Marcomms (Marketing Communications) - A Cold Wash Moment

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Marcomms:A Cold Wash

MomentDarren IngramOctober 2014

http://DarrenIngram.com/

http://about.me/DarrenPIngram


Informal Discussion

AlertThe following discussion

is presented in an informal, light-hearted

style.

The message, however, is deadly serious. It can and will have a direct

economic impact on your profession, your employer, etc.




• Le ngxoxo elandelayo uvezwa an informal, style light ethandayo. Umyalezo Nokho, esibulalayo sína. It can futhi uzoba nomphumela kwezomnotho ngokuqondile career yakho, umqashi wakho, njll

• . . الخ العمل، صاحب مهنتك، على مباشر اقتصادي تأثير له وسيكون وسعها، في ما فتكا أشد هو ذلك، ومع الرسالة، رسمي غير أسلوب أرعن في، التالية المناقشة وتقدم

• 下面的讨论中提出了一种非正式的，轻松的风格。该消息，但是，是非常严肃的。它能够而且将会对你的职业，你的雇主等直接的经济影响

• चच�� के� बा�द एके अनौ पच�रि�के, प्रसन्नचिचत शै�ली� में� प्रस्त�त किकेया� है�. स!द�शै, तथा�किप, घा�तके गं!भी�� है�. याहै के� सकेत� है& औ� आदिद अपनौ� प�शै�, अपनौ� किनौया*क्ता�, प� स�धा� आर्थिथा.के प्रभी�व पड़े�गं�

• Eftirfarandi umfjöllun er að finna í óformlegum, ljós-Hearted stíl. Skilaboðin er þó dauðans alvara,. Það getur og mun hafa bein áhrif á afkomu starfsgrein, vinnuveitanda þinn, o.fl.

• 以下の説明は、非公式の、快活なスタイルで提示されている。メッセージは、しかし、致命的な深刻である。それができる等あなたの職業、雇用主、上の直接的な経済的影響を持つことになります

• किनौम्नौ छलीफली एउटा� अनौ पच�रि�के, प्रके�शै भी�वनौ�के� शै�ली� में� प्रस्त�त गंरि�एके* छ। सन्द�शै, तथा�किप, घा�तके गंम्भी�� छ। या* गंनौ� सक्छनौ: � आदिद आफ्नौ* प�शै�, आफ्नौ* �*जगं��द�त�, प्रत्याक्ष आर्थिथा.के प्रभी�व हुनौ�छ

• Следующее обсуждение представлен в неформальной, беззаботном стиле. Сообщение, однако, является чрезвычайно серьезно. Она может и будет иметь прямое влияние на экономику вашей профессии, своего работодателя и т.д.

• Majadiliano yafuatayo ni iliyotolewa katika rasmi, mwanga moyo style. Ujumbe, hata hivyo, ni mauti kubwa. Ni unaweza na itakuwa na moja kwa moja athari za kiuchumi na kazi yako, mwajiri wako, nk

• Mae'r drafodaeth ganlynol yn cael ei gyflwyno mewn arddull anffurfiol, hwyliog. Mae'r neges, fodd bynnag, yn angheuol difrifol. Y gall ei wneud a bydd yn cael effaith economaidd uniongyrchol ar eich proffesiwn, eich cyflogwr, ac ati

Deliberate use has been made of Google Translate. Hopefully there will be something lost in translation. Even though it is good to communicate and the recipient might understand it, what are they actually understanding and why and how are they understanding it? That is a question that can engage philosophers and marketing types for a very long time…




Buckle Up…It’s Gonna Be A Fast Ride

Source: Google (image)




Marcomms?• Marketing Communications: Does it exist? The

Oxford English Dictionary still doesn’t believe so.

• Of course the concept and practice of marketing communications does exist.

• Marcom/Marcomms is an accepted, all-encompassing shorthand for this sector - however people spell it!




Academic ViewMarketing communications is a management process through which an organisation engages with its various audiences. Through understanding an audience’s communications environment, organisations seek to develop and present messages for their identified stakeholder groups, before evaluating and acting upon the responses. By conveying messages that are of significant value, they encourage audiences encouraged to offer attitudinal and behavioural responses.

Source: Edinburgh Business School Heriot-Watt University




Common View

Marketing communications are messages and related media used to communicate with a market. Marketing communications is the "promotion" part of the "marketing mix" or the "four Ps": price, place, promotion, and product. It can also refer to the strategy used by a company or individual to reach their target market through various types of communication.

Source: Wikipedia




Marketing?Marketing, adj.Pronunciation: Brit. /ˈmɑːkᵻtɪŋ/ , U.S. /ˈmɑrkədɪŋ/Etymology: < market v. + -ing suffix2.Now rare.That buys or sells at a market; that is involved in trade or commerce.

1746 C. Macklin Henry VII i. iii. 17 Prostitute Bulls from marketing Rome supply their Place.

1821 J. Clare Let. 7 Jan. (1985) 138 A company of marketing farmers thrumming over politics in an alehouse.

1851 D. Jerrold St. Giles & St. James (new ed.) xi, in Writings I. 105 Money in this marketing world of ours may buy much.

1872 W. D. Howells Their Wedding Journey i. 21 A marketing mother of a family.

Source: Oxford English Dictionary




Marketing?Marketing, n.Pronunciation: Brit. /ˈmɑːkᵻtɪŋ/ , U.S. /ˈmɑrkədɪŋ/Etymology: < market v. (in quot. 1561 at sense 1a perhaps directly < market n.) + -ing suffix1.

a. The action of buying or selling, esp. in a market; an instance of this. Now also (U.S.): shopping, esp. for groceries. Also fig. or in figurative context.1561 T. Norton tr. J. Calvin Inst. Christian Relig. iv. xviii. f. 147v, “How filthy markettinges they vse, how vnhonest gaines they make wt their massinges.”

b. The action or business of bringing or sending a product or commodity to market; (now chiefly, Business) the action, business, or process of promoting and selling a product, etc., including market research, advertising, and distribution.1884 Harper's Mag. Mar. 506/1 “This marketing of supplies was the beginning..of its prosperity.”

c. Business. The department within a commercial organisation which deals with marketing.1958 W. W. Morris in W. D. Robbins Successful Marketing 180 “The marketing concept implies that the entire organization (research, engineering, production, and marketing) must work together.”





Communication/s?Communication, nPronunciation: Brit. /kəˌmjuːnᵻˈkeɪʃn/ , U.S. /kəˌmjunəˈkeɪʃ(ə)n/

So many definitions…. late 13th century origins.

• The fact of having something in common with another person or thing; affinity; congruity.

• Interpersonal contact, social interaction, association, intercourse.

• The transmission or exchange of information, knowledge, or ideas, by means of speech, writing, mechanical or electronic media.

• The science, practice, or system of transmitting or imparting information, esp. of doing so over a distance by electronic or digital media.

• Interchange of speech, conferring, discussion, debate; an instance of this, a conversation, a conference.

• Something that is communicated, or in which facts are communicated; a piece of information; a document containing information; esp. a letter.





… Who Does It?

Those who practice advertising, branding, brand language, direct marketing, graphic design, marketing, packaging, promotion, publicity, sponsorship, public relations, sales, sales promotion and online marketing are termed marketing communicators, marketing communication managers, or more briefly, marcomms managers…

Source: Wikipedia




EVERYONEplays a part:

however small!




A Too-Broad Church• It is impossible to distill everything down.

• The sphere of marketing communications is potentially too broad, covers too many elements and is shrouded in mystery.

• The art could irreverently be described as communicate honestly, effectively and ethically.

• Not screwing up is optional, but recommended.




Home Truth #1

Someone, somewhere will invariably misunderstand your approach, your pitch, your

message…

Intentionally or accidentallyCultural differences and “lost in translation”

Due to different values and viewsOr they didn’t hear ALL the message - assume

makes an ass out of “u” and me




Intentional Offence?

• It can suit the agenda of some to deliberately blow things out of proportion, to incite or take offence, to “Interpret” things in a certain way.

• You don’t need your marketing department to shoot itself necessarily in the corporate foot.

• Your critics will try and do this anyway.




• Many fine words and techniques can be discussed, employed to try and defend the often indefensible.

• Crisis PR, Advocacy, Crisis Management, Proactive Reach-Out, “Dine with the Devil”, Sic Your Lawyers On Them.

• There is never a universal solution.




You cannot hopeto bribe or twist,thank God! theBritish journalist.But, seeing whatthe man will dounbribed, there'sno occasion to.

Source: Humbert Wolfe/“The Uncelestial City”




Cultural Differences• Different countries, cultures and even sectors

can have different approaches, values and ways of doing things.

• A free press is not necessarily as free as you can imagine.

• Pay for access - a lot more than just advertisements, features and sponsored articles.




“You can pay newspapers to get any kind of article published, ditto for news channels. You can fix TV ratings or readership numbers. You can even fix the box-office figures for your film. And if nothing works, you can always entice a media buyer with a cutback to put your paper or channel in the advertiser’s plan. These, increasingly, are the stories coming out of the Indian media and entertainment (M&E) industry.”

Source: Business Standard India/Vanita Kohli-Khandekar“The rising stink in the media business” 28.08.2012




• “Envelope Journalism” or “ATM journalism”, particularly prevalent in some Asian countries.

• Gifts to attend press events or “facilitation visits” and similar inducements.

• Some media distance themselves from this, decline nearly all “facilitation” and pay their own way and/or highlight in an article “help” given.

• Capable of polarising views.

• Industry or “peer pressure”? Some sectors perceived as more problematic: cars, cosmetics, sport, IT…

Source: Radio Australia/On The Record: A Question of Influence; Author




Not Just An Asian Problem

• In Japan, journalists voluntarily and regularly curtail their truth-telling through the practice of self-censorship -- not from coercion by the government, but by their own press organisations.

• In the People's Republic of China, journalists -- like all essential workers -- are in the employ of government and pay homage to the truth, but place a lower value on pursuing with any aggressiveness or perseverance.

• In Korea, journalists most often recognise truth as the word of government, and identify themselves with the elite ruling forces and identify their role as helping to insure harmony between the rulers and the ruled. Their closeness to government is often measured by the amount of cash in the "white envelopes" they receive. Source: An Update on Journalism Ethics in Asia

Tom Brislin, University of Hawaii




Not Just An Asian Problem

• Economic limitations in American news organisations have exacerbated the problems of covering a country through its press reports as many have been forced to maintain only part-time bureaus in Beijing and Seoul, with correspondents flown in from full-time bureaus in Tokyo to cover only the most major stories.

• Limitations in Asian languages can restrict the Western corespondent to relying on interpretations of stories carried in the major newspapers and television networks that were initially gathered with journalistic values and practices that can be equally as "foreign" as the language in which they are printed or broadcast.

• The access by American and other foreign correspondents to newsmakers and news events can be restricted as well by the journalistic practices and values in the host country from which they are reporting. Source: An Update on Journalism Ethics in Asia

Tom Brislin, University of Hawaii




Translation• Fanny Packs vs. Bum Bags. Knapsacks vs. “Body Bags” in

Germany.

• During its 1994 launch, telecom company Orange had to change its ads in Northern Ireland. "The future's bright … the future's Orange." However, in the North the term Orange suggests the Orange Order. The implied message that the future is bright, the future is Protestant, loyalist... The Catholic Irish population’s view?

• In 1988, the General Electric Company (GEC) and Plessey combined to create a new telecommunications giant. A new brand was needed and GPT was chosen for GEC-Plessey Telecommunications. A not very innovative name and not suggestive of technology and a total disaster for branding. GPT is pronounced in French as “J’ai pété” or “I've farted”.Source: “Marketing Translation Mistakes”

http://www.i18nguy.com/translations.html



http://www.i18nguy.com/translations.html


Translation• Fried-chicken franchise KFC got off on the wrong foot

when it opened in China in the late 1980s. When the company opened its doors in Beijing, the restaurant had accidentally translated its infamous slogan "Finger-lickin' good" to a not-so-appetising phrase: "Eat your fingers off.”

• American beer maker Coors discovered that slang doesn't always translate well. When bringing its cool "Turn It Loose" campaign to Spain, it appears executives forgot to ensure the translation would resonate with consumers. When translated into Spanish, the tagline used an expression that's commonly interpreted as "Suffer from diarrhoea."Source: “Dos and Don'ts for Doing Business in China"

Business News Daily, 09.03.2013




Translation• Procter & Gamble launched a major marketing effort to

sell Puff tissues in Germany. It later learned that, in some parts of the country, the term “Puff” is a colloquialism for “house of prostitution.” The same campaign in the UK? “Puff” is a derogatory/old term to describe homosexuals.

• Vacuum cleaner manufacturer Electrolux raised more than a few eyebrows when one of its most expensive marketing efforts in the US market was an advert claiming that “Nothing Sucks Like an Electrolux!” In the U.S., ‘sucks’ means bad or terrible.

• EMU Airlines never got off the ground when it tried to do business in Australia. An emu is a bird that can’t fly.

Source: International Marketing Blunders, Michael White




Translation• An airline serving the Middle East almost lost its authority

to provide service to the region when its magazine and newspaper advertising showed an attractive female flight attendant serving champagne to smiling first-class passengers. The ad was deemed “offensive” because it violated two primary principles of the region’s Islamic-based culture: first, Moslems are prohibited from drinking alcoholic beverages; and second, unveiled women are prohibited from mingling with men who are not their relatives.

• The Tokyo Gas & Electric Company for a time had a giant neon sign towering over the Ginza District in downtown Tokyo. It carried the slogan of the Tokyo Gas & Electric Company, “My Life, My Gas.”

Source: International Marketing Blunders, Michael White




Easier In The Past?




An Old Man Reminisces• A slower pace of business life: phased

introduction of ideas, concepts, products and services.

• Territorial operations (region/country versus continent/world).

• More hierarchal approach; more intermediaries.

• The “media” was under greater control; the end user consumed rather than generated content.




• A company could develop a product or service, decide how to market it and possibly pass off the sales to distributors and agents, the marketing mix might be split between an advertising agency and someone who handled their public relations.

• Each territory might look after its own affairs and rarely trouble “corporate HQ”.

• Customers “knew their place”.

• Invisible collusion to maintain the status quo?




Today?• A much more stressful, always-on, 24/7

environment.

• The ever-watchful eye of the media (traditional and social) is upon you.

• Problems can come from anywhere and everywhere, even if you’ve managed to do your job well.

• It might be others who have created the fire.




Case StudyAs told by BuzzFeed

Source: BuzzFeed.com




Oh, Shit!




Can It Get Worse?




I Am That Marketing Manager

I just want to go homeI just want a pintMy head hurts

I’m losing the will to live!

No doubt tomorrow there are some awkward

questions from the boss.Source: Wikipedia




More Beer Please!

Source: Wikipedia




The Morning After The

Night Before

Source: Standupcoward/BlogspotDrinking alcohol to excess isn’t big or clever: it just leaves you feeling ill, with a hole in the wallet and the problems you had still exist. Why not have a cup of tea and shout at the pigeons instead? Or log on to social media and have a rant about something?





Until people dredge it up time, after time in presentations, case studies, books, lectures and “Groundhog Day” begins!




So What Can We Do?




Dunno!• We can think about each and every message we

communicate.

• We can try and empower everyone in our organisation to think.

• We can try and encourage everyone in our organisation to express a view.

• We can do our best.

• For those who are religious, pray?




It is Pretty Bad Out There

(technological change has necessitated) “…faster adaptation, and adaptation requires institutional learning processes such as critical thinking, critical conversations, and experimentation. This increasing pace of change creates volatility that diminishes the life cycle of most competitive advantages, products, and public companies, as well as the tenures of public company CEOs."

Source: Learn or Die: Using Science to Build a Leading-Edge Learning Organization/Edward D. Hess




Cooperation Is KingPeople with different histories of experiences likely attend to and process a different subset of stimuli arising from the same new data.

Each of us focuses on what seems particularly relevant in the data and can be effectively blind to the rest. Two employees working for the same company may be exposed to the same new data, but unless there are rigid organisational mental models in play, each will process information in ways that confirm his own existing knowledge.

Having a diverse group can be a learning enabler by helping identify cognitive blind spots.





Don’t Just Say YesGet involved in the entire process from start to finish. Don’t just play

with advertising and PR because it is “fun”. It isn’t.

• Your thinking could affect hundreds or thousands or even hundreds of thousands of employees and their families.

• Bringing your best thinking to bear at the right times is very important. The ability to constantly stress test the critical assumptions that underlie your mental models about your business's strategy, operating model, differentiating customer value proposition, and competitive space is critical.

• Hess suggested that every public company needed an “Executive Vice President of Dissent” whose sole job was to continuously stress test underlying assumptions and to perceive and attend to data that served as early warning signals of potential challenges to the business model, strategy, and competitiveness.





Everyone Knows….• As one moves up the promotion chain to senior

management, one's self-confidence tends to increase as well as one's self-image, which can lead to intellectual and/or personal arrogance.

• Often, one's views about business become more entrenched as promotions validate one's knowledge base. Sometimes validated expertise in one technical area wrongly leads people to assume they are experts in other areas.

• If a senior manager views life as a competition that he is winning, then he has a self-interest in continuing to enforce his views rather than in open-mindedly listening to other perspectives.





Ray DalioIf the name means nothing

Google him!

If you want a real, intense business boot camp read:

http://www.bwater.com/Uploads/FileManager/Principles/Bridgewater-Associates-Ray-Dalio-Principles.pdf

(just for starters)

Source: NYP








• At the same time, people’s ideas should always be assessed on their merit in order to encourage them to always think in an open-minded way. I have seen that inexperienced people can have great ideas, sometimes far better than more experienced people, though often much worse. So we must be attuned to both the good and the bad and allow people to build their own track records and their own level of believability.

• Someone new who doesn’t know much, has little believability, or isn’t confident in his views should ask questions. On the other hand, a highly believable person with experience and a good track record who is highly confident in his views should be assertive. Everyone should be upfront in expressing how confident they are in their thoughts. A suggestion should be called a suggestion; a firmly held conviction should be presented as such. Don’t make the mistake of being a dumb shit with a confident opinion.

Source: Ray Dalio/Bridgewater Associates




So?• Prepare, prepare and prepare some more.

• Think what happens if the worst happens.

• Have a plan B, C and even D if you can.

• Remember that we all can - and will - screw up.

• Even if we don’t, someone will try and make it look that we have anyway.




• Be creative and innovative whilst remaining honest, accurate, ethical and trustworthy.

• Do not be afraid to say no. Just be prepared to back up your decision.

• If your boss wants to commit professional suicide you don’t have to join in.

• Accept you can’t and never will be able to do everything.

• Try to learn and have some fun along the way.




In A Short Time• Not everything can be

considered and there will be things even the best (or even I) can forget, overlook, don’t appreciate, write-off, etc.

• KISS is a great principle, it is not just for teenagers and lovers of vintage rock music.

• Prepare to bend over. You are going to get a lot of experience. Not all of it pleasurable but you will learn. Source: Flickr/Kitt Foo




Is There A Point?• Remember each and every person in an

organisation contributes to change, to communication and your public perception.

• You will be wrong at times and you will be right at times - Just like a watch, irrespective of its quality.

• You might - at the end of this presentation - be thinking “WTF was all that about?” - One day you will get a “light bulb” moment and remember this day! It will then all start to make sense.




Questions?Disagreement

s?

Darren Ingram

[email protected]/in/DarrenPIngramabout.me/DarrenPIngram



mailto:[email protected]

http://linkedin.com/in/DarrenPIngram


Marcomms (Marketing Communications) - A Cold Wash Moment

Marketing

Transcript of Marcomms (Marketing Communications) - A Cold Wash Moment