BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) -- In an interview with marketing chief MJ Jolda explained why "light"-green consumers -- those who consider the environmental impact important, but give as much or more weight to other factors such as price and performance -- and an appeal to value, along with environmental concern, are making a difference for Marcal.
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Most Topular Stories
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Recycled Fiber a Buried Treasure for Marcal
AdAge: CMO Strategy5 Sep 2010 | 9:00 pm -
In Order to Close, You Have to Make Real Connections
AdAge: Complete News3 Sep 2010 | 3:19 pmI recently told my marketing director that I'd take a meeting with Kim Jong Il. Well, I can't. He's not seeing people right now, and he seems like a pretty cruel bastard anyway, so maybe not. But what I meant was that I am intellectually curious about people. All people. -
In Order to Close, You Have to Make Real Connections
AdAge: All Blogs3 Sep 2010 | 3:19 pmI recently told my marketing director that I'd take a meeting with Kim Jong Il. Well, I can't. He's not seeing people right now, and he seems like a pretty cruel bastard anyway, so maybe not. But what I meant was that I am intellectually curious about people. All people. -
The price tags of 8 famous brand redesigns
Holy Kaw!5 Sep 2010 | 8:30 pmRebranding is not a simple affair. In graphic design alone, costs can include the logo and stationary design, package and label design, website design, and marketing campaign design, according to Graphic Design Blog. For some companies, this has meant exorbitant costs. Graphic Design Blog has rounded up eight famous brand makeovers which dug deep into pockets. They include: Full story at Graphic Design Blog. Stay on top of the latest in design. Permalink | Leave a comment » -
Israeli Teens Swipe Wristbands to Update Facebook Status
AdAge: Global News2 Sep 2010 | 12:10 pmLONDON (AdAge.com) -- Coca-Cola is pioneering technology in Israel that allows users to automatically update their Facebook status by swiping a wristband across a reader. At the Coca-Cola Village, a fixture of the summer scene for Israeli teenagers, village inhabitants can use The Like Machine, dreamed up by digital agency Publicis E-dologic, to register that they "like" a certain activity.
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AdAge: CMO Strategy
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Recycled Fiber a Buried Treasure for Marcal
5 Sep 2010 | 9:00 pmBATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) -- In an interview with marketing chief MJ Jolda explained why "light"-green consumers -- those who consider the environmental impact important, but give as much or more weight to other factors such as price and performance -- and an appeal to value, along with environmental concern, are making a difference for Marcal. -
10 Marketers Who Transformed American Culture
5 Sep 2010 | 9:00 pmLooking at American culture throughout history, iconic images come to mind. Some are turning points in history, forming our nation. Others are people who shaped our freedoms and laws. And some are brands that affected how we eat, shop and pass our time. Each was once an idea that has grown into a national -- and in many cases, global -- force to be reckoned with. Below are 10 examples of these people and their ideas that have grown far beyond expectations. -
Good CMOs Facilitate Change, but Great CMOs Drive It
2 Sep 2010 | 9:22 amThe ability to lead change and to get results is precisely what distinguishes the great CMO from the good CMO. There are eight critical leadership competencies that top leaders, including top marketing leaders, must have -- and outstanding CMOs outperform good CMOs in all eight competencies. -
Keep an Eye on the Back Door
1 Sep 2010 | 7:26 amA new study shows that brands that invest in guest experience retain more of their customer base and can thereby reduce marketing expenses and increase profitability. The implications for marketers -- not just those in the restaurant industry but for those in any guest experience-driven industry -- are significant. -
Marketing to the Masses? Here's Why You Shouldn't
23 Mar 2010 | 2:54 pmSome simple questions are stupid. And some are just annoying. But every once in a while a simple question makes one re-evaluate everything. Joseph Jaffe asks one such question in his new book "Flip the Funnel," making it a must read for anyone interested in selling anything to anyone anywhere.
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AdAge: Complete News
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In Order to Close, You Have to Make Real Connections
3 Sep 2010 | 3:19 pmI recently told my marketing director that I'd take a meeting with Kim Jong Il. Well, I can't. He's not seeing people right now, and he seems like a pretty cruel bastard anyway, so maybe not. But what I meant was that I am intellectually curious about people. All people. -
Ad Age Outlook Episode 5: Obama Muddles the Message
3 Sep 2010 | 3:01 pmThis week: Barack Obama, who ran one of the best political campaigns ever and was voted Ad Age's Marketer of the Year in 2008, just can't seem to strike the right note on the economy. What gives? Ken Wheaton, Natalie Zmuda and Chris Pollac... -
Hardcore Gamer Gone Soft: Confessions of a 'Plants vs. Zombies' Fan
3 Sep 2010 | 2:52 pmI am a hardcore gamer. I'm attracted to your average gritty shoot-em-up. Usually I wouldn't give a game with dancing flora more than a passing glance, but something caught my attention. Said flora was slaying zombies. -
U. of Kentucky Encourages Students to Check In via Facebook
3 Sep 2010 | 2:29 pmJust weeks after Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook's location-based service at a press conference in Silicon Valley, a Places-based campaign has popped up the University of Kentucky. -
U. of Kentucky Encourages Students to Check In via Facebook
3 Sep 2010 | 2:29 pmJust weeks after Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook's location-based service at a press conference in Silicon Valley, a Places-based campaign has popped up the University of Kentucky.
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AdAge: All Blogs
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In Order to Close, You Have to Make Real Connections
3 Sep 2010 | 3:19 pmI recently told my marketing director that I'd take a meeting with Kim Jong Il. Well, I can't. He's not seeing people right now, and he seems like a pretty cruel bastard anyway, so maybe not. But what I meant was that I am intellectually curious about people. All people. -
Ad Age Outlook Episode 5: Obama Muddles the Message
3 Sep 2010 | 3:01 pmThis week: Barack Obama, who ran one of the best political campaigns ever and was voted Ad Age's Marketer of the Year in 2008, just can't seem to strike the right note on the economy. What gives? Ken Wheaton, Natalie Zmuda and Chris Pollac... -
U. of Kentucky Encourages Students to Check In via Facebook
3 Sep 2010 | 2:29 pmJust weeks after Mark Zuckerberg launched Facebook's location-based service at a press conference in Silicon Valley, a Places-based campaign has popped up the University of Kentucky. -
McCann Rides to Remember Flight 93
3 Sep 2010 | 9:05 amA group of motorcyclists called Ride With the 40 is riding across the country to raise money and awareness for the Families of Flight 93. The group's goal, with help from four McCann New York volunteers, is to raise $1 million to help FOF93 and the National Parks Foundation build a nationally recognized memorial at the flight's Sept. 11 crash site in Shanksville, Pa., in honor of the 40 Americans who died there. -
CAT Trax: September 2, 2010
2 Sep 2010 | 10:28 amAngry Birds Fly Into New Spotlight, Digging into Scoble, Gmail Just Got Easier and More
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Holy Kaw!
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The price tags of 8 famous brand redesigns
5 Sep 2010 | 8:30 pmRebranding is not a simple affair. In graphic design alone, costs can include the logo and stationary design, package and label design, website design, and marketing campaign design, according to Graphic Design Blog. For some companies, this has meant exorbitant costs. Graphic Design Blog has rounded up eight famous brand makeovers which dug deep into pockets. They include: Full story at Graphic Design Blog. Stay on top of the latest in design. Permalink | Leave a comment » -
Cool house design: Roofs aren't just for Santa anymore
5 Sep 2010 | 8:23 pmThis house in Shimane, Japan, uses an innovative take on how roofs are designed: the roof is made of a climbable staircase. Looking close to a section of a stadium, the house is known as Kaidannoie—that is, Stairs House. Full story at Hometone.com. More inspiring architecture. Permalink | Leave a comment » -
How to avoid the Freshman 15 [video]
5 Sep 2010 | 8:18 pmLooking to avoid junk in the trunk, spare tires, and muffintops during the first year of college shenanigans? Either take a couple minutes to watch an informative clip from HowCast or just follow the simple, three-word rule: Don’t Eat Crap. Via BuzzFeed. More on nutrition. Permalink | Leave a comment » -
25 edgy hairdos
5 Sep 2010 | 8:15 pmTalk about cutting edge. Web Urbanist rounded up 25 examples of intense hairstyles. Check out all 25 at Web Urbanist. All sorts of web oddities. Permalink | Leave a comment » -
A tearful reunion in hospice
5 Sep 2010 | 8:08 pmWhen Victor Peraza left behind his two little girls forty-one years ago, the last thing he expected was a deathbed reunion. That is exactly what happened, though, when his estranged daughter, Wanda Rodriguez, turned up as his hospice nurse in a Bronx hospital. Instead of recriminations and regrets, they are enjoying their first and last memories together simultaneously. Full story at MSNBC. Only good news. Permalink | Leave a comment »
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AdAge: Global News
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Israeli Teens Swipe Wristbands to Update Facebook Status
2 Sep 2010 | 12:10 pmLONDON (AdAge.com) -- Coca-Cola is pioneering technology in Israel that allows users to automatically update their Facebook status by swiping a wristband across a reader. At the Coca-Cola Village, a fixture of the summer scene for Israeli teenagers, village inhabitants can use The Like Machine, dreamed up by digital agency Publicis E-dologic, to register that they "like" a certain activity. -
Shoes Fly at Nike Air Show in Argentina
2 Sep 2010 | 10:37 amBUENOS AIRES (AdAge.com) -- Nike Argentina is playing with the concept of air itself to promote the launch of the latest Nike Air Max with an online game that lets consumers make the shoe float and fly through the air. -
Huggies Sees the Funny Side of Parenting in U.K.
2 Sep 2010 | 9:16 amLONDON (AdAge.com) -- Kimberly-Clark's Huggies is taking on Procter & Gamble's Pampers in the U.K. with a branded-content initiative that uses well-known comedians to focus on the funny side of parenting. The U.K. diaper market is dominated by Pampers and private-label products, prompting Huggies to look for a different way of communicating with consumers. -
8 Tips for Digital Marketers in China
1 Sep 2010 | 9:29 amAs a Westerner who recently relocated to Shanghai, SapientNitro's digital media expert, Freddie Laker, is re-evaluating what he understood about China, and about digital marketing. Here are eight things he's figured out so far. -
Coca-Cola's New Ingredient in Japan Is Kale
31 Aug 2010 | 1:30 pmTOKYO (AdAge.com) -- Coca-Cola Co. drinks made from kale -- a nutritious but not very tasty leafy green vegetable -- could soon turn up on store shelves. Coca-Cola West, the Atlanta-based beverage giant's largest bottler in Japan, said this week it will spend $425.6 million to buy Q'Sai Co., a major Japanese health-food producer whose main product is a green juice called "aojiru" made of kale.
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AdAge: Latest News
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Toyota to Push Safety in Upcoming Ad Blitz
6 Sep 2010 | 5:01 amLOS ANGELES (AdAge.com) -- Its image still bruised by driver complaints about unintended acceleration, Toyota Division has decided to revamp its marketing message and shift the focus to safety in a big way, top executives told Automotive News last week. -
Why Consumers Don't Want to Talk to You
5 Sep 2010 | 9:00 pmIn order to get beyond the uninteresting and, oftentimes, undifferentiating focus on product features, marketers must position their brand not within a category, but within consumer culture. -
Green-Car Marketers Revving Up in Race for Eco-Friendly Drivers
5 Sep 2010 | 9:00 pmNEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Car advertising is about to take a turn -- for the green. Come this fall, drivers -- and not just Americans, but global drivers -- are about to feel the onslaught of a new crop of eco-friendly auto brands, some independent and some backed by the big car makers. Here's what you need to know about who's in the marketing seat at seven of these companies and how they're positioning themselves to consumers. -
Publicis Is Falling Short on Ad Pact With Microsoft
5 Sep 2010 | 9:00 pmNEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Publicis Groupe is having trouble meeting its media-spending commitment to Microsoft, according to several people familiar with the situation. The third-largest agency-holding company entered into the commercial agreement last summer when it bought digital agency Razorfish from Microsoft. Execs put the commitment at "a couple hundred million dollars" annually for ad inventory. -
Ad Age Spends a Day With Hyundai -- Yes, Hyundai
5 Sep 2010 | 9:00 pmPHILADELPHIA (AdAge.com) -- Ad Age spends a day with Hyundai during the automaker's fourth stop on the 10-city "Hyundai Uncensored" national tour. This leg of the tour, held at the home of the Philadelphia Phillies and its fans, aims to turn locals into Hyundai fans by putting them behind the wheel of a Hyundai Sonata, Toyota Camry or Honda Accord, taking them through their paces with a course consisting of hairpin turns, evasive maneuvers, high-speed straightaways and conditions that mimic icy roads.
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Buzz Marketing for Technology
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Could AT&T kill the iPhone Brand?
25 Aug 2010 | 9:00 amAccording to a study conducted by Gartner, the first quarter of 2010 witnessed a whopping 707 percent increase in Android sales. As a result, the sales of the Google Android OS-based smartphones have surpassed the sales of the Microsoft Windows Mobile-based handsets around the world. And this month I saw a stat that said the sales of Google Android phones in the U.S. are rising so quickly, that they have outsold Apple handsets for the first time on record and it got me thinking. Could Apple’s decision to sell exclusively through AT&T be the very decision that kills there brand? Hear… -
Social Media – is it really mainstream in B2B Marketing?
18 Aug 2010 | 8:43 amSo I ran across some interesting stats last week when I picked up a tweet from Jeff Bullas on the 15 essential social media facts and figures for B2B Marketing. Seems as if more B2B Marketers are engaged in Social Media then B2C marketers (actually data point from the article – 81 % of B2B companies have accounts on social media sites compared to 67% of B2C) which leads me to think Social Media has gone mainstream in B2B. That’s a good thing yes but I don’t feel like we are there yet. Let me explain … I don’t know how you feel but I certainly feel like everything I read about… -
Facebook Advertising for Dummies (Wiley)
11 Aug 2010 | 8:14 amWhether you’re on the Facebook home page, reading comments on a friends’ Walls, or playing your favorite Facebook game, you have probably noticed at least one advertisement running on the right hand side on the page. These ads are available to anyone with an advertising budget, from $1 to $1 billion. And many large advertisers, such as Pepsi, Proctor & Gamble, and Wal-Mart are running ads on Facebook, but so are many small businesses. These ads like any other include a headline, an image and body copy. But increasingly, Facebook Ads are also including ways to engage in a social… -
B2B Marketing needs to Curate a Vibrant Community
28 Jul 2010 | 8:59 amIf you ask the members of my leadership team – they will tell you I keep talking about how I think we have B2B Marketing backward. Let me explain … We focus a lot of energy on the acquisition part of marketing looking for new customers and getting them up the awareness to consideration to purchase cycle. The results being most of the time we get ambivalent buyers into the top of our funnel and we have to work hard to close them in order to prove value to the organization and contribute to growth. But what if we focused on those buyers who have already purchased from us? Those already… -
Closed Loop Marketing – still a long way to go
21 Jul 2010 | 8:58 amOk I know we all talk a good game about Closed Loop Marketing and I don’t want to burst anyone’s bubble here but frankly we aren’t there yet. Yes we forced the loop to close with some great technologies over the last few years. CRM systems, MRM systems, Lead Nurturing systems and the list goes on. But do we really have an all in one Closed Loop market system that does it all? In my last post I talked about the shadow pipeline created by sales teams who don’t act in real time. The software may be real time but the sales people aren’t. How about your partner community and the leads…
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MarketingProfs - Smart thinking ... pass it on.
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Six Reasons Print Belongs in Your Media Mix (or Why Digital Popularity Brings Print Opportunity)
31 Aug 2010 | 8:00 amJust because marketers are jumping on the interactive-marketing bandwagon doesn't mean things on the interactive side are all rosy. The decreasing numbers for print don't necessarily mean a particularly high ROI for all digital initiatives. Still, there is opportunity—but you need embrace a multichannel approach. Catalogs are a great example. -
How to Identify and Avoid This Survey-Questionnaire Design Problem: Mixed-Mode Scales
31 Aug 2010 | 8:00 amData from mixed-mode questions are hard, if not impossible, to interpret accurately. But such flawed survey questions abound, perhaps because at first blush they seem entirely workable. Here's why they're not—and how to avoid them in your survey instruments. -
A New Job-Search Paradigm: A Darn Good Resume Is Not Candidate Marketing!
31 Aug 2010 | 8:00 amMost job seekers start their job-search process with many of the same ineffective steps—holdovers from a time before the rise of technology and social media. A job search, like successful business projects, should be expertly strategized, organized, and implemented. -
Formulate Your Content Strategy in 10 Simple Steps
31 Aug 2010 | 8:00 amContent is moving from being among the final considerations of a Web-development project to being front and center in a digital-marketing strategy. And, more and more, brands are recognizing that a strategic approach to content is becoming important. To help, here's a simple 10-step systematic process for formulating a content ... -
Building Loyalty and Corporate Profitability in Eight Productive Steps
24 Aug 2010 | 8:00 amIt's no secret that loyal employees are the driving force behind solid, stable, and profitable companies, whereas unhappy, disgruntled, and disloyal employees can quickly bring any company to its knees. Companies that lack employee commitment can change their culture and build loyalty from the inside out by following these eight ...
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MarketingVOX - The Voice of Online Marketing
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Do Not Track Campaign Develops Controversial Spot for Times Square
3 Sep 2010 | 2:13 pmConsumer Watchdog, a privacy advocacy group, has developed a 15-second spot that is running on a 540-square foot digital billboard in Times Square, twice an hour, for the next 45 days. The spot...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/marketingvox/rss/~4/T324zX9u6ok" height="1" width="1"/> -
New Display Tech Fueling Online Ad Growth
3 Sep 2010 | 2:13 pmOnline advertising will grow at a faster pace in 2011 than overall advertising, according to estimates from Borrell Associates: namely online ad spending will grow almost 14%, from $45.6 billion in...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/marketingvox/rss/~4/eUz2CxmxMio" height="1" width="1"/> -
Targeted Mobile Political Attack Ads a Precursor to Commercial Campaigns
3 Sep 2010 | 2:12 pmSome tech-savvy politicians are running targeted mobile campaigns that at least one political and marketing consultant believes will be replicated in the commercial sector - minus, of course, the...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/marketingvox/rss/~4/KEmSY4rTG_8" height="1" width="1"/> -
Marketing Data Roundup: Online ad spend posts growth this year; more expected next
3 Sep 2010 | 8:45 amFollowing are findings from recent studies on marketing and advertising-related topics. For a more in-depth look at these subjects, visit our sister site, MarketingCharts.com. Online Ad Growth to...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/marketingvox/rss/~4/1t_BPk699Ds" height="1" width="1"/> -
Top Industry News for 9-03-10: YouTube ads translate into revenue
3 Sep 2010 | 8:40 amSocial Media: YouTube ads turn videos into revenue. Facebook tests 'stalk this friend' button. Facebook’s recent negotiations with Twitter and Apple have yet to produce...<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/marketingvox/rss/~4/QoFX4cg0et0" height="1" width="1"/>
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NYT: Media and Advertising
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From Viral Video to Billboard 100
5 Sep 2010 | 8:30 pmThe “Bed Intruder Song” was a rare case of a product of Web culture jumping the species barrier and becoming a pop hit. -
Some Newspapers, Tracking Readers Online, Shift
5 Sep 2010 | 8:00 pmBecause of technological advances, newspapers can make more scientific decisions about allocating their resources. -
Even Hit Like ‘Kick-Ass’ Can Seem Like Miss at Debut
5 Sep 2010 | 8:00 pmThe film “Kick-Ass” fell short in its opening weekend, and bloggers wrote it off as a flop. Never mind that this $15 million film went on to sell almost $100 million in tickets. -
The Media Equation: The Glut of Shows Unwatched
5 Sep 2010 | 8:00 pmTelevision, which was once the brain-dead part of the day, has become one more thing that requires time, attention and discernment. -
Drilling Down: Life Without a TV Set? Not Impossible
5 Sep 2010 | 8:00 pmSurvey results suggested a decline in the perceived status of the television set, as other devices edge into its territory.
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MediaPost.com: Research Briefs
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Who's That Talking?
3 Sep 2010 | 6:15 amAccording to a recent Nielsen analysis of mobile use, African-Americans use the most cellphone voice minutes every month, averaging more than 1,300. Hispanics are the next most talkative group, at 826 minutes a month. And, even Asians/Pacific Islanders, with 692 average monthly minutes, talk more than Whites, who use roughly 647 voice minutes a month. -
Landlines And Television Sets Losing Importance
2 Sep 2010 | 6:15 amAccording to a new nationwide survey from the Pew Research Center's Social and Demographic Trends project, reported by Paul Taylor and Wendy Wang with Lee Rainie and Aaron Smith, only 42% of Americans say they consider the television set to be a necessity. Last year, this figure was 52%, and in 2006, it was 64%. After occupying center stage in the American household for much of the 20th century, says the report, two of the grand old luminaries of consumer technology, the television set and the landline telephone, are suffering from a sharp decline in public perception that they are… -
Affluent Moms Change Their Stripes
1 Sep 2010 | 6:15 amAccording to a white paper to be released in September, "Affluent Mothers Of Young Children," by Donna Sabino, SVP, Ipsos OTX, "kid" effects are evident when comparing affluent women with children under 18 to those without children. Sacrifice and lifestyle reprioritization are clear. Of the 15.6 million affluent female heads of house age 18 to 54 (annual household incomes of $100,000 or more) more than half, or 9.4 million, are mothers of children under 18. Even when age is accounted for, affluent women without children are far more likely to demonstrate stereotypically "affluent" behaviors,… -
Acceptance of Social Media by Marketers
31 Aug 2010 | 6:15 amAccording to a study presented at a Pivot Conference (in partnership with Extra Mile Research) entitled "Marketers' Current and Future Use of Social Media," 63% of marketers are already investing in social media marketing, and of the 37% that are not currently investing in social media marketing, 62% are planning to invest, including 46% who plan to do so within one year. -
Go! Digital
30 Aug 2010 | 7:45 pmAccording to a new study, conducted by Philadelphia's Tantala Associates, digital billboards do not pose a problem for drivers. Eight years of data covering 35,000 traffic accidents, with more than 233 million cars passing by these billboards every year in Reading, PA, finds that digital billboards are not related to traffic accidents. "The overall conclusion of the study is that digital billboards in the greater Reading area have no statistically significant relationship with the occurrence of accidents," the report says.
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Online Market Research
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The Top 4 Benefits of Online Surveys for Small Businesses
27 Aug 2010 | 6:39 amSurveys allow you to gather valuable information about your target market. You can use the data to discover how to better meet your audience’s needs and generate more sales. However, many small business owners dread conducting market research because of the time it takes to create surveys, distribute them and collect responses. Online survey software can dramatically reduce your survey administration time while improving the quality and number of your responses. Here are the top 4 benefits of using online survey software: Reduced administration: Online survey software eliminates much of… -
To Rank, Rate, or Something Completely Different
27 Aug 2010 | 5:47 amAn age-old question facing survey researchers has to do with how to measure preference and importance. Do we ask respondents to use a rating-scale, ask them to rank order their preferred choices, or do we ask them to try something completely different? I argue there are times when each scenario is valid and will yield actionable data. Let’s take a deeper look in the context of a marketing research problem, although it can certainly be applied to other survey areas as well. To Rank In a ranking scenario, we ask the respondent to rank order their preferred choices. This applies equally to… -
Combining Fixed with Open-Ended Questions
26 Aug 2010 | 5:10 amSuppose you are a researcher who is using the Net Promoter Score (NPS) as part of an online customer satisfaction survey. Would it not make sense to follow up with an open-ended question specifically tailored to how they scored you on the prior NPS question? For example if they rated you a 9 or 10, you could follow up with an item that asks them to elaborate why they rated you so highly. Conversely, those that rated you in the detractor range (0 – 6) would be prime for a question asking them to share what could be done to improve their experience. This type of question sequence relies… -
Who’s listening?
20 Aug 2010 | 5:55 amThe late Theodore Levitt, former editor of the Harvard Business Review, stated that the purpose of a business is to create and keep a customer. This belief applies to companies both large and small, as well as non-profits and government organizations. The process of creating and keeping a customer (also known as customer acquisition and customer retention) relies heavily on developing a two-way communication stream between organization and customer and organization and prospect. You can bet that customers and prospects are talking amongst each other, and although that is out of direct control… -
Hotel Guest Surveys: Choosing Survey Criteria
19 Aug 2010 | 10:07 pmCustomer satisfaction is key to creating loyal customers and a foundational base of adherents for your brand. This may be especially true of hotels, where business people and travelers will often choose hotels and then remain loyal to them because of their customer experience. One of the easiest ways to understand how to gain loyal adherents of your hotel or how to maintain your customer base is through hotel surveys. Hotel surveys can be found in customers' hotel rooms, pushed out online, and even taken on the checkout screen on tv in some hotels. Your model for gleaning customer insights…
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Idea Mapping
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Idea Mapping Workshop Debuts in Abu Dhabi at Takreer
1 Sep 2010 | 9:23 amAbu Dhabi Oil Refining Company (TAKREER) was established in 1999 to take over the responsibilities of refining operations from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC). Forward Training and Consulting, LLC (the Middle East Idea Mapping team headquartered in Amman, Jordan) was responsible for negotiating this 2-day Idea Mapping Course and we will be working on this project together. This class will be held September 22-23, 2010 and is closed to the public. Other oil companies in the Middle East (including Aramco – the largest oil company in the world) have begun requesting Idea Mapping and… -
Idea Maps (or Mind Maps) 257 Thru 259 are the Final Examples From the Spring 2010 Luther College Experiment
24 Aug 2010 | 2:01 pmIdea Mapping helps three final Luther College students. The first posting for this Spring’s Idea Mapping Experiment at Luther College was May 19 where there is more background. Now get ready for Part 7!This will wrap up all of the examples from Dr. Schweizer’s students. Next examples will be from the Fall 2010 class. Dr. Tim Schweizer spent one 60-minute class teaching them the concepts and guidelines of Idea Mapping. They read chapters 2-5 of the Idea Mapping book, and then spent a second 60-minute class practicing and applying their new skills. Their assignment was to create an idea… -
More Photos from the May Idea Mapping Workshop in Jordan
19 Aug 2010 | 8:40 amHere are a few more photos from the Idea Mapping Workshop I taught in Jordan in May 2010. You can find additional photos and idea maps from this event in the June 29, 2010 posting, the June 12, 2010 posting, the May 27, 2010 and the May 10, 2010 posting. The first photo was taken in the conference room where we held the workshop at the Landmark Hotel in Amman. This was a beautiful piece of poetry in Arabic that I needed to have the Forward Training Team translate for me. The second photo is of Forward Training team member Suhail Zrekat who coordinates a good portion of the workshops we teach… -
Idea Map or Mind Map about Planning for the Summer and Spring Break
16 Aug 2010 | 2:19 pmIdea Mapping helps two more Luther College students. The first posting for this Spring’s Idea Mapping Experiment at Luther College was May 19 where there is more background. Now get ready for Part 7! Dr. Tim Schweizer spent one 60-minute class teaching them the concepts and guidelines of Idea Mapping. They read chapters 2-5 of the Idea Mapping book, and then spent a second 60-minute class practicing and applying their new skills. Their assignment was to create an idea map that would be relevant to them either personally, professionally, or academically. He gave them several topic… -
A Second Resume That Stands Out Using Idea Mapping
9 Aug 2010 | 3:39 pmIs your resume boring? Does it blend in with thousands of others? On August 2, 2010 I introduced something we call profile maps which are basically summaries of information that can be shared with others using Idea Mapping. It’s a non-linear, visual, non-boring and whole-brain way of communicating information. In this case again I’m sharing the resume of Eric Giosa who is looking for his first post-graduate job after playing professional hockey. This whole idea originated with my husband Kevin Nast when he created his own profile map to share with clients. Want to spice up your…
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Seth Godin
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Your smile didn't matter
5 Sep 2010 | 2:09 amIf you worked on the line, we cared about your productivity, not your smile or approach to the work. You could walk in downcast, walk out defeated and get a raise if your productivity was good. No longer. Your attitude is now what's on offer, it's what you sell. When you pass by those big office buildings and watch the young junior executives sneaking into work with a grimace on their face, it's tempting to tell them to save everyone time and just go home. The emotional labor of engaging with the work and increasing the energy in the room is precisely what you sell. So sell it. -
Sometimes, price is an attitude
4 Sep 2010 | 2:06 amPassed a store the other day. The sign read 99 CENTS! And the subtitle was, "Everything $1 and up". The 99 cent store was never popular because there's some magical power about the price that is a penny less than a dollar. No, it's because it represents an attitude, that this stuff is CHEAP. Not absolute cheap, just relatively cheap. Not even a good value, just cheap. Cheap compared to its non-cheap competition. At the other end of the spectrum, the prices at the Hermes store appear to be missing a decimal point or two. The attitude is, "wow, this stuff is expensive." It's not about what you… -
Check-in, Chicken
3 Sep 2010 | 2:45 amOne way to start every morning with your team is to have them check in. Go around in a circle and let people update and contribute. It's not a silly exercise, in that it helps people speak up and it communicates forward motion. Another way, probably a better one, is to have each member of the team announce what they're afraid of. Two kinds of afraid, actually. Things that might fail and things that might work. What are you, chicken? Yes, we're chicken. We're afraid. The lizard has us by the claws. So, tell us. What are you afraid might happen that would destroy, disintegrate, or… -
Better than nothing (is harder than you think)
2 Sep 2010 | 2:36 amMost of the time, particulary in b2b and luxury sales, the competition is nothing. "I will buy this treat or I will buy nothing, because I don't really need anything." "I will buy your consulting services, or I'll continue doing what I'm doing now on that front, which is nothing." None of the above. "I will vote for you or I'll do what I usually do, which is not vote." "I'll hire you or I'll hire no one." While you think your competition is that woman across town, it's probably apathy, sitting still, ignoring the problem... nothing. Stop worrying so much about comparing yourself to every… -
Launching the ShipIt Workbook
1 Sep 2010 | 11:16 amSix months ago, I put together a workbook that would help Linchpin readers ship. After testing it out on hundreds of people, it's now ready for retail sale. [UPDATE on 9/2--yesterday, the workbook was so popular it went to the top 10 of all books on Amazon. And they sold all the warehouse could take. So it's sold out... I have shipped more to them, but they probably won't go on sale until the 8th. I'll update this post then. Thanks guys.] You can find details here, or jump right to the buy page. The goal? To make you uncomfortable at the beginning of a project (and successful at the end).
