| |
| |
|
Marketing Information |
|
|
|
Creative Emulation
In business we have a number of ways or tools that we use to stimulate improvement. Most of us could recite these in our sleep: ? Brainstorming ? Benchmarking ? Problem solving When these things fail, or we realize that perhaps there are better ways to do these approaches, we do the next likely thing and hire a consultant. (As a consultant, I am glad that people sometimes take this step). Each of these steps can be very valuable and powerful when done correctly. There are methods, approaches and steps that you can take to make each of these things (including hiring the consultant) more effective. The Problem The problem is the first three items on the list suffer from a similar problem - they all become too introspective. Brainstorming too often becomes a short list of ideas that people have considered in the past, or things people tried at their last job. Benchmarking ends up being too incestuous. If you are benchmarking within your industry, everyone in the industry is looking at each other, and the bar may never be lifted high enough. Problem solving techniques are only as good as the ideas that are found to implement, and where do those ideas come from? Brainstorming and benchmarking. The Alternative The alternative is a phrase called creative emulation. I learned this phrase from marketing guru Jay Abraham, who has helped hundreds of companies and individuals improve using this technique and has personally made a fortune using it and teaching it. It is incredibly simple in concept, and amazingly obvious. But most of us don't do it often enough. Creative emulation requires studying other industries and businesses for the models and approaches that they use. Then thinking about how you could modify, adapt or "creatively emulate" their successes into your business. Some Examples Direct marketers have done this forever. Any good copywriting consultant tells you to build a "clip file" of ads and sales letters that are effective. By keeping this "file" of successful copy, you are able to refer to it for inspiration, ideas, unique phrases and more. The "clip file" is a perfect example of creative emulation. In leading training sessions, while there is benefit in having a whole group from the same organization, there are great benefits from having mixed audiences too - even having people from different divisions or departments in the same company can give participants new insights, ideas and practices that they can creatively emulate back in their situation. In some types of training seminars, participants will be placed in the "hot seat" by the facilitator or trainer. In this situation the participant is asked very specific questions to help both them and the facilitator better understand their situation. Then the trainer will propose some very specific ideas that the participant can apply. On first glance this may seem like a boring event for other participants as one person's situation is explored, prodded and probed. The reality is that if the trainer does a good job of setting up the process, each participant can learn much by answering the same questions for themselves, reflecting on their answers and using the process of creative emulation to apply the lessons to their own business and situation. These are three very different situations, all of which use the process of creative emulation as a way to create new ideas and spawn new approaches. How to Do It The process is pretty straightforward: 1. Learn all you can about a successful business or business model. This includes reading, interviewing and researching it as much as you can. 2. Think about the strengths of that business or process and see how it might strengthen your situation. 3. Look for ways to emulate, modify or adapt those success approaches into your situation. Where do you find these model businesses? First of all it is important to realize that any business has some unique strength, even if they don't recognize it, and even if they may not be super successful overall. With this realization, anyone can become a case study for you! ? Read the local business section or the Wall Street Journal more carefully. ? Read business magazines in industries different than you own. ? Attend a conference as a guest of a friend - in an industry completely different from your own. ? Learn more about the people you meet at your next networking event. Don't stop with exchanging names and business cards. Take real interest in their approaches and successes. These approaches can get you started. Brainstorming, benchmarking and problem solving are great tools in your tool bag, but remember you have other options. One of those options is creative emulation. You can apply it in many ways in your business or other professional pursuits. I wish you great success with this new approach. Kevin Eikenberry is a leadership expert and the Chief Potential Officer of The Kevin Eikenberry Group (http://KevinEikenberry.com), a learning consulting company. To receive a free Special Report on leadership that includes resources, ideas, and advice go to http://www.kevineikenberry.com/leadership.asp or call us at (317) 387-1424 or 888.LEARNER.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Marketing For Just Cause Cause marketing is a relationship between a for-profit and a nonprofit that brings in money and resources for the nonprofit, while providing credibility and goodwill for the business.According to the IEG Sponsorship Report, this category grew to $733 million in the US in 2001. Advertising Your Private Practice: Beware of the Problems-Part 1 One of the biggest mistakes coaches, counselors and other healing professionals make is to assume that they must advertise their private practice in order to get clients. These professionals often tell me they have spent a lot of money on advertising with minimal, if any, results. Reasons Why People Usually Dont Buy Again There are many psychological reasons why people will buy from the first time and why they do not buy from you again. There are books on many of these reasons. Is Most Marketing by Small Businesses KILLING THEM? I just collected my mail. As usual, more than 80% of it was junk. Roping In Loyal Customers While Making An Extra Profit! You've probably bought a book or two at one of the major chain bookstores. When you're checking out, you get asked if you have the "discount card. How to Give Your Biz a Boost with a Summer Marketing Makeover Are you on track for hitting all your business goals for the year? A quick check-up of your promotional efforts can reveal "week spots" and help identify what needs tweaking to give your business a healthy boost in the next few months. Here are five key areas to focus on with your mid-year marketing makeover. 9 Highly Effective Marketing Tips Here are 9 low-cost but highly effective marketing tips to help you boost your sales and profits fast.Tip 1: Look for some low-cost ways you can enhance the perceived value of your product or service. Use Events to Market on the Internet Having difficulty knowing what to offer people online? Worried that your prospects are too bombarded by sales pitches to pick yours out from the hundreds they get every day?Try something different - an event!Events have a number of benefits over standard marketing approaches. Some of these benefits include:Events are perceived as informational and are often more accepted than sales pitches. Corporate Branding and Trade Shows - 8 Tips for Marketing Managers Trade shows are part of the marketing mix and the appearance by your firm should be a continuum of your entire marketing including advertising, public relations and events.While you may introduce a new product or showcase a service, many firms make mistakes by not connecting the overall corporate branding with the show. Gaining Business Intelligence A white paper on how companies should analyse customer data to gain better business intelligence and how they can use that knowledge. In an increasingly competitive world, using your client database smartly, to gain a better understanding of your number one asset - your customers - can make or break the success of your company. Take a Leap! How To Take Your Business To New Heights Take a moment to reflect on the current reality of your business. Is it everything you dreamed it would be or is it more like a nightmare?Regardless of the current reality, your business can always improve. Your Ultimate Competitive Advantage The biggest secret to success in business is to always maintain a competitive advantage in everything you do. One of the best ways to get and maintain a competitive advantage is to always make it as easier for your prospect or customer to say yes than to say no. T.E.A.M Profit As you network and meet other business owners, keep this philosophy in mind: "Together Everyone Achieves More Profit"Remember this when you meet someone with a business that serves your target market. Think about how each of you can work together to achieve more and grow your businesses. 10 Powerful Marketing Tips 1. Print your best small ad on a postcard and mail it to prospects in your targeted market. Five Most Common Mistaken Beliefs About Joint Venture Marketing Apart from being the fastest, easiest, and most profitable strategy for attracting clients and boosting profits in any small business, there are so many other advantages of joint venture marketing for all parties involved. So, why aren't all small business owners implementing joint ventures?Here's a partial list of the most common mistaken beliefs about joint venture marketing. Catalogs are Selling Machines If you've got a mailbox, you're no doubt aware of the popularity of catalogs. People love to look through catalogs, and more important, they love to buy from catalogs. Common Exhibit Marketing Mistakes: Ten Tips on How to Avoid Them The key to great exhibiting is marketing. But marketing is a very inexact science that leaves room for a multitude of errors to occur. How to Write Irresistible Promotional Pieces that Attract More and Better Clients Whether you're creating a sales letter, a brochure, a newsletter, or any other business promotional piece, you need to write in a way that not only explains your product or service, but that also compels your prospects to contact you. A well-written promotional piece entices people to seek out more information, whether it be via a phone call, an e-mail, or an in-person visit. Fern Reisss PublishingGame.com: Achieve Media Attention for Your Business Do you want to be quoted by the national press on a daily basis? (How much would that be worth to your business?) In the past six months, I've been quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The International Herald Tribune, Entrepreneur, The Associated Press, PBS, Voice of America, Family Circle, Glamour, Redbook, Self, Health, Prevention, Parents, Parenting, Women's World, First for Women, Newsday, Newsweek, Salon, In Touch Weekly--and even The National Enquirer. In fact, I've been quoted in over 100 prestigious U. The X Factor So you've invested more time than you ever believed possible on your website and in optimizing the pages for the search engines. Having sacrificed weekends and holidays, you've ensured that your site ranks in the Top 10.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
