by Miriam Hara | Jul 10, 2015 | Advertising, Agency, Business Success, Latest, Marketing, Uncategorized
Earlier this week, I focused on you being the multi-tasking maestro as the business or team leader. It’s equally important to encourage your team members to multi-task.
I’ll repeat my definition of multi-tasking. I’m not talking about one person being asked to wear too many hats and spread themselves thin. That leads to resentment and overtired team members who lose motivation. I’m talking about encouraging people to step out of their defined roles, even momentarily, to try on a new hat, or a few new hats. I’m talking about team building.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#TeamBuilding”]Getting people involved in tasks they don’t own can lead to shared ownership[/inlinetweet], bigger ideas, better ideas and a richer outcome. It benefits people on a personal level. They’re learning new skills, they feel involved, they feel appreciated. A richer outcome is also better for clients.
I remember when secretaries went the way of the dodo bird and many professionals exclaimed: “I don’t know how to type a letter or make a presentation!” Now, almost everyone in business creates their own PowerPoint presentations. We learned to multi-task. The world changes; today more than every before, it changes quickly. If we’re smart, we change with it. If we want to survive and thrive in business, it’s not an option. And we need to encourage our teams to change too.
Speaking from an advertising perspective, back in the ‘50s on Madison Avenue, Bill Bernbach, of Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB) put together the first creative team: an art director (artist) and copywriter. He chose the teams with complementary personalities in mind. Fundamentally, this was an exercise in multi-tasking; putting together people with different skill sets — art and copy — but with similar mindsets. Mindsets that understood the advertising world and conceptualized visually and verbally. Getting them to work off each other, getting the writer to think visually and the designer to think verbally, built confidence, trust and ultimately the clients benefited from the results. It was brilliant. It worked and it works still. Today, the scope is even larger.
Agencies haven’t been just about print for years, they’re constantly evolving: digital/internet, mobile, guerilla, broadcast, outdoor, public service, to name a few. A lot more people are involved in the marketing strategy and the advertising that results. Everyone’s talents can be tapped, everywhere. Who says only a copywriter can write a good headline? Experience tells me the IT people often read the advertising copy and have ideas. Project managers work with clients all day long. Who better to be included in brainstorming than the people who know your clients best? Admin personnel? Absolutely. After all, if you’re admin in an ad agency, your creative side asserts itself sooner or later. It can’t not. Everybody has a creative side. (If you think you don’t have one, you just haven’t had a chance to explore it.) I’m not saying when you’re stuck for a headline call the IT guy — he’d probably look at you like you’d lost your mind. I’m saying be open to the idea that everyone has more to contribute than you, or they, might think.
Social Media is an ideal example. It’s a prime area for promoting multi-tasking. I’ve said this in other posts: Social Media is its best when all departments are involved. Everyone in an organization has something to say, saying it just needs to be encouraged. [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#TeamBuilding”]The more employees know about how an organization operates, the more involved they can be;[/inlinetweet] the more they assume a personal stake in the business’ success and feel free to contribute, the more successful the organization will be. When someone in Admin or HR writes a Social Media post, that’s multi-tasking. You’re asking them to step out of their assigned role and try something new. You’re building a stronger team.
As I’ve also said before: [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#TeamBuilding”]To be in marketing and not be a multi-tasker is dangerous. It’s also not as much fun.[/inlinetweet] If you approach it the right way, give expanded opportunities to learn and contribute, I’m sure your team will agree. At 3H, it works well.
What’s your take on multi-tasking, at least my meaning of it? Are there ways you’re using it in your business to build teams? Let me know.
by Miriam Hara | Jul 8, 2015 | Business Success, Latest, Management
The decisions we make today for the brands we manage, the businesses we start, or the professional industry bodies we are responsible for are important. Whether you’re a brand, business or industry association,[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#BusinessLegacy”] professional legacy is important.[/inlinetweet] How would you like to be remembered? Or rather, do you want to be remembered? Those of us who nurture brands, businesses and industry associations know the value and the necessity of keeping an eye on the big picture in promoting legacy.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#BusinessLegacy”]Professional legacy is what people will remember about your brand, business or profession.[/inlinetweet] To obtain it is not as easy as you might think. I’ve said this before in some of my brand posts: [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#Branding”]Consumers determine if your product or business is a brand[/inlinetweet]. It is for them to see it as a brand. Professional legacy goes a step further. The outcomes of all your communications: advertising, PR, even one-on-one interactions (especially so!), ultimately affect people’s perception of your brand.[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#BusinessLegacy”]Professional legacy is about keeping your eye on the big picture.[/inlinetweet]
Professional legacy is about walking the talk and it’s about contributing to the brand, business or association. The question for most of us is: is it really worth worrying about? It depends:
If you are an entrepreneur …
Many entrepreneurs are in the ‘not really worrying about it’ camp. But legacy is important, especially if you’re an entrepreneur. If there is no legacy, your exit strategy is pretty straight-forward. When you’re done, you shut things down. End of story. How sad is that … or maybe for you it’s not?
If you are a brand …
Can you say Coke? Apple? Now compare your reactions to the mention of those brands to that of Blackberry. See the difference? Apple and Coke have always had an emotive connection to their audience. They’re consistent. They’re looked at with love. In fact, they’re legacy brands! Blackberry, at one time at least in Canada, was the country’s sweetheart. Unfortunately, Blackberry made decisions that affected its professional legacy … and its survival. To have been such a star and then not, well, decisions were poorly taken, and the focus wasn’t consistent.
If you are an association …
In Canada there are many associations that take their legacy seriously. Canadian Blood Services, Chartered Professional Accountants Canada (CPA), Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) that have really raised the bar in maintaining and continuing their legacy, not letting go of their position, ensuring it evolved. Defining and evolving in a continually fragmented and over populated marketplace is key to the ongoing survival and success of these associations.
How much thought have you given to your professional legacy? Does it play a role in your decision making process? I’d like to hear your take on this.
by Miriam Hara | Jul 6, 2015 | Advertising, Agency, Business Success, Latest
At least in the creative world and in the advertising business, multitasking is key, especially for small businesses. Multitasking breeds an inclusive culture and by extension, it builds a team. Multitasking demands sharing information, a crucial aspect in any business. The silo mentality — departments holding back, not wanting to share knowledge or information with other departments — kills success. It’s a problem in big companies, but it exists in small businesses too. Multitasking prevents that mentality taking hold. It also stamps out the ‘blame’ culture. [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”null” suffix=”#TeamBuilding”]When a team multitasks, it works together, everyone shares knowledge, info and responsibility[/inlinetweet]. The business, the team and your clients can only benefit from this kind of culture. As team leader, you have to take the lead in encouraging multitasking. But first …
Are YOU a multitasking maestro?
I think of marketing, particularly those of us in marketing handling brands, as orchestrators or maestros. For those who run agencies, like me, the same moniker applies. In marketing, brand people are bombarded with priorities and deadlines. (You can thank technology for that!). To NOT be a multitasker, to not be able to juggle all the balls, is dangerous.
I’ll define multitasking as I mean it. I’m not talking about wearing too many hats and spread thin to the point of burnout. I’m talking about being able to move fast and easily from one thing to another, throughout the day. Nothing piles up, okay, almost nothing, nobody’s perfect.
[inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#TeamBuilding”]As the main lead in a business, multitasking is a skill you have to have.[/inlinetweet] If not, you’ll drop a few balls, miss a few deadlines. Issues around projects arise regularly, you need to deal with them as they arise, rather than waiting until they get overblown. You need to think big, but still get the small things nailed down. Sure, you have your own particular projects on a given day, but you need to be right there for your people too. They need you. So do your clients. You’re there for everybody. Remember! You’re the maestro.
Client expectations about what agencies need to deliver has evolved. [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#TeamBuilding”]Clients demand their agency people walk the line and maintain the pace. They demand multitasking. [/inlinetweet]Technology demands it too. If you aren’t a multitasker, you’re hurting your team: Forcing them to work longer hours, i.e. numerous redos, and work under undue pressure. Sometimes pressure is good for creativity, undue pressure is not. Demands come from clients fast and furious and if you plod, you frustrate the team, your clients and eventually you lose business. [inlinetweet prefix=”” tweeter=”” suffix=”#TeamBuilding”]The success of an agency depends on being nimble, being a partner, working the way the client works.[/inlinetweet]
To be in marketing and NOT a multitasker is dangerous. For someone like me, who thrives on the business and excitement of the industry, I admit, it’s also more fun.
There’s lots to say about multitasking, so I’ll follow this blog with another that deals with encouraging everyone on the team to be a multitasker. How it builds a team. Why clients benefit? And, why Social Media is a perfect tool for encouraging multi-tasking?
“Mastering the Fine Art of Multi-Tasking” is a great short read from Psychology Today. If you can stop multitasking for a minute, you might enjoy it: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/fulfillment-any-age/201110/mastering-the-fine-art-multi-tasking.
Recent scientific thought about multitasking? This one was interesting: “Forget Multitasking, Real Productivity Comes from Singletasking”: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/247833
by Miriam Hara | Jul 2, 2015 | Advertising, Branding, Latest
I was reading the Vanity Fair Article: “Call Me Caitlyn.” This isn’t a blog about how I feel about the issue of transgender, or a personal critique on Caitlyn. I read the article because I was interested in reading about such an incredible personal transformation. However, since after all, I am in advertising, a comment in the article by Buzz Bissinger popped for me:
“It was early May, and Caitlyn had just gotten three letters from transgender women thanking her for the interview and the dignified way in which ABC and Sawyer had handled it. One of them was addressed “Bruce Jenner, Malibu, California,” as if she had become her own country.”
“… as if she had become her own country”
My advertising antenna went up. Wow, a brand can spend millions trying to create that feeling in consumers. Coke is its own country, so is Apple, as are all iconic brands, but it took years and millions of dollars to become entrenched. One interview and the person of Caitlyn Brenner is already her own country. She’s a brand. Someone sends her a letter with no address, just assuming it will reach her (the name Caitlyn wasn’t announced until the Vanity Fair cover broke). But is it just one interview? David Ogilvy said brand is: “the intangible sum of a product’s attributes: It’s name, packaging, and price, its history, its reputation, and the way it’s advertised.” Since 1974, Bruce Jenner has been building his “country”, in other words, his brand, stoking its attributes, starting with setting that world record in the decathlon at the 1976 Summer Olympics, follow-up sponsorship opportunities, television series and movies, Keeping Up With The Kardashians reality TV show, even the transformation to Caitlyn and the Vanity Fair cover — 9 million hits viewing the cover pics in one day — and her upcoming reality TV show.
Businesses don’t determine what is a brand, consumers do
Despite the incredible power of advertising, businesses don’t determine what is a brand, consumers do. Am I brand? If consumers believe you’re a brand, then you’re a brand. The business of advertising and marketing just helps a brand along. Branding works to solidify the brand in consumers’ minds. Today, consumers expect branding to be equally about relationship building, authenticity and doing good works. If a brand doesn’t ring true, it won’t survive. Strictly from a marketing perspective, it will be interesting to see how this brand plays out.
What’s your feeling? Lots of people in the advertising will argue that a person cannot be a brand. Do you see Caitlyn as a brand?
Vanity Fair. Caitlyn Jenner: The Full Story
http://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2015/06/caitlyn-jenner-bruce-cover-annie-leibovitz
by Miriam Hara | Jun 26, 2015 | Branding, Communications, Latest, Social Media
When is too much, too much? Have we reached the over exposure point? Nowadays we get “news” (perhaps a better word is “info” since whether it’s all “news” is often debatable) from so many different sources. We see the same celebrity on TV, on magazine covers, on websites, in commercials, we get them tweeting, they post on Facebook. Often, it’s to the point of nausea … the celebrity has achieved over exposure. Malcolm Gladwell coined the phrase the ‘tipping point’ years ago and it stuck: “the moment when an idea, trend or behavior tips, and spreads like wildfire.” Over-exposure is like a tipping point gone wrong. Suddenly, things come to a head and everyone’s sick of hearing about that celebrity. When things reach this point, you actually get an outcome opposite to the desired reaction. Fans experiencing celebrity fatigue are turned off, tuning out any more news on that celebrity. They accuse the celebrity of chasing the “star light” (or hogging the limelight). Too much exposure is, in effect, too much.
The same is true for technology. We’re all (most of us) tech-savvy. Information is quite literally, always at our fingertips. Over stimulation leads to information fatigue, leading to an inability to process any more information. We live in an age of instant technological accessibility. I was reading a piece in the April/May 2015 issue of Marketing, written by Russ Martin. He was chatting to Michael Howatson, CD at Toronto’s Sapient Nitro about overstimulation. A couple of lines stood out for me: “Now that everything from toasters to cars is web-enabled, there’s a surplus of data being thrown at consumers who are already nearing their capacity for information.1” I was amazed to read: “Humans take in 27,000 times the info every day that a person in the 1500s would have.2” 27,000 times! No wonder we’re overwhelmed. The chatter is unending. In fact, where will it end? Imagine getting up in the morning and having your toaster speak to you! Don’t laugh, it’s closer than you think.
Never have we been so connected to so many people (and so many things!) at any given moment. Granted, there’s an upside, especially when it comes to keeping family connections vibrant, maintaining long distance relationships and ensuring business growth. But there’s a downside and it’s dramatic: the line that once defined work/life balance is becoming blurred … sometimes non-existent.
Yes, technology-enabled accessibility has had a considerable positive impact for businesses and brands trying to break through the clutter.
Reaching people and building rapport has never been easier. However, our customers’ minds are already taxed by the barrage of emails and text messages that pour into their business and personal lives daily. Now add to that the additional rivers of extraneous media chatter channeled through to them from all access points –radio, TV, our PC, phone, iPAD, tablet, even newspapers, books and magazines.
For business, the social media channel is accessible to all and that has made customer accessibility effortless. That being said, businesses and brands may still be using outdated “objectives” in this new world.
I agree with Howatson: As a business and a brand, “If what you’re doing doesn’t solve a problem or make your customers’ lives better, then don’t do it3”. I’d add: Don’t risk your business or brand becoming labelled a star-light chaser … splashed everywhere, but with no good reason.
If nothing else, I hope this post was helpful and insightful. Maybe it will resonate with you, perhaps start a conversation in your business, as the Marketing piece resonated with me. If your brand is a rising star, be wary of burn out. Heed the adage: too much of anything is never a good thing.
1,2,3 Quotes are from Marketing, page 26, April/May 2015; marketingmag.ca. Our apologies, for some reason, even with our subscription, we couldn’t pull up the link to pass it on.
