Where Do You Spend Your Creative Energy?

I've been embarrassed lately. My last blog post was four months ago, and I was starting to feel like a failure for not writing. In fact, as a person whose strength is in communications, I had started to doubt whether or not I should even have a blog if I wasn't going to keep it current.

However, after a lot of introspection, I realized that my blog isn't so much about me being a writer, and having something of utter importance to say. Rather, it was an outlet for my creative impulses. And, after looking back over my life, I realized that much of my life's journey is plotted with phases of creative expressions -- all good, but none defined to just one area.

I love to cook, and lately I've been doing a lot of it. I reorganized my recipes, created a customized cookbook, and have been working through some new culinary experiments (much to the demise of my waistline). In the recent past I found my greatest outlet for my creativity to be at work creating strategies and communication plans for my employer, before that it was writing, before that speaking, before that...and the list goes on (mostly in a circular motion as I tend to revolve around writing, cooking, speaking, working).

I also found that when my need for creative expression had been met that I defaulted to absorbing other content -- watching movies, listening to books, reading articles, playing games with my kids, or just letting another obsession take over for awhile (like cleaning my house, or organizing the basement, or some other lower-level, obsessive-compulsive behavior).

Okay, so what does all this mean. First, I've gotten over the guilt for not writing more frequently. Also, I've become very comfortable with the idea that whatever my outlet is -- the important thing is that I am expressing it. When I worked in higher education, the faculty operated under the saying, "Publish or perish." This drove the professors to always be writing something -- and it rubbed off on me a bit causing me to think that I had to produce something in all my creative outlets in order to be legitimate in any of them. Simply not true.

I see it this way -- we need to be true to our whole selves. We are not just butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers. We are multi-talented, multi-faceted people with many possible expressions of our being. The important thing is to spend that creative energy, not bottle it up. And, most importantly, allow for that energy to change what it looks like over time.

So, in 2011, there will still be blog posts (I am still doing lots of author interviews and will be posting my backlog of them soon), but they will all be guilt-free. I'll write them when it makes sense, and not feel the least bit guilty about not writing.

How will you spend your creative energy in 2011? What areas (note the plural) will you cover?

-- David Kinard, PCM
(photo credit: AnaMaria Maestas-Wertz)

C'mon, You can Trust Me!

"TRUST ME." How many times have you been asked to give someone your trust? Companies ask you for it all the time -- either implicitly or explicitly. And what is amazing is how often we grant that trust without considering what we're doing. But, things have been changing, and for awhile now the skeptic in each of us is beginning to wonder, "Is my trust misplaced?"

I recently had the chance to interview author Michael Maslansky of the new book The Language of Trust: Selling Ideas in a World of Skeptics. His book is based on a decade of quantitative and qualitative research with thousands of individuals. In it, the book illustrates why it is harder than ever to trust -- especially given recent examples in the media including Tiger Woods, Toyota, banks, politicians, BP, and countless CEOs. Maslansky states that whatever the message, the public assumes that there is an underlying agenda and that companies are regularly putting their own interests in front of the customer's.

Maslansky offers some new, contrarian rules to communications (e.g. the truth is NOT enough), and some new principles for credible communication (problems don't sell as much as solutions). But more than those lists, I think what I found the most interesting were why today's consumers were more skeptical than ever. The fundamental truth he offered was that we have been promised more than what has been delivered -- too many times. As more sophisticated consumers, we have more information available to us today and can easily see behind the curtain to how the magic really works -- and we're not impressed. And more than anything, we no longer have to trust what we're being told. We can source check anyone and anything.

The book offers some great advice and weaves into it a sense of accountability that I found refreshing. The podcast expands of some of the stories in the book and gives you a feel of the genuine nature of Maslansky's purpose for writing the book.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Measuring Social Media

Social media metrics are all the rage, but I still think people are asking the wrong questions. More often than not, I get asked how to measure the effectiveness of a Facebook page, a Twitter feed, or even a blog. The problem is not in measuring those tools, but in what to measure. Most of the time, we focus on the tool, and not the strategy or the thing that we're trying to effect.

For instance, the other day I was asked by one of our departments if our health plan could use Facebook. My response was "Sure, but why?" There is this overwhelming sense that we need to be using social media, but no real reason why. Without fully understanding the why a tool gets used, the measure of effectiveness is always going to fall short of usability.

I had the privilege of interviewing Jim Sterne, an international and seasoned veteran in the relationship between marketing and customer interactions. For 25 years he's been working with companies, helping them measure the value of the Internet as a medium for creating and strengthening customer relationships. He's written six books, the latest being Social Media Metrics: How to Measure and Optimize Your Marketing Investment. You can listen to my podcast interview here.

Sterne reinforces the need for having solid business objectives. If a marketer fails to start with a clearly defined problem they're trying to solve, or a quantifiable gain/achievement they're trying to make, then measuring social media tools as a means to achieve those objectives is going to be difficult at best, and likely less actionable than you want.

All that said, I did ask Sterne what he thought was the single most important thing to look at when evaluating social media as a tool. He offers three things: 1) Did the tool help you to earn more? 2) Did the tool help you to spend less? 3) Did the tool make your customers happier? Though this sounds pretty basic, I have to agree that this approach is fundamentally the best. Social media doesn't have to be complicated, and it can be measured -- we just need to start with clearer objectives so we know what we're trying to measure.

Lastly, I asked Sterne who should own social media in the organization. You'll appreciate his answer in the podcast. But I'll hint at his response..."who owns the telephone?"

-- David Kinard, PCM

Managing in an Era of Distrust

As always I so enjoy speaking with my friends at Maritz Research. Rick Garlick, senior director of consulting for Maritz Research, joined me again to talk about their annual study on the state of workplace engagement. This is the third or fourth year I've talked with Rick about the study, and this year some interesting changes were uncovered.

It's not surprising, given the recent history of corporate America, that a victim of the upheaval in the workplace has been trust, specifically trust in our senior leaders and direct managers. What was surprising this year was the addition of a lack of trust with co-workers. The study, now in it's 9th or 10th year (sorry Rick, I can't remember) showcases trends in workplace trust. Rick's expert advice is showing how that erosion of trust is impacting customers and customer service.

Maritz has done a lot of work on the relationship between employee and employer values. They've found that those companies which pay significant attention to values and building trust are regularly top performers. Their counterparts are those who try to win at all costs, typically losing at all levels.

In my interview with Rick I asked him what actions to take to improve trust in the workplace. His suggestions are:

1. Open and transparent communications
2. Follow through and keep promises
3. Fix the disconnectedness and isolation; bring people together
4. Use community service projects as a means to the greater end

This last suggestion struck me like a lightening bolt. I realized that many cause-related organizations are NOT creating opportunities for their corporate counterparts to support them via volunteerism. If they are, the approach is usually "we need your help." What if the pitch was changed around to: "Hey big business. Your trust and morale are at the lowest they've ever been. We have a solution. We are the solution. Bring your teams together, align around a common goal, get people talking and sharing. Get them over here for work projects and make a difference while you get your company back on track." Now that's a meaningful proposition!!

As always, Rick is a great source of information so be sure to listen to the podcast. And, check back next year for Rick's annual visit to talk about their latest study results.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Can Non Profits Use Referrals?

I had a great time interviewing John Jantsch -- author of the book The Referral Engine: Teaching Your Business to Market Itself. It was a great addition to the continuum of books I've read lately having to do with ways to market in this new landscape (see Gilbreath, or Halligan). But I'll admit, I was initially skeptical of the book as I worried it would be some multi-level scheme machine. It wasn't and it's something you should seriously consider reading if you're interested in growing your organization.

What was most refreshing about this book was Jantsch's solid marketing sensibility surrounded by a keen people-sense. I so appreciated his emphasis on being genuine and authentic and his emphasis on staying away from referral-mill style activities. In fact, his idea of creating an "authentic referral strategy" has nothing to do with you but everything to do with who your ideal, narrowly-defined customer. This outward-focus is what separates Jantsch's book from the chaff.

Trust and confidence reign supreme as the key ingredients of what makes a referrer good for your company. Thus, the way to get a good referral is to be trustworthy, and to engender confidence with each customer experience and interaction. And then, having delivered on your promise to the customer, with some education of what you need/want them to do for you, you're ready to have that customer introduce you to others.

But the question that was burning in my head the whole time I was chatting with Jantsch was "would this work with non profits or cause-related organizations?" I believe the answer is YES. By their very nature cause-related organizations and non profits are naturally social. They have an inherent talkable reason for being. The challenge, however, lies in the organization's ability to have a talkable difference for being -- that thing which separates them from every other good cause out there.

In the back of Jantsch's book are 12+ elements that can be mixed and matched to create a referral strategy. Non profits would be wise to spend time reviewing these elements to see which matched well with their capabilities. (And the referrals are not just for more "customers" but also for donor development, media relations, etc.) And if you need help getting started, the back of the book also offers several "snack-sized suggestions".

-- David Kinard, PCM

The Law of the Harvest

I was at a foundation event a few weeks ago, meeting new people and was introduced to a young man who is early in his career, very talented, and obviously a doer. We chatted briefly about what he wanted to be doing and I said something to the effect of him taking the next few years to build up his experience and credibility. His reply caught me off guard.

"Hell to the no! I am not waiting that long. I am making it happen now."

I smiled a knowing smile. I know in my own life, there are far too many instances where I thought I could speed things up a bit, take a short cut, or even skip to the end and hope that the results would be just as good as if I had worked hard the entire time. And I know that each time I've ended up short of the goal.

There is a universal truth called the Law of the Harvest -- masterfully articulated by Stephen Covey, it says two key things: you reap what you sow, and it takes time to cultivate meaningful results. The easy example is the person who wants to lose weight and goes on a crash diet only to gain the weight again a few weeks later versus the person who commits themselves to a changed diet and lifestyle of exercise who earns their weight loss. Or the student who skips classes, crams the night before an exam, hoping to do well on the test versus the person who attends all the classes, regularly reviews their notes, and gets a good night's sleep the night before the test.

How many times have I said, "Hell to the no!" and decided to jump to the end result only to find my victory shallow and short lived...too many.

I think many of today's non profits and cause-related organizations are dealing with the Law of the Harvest in two ways. First, they are constantly battling the expectations of their communities to get to a solution and achieve results all the while knowing that the most effective and permanent solutions are ones that require the long view. Second, these same organizations often operate with a mindset that they can skip certain steps, cut corners, and achieve amazing results.

When it comes to marketing causes, all too often I see organizations skipping the essentials: Customer segmentation, brand positioning, core messaging, and strategy. Rather, these organizations toss out into the marketplace brochures, flyers, advertisements, and donor requests hoping to increase their ability to do more and get more. Most likely, they'll see an increase in need but not in resources.

If your cause is the field you're planting in, and the impact you want to see in the world are the seeds you sow, do you honestly believe that you can skip the growing season, skip the weeding, skip the watering, skip the fertilizing, skip the pest control -- and still reap amazing results? I didn't think so.

As you work in your business, I encourage you to take time to work ON your business. Build out those fundamentals and properly plant/prepare/and work the field of your cause. Pay attention to the Law of the Harvest ensuring that you'll reap what you've sown, and that your harvest is as full as possible.

- David Kinard, PCM

The Bees' Needs

My 13-year old daughter recently gave a speech at her Speech Club on the plight of bees in our world. Not only was I impressed by the quality of her speech (she "performed" it for me at home) but the weighty import of her content struck me. I thought I'd share it with you.

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Some of you may have heard that the honey bees have been disappearing. Maybe you’ve heard about it in detail or maybe just in passing. Well, no matter how you’ve heard about it, it’s true. The honey bees are disappearing, and at an alarming rate. And it’s not just in the US, it’s happening all over the world. Today, I will give you some history on the disappearance of the honeybees, explain a couple of the reasons for their disappearance, tell you why the honey bees’ disappearance is a problem, and what the future could possibly look like if the honey bees disappear for good.

From 1972 to 2006, there was a dramatic reduction in the number of feral honeybees in the U.S. They are now almost absent, and there is a significant, though gradual, decline in the number of colonies maintained by beekeepers. From 2006 to 2008, the number of colonies that were lost rose. In the winter of 2006 to 2007, beekeepers in the US lost approximately 32% percent of their honey bees. In the winter of 2007 to 2008, they lost approximately 36%. However, in 2008 to 2009, they only lost 29%. Now, this isn’t just happening in the United States, it’s around the globe. Beekeepers have seen similar disappearances in Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Greece, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. It really is a problem everywhere.

Albert Einstein once said, “If the bee disappeared off the surface of the earth, then man would only have four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.” While I’m not sure it would be quite that drastic, the absence of the bees would most definitely take its toll. About one third of the human diet comes from insect-pollinated plants, and honeybees are responsible for about 80 percent of that pollination, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To give you an idea of what would happen if honeybees were to disappear, here’s a partial list of the foods they pollinate.

Almonds
Asparagus
Apples
Avocados
Broccoli
Blueberries
Cranberries
Cherries
Kiwi fruit
Carrots
Citrus- (oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit, tangerines, etc.)
Peaches
Macadamia nuts
Pears
Nectarines
Plums
Grapes
Cauliflower
Celery
Cucumbers
Onions
Legume seeds-(beans, peas, lentils)
Pumpkins
Squash
Sunflowers
Apricots
Strawberries
Olives
Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Honeydew
Peanuts
Cotton
Soybeans
Sugar beets
Canola
Alfalfa

You might have noticed that list includes a lot of things we enjoy every day. And not just the things we enjoy, but that animals enjoy too. Like cows. They eat alfalfa, which is pollinated by honeybees. Ultimately, if the honeybees completely disappear, we could lose many sources of protein and fruits and vegetables, possibly ending up eating nothing but grains and water. Unless another pollinator, such as another insect, bird, or bat came along, we would have to manually pollinate a lot of the foods we eat. Manual pollination is a tedious and tiresome job, and nowhere near as efficient as pollination by honeybees.

Chinese pear farmer Cao Xing Yuan, who was interviewed for the US documentary “Silence of the Bees”, knows just how tough manual pollination is. Ever since the bees in his region were wiped out by pesticides 20 years ago, he and his neighbors have had to scrub pollen from the pear trees, dry it by hand, and then carefully dust it onto each pear blossom. It is a slow, laborious task, and much less efficient than employing honeybees, whose colonies visit up to 3 million blossoms per day. Life without bees is not a pleasant thought, but it is a plausible one. It would be better for everyone, bees included, if we could find ways to stop them from disappearing.

One of the bigger problems the honeybees are facing is starvation. The Apiary Inspectors of America did a survey of the losses of honeybee colonies in the United States and found that 32% percent of these losses were attributed to starvation. This could mean that the beekeepers didn’t leave enough resources for the bees over the winter, or the cold weather affected the bees, and they ate their food prematurely, not leaving enough to last them the winter. Beekeepers can purchase sugar syrups to supplement feedings, but a lot of the beekeepers didn’t have the money to do that. They crossed their fingers and some of them won, and some of them lost. Lost their bees, that is.

The other cause for starvation is contaminated pollen. Contaminated pollen stored in hives can end up causing bees to get sick and die. Honeybees collect pollen for vitamins, minerals, and protein. They don’t eat it right away, they add their own bacteria, fungi, and yeast to it, and leave it to ferment in hive cells until it makes “bee bread”. If honeybees collect pollen from a flower that was treated with pesticides and herbicides, it messes up the balance of the bacteria, fungi, and yeast. When the honeybees try to make ‘bee bread’ using contaminated pollen, the fermentation process doesn’t work, and it then interferes with the honeybees’ health by limiting their nutrition.

Another thing that could be hurting the honeybees is really, the bee industry. Honey isn’t a moneymaker anymore, because we import so much of our honey from third-world countries, so most of the money that beekeepers make is made from pollinating the almond crop in California. Bees are imported from the other states because California’s foothill, coastal, mountain, and desert areas can support only about a half million colonies on a year-round basis. Because of this, beginning in late January, beekeepers move in and place about 1 million honeybee colonies to pollinate California’s 500 acres of almonds. Bees are imported from all over the country, to pollinate one kind of flower. This isn’t good for the bees. Bees are meant to gather lots of different pollens from separate places. And they’re not used to being trucked across the country. If you add in the stresses of herbicides and pesticides and a lack of food, these bees are going to suffer!

If any of you are at all interested in this subject, I would very much encourage you to read about it. It’s really interesting, and there’s a lot that I wasn’t able to mention. If I were to share everything I wanted to do with this subject, this speech would be way too long for speech club. The honeybees’ disappearance is a fascinating and important part of our lives, and the more people who know about it, the more people who could maybe help to save them. Because if we want the honeybees to survive, we have to be aware of the problems they face, and try to take care of the bees’ needs.

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What struck me the most after I listened and then read her speech was the opportunity this kind of learning presents to your cause. If my teenager daughter can write this simple report, share it with friends about the importance of bees, what could an army of teenagers accomplish for your organization? In other words, if you want to get real grassroots involvement, attention, and discussion going -- get some kids to write about it.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Begin With the End in Mind -- Visioning for Success

Years ago I heard a startling statistic that 95% of all small businesses in the United States fail within the first five years. This is a staggering number but not surprising. Even big businesses are not immune to the challenges of today’s warp-speed and constantly fluctuating marketplace. In fact, one third of the 1970 Fortune 500 had ceased to exist by 1983; and by 1995 nearly two-thirds had vanished. So what can we do to help our businesses survive, grow and flourish?

Begin With The End In Mind

We create plans all the time: plans to go to dinner and a movie with friends, plans for an exotic vacation, we plan our household budgets and plan for our retirements. In all, every plan we make is an attempt to help us move from where we are to where we want to be in the most convenient, effective and efficient way possible.

Surprisingly, however, many entrepreneurs are operating without one of the most important plans they need—a strategic plan. As a critical business development tool, this plan is the keystone to helping you remained focused, profitable and innovative. At its most fundamental level, a strategic plan defines what success looks, feels, smells, and tastes like, and then creates a roadmap from that point backwards to where you are starting.

Describing Success

At the center of the strategic plan is a well conceived vision which consists of two major components: a core ideology and envisioned future.

1. The core ideology has two parts: core values—tenets which serve as guiding principles for your work, and a core purpose—the reason for being.

2. The envisioned future consists of a 10-30 year audacious goal, plus a vivid description of what it will be like to achieve that goal.

You best Vision will represent the beliefs you find challenging and particularly important—a reason to dedicate your energies. It creates a picture of your future company and describes something to be proud of.

Planning a Revolution

In our marketplace there are many businesses providing similar services. The best way to help you succeed is to create something different. Don’t be “another” provider of a commodity product or service. Rather, redefine the market and uncover unmet needs. As Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead once said, “You don’t want to be considered the best at what you do. You wan to be the only one doing what you do.”

When thinking about the strategy for your company and in writing your own plan, you’ll want to consider four key questions:

• What “unique” service or product does your business provide and what “real” needs does it fill?
• Who are the potential customers for your product or service, how many of them are there, and why will they purchase your solution from you? What’s in it for them?
• How will you reach your potential customers? How does the competition currently reach them?
• Where will you get the financial resources to start and operate your business until it becomes profitable?

Despite the critical importance of a business plan, many entrepreneurs drag their feet when it comes to preparing a written document. They argue that the market changes too fast, they’re too small or that they just don't have enough time. But just as a builder won't begin construction without a blueprint, eager entrepreneurs should not rush into creating a company without a business plan.

While most small businesses end up closing within the first five years, I am sure they didn’t begin with that goal in mind. As you either begin your business, or even if you’re in your tenth year, perhaps today is a good time to create or brush off your strategic plan for the future.

-- David Kinard, PCM

A baby's giggle is the most addictive sound in the world -- or so author and neuromarketer Martin Lindstrom would have us believe. And based on what the science is telling us, it would be wise to do so. Lindstrom, author of the worldwide bestseller Buyology has released his second book Brand Sense and he's tackling the world of sound and how our brains just can't help but override our rational thinking when it comes to certain sounds. The 10 most addictive sounds in the world:

• A baby's giggle
• Intel's chime
• A vibrating phone
• ATM/cash register sounds
• National Geographic
• MTV
• T-Mobile
• McDonald's
• Star Spangled Banner
• State Farm

Please note, 7 of the top ten are human-manufactured sounds. What you're not finding in this list are birds chirping, the ocean surf, or a babbling brook. And what is staggering is that most of these sounds are linked to branded products -- addictive sounds that tend to make us think of these products and/or feel emotionally attached to them. I asked Lindstrom what made a sound addictive. He noted three qualities:

1. emotional engagement
2. remembrance/stickyness
3. the ability to continue to listen to the sound over and over

It occurred to me that these same standards of addictiveness apply across all levels of marketing and communications. Three critical elements we should always be striving toward achieving. Lindstrom just happens to point out that the integration of sounds -- the most powerful of the senses -- into our marketing could very well be a significant turning point in the near future of what makes a marketing message/icon pull better than the competition. So what does this mean for the average, every-day marketer? First, listen to my podcast interview with Martin to get the full picture for yourself. You can buy his book as well: Brand Sense, or his first book Buyology. You can read, listen, and develop your own plan. But I suggest you start with some simple steps:Identify what makes you unique.

1. Brainstorm ways you can appeal to all the senses of your audience. Don't just work on the visual -- because your logo has oh-s0-little impact in the broader scheme of things.
2. Create multi-sense experiences at all stages of your marketing stream -- upstream awareness and downstream sales (Buyology has great research in it identifying how Coke rules American Idol brand awareness without even running commercials during the broadcast).
3. Pilot, test, and improve.

I'd love your feedback on Lindstrom's research and the impact to your marketing -- or the ethics of this as well.

-- David Kinard, PCM

SWITCH -- 3 Myths about Change

When I last spoke with authors Chip and Dan Heath, they ad just published their first book, Made to Stick. It was an instant success and frankly one of my all time favorite reads. It outlined how marketers/communicators could embed life and memorability into their communications. Now they’ve come back to us with a completely different book – about change. But as I was reading SWITCH, it occurred to me that these two topics aren’t really that different. Listen to the podcast interview is here.

Much of their new book talks about the rider and elephant – the basis for why change fails, what we need to think about when attempting change, and the unique roles each of these two characters play in making change stick.

Their book also takes head on the myths surrounding change and starts to debunk them into three very easy to understand new truths – the Health brothers call them surprises:

1. What looks like a people problem is really a situation problem.
2. What looks like laziness is often exhaustion.
3. What looks like resistance is often a lack of clarity.

While much of what they write about can be easily shelved into the change management slot, or even corporate communications, I think there are some marketing application opportunities here, too. Among the many stories they use to illustrate their book, one great story is the example of how two health researchers were trying to find ways to get people to eat a healthier diet – it’s their 1% milk story.

So, can marketers use the ideas in this book to help them craft their messaging and sell more products or increase usage? Absolutely. Can communicators use the lessons in this book to help communicate change in their organizations? Absolutely – in fact I am already putting into place their ideas for destination postcards.

If you are a marketer or communicator who wants to – and please forgive the term – be a change agent in their work or profession – this interview identifies where you should start. After all, being good at communicating change is the first step to becoming better at leading change.

What are your reactions to the Heath brothers latest book? What did you think of Made to Stick? How are these two books helping you in your marketing and communicating efforts?

-- David Kinard, PCM

How to Change Things -- And Yourself

I am not one to get all gushy about business books. I read a lot of them on a nearly one-a-week basis because of my podcast interviews with the American Marketing Association. However, I am so pleased to be reading Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard. This is the second book by co-authors and brother writing team Chip and Dan Heath.

Their first book, Made to Stick, was a New York Times bestseller and is a must-read for any communicator of any type -- period.

Okay, so for the gushing...

I am a whole 24 pages into this book and it appears to be another must read. Within the first chapter I've already learned about three surprising elements of change and how to apply them to my advantage.

1. What looks like resistance is often due to a lack of clarity.
2. What looks like laziness is often exhaustion.
3. What looks like a people problem is often a situation problem.

I'll admit, I was surprised at the admittedly simple description of why change fails so often, but equally excited at the opportunity to unlock these ideas in my own work life. And what's even better is that next week I'll be interviewing Chip and Dan about their new book -- the podcast will be posted soon after.

If you have questions you'd like me to ask Chip or Dan, let me know. I'll be happy to include what I can in the podcast interview.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Rethinking about Reorganizing

Silos block us from thinking in a coordinated fashion about our customers, says author Ranjay Gulati. I had the pleasure of talking with him about his new book Reorganize for Resilience. It's one part common sense and 99 parts practical advice on how to break down silos and focus on integrated solutions that drive customer value.

Specifically, Gulati writes about five levers we can pull to reorganize ourselves for resilience:

1. Coordination
2. Cooperation
3. Clout
4. Capabilities
5. Connections

Gulati also said in my interview with him that sometimes customers can't always articulate what they want, but that is where our creative efforts should be. I was struck by this statement in terms of how non profits work to solve problems for people who are often so overcome by their situations that articulation of solutions is beyond their capabilities. The irony, however, is this invaluable skill employed on behalf of the populations served is often lacking when it comes to funders. Funding organizations and peoples have problems too that need to be solved -- albeit different ones. Helping them to articulate their needs in terms of ROI for support is essential in driving up participation and dollar amounts.

What donor problems have you uncovered? What have been your solutions? Did you have to breakdown any organizational silos in your non profit or the donating org to get a solution in place?

-- David Kinard, PCM

Why are You Still Unemployed?

I need to be careful in this post as I am going through the process of hiring a new team member in my department. But I wanted to give some feedback to those of you who may be unemployed and can't seem to break through to an interview, or even a job offer. And, as always, I'll bring this around to why non profits continue to struggle with their marketing and what they can do to fix it.

First, your resume is your elevator speech. It is your first and last impression. It needs to be packaged to set you apart from all the other noise. For example, I am hiring a graphic designer and we've had more than 40 people apply for this position so far (actually, I think we have more than that -- those are only the resumes I've seen). My first pass was to go through the resumes and remove any resume that wasn't designed. If you can't package your own content, how should I expect you to package my company's content?

While not everyone is applying for a graphic design position -- you are applying for something and trying to sell yourself. How have you packaged your content? How do you stand apart from the rest of the crowd? Are you one of many, or one of one? Non profits have the same issue when it comes to their direct mail and other promotions. Have you packaged yourself in the same envelope, same tri-fold, same flyer as everyone else? How do you stand apart?

Second, in your resume and cover letter you have to make me the subject of your focus. Nearly all the resumes I review are focused on the person. Well, it's the standard convention, right?!? However, occasionally there is one that stands apart because it talks about what you will do for me, what I get from hiring you, what the benefit to me is. Those that make this leap from self-focus to value proposition make the second cut.

Non profits spend a lot of time talking about themselves, the work they do, how important it is, and how good they are at doing it. Yes, that's all fine and well, but so what? At the end of the day there are hundreds of thousands of other companies also performing in a similar fashion and saying the same things. Tell me how your work will improve my life. Tell me how supporting you will benefit me. The value of answering these questions in this way demonstrates you understand your audience and that you can solve their problems or address their needs. Doing so puts you light years ahead of everyone else.

Finally, deliver on the promise. Your resume has been picked and you're scheduled for an interview. An expectation has been set -- by you -- based on the impact and positioning of your resume content. Make sure you meet that expectation, and over deliver against it. Prep, study, learn, absorb. Don't come into the interview cold. Have questions ready, read blogs, search the Web for links, Google the interviewer; whatever you do, don't do nothing!

Non profits who capture the hearts, minds, hands, and pocketbooks of their audiences must also be sure to deliver the experience that target is expecting. Recently I got a group of people together to donate money to a cause that buys livestock for people around the world. The brochure was amazing and I was looking for an equally amazing high once I put in my credit card information and hit the send button. I was less than thrilled with the confirmation screen and follow up since then and am not as jazzed to support them again. Something got lost between the promise, and its delivery.

So, why are you still unemployed? I am sure there are lots of really good reasons. It's a tough economy and a tight job market. I get that. But you need to make sure you're not sabotaging yourself by missing these simple three points.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Go Back and Change Someone's Mind

I've had the chance to interview Jack Trout three times in my career. The first time I was working to get him to come to Seattle and speak to my chapter of the American Marketing Association. The second time was when we talked about his (then) new book In Search of the Obvious. This time, I spoke with Jack about his latest book -- one that revisits his seminal work of nearly 30 years ago.

While positioning was all about the battle for the mind, Repositioning is about adjusting those perceptions once they've been made. He liberally uses the examples of Mac versus the PC -- how Mac changed the argument from one of technology to the type of person you wanted to be. This is just one of the three keys he mentions: competition, change, and crisis.

Trout spends a lot of time talking about the difference between value and price -- and how they're not the same thing. While that may seem obvious, it isn't common practice. What stirs someone to want to make an investment into a product -- to find that there is something special in that product or service? Trout says it's about repositioning your argument based on what they're telling you.

While this may seem tried and true Trout, you're right. Trout has been selling the same choir book for more than 30 years now, but it is so fundamental and so truly important that the refresh is welcome. While we can learn from history, and other people's mistakes, I think we can also learn from Trout on how to set ourselves apart from the masses, and deeply entrench our value promises in the minds of our audiences.

Specific to non profits, Trout suggests that everything he's written completely relates. He goes one step further to note that not only do non profits need to get really good at what they do, but they also have to be seen as specialists. I can't agree more on these two points. Non profits must be experts at doing what they do, but they also have to be seen as niche experts and leaders -- those practitioners worthy of special consideration and funding.

-- David Kinard, PCM

Going Viral

Though his book at times reads like a gripping novel, Adam Penenberg has written a roadmap for any marketer wanting to know more about how viral works, how to think viral, and why viral happens the way it does. Penenberg writes from the trenches as he provides the back story on how some of today's most successful viral companies started. But the podcast takes you deeper into how to make viral happen for your company.

Gripping is insufficient to describe Pennenberg's ideas. I am usually pretty good at taking notes while I am interviewing someone, but I was so enthralled in listening I found my notepad relatively blank after our twenty minute discussion. However, here's what I asked Adam -- you can listen to the answers in the podcast interview:

1. What is a viral loop?
2. Is this someting you create or something that just happens to you?
3. What is a viral coefficient and can you use them in real time to predict your viral success?
4. What is the difference, if any, between stickyness and viral?

And loads more....

-- David Kinard, PCM

How Evolved is Your Marketing?

What has changed about today's consumer that makes meaningful marketing more relevant than previous types of marketing? What is meaningful marketing? Those are just some of the questions I asked Bob Gilbreath, chief marketing strategist at Bridge Worldwide, one of the nation's largest digital advertising agencies. He's also the author of The Next Evolution of Marketing: Connect with Your Customers by Marketing with Meaning.

In the podcast interview, I asked Bob if the evolution in marketing he writes about has been primarily driven by media consumption or by some other factor. Of course, it's a mixture of things. But after interviewing lots of people like Bob over the past five years, I think that there's a common thread of time-starved people who are controlling their media rather than merely absorbing whatever comes their way. In other words, we're all functioning with a bit of attention-deficit and therefore are looking for media that is going to fill needs rather than just time.

Gilbreath takes the ubiquitous Maslow's hierarchy of needs and transforms it into a new pyramid that is broken into three main categories. At the bottom is Meaningful Solutions -- those marketing efforts that provide information, incentives, and services. One level up is Connections -- those marketing efforts that create entertaining experiences that are shared amongst others, along with the introduction to personalization. Finally, at the top of the pyramid is Achievement -- those marketing efforts that enable a user to learn a skill, improve their community/world, and cause-related marketing efforts.

In essence, Gilbreath's book is about the fact that marketing is evolving to the point where those companies that can improve the lives of their customers through the marketing itself will win out over those companies who simply try to buy usage and loyalty.

What does this mean to the non profit? A whole hell of a lot.

This past November, I received a gift catalog from Heifer International. It was one of the many in the mail but this one stood out amongst the others. Not because they used flashy printing or graphics, but the simple message that communicated it was the most important gift catalog in the world. That catalog became the pivot point for my Christmas giving, enabling me to gather together like minded people who contributed to a joint gift. This gift allowed several of us to make a meaningful contribution to our world -- a far more meaningful use of our money than things wrapped in plastic and cardboard boxes. And, at the end of the purchase experience, Heifer enabled me to share my experience with others (though their system could have been better in this regard).

The point is, I think people are looking for meaning, especially when it comes to their money. So, for the non profit the evolution is not to just rely on traditional direct mail and the annual fundraiser, but to CREATE meaningful experiences for those who flitter around the periphery of your organization, drawing them deeper into the core of your cause, and increasing the meaning at each step (think Gilbreath's hierarchy noted above).

How are you creating meaning in your marketing? Share your story here!

-- David Kinard, PCM

Holiday Travel Takes $4 Billion Hit

Are you staying home this holiday season? According to a recent poll by Maritz Research Hospitality Group -- you are!

For the past few years, it's been my pleasure to interview Rick Garlick, senior director of consulting and strategic implementation, at Maritz Research. They do an annual poll -- and have done one for a decade now -- about holiday travel plans. Though we have weathered 911, high gas prices, economic sluggishness, and other ailments in the past, it seems that this year these woes have finally taken their toll on Americans and we're staying home, traveling less, and spending less on hospitality this holiday season.

"Holiday travel has been remarkably reslilient," said Garlick. "This year for the first time in a decade we're seeing a drop in travel and spending." And while that drop is only 3%, it equates to a whopping $4.05 billion less spent this holiday season, mostly in airfare. When asked what people are going to do this year, 80% of them said they're going to stay home with family or friends.

Click here to listen to my podcast interview with Rick.

Okay, so what does this mean for your non profit? I asked Rick what marketers should do as they head into the holiday season to mitigate the loss of revenue in the travel and hospitality sector and his advice is OH SO RELEVANT to all of us I thought I'd pass it along to you.

1. Understand what your brand stands for and target a particular type of customer. This seems like common sense, but isn't often common practice. Many non profits try to be all things to all people (especially in their fundraising efforts) and end up communicating a generic, vanilla, and so-so message. Knowing who you are and who you serve means also knowing who you are not and clearly defining and drawing those boundaries. It's okay to say no as a non profit, and the first place we need to say no is in our brands.

2. Add value.
Good advice but this also can be poorly executed. The knee jerk reaction to this means cut prices or lower access costs. Not a good idea -- and most experts agree. Adding value does not always mean reducing costs. It means adding value through HIGH VALUE experiences (read my entries here, here, and here).

3. Be original. (this is my idea, not Rick's)
Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead said it best, "You don't want to be considered the best at what you do. You want to be the only one doing what you do." As a non profit are you essential? Are you critical? If you're not there, does another organization just pick up after you or are you so unique and special that important needs go unmet? Work on your compelling, credible, unique contribution and market that year-round. Your essentiality (nice new word, huh!) will help to mitigate any down turn.

Would you add to this list?

-- David Kinard, PCM

How Entitled are You?

Maybe this has happened to you. It seems to happen a lot to me, or at least I notice it happening. Your standing in line and someone steps in front of you. They take cuts. They don’t ask permission. They simply move in front of you, or try to surreptitiously sneak into the line pretending to be unaware of the discourtesy they’ve just shown everyone around them. Or worse, they just don’t care.

There is a lady at my bus stop. We all arrive about the same time and wait for the bus in an random grouping. When the bus approaches, prospective riders begin to form a line and wait to board the bus. This lady waits until the bus stops and will walk right up to the door and get on, completely ignoring the line. I’ve watched her several times, and can see in her eyes she knows what she’s doing.

I remember once I was at the Orlando airport preparing to return home from a speaking engagement. It was crowded and very busy and we had to take our checked baggage to a special room because the conveyor belt behind the ticket agents had broken. So, there I stood in line and as I approached the front, another traveler walked up and stood next to me, even though there were many people behind me. As we approached the special room, this person moved in front of me and dropped of their bag.

I rarely say anything to these people. It just isn’t that important to me who gets on the bus or drops off their bags first. I figure we’ll all get there and if a person feels the need to disregard everyone else, or feels they’re entitled to something, that’s fine with me. There are more fruitful things to spend my energy on than arguing with someone who feels they need to go first.

But I wonder how many times I feel a sense of entitlement in my life. I don’t have to think hard to remember the many times where I’ve taken rather than asked, when I’ve gone first although I should have waited, or when my pride has convinced me that I deserve something at the expense of someone else.

Today I think I will invite someone to take my place in line, humbly offer my seat on the bus to another, or perhaps give to someone with a generous attitude rather than take from a sense of entitlement. It's something I can do.

-- David Kinard, PCM

What Women (and Non Profits) Want

I just finished a great podcast interview with Michael Silverstein, senior partner at Boston Consulting Group and coauthor of Women Want More. (Just to wet your whistle, according to Silverstein, women around the world want more of three basic things: Money, Time, and Love -- and they control about $20 trillion in consumer spending world wide.) The podcast will be available soon, but this whole interview got me thinking about what do non profits want.

I think the non profit list is the same: More money, more time, and more love.

For the purists out there, I would agree that the ultimate want is to not be needed anymore, to have the cause or need they are trying to meet actually met. But for the sake of discussion, let's assume that although a superior goal, the means to achieve it is still more money, time, and love.

I don't know any non profit leader that feels they have enough money. And this isn't necessarily a bad thing -- just a fact of the business. Even Josette Sheeran, executive director of the World Food Programme, who is credited with being a remarkably successful fundraiser after raising more than $5 billion in 2008, would like more money. According to Silverstein, Sheeran says that with $10 billion the world could rid itself of hunger. She needs more money.

And most non profits are always looking for more hours in the day to get everything done. Unfortunately, some non profits are not set up to work with volunteers -- there is no system or method for those who want to give their time for the cause to be engaged. But for many, even the 169.7 million hours of volunteer time each year in the US is not enough to meet current needs.

And love...non profits need more love. What I mean by this is that non profits need more people to fall in love with their causes, their goals, and their visions. Some are naturally easier than others to love, but some make it inexplicably hard. Take Oxfam's Trailwalker program, it's designed with engaging people in personal and constructive ways. Quite a contrast to PETA's efforts to stop the clubbing of baby seals. Both are worthy issues, but one generates love, the other divisiveness.

I asked Silverstein what marketers should do if they wanted to genuinely and respectfully meet the needs of women and tap into the trillion dollar female economy. He noted a four step process that I am adapting for non profits. The 4 R's he notes are the same -- I've just changed their focus a bit.

• RECOGNIZE the value of your constituents. What value does each category of constituent have for your non profit -- and what value do you offer them in return. Without this fundamental knowledge, you won't know if you're spending your time, energy, and money in the right places.
• RESEARCH the satisfaction of your constituents with your organization, and their usability of what you offer. You've got to figure out the degree of relevance and usage barriers for your offerings.
• RESPOND to these insights in a respectful and precisely targeted way. Focus your energy to maximize your ability to generate money, time, and love.
• REFINE the process based on real time learning and keep it going. Constantly improve. Kaizen!

What do you think non profits want more of? Would you add to the list of three? What else would you suggest non profits do to get started in their efforts to generate more money, time, and love?

-- David Kinard, PCM

The Fall of Fundraising

I may be the only non profit marketer who is thinking this right now, but I think fall is a horrible time to do fundraising. To be more clear, rather I think it's a horrible idea to wait until fall to do fundraising. In fact, I think it's downright wasteful, irresponsible, and fails to appreciate the relational aspects of generating support for an organization.

As marketers, we know that it would be silly of us to be quiet for nine months of the year and then try to make all our annual sales quota in the last three months. We also know that in order to get consumers to buy our products or services, we need to constantly remind them of our value, our uniqueness, and the big damn difference we can make in their lives or businesses.

But since it's fundraising, let's ignore the simple laws of relationships and marketing and postpone everything until the last minute; 'cause that is the way we've always done it, right?!?!

Don't get me wrong, there's a good reason for our current practice in that many giving organizations will begin evaluating their budgets and see what they have left in terms of dollars to spend. Some may even be looking for some tax benefits. And still others are preparing for the following year so it makes sense to get on their radar screen now. BUT, way too many non profit marketers try to do ALL parts of their fundraising in these last three months. Again, not a good idea.

I will freely admit that I am not an expert in fundraising. Yes, I've generated monies for the organizations I've been involved in, but not to the extent that professional development people have. But I am an expert marketer and I do understand human nature -- and one key element to keep in mind is that fundraising begins at the moment your organization is first introduced to someone and continues until either you close your doors or that person's will is finally executed. Fundraising is a way of being, a way of communicating, a golden thread that must be woven through every communication and interaction with your community. This is not to say that you're always asking for money. On the contrary, what it means is that you're always giving your community reasons for them to see the value in supporting your mission.

Perhaps this fall, as you begin writing your annual ask letter and start your push through the end of 2009, you'll also begin a parallel path of looking at how you can retool your organization's interactions and communications with your community to create reasons for funding, create opportunities to demonstrate value, and communicate your big damn difference in such a way that people come to you with open wallets before you even ask them.

-- David Kinard, PCM