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February 2001
The Mechanics and Tools in Building a Succesful Organization in 2001
(Tool #1: Database Management)
2000 brought us many new tools - that always means many new challenges...multiple questions, lots of
confusion and maybe even a bit of anxiety. What is this gadget? What does it do? How can it help ME?
Digital what? It seems a whole new world of buzzwords like "integration", "convergence",
"disintermediation", "consolidation", "customer relations", "opt in or out", "branding", "ASP, URL,
XML and all the other terms associated with new media"...the list goes on and on as new technology permeates.
The bottom line: we want to grow readership, maximize profit and keep our keep sanity. How do we start
using these tools? Where do we begin? If valuable, which do we apply first?
Step 1 is to review marketing basics. Analyze readers. Research your market. Determine needs and wants
and document such into a usable format. The key to knowing what your customers want is to ask enough
questions to understand the audience characteristics. And, that you understand them from the perspective
of each segment - each geography, psychography or demography. Ideally, you would like these new
techno-digital gadgets to scan everyone's brainwaves and log that information into a massive database.
Realistically, technology does exist to - just about - make that happen.
Database marketing isn't new - it has existed for years, yet isn't utilized broadly or to its fullest
potential. Databases transform the cold impersonal computer into a customer relationship-building tool.
Once the audience characteristics have been accurately documented, the planning and implementation
phases can be more fully utilized. The question becomes "how can efficiently designed databases be
used to enhance advertiser and reader relationships?" Imagine receiving a birthday card from your
local newspaper, or a thank-you letter, information on content relating to your own interests, an
e-mail introducing you to a new product or service or, connecting a reader with an advertising
customer!! If responsive to an accurate customer profile, you create a profound presence in the
customer's mind, or maybe even a different (read IMPROVED!) perception of all the newspaper can be.
The first step towards indispensability!!
You can ultimately control your organization's performance by tracking. Monitoring which accounts
have been successful and determining what are main causes for failure not only let you learn from
your mistakes, but also keep you focused on what's ahead. Keeping track of what resources are
available and the ability to reallocate resources whenever and wherever it's needed is a powerful
tool to entice success. Information will be at your fingertips. Huge amounts of data can be
condensed, interpreted, analyzed and displayed into relevant results.
If you are still not convinced about the power of this tool, consider this:
Why keep a database?
- Competition (TV, Radio, Yellow Pages, Outdoor Advertising, Internet) is trying harder to capture
market-share and there's a new one every day...have you seen the advertising on subway or ballpark
turnstiles yet?
- Readers and advertisers expect to be serviced better - with more accurate and up-to-date market
information that changes daily. Not just satisfied, but occasionally delighted.
- Marketing budgets are smaller. A well-positioned study can provide "more bang for the buck"
knowledge.
- Mass marketing isn't always the best approach - it no longer works as well. Trends suggest
customized and individually tailored mass targeted efforts work better.
- ROI calculations are becoming more and more important. A good study could mean a very
substantial windfall.
- Database marketing can improve your marketing efforts by providing quantitative and qualitative
data in a more useful and straightforward manner
- Provides an ability to measure and track results of activities within various parameters.
- Will improve advertiser and reader relations through a more individualized approach. More users
behaving as if it is "their" paper!
- Delivery of targeted news via email (or however desired) will be easily accessible.
- Electronic route lists may be created (the Arizona Republic is already doing so on an electronic
book) to deliver the paper subscribers want...sections, day of week, no inserts, you name it.
- A database can direct you not to just the best customers, but also away from those who don't warrant
any of your resources.
- Make more money - save it too!!
The understandable first inclination is to think targeting or selected marketing or any database facilitated
less than full run offering will decrease revenues. The reverse is true: since advertisers are willing to
pay more (ROAI) for best customers, newspapers are in the incredibly enviable position of ultimately being
able to charge more for delivering less. Sure, there are very real challenges to get to this point, but
getting there isn't an option, so let's embrace this eventual windfall. How great is that?!!
# # #
Many are well down this path - kudos! Would love to learn more about your efforts and successes. Yet,
MOST aren't and need to make a commitment to all databasing can be - can we help?
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