Harry Potter Marketing

been reading the Feb 2007 HBR (Harvard Business Review) and found many treasures in this edition. will try to capture as much knowledge as possible and to keep it here for quick reference..

Traditional marketing in consumer products e.g. retails, probably focused on age group. For example, in cosmetics, usually the firm would focus on certain age group. But when these group of customers aged and passed their target age group, they will have to find new customers of that age group to replace the existing ones.. As we all know by now, it's expensive to find new customer than maintaining existing ones.

Now comes Harry Potter marketing. It's a new concept following Harry's success. The concept simply follows the customers.. in the cosmetic example, the firm's brand/products should grow 'old' with the customers - shaping the marketing message to suit the aging customers. For example, in the beginning, it could be targeting customer in their 20's. The message would be on skin whitening and smoothness. But when the customers reached their 30's or 40's, the message may be tuned to focus on retard aging and skin maintenance.. The product composition will have to be adjusted as well..

The pros are that it grows with the customers (which u probably already know them well) and save money to find new customer (existing customers cheaper to keep).

The cons are that product/brand will grow 'old' and die off one day and new customers who dont belong to that generation will unlikely to be your customer.

In a nutshell, Harry Potter marketing is an interesting new marketing concept which is suitable for certain products/services only. It will not be suitable for, say in the machinery equipment marketing, or even Walt Disney fixed target on children. Alternative marketing strategies would be to develop product lines or brands that carries the customers from one brand maturing to another brand thru the use of clever marketing creating a seamless transition unconscious to them.. but that's another discussion or topic.. ;-)

authentic leadership

For the past ten over years, there has been a no of books, research and search for the key factors in a leader - leadership has been a foremost topic in business discussions on how to keep big corporations growing.

Fortunately or unfortunately, there isnt an answer! For me, i'm glad that this isnt a fixed formula for being a leader. Everyone is unique and everyone has their own set of strengths and weaknesses. We need different type of leadership for different kind of situation. Thus, i liken the idea of situational leadership.

And in HBR, authentic leadership is the answer after interviewing many CEOs and senior managers. What is authentic leadership? Well, based on the article's research, it seems to say that it has a lot to do with (i) great self-awareness, (ii) individual life story and (iii) genuine desire to help others.

I totally agree with the findings. In fact, self-awareness is similar with the teachings of Buddha on mindfulness. And genuine desire to help others is one of the cornerstone of Buddhism. i've learned that whatever we do, we should aim to do the three good - good for myself, good for others, and serve a greater good!

In addition, i've always believe in the power of people's past. People are shaped by their past. Especially some key events or incidents have great impact in peoples' lives.

In a nutshell, we dont have to live our lives trying to be someone else. Instead, we can still be great leaders by being ourselves. By being at ease and at peace with ourselves first, we will be able to grow much faster and better to help organisation and people grow.

At the end of the day, the motivation is unlikely to be of material value, fame and corporate position. It will more likely to be factors of spiritual, ethics and harmony.

[above writings were inspired and based on Harvard Business Review (HBR) Feb2007 article on Authentic Leadership]
[Above right is picture of Dr Muhammad Yunus, winner of Nobel Prize 2006. I've seen him speak on TV. Think he's really an example of authentic leader for helping the poor to stand up on their own feet.]

CEM versus CRM

there's an interesting article in the Feb'07 Harvard Business Review (HBR) that talks about Understanding Customer Experience by Christopher Meyer and Andre Schwager.

the article explains that customer experience management (CEM) and customer relationship management (CRM) differ in their subject matter, timing, monitoring, audience and purpose.

CEM captures and distribute what a customer thinks about a firm.
CRM captures and distribute what a firm knows about a customer.

CEM captures info at point of customer interaction "Touch Point".
CRM captures info after the customer interaction.

CEM monitors using surveys, targeted studies, observation studies, "voice of customer" research.
CRM monitors using point-of-sales, market research, website click-thru, automated tracking of sales.

CEM - biz leaders use these info to create fulfillable expectations and better experiences with products & services.
CRM - customer-facing grps such as sales, marketing, field services and cust service use these info to drive more efficient and effective execution.

CEM - more leading. locate places to add offerings in gaps betw expectations and experiences.
CRM - more lagging. drive cross selling by bundling of products in demand with ones that arent.

3 types of patterns to track customer experiences:
1. Past - Persistent in data collection. focused short cycle timed data collection. feedback via online forum. e.g. post-installation or customer service follow up.

2. Present - Periodic. quarterly reviews. relationship studies. user-group polling. e.g. biannual account reviews."follow them home" user studies.

3. Potential - Pulsed. one-time special purpose drive. e.g. Ethnographic design studies, special purpose market studies, focus groups.

In a nutshell, CEM and CRM are tools that serve different purposes. Businesses will need both CEM and CRM tools for growth and break-thru innovative products and services development. While CRM helps to tune the existing processes & products/services, CEM adds value in enhancing customer experiences in various "touch points" as well as looking ahead in new experiences to deliver.

this is quite a funny kick-ass version of the MTV song "You're beautiful" by James Blunt.. but of course he's not in the video.. ;-)

Enjoy!

Stay Focused, Be Aware and Beware, Don't Be Myopic

In strategic management and planning, there are many tools out there, each trying to help business do a better job in coming out with better strategies.. Tools that focus on quality, innovation, performance, service and intellectual property have sproused over the past years.

It is good to have many tools available for use but it is not wise to just focus on one tool - choosing usually the most popular one at that time.

Lesson learned: Always have a holistic view first before deep dive into using specific tools for solving specific issues. Always keep asking yourself the objective, aim or purpose for doing something. It will help you stay focused, and not sucked in by the latest mgmt tool available marketed by some smart looking consultants. So dont be myopic..

the science of happiness

the New York Times has a good but long article titled Happiness 101.. it's about positive psychologists work on positive psychology.

Check out the website.. click here Happiness 101

There're supporters, critics and skepticism on the usefulness and effectiveness of positive psychology.. as it still lacks sufficient evidence in the world of science.

Some extracts:
Positive psychology is popular with educators because if happiness is something that can be learned, it can be taught.

The mindfulness exercises — excercises in heightened awareness and openness to experience — are central to positive psychology and made a big impression, according to Kashdan: “Some said they just noticed for the first time how many types of trees there are on the way to campus.”

HP photosmart A516

last week my wife won a new HP Photosmart A516 printer.. That was her company's Chinese New Year lucky draw.. Too bad we already have two canon photo printers.. therefore, hope to let this go at S$88.. any takers? ;-)

happy new year 2007!!

This year will be a wonderful year!
i believe.
New year new job new challenges!
Since life is about experiencing life,
i hope to make new friends, do new tasks,
write new songs, enter a new phase
that will expand my mind,
exploit my talent,
instill Buddha values
and practise what i share..
While all these are new and good,
i wish i could keep in touch
and nurture existing
friendships..
coz nothing beats relationships
that were built over years
thru rain & shine! ;-)

up in smoke..

been meeting up friends of late.. but one particular gathering made me reflect on how we should treasure our lives. This friend of mine is particularly smart, tall and well groomed.. and young too.. in addition, he knows the way,.. how to climb the corporate ladder, and have reached certain career heights aledi.

However, i noticed he's increasingly becoming more business-like in behaviour and worst of all started smoking! He said this is part of his 'occupation hazard'. Well,.. i thought that was a matter of choice.

How many of us are willing to part our healthy lives to something that brings us more wealth and not health? guess there may be many.. and they may not even know they are parting something valuable.. that's plain blind spot.

So, while one may think they are building up a 'material' castle, their 'spiritual' castle may actually be going up in smoke in years to come.. just like the smoke they're smoking away right now.. that's a sad scenario i hope will not happen.. i just hope they realise it early enough to put it out..

my very first plants..

last week we visited the whole stretch of florists along Thomson Road.. and one pot caught my eyes.. it's not cheap but we still bought it eventually.. it consists of 4 different species of plants.. don't ask what.. coz i'm still figuring it out.. ;-) let me know if u do.

Somehow i like miniaturized plants that seems to be in a world of its own..

new job, new challenges, new knowledge

just passed my first week on my new job.. yes, i'm totally drained.. learning all the rather new stuff.. even though i have some background. Next few weeks or months will be as challenging! i believe. ;-)

Nevertheless, i aim to master whatever is required of me within 6-9 months. Still, i should remind myself of keeping a balance between work, love, life, friends, health and spiritual growth.

Blessings.

snail close up

Last week i was fortunate enough to take photos of these two snails.. just opposite my flat.. and not sure if they are mating at all.. ;-)
Taken using my Nokia N73.. surprised by its clarity in such close up.

I've never seen snail that close and that clear actually.. Enjoy! ;-)

seven factors of enlightenment

was reading the book '101 Questions and Answers on Buddhism' by John Renard, 2002 edition when the 7 factors of enlightenment caught my attention. thus, decides to key in here to remind me of these factors..

these 7 ingredients are of equal importance and need to be cultivated simultaneously.

They are:
1. Mindfulness
2. Investigation
3. Energy
4. Joy
5. Relaxation
6. Concentration
7. Equanimity

blame & flames

recently, i read something about blaming.. many of us blame our parents, childhood, teachers or friends for our misfortune, unfortunate past, mis-opportunities or current poor state of affairs. Well, it's often true to a certain extend.

When we were young, we are dependent on the adults for guidance. but adults themselves have a past too. and their knowledge of what's best for u may be limited. so even though they may have tried their best to guide u, it is usually not the best options. So we end up blaming them for the screw up in our life!

U can blame all u want but it's not going to help u move forward and lead a happy life. When u reach the age of over 20 years old and started work having your own income, it's time to stop blaming! It's time that u begin to take full responsibility for your own life! no more excuses. no more blaming. no more blaming others for your poor current state!

Usually when u start blaming people, there's anger.. there's a fire or flame within us. That flame can burn u or save u. coz there're two types of flame. One, burn with hatred and negative energy while the other burn with passion and positive energy. I've been fortunate to convert those flame into the latter - passion and positive energy. The former will only cause u to spiral down further on the wrong path which ultimately will destroy u. The latter builds understanding and passion towards taking right actions. so, be aware of the two flames. choose only one. the latter one. the right one.

blessings.