April 2012

Recently, we discussed the fundamental shift in modern marketing and how the changes surrounding that shift have permanently impacted more traditional marketing methods. In examining that, we reviewed the basics of Paid, Owned, and Earned Marketing as the foundation for modern marketing theories and, ultimately, practices.

Of course, there’s more to successful marketing than understanding the fundamentals and learning to leverage into greater results the synergies created by these three main components. Truly successful marketing comes from successful companies. Thus, the second step in our Seven Principles of Modern Marketing is this: Reevaluate your team.

The best marketing efforts are quickly laid to waste when a surly representative arrives late to your customer’s home or client’s place of business and provides poor service. Beyond such obvious scenarios, marketing results are also minimized when your team isn’t fully invested in the message or the company’s mission. Unmotivated and unskilled employees have a way of infecting a staff by demonstrating that mediocre is acceptable. So, in addition to doing less than impressive work, they are also dragging down the team as a whole. As the saying goes, “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” The key is to identify the weak links and make some tough decisions.

Retrain, Fire, Hire, and Motivate
Sometimes team members simply lack the knowledge or skills needed to move forward on your team. If they’re valuable players, some additional training may be a worthwhile investment. It’s also highly motivating for employees, who feel valued when the company takes an interest in progressing their careers.

Beyond evaluating the need and facilitating training, it’s also important to take the time to identify your “A Team,” and then determine whether you need to cut the second stringers. Firing is not a pleasant part of the process, but it’s often necessary for an organization to move forward. It demonstrates clearly to the team as a whole that motivated, invested, knowledgeable employees are valued over those who are not and that your company has standards you expect to be met or exceeded. Evaluate each team member and ask:

• Is this person one of my “A Team” players?
• Does this person contribute to our client-centric culture?
• Does this person have the skills (or ability to master them) necessary to do the job right?
• Is this person positive and actively contributing?

Finally, invest in your “A Team” players and actively motivate and listen to them. Remember, happy employees lead to happy customers, and keeping your customers happy is essential to your success. When you and your strongest team members are surrounded only by other contributing, positive, engaged players who are dedicated to your mission, everything and everyone works better.

Next up, we’ll discuss the importance of balancing short- and long-term marketing needs, so be sure to subscribe to the TribalVision blog, and let us know what you think here in the comments section.

Traditional marketing is broken. It’s broken, and, what’s more, it’s been eclipsed by modern methods with which old-school techniques simply cannot compete. To that end, in this first installment of a seven-part series, we’ll discuss the Seven Principles of Modern Marketing, beginning with the foundation: Redefining Marketing.

What Is Modern Marketing?
Modern marketing activities fall into three categories: Paid, Owned, and Earned. Think of each as a bucket you need to fill for your efforts to carry enough weight to be successful with the public. As with traditional marketing tools, each has advantages and weaknesses. However, when these three “buckets” are properly combined, they are synergistic. That is, the total package is greater than the sum of its parts.

Paid media is the simplest to define of the three modern marketing categories. It is the forms of marketing businesses pay to utilize. This includes traditional avenues such as radio and television advertising, print ads in magazines or newspapers, and large scale ads on billboards. It also includes more modern methods such as the many forms of Internet advertising. In short, paid media is marketing by paying others to use their media.

Owned media may appear similar to paid media in that both may take place online. However, the key difference here is that with owned media, the company doing the marketing actually owns the avenue through which the message is sent. For example, a company’s own website is a form of owned media. You might use your company blog to direct traffic to a specific product or service, and that’s a form of owned media.

Earned media is less tangible than paid or owned media. It’s more about reputation and word-of-mouth recommendations, both online and off. By conducting business properly, maintaining strong community ties, providing outstanding customer service, and standing behind your product, you do the work that earns you things such as positive website comments, good ratings on review sites, and social media shares by “brand ambassadors” (consumers who recommend your company without incentive).

What Comes Next?
The concepts of paid, owned, and earned media may be new to some, but they’re fundamental in understanding modern marketing. Up next, we’ll discuss methods for integrating marketing into every facet of your business and take a look at the Second Principle: Finding Balance. Stay tuned!