clemans on marketing: confessions and misdemeanors

Leadership "It" Factor. 15 Crucial Tips for Success.

GREAT LEADERS COMMUNICATE COMPETENCY AND RAPPORT to build trust. Great companies, hell bent on leading the pack and inspiring loyalty, must project the same – in thought, word, and deed.

1. Crunch the numbers, but warm the story.
2. Communicate with power and credibility.
3. Convey approachability and energy.
4. Share critical information.
5. Stand for something.
6. Deliver as promised.
7. Project confidence and the "voice of authority".
8. Commit to relationships.
9. Be prepared.
10. Set the standard.
11. Focus big picture/long term.
12. Promote accomplishments.
13. Find the humor.
14. Listen, respond, innovate.
15. Sell what's unique.

(The same goes for Great Marketing and Branding.)

 

 

Captain of Innovation & Apricots.

Out on dusty Highway 120, the road to Yosemite, is one fruit stand among many that is fly-free. For years they hung fly strips, not a pleasant sight for customers bagging cherries, corn, peaches and apricots. Now the fly strips are all gone, replaced by suspended crystal clear bags of sparkly water, each with a strip of aluminum floating inside. It seems that reflections onto the many lenses of the flies compound eyes startles them, causing an exodus for parts unknown!

With the world buzzing around at our heels, relentlessly changing technology, fickle and coddled consumers, and an ever-increasing army of entrepreneurs on the hunt for the next big idea, we must keep our eyes sharply focused on innovation for sustainability and growth–solving problems, improving products, uncovering exceptional ways to be both new and useful, shifting paradigms and increasing value.

5th International Symposium on Digital Earth. Day 1.

"We are all astronauts on a little spaceship called earth". R. Buckminster Fuller

ISDE envisions a global commons–technology in service to humanity and the earth. This year's event focuses on the launch of an initiative to help combat global warming.

Today is the first day of the conference, now in session at the University of California at Berkeley. I am a volunteer and also an attendee, having the good fortune to listen to several larger than life keynote speakers this morning.

Dr. Edgar Mitchell, Astronaut on Apollo 14, shared his experience and images from deep space, leaving us with a profound awareness of the vastness of creation. Ambassador John McDonald explained what one man can do through committed effort, turning "brilliant ideas into realities" for the welfare of mankind. For example, Ambassador McDonald's herculean efforts, in conjunction with the United Nations, helped get the Mediterranean Sea cleaned up and safe drinking water throughout Third World countries.

Dr. Doug Englebart, Director of Bootstrap Alliance, inventor of the computer mouse and a pioneer of human-computer interaction, networked computers, hypertext, etc. spoke of his belief that humanity has the collective capability for coping with complex, urgent problems through networked collaboration, "an integrated infrastructure of component capabilities."

Harness the "collective IQ" for our shared future at every level and we will all be better for it.

Recycling containers are ubiquitous. An inflatable portable Elumenati GeoDome holds court in Pauley Ballroom. Google Earth, Microsoft Virtual Earth, NOAA, NASA, Webhaven, and many others are sponsoring the conference.

Real time image of Ethiopia, courtesy of spotimage.com

Guts for Glory.

Sue Pipal, one of our all time favorite clients, runs a world class 8-person interior design firm in Tahoe City, Dragonfly Designs. Not satisfied to build the business strictly through word of mouth, post card mailings, small space ads and chumming at the Chamber of Commerce and Junior League, Ms. Pipal courageously decided to think large. She envisioned promoting her company with a 12-page full-color catalog that would showcase Dragonfly's fabulous design capabilities and also introduce a unique collection of products. The results are breathtaking. They're now in a league of their own.

Run a company. Lead a department. You're your own boss. Guts required.

Investing in Teamwork.

At Bob and Virginia's holiday brunch, we witnessed an example of true teamwork. The couple, in their mid 80's, had just finished planting two acres with grapes and landscaping their new home.

We exclaimed at the hard work involved. But Bob smiled and quietly said, "It's no big deal, Virginia buys the plants and lays them out. I dig the holes and plant them."

When my mom fell, hurt her knee and had to have surgery, my dad accompanied her to physical therapy appointments, taking careful notes on the exercise regimen. Mom was power walking across the pool in no time.

In Corporate America, "teamwork" is more often than not about "improved performance" and "increased profitability", with little authentic effort directed toward "the betterment of all". Former President and CEO of HP, Carly Fiorina, in her outstanding memoir, Tough Choices, discusses team building in depth and realizes "that in the end, business isn't just about the numbers; it's about people."

Palm. Making the Leap to Greatness.

Ed Colligan, President and CEO of Palm, is the man to beat when it comes to masterminding the mobile lifestyle. He's responsible for driving Palm's global leadership of the mobile computing market with innovative products like Treo smartphones.

Colligan recently spoke at the Churchill Club. He told us that he's using the principles and diagnostic tools found in powerhouse bestseller, Good to Great, to transform the company and vault the chasm between good and great.

Good to Great author Jim Collins states,

“When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get a magical alchemy of great results.”

This quote surely inspired Colligan. It certainly inspired me. I think my trusty Treo 650 is inspiring, but gosh, the Treo 680 GSM, available in crimson, copper and arctic, is looking pretty hot right now too...

Review the 7 Habits!

A reminder to self to recommit Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits for Highly Effective People to memory.

1. Be proactive
2. Begin with the end in mind
3. Put first things first
4. Think win/win
5. Seek first to understand…then to be understood
6. Synergize
7. Sharpen the saw

Breaking Free of Mediocrity.

We are in dire need of business leaders who have "the ferocious resolve, an almost stoic determination to do whatever needs to be done" to make their companies great, so says Jim Collins, bestselling author of Good to Great and Built to Last.

AUDI ON THE ROPES.

Take a page from Audi, a "Good to Great" company (in my opinion) that almost sank. Audi drove themselves into a deep hole. It all began in 1986 when Audi was forced to face a recall "situation" that included failing brake systems on their 5000S model, a 6-year-old boy crushed against a wall, a 60 Minutes exposé and a bungled PR nightmare that fanned the fire. The company stumbled – brand, reputation and sales – into a major slump. BMW ate their lunch.

Much More Than a Banana Coconut Frappuccino.

September 2006 issue of Vanity Fair. Kate Moss, fashion icon and alleged coke addict caught on video, graces the cover. I flipped to the Proust Questionnaire on the back page. Howard Schultz, who created Starbucks, a multi-billion dollar company with 11,000 stores worldwide, reflects on life, coffee and work.

I liked his answers. Here's a sampling:

What is the quality you most like in a man?

Emotional Intelligence.

If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what do you think it would be?

A public servant who has the courage to lead without regard to special interest, polling, assessing my chance for re-election.

What is it that you most dislike?

A sense of entitlement.

What is your motto?

"Success is best when it's shared."

I vow to switch from Peet's to Starbucks for my double short nonfat latte, three-quarters full, well, at least now and then.

Apply Hannibal's Winning Strategies of 218 B.C.

CMOMagazine.com gives us valuable insights into Hannibal Barca, the Carthaginian military leader and statesman who out-fought Rome for over twenty years. The article suggests that businesses attacking new markets can learn from Hannibal, ranked as one of the greatest military commanders and tacticians in history.

Author Wayne E. Pollard writes, "Hannibal survived in enemy territory (read "market"), winning battles (read "gaining market share") against the greatest power in the Mediterranean."

"Whatever your "Rome" is", says Pollard, "these lessons apply." I agree.

1. Use Your Best People

2. Secure Your Base

3. Secure Alliances

4. Be Bold: Surprise the Market

5. Work with People Who Know the Market

6. Know Your Competition

7. Choose Your Battleground

8. Create a Superior Plan

Dusting off my toga and taking notes.