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How to Get Out of Our Comfort Zone and Move Past the Guilt Excuse!

I always read about great conferences, I save the emails and brochures and then tell myself that next time I’ll have the time to attend. So when a good business friend generously offered a ticket to the sold out Simmons Leadership Conference in Boston, I jumped at the chance. Easy, end of story, right? I then spent the next week totally torturing myself. Should I go, shouldn’t I go, too busy at work, too much coordination, too much money and then the walapalusa for all women, my family might need me, aaargh! But alas here I am at my lovely and quiet hotel room typing away. There are adorable little soaps and shampoo and I get to have a very well appointed king size bed all to myself (sorry Eric, I really will miss you).

Why should we push ourselves to attend these kinds of events when the opportunities arise and why is it so difficult for women to make time for ourselves? The answer to the first question is easy, throw hundreds of like-minded people in a room and you’re bound to get something good out of it. Conversation is the inspiration for innovation and who doesn’t need a little inspiration. The second question “guilt” is much more complicated. Sometimes I think it’s a perfect excuse for not moving out of our comfort zones. As a wise friend told me, “You can only grow if you are willing to feel awkward and uncomfortable.”

So all I have to decide now is which out of three seminars to attend, Understanding Social Networks, Dealing With Difficult People or The Female Vision, hmmmmm. Room service, please!

–Ann Byne, Principal, The Byne Group

They're Grrrreat! : Everything Old is New Again

I was watching one of my favorite shows, “Sunday Morning” a few weeks back and learned some interesting new things about the advertising icon Leo Burnett (1891–1971). Many of you probably have no idea who Leo Burnett was, heck I barely knew the name. But I bet everyone knows the Pillsbury Doughboy, Tony the Tiger, The Jolly Green Giant, Morris the Cat, Charlie the Tuna and the unemployed Maytag repairman. As a baby boomer my childhood was filled with many of those characters and Leo Burnett and his agency created them all.

Some of these characters have never gone away, they’ve been tweaked and modernized through the years. Tony first came to life in 1952 and has been going strong ever since. [http://adage.com/century/icon09.html] Others were living on a dusty shelf somewhere in my memory and are now being reintroduced and revved up to engage the next generation. Leo Burnett's genius lives on in these iconic brands

I Googled Leo Burnett to find out more about this advertising giant and yes, although Leo is long gone, his agency, which is now worldwide is going strong. What I found most interesting was just like the iconic characters he created, Leo’s philosophy is also timeless! Here are just a few of his famous quotes about advertising.

“Regardless of the moral issue, dishonesty in advertising has proved very unprofitable.”

“Advertising is the ability to sense, interpret… to put the very heart throbs of a business into type, paper and ink.”

“Anyone who thinks that people can be fooled or pushed around has an inaccurate and pretty low estimate of people – and he won’t do very well in advertising.”

And my favorite, which proves “that everything old is new again."

“Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it inviting to look at. Make it fun to read.” Hey! I thought I came up with that!

Leo Burnett (1891–1971)

–Ann Byne, Principal, The Byne Group

Marketing 101 : Make the Complex Simple.

Unless you live under a rock you have probably seen the Darth Vader Volkswagen ad from the Super Bowl. It’s gone viral with (as of this writing) 23,896,467 hits on YouTube. Why is it so popular? It’s undeniably clever and touching yet very simple, not one word is spoken.

In a media cluttered world, delivering communications with simplicity and clarity is more essential than ever. We are all living in fast paced times and as the world gets more complex we all crave a little simplicity.

During the past few years, many large brands have realized that and simplified their messages. Just think of Charles Schwab and the "Talk to Chuck" campaign. Or Staples with their popular "Easy" Button spots. And one of my favorites the popular UPS "Whiteboard" campaign showing a guy drawing and talking to us about how UPS works. These ads are captivating. I think it’s because of the select amount of words they use and all that beautiful white space.

Consider one of the most famous speeches in American history, the Gettysburg Address. It’s emotional language delivered big ideas with purpose and power and in just 278 words!

So how do small businesses get on the bandwagon? After all, who of us has the same kind of marketing budgets as the big guys?

According to the book 27 Powers of Persuasion by Chris St. Hilaire (a well known message strategist) "It’s about persuading people without browbeating them... whether it’s persuading a group or selling a product, it’s easiest to accomplish a goal if your story is simple." Why? I believe its because we are all inundated with messages that shout at us; online, offline, mobile and we crave simplicity and sincerity.

So how can you find the "one" story from "many"? Think about situations in which people experience their own relationships between your brand or service and the lives they lead and depict it. It’s easy if you’re a non-profit, there are always great stories about one person you helped. But what if you’re selling bricks? Try to remember there is always an end user. Those bricks build homes and "many" people live in those homes, and in just "one" of those homes is one family just like you. Just ask yourself what’s going to relate to my specific audience and find the right way to communicate it. Or as Chris puts it in his book, "recognize your audience's reality… So if you sell water don’t ask how do we sell more water ask yourself why do people like water?"

Now back to why the Darth Vader Volkswagen ad from the Super Bowl is so popular. Yes, it leverages humor and the mystique of star wars but there was so much more. It successfully created an emotional connection. How? By getting into the audiences reality with a simple story. As a baby boomer I sat through all of those movies with my son and spent a small fortune on all the merchandising. My son, who begged for all those toys (and still hasn’t forgiven me for giving all of them away) felt nostalgic for his own childhood while watching it. Our realities are different but the ad spoke to both of us.

This “keep it simple” philosophy works across all mediums, from ad messages to websites to social media. To be successful we should always respect how busy people are and not waste their time. You have only a few moments to make an impression, make sure you make it one that potential customers can feel good about.

–Ann Byne, Principal, The Byne Group

The Brands We love and Why!

Two of my favorite brands are Starbucks and Apple Store. In the book titled "The Power of Co-Creation" the authors talk about how these two brands (and others) have embraced a concept of co-creation to build huge successes.

Starbucks, an experience wrapped in a cup!

I first became a fan of Starbucks not because of the coffee but because of a segment on a Sunday morning show about how they treat their partners (employees) with respect and dignity. They are one of the most progressive employers in the U.S. and that really matters to me.

In 2008 Starbucks had to deal with "the perfect storm." The economy collapsed and the competition became fierce. They didn’t take it lying down. In 2008 they went interactive launching MyStarbucksIdea.com where everyone was invited to help "co-shape" it’s future. In the first year, 65,000 ideas had been submitted and 658,000 votes were cast. In 2009, 50 of the ideas had been approved and began launching. Then, they used their power to do good by launching "Pledge 5.starbucks.com" (ok it didn’t hurt PR either) where fans were asked to donate their time to community service. The result, by fall 2009, 1 million service hours were pledged. No one can say for sure but I believe these initiatives helped them turn a corner and in 2010 they returned to profitability.

The Apple Store, delighting our inner child!

Just step inside any Apple store and observe the level of positive energy. It’s no accident, Apple stores were designed to make customers feel comfortable; to play with the toys, interact with staff or just read their email. During a visit to Atlanta during the holidays, I had a great conversation with my cousin who has always loved Apple products. He was the first person I knew to purchase an iphone, he waited on line for 7 hours to get it and Apple served everyone breakfast (talk about putting a positive spin on a long wait). When the ipad was launched, he stood in line again. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised that when he semi-retired from his successful career he decided to work part-time at an Apple store just for fun. Yes, I said fun! His excitement is contagious as he shares the relationships Apple creates with employees, and the meaningful two-way interactions it fosters with its clients.

Impressively, according to Ramaswamy and Gouillart "Apple embraced co-creation to enhance the speed and scope of its innovation, generating over $1 billion for its App-Store partner-Developers in two years." Not bad!

So, what have I taken away from Starbucks' and Apple’s roaring success? For me, it’s working to create a culture where staff and clients can comfortably interact, learn and even disagree. In the end it’s all about everyone flourishing.

Do you have a story about your favorite brand, please share.

–Ann Byne, Principal, The Byne Group

Please Talk Back (The Perfect Mantra for Social Media Marketing!)

Social media offers marketers an opportunity to engage in conversation about their brand. So, how did this baby boomer get to know anything about the benefits of social media? Isn't that a young person's game?

Well, once upon a time, a young woman (that was me), wielded my best marketing and design tools – Pantone markers, letraset – to provide clients with the kind of perfect layouts and marketing messages that assumed people were listening. For the most part, they were. It was a less cynical world. Marketers weren’t competing with the Internet, or YouTube or video on demand or online ratings. Consumers didn’t register for "do not call" lists, use DVRs to tape TV shows so they could “skip” the commercials, or Google clients to see how some of its previous customers felt about their service or product. When we talked to consumers the last thing we wanted was for them to talk back.

Fast forward 25 years, the design and advertising landscape has drastically changed. My markers and paper have long since been retired and replaced with a computer that allows my agency to create marketing materials in less than one twentieth the time. The newspapers of our day are fighting for their lives, the post office is gasping for breath and the youngest members of our population are determined to "opt-in" for marketing.

The times have changed, and good marketers must change with them. For me, that often means educating clients on the latest tools in the marketing toolbox. In some cases, it means pushing them online to listen to the conversation that's taking place right now about their brand. Better yet, I counsel them to encourage the conversation, to ask for feedback in order to do a better job of giving their customers what they're telling them they want.

Would love to hear your thoughts on the subject!


–Ann Byne, Principal, The Byne Group