The idea of creativity in business has been swirling around in my mind. The current economic conditions are driving our customers to think more about WHAT they sell - what are the top products, what else could we sell to existing customers, etc. Trouble is, that thinking really only operates from an internal perspective.  It's much better to ask why customers buy, how & where they do this, what are their expectations of the service wraparound, etc. In essence, you need to think creatively, albeit Inside the Box of your chosen business environment. Isn't this obvious?Now I know this sounds...

International Women’s Day today.  Where to start?  Anyone who's been watching Mad Men knows women in our industry have come a long way (as Peggy Olson is learning).  When I trained the mantra of (male) creatives was 'The consumer is not an idiot.  She is your wife."  It was meant to be complimentary but seems, in retrospect, somewhat insulting.   Despite that only 1 in 4 FTSE board directors are female, which is leading the Government to talk about legislation to force big business to hire more women.  But I wonder if the problem is not so much that there is...

YES – you must have an introduction before you can communicate effectively by email By Ed Weatherall, managing director, Concep We all complain that our inboxes are busy and that we get too many emails. We spend our time deleting emails rather than opening them. A few years ago I remember people saying even if someone didn’t open your email, the fact they saw your brand name had a positive brand impact. I feel this is no longer the case. If recipients do not recognise a sender or feel they have not asked for an email they are a) unlikely...

My friends say I’m odd. It’s unusual, they say, to become animated when talking about business. It was with a resigned sigh that they accepted my invitation for an ‘end of recession’ drink. There was also grumbling at the last minute nature of the invite. A sensible precaution I thought. The October celebration was hastily repositioned as a commiseration drink when figures failed to back up economists’ estimates of an early exit from recession. I suspect you are also starting to think I’m a little odd so I’ll cut to the chase. At this celebration I was asked: Can a...

Zina Manda, director of Mardev, shares her advice on making your lead generation strategy a success and impressing the financial director Credit crunch marketing has seen a considerable move in budget over the last 12 months from traditional advertising to lead generation. There are however a large number of lead generation channels and vast array of possible outcomes. How can you ensure that you are generating genuine value for your company from this type of activity? Defining a leadA marketing-defined lead may recognise a click through on an email, a download of a white paper or registration for a webinar as...

Labelling or sub-branding is something we come back to time and again in my business.  B2B marketing in a company that has such a dominant B2C brand can be a difficult task - particularly when trying to get cut through and show relevance to concerns that are particular to B2B audiences.   There are many ways of doing this.  Some brands choose to differentiate visually between their B2B and B2C communications.  Some have the same branding for both and others choose labelling, or sub branding - even going as far as creating a whole new brand for businesses.  But is all this necessary?  Are we underestimating the...

By Maxine-Laurie Marshall, editorial assistant, B2B Marketing My observation of B2B marketing in the brief time I have been working in the industry is that it’s comparable to Germanic tourists. B2B marketing is practical, efficient, and quite happy strolling around London in walking boots, and equally practical yet aesthetically displeasing jackets (well it could rain at any time, then who will have the last laugh). Creativity in B2B and avoiding clichés is something some agencies pride themselves on, but is it really necessary? Is there anything wrong with being practical yet slightly unfashionable? B2B seems to be based around needs rather...

We all need to feel appreciated; to feel like those out there care about us. And that’s not just as people, but as customers. There are various ways to describe the kind of marketing that’s designed to do this (loyalty, retention etc.) but ultimately it’s about love. So what better opportunity to show your customers how you feel than Valentine’s Day? It never ceases to amaze me how rarely B2B marketers use this annual kitsch-fest as an opportunity to talk to their customers. After all, Valentine’s day has massive marketing potential. Unlike Christmas and Easter, it’s applicable regardless of race,...

I couldn't resist a dig. Lord Heseltine (nicknamed Tarzan) spoke brilliantly and masterfully at the Gyro HSR 'Brand versus Demand' event on Tuesday 23rd, but for me there was a certain irony to his appearance.Here was a man whose company Haymarket Publishing is largely B2B in focus but through its individual publications (think Campaign and Marketing) had arguably done more to sideline and marginalise B2B Marketing than anyone else in the UK over the past 20 years.If you'd read those august titles (and fine publications they are, I genuinely believe) you'd think B2B did not exist. And despite the mass...

Spent Tuesday at a CBI Council meeting.  As always, fascinating to listen to how a wide variety of companies are dealing with the world as we know it.  The good news for agencies is that service businesses in the main came out well – perhaps because they are more agile and able to adapt their services to what’s needed in the current marketplace.  So law and accountancy firms are seeing a reduction in contract briefs but an increase in resolution or winding up orders.  All sounds a bit ambulance chasing but it means that they’re still in business, still employing people...