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June 16, 2011
They say ‘write what you know’ well this month I know all about how hard it is to sell a house (mine has been sold and fallen through again twice in three months) and, in my fug about how to resell the place for the third time, I realised I was subconsciously applying my marketing head to the problem.
In my mind I was running through routes to market, boosting the general appeal of the house itself to maximise the target audience, trying to establish whether the house is priced appropriately in relation to the current market and the audience we are targeting etc.
All this planning, checking and analysis got me thinking about how many people actually consider these questions when trying to sell their products or services… be honest, do you? Well if not, who can blame you, you’ve got plenty else to think about and, let’s face it, you need to focus on what you’re best at, your business. So with that in mind, perhaps you can help stop me obsessing about selling my house and give me something else to think about, I’ll be waiting for your call!
Zoë
June 8, 2011
We had an interesting exchange in the office yesterday stemming from whether to have BBC Radio 1 (Zoë and Victoria’s radio station of choice) or BBC Radio 2 (Clare, Katherine and Phil’s favourite) playing in the background while we merrily got on with our work.
We settled on listening to a variety of CDs, but as part of the debate about the pros and cons of various artists we stumbled across the topic of the first gigs we went to (we did get lots of work done yesterday too, honestly).
The results are shown below – some people are clearly cooler than others (I don’t think my Bros days cut the mustard when compared to some of the others!), but we’ll let you be the judge of that…
OUR FIRST CONCERTS:
PHIL: Dire Straits, On Every Street Tour, 1991, Sheffield Arena
ZOË: The Wonderstuff (Size of a cow and all that!), The Wedgewood Rooms
PAUL: Sugarcubes, Birmingham Hummingbird
LARA: Michael Jackson (I was 13), Wembley
CLARE: Jamiroquai, Manchester
VICTORIA: Madonna, Blonde Ambition tour, Wembley
KATHERINE: Bros, Wembley
EMMA: Cliff Richard, Location: Hong Kong 1977 (there were lots of over excited Chinese ladies throwing their knickers on stage, I don’t know who was more embarrassed Cliff or my Dad!)
OUR BEST EVER CONCERTS:
PHIL: U2 – Zoo TV / Zooropa Tour 1993 – supported by the Utah Saints and some dreadful Dutch rock band, Feijenoord Stadium Rotterdam
ZOË: The Police (19 weeks pregnant so had to sit down for most of it) How retro chic am I!, Twickenham
PAUL: Blur (though it is a bit of a blur), Nottingham Rock City
LARA: Mumford & Sons, Apollo
CLARE: Bjorn Again (ABBA tribute band), Manchester
VICTORIA: Chemical Brothers (also a bit of a blur….!!), Brixton Academy
KATHERINE: Coldplay, Crystal Palace
EMMA: Level 42, Brighton Civic Centre
OUR FAVOURITE ALBUMS OF THE MOMENT:
PHIL: (New) Kings of Leon – Come Around Sundown, (One that’s come out the archive recently) The Cure – Mixed Up
ZOË: Got to be Plan B – the Defamation of Strickland Banks…love it!
PAUL: Paloma Faith – Do you want the truth or something beautiful
LARA: Nerina Pallot, ‘Put Your Hands Up’
CLARE: Supergrass – In it for the money
VICTORIA: Can I have two (which are polar opposites?!)? Magenetic Man and ‘Bright Lights’ by Ellie Goulding.
KATHERINE: 21, Adele
EMMA: Beautiful South, Brixton Academy
So there you have it, we’ve laid our musical tastes bare. I wonder what they say about us?
June 6, 2011
Whilst out shopping recently at The Magical Rooms in Grayshott, I came across a mobile phone toy from Ecotronic Toys which ticks a lot of boxes if you are looking for toys with eco credentials. I was looking for a mobile phone toy for my daughter (to cure her of her obsession with my blackberry which is providing detrimental to its health!) so naturally the fact that it was a phone was the starting point in persuading me to part with my cash. However, what I was drawn to in particular was that it doesn’t need batteries (the phone’s entertaining music and lights are ’charged’ by Chloe shaking it about all the time) and also that it had really interesting, very eco friendly packaging that I hadn’t seen employed in this industry before.
The packaging is biodegradable, pared down to the absolute minimum, easy to open, has no dangerous ties and wires and uses nothing but recycled paper. And, at the same time, still looked really well designed: it was easy to read, nicely designed and had real shelf appeal.
 Ecotronic eco phone - a great 'eco' packaging solution When compared with a lot of toys you see that have excessive packaging I think the approach of this toy company is inspired. It certainly made me stop and think about our eco credentials as a company (something I am starting to look at so we can reduce our carbon footprint as much as possible) and also of course, we will be taking a fresh look at client packaging briefs to us too to see if we can’t make some difference there too.
June 1, 2011
Whilst making Sunday dinner last week, I very cleverly managed to pour a pan of boiling water over my arm, resulting in a very sore arm, a ruined Sunday roast and a trip to A&E!
I was in and out of Royal Surrey County Hospital in two hours and was dealt with by a bunch of very professional and kind medical staff. I returned home with a bandaged arm and strict instructions to visit my local doctors’ surgery to get the burn re-dressed within 24 hours. Sounds simple enough!
At my local surgery, the appointment system is such that you have to phone at 8am to get an appointment that day (10 minutes later and you’ve missed your chance!). So having dutifully picked up the phone at 8am sharp, I tried to get an appointment for that day.
First hurdle – it’s only the District Nurses who do dressings. Ok.
Second hurdle – they only do dressings between 2 and 4pm. OK well that’s not too bad. It means leaving work early but if that’s what has to be done then so be it.
Third hurdle – you can’t speak to them so you have to leave a message on their answer machine. Bye.
So after much hand-wringing and message leaving, I finally secured an appointment with the District Nurse and had my burn re-dressed.
However, I had a completely different experience when I decided to try and get subsequent re-dressings carried out at the doctors’ surgery in a different town near to my office.
My call was picked up by an answering machine and I was told that my call was important to them, they were very sorry for any inconvenience caused and I was the first in the queue. When I spoke to the receptionist a few minutes later, I wasn’t prepared for the friendly, sing-song voice on the other end of the line, so used am I to the defensive hostility of my usual surgery.
I explained my situation and she replied that it was no problem at all and of course I could see their nurse. She then proceeded to book an appointment, at a time convenient for me, for every day that week and told me it was fine for me to carry on being treated there for as long as necessary. I found myself thanking her profusely, amazed by her customer-focused helpfulness!
It’s extraordinary that two very similar organisations can adopt such a differing approach to their customers, resulting in two opposing customer experiences. As a customer, if I could choose which surgery to visit, I would definitely go with the one where I felt valued. It shows that it’s not just an organisation’s logo, signage, advertising and marketing collateral that expresses their brand values and ethos. The customer experience is just as important.
As an Account Manager here at Mzuri, when I’m working on a new brand for a client, I always look at how they interact with their customers, so that every point of their customer contact thoroughly reinforces their brand values. But being on the receiving end of terrible and brilliant brand communication, has really reminded me of the importance of this sort of holistic branding. Administrative systems and telephone manner are just as vital as an eye-catching logo and corporate colours.
Oh, and my arm is still sore and icky but healing well!
May 24, 2011
A few weeks ago, I made a discovery. Of the food variety (my favourite variety). And it is slowly but surely being disseminated round the office, and a fair few friends of mine too, so I’ve decided to share it with the masses in case you haven’t been indoctrinated already.
Ladies and gentleman, the Graze box.
Basically a cardboard ‘lidded tray’ that gets sent to you once a week (or more, or less, you decide) containing four dinky boxes of deliciousness. It might sounds like a cross between meals on wheels and airline food, but the Graze folk have got it spot on.
I decided to have a go when a friend sent me a code to get my first box for free (they are normally £3.49) – clever marketing ploy, part 1.
The website is refreshingly clean on the design front, easy to navigate, and friendly without making your toes curl. I found out very quickly that I would be under no commitment if I signed up, and that I would be able to cancel my orders at any time – clever marketing ploy, part 2. Nobody wants to be reminded of the gym membership they took out in 2003 that wallowed unused for 11 months.
OK, sucked in, now what do I do?? “Oh GOODY!” I thought when I saw all the questions I could answer on my likes and dislikes. No, I’m not joking, I am the only person I know who filled in the recent census form on the day it arrived. Graze sets out all the ‘little punnets’ that they include, and invites you to say whether you want to bin/try/like/love/send often.
I was in heaven, frankly. Out with your ‘beach bum’ mix (can’t stand dried mango), in with the ‘honey bee good’ (love anything nutty). Lay off the olives please, but send me lots of the dark rocky road
So, form filling complete, I sat and waited for Wednesday morning when box number one was due. Get into the office, and there it is on my desk as promised. Packaging that made all of us ‘ooohhh’ and ‘aaaahhh’ – the little booklet giving me “fact-tips” about how to get the most out of Graze and how nutritionally balanced each box is, the little punnets sitting in their specially designed insert, the contrast of the gorgeous colour photography against the ‘raw’ brown paper style packaging. And the invitation to “eat more healthy food (fewer biscuits)”. Brilliant; I was being healthy to boot, it says so in black and white – clever marketing ploy part 3.
Suffice to say, at least half of the office had signed up by lunchtime using the code I’d given them to get a free box – reciprocal marketing at work, I also benefit from them joining by getting £1 to use against my next order, or to donate to Graze’s school of farming in Uganda.
I actually look forward to the email I get the day before my box arrives, giving me a sneak peek at what’s coming. I look forward to the actual box arriving like a 9 year old getting their first letter through the post.
I am now a very happy Grazer, and just hoping I don’t start to moo with delight.
www.graze.com
May 17, 2011
Now, I love clever marketing which is why I wanted to tell you about an event I went to last weekend with my children.
It was held by one of our clients, The Royal School at their Junior School site in Haslemere. The event, entitled ‘Grow for it’, came hot on the heels of a period of intense change at the School and was designed to highlight and promote both the School and the recent extensive additions to its offering, to local parents of eligible children.
The premise of the event, which was open to the public, was an outdoors gardening and wildlife activity day hosted by Charlie Dimmock and Alan Titchmarsh. Children aged up to age 11 were invited to attend one of the two half day sessions to take part in pond dipping with Charlie, decorating flower pots and planting them up with Alan, making mini-beast houses (I am now the proud owner of a ladybird house made out of chicken wire and plastic straws as well as a bee house built from rolled up newspaper and half an old drinks bottle!) and finally, to go on an interactive nature trail around the School grounds.
Now you might be wondering why I thought this was such clever marketing… so here’s why…
- The event was open to the public and advertised online and in local press to ensure target area coverage.
- It was a weekend event designed to be enticing to children but also to adults looking to keep their kids entertained with something new. The celebrity aspect was also guaranteed to draw attention and it worked like a dream.
- It generated a lot of footfall into the school by children and parents of the right age (I’ve already mentioned that the upper age range for the event was 11) handy, considering the Royal School Junior School accepts children from nursery age right up to secondary school age.
- The event had been designed to be incredibly interactive, keeping people moving and showing off the most attractive areas of the school at the same time. There were also handy, but discreetly placed pieces of collateral giving information about the school and offering the chance to register for more information.
- The staff and helpers at the school were all amazingly friendly, helpful and engaging. The event really couldn’t have been a better advert for the school and to top it all off the whole thing was free and each child got to take home a Royal School wrist band, their own decorated pot plant plus their own mini-beast house.
Correct me if I’m wrong but I imagine there are an awful lot of young children in Haslemere and surrounding areas right now thinking that the Royal School must be the best school ever and we all know what pester power can achieve!
Overall, a brilliantly planned and executed, clever and effective event that is sure to achieve its objectives…long live clever marketing, we salute you!
May 6, 2011
We were thrilled to hear that one our our clients, Organics for Kids, recently won “Best Organic Textile Product” in the 2011 Natural and Organic Awards. Hosted in association with the Soil Association and Natural Products Magazine, the Natural & Organic Awards, over the last fifteen years, have become a benchmark for excellence and set a standard for innovation, quality and commitment in the natural and organic sector.
Well done Jane, Diana and the rest of the team at Organics for Kids.
May 4, 2011
Tuesday 26 April – first day as Account Manager at Mzuri Design.
7am – feel very pleased with myself as I get dressed into outfit I laid out the night before!! Wonder how long this level of super-organisation will last!
8am – set off on journey to office… I think I remember the way?!? Made it! I did remember the way – yay!!
9am – am introduced to new colleagues. Must remember all these new names; luckily there’s only 8 new names to remember, but hey, 8 is more than 1!
11am – head is spinning with bucketsful of information poured into me – lists of clients, updating blogs, email marketing, social media management (need I go on?) - is it time for elevenses??
12.30pm – All this excitement is making me hungry. Time to delve into my brand new lunch box presented to me by lovely husband. Yum, yum – ready to get back to it again.
3pm – just finished writing a press release for one of our clients – feels great to be productive. Bring on the next one!!
5.30pm – feeling tired but exhilarated by my first day. My new colleagues are FAB  and am thrilled to be part of the team. I’m really looking forward to doing it all over again tomorrow!
May 3, 2011
I’m having a bit of a technology dilemma - do I stick with my Blackberry (or Crackberry as they are quite rightly referred to on account of their addictiveness) or do I flip over to the dark side and get an iPhone? I have to say that I’ve been frustrated with my Blackberry recently and particularly it’s slow browsing and the apps just aren’t as good (in my humble opinion). Any thoughts very welcome.
We’ve also been debating the relative merits of more traditional portfolio routes that lots of clients still like to see when we’re out and about at meetings, against the obvious benefits of a little communal iPad in the Mzuri offices for whizzier presentations when we’re not in our super dooper meeting room at the office. You can tell that women outnumber men in our office as the discussion about the business benefits was followed shortly by the fact that we’d have to ‘protect’ the new iPad arrival with the super sleek Sara iPad case from our lovely clients Orelia http://www.orelia.co.uk/jewellery-detail.php?Sara-iPad-Case-451. Any excuse for feeding our accessories shopping habit in this place!
 The Sara iPad Case from Orelia
April 14, 2011
So, we had a little internal training session at Mzuri a week or so ago, and Katherine sidled up to me a few days before saying “Fancy genning up on these and telling us all about them?”. She had in her hand, a flyer that we’d been given at Pizza Express (our farewell dinner for Kate!) – nothing extraordinary about it, except the odd black and white box printed on it which, if I scanned it with my smartphone, would take me to a web page with lots of pizza recipes on it.
You may have seen an example of what I mean as they are getting more prolific in marketing material. Imagine a square made up of black and white pixels arranged in a random manner. This is what is called a QR code – or ‘quick reaction’ code.
The idea is that the user downloads one of the free QR code readers available on their mobile phones, and then uses it to ‘read’ the code. What happens at that point varies hugely; you could be taken to a web page, or an article, or contact details….or a pizza recipe. Pretty much anything.
QR codes are a little like barcodes, but they have the added advantage of being able to store more than just numerical data. There are numerous free generators online; you simply tell it what you want the code to ‘point’ to, an image is then shown which you can save and use on websites, marketing material, business cards, or anything else you use to promote awareness of your brand.
We’ve seen them used in various applications – some more useful than others – and it’s now something that’s definitely on our radar as an additional communication tool. If you want to know more, then do get in touch and we’d be happy to talk you through this technology and how you might be able to use it. Now, I’m off to make that pizza…..!
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