Chris Lambrecht's Strategic Marketing Thoughts
60 Seconds of Information Impacting You and Our Fast Forward Economy

September 2005 --
Estimated Reading Time: 60 Seconds

60 Second Articles
1. Understand What Your Customers Want & Your Sales Will Increase
2. Need A Taxi? Google Finds One For You In Real Time!
3. Professor iPod & The Scary Impact Of iPods On Our Culture
4. Best Buy's Secret To Success: Customer Service
5. The 60 Second Close: Knowledge Is Power
6. Wine Picks

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1. Understand What Your Customers Want & Your Sales Will Increase

• So little time and money is spent on understanding the most important element of marketing — what customers really want. If we understood what customers want and what kind of in-store experience would encourage more purchases, then stores would have a better chance at selling more and retaining customers longer.
  
  
• The one person in the world who has a handle on customer in-store behavior is Paco Underhill, author of the best selling books, Call of the Mall and Why We Buy.
  
  
• Underhill examines what customers actually do in a store, from arriving in the parking lot to entering the facility. He observes and records every motion and action as if he were observing an endangered species in the jungle.
  
  
• At a recent speech to a group of retailers in Toronto, he said, "What surprises me after 25 years is how little most merchants know about what happens on the floor."
  
  
• No matter what your business category is, if it deals with people, reading both of these books will stimulate your thinking and give you guaranteed ways to increase your sales.
  

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2. Need A Taxi? Google Finds One For You In Real Time!

• Each month, Google has been surprising us with unique service that it adds to its already creative online roster. Last month it was satellite photos and maps, available at http://maps.google.com
  
  
• This month, it's Google's Ride Finder, where – as they state on their web page - you can "find a taxi, limousine or shuttle using the real time position of vehicles."
  
  
• Click on http://labs.google.com/ridefinder and select your city, and you'll find where the available taxis are.
  
  
• Recently, Google has purchased a major player in voice-over-net, and may very well soon be competing with major long-distance providers.
  

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3. Professor iPod & The Scary Impact Of iPods On Our Culture

• Yes, there really is a Professor iPod. It's the moniker given to Dr. Michael Bull, a media and culture lecturer at England's University of Sussex. According to the New York Times, he is "the world's leading — perhaps only — expert on the social impact of personal stereo devices."
  
  
• Over the last 18 months, Bull has surveyed and interviewed more than 1,000 iPod users from around the world. His findings are to be published next spring in a book on the iPod's cultural impact. Some of his findings about owners of personal mp3 audio players include:
  
  
• Love being able to shut out the world's distractions, hate their cell phones, and would prefer not to talk to anyone.
  
  
• Love screening out ads.
  
  
• Have a greater appreciation for technology.
  
  
• Love the ability to live and work uninterrupted.
  
  
• Although these findings may not be shocking, it's their impact that will cause a ripple effect on businesses who need to reach these mostly affluent and intelligent people with their selling messages.
  

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4. Best Buy's Secret To Success: Customer Service

• In a business category already permeated with electronic and computer stores, how does one chain differentiate from another?
  
  
• Electronics superstore, Best Buy, has found their answer to success, and it's providing what others can't — Customer Service.
  
  
• Instead of fighting the competition head-on with price wars, Best Buy understands that it's not the executives at the head office that control the sales; it's the skilled and knowledgeable sales staff, roaming the aisles, helping customers navigate through a consistent array of new, high-tech products.
  
  
• Best Buy believes that gaining a customer's trust and taking the time to educate and explain how things work, is the best way to gain a sale and establish a long-term relationship.
  

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5. The 60 Second Close: Knowledge Is Power

• The more you know, the more leverage you have. And, the more you know about your products and services and what your customers want, the more you are able to gain their trust and confidence that you are an ally to them, rather than someone just trying to make a sale.
  
  
• Tap in to find out what your customers want. You may find something extremely revealing that could make your business soar.
  
  
• The more you know, the more you grow. Call us; we can help you get there.
  

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6. Wine Picks

Cline, 2004 Ancient Vines Zinfandel has recently showed up at Costco for about $14 a bottle. This Zin is very mellow and ready to drink now with only a hint of the spiciness many zins seem to provide. Buy it before it's rated a Best Buy.

Kim Crawford, 2004 Sauvignon Blanc is the perfect early fall sipping wine. The flavors are complex and there is just a tad of sweetness. It is available throughout Atlanta but I'm not sure how long the under $15 price will last as it's discovered.

Best Wishes,
Chris Lambrecht
Intelligent Marketing Solutions
www.intellmkt.com