Original Thoughts - Product Marketing

Balancing online and traditional marketing in a down economy

noreply@zionandzion.com (Aric) — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 10:15:00 -0500

We're often asked what the right balance of online and traditional marketing is. Not unexpectedly, the answer is it depends. It depends on the product. It depends on the time of year. And, of particular importance right now, it depends on the economy.
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Email marketing -- Beyond the hype

noreply@zionandzion.com (Aric) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 15:55:29 -0400

Email marketing seems cool, doesn't it? But when it comes right down to it, if you aren't an online retailer that can track sales back to an email campaign in a disciplined way, then how do you justify email marketing if you're not seeing the phone ring the moment you hit send?
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McDonald's -- Small oversight, big impact

noreply@zionandzion.com (Aric) — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:47:57 -0400

Drive up to a McDonald's today and you're likely to be asked "What can I make for you?" Somewhere along the way, McDonald's marketing department and market researchers obviously told them that their food would seem fresher if their drive-through personnel said this, instead of "What can I get for you?".

Sounds reasonable right? But here's what we found to be the case...
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Social Media isn't for everyone, Or is it?

noreply@zionandzion.com (Tanner) — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 09:10:00 -0400

The buzz around social media is understandable. Every time a new medium to reach the consumer makes its appearance on the scene, whether it be the introduction of the radio, the television, or the internet, marketers see an opportunity--as well they should. However, most companies just can't seem to figure out what to do with social media. So a pressing question arises--"Is social media for everyone"?

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Talk yourself into it

noreply@zionandzion.com (Aric) — Tue, 29 May 2007 11:28:00 -0400

When putting together advertising campaigns and marketing collaterals, many companies try to come up with the top value proposition or propositions and present those to potential customers with compelling statements.

At Zion & Zion though, we often go about things a bit differently...
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PART I: "Which of these two options do you like better?" --- Isn't Always the Right Question

noreply@zionandzion.com (Johnny) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 16:35:00 -0400

Many companies are frequently faced with the question of what messaging to include on their product packaging, what to name their product, or whether or not the package should be of one style or another. The solution for many companies is a seemingly straightforward one--i.e. they ask a few employees and/or customers, "which do you like better, version A or version B." While this is sometimes a good approach in a focus group, as it stimulates people's thinking and generates feedback and ideas, it often not the best approach.
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PART II: "Which of these two options do you like better?" --- Isn't Always the Right Question

noreply@zionandzion.com (Johnny) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 16:29:29 -0400

In Part I of this article, we discussed how directly comparing two potential versions of product packages, product names, or product messages can lead to false results and that it is often better to compare version A of your product or message to the competition's product or message and to separately compare version B of your product or message to the competition's products or message, as opposed to comparing version A and version B to each other. Now let's take a closer look at how this might play out.
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