Marketing

Google+ Will Fail and Why.

Many of you know I’m in the business of Marketing; specifically social marketing.  I’ve been playing with Google+ lately and have come to several opinions about the service that I thought I’d share.  In general, I think the service will die, and die quickly.  Here are the 5 observations why I think this is so:

  1. Google+ has no cachet… it’s not really that cool to be on Google+… there is no reason to right now (as opposed to just being on Facebook).  Google tried to make some buzz with the “fake” limits on user growth, but those in the know, know that was contrived.
  2. Google + doesn’t help companies (yet).  I expect Google will get around to it, and when that happens, companies will rush to setup their pages… but soon they will realize: it’s EXPENSIVE to maintain Google+, Facebook, and Twitter: then they’ll say, gee, we’ve invested in Facebook; we’re staying.
  3. Games will kill it.  Games on Google+ are coming, and when they do, let the spam wars begin.  Google has a TON of work, trial, and error to do, to keep up with Facebook on this delicate balance of fun and non-annoyance.
  4. Google+ doesn’t “give me more” of anything over Facebook.  It’s just not superior in any way; so what’s the point?
  5. Google Adwords is too expensive; and Google+ may “dilute” prices over time for adwords (which Google WILL NOT LIKE).  Hence, the quick, fast, and early demise of Google+.  
Google.  Stick to search!  It’s making you rich!

Video Blog 6/14/11: Magic Marketing Formula for Engineers

Discover the “magic” of Marketing in an Engineering Formula.  The Dominant Coeffecient might surprise you… it’s what makes a product/service SUCCESSFUL vs. UNSUCCESSFUL.

In case you missed it, the Formula is:
       SALES = REVIEW_SCORE * (SUM_OF_OTHER_MARKETING_STUFF_YOU_DO)

This is a true statement for at least the Killer NIC and various iPhone games I’ve worked on.

Is it true for you?

Where has Harlan Been? Where is Karmaback Going?

I’ve been away from my Blog lately, and recently realized that not only do I miss it; some of my faithful readers miss it.  What can I say, I’ve been busy working!  Read on to see exactly on what…

So where have I been?  
First, I’ve started living what I preach: I’ve taken on some major contracting/consulting work in Marketing.  I am leading the Marketing strategy and teams at 2 different companies, and advising on marketing at several more.  Why?  Well, I needed some steady income as Karmaback is on hold [more on that later].  Second, I really wanted to put into practice all I’ve been saying here on this Blog into the real world.  The great thing is, that because I’m working with several companies, I can leverage what I learn one place at another, and vice versa.  I can also take what I learn and post it here, for you!

What companies are you working with?
I think it may be interesting for you to follow some of what I’m doing, so here’s a quick rundown of companies I’m helping with Marketing.  First, an iPhone Game/App company called ingZ, Inc.  This is my primary contract and I’m basically full-time here running all of Marketing and Sales.  Second, a Facebook Game company called Night Owl Games.  This one is part-time contract only, but I’m fully in charge of all Marketing and Sales efforts.  (cool side-note, my Marketing assistant starts today!)  Third, I’m helping several young startups with their Marketing direction and also general strategy.  I can’t list those all here, but one of my favorites that I’m helping is CuttingEdgeGamer who “leases” high end graphics cards, WITH infinite upgrades!   Why all the gaming companies?  Well, mostly because I’m a gamer and love it.  But also because it’s been “my industry” now for almost 10 years… so my industry expertise and contacts help me to land gigs like these.  You’ll be hearing more about all these companies and all my goings on right here in the future!

So what’s up with Karmaback?
Very short answer is that it is “on hold” from a growth standpoint until our new server work is completed.  We actually grew too fast (really!)!  We outpaced our server infrastructure and had to move to a multi-server, cluster approach that is taking time to get just right.  When we’re done, we’ll be able to sustain a MEGA twitter blast from the likes of Kim Kardashian or Terrel Owens twitter feed: up to 10,000 hits per second shouldn’t be a problem!   We’ll be able to take on bigger customers and help smaller customers get BIG bang for their marketing dollar.  In addition we’ll be rolling out new products and new features at a very nice pace: and generally speaking, Karmaback will be back in business.  We’re hoping to get it all ready by the end of the summer.

So, what about the blog?  
Here is the good news, I’ve been reading Meatball Sundae by Seth Godin (for the third time) and realized I not only am passionate about Marketing, I am passionate about talking about Marketing: SO… This blog is going to grow.  I’m going to start doing regular video blogging, and also starting a Facebook Fanpage, just for blog readers.  Stay tuned: MUCH is coming very very soon!

WordPress For the Win.

I know countless other people have said that WordPress is amazing.. that it’s powerful, complex, rich, and easy to use.. that it is the only thing people should be building websites on today! Let me add my thoughts on WordPress: THEY ARE RIGHT!  I’ve been using it for about 6 months now on a number of marketing projects,  and every time I use it to: create a quick web-page, post a blog, add a side-bar widget, add a social plug-in, or build a site in a week or two… I get goosebumps.

If you are building a new website, and you are not using WordPress (and running a Blog too), I wonder at your sanity!

Marketing Innovation now moves FASTER than Technology Innovation

Technology is now moving slower than marketing.  Think about it: WordPress and Web 2.0 are 1999 technologies still used everywhere.  Web 3.0 is just Web 2.0 but easier, and more broadly used, not really “new technology”.  Today, what distinguishes a great blog, website, or online application is how it is marketed.  And the marketing of websites, blogs, online applications and the like is evolving faster than we can even imagine; much faster than the technologies they run on. 

At Karmaback, we help companies experiment with new forms of online marketing: Sweepstakes on Facebook, Twitter, and Foursquare, Viral Coupons, Groupon-like Online Coupons, Referral Contests, Rewards Program, Loyalty Programs, and much, much more.  Most importantly, we have technologies and reporting tools that let marketers determine IF what they are doing is effective.

Karmaback now has almost 2 years of experimentation, best practices, and data in all things Marketing in this new era of marketing dominating technology.  We can tell you what works, what doesn’t, and a little bit of why.

Check out what we do at Karmaback with our Social Sweepstakes, Social Coupons and Social Feedback System.  Find out how to keep pace with “The New Marketing”!

Turning “Visitors” into “Loyal Evangelists” is Impossible.

The verb turning implies that you actually turn something.  I believe it is impossible to “turn” a visitor of your website/store/product/service into a “Loyal” evangelist.  It is hubris to believe that we caused a “turning” to happen on a person.  So, instead, we must console ourselves by giving our visitors/customers every possible reason to decide to turn themselves!  Here is a short-list of things I’ve tried to “turn” visitors into evangelists…. and the success thereof.

  1. Make the website/app look good.   Result: fail.  Opinion: good looks are not enough… they are expected.
  2. Make the website/app easy to use.  Result: helps.  Opinion: combined with good looks… it is definately a “reason” someone might turn themselves into an evangelist.
  3. Cheap Rewards.  result: fail.  Opinion: cheap rewards (such as useless points, etc.) are not effective.
  4. Expensive Rewards.  result: so-so.  Opinion: if combined with other “reasons” it can push some % of visitors/customers over the edge.  *See loyalty cards.
  5. Charity involvement: result: fail.  Opinion: Charity connections really don’t motivate like they used to.
  6. Delight the customer… underpromise, overdeliver.  result: WIN.  Opinion.. if there is ever any reason that a person might have to “turn” themselves into a loyal evangelist… this is the one.
An anecdote: I am a fanatic about Audible.com.  I use it for 2 hours every day (on my drive to/from work, I listen to books).  It’s super easy to use website is reasonably attractive, and never fails me.  I always find new books I want to read, and the simplicity of sending them to my iPhone is delightful.  I am a delighted Audible fan, and for that reason (and maybe a few others), I am a loyal evangelist for audible.
The question: how can a Marketing Company (like Karmaback) help other companies DELIGHT their customers?  (and how can we measure it)?

Confusing Marketing doesn’t Work.

Have you ever seen a TV commercial that made you go… huh, what was that about?  Did you ever wonder who the heck that ad was targeting?  GoDaddy is a good example… their early TV commercials made no sense… many people still don’t know they are a registrar and web hosting company.  I recently watched a Chevy commercial with 3 guys in a car, they turn on the CD player, and it’s kids music thumping… I didn’t get it.  Am I supposed to want this embarrassment for myself?  Confusing marketing doesn’t work.  If your target audience doesn’t know who you are AND why you exist, you may as well have not bothered to tell them who you are.

Some companies websites are the worst (examples: http://www.rootlearning.com/ , http://www.motive.com/ , many, many more).  That clever Flash animation you have: I didn’t watch it.  That annoying “auto-play” audio you launch when I hit your site: made me close your site in 1 second.  The funky, indirect, “marketing-speak” on your home-page: might be good for SEO, but please, just TELL ME WHAT YOU DO!  Directness is valued by customers who are shopping for your goods.  Leave the indirect stuff for latter pages.. and always open and close with directness… it works.

Measuring is different than Succeeding

Many marketing executives believe in measuring effectiveness.  From Google Analytics to Conversion Tracking to “Share of Voice”, the importance of measurements is growing rapidly.  In order to succeed though, we marketers have to actually do something with the data.  Make more rational decisions.  Invest more deeply in the  things that work.  Why would any rational person want to invest in something they know doesn’t work?  And without measurement, why would any rational person invest in something they don’t know if it works or not?