Inspiring Creativity | Organizational Culture
This book review was an assignment for my recent MBA course on Organizational Change. The read/write was simply fun! People write books to put their thoughts and ideas into words. Books are made up of words and words are symbols. Books will be sold and authors will make money. People read books to be entertained, to relax and to learn. Not every book is well written and informative. Books populate our university libraries, decorate our coffee tables, line our bookshelves, and others stack up on our night tables. Some books end up in the front of a bookstore bargain rack and some books end up in the Good Will Bin. Some books will make the digital path onto our e readers. People read books for many reasons and people write books for many reasons. A book about the creative process of innovation is a rare treat. The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America’s Leading Design Firm, written by Tom Kelley, provides a blueprint for managers who must innovate to survive. Kelley is the general manger of IDEO, a company that is recognized as a leader in innovative design. He positions himself as an expert in the field, convices clients to use their methods and inspires us to think out-of-the box.
Michaelangelo, Van Gogh, Brams, and Bob Dylan did not write books about their work while Martha Stewart just keeps publishing. Once our society achieved industrial maturity, we found time to be creative and not just survive. Perhaps we gained insight from a letter or a biography. Although innovation is far from a commodity, design thinking to fuel innovation is within everyone’s grasp. The folks at IDEO survive to create.
1. INNOVATION AT THE TOP: According to Kelley, Innovation was not always a Silicon Valley “hot topic.” Companies outsourced product development for four reasons: raw capacity, speed, expertise and innovation. Kelley contends that innovation is now at the top of this list. He attributes a blend of methodologies, work practices, culture and infrastructure as the formula that has worked for IDEO. This mix includes understanding the market, observing real people, visualizing, evaluating and refining, and implementing to bring order to apparent creative chaos.
2. WINGING IT IN START-UP MODE: a very short synopsis of who and when.
3. INNOVATION BEGINS WITH AN EYE: “If you are not in the jungle, you are not going to know the tiger” and the importance of “focused observation”, “listening to kids”, “learning from people who break the rules”, and “seeing things as verbs.”
4. THE PERFECT BRAINSTORM: “Brainstorming is the idea engine of Ideo Culture” and the seven secrets for better brainstorming include: sharpen the focus, playful rules, number your ideas, build and jump, the space remembers, stretch your mental muscle, and get physical. If you want to kill a brainstorm: the boss gets to speak first, everybody gets a turn, experts only, do it off-site, no silly stuff, and write down everything.
5. A COOL COMPANY NEEDS HOT GROUPS: get the right people, empower teams with the help of “crazy deadlines” and “seemingly unreachable goals.” Characters for hot groups include: the troubleshooter, iconoclast, pulse taker craftsman, technologist, entrepreneur and the cross-dresser.
6. PROTOTYPING IS THE SHORTHAND OF INNOVATION: prototyping is iterative problem solving, a culture and a language and better than pictures. Kelley tells a fascinating story about how Amazon’s Jeff Bezos urgently forged his way from Wall Street to Silicon Valley.
7. BUILD YOUR GREENHOUSE: tear down the walls, don’t take the space seriously, and keep an eye on the body language of your company and have a story-telling entrance.
8. EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED: subscribe and surf, play director, hold an open house, inspire advocates, hire outsides, change hats, and cross train to cross pollinate.
9. BARRIER JUMPING: don’t skate over cultural differences and understand market adoption.
10. CREATING EXPERIENCES FOR FUN AND PROFIT: new uses for what exists.
11. ZERO TO SIXTY: speed counts.
12. COLORING OUTSIDE THE LINES: rules are bureaucratic.
13. IN SEARCH OF THE “WET NAP INTERFACE”: keep it simple and fight feature creep.
14. LIVE THE FUTURE: don’t imitate competitors and use visual prototyping.
15. GETTING IN THE SWING: watch, play, think verbs, break rules, be human, and build bridges.
Breaking down Kelley’s book chapter by chapter was extremely helpful for me because I now have a “must do guideline” that I can use to introduce, present, inform, motivate, and hopefully lead change which is inspired by innovation. In our class we are using The Heart of Change: Real-Life Stories of How People Change Their Organizations. I’ll post some insights on this great volume shortly. When I first read Kotter’s Eight Steps I actually thought, “How disappointingly linear” and found the stories not particularly relevant and not specific. Now, however, I appreciate the brilliance of Kotter’s structure because I have come to realize that taking steps is ingrained behavior and hard-wired from an evolutionary perspective. I once worked with a manager who kept saying “we need to take little bites out of the elephant” but failed to realize that “she was the elephant” and that she needed to take “little steps” and “lead by example.” Steps can be an efficient way to get to the next level. I like how Kelley uses the metaphor of an escalator (moving steps) as a more efficient and effective corporate transport method. Kotter’s steps: Increase Urgency, Build the Guiding Team, Get the Vision Right, Communicate for Buy-In, Empower Action, Create Short-Term Wins, Don’t Let Up, and Make Change Stick (Kotter, 2002) are very organized and direct and his book, more than coincidentally was published the year of Kelley’s. The approaches are similar: lists, steps, and stories although Kelley focuses on innovation and Kotter focuses on change and the two are not identical. Change Management is a broad concept which has strategic implications for an organization and can be achieved using various models and techniques. Innovation is a proactive response to an environmental condition and is becomes part of a change strategy.
IDEO is an acclaimed and fascinating company. The first five chapters were extremely valuable because David Kelley provides lots of lists and steps which articulate the essence of innovation with particular regard to design. His stories are very interesting and inspiring. How many people actually know that Jeff Bezos of Amazon drove across America and made desks from doors? I believe in the power of story telling to move and inspire people and it is important for the story to have a purpose.
Opening each chapter with a color photo seemed compelling. For example, the photo of the elephant and the mouse which opens Chapter 8 was technically and metaphorically perfect. I think it is very hard for a book which focuses extensively on innovation to remain relevant when the pace of innovation is accelerated from sheer necessity because of the maturity of capitalism and consumer wants and tastes. This book accomplishes just that. The chapters in the first half of this book show us the what, the why and the how. Kelley provides actionable insights in a simple, straightforward manner. The who is probably more important for those who cannot imagine easily and need concrete examples for inspiration and guidance because people need real stories to inspire them.
Kelley’s book stimulated me in additional ways. I went online and visited Ideo’s brilliantly designed, user friendly website: www.ideo.com. I downloaded their company fact sheet, a well designed and informative one-page PDF. Ideo’s client page visually showcased the projects for over twenty companies. This compelling screen was followed by an alphabetized industry list which expanded to impressive client lists. I visited their very professional video channel: http://vimeo.com/channels/ideo. The c60 Redux Music Player is nothing short of brilliant because it looks like a traditional vinyl record turntable and puts physicality back into playing music while providing the component of digital mix. I shopped at the Apple App Store on my iphone, found great games for kids designed by Ideo, and downloaded Ideo’s Free Deck of Design Cards onto my phone. I listened to Ideo’s CEO, Tim Brown urge designers to think big at TEDGlobal 2009. The digital delivery of their message is consistently compelling, brilliant, entertaining, inspiring and visually rich. Kelley’s book, The Art of Innovation simply put me on a new path. The moment I finish this report, I will start reading Tim Brown’s book, Change by Design. I operated a successful floral design company for fifteen years in New Haven, Connecticut, am a published photographer and an award winning graphic designer. My urge to create comes from within and started at an early age. I enjoy helping people and relish the opportunities when my energy and vision inspire them to think in new ways.
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Citations
Kelly, T. (2001) The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America’s Leading Design Firm. New York: Doubleday.
Kotter, J. P., & Cohen, D. S. (2002). The Heart of Change: Real-Life Stories of How People Change Their Organizations. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing.
Learning about Learning | Does that make sense for marketing?
LEARNING STYLES are fascinating and include: 
Accommodators – who learn by doing
Divergors – who learn by observing
Convergors - who learn by problem solving
Assimilators - who learn by getting information
CRITICAL CONSIDERATIONS include:
How do I learn?
How do others learn?
What can I learn today that is new and helpful?
How do I feel about the new knowledge I gain?
The challenge for marketers is to be able to identify the learning styles of a particular constituency/market. A successful internet marketer must be able to accommodate various learning styles. People frequently use the internet to research online and buy offline. A pet peeve when I ask a simple question is the person who does not glance up from a computer screen, waves a hand around in the air and seems truly disinterested. This happens to everyone.
Some marketing professions simply do not help their clients learn more about critical internet marketing functions. Some marketing professionals play their cards fairly close to the vest and prefer not share their knowledge or insights. A few years ago, when working with an SEO/SEM team, my manager instructed the technical staff not to answer my questions because I needed to figure things out for myself. He would then deliberately give me a vague assignment and refuse to clarify his intent. I am on the inside team and wondered how the client might feel. I called him on this and he did not appreciate it. Years ago, in a university marketing department another manger gave me an unclear assignment, would not clarify for me and acted impatient when I did not complete the work. She stamped her foot. I reported her to personnel. What I learned from this experience is that internal teams are very sensitive and sometimes dysfunctional. Our mutual boss was more concerned that I went “out of the department” for assistance than about the fact that I was not receiving effective direction. As a result of these and other similar experiences, I tend to go to the opposite extreme and prefer to explain “things” with abundant clarity.
Identifying and accommodating different learning styles is also important for the modern marketer who is, in essence, a facilitator and instructor. Marketers must identify and target segments. Similar challenges face instructors who must instinctively utilize a variety of pedagogical elements which are most relevant to a particular learning style. If I need to learn how to use a particular feature on my Blackberry I can ask a friend, who may pull the unit from my hand and perform the function and hand it back to me, I can go back to the Sprint store and take a number and wait in line or simply consult the manual.
Several years ago I worked in technology sales and the training was simply inadequate. The technical experts were permanently on voice mail and auto reply. A few days ago, I heard that this company just closed their Connecticut and New Jersey sales offices. My reply to former colleague’s email: “flawed business model.”
A few weeks ago, I was working with a team to design a presentation about the Economic Meltdown. I suggested providing a handout for a book about the history of the Federal Reserve System. I was thinking the study would be interesting and relevant for the audience and supportive of our position. Two members of the team really resisted: one from arrogance…he thought his opinions and input sufficient making independent documentation unnecessary; and another resisted from control….she wanted to edit my handout but would not read the book because she did not have time. Although this collaborative experience was far from optimal, the audience obviously appreciated the handout which was succinct and relevant. I am particularly sensitive to inadequate and rushed explanations.
Marketers must address multiple learning styles. Years ago when I first attended college, we would have a textbook and that was it. Books were not expensive, typically less than $25.00. Texts seem quite expensive today by comparison. I recently purchased a Business Law text for $185.00 – light winter reading for me between holidays. A hefty text price tag fortunately includes additional learning opportunities such as Power Points, online quizzes, and companion websites. As a side note: the price tag of the text prompted me to become a Barnes & Noble member to earn an extra discount. Wise decision since I have saved multiple times the price of membership!
Providing a variety of options which consider multiple learning styles facilitates communication. The principles of learning also apply to marketing. I have always found that it is very easy to ask a person how they prefer to gain knowledge. It saves everyone time and energy because you learn up front what works best for the person and how to vary an explanation. For example, when teaching a group of students about Adobe Photoshop, I ask the class: how many people prefer to learn by observing, by doing, by getting information, by figuring out themselves? I am always amazed at the variety of answers. A good instructor and marketer will frequently stop and ask questions like: “Are you with me?, Does that make sense?” Does it?
The Johari Model of self-awareness | Holistic Marketing
SELF AWARENESS means knowing about one’s idealized self in terms of aspirations as well as a sense of your presence at present. A component of self-awareness is knowing how one is perceived by others. 
The Johari Model is a graphic model developed in the 1950′s which aids in the interpretation of self-awareness. This exercises involves psychological communication and the diagram is fairly self-explanatory.
What’s involved:
- Apply a list of words to yourself.
- Have others apply the same list to you.
- Note the similarities
- Note the differences.
- Act on the insights
Do I have the courage to take a test in my blog? My personality is warm, upbeat, artistic, curious and engaging. I am interested in the arts particularly photography and design. I also like the politics of the Civil Rights Movement. I prefer to be generous but have tamed down that impulse over the years. I am happily married to a smart, kind, successful gentleman. We have two dogs and no children. I know “team dynamics” are a crucial business skill to develop. I am interested in marketing and working with small entrepreneurial businesses permits me the latitude to leverage my core communication skills.
I am also obsessed with learning new skills and improving existing ones. Right now I am reading four books:
- Web Analytics 2.o new by Avinash Kaushik [he was an author@Google - and donates the proceedes from his two book to charity]
- The Art of SEO by Enge Spencer, Fishkin and Stricchiola [fuzzy logic and semantic intent]
- Eyetracking Web Usability by Nielsen & Pernice [heat maps & gaze plots]
- Search Engine Optimization for Dummies by Clay & Esparza [anyone can do a redirect]
and have at least eight more piled on my night table.
The need to learn traces back to my childhood because my parents rewarded me for being a good student. Their praise and approval motivated me to constantly strive for “very good grades.” Now I learn for the pure sake of love of learning. Coworkers think that I have a high energy level and am focused and determined. Sometimes I am a tad impatient but always find time to help others. The good news is that it is never too late to improve and learn new things. My husband thinks that I am focused, motivated and smart but he also thinks that I sometimes allow myself to get a bit sidetracked by unimportant details and people with difficult personalities. He is 100% correct. I consider myself extremely responsive.
Shifting gears and seeing connections: Carl Jung identified four psychological archetypes: thinking, feeling, sensing and intuition. Understanding how other people relate has always helped me to create compelling visual communication. SWOT analysis, a classical marketing exercise involves determining an organizations internal strengths and weaknesses as well as external opportunities and threats. Holisitic Marketing also has four components: Relationship marketing, integrated marketing, internal marketing, & performance marketing. A Product Positioning Map also has four quadrants:At this point I am wondering why the above tests, models, models and maps all have four components and if there is something about the underlying structure of four components that becomes visually and literally compelling?
MIT website | blogging about blogging | the power of metrics
Blogging began as a form of public/individual reflection. Savvy marketers realized blogging provided a new channel to communicate persuasively so the nature/purpose of this communication channel changed rapidly.
According to Wikipedia they are many different types of blogs:
- Corporate Blogs – enhance corporate communication. [ Google's Blog ]
- Genre Blogs – blogs which focus on a particular subject
[ Suing Google over Adsense ]
[ Oberman wants Scarborough fired] - Personal Blogs – ongoing diary or commentary
- Question Blogs – can use RSS syndication to convey answers
- Media Type Blogs -inserting media like photos, videos, etc.
- Device Type Blogs -defined by the device used to compose it…on my blackberry….maybe a microblog would be easier
What category/categories apply to BoingBoing, the world’s most popular blog?
What does blogging have to do with MIT’s website?
MIT Media Labs – launched the blogdex project to determine the social property of blogs. Visit MIT’s website. This site gets almost 2,000,000 unique visitors per month. The web team is really doing their job. MIT changes the home page daily. Is this is a case of breaking the rules once the rules are known?
This is what the site says about itself: The MIT web sites host more than 1,118,000 documents and receive more than 7,000,000 hits per day from all over the world. The image and background colors on the MIT home page change daily to call attention to each new spotlight. The MIT logo shown above is the graphical key to the background designs on the second-level pages. These pages use an enlarged and cropped logo as a background to bring together the categories of life at MIT. The MIT site is sponsored by Information Services & Technology (IS&T) and Public Relations Services (PRS).
Getting back to metrics. You can’t improve what you can’t measure. Objective measurements are more valuable than subjective ones. Compete is a great analytical resource. I am taking some MBA courses at Southern Connecticut State University. Compete tells me that the design and content of the MIT site is more compelling than the design of the SCSU website. How? Simple! Compete proves it…metrically. This is information I could effectively use to influence policy within an organization.
More things for me to consider for the next few posts.
- Why Tags are important for advertising and promotion on the internet.
- Blogs are ranked by Technorati based on the number of incoming links….links are the roads of the internet.
- Mainstream journalists write blogs.
- There are Legal Liabilites and unforseen consequences of blogs.
- Blogs are harder to control than traditional media….leverage the lack of control.
- I learned something new today – MIT’s unique unit of measurement is the Smoot.
What’s up with Semantic Web | Google connections
Several years ago I coordinated internet marketing for a communications company in Stratford, CT. Although, the “Semantic Web” was a hot topic in marketing circles at that time, I was unable to engage my corporate colleagues on that topic. IT consultants did not seem particularly interested and actually poked a bit of fun in an attempt to quash my excitement.
Follow developments of CSS 3 at W3C. Enthusiasts in these circles embrace “semantic concepts.” I tend to look at things from multiple perspectives. External CSS style sheets are a must technique for web implementation today. A few days ago, while driving and listening to my favorite Radio station, NPR, I heard a very interesting discussion about The General Semantics Institute. A Fordham (my alma mater…we’re talking 1971) Professor was actively involved in the conversation which centered around communication theories and definitions.
Switching gears. By now you must realize that I love everything GOOGLE and see connections absolutely everywhere. Experts theorize that Google uses LSI (Latent Semantic Indexing) in page rank algorithms and suggest therefore to design websites with LSI in mind. Check out Breakfast in Hyperspace for a simple visual of the 3d vector model for LSI. Promotion World also has a great article on LSI.
You could say that I think illogically or expansively. For my money….Google connects us in so many ways. My MBA, SCSU friend Bogdan suggests the Just Google It video. 146,310 views and still counting beats.
HAPPY NEW YEAR.
Moore’s Law | Internet Marketing | Required Reading
Moore’s law defines a trend in the computing hardware industry. Gordon E. Moore, co-founder of Intel described the exponential increase in the number of transistors that can be placed inexpensively on an integrated circuit – the amount doubled approximately every two years and continues to do so. Eventually nano technologies may halt this trend but for now we are still surrounded by technological innovation growing at an accelerated pace.
NPR just introduced a new segment of All Things Considered called All Tech Considered. Yesterday, they discussed cellular phone applications. The intro made this point…by the time you can understand and deploy technology labeled with a new ACRONYM…the technology has already changed…maybe not quite that fast but you get the picture. Processing speed, memory capacity, and even the number of pixels in digital cameras comply with Moore’s Law and technology innovation still grows at an accelerated pace. I, of course, say “make the wave don’t wait for it.”
Innovation | Adaptation | Marketing
Internet Marketing is also influenced by Moore’s Law. Consider SEOMoz’s continuous contributions and willingness to share knowledge with colleagues in the field of internet marketing. Early in October, this innovative organization introduced Linkscape, a robust link intelligence tool. I correctly predicted a significant upward spike in their October 2008 traffic. When a company “gets it right” it shows! SEOMoz is a very savvy internet marketer – they embrace rapidly evolving technology – indeed, they produce it.
I prefer having the latest and best tools in an easy to access interface and find it inefficient to hop from website to website to website to get all the necessary actionable insights when developing the best strategy for a client. Yet, sometimes you simply must switch lenses. Workflow is very important. In Photography, it is also important to view the same information from varying perspectives. It is easy to create new perspectives – just change lenses- shift your position and a good camera will reward you with a compelling picture.
Internet Marketing should work the same way. Selecting the “right” internet marketing agnecy, one that instinctively and intentionally embraces Moore’s Law can put your organization at the start of the curve, not at the end. Even if innovation is not a core component of your marketing strategy, entrusting your internet marketing campagin to a Moore’s Law compliant firm makes good business sense. Organization’s like SEOMoz utilize/produce the best tools with creative perspectives.
By the way, I couldn’t help but notice that NPR is listed as an SEOMoz Client. Testimonials, References, and Case Studies should be required reading matter.
What’s the difference | “Top Gun” / “Top Dog?”
Early this Month, I had the opportunity to attend SMX East at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City. This conference was phenomenal. I’m already on auto pilot down there from CT because the New York Flower Market is just a few blocks away. See my bio page: http://www.marketingholistics.com/bio.html. Learned much about newest technology and techniques. I’m still receiving interesting follow up emails- even today from engaged exhibitors.
Google had a super display at the front of the hall in Jacob Javits. Workstations were grouped by focus area. The Google team was upbeat and professionally relaxed. FutureNow’s co-author, Bryan Eisenberg, autographed a complimentary copy of their new book “a/b always be testing – the complete guide to Google Website Optimizer”. This book is a must read in terms of strategy and process. Have you ever seen a book with two front covers? Sure you have! This design strategy proves a point – the value and ease of a/b testing. My copy of Bryan’s book also had a generous Gift Card for an AdWords account.
Do you think testing for the conversion difference between a button with a bevel and a shadow or just a shadow is useful information or just a focus on minutiae?
Conversion button styles to test
This is a very granular distinction. Website Optimizer is an effective tool combined with some powerful CSS and a whisk of Photoshop CS4. I’ve already upgraded. Back to Google – Google gets marketing, integrating off line efforts seamlessly into their master plan. Not surprising…Google also has traditional marketing collateral that is “green.”
I’m taking Marketing Management this semester. We’re using Philip Kotler’s definitive text: http://wps.prenhall.com/bp_kotler_mm_13. Bryan and I chatted a bit more about education – he mentioned that his books are used in MBA classes.
Back to SMXEast. Rand Fishkin and the SEOMoz team are even nicer in person than they seem in video and on their blog. Billed as the “World Premier! Unveiling SEOmoz Secret Project”, Rand introduced “Linkscape” in a mid-day theater presentation. Yes, Linkscape is another very useful tool. Crowds of metric mavens/entrepreneurial types swarmed the SEOMoz booth to plug in their url on a test display. Another example of “perfecto marketing.” We should see a spike in SEOMoz site traffic for October 2008 and make no mistake about it…SEOMoz already gets a ton of traffic – they command traffic. Yes, there’s also a chapter in the Kotler text about “marketing innovation”.
Canonicalization | important term for Search Engine Optimization
Canonicalization is a word that I would definitely categorize as a tongue twister. Let’s rewind – then fast forward. In Latin, the word “canon “ means “rule” and in Greek, the word kanon means “rule”. Canonical evolved to mean the simplest and most significant form possible without a loss of generality. Canonicalization is the process of making something canonical – thus adhering to established rules and approved formats. Canonicalization is a long word with16 letters; sometimes expressed as C14N to represent the number of letters between the C and the N.
Canonicalization has a precise meaning in computer terminology when referring to IP (internet protocol) addressing. The canonical name is the authoritative host name stored in a DNS (domain name system) that all of an IP addresses and aliases resolve to. CNAME means canonical name. A computer hosting a Website must have an IP address to be connected to the World Wide Web. The DNS resolves the computer’s domain name to its IP (numerical) address. More than one domain name can resolve to the same IP address. A machine can have an unlimited number of CNAME aliases, but a separate CNAME record must be in the database for each alias.
Matt Cutts works for Google. Matt is pretty well known out there! He has blogged extensively about many search engine optimization topics including, you guessed it: canonicalization: http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/seo-advice-url-canonicalization/. More information: http://www.sitepronews.com/2008/08/20/url-canonicalization-should-you-do-it/.
Some Search Engines are really smart – Google gets my vote! If you type in adobe.com, you will get www.adobe.com. Some people say, the “www” does not matter. From the user’s perspective, it doesn’t. You get to the site in micro blink. I became fairly obsessed with canonicalization when checking back links to websites because I noticed quantum inconsistencies.
Let’s digress for a moment to the real world. No system is foolproof.
We still get mail in New Haven, CT addressed to the woman who sold us her cute little house 18 years ago. I’ve heard that she’s moved a lot. Our neighbor across the street gets a package a day. She is a very busy person – too busy to shop “brick.” Several years back, I really wanted the Dreamweaver 8 Bible to prepare an exercise for a class. I ordered the book from a reliable discount computer book website. The Bible was delivered to the busy lady across the street even though FED Ex tracking showed that I received the delivery. Scream! I suspected that she may have received it in error. She is “very” busy if you get the drift. I left her a phone message. She was home – she walked the dog five minutes before. She did not call back -“very” busy. Maybe her cleaning person who comes, no kidding, three times a week, brought in the book and put it in a drawer. I ran over to the Barnes and Noble, bought the book again, and gave my class a super lesson. Next week, of course, I found the first book near my front door.
One more example: this past Saturday we visited our friend in Boston after a trip to the JFK Presidential Library. My husband Steve has a very bad sense of direction. He is the only person I know that will ignore a GPS system. Steve was positive that Laura had moved because the route looked very different from the last time we visited. Our Garmon had to recalculate about six times during a ten-minute drive. We got there! Would call you call this a very primitive redirect?
Let’s use Google’s index for this exercise: type in www.google.com and google.com – the same page comes up. Now check for the back links that Google indexes. Type in link: www.google.com – 6,560,000 results. Now type in link: google.com – wow, 22,600,000 results. Now, try this with You Tube. Type in link: www.youtube.com – 75,000,000 results. Now type in link: youtube.com – wow, again, 112,000,000 results.
One more hypothetical exercise with any website, preferably one of yours – type in link: www.yourwebsite.com and see 589 back links, some of which have decent page rank, your heart could beat more rapidly. However, if you also type in link: yourwebsite.com and see 1,45 back links, some of which have decent page rank, your heart might skip a few beats. What is really going on here? The difference is dangerous – even though there is a ton of debate about how dangerous. This is a canonical issue and technically a weakness. To be more precise a non-www/www canonical issue. Two versions with similar or identical content could dilute site rankings. It is important to set up your server to redirect all traffic to the canonical version. 301 redirects are permanent, accomplish this, and are the preferred method of redirection. Proper redirect implementation is an important and frequently overlooked issue.
Next post: latent semantic indexing – 22 letters.
Holistic Marketing – Everything Matters
Recently, when discussing “marketing” with colleagues and clients, the word “holistic “ automatically becomes part of the conversation. Holistic marketing sounds like an important phrase to me when thrown around the dialogue table. It has been said that 80% of communication is non-verbal. For the moment, let’s accept this premise.
Now, let’s focus on “face to face” communication. You know…the non-verbal kind. What happens when the topic of holistic marketing comes up? Maybe, we think of holistic and all things good, green, and natural like oatmeal, aloe, soy, peppermint, and similar organics. Maybe not…but, I still see lots of blinking with rapid eye movements which actually mean thinking to summon primary and secondary word catalogs. Then, maybe some deft pen pickups followed by decisive notes on pads. Perhaps, a sudden glimmer of recognition.
All this extra thinking will ultimately lead to more questions:
1. What are the new marketing realities and do they make selling superfluous?
2. What is a good definition of the holistic marketing concept? Where is a good place to find information about this hot topic?
3. Where is a good place to find information about this hot topic?
Powerful forces have radically transformed the modern exchange economy. Information technology, globalization, deregulation, privatization, heightened competition, industry convergence, consumer resistance, retail transformation, and disintermediation – when combined – are probably strong enough to topple a pyramid. Effective marketing has a proactive orientation that replaces the hard or even the soft sell.
Marketing functions should follow a logical process: recognizing needs, satisfying wants, and meeting demands while consistently delivering on a unique value proposition. “Everything matters” with the holistic marketing concept which is based on planning and implementing marketing programs, processes, and activities with breadth and interdependence.
You’ve read this far – I know you can you give me at least one good example of holistic marketing in action.
Just so we’re in sync – the four components of holistic marketing are:
1. Relationship marketing - builds mutually satisfying long-term relationships – think CRM (customer relationship management & PRM (partner relationship management).
2. Integrated marketing - satisfies needs and surpass expectations.
3. Internal marketing - all teams work together and think customer.
4. Performance marketing - is financially accountable and social responsible.
All this holistic marketing stuff is very interesting particularly for an integrated/internet marketing firm. I went an extra meter and made an original illustration. You’re welcome to use the diagram anytime – you know the deal.
Holistic Marketing Diagram
When developing and implementing a comprehensive internet marketing strategy for our clients, Marketing Holistics LLC always considers strategic components from multiple viewpoints, focusing on broad and granular perspectives.
Stay tuned – we’ll give you many good examples of holistic marketing in action!
Barbara Reiner
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