Archive for January, 2009
Those who are the most disciplined experience the greatest freedom
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
That seems paradoxical at first glance, doesn’t it? However the more you think about it, the more sense it’ll make. One example is exercise. Include some sort of physical activity into you day and studies indicate that there’s less chance of devastating illness, and that means, freedom from Doctors and Emergency Rooms. Another is meditation. I meditate everyday. This has resulted in a more focused, in the moment, and disciplined mind, which allows me to do my work in a more efficient manner with fewer mistakes and a lower level of frustration. That means I have remnant time and good cheer to apply elsewhere.
I could go on and on but I think you see what I mean. Go down your personal list, and I think you’ll find areas of your life where you could be more disciplined. Think it through, and you’ll identify benefits in improving your level of discipline in all areas.
I’ll bet there are quite a few “movers and shakers” in the financial industry who’re looking over their shoulders right now because they weren’t morally disciplined. Madoff is definitely not free.
In regards to your profession, Brian Tracey writes: Discipline yourself to do what you know you need to do to be the very best in your field. Perhaps the best definition of self discipline is this: “Self discipline is the ability to make yourself do what you should do when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.”
It is easy to do something when you feel like it. It’s when you don’t feel like it and you force yourself to do it anyway that you move your life and career onto the fast track.
What decisions do you need to make today in order to start moving toward the top of your field? Whatever it is, either to get in or get out, make a decision today and then get started. This single act alone can change the whole direction of your life.
There is a powerful seven step formula that you can use to set and achieve your goals for the rest of your life. Every single successful person uses this formula or some variation of this formula to achieve vastly more than the average person. And so can you. Here it is:
Posted by Tom Polanski in Personal Growth on January 23rd, 2009
Survey says 62% shop where they’ve bought before
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
Nielsen Online, studying the holiday mindset of the U.S. online shopper, found that customer reviews are an important research tool for online consumers, with 71 percent agreeing that consumer reviews make them more comfortable that they are buying the right product. 81 percent of online shoppers have read product or retailer reviews by other customers when doing their holiday shopping this year.
Evaluation of this customer feedback found that 63 percent of online shoppers indicated that it was important to have multiple reviews for each product; 14 percent looked for reviews from an established source; and just three percent sought out reviews by people they knew personally.
Ken Cassar, vice president, industry insights, Nielsen Online, said “Consumer reviews are a must-have for online retailers, especially… when shoppers are buying for others in categories they’re less familiar with… consumers are looking for outside feedback for guidance.”
Posted by Tom Polanski in Trend Tracker on January 22nd, 2009
Sloppy retailers won’t survive 2009. Respect for customers and business efficiency are of paramount importance.
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
We all should be recovered from anesthesia by about now. There are companies that I think are really going to be in trouble this year. Did anyone really need to decorate their home solely with Pottery Barn and Williams and Sonoma furnishings? How many businesses started, and grew, because of the real estate and credit bubbles? Of course they had to grow to serve a hungry public but did they have an exit plan? Were they working hard to build and maintain quality relationships with their current customers? Did senior management understand that there really would be a day when the easy money would stop flowing? Did management invest in preparations for the economic dénouement?
More often than not, in my experience, the answer is, “no”.
Here is what we suggest to help put your business in a position to succeed in 2009:
Posted by Tom Polanski in Marketing on January 19th, 2009
Recent study indicates gas savings are going to…groceries! Groceries (coupons) as a remarketing or new purchase incentive?
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
And why not, I ask you? Extraordinary times require extraordinary actions. It’s clear that people are eating out less frequently, maybe its worth testing to determine whether offering a couple of top quality steaks will prove to be a more attractive, and unique, incentive than what we’re ordinarily offered by merchants.
When going fishing, remember to bring the fish their favorite food.
According to the results of nationwide research from retail analytics firm Precima, groceries are the top item on which U.S. consumers are spending their savings from lower gas prices, ahead of putting the money in savings, holiday gift buying and paying off credit cards.
Of the 3,013 consumers, nationally representative of U.S. grocery shoppers, who were asked to choose from a list of ways they use money saved on gas:
48% said they’re spending it on groceries
42% said saving
37% holiday gift buying
30% paying off credit cards
10% entertainment
14% said other
Posted by Tom Polanski in Trend Tracker on January 15th, 2009
eBrand Interactive creates great permission based direct marketing e-mail campaigns!
By Tom Polanski, EVP, eBrand Media and eBrand Interactive
eBrand Interactive currently manages Can-Spam compliant, permission based, e-mail marketing campaigns, to third party lists, for a number of name brand advertisers. An increasing number of companies are moving management of their e-mail campaigns to us because of the length and breadth of, not only our experience, but our relationships across the internet. eBrand Interactive can deliver to a wide variety of preferences, aspirations, habits and purchase histories. We have successfully created, launched, and managed, hundreds of e-mail campaigns, from mass broadcasts of tens of millions, to small mail outs for niche products.
There are thousands of databases but only a handful has any real value. Six years of experience has taught us the following:
E-mail Lists
We know which databases keep their e-mail lists fresh, and offer truly high quality e-mail recipients, and which don’t. In addition we can target, with statistical confidence, databases that have the highest probability of meeting or beating a targeted CPA for the advertiser while backing into an eCPM for the e-mail database. This knowledge gives our advertisers an opportunity to roll their initial CPM campaigns into ongoing, scalable CPA programs.
Audiences
We have historical and current information regarding the audience demographics, and sometimes, the psychographics, of the highest quality e-mail databases. This in-house intelligence includes, but is not limited to, the percentages of women and men in that audience, their average household income, their level of education and their lifestyle preferences. For example one database we work with is comprised of 87% women, with an average household income of $77,000. 70% of that database is college educated, and 80% of the database shops online. This type of database is perfect for some products/offers but not others.
Posted by Tom Polanski in E-mail marketing, Marketing, eBrand Interactive on January 13th, 2009