About a year ago, a handful of rabid Boise State fans, myself included, came together to help our beloved Broncos expand the athletic program via a grassroots effort. The idea originated from the perspective that the university seemed to be reaching out only to white-collar executive types for fund raising and support while the blue-collar average joe fan, like me, was being ignored.

Our committee was formed via an online message board at BroncoCountry.com, a site mainly for the hardcore blue-blooded fan, mainly with the aim to help the athletic department raise funds to expand Bronco Stadium. In our first couple of sessions, we tried to formulate a plan to approach the university to demonstrate 1) we had a legitimate aim to assist rather than scam them, 2) that we were organized and motivated, 3) our innovative ideas for fund raising, and 4) that we were willing to play within their rules.

After about 4 weeks, our group was able to schedule a meeting with the Bronco Athletic Association and the Bronco Athletic Department and we were absolutely blown away by how well our ideas were received. As it turns out, the officials were trying to build an existing electronic funds transfer program (EFT) called HorsePower that was created with the sole purpose of allowing individuals to contribute small funds on a monthly basis to help with summer scholarships for student athletes, facilities maintenance, equipment purchases, Title IX compliance, and other issues pertaining to Bronco Athletics.

After a very productive initial meeting, our small group reconvened and came back with an official agenda and Boise State gave us the green light to head up the promotion of the HorsePower program. The win-win for both sides is that Boise State could now focus their dedicated internal fundraising efforts on corporate sponsorships while HorsePower would be marketed toward the face painted, blue-collar, end zone seated fanatic who would be thrilled to contribute 10 to 20 hard earned bucks per week to his/her beloved Broncos.

Currently, we’re preparing to develop a brochure to distribute at local retail establishments within the greater Boise area. In addition, our committee will propose a referral program for HorsePower and other incentive packages to encourage participation in the EFT program. Also, if you’re a Bronco fan living in Boise, please be sure to ask your local retailer if they have any information on the HorsePower program and if they say no, ask them to contact me for more information – Email Erik.

In all, I am thrilled that Boise State took a chance with our small group of non-university affiliated fans. Since the program is still in its infancy, our grassroots efforts are tough to measure. However, this example should provide a great case study for institutions looking to mobilize a ground level group of advocates.

To conclude, I have personally witnessed the results of grassroots marketing and I’m more than confident the HorsePower program will become a resounding fundraising success. If your company is struggling with creating brand appeal and fostering growth, perhaps it’s time to explore your existing core of advocate customers. Our small group of Bronco fans congregated via an online forum, imagine if your passionate customers could do the same…

As I continue to peruse the Internet for great blogs, I came across one today which in my opinion epitomizes a successful blogging strategy. Annie’s Homegrown products is promoted by Bernie’s Blog, a social advocate Web site that is specifically targeted toward an emotionally engaged audience of progressive liberal folks. As a fairly conservative guy, I may not agree with the content on the site, but I can certainly appreciate the way this organization has used a polarizing approach in order to appeal to folks that are interested in their products.

For those of you who have read my blogs on a regular basis, you probably have noticed that one of my pet peeves is a blog which has nothing to do with the customer or their interests. The quickest way to alienate a reader is to write about things that don’t interest them … things like your corporate picnic or your strategic initiative for the year. Please understand, the actual subject matter is irrelevant, but customer interest is key.

Going back to Bernie’s blog, pay attention to the content and it’s easy to see how the writer(s) has masterfully leveraged connecting the product to the emotional sensitivities of their target audience. I would venture to say that in 8 of 10 cases, the typical Annie’s shopper relates to this content and most likely visits the site on a regular basis.

As a marketing consultant, I often get caught up in the theoretical realm of academia and lose sight of tailoring my unique value proposition to actively engage with my target audience. You see, there I go again … what I mean to say is I shouldn’t use big fancy words to impress my customers just to make myself look smart. More importantly, I need to build relationships with my customers by speaking their language and providing them with services they truly need and value. If I can accomplish this feat, I will not only gain a loyal customer, but I’ll also gain a volunteer sales representative.

For the past two years, I’ve conducted a fair amount of research on marketing trends and I’ve noticed a lot of buzzwords have been created by consultants like myself to describe a very straightforward marketing truth that has existed for millenniums; namely selling goods and services through existing customers.

Call it customer evangelism, viral marketing, strategic referral program, grassroots marketing, or whatever; the main point is that successful businesses are built upon customers. Whether an organization focuses on business-to-business or business-to-consumer markets, a strong buyer-seller relationship is key to staying in business.

As I look back over my career, I recall having the mindset of using technical or academic language in an attempt to wow my audience by “educating them” and by utilizing gimmicks or creativity to gain their attention and to create top of mind awareness. What I failed to understand is that my audience didn’t care about how smart I or my firm was, what they wanted to know is what my company could do for them; and the dilemma was that my audience didn’t want to hear this from me or my advertising. They in fact wanted to know what others who had tried my service had to say.

Whether buyers are looking into finding a logistical consultant to assist in setting up a global distribution channel or simply seeking the best golf course in town, they’re likely to turn to their peers and/or business associates for advice. As a consumer, I often find myself asking a friend or colleague, “So what’s your opinion on … ” The answer I receive will undoubtedly play a role in my purchasing decision one way or another.

My opinion on this matter is supported by overwhelming statistical evidence that demonstrates people are making purchasing decisions off of referrals and testimonials. For instance, 83% of consumers base their purchasing decisions off of referrals when choosing a restaurant. The numbers are similar for prescription drugs (71%), hotels (63%), cars (58%), computers (40%), and financial services (57%). Without further researching the matter, I would strongly content that successful companies within those industries have a strong customer relations policy. One example, Apple Computers, has again received the highest rating on customer satisfaction by scoring an 83% score in the American Customer Satisfaction Index. Now you know why we Apple freaks are so adamant about our machines.

So how do companies like yours use customers to sell goods and services? I hate to be master of the obvious, but you simply take good care of them by going the extra mile to make sure they’re happy. No, I’m not talking about giving stuff away or incurring a loss as a set-in-stone customer satisfaction policy, but simply assuring that your customer is happy with your performance by the end of the day. Now as a former sales manager, I know that some customer demands are unreasonable, but it’s always important to demonstrate to the client that your organization has their best interests in mind. Not wanting to expend too much effort on this matter, I’ll simply say that the best policy is to put yourself into your customers’ shoes and empathize with their position. When you do this, you have a much better chance at gaining their respect and understanding.

In conclusion, I simply advise to go beyond expectations in satisfying your customer. Don’t view this ideal as a reactive crisis response, but utilize it in a proactive manner so as to add value to your product or service. The last thing you want your customer to say to others is “I didn’t get what I paid for” or “the burger sure didn’t look like the picture.” If you bring value to your customers by going the distance for them, they’ll gladly pay a fair market price for your services in the long run.

I know that Southwest Airlines isn’t for everyone, especially those who love to be pampered by high dollar airline perks like microwaved frozen chicken and stale rice served in an aluminum box complete with plastic utensils. As for me, I’m perfectly fine with honey-roasted peanuts complemented by an ice cold ginger ale … and that’s why Southwest.com is typically the first Web site I frequent when preparing a domestic flight itinerary.

Okay, some of you who frequent this blog are probably thinking I’m a hypocrite because I’m promoting a company that could easily be described as the Wal Mart of the airline industry due to their commoditized approach. However, I’d argue that Southwest is a different type of company than a commoditized retailer such as Wal-Mart in the fact that value is provided to me personally through customized services such as SWAvacations.com and a frequent flyer program that even a traveling novice like me can understand. To top everything off, as a valued customer, I’ve been asked by Southwest Airlines to engage with the company through their blog.

Although BlogSouthwest.com started out as a simple extension of the company’s marketing rhetoric, the content has improved dramatically over the past few months. Brian Lusk and the crew have started to focus the stories on the emotions of their customer base. In fact, of all the corporate blogs that I’ve visited, I’d have to say Southwest’s is the best in terms of capturing my emotions through docuvideos on subjects covering post September 11th traveling fears to eloquently describing cool vacations ideas in places like Seattle. Whether in a positive or negative sense, travel is an emotional subject for most people, and Southwest has done a terrific job at understanding issues that travelers face.

Please visit Southwest’s blog site and let me know if you agree.

How many business leaders plan on sacrificing so much of their life for a business that sticks around for a decade or two? Assuming the answer to this rhetorical question to be “few if any,” then another question is begged: Why is the shelf life of most companies so short?

The best place to look is on the opposite end of the spectrum, to those companies who have created a legacy. I’ve been fascinated by this topic especially since recently becoming an adoring fan of Fiskars, a company founded in 1649 and on the cutting edge today of customer evangelism marketing utilizing new media (see last week’s post).

So maybe a better question to ask is, “Why  are old companies are still around?” Starting with the extreme relics like Kongo Gumi, (the Japanese construction company who was in continual operation from the year 578 until January of 2006) there is a treasure of insight available that we can directly apply to the business environment today. I’m no business history expert, but I am smart enough to deduce that most of these companies are going to be found very strong in two important suits: 1)Exploiting environmental change, and 2)Exemplifying the marketing concept.  Inversely we can deduce that most companies, the ones with short shelf lives, are probably vulnerable to environmental change and don’t adequately embrace the marketing concept.

Here’s what makes this topic so provocative today—as you may be aware we’ve just stepped into a period of radical revolution that will be destroying the status quo of how business interacts with society. The statistics are undeniable that this change is in full gear, for example take a look at this report posted today at Information Week.

So what’s the average business to do? Fight the trend?  Stick to the old ways that have worked (or at least kept
heads above water) and hope it all goes away? It all depends on how you answered the question of “How long do you want to be in business?”  My brash prediction is that companies, large and small, who do not undergo an extreme
makeover, driven by the fanatical passion of its leaders, will cease to exist, sooner or later within the 21st century. For context to my position please see our perfect storm analogy.

As we enter this new era of turbulent upheaval, it’s a prudent tactic to take some time and study those organizations
that have weathered and prospered from these storms of change time and time again—a truly fascinating  and timely study.  I would love to hear the opinions of others on this topic, here’s my invitation:

1. Pick a company from this list of oldest companies from Wikipedia, or another that you’re aware
   of. Let’s say one that’s been in business at least 50 years.
2. Share your insight on why this company is still around.
3. Have your article posted on this blog with credits and links to you.

I recently became aware of the inspiring story of Fiskars, you know, the company that makes the orange handled scissors.  When started learning about Fiskars I thought, “What marketing insight could be gleaned from a company that makes such a boring commodity?” I was soon to learn that it’s the commonness of their product that makes the Fiskars story so inspiring.

Imagine being handed the job as the marketing director for Fiskars–a successful international corporation with a legacy dating from 1649. You’ve been given the world wide marketing responsibility for….long pause….scissors.

I’m sure it’s out there, but I can’t imagine a product that would be more dull (not literally of course) and more resigned to the classification of “commodity pumped out of China for a few cents each.”

Just for fun, here’s part of the provocative description of scissors from Wikipedia:

Scissors are a tool used for cutting thin material which requires little force. They are used for cutting, for example, paper, cardboard, metal foil, thin plastic, food, cloth, rope and wire. They are also used for cutting hair and nails.

So, given this bleak scenario what has Fiskars done? They’ve taken one of the toughest products imaginable and perfected the basic essences of marketing by:

• Identifying the real need behind why their customers buy their product.
• Branding themselves around those needs (not around their product).
• Creating strong emotional bonds with their customers.
• Creating an online community offering real extended value.
• Embracing Customer Evangelism Marketing.

It’s not necessary for me to explain Fiskars’ near-perfect emotional branding, they’ve done such a great job it’s apparent just by visiting their website.

The story of Fiskars can be a big downer too. When I absorb the marketing masterpiece they’ve created out of such a ubiquitous product, it takes away all excuses for why any other product would be difficult to successfully differentiate. Almost anything, compared to scissors, would be better positioned to achieve marketing success. If you’ve been using that type of excuse, just imagine what the marketing leadership of Fiskars would do if they were at your company selling your product.

Fiskars deserves high honor for their leadership in quality consumer evangelism marketing, and for the inspiration they provide to the rest of us.