This is a BRILLIANT example of a retail shop that knows the value of testimonials and “case studies”… It is so good, it’s self-explanatory!
Archive for the 'Case Study' Category
I recently had an encounter on the sidewalk with a young lady who, as we chatted, revealed she was on her way to a modelling audition.
I knew she was a model – not because of the way she looked, but because she was lost. I offered to help with a suggestion with the direction I thought she should take to get to her appointment. I wasn’t familiar with that area and I didn’t know the street she was looking for and I didn’t have a directory on hand.
On my way to my appointment, she caught up to me and what do I notice under her arm? A street directory that I had not seen previously…
She hadn’t told me she had one, so when I saw it, I asked if I could use it and we found her street…
I really hope she gets the modelling gig because she really, really needs to make money with her beauty ’cause there ain’t much brains to work with!
I know this is one of those extreme situations, but I see it often in business. People have all the gadgets and tools, but simply don’t know how to use them. Contact us if you want to make the most of the tools and resources you currently have available to you so that you can start to grow your business more effectively.
As you know, I am a proponent of Antimimeticisomorphism. This is an example of that kinf of out-of-the-ordinary thinking. This is a sign for a convenience store in Surfer’s Paradise on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia.
If you come across across examples like this – people doing out-of-the-ordinary things to create extra-ordinary results, please contact us and we’ll share them with our readers and subscribers. Of course we’ll hyperlink back to your website or blog so you get FULL SEO value for your contribution!
As a reader and/or subscriber to this and my other blogs, you already know that I have a holistic approach to life and business. I live and promote a “purpose driven life” that requires that you find and follow your passions.
To help find your purpose and passions, you can begin by asking yourself the following questions:
“What are you interested in?”
“What are you passionate about ?”
“What are you good at?”
“What do you do in your free time?”
“What do like to do without anyone paying you to do it?”
Recently, I came across a software company and their logo, as well as their peculiar name which peaked my interest.
Can you tell what the founder’s passion is?
If you don’t see it right away – step away from your computer screen several feet and it’ll jump out at you!
This is an example of TERRIFIC BRANDING – just not leveraged exponentially. I keep telling my clients that here is nothing worse for a business to do something great and keep it a secret…
Now the secret’s out!
Every once in a while* someone does something so out-of-the-ordinary that you have to do something about it.
In this instance, it started about 3 years ago when I walked into a Runner’s retail shop called Running Room.
First of all, this was in Richmond, Vancouver, Canada. Well Steveston if you want to be specific about it. The reason this is important is that I am not a runner, but I still walked in. I was struck by the fact that they could have a store “just for runners”… In fact they have a LOT of stores, but that’s not the point.
I walked in out of curiosity and walked out with a pair of microfibre training pants. They are absolutely awesome. I wear them about 8-9 months of the year when I am training for squash, doing drills and routines. They are NOT lined and cover my compression garments – SKINS. As great as they are, I have been unable to find any, anywhere.
That brings me to my most recent trip back to Vancouver – I went back into the Running Room store with my pants in hand to get an additional pair.
The salesperson (I forget his name!) knew exactly what I was talking about because he too had a pair and liked them as much as I did!
They were out of stock – discontinued!
But he searched online and found 2 pairs at a remote store. The challenge was that I was leaving in a few days to return to Sydney, Australia.
Lots of things transpired – multiple people were involved to make sure I got the 2 pairs for the liquidation price of $20 each…
I mean c’mon… Who goes out of their way to sell $40 worth of leftover stock?
The Running Room does!
I figure they do it because they are not in this for SALES, but CUSTOMER SATISFACTION. I mean c’mon it’s a store ONLY for runners. If you’re not focused on customer satisfaction, how could you survive let alone thrive as they have?
With a niche of people who are dedicated to their sport, their hobby, their passion – running – you’d be a fool to focus on sales.
They totally get why they’re in business and even though I am not a runner – I am a HUGE FAN.
They made my day and now every time I put on my training pants I am left with a sense of gratitude for every one who went that extra step.
I can’t thank them enough, but I can make sure as many people know about them as possible.
Tell all your friends and family who run or are otherwise athletically inclined!
*
Isn’t it sad that I am celebrating something that should be normal, average, expected?
The great news is that for those like the Running Room, they get the benefit of being the EXCEPTION, the stand outs… The ones people want to go to. At least they get that benefit/advantage… Because they totally deserve it!
The next time YOU get outstanding service – make sure you tell as many people as you can!
Sydney’s Private Jeweler, Sam Kritsotakis, recently opened his new Eskae Boutique in Mosman… The reason that’s newsworthy is because a lot of businesses are struggling, yet our clients are thriving and expanding.
The reason is simple. They are applying antimimeticisomorphism principles of Exponential Mindset Thinking – having fun, doing out–of-the-ordinary things that create extra-ordinary results with the least amount of effort and at the lowest cost.
If you’re not GROWING, you’re contracting.
There is no middle ground.
If you want to grow your business, isn’t it time you contacted us to get going and growing?
A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that 1,100 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.
Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace, and stopped for a few seconds, and then hurried up to meet his schedule.
A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk away.
A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.
The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried, but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally, the mother pushed hard, and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.
In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money, but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the most talented musicians in the world. He had just played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, on a violin worth $3.5 million dollars.
Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.
This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste, and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?
One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:
If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?
Here is my Exponential Mindset Thinking Twist:
If you are Joshua Bell in your industry or marketplace, are you playing YOUR instrument in the wrong place at the wrong time?
Hmmm…. Something to think about the next time you spend time. money and effort on your next sales and marketing promotion.
Watch this video and ask yourself the question – would you sit down?
When I explain Antimimeticisomorphism to my clients, I always specify being different for a deliberate purpose without being provocative.
This commercial pushes the envelope and makes the point without being offensive or being too serious.
Thank you to Andrew Powell of Montreal, Canada for forwarding it on to me.
We all know how effective Apple’s commercials and advertising are, but why are they so persuasive?
In this instance it’s the singular focus on benefits rather than features. In our Killer Kopywriting System, we explain this in full detail, but for today’s blog post ‘exercise’, just watch this video and see if you can do the same for ONE of your products and/or services.
You’ll quickly realise that you revert to FEATURES rather than benefits, which is one of the reasons why Apple outsells its competitors. The other is because their products are way, way better!\
Here’s the thing you really need to fully grasp – people BUY BENEFITS – NOT features. If you want to sell more, you simply need to translate the technical merits of your product or service into “What’s in it for me?”
Easier said than done, but well worth the investment. It’s the single most effective way to increase sales.
As a recent Economist Magazine article explains, denial is useless. Spread happy truths instead.
“A lie gets halfway around the world
before the truth has a chance to get its pants on. ”
Winston Churchill
IF YOU Google the phrase “Middle East rumours”, the first link that pops up is not, as you might expect, a website propagating conspiracy theories. It is Coca-Cola’s website. For several years now the company has struggled to rebut ridiculous rumours about its products.
For example, some people believe that if you read Coke’s Arabic logo backwards, it says: “No Muhammad, No Mecca”. Others insist that the company is owned by Jews, or that it bankrolls Israel. These rumours are one reason why Coke does worse than Pepsi in Arab countries. Yet they are all false, as Coke’s website explains in painstaking detail.
Such rebuttals are unwise, argue Derek Rucker and David Dubois, of the Kellogg School of Management, and Zakary Tormala, of Stanford business school, three psychologists.
By restating the rumours, Coke helps to propagate them.
Its web page is a magnet for search engines. And people who read rebuttals tend to forget the denial and remember only the rumour, says Mr Rucker.
The reason is because as information is passed around, important qualifiers are lost.
A rumour may start as “I’m not sure if this is true, but I heard that…” Then it evolves into: “I heard that…” Finally it becomes: “Did you know that…?” Even when no one intends to spread falsehoods, they spread.
In several experiments, Mr Rucker and Mr Dubois planted rumours among undergraduates. They found that with each repetition, scepticism diminished. The rumours themselves did not change; only the likelihood that the students would believe them.
Instead of denying false rumours, a company should put out a stream of positive messages about itself, reckon Mr Rucker and Mr Dubois. This deprives myths of oxygen and also nudges people to doubt nasty things they may hear about the company in question.
Other companies could learn from this. McDonald’s hamburgers have been said to contain worm meat, Procter and Gamble is reputed to have Satanic links and Facebook is rumoured to be shutting down so that its founder, Mark Zuckerberg, can have his life back. All these rumours are utterly false, but the firms in question would be well advised not to bother denying them.
This problem is exacerbated with the Internet and it’s indexing methodology – giving weight to the number of referenced pages, not their quality, thus making a bad situation worse.
Even though I don’t own a dog, I love em! I especially enjoy visiting Paddington Pups as you can see below. I mean c’mon – life doesn’t get any better than spending it with happy, playful puppiess and dogs who love you unconditionally.
Paddington Pups is raising money and awareness for the Millan Foundation setup up by world renowned dog whisperer, Cesar Millan to provide financial support for animal shelters and groups engaged in the rescuing, rehabilitation and re-homing of abused and abandoned dogs.
Locals are invited to bring their puppies pooches for a $10 hydrobath tomorrow from 10 AM to 1 PM in Milton / Paddington (Brisbane) Queensland. All the money raised will be donated to the Millan Foundation and passed on to the RSPCA shelter at Wacol.
It gets better.
Anyone who has their dog washed will go into a draw
to win two tickets (valued at $290) to see
Cesar Millan Live at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre
Thursday November 17 – courtesy of Paddington Pups!
The reason I’m blogging about this is because Paddington Pups is not just a doggy day care. It’s owner, Bree Robbins cares about her clients – dogs (and their owners). She makes sure her team takes a proactive role in community based activities as part of their holistic approach to dog care and education.
As I blogged about previously on the Paddington Pups blog, there is a lot to be learned from The Dog Whisperer, but if you want to grow your business, you also need to learn to give back to the community because it’ll come back to you tens time over.
Don’t do it to get something back – pay it forward and let the ripple of positivity make it’s way through ‘the universe’.
If we all do our share, this will be a much better place for all – INCLUDING dogs and puppies!
We have all heard the saying “A picture is worth a thousand words”, but a TERRIBLE picture can lose you 1,000 clients. This photo was taken from a Facebook page for a restaurant. You be the judge – would you want to eat there?
It’s no surprise (to me) that this restaurant is struggling to attract customers. It counts on its Facebook page for referrals – can you see a problem here?!?!
Today’s lesson – check ALL the photos you have online and ask SOMEONE ELSE who will be honest with you if it helps you or hurts you/your brand to have it online.
If you can’t afford professional photos – then don’t put any up.
DON’T USE STOCK PHOTOS for your products, that’s transparent and you’ll lose credibility and trust.
Please comment below to reinforce how bad this image is!
As The Exponential Growth Strategist, once of the cornerstone principles of exponential marketing is uncovering hidden assets. This real life example made me take notice because it’s utterly brilliant!
The only improvement I could make to this creative idea is to identify the balls to the matches played and sell those at a premium. (I asked, they don’t do this).
Exponential Marketing has a cornerstone concept: Add value to your clients and they will come back and refer more clients to you. Easier said than done.
That’s why I’ve included a simple example: An Australia Post Postcard Fact Sheet that helps clients prepare their documents for direct mail.
The question for YOU is “What basic information, like this can you make available to your clients?”
The more information you make available, the easier it will be for them to do business with you = you’ll sell more.
When you’re exponential, you create Pathways To Profits™ that guide people through the path of least resistance preemptively, smoothly, creating a memorable and hopefully unique experience they will want to repeat themselves and advocate to others.
This is what we help our clients do – create a Business Building Blueprint™ that summarises these processes so everyone in the business knows what to do and ideally, automate them leveraging the Internet so the business transforms from an effort-based model to a value-based model.
When I came across the article shown below, I just though there was a marketing lesson in there somewhere… Can you find it? Read the article and try to find the lesson, once you think you have it, click on the read more button.
This is an example of a superbly written explanation. It’s direct, to the point and reinforces why Qantas remains the safest airline in the world.
I teach Killer Kopywriting to business people and will make sure they read this as a perfect case study example.
I wasn’t affected during this period, but I have to be honest – I would rather be safe than sorry. Even if the other carriers were flying without incident.
Hindsight is always 20-20. I like the fact that Qantas stood their ground and stuck to their principles.
SAFETY FIRST.
One of the foundational principles of Exponential Marketing is creating value for your suspects, prospects and clients. Easier said than done. That’s why I wanted to remind you of a short YouTube video I created a few years ago that shows you how it can be done quickly, easily and inexpensively. All you need is to have an open mind to seek out and find ideas like this.
Everyone involved in direct mail wants to increase response rates. I came across a blog post that explains how you can significantly increase direct mail response rates. I’ve used this strategy countless times. Of course you don’t want to overdo using post it notes as the video below confirms.
As a reader or subscriber to this blog, you’re well aware of the Exponential Strategies I teach my clients. One of the foundational principles is to create value and the leverage will come, on its own, as if by magic. I have several award-winning clients, but one sticks out right now well above the others BECAUSE Ray Keefe is the first one to fully leverage the value of the many awards he has recently won…PLUS…
He’s taken it one step further to include me in his exponential approach.
You can read all about it in the article “Mentor engineers success” in this month’s edition of the Business South East Magazine.
As you read through the brief article, you’ll recognise this as FREE ADVERTISING for both Successful Endeavours and Exponential Programs.
It’s a win-win-win situation.
We both win and YOU win.
You win because you get undeniable proof what I teach works. You get someone else’s perspective on what it means to be mentored by a business coach, straight from a client, in a completely different setting and context.
You can’t buy that kind of advertising.
So there you have it, one MORE REASON to contact us about our business mentoring services – by the way, when you qualify, our Platinum Program comes with a 300% Results-Based Guarantee!
Today’s blog post is an extension of one of my most popular products called Squash Lessons For Marketing. As a business coach, I mentor business people who are very ambitious and think their #1 goal is to beat their competitors. Using the squash analogy of dominating the T instead of your competitor is the difference between a good player and a top grade “champion”. When you dominate the T in squash, you’ll win the game regardless of the competitor. It’s that simple.
In business it’s the same thing – by dominating the T, it doesn’t matter WHO you’re up against, you will win. That is much better than having tricks up your sleeve to beat ONE opponent because you know his/her weaknesses. That doesn’t help you one bit when you come up to the next competitor!
Think about it.
That’s what this blog is all about – getting you to THINK about what you’re doing and not doing. If you’d like me to become your business mentor, contact me at your convenience and we’ll see if you’re up to joining my team of Platinum Program members – we/they play like champions by focusing on IMPROVEMENT rather than just winning.
