldn’t be allowed (see my earlier post on this very subject) – especially now!

    Check out the rest of Guy’s post as well as the entire OPEN Forum site – a very interesting tactic brought to you by the wonderful people at American Express.? I recommend this site…but suggest that you keep your coffee cup on the table as you read.

    Related Articles:

    patmcgraw
    Pat McGraw founded [mcgraw | marketing] in 1999 in order to provide growth-oriented small businesses with hands-on services that increase sales and marketing performance. In addition to offering coaching, consulting and interim executive solutions to businesses, Pat has taught business and marketing courses at several colleges and universities and is a frequent speaker at conferences around the country.

Post comment as
twitter logo facebook logo
Sort: Newest | Oldest
Ted Grigg

Your post brings to mind one of the first lessons direct marketers must learn.

What are the key predictors to the success of a direct marketing campaign listed in order of priority?
1. The right target audience
2. A compelling offer
3. Seasonality
4. Excellent creative execution

When learning these, the direct marketing mentor almost always adds: "But of course, this all assumes you have a product or service people want badly enough to pay the money you are asking for it."

The bottom line: No direct response campaign or social media effort will make up for a poor product.

Thanks for bringing up the importance of the product in your post!

Ted

share
  • spam
  • offensive
  • disagree
  • off topic
 Like
Ted Grigg

Your post brings to mind one of the first lessons direct marketers must learn.

What are the key predictors to the success of a direct marketing campaign listed in order of priority?
1. The right target audience
2. A compelling offer
3. Seasonality
4. Excellent creative execution

When learning these, the direct marketing mentor almost always adds: "But of course, this all assumes you have a product or service people want badly enough to pay the money you are asking for it."

The bottom line: No direct response campaign or social media effort will make up for a poor product.

Thanks for bringing up the importance of the product in your post!

Ted

share
  • spam
  • offensive
  • disagree
  • off topic
 Like

© Pat McGraw 2008-12

Switch to our mobile site