Microsoft Finally Kinects with its Audience

With the Christmas shopping season fully upon us, Microsoft’s Kinect motion-sensing game device is expected to be at the top of the gift list for many consumers. Last year, Microsoft sold 1 million Kinect devices for its Xbox 360 in 10 days, and in a recent poll it was at the top of the wish list for children 13 and older. But what you might not expect is that some of those orders are going to be coming from businesses.

Early this month, Microsoft launched Kinect for Windows SDK with a brilliant, new ad called “Kinect Effect.”

Microsoft is pushing Kinect hardware for Windows SDK for business applications.  As staff writer Jason Kennedy fromPCWorld states: “SDK will make it possible for programmers and dreamers from the world over to tinker with the system and make it do things Microsoft hadn’t thought of, and push the development of NUI [natural user interfaces] to the next level.”

What is noteworthy about the Kinect Effect ad is what it took for Microsoft to make it. Six years ago, in an interview with CMO magazine, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer confessed to a problem long known by many consumers of Microsoft products:

"During Microsoft’s climb to the top of the software industry, rapid-fire product cycles often happened without much front-end input from the folks in marketing. Engineers would develop new software, pack it with bells and whistles, decide on an acceptable number of bugs and toss it over to marketing for a press release and a launch event."

At the time, Microsoft had set out to change that course through an expansive and expensive relationship marketing initiative. Internally, it aligned marketing with product groups, created a "mea culpa" marketing campaign to reach out to past customers, and targeted loyalists hoping to turn them into advocates.

But because of its past transgressions, and a perception that many of its products were “necessaries” with little to pique the desire of consumers, Microsoft struggled with finding an ignition point, or something to connect customers with the brand and ignite their passions.

Well, those days appear to be over. With the Kinect Effect, the tech titan proves that it can be relevant, even desirable, with a campaign that is expansive, inspiring and incredibly human. The campaign asks audiences to dream about how they might use Kinect by inspiring them with images of people playing air instruments, a doctor flipping through X-rays, and a student deconstructing DNA with only hand motions.

The expansiveness of the idea allows Microsoft to successful reach, and hopefully inspire, all three of its targeted audiences, including consumers/users, businesses and developers.  Any one group can have the dream, but all three are needed for it to become reality.

Perhaps the most significant point of the ad is that it is evidence that the relationship marketing effort was worth it, Microsoft now understands the strategic importance of the "front end" as Ballmer calls it.  The appeal of the ad is not the "bells and whistles" of Kinect but rather what Kinect can enable, which is virtually unlimited as long as there are dreamers.

If Microsoft can continue this connection with the customer while retail store openings continue into 2012, it could transition itself from the company that makes the “have to have” product to the company that is the “want to have” brand.

Click Here for a Social Media ROI

Everybody knows – or thinks they know intuitively – that social elements add value to marketing. But just how, exactly?

Like anything in business, it comes down to return on investment. Social media is not a strategy and it’s not an end in itself. Unless your business objective (and I’d check with your shareholders on this) is only about gaining page views and follows, marketers need to understand how social adds value to everything else in your toolkit.

So how do you find the “sweetspot” for developing an ROI for social media?  Well, start by viewing the tools at their most basic level, as vehicles for sharing; photo’s, thoughts, content, etc.  Consider them “levers” for improving the performance of known activities that have produced a ROI. 

Years ago, we assessed the effectiveness of demand generation campaigns for a client.  Because the firm was in the hi-tech industry they had a heavily reliance on content marketing for their campaigns.  They spent months designing and building them, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in execution only to see diminishing results. 

The audit revealed that their campaign effectiveness (related to lead production) lasted roughly 36 hours after launch (see below).  Meaning that the majority of the leads were being created within the first three days of launch, regardless of how long they left the campaign in the market (this is not uncommon). 

Today, social media has the potential to create a long tail effect, extending the life of expensive campaigns, ultimately improving ROI, and along the way creating and deepening the relationship with the audience. 

I’ll use myself as an example: A blog post of mine titled, The End of Blogs (and Websites) as We Know Them recently ran on Forbes CMO Network (see below).  It received no special promotion; in fact, you could say the deck was stacked against it.  Posted on a Friday, the slowest traffic day of the workweek, at midnight (EST) when most of the blog readers at home or are in bed.  By prime blog viewing time (10 am) it had almost dipped below the fold.

But on the following Monday it took off, almost doubling the views of Friday, and continued to build momentum ending the week as the 3^rd most popular post of the day.  The following week it was the most popular post on Wednesday.  So what happened? 

Social took over. Without a significant additional investment in promoting it, social sharing accelerated and extended the life of the post, even as it fell off the first, second and third page of the site.  Readers engaged and went from passive viewers to active promoters.

Readers were tweeting their own thoughts and comments about their insights, not just retweeting the post title.  They placed it into Linkedin groups and added their comments on the impact of the technology (the topic of the post) to their particular area of interest or role.  They were actively engaging in sharing their “discover” with others. 

That is the power and the value of social media for content marketing.  

The post no longer needed to be pushed because it was being endorsed, and in some ways validated by readers -- the most trusted source of information.  

The potential of social media is intriguing, but to determine its true value, companies will need to experiment.  Using social media to support your content marketing efforts is a prudent choice, but keep this in mind: It will only be effective if the audience/community finds value in the content and part of that value is defined by those who pass it along. 

This post appears today on the Forbes CMO Network.  

The End of Blogs (and Maybe Websites) as We Know It

I started this blog five years ago as an experiment.  Over the years, I built a decent following, got listed on a few “best of’s”, and built up a solid bank of content.  I never wrote a post for money or allowed advertising; I was in full control of the site and the content.

That changed last week when Blogger rolled out its new Dynamic Views template. Almost instantly, I saw the future and it was an eye opener.  The new technology is a “game changer” and has the potential for causing a SIGNIFICANT “rethink” for marketers.  There are two features in particular that make this innovation noteworthy. 

The first is that you, the reader, can change the layout of the site.  Although dynamic content and websites have been around for years, this is the first tool that I’ve seen that has the potential to turn complete control of the user experience to the visitor.   It allows readers to organize the blog in seven different layouts (click on the tabs above).

The second, and most concerning, is the “Flipcard” view (click that tab).  In a sense, it allows you to “flatten” my website.  Suddenly, the majority of my content (good and bad) is visible above the fold and can be scanned in about 8 seconds (the average time spent to view a web page).  Readers can quickly sort through thumbnail images or blog titles searching for relevant content. 

This new disruptive innovation arrives at a time when corporations are just now beginning to appreciate and understand the value of content marketing and blogging.

According to Hubspot’s State of Inbound Marketing report, nearly 40% of US companies are now using blogs for marketing purposes.  And for good reason, B2B companies that blog generate 55% more traffic, and 67% more leads per month than those who do not.

Those blogs are reaching an ever-growing population of readers.  The global population of readers grew 65% last year, according to Hubspot.   And they are consuming more, 46% said that they were reading blogs more than one a day. 

To keep pace, more content is being produced.  Emarketer reports that there are 31% more bloggers today than there were three years ago, creating an estimated 160 million blogs on the Internet at the end of 2010. 

What does this mean for the content marketer?

The speed at which audiences move around online will get faster.  They will be more difficult to connect with, engage and keep.  Further we are going to have to be prepared to give control to readers in order to be successful.  Based on my experience, here are a few things marketers need to consider:

• Flag post  – An average reader spends 86 seconds on a blog.  To “stop” a visitor who is on the express train to “contentville,” we will have to rethink the titles and images used in posts, and we’ll probably have to live with higher bounce rates.  Suddenly, getting the reader’s attention is just as important as getting them to engage.  
• Relevancy - Turning control of the site over to the visitor also comes with the reality that we are now writing content the visitor wants to read and not, necessarily, just espousing our opinions or services.  Communicating the company point of view is still important, but now it has to be done using the audience’s language.
• Understanding the reader - Google Analytics gives us the demographics but that longer will be enough.   We’ll need to understand what appeals to the reader by monitoring comments, how they’re sharing links, and where they’ve come from, and where they are headed.  We’re merely a morning stop along the way and to get to engage we have to know how to get their attention. 
• Content production – Producing good quality content has long been a challenge.  Now with the ability to flatten sites the lack of content will be visible in an instant. Marketers will have to create a content calendar and rely on trustworthy sources for output. 
• Timing – According to Hubspot research, link-sharing among blog readers reaches a peak at 7 am.   Comments on blogs top out at 8 am, and by 10 am blog reading begins to decline.  As the data suggest, when content is posted and distributed matters.  New internal processes will have to catch up with external audience preferences. 

The real “game changer” is that this technology will quickly make its way into corporate website design.   And for years we have tried to figure out the “user experience.” Visitors can now create their own unique experience, actually seven of them, and do it in real time.  It is a great opportunity, as well as a great challenge, and it’s one that Marketers can’t afford to miss.

This post appears today on Forbes.com.

CIOs Are More Than Just IT Buyers

Even if you believe in love at first sight, the likelihood of a marriage proposal on the first date is highly unlikely. Committing yourself to someone without getting to know him or her first is a ridiculous idea. Yet far too often companies are asking audiences to “commit” at the hint of an interaction despite knowing little about each other.

Why?

In the tech industry and according to author Tom Grant, Ph.D, companies desire early commitment, due to the industry’s “voracious appetite for leads.” As Grant explains in his report, Tech Marketers Pursue Antiquated Marketing Strategies, the “high-speed innovation” rate drives a hyperfocus on product marketing and lead generation compared to other industries.

Developing a relationship with an audience takes time and resources and can often be perceived as a distraction to the task of finding “ready to marry” prospects.  This outward-in view of marketing ignores audience needs and assumes that all audiences are the same and that all searches must indicate intent.   

However, the key to driving demand and lead generation in today’s economy is not being more aggressive and pushing harder, but rather, taking time to develop and nurture relationships.  Audiences, like dates, can sense desperation.   Perhaps the way to go faster is by slowing down and shifting the focal point from the conversion to the conversation.

We have long known that relevancy drives conversion and that conversion drives revenue.   Getting to relevancy requires us to engage with the audience to understand their unique needs and motivations.   As a result, our role changes from dictating to facilitating and understanding that it’s now on the buyer’s timeframe, not ours. 

New technologies, such as Bizo allow us to know who the audience is at the first interaction. We also know where they’ve been for 30 days (who they’ve been dating) before the conversion point, via Google Analytics new Multichannel Funnels.

We can serve up custom content through re-targeting based on audience profiles, adapt for whatever device they are using, and deepen engagement by providing specific product or brand messages that align with their journey. 

“95% of prospects on your website are not yet ready to talk with a sales rep” Source: 2011 MECLABS research

We no longer have to interrupt a buyer’s journey to gauge their interest level.   We no longer have to call a prospect to qualify them.  This can, and will happen, at the buyer’s choosing, if we let it.  

By providing something of value (e.g. relevant and personal) buyers will share their interests, desires and needs, but only if we listen, nurture and respect the relationship. According to Forrester, this intimate information is critical to creating real opportunity (leads) for the sales force.  

In the Technology Buyer Insight Study, Forrester found that, although tech has done a good job of equipping their sales force to discuss their products, they have failed to provide reps with insight into buyer’s roles and responsibilities.  Only 29% of CIO’s said that sales reps could “relate to their role”, less than a quarter (24%) of business leaders said that reps were “knowledgeable about their business.”

Still too touchy feely for you? Consider Harte Hanks’ report, Mapping the Technology Buyer’s Journey which states that the relationship with the vendor is still a top 5 consideration driver.   The first and second most important drivers are what you’d expect: 1) Meets all needs, and 2) Cost. 

Competitors can match your price, but they can’t necessary match your understanding of the buyer’s need or the relationship developed through that journey.   

This post is featured on Forbes.com

Top 5 Ways PR Can Support Sales

This post was also featured on PR News. 
For the most part, sales and marketing view PR/Corporate Communications’ role to be high in the funnel. Some would even say that its focus is on “above the funnel” activities.  But if used strategically, PR activities can be very effective in playing a critical role in supporting sales.  Below are five ways PR can help the sales organization:      

1. Creating an impression – Typically thought of as a primary role of PR, but the ability to create a perception that the company plays in a “space” gets the company in the consideration set and the sales force in the door.  A few years ago, we did some research on the key consideration drivers in Tech.  The research showed that relationship with the rep was not a driver…meaning, if the customer perception is that you don’t have product/solution for their need, the rep is not getting a call. 
2. Damage control – As “they” say, “things happen”, and how the company handles it may be the difference between losing and retaining a customer.  PR can help get out in front of an issue, explain the company’s position, and help the sales force navigate what can be a difficult conversation.  Ford’s handling of the corporate bailout was masterful.  As Alan Mullaly’s peers from GM and Chrysler were taking their corporate jets to Washington to ask for a hand out, he and his team were driving from Detroit.  They said “no” to the handout and walked out with consumer confidence, which later turned into market share gains.  
3. Checking a competitor – A huge concern for sales is having a competitor leapfrog ahead with a new solution or product.  PR can create the impression that the company has a similar product or solution when in reality it may not.  Large established companies, like GE and Cisco, turn up the noise to drown out fast moving smaller competitors. 
4. Building momentum– There’s nothing better for a salesperson than a product that “sells itself.”  Creating excitement in the market for a product or solution helps generate inbound leads, which have the highest close rates.  Do you really think that the new IPhone 5 went missing…again?  It’s all about creating a buzz.
5. Enabling and managing Social Media – In certain industries, such as hi-tech, Social Media is owned by PR/Corporate Communication. This important channel for engaging with customers can provide sales with new insights into customer behaviors, needs, and motivations, but that insight has to be carefully managed as to how it is used. 

And for a bonus example – Virtual Coverage - years ago, I conducted research on how well a medical equipment company was covering small customers.  The results showed that their sales force visited customers about once every three months while a competitive sales force came by about twice as much. 
The company couldn't afford to increase the field sales force but could ramp up corporate communications.  A year later when we did the same research, this time customers said that the reps were showing up twice as often.  They weren't, but the increased communication resulted in the perception that they were seeing the reps more often.