Be the Best...

Aiming for the best position in your product category is one of the best marketing tools you can equip yourself with.  The 19^th World Travel Awards, voted by worldwide travel agents, have announced the best in the travel and tourism industry.  The winners can utilize their renowned awards as part of their promotional campaigns to differentiate themselves from the rest in the industry.

Here is a sample of the winners:

 

World’s Leading Airline Business Class:                   Singapore Airlines

World’s Leading Airline Economy class:                  Lufthansa

World’s Leading Airline Inflight Entertainment:    Etihad Airways

World’s Most Innovative Airline:                              Korean Air

World’s Leading Budget Hotel:                                 Holiday Inn Express

World’s Leading Ice Hotel:                                         Ice Hotel Sweden

World’s Leading Luxury Business Hotel:                 Radisson Royal Hotel Moscow

World’s Leading Cruise Line:                                     Royal Caribbean International

World’s Leading cruise Destination:                        Jamaica

World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination:            Mauritius

World’s Leading Tourist Attraction:                         Taj Mahal, India

World’s Leading Culinary Destination:                     Peru

 

Are you the best in anything?

Benetton's 'UNHATE' campaign...

 

 

Here is an interesting way to attract customers’…Benetton’s advertising strategy focuses mainly on promoting social causes and ideas, often controversial ones, rather than its fashion products.  The latest photoshopped picture of Barack Obama kissing the Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez is part of the ‘Unhate’ foundation and campaign of Benetton’s in-house ad agency.  Benetton’s sales have been struggling lately and it would really help to invest its advertising budget on promoting its products; however, Benetton insists on promoting social ideas that reflect the brand’s open-minded, multicultural and peace oriented identity.

“Dollar menus” will get you through tough times…

The economic crisis has been embodied in the daily strategic decision making of every corporation and retailer out there. We have to find ways to survive through these hard times.  Sometimes the solution might be easier and more obvious than we think it would be. 

Identify basic needs and wants of your consumers and try to fulfill them at the lowest cost possible.  McDonalds’s identification of people’s basic need for food at a low comparatively cost has lead to the induction and promotion of its “Dollar menus”; this has enabled McDonalds to maintain its current clientele, attract even more and sustain its vitality during the economic crisis. Dr. Ater, a Tel Aviv University researcher claims that McDonalds’ “'Dollar Menu' is an ideal model for corporate success in the times of economic crisis.”

What adjustments are you making to your menus or price lists?

Store mannequins are watching you…

Isn’t marketing all about identificatin and satisfaction of customers needs and wants?  Well, Italian mannequin maker Almax, has discovered a smart way to automatically identify customer demographics!  Almax’s €4.000 EyeSee mannequins, already placed at American and a few European stores, are watching customers with demographic profiling software and transferring data relating to age, gender and race while keeping the data anonymous.  This has enabled retailers to make the necessary adjustments on their store windows, displays and stock to help increase sales and customer satisfaction.  One store adjusted its window displays after its mannequins retreived information on men spending more money than women during a two-day sale.  Moreover, another store placed a Chinese speaking sales assistant at a certain entrance of its store after mannequins granted information that more Asian customers were entering through the specific store door.  Almax is even considering taking its mannequins one step further by adding ears to them…

So, would you use EyeSee mannequins to help you increase your customer satisfaction?

Make money during the economic crisis...

Even during an economic crisis, there is room for niche marketing and potential sales growth.  You can still differentiate and gain a competitive advantage, as long as you target the right segment in the right strategy; emphasize the fact that you can help consumers save or make money, which will, in turn, bring you money!

An ideal example reflecting the above is James Reinhart’s ThredUP online marketplace for children’s used clothing; this 3-year-old business/concept has been excitingly accepted by many parents, who can either make some money out of their kids’ outgrown clothes or save money by buying for their kids, good-conditioned, branded, low-priced clothes.

What is your niche marketing strategy during this economic crisis?

Saying thank you...

Hello and good month to all!

Saying thank you to your customers does not really cost much, and it has the power of increasing the loyalty and return rate of your clients.  Mailing or emailing, personalized, "thank you" cards will make your customers feel special and appreciated.  They will return to you for more..  Evan Carmichael, a motivational and entrepreneurial strategist has performed the "thank you" test to find out that customers not only returned for more purchases to the same company, they even replied with a "thank you" for the "thank you" card...Little things as saying thank you matter. 

Will you make your clients feel special today?