I recently re-read Thomas Friedman's book, "The World Is
Flat" (which is excellent) and one of the things he hits
hard is the need to do business in the "real" world, the
way the world and the markets are today. Too often, we try
to do business the way things were "in the old days" or
even last month when we designed our new marketing
campaign. Too often, it doesn't work our well.
The Conference Center at Green Lake, Wisconsin for
40 years they had a great thing. They had a steady, loyal
customer base, a tremendous physical plant, and a marketing
engine that ran on auto-pilot. Then things changed.
In the 1980's their demographics changed. Their physical
plant was aging and no longer suited the new customer base.
The customers they had always counted on wanted more
"impressive" locations, and they had no installed marketing
systems to replace those lost customers. They nearly went
under.
They tell me the secret of their success was two-fold:
1. They invested millions in new accommodations and
technology. They up-dated the guest rooms, added another
golf course, and began marketing aggressively to both their
traditional customers (never forget your base!) and to
organizations and groups they had never considered before.
2. They "installed" a new attitude! They had always been
friendly, but they began making sure every guest (every
single, particular guest) was treated graciously. It
required new training, and new incentives, and it worked.
One small example: they added a shuttle service from the
nearest airport. For the cost of one van and part-time
driver, they added thousands of visitors per year!
Most impact subscribers run much smaller enterprises, but
what are the comparisons in your business? Where do you
need to up-grade? Where do you need to really persuade your
customers that they are "king?" New marketing materials,
new technology, and new attitudes can make all the
difference.
Flat" (which is excellent) and one of the things he hits
hard is the need to do business in the "real" world, the
way the world and the markets are today. Too often, we try
to do business the way things were "in the old days" or
even last month when we designed our new marketing
campaign. Too often, it doesn't work our well.
The Conference Center at Green Lake, Wisconsin for
40 years they had a great thing. They had a steady, loyal
customer base, a tremendous physical plant, and a marketing
engine that ran on auto-pilot. Then things changed.
In the 1980's their demographics changed. Their physical
plant was aging and no longer suited the new customer base.
The customers they had always counted on wanted more
"impressive" locations, and they had no installed marketing
systems to replace those lost customers. They nearly went
under.
They tell me the secret of their success was two-fold:
1. They invested millions in new accommodations and
technology. They up-dated the guest rooms, added another
golf course, and began marketing aggressively to both their
traditional customers (never forget your base!) and to
organizations and groups they had never considered before.
2. They "installed" a new attitude! They had always been
friendly, but they began making sure every guest (every
single, particular guest) was treated graciously. It
required new training, and new incentives, and it worked.
One small example: they added a shuttle service from the
nearest airport. For the cost of one van and part-time
driver, they added thousands of visitors per year!
Most impact subscribers run much smaller enterprises, but
what are the comparisons in your business? Where do you
need to up-grade? Where do you need to really persuade your
customers that they are "king?" New marketing materials,
new technology, and new attitudes can make all the
difference.
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