How We Work : Blog

Should we upgrade our computers to the new Microsoft operating system when it comes out? That will be the vexing question that the marketers within Redmond will have to convince customers that “Yes” is the logical answer.

Microsoft’s newest operating system has definitely taken its time in making its appearance. Taking almost 5 years since its last major iteration, Windows XP, the new version (named Vista) is promised to be the greatest one step upgrade since Windows 95.

Touted as being more secure and better architectured for the newest computing components, Vista is Microsoft’s push in securing its position as the leading operating system of choice against the constant challenges coming from the Mac OSX and the many Linux variants. Not forgetting also the much ballyhooed Aero glass interface, the consistently annoying UAC (User Access Control) security feature among the more obvious changes to end users.

For businesses and individuals who depend on their computers for their bread and butter, the answer would have to be a cautionary “No”. The simple reason is that the current version of Microsoft Windows XP has matured to become a very stable and relatively problem free platform.

From my limited testing with Vista RTM (release to manufacturing), the system does not have serious problems. Sure a couple of drivers for older peripherals are not available yet and if your computer is any sort of ancient, you would probably have to pony up for upgrades. Of course, as with any major upgrade of internal plumbing there will be birthing pains. Some of my applications are wonky or simply do not work at all (Apple’s Itunes is one of those cranky applications), video card drivers (from Nvidia) are just now coming out of beta and my Creative sound drivers are still in the beta wilderness.

Therein lies my initial point, it’s going to take some marketing muscle to convince users who depend on their PCs for their livelihoods to not only pay up for Vista (it’s not cheap, the Ultimate flavor of Vista will set you back a cool US$499, ouch!) but to also accept the inherent problems with shifting over to a new operating system.

Even without my cautionary tale, it would be tough to see the majority of SMEs and even larger corporations moving en masse to Vista in 2007. The prudent path would be to wait for Vista to mature, after all, XP only after SP2 became an OS of choice. For more adventurous individuals and those who hanker after the latest and greatest, nothing anyone will say will dissuade them picking up a copy on the 29^th of January, Microsoft’s official consumer launch date.

At least dual boot please, no matter what Microsoft may say, XP is for primetime, Vista is a nice indulgence for afters.

Dan    

MarketingSherpa’s latest survey of email marketers is out.

One of the key questions they asked was which creative email tests deliver the best ROI?

The results weren't surprising to us;
- Testing does improve ROI.
- Copy played a bigger part in achieving ROI than graphic design.
- The most ROI was achieved by testing landing page copy

Practical items I can think of based on this survey are to allocate more resources to tweaking copy versus investing in fancy graphics and to ensure your email and micro-site are in sync in terms of design, development and tracking. More often than not, we find in execution, the email campaign trails as an afterthought for many clients.

Read the survey results here.

Jo

The last 2 weeks of the year have been 1 mad rush, preparing the Christmas card, planning and working on a few new projects (more on that soon) hence the lack of blogging activity.

I’m more than ready to say “Happy New Year!” and also announce that the Malaysian team ushers in the New Year with a brand new office. They have really been troopers, working with the pioneering space (or lack of it) we got when we first dropped anchors in KL. 

With a growing team, we decided to take up a larger unit on the 7^th floor of the same building, this means bigger wider spaces with dedicated discussion/meeting rooms and a cheery bright red wall.

Take a look:

Have an awesome year ahead!

Jo

PS - Going slightly off track: I recently discovered a number of great food places near our KL office, check out:
Relish, the Gourmet Burger Joint
Yoko's - Japanese.

Continued from Part 1

What’s next?  Selling through the Internet (even for low margin FMCG goods), and creating small product runs targeted at niche audiences (Asia Pacific Brewery’s Archipelago Brewery), will be among the many strategies adopted to seize the initiative that was so easily given up decades ago.

When (not if) this happens, the biggest losers will be the big box retailers who will find themselves in direct competition with the manufacturers.  The question is “How should the retailers view and evolve their relationships with the manufacturers in this increasingly customer-centric world?”

Retailers should leverage the end-customer reach they have to establish win-win relationships with manufacturers.  Historically, retailers have not efficiently used available shopper data.  This data presents a golden opportunity to get partners (manufacturers) to buy into their frequent shopper and loyalty programs.  For FMCG companies, this strategy is efficient and makes sense for several reasons:

1.      Creating a direct channel is expensive; 

2.      Relationship strategies are long-term and resource-intensive; and

3.      Standard, standalone loyalty programs are not practical given their generally high-volume, low-cost environment and lack of means to track transactions.

Involving FMCG partners in the program fray allows the retailer to build better customer relationships through more relevant and targeted promotions.  At the same time, as they drill down to analyze the purchasing behavior at the individual shopper level and offer more impactful research data to FMCG partners, we are opening up the possibilities of more innovative and exciting marketing initiatives.

By focusing on the customer as the ultimate bottom line, retail channels and FMCG manufactures can both come out winners.

Earl

First published in Marketing Magazine December 2006 issue

The Internet has empowered today’s consumers by transferring the flow of information into the hands of the masses and not just a few large organizations. Consumers want to know exactly what they are buying, provide input into the products they will be using and enjoy a personalized user experience.  As a result, gaining an intimate understanding of their consumers has become essential to any organization’s survival, and not simply about achieving a competitive advantage.

However, for FMCG manufacturers, they are facing a problem in the last mile of the purchasing cycle – no matter how much pre-purchase research they conduct, the end customer remains largely concealed.  

Big box retailers, like Wal-Mart and Carrefour, as gateways to the end customer, have a control over even the largest manufacturers.  Ironically, this imbalance came about because manufacturers leveraged retail channels for rapid growth during the Industrial Age.  At the time, it made business sense – manufacturers gained economies of scale and were freed up to concentrate on their core competencies.  However, it has blocked them off from building meaningful relationships which today’s customer demands.

For large FMCG players, the road ahead seems clear.  They are bypassing retailers to create direct access to customer information.  Evidence of this is in the establishment of Nike Towns and Apple Stores.  These consumer-centric companies have realized that unless they shift and reconsider their traditional marketing and customer outreach channels, they will be disadvantaged.

Beyond the traditional marketing channels, Coke, P&G and Nestle have also been launching relationship strategies through viral campaigns, social networks and event sponsorships to better profile and understand their consumers.  P&G recently launched a new TV program in Singapore, Girls Out Loud – in conjunction with their Being Girl portal, an online space for young women to get advice and information on issues they commonly face.

Earl

...Continue on to Part 2

First published in Marketing Magazine December 2006 issue