‘We envision a day in the near future when companies that don’t blog will be held suspect to some degree, with people wondering whether those companies have something to hide or whether the owners are worried about what the people who work for them have to say’

- Robert Scoble and Shel Israel, Naked  Conversations: How Blogs Are Changing the Way Businesses Talk With Customers

Blogging for Business. Fish where the fish are. Photo Credit: Xalamay http://www.flickr.com/photos/xalamay/

I was asked recently about the value to business of blogging. In this era of interactive technology enabled by Web 2.0, blogs or web logs have become increasingly popular.  The benefits are many.  Here are just three:

Customers eMarketer reports that in 2009,  96.6 million US Internet users, representing 48.5% of the population, read a blog at least once per month. In 2013, it is anticipated that this number will grow to 128.2 million people, or 58% of all US users.

The number of bloggers is also rising. In 2009, 27.9 million US Internet users have a blog they update at least once per month, representing 14% of the Internet population. By 2013, 37.6 million will update their blogs at least monthly.

With so many people reading or actually writing blogs – it is likely your customers are too.

In a recent article, inbound marketing software company,  HubSpot customers revealed ‘that businesses that blog witness their monthly leads rise by 126% more than those who don’t.’

Communication A blog provides the means to listen to and engage with your customers. A business can test ideas, undertake research or gather opinions about its product/service. Marketer and author David Meerman Scott credits his best selling book ‘The New Rules of Marketing & PR’ (now in its second edition) as a result of a single blog post and the refinement of ideas following feedback received via his blog.

Search Engines Love Blogs Regular blogs provide fresh  content for your website which helps its ranking in search engines.

I’ll leave the last word on blogging to Seth Godin, who writes the world’s most popular marketing blog and Tom Peters: Management Consultant, Writer, Lecturer  and  co-author of the seminal ‘In Search of Excellence’  in a clip we posted last year.    So Get Blogging!

In Linchpin, we’re again made to think, whilst also being inspired.  If you need any further ‘firing up’ for your activities this year – I recommend getting hold of this book.

The book’s marketing has been interesting.  Seth shared  via his community – rather than the traditional means of book promotions – ie print, radio, tv advertising and publicity.

Judging from the number of people now talking about Linchpin, including the significant number of other marketers and writers who have interviewed Seth,  the ‘New Rules‘ marketing approach has worked.   Linchpin is set to become an instant bestseller.

Linchpin’s  messages  are profound.  From reading and listening to several interview transcripts, the following ideas  personally resonate:

1. Lizard brain – a concept  which  as David Meerman Scott posts,   is at the core of our resistance to do meaningful work.  My understanding:  it’s what holds us back from realizing our potential – doing what we want to do  which might be contrary to the ‘norm’ .  The lizard brain,  according to Seth prevents us from  from being ‘artists’.

2. Seth’s analogy of artists:   Art is the  ’act of bringing humanity and connection to somebody else’  .. not following rules but ‘your gut and soul’. Its about creativity, and boldness to challenge the status quo.  In a recent blog post continuing the theme Seth wrote: ’Art is what we are doing when we do our best work ‘ from Making Art

Here are a couple of the Seth Godin Linchpin interviews.  A full list is here and Seth’s blog post- here. The list doubles as a convenient summary of  great blogs to read.

As the end of the first month of a new year approaches,  I hope you draw inspiration for the remainder of 2010 from this book. Enjoy!

David Meerman Scott interviews Seth Godin from David Meerman Scott on Vimeo.

John Jantsch’s Interview with Seth Godin

Order your copy of Seth’s new book here.

Create raving fans with customer focused product design.

Great design delights customers.

It also provides significant benefits to business. Design differentiates a product in a competitive market, enhances the brand, generates customer loyalty and reduces the marketing budget.

How does great design do all this?

By being customer focused.

The best, most successful products are designed to suit the customer.  They’re shaped  from a commitment to understand customers’ needs and behaviour, and to enhance their overall experience.

Customers – members of the marketing team

Customer commitment, combined with innovation and creativity  will enhance  the brand, reinforce customer loyalty and create brand advocacy amongst customers.  Customers become ‘raving fans’ who, via word of mouth, will do much of the marketing for the business, meaning less  budget is required for marketing activities. ‘Raving fans’ become unpaid members of your marketing team.

Product re-design = new life

For mature products, re-design can breathe new life, sales and profits. into a product.   Adding new features, attributes or presenting the product in a different way, extends the life of a mature product.

Here are five benefits of customer focused design:

1. Differentiates a product amongst competitors
2. Enhances brand – (from product functionality, innovation, creativity and customer commitment perspectives)
3. Extends the life of  mature products
4. Builds loyalty and brand advocacy by converting customers to  ‘raving fans’
5. Decreases long term marketing expenditure

How to re-design?

Can you shape your product/service to better suit your customers’ needs?  Here are three ways to approach a re-design.

1. Integrate product or service re-design  into the existing continued improvement processes of your business.
2. Find out what customers are wanting and what they think of your products/services. Ask them and listen. Social media platforms particularly make this easy to do.
3. Put yourself in your customers’ shoes. Be a customer of your own product/service for further ideas.

Great product design – an example

Great, customer focused design is exciting as  it combines creativity,  innovation and the potential  to really satisfy your customers’ needs. The Berocca Twist ‘n’ Go is a favourite example cited in last week’s BRW.

This new product drops the fizzy tablet into the water as the package is opened.  No need to go searching for water when you are in need of a Berocca®!

With sports waters accounting  for 8% of Australia’s $1 billion bottled water industry, Berocca Twist ‘n’ Go promises new opportunities and attractive sales forecasts, as it can now be included in the cold drinks cabinet – rather than just the medicine/vitamins section of the supermarket.

And BRW reported that sales for Berocca’s new product have already exceeded predictions by 10%.

How can you re-design your product/service to better suit your customers’ needs?