“It’s the ultimate marketing sacrifice.” That’s what world-renown marketing consultants Jack Trout and Al Ries have to say about FOCUS. Over and over, in every book they’ve written, they repeat a mantra that too many people ignore: “Good things happen when you contract, rather than expand your brand or business.”

Anyone who has the word “marketing” anywhere in their title or job description should own every book ever written by either of these two men. You should also require yourself to re-read them every 3 months or so, and give copies to every senior-level person in your organization. You’ll find they’ve put into words every good instinct you’ve ever had about marketing, and have a viable explanation for every failure you’ve ever made.

But back to FOCUS. If the goal of every company is to grow (which it invariably is), then why do Trout and Ries suggest that good things happen when you contract your business? If I had to sum it up in one word, it would be “CONFUSION.”

Let’s consider some examples provided by Al Ries and Laura Ries in their book “The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding.” American Express used to be a premier credit card with the slogan “Membership Has Its Privileges.” It was exclusive, prestigious, the card for people with money. It provided status and respectability. Membership really did have its privileges. In 1988, American Express had a handful of card choices and 27 percent of the market. Then they lost their focus. They wanted to grow, and their CEO decided the best way to do that was to introduce twelve to fifteen new cards each year. We started seeing the Optima Card, the Optima Golf Card, the Optima Rewards Card, the card for students, a card for seniors, cards with airline miles.

American Express lost its focus. They were no longer the card for the wealthy status seeker. They tried to become the card for everyone. In doing so, they created confusion in the mind of the consumer. American Express no longer stands for anything identifiable.

Today, American Express has less than 18% of the market. They introduced a bunch of new cards, lost their focus, created confusion and it cost them 1/3 of their market share.

A company that is focused allows the consumer to easily identify with that company and product. Take Kraft Foods for example. What are they known for? Does any one product come to mind? No. Because they make just about everything. They are a marketing generalist and the companies that are more narrowly focused are beating them at almost everything. Kraft has about 9% of the market in jellies and jams. Smucker’s has 35%. Kraft has 18% of the mayonnaise market. Hellmann’s has 42%. When you try to make your brand mean everything to everyone, you end up meaning nothing to anyone.

So, how do you get a marketing focus? It takes sacrifice. You have to stop trying to be everything to everyone. You have to find a category you can dominate. Federal Express built its success not by providing every type of shipping service available. They focused on overnight packages only. They had to sacrifice a big part of the potential shipping market to do that, but it paid off by making their brand name synonymous with overnight delivery. Domino’s Pizza, Little Caesar’s and Papa John’s all started out selling a wide variety of fast foods, from fish and chips to fried mushrooms. Customers found the selection way too confusing. By sacrificing the potential non-pizza business, each company became more successful.

You’ve got to be the best at one thing. Or, more correctly, be perceived as the best in the minds of your customers. If you only make pizza, you must be an expert at it. If you make pizza and subs and salads and tacos, you won’t be seen as the best at anything.

Your customers must see your name and immediately associate one word or phrase with it. Volvo means safety. Xerox means copiers. Intel means microprocessors. You must narrow your focus down to one, identifiable thing and then own it.

If you are just starting your business, sacrifice some of the sales potential available in trying to sell everything in order to build an identifiable brand name in one thing. Then stick to it. If your business already exists, look at what weak portion of it you might sacrifice in order to narrow your focus and own that portion of the market. These are the things that remove the confusion in the customer’s mind, that allow them to hear the name of your company and know exactly what it means. When you’ve done that, you have built a brand name that, properly maintained, will lead to long-term success.

This finding is based on survey data gathered from 520 business organizations in 17 countries, many of them emerging markets. We were testing the hypothesis that if a CEO’s primary focus is on profit maximization, employees develop negative feelings toward the organization. They tend to perceive the CEO as autocratic and focused on the short term, and they report being somewhat less willing to sacrifice for the company. Corporate performance is poorer as a result.

But when the CEO makes it a priority to balance the concerns of customers, employees, and the community while also taking environmental impact into account, employees perceive him or her as visionary and participatory. They report being more willing to exert extra effort, and corporate results improve.

This research, which was conducted with Mary Sully de Luque, of Thunderbird School of Global Management; David A. Waldman, of Arizona State University West; and Robert J. House, of the University of Pennsylvania, underscores the risk of single-mindedly pursuing profit.

Copyright © 2009 Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved.

via Why Profit Shouldn’t Be Your Top Goal – HBR.org.

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The Danish parliament today passed legislation which will give police sweeping powers of “pre-emptive” arrest and extend custodial sentences for acts of civil disobedience. The “deeply worrying” law comes ahead of the UN climate talks which start on 7 December and are expected to attract thousands of activists from next week.

Under the new powers, Danish police will be able to detain people for up to 12 hours whom they suspect might break the law in the near future.

via Denmark approves new police powers ahead of Copenhagen | Environment | guardian.co.uk.

Read the whole story at: Is Your Boss a Bully? Stop Being the Target. – Conversation Starter – HarvardBusiness.org.

The idea that some of these signs ever looked nice is hard to conceive, but it brings up two important points: 1) “Looks” are subjective, and 2) Signs should be updated or refreshed once in awhile.

But, I digress. What does design have to do with anything? A lot.

As the keepers of the modern signmaking craft, we are descedants of the cave drawers and hieroglyphicists (yeah, that’s a word… now). While computer-based graphics and digital signage can be turned off, something as simple as an outdoor aluminum sign can last for decades… or longer.

Helicopters and airplanes in ancient Egypt?

The visual designs we put forth into the world may very well outlast our own lives. Do you want the world to remember you by Comic Sans, Brush Script, and “Cheapest prices in town?”

Has it ever crossed your mind that the free clip art you used as a client’s “logo” may end up immortalized as a bronze sculpture in front of some corporate headquarters one day? Design matters.

How much knowledge would we have gathered from the ancient Mayans if they had been so thoughtless with their calendars? What if the Egyptians had used a bunch of fonts for no reason, and put quotes “where they don’t belong?” You get the idea.

So, all things considered, signmakers are ambassadors to the future. We tell the future about the past. Please consider your responsibility as a designer the next time a client asks for something “creative.” Your primary job is to design a functional sign – not indulge your ego’s artistic flair.

If you need some modern-day hieroglyphs, you can always refer to the newly-updated AIGA Symbol Signs as a starting point.

Neon Sign Museum | Las Vegas, NV

]]> http://jlilly.com/wordpress/the-neon-museum-las-vegas/feed/ 0 http://jlilly.com/wordpress/creative-review-photosketch/ http://jlilly.com/wordpress/creative-review-photosketch/#comments Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:41:07 +0000 J. Lilly http://jlilly.com/wordpress/?p=139 PhotoSketch is a nifty online tool that allows you to create photomontages from simple stickmen-style sketches

via Creative Review – PhotoSketch.

I really like how simply this could be used to more fully develop storyboards and sell ideas. Nice work. Look for this technology everywhere, soon.