Negative link under your company name can destroy profits

Torben Rick — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:21:51 +0000

If you search for “Vordingborg Køkken”, then you will find as #2 with the heading “NEVER USE Vordingborg Kitchen” a side that is – let just say – “critical” to Vordingborg kitchens.

How much it actually cost the company in lost revenue is difficult to make up, but good publicity is it certainly not. Vordingborg Kitchens has apparently not dealt with this problem for a very long time.

It seems that some companies don’t care about their reputation.

Short URL & Title:
Negative link under your company name can destroy profits — http://www.torbenrick.eu/t/r/uri

Battling with change resistance

Torben Rick — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 04:50:28 +0000

One of the most baffling and recalcitrant of the problems which business executives face is employee resistance to change. Even if these resisters are few and far between, they can quickly erode momentum and stop change in its tracks.

How to get people on board.

Hard facts. Use evidence to show that change is necessary and possible. Get your facts from multiple sources and be diligent about details.
Counter-arguments. Know what your opponents are saying and be prepared to acknowledge their concerns and offer a compelling argument for your case.
Big picture. In the short term, change is uncomfortable. Look at the big picture and explain why the change is the right move for the long term.
Repetition and pressure. Stay on message, repeat it over and over again, and apply the necessary pressure to turn the change-averse around.

How to lead change?

Short URL & Title:
Battling with change resistance — http://www.torbenrick.eu/t/r/hia

Can Twitter be a powerful business tool

Torben Rick — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:16:09 +0000

Despite the fact that Twitter has climbed to a lofty 75 million users with 50 million tweets per day, has received massive publicity from both celebrities and government, and produced good results for companies like Dell, many business executives still don’t “get” Twitter.

Granted, there is an awful lot of noise but for those who understand and learn to use it effectively, Twitter can be a powerful business tool.

Interact with Customers

For most business, it’s far easier and more profitable to generate continued or new business from existing customers than it is to acquire new ones. Growing existing customer business requires ongoing communication. Staying in touch with customers on Twitter is not only more real-time than many other techniques, it’s also far more cost-effective than direct mail, attending trade shows, picking up the phone, or even maintaining a customer newsletter. It’s not that Twitter can replace other touchpoints completely of course, but it can reduce the required cost and frequency of high-touch interactions: Maybe Twitter and other social media will turn companies into mom and pop shop of the old days

Interact with prospects

Just as many of your customers are probably on Twitter, so are your prospects. They care far less about your advertising than about what your customers are saying about you, and how you respond. An active Twitter presence enables you to demonstrate strong customer service: A new way of managing customer relations

Influence the influencers

Industry analysts, journalists, bloggers and other influencers from most sectors of the economy are well-represented on Twitter. Tweeting content of your own that will interest them, retweeting content they post, and engaging in dialog is a great way to get these people talking, and writing, about your company.

An active Twitter presence can also reduce crises caused by influencers with a strong Twitter presence: Customers aren’t just simply customers, they’re influencers

Gain market intelligence

The fact that customers, prospects and industry thought leaders are all using Twitter make it a valuable tool for monitoring the topics and concerns being discussed. This is a great potential source of new product/service enhancement ideas as well as topics for blog posts, white papers or other content.

Become a resource

Prospects don’t care about your products or services – they care about solving their problems. Demonstrating your knowledge of their industry and their challenges, for example by tweeting your thought-leadership blog posts and white papers, makes you a resource they can go to for helpful information. That gives you the opportunity to explain how your products or services can help them, in a consultative fashion.

Be part of the conversation

As noted above, your customers, prospects and key influencers are already having conversations about your industry, your competition – and quite possibly your company – on Twitter. If you aren’t participating in that conversion, you’re missing valuable intelligence, business opportunities, and possibly even the opportunity to prevent damage to your firm’s reputation.

Image: Scott Hampson

Short URL & Title:
Can Twitter be a powerful business tool — http://www.torbenrick.eu/t/r/brc

What is social media?

Torben Rick — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 14:50:54 +0000

What is Social Media? Have a look at this great video: “What the HELL is social media” – explains in 2 minutes using 10 key facts why brands need to take notice of social media:

Companies creating or supporting brand communities

Torben Rick — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 12:19:36 +0000

Successful companies long have considered the concept of brand loyalty the Holy Grail in the world of consumer marketing. Now, a growing number of firms are taking that concept to the next level, creating or supporting “brand communities” that can form around the use of their products.

Under the motto “One always knows how to do it” (“Einer weiß immer, wie es geht”) Bosch has started its own brand community 1-2-do.com aimed at home craftsmen and creative’s.

While consumers will enjoy belonging to communities, this alone is not a driving force for a company like Bosch to invest their time, energy, and reputation in a brand community. What benefits could Bosch be looking for by building a brand communitie:

Brand advocacy. A well-developed brand community is an excellent tool for brand advocacy because community members feel strongly affiliation with the brand and the community.

Brand insight. Brands that best leverage the valuable feedback provided to them by their customers have a competitive advantage. As Michael Dell said to BusinessWeek: “These conversations are going to occur whether you like it or not… do you want to be part of that? My argument is you absolutely do… and you can be a better company by listening and being involved in that conversation.”

Brand content. User-generated content is fundamental to growth in the Web 2.0. Marketers have found that customer-developed content creates better products and services while building considerable buzz.

Brand support. Communities increase the effectiveness and efficiency of customer support.

Brand perception. Communities allow companies and consumers to combine their efforts and create something larger than either could alone. When a community brings people together around something larger than the brand itself, the effects on consumers’ perceptions of the brand can be significant.

Improving performance through transparency

Torben Rick — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 19:59:54 +0000

Transparency is a popular buzz word on Wall Street these days, and many investors are demanding it. However, transparency doesn’t only serve outsiders trying to understand the strengths and weaknesses of your company, transparency can play a valuable role inside the company walls, as well.

By sharing numbers with employees, not just executives, you can increase employees’ sense of ownership. However, being open is not enough. You need to be sure your employees are trained to understand financial statements and have enough insight into their own jobs to know how to affect the numbers.

How to ensure successful performance measurement?

The Watson Wyatt 2008/2009 WorkUSA survey report indicates that employee engagement is critical to productivity and employee turnover. Engagement is “Focus and direction that enable employees to understand what to do to make their organizations successful.”

The study concludes, “Companies can sustain engagement over the long haul by creating a culture of continuous engagement built on strong strategic direction and leadership, intense customer focus, equitable rewards and effective internal communication. Companies that excel in these areas can enjoy better individual and organizational performance and deliver superior long-term financial results.”

Social media return of inaction

Torben Rick — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 13:43:25 +0000

Microsoft Advertising has released a B2B Social Media White Paper, based on their experiences using social media.

The social media topics the white paper describes are: Listening, blogging, Twitter, Facebook, social media at live events, social media and search engines.

The most important part of the white paper is the final section where the Microsoft Advertising crew lists six types of ROI (return on investment/return of inaction) measurements and includes their specific measured items, like growth in reach, most popular tweeted links correlated to reduced call center volume, surveyed potential customers to determine revenue growth, earned media, monthly analytics reports, and increased awareness of social media within the organization.

Customers aren’t just simply customers, they’re influencers

Torben Rick — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 11:52:18 +0000

Today’s customers aren’t just simply customers, they’re influencers and social networkers. Across the Web at any hour, they’re sharing observations about your company’s products and services. Customers amplify their single voices when they blog, write online comments and reviews, and participate in communities such as Facebook and Twitter.

In the age of micro-blogging it will never be a wise move to bar an outspoken and popular filmmaker from a passenger aeroplane because of his size:

Kevin Smith used his Twitter account to reveal he was deemed a “safety risk” by the captain of the plane. Smith had fallen victim to Southwest’s booking guidelines for a “customer of size” which say that passengers who are unable to lower both armrests when seated should book another seat because of complaints it has received from customers whose comfort has been ruined by the “encroachment of a large seatmate”.

A barrage of tweets condemning the airline for its policy followed, prompting angry customers to share their stories of rejection from Southwest and an apology from the chastened airline.

Aware of the unfolding PR disaster, a tweet appeared on Southwest’s Twitter feed about six hours later, promising Smith he would get a call from the airline’s customer relations vice-president.

The airline also apologized to the public.

The Tweets had by then been picked up by the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, ABC and many more.

Social media changes customer service landscape

Torben Rick — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:21:25 +0000

Social media has forced openness and transparency in businesses that was not possible before. The power has shifted to the customer who can, if dissatisfied with the business, impact the business and brand very publically. A business or brand has to be aware and be prepared to engage in conversations about their product or brand.

Can bloggers force companies to their knees?

Torben Rick — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:56:04 +0000

Dissatisfied customers can send businesses to their knees on the internet with hate pages that reaches the top of search results on Google. A simple blog is everything it takes.

Fashion Ministry (“Fashionministeriet”) succumbed after bloggers wrote about overcharges and poor business ethics. Now the online shop is closed:

“Fashion Ministry is unfortunately closed now, as in the past has become a series of unfair accusations, such as cheating and fraud”

When searching Google for Fashion Ministry (“Fashionministeriet”) than 49.000 results come up, number four on the list entitled “Fashion Ministry plat owls.”

Get a firm’s reputation ruined, there is often no alternative but to close the shop. It is virtually impossible to remove the bad search results again. You can try to push them on Google’s page two, but it is expensive and time consuming.