Do you have the "skill, will and till" to survive in 2009?

1/5/2009 10:27:59 AM

Seven Predictions for 2009, an article written by eMarketer CEO Geoff Ramsey, is a must-read because it contains some salient, if not dire, predictions for online marketing in 2009.

We all know that traditional media is suffering steep declines and that dollars are moving online, but that growth will be measured out in spoonfuls this year with marketers relying on tried-and-true methods such as search and email.

Ramsey quotes Penn State research professor Gary Lilien who said that companies with “the skill, the will and the till” will be able to market their way through these tough times and end up on the other side with a stronger market share and a more powerful brand position.

“‘The skill’ means they have the marketing expertise. ‘The will’ means they have a culture to go against what seems to be a tough trend. And ‘the till’ means that they have some resources to be able to invest," says Lilien.

What about your company? Do you have the "skill, will and till" to survive in 2009? What are your predictions? Do you think things are as dire as the pundits say? Please feel free to comment.

Posted by: Paul Chaney | Submit comment | Tell a friend

Categories: Email Marketing | Online Marketing

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2 Comments

bert shlensky

1/5/2009 10:45:15 AM

Don’t Let New Internet Marketing Tools Overtake the Basics

Internet marketing experts provide seminars, web-I-nars, conferences etc. which are designed to improve response rates, inquires, conversions etc. at lower costs. If we believe much of what they argue our profitability would virtually increase in leaps and bounds every month. We sometimes get so excited about web marketing tools that we forget some of the basic marketing tools particularly for smaller businesses.My experience is that there are some general realities about our marketing efforts that need to be integrated with our internet ideas to achieve better results:

1.     The characteristics of your brand, product, price, and marketing are the most important aspect of a great web site. Great marketing or web design is hard to overcome a lousy product.
2.     Price, value and competitiveness are underestimated in their importance. Consumers frequently use the internet to compare and look at multiple sites. Lowering price and offering free shipping are the easiest and most effective way to increase sales.
3.     Better not fancy customer service can dramatically affect sales. Responding quickly, empowering customer service, liberal return policies, and operators who are knowledgeable and speak English are more important than gimmicks like 24-7 responses from representatives in foreign countries that have no clue.
4.     Being in stock and shipping quickly is a requirement and not an advantage
5.     Clear concise explanations can have a dramatic impact. Customers want clear information on the characteristics of the products. Understandable text, sizes, specs, dimensions are all critical elements of a product description.
6.     Excellent photography is more important than multiple views that are unattractive or redundant.
7.     Improving web design with exotic characteristics like flash, videos, long openings etc. can be counter productive in terms of conveying a simple message. For example, if you have a” skip intro” option on the web site, it probably shouldn’t be there.
8.     Google and its reporting tools are incredible products and do not need supplements if you are a small to moderate user.
9.     Great products and excellent brands are more important than SEO in generating clicks
10.      In general, expensive custom products or totally generic efforts are equally disappointing. There are great models and templates out there to purchase inexpensively. However , but they need to be tempered with individual analysis and decision making.

In short basic management and marketing is a basic fundamental that must be developed before one tacks on exotic internet marketing tools. In addition they may show much better results .

Paul Chaney

1/5/2009 11:31:57 AM

Bert, I love it when the comments are better than the post itself. Such is the case here. Thanks for sharing some great information. I agree, getting back to basics is an essential during these recessionary times.

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