Marketing Eye

Monday, 23 January 2012 19:04

How To Have A Long Distance Relationship

I know a thing or two about having a long distance relationship. I've had my share and some, if you know what I mean! Having spent a good part of my thirties choosing to engage in long-distance relationships with people from all over the world, many have come to think that it is inevitable that one day I will wake up and realise what most people have already realised - and that is that it doesn't work.

I am ever the optimist and refuse to be told that something I have engaged in is doomed before it has even began, so like most things, I give it 100 percent and hope for the best.
For many small businesses, the not-so-new marketing technique of QR Codes is just another technology platform that may well be a craze.

Unfortunately, this would be wishful thinking.

QR Codes are here to stay and in 2012 small businesses will find everything from advertisements through to resumes featuring QR Codes alongside brand names sending consumers and customers to websites, video, advertisements, catalogues, contact information, product suggestions and so on.

Only limited by your imagination or that of your creative departments, it is imperative that marketers don't fall prey to this form of marketing without carefully considering their target audience.
Thursday, 19 January 2012 18:37

Is Facebook Sleezy?

Facebook is meant to be for friends. Right?

It disturbs me how many people trawl through facebook and request 'friendships' with people they have never met or have met for 20 minutes in a bar (and are married or in a relationship). Is Facebook a platform for people to become sleeze bags and try and pick up women/men or is it a platform for friendship. Sure, some people don't have a life and spend every waking hour checking if someone has made a comment on their facebook pages in hope that it will make them feel better than they did the minute before.

According to Psychologytoday.com, so many people spend time on facebook because;
1. They are bored at work
2. They are unhappy with their lovelife
3.  There are a narcissist (and/or voyeur)
4.  They desire to 'get along' with people
5.  Their motive is to 'get ahead'

I think facebook has a place and it is to keep in touch with friends and relatives and to touch base with that person who was your best friend in year 7, but a friend is not someone who you don't invite to your house for dinner or pick up the phone to. A friend is someone you really know, not someone that is a distant acquaintance.

In business there certainly is a place for facebook particularly for consumer based marketing where facebook is fantastic or even for events - but that is NOT on your personal facebook account. It is on a business facebook page that clearly communicates what the objective is for the use of this platform.

More than 100 million users access facebook through their cell phones and those who do, access it double the amount of times as someone who accesses it through a computer. There is a real addiction going on to facebook and without doubt there is and always will be social repercussions.

I personally prefer someone to pick up the phone and call me rather than facebook me a message and face-to-face beats everything hands down for those who I care about.
Published in Mellissah Smith
Yesterday, I had lunch with a girlfriend and as girls do, we chatted about everything from fashion to food, travel to our love lives.

It's what girls do. There is no holds bar on any topic when you are sitting in a restaurant or in this case, an authentic Japanese hole in the wall with delicious food.

With so much happening in both of our lives, we had lots to talk about and 5 hours later, after saying goodbye, I still don't think we were done. 

She is a stunning woman, inside and out. A former model and television presenter, she is married to a charismatic, interesting and equally good looking husband. They are very in love and are embarking on the next stage in their lives.

Throughout the day, she constantly referred to her husband and whenever making a purchase or doing pretty much anything her husband and his likes and dislikes were never far from her mind. It kept a smile on her face all day and after 8 years together, I have to say, that's fantastic.

Most of us have been in love at one stage in our lives and the feeling of putting someone else first is quite special. I love it when you think about that person or animal as it may be, and instantly a smile is firmly planted on your face. It's instant gratification and always puts your whole body at ease immediately. I love this feeling and completely understand why so many of us look to find someone in our lives (or something) to love.

In business, if you love what you do and love your brand... the same goes. When you think about what your brand does for others and it puts a smile on your face - it's a remarkable feeling. Putting your business first and its health and wellbeing is all part of the parcel of being in LOVE with your business.

When you talk about your business, just like when you talk about a person that you love - if a smile immediately overcomes your state, then it must be love. Try it. See if it works!
Mellissah Smith, Atlanta 
As I said to a friend of mine the other day, "everyone in small business has been there at one time or another".

If you think that as a small business owner that only you are going through tough times, employees leaving, cash flow issues, stress and sleepless nights - you are fooling yourself.

While you may be going through these things, so too are millions of other small businesses around the globe.
I have to say that I really like this. Jewellers adorning my favourite sparkling mineral water. Pellegrino is a high-end quality sparkling mineral water and of course, Bvlgari is one of the most fashionable, high-end jewellery companies in the world. The perfect combination. Diamonds and sparkle.

Mellissah Smith, Atlanta.  
Published in Marketing
The latest edition of Advertising Age (US) has an interesting article on 'How to be a better client'. Interesting ;)

Mellissah Smith, Atlanta
Published in Marketing
The lyrics to Kenny Rogers song The Gambler is one of my all time favourites. Here are a few exerpts out of the song, that if you relate it to business and your next deal, you might find something to remember.

He said, "Son, I've made my life
Out of readin' people's faces
Knowin' what the cards were
By the way they held their eyes
So if you don't mind my sayin'
I can see you're out of aces
For a taste of your whiskey
I'll give you some advice"

So I handed him my bottle
And he drank down my last swallow
Then he bummed a cigarette
And asked me for a light
And the night got deathly quiet
And his faced lost all expression
He said, "If you're gonna play the game, boy
You gotta learn to play it right

You've got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
Know when to run
You never count your money
When you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

Now every gambler knows the secret to survivin'
Is knowin' what to throw away
And knowin' what to keep
'Cause every hand's a winner
And every hand's a loser
And the best that you can hope for
Is to die in your sleep"

Knowing when to hold 'em and knowing when to fold 'em, knowing when to walk away and knowing when to run - when you are doing a deal, if you can do all of these things in a sound manner, you will always win the hand. The issues we face in business is that we don't always get these things right. Even the most experienced deal makers like your Murdochs and Packers don't always get it right - so how do us (mere mortals) get it right?

I thought about this song as I was walking into a list after lunch, and it really stuck in my mind. Thought I would share it on this marketing blog.

Cheers!
Trying to wake up this morning wasn't easy. I was in a deep sleep dreaming about something that extended from a blog I wrote yesterday and I really wanted the dream to finish, but unfortunately, the alarm went off and I had to get up. I then preceded to walk around in a daze for the next hour or so. When that happens, its really hard to function properly and even the easiest tasks like turning off a light may seem like hard work.
Sitting on a beach in the Bahama's sipping Pina Coladas, and soaking up the glorious rays of sunshine - ipad in hand... life could not get much better. If this is working, then I am totally up for it! Thus, is the virtual world. Anyone can do anything from anywhere - with no diminishing quality constraints.

The idea of a virtual anything is often something that we look at with trepidation - HOWEVER - is this the actions of a foolish person? Harsh... I get that, but as a stickler for little or no change, I am the first to admit that I am a slow adopter of many things that end up being very good for me and definately for my business. To change a technology that we may use, would be likened to going to the dentist and having my wisdom teeth removed without gas.
Monday, 09 January 2012 20:26

Wanting to impregnate your business?

You can tell when you have hit a certain age and everyone is either wanting to get married and have babies or they are deluding themselves with their own positive affirmations that they are in fact 'happy' just the way they are and wouldn't change their world for anything or anybody. The latter tends to think that by caring about someone other than themselves or making any changes to their lives would only lead to 'unhappiness' or as I like to think, 'putting themselves in a vunerable situation in which they cannot control'. Having spent the last couple of weeks with a number of single, middle-aged, childless, unmarried individuals who proclaim that by having anything different in their lives, they would have to change their lives and that is something none of them aim to do. Going out, drinking too much, partying too much and holidaying at every opportune moment seems to be key to what they think is the perfect life - of course, until they wake up one day and realise that they are all alone and they have spent too much time loving themselves to realise that there is no-one there to love them when they need it most.
Monday, 09 January 2012 20:24

Classy? Or is it Sophisticated?

Ever sat down with a group of friends from another country and felt like the odd one out? Not because you dress particularly strangely, nor due to the fact that they eat a whole different menu than what you are use to (think peanut butter and jelly sandwiches - ughhh!), but because your accent and basic language is lost in translation and you are not sure whether to keep quiet to avoid embarrassment or to power through in hope of perhaps teaching your friends a thing or two about being Australian or English or whatever you may be.
Published in Management
Happy New Year!

I don't know about you, but I am feeling pretty good about 2012. Sitting in the kitchen of a friend's home in Vail, I am spending literally hours trawling through websites on marketing from around the world.

With entrepreneurs surrounding me, I constantly ask them what they read online, what apps they download and what is the best marketing campaigns that they have seen. Its an interesting conversation and everyone seems to have a number of websites they love that is consistent with the others and a few have a some 'pearlers' that are untapped by the average entrepreneur that is a must-have resource.
Published in Marketing
Monday, 09 January 2012 20:22

Killer New Years' Resolutions

Every year, millions of people around the globe make New Years' Resolutions.
Published in Mellissah Smith