Season's Greetings!

Intergalactic Puts the "GO" in GOLF!

Imagine what golf would be like if it became more like a rock concert with an energetic audience, celebrities, artists and hot cars.  More like a "live" sporting event such as football, baseball or basketball where the crowd goes crazy when great things happen. 

A tour and competition where anyone can enter and based on performance can become number one overnight.  Maybe even a playoff format produced like a Super Bowl, World Series or NBA Championship.
 
Well a guy by the name of Luke Kohl has just that vision.  Luke has been around golf his whole life including being a caddy for some of the most famous golfers in the world.  Having always viewed the game as an "old guys" game he began to wonder.  What if this game could have the energy of other competitive sports?  Maybe be played in arenas across the country under the lights.  Luke created Intergalactic Golf designed to be golf that everyone can play...not just the senior guys!  He has been planning and programming the idea for quite some time and in 2012 you should begin to hear more about Intergalactic Golf.

When experience and passion come together around a unique idea you never know what might happen, however, one thing is for sure, this guy has his heart on Making It Matter! ...Stay Tuned!!

Golf as you have never seen it before...Rock On Luke!

BLACK FRIDAY...Why Many Retailers Leave Money On the Table!

Have you ever gotten excited about a ridicously low priced "door buster" deal like an large screen TV, high-speed computer or a name brand Blu-ray DVD player only to find out you would have to camp out for a week to even have a remote chance of getting the deal? 

While there are always die-hard people who will line up days in advance the fact of the matter is the overwhelming majority of people simply just say "not me, not worth my time" and unfortunately that is the end of it! 

But wait, seems like a missed opportunity don't you think?  If as a retailer your strategy is to deliver a message that anyone looking for a TV, Computer, DVD player or any other electronics would be crazy to shop anywhere else you need a Black Friday strategy that motivates the masses! 

So, how do you do this?  Well you need to think differently...not just promotional marketing but traffic driving marketing that rings the registers! 

Here's my thoughts...develop a simple multi-layered product strategy that is designed to atrract the most customers between (Black) friday and Sunday.  For instance if your TV deal is $199 for a 42" LCD TV and you only have ten per store (to satisfy the 50 or 100 people lined up outside your store) how about an additional $150 of any other TV on the floor for the next 6 hrs, then $100 off the following 12 hours then $50 off any TV through Sunday!  Limit it to in stock only and no rain checks.  Then do the same think in the computer dept and the DVD department.

Don't you think that would bring the largest number of customers over the 3-day Black Friday weekend, result in the highest sales volume and cement the message that the best TV, Computer, DVD deals in towm are at......well you get the idea.  Linked with a well thought out and timed omni channel communications strategy including web, social media, mobile, store, print, direct and TV would be immersive and engaging and MAKE IT MATTER to the bottom line!

GLASSY BABY...A Good Brand with a Shot at GREATNESS!

I Love this brand story!  I came across GlassyBaby a few months back and was quickly captured by themagic of the brand.  Intrigued, I began to research the company, brand and story and quickly fell in love with authenticity of the brand story.  I was very impressed with the authenticity of the brand story and how Lee Rhodes (a cancer survivor) integrated the "human-ness" and "love" starting with glassblowing artists handcrafting each GlassyBaby - an original work of art (no two alike  just like people).  The warmth of the web site (candles on wood tables, comfy couches, etc.) and simplicity of the product line really sets up a great background to "tell the brand story" which is what people are buying for $44.00.

The key is making it easy for fans (customers) to connect to the story and as well tell others.  That starts with staff training on the brand story so they can tell in a believable way, strong cues in the retail store (ideally you would see the artists making the GlassyBaby in the store), a highly effective public relations strategy to tell the story and a powerful social media plan to help connect and expand the fan base.

GlassyBaby has the one thing most brands die for...a real story that touches the human spirit - unless all the touch points are aligned to reinforce the story, people will look at the product as a commodity and say "who's going to pay $44.00 for a candle holder?" - missing the REAL VALUE of the Glassybaby brand.  I could go on but I think you get the point!

I believe Glassybaby has what it takes to succeed.  With a few tweaks to their plan and a strong focus what MAKES IT MATTER this could be huge...GOOD LUCK!

Recent Article of GlassBaby's Challenge: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/business/smallbusiness/a-small-retailer-tries-to-get-a-foothold-in-the-countrys-biggest-market.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1

NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH QUITE SOUNDS LIKE THE TRUTH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ryan Blair - Nothing To Lose, Everything To Gain

It was a crisp Friday July morning and I was meeting with a business colleague I'd only recently met via Skype.  It felt sort of like meeting someone I'd known for awhile based on the immediate connection we established a week earlier on the video conference call with her partner.  I was looking forward to our face-to-face meeting.  We met in an open air cafe at a hip and cool west LA hotel on Sunset Blvd that could have easily been plucked right out of Miami south beach.  There is just something especially invigorating about open-air cafes in LA and the way they generate a sense of optimism and creative energy. 

The energized conversation began as we headed to our table and flowed easily and free picking up right where left our initial discussion when she suddenly changed the subject and said to me "I know we're here to discuss another matter, however, I had a meeting with a company here in LA that's very interesting named Visalus, have you ever heard of them?"  I said "who?...Visalus?...I've never heard of them, what do they do?"  She explained "Visalus is a health and wellness company started in 2005 and sold to Blyth, Inc (BLY) in 2008. They are attracting 40,000+ customers a month and generating over $15 million in monthly sales with a keen focus on nutritional weight loss and weight management products through a multi-level-marketing (MLM) approach."  Yikes, did she say MLM? - aren't they all scams I thought to myself.

I recalled an experience I had in the 80's with an MLM company I joined in college hoping to raise money to help pay my way through college. It lasted about a month.  Once I learned that trying to sell a product nobody wanted and that I didn't really believe in, I knew the business was doomed.  The product was some weird freeze-dried spaceman chocolate beverage - no one needed it!

Having been fortunate enough to work with emotionally-based experiential brands including industry leaders like Disney, Starbucks, Universal Studios, Paramount Pictures and Commerce Bank, I learned how they build a powerful brand by immersing the Customer in the brand experience and creating strong emotional connections.  Those connections easily spread by storytelling and word of mouth marketing. something I was skeptical about with most brands in the MLM industry.

However, I continued to listen to her as I consider myself open minded and I'm always intrigued to learn about new things and how they work.  I listened as she told me the Visalus story, about the young 34 year old CEO named Ryan Blair that went from gang member to multi-millionaire as a serial entrepreneur.  Honestly, my BS meter was on high alert!   At the same time, with my wife and I being committed to fitness and a healthy lifestyle, what interested me was the focus on a highly nutritional natural products centered around a beverage called a Vi-Shape shake.  And in my experience, great products that are well positioned within a successful business model lead by an authentic and believable brand always do well.

I read how the management team, lead by the three Visalus founders, Ryan, Blake Mallen and Nick Sarnicola were creating strong "emotional connections" and energizing the Visalus brand by promoting the Vi-Shake with a 90 Day Body by Vi Challenge where people set goals and are offered incentives to meet their goals. One of the incentives involves FREE products through encouraging people to form groups and build relationships within the Challenge reinforced by a bring 3 (customers or distributors) and yours is FREE offer. Very compelling especially knowing that the most successful fitness and weight loss programs usually involve people working together.

I was starting to alter my initial reaction about MLM based on what Visalus was doing.  I told the person "I'm about to leave for 2-weeks on vacation so I'll order some of the Visalus product, do a little research on the company and let's speak more when I'm back."

I ordered the Vi-Shape shake through their website (which felt a bit overly focused on the distributorship model and short on promoting the great products and results) and began researching the company, management team and most importantly their culture and philosophy.  I must admit, I began to get excited about what Visalus was doing and believed they were in a position to turn MLM on its head and redefine the entire industry.  My sense is Visalus has a huge opportunity to lead with the products and results given the license the brand has been given by the customers and their success.  Dial-up the voice of the customer and unleash the emotional brand love every customer is expressing about Vi-Shape shakes and results which are truly amazing - the distributor business model will take care of itself!

I also learned that the CEO, Ryan Blair was about to release his first book titled Nothing to Lose, Everything to Gain in the next week.  To be honest, the book title immediately brought my mindset back to everything I disliked about MLM companies, however, I forced myself to keep an open mind.

Upon my return, I opened the package and found my Vi-Shakes and chocolate flavoring - just the product inside - nothing special.  Seemed like a missed opportunity to further tell the Visalus story, offer additional products, maybe include a catalog/flyer for apparel/cups/etc.  Maybe even offer a special invitation via website as a new customer.  Basically further the early emotional brand connections!

I tried the Vi-Shape shake and was pleasantly surprised how great it tasted.  It is the shake mix that tastes like cake mix!  Add a little chocolate flavor and peanut butter and you have a peanut butter cup!  WOW!

I was equally  impressed with the nutritional values.  I wondered how well it compared to the competition especially since I just forked over more that $50 for 15 servings.  Researching the comparison of Vi-Shape shakes to the competition - Visalus blew them all away! I continued to dig deeper into the company. 

It was clear these guys had put lots of work into developing Visalus.  By now Ryan's booked was released and he was in 100% promotion mode through facebook, twitter, email, video and a book tour.  I read a few pages on Amazon and being a big reader of business books like Good to Great, The Tipping Point, Outliers, and dozens of others his book seemed fairly basic and common sense to me.  Still, I thought why not order the book and hear what he has to say.  Also, I started following the guys on Twitter to see what they were saying - amazing how easily it is to get access to people today!

I also listened in on several weekly Vision calls where people like Blake, Nick hold court with their distributors, customers and anyone else who wants to listen in as they share success stories, introduce guest speakers (i.e. Dr. Seidman - Chief Science Officer) as well as offer new product at a 40% discount to drive customer trial (just like a real retailer!).  I literally was listening to the call on my iPhone speaker while at the same time through an iPhone app called Vi-Net watched the product orders race over 400 within 10 minutes.  These guys not only had a great product and great business model, they were also pushing the social media networking revolution as far as it would go - very impressive.

A few days later I received Ryan's book and read it cover to cover (still a little doubtful). I must say what makes this company different comes directly from Ryan's core beliefs of doing well by doing good.  Ryan has had more opportunities than most to put this approach to work (trust me, read the book and you'll know what I mean) and my hats off to him - he proves through his actions throughout his life that he is always learning, applying, and improving his skills with a focus to be a better leader through positive change.  It is what it is - Ryan speaks from the truth from his heart!

In all my experience in business and working with founders like Howard Schultz-Starbucks, Vernon Hill-Commerce Bank and visionaries like Michael Eisner, Frank Wells, and Jeffery Katzenberg-Disney, it is the power and belief of the founder/visionary that fuels the brand's culture.  And it is the brand culture that makes the difference to "Make It Matter" within every fan of the company (Customer, Team Member, Distributor, Investor, Supplier, Vendor) - and that is something Customers notice.  Great read! ...and a great (potential) one-of-a-kind MLM company.

Cool company with a great opportunity to redefine MLM....let's see if they do!

Cool Companies Give Beer to New Hires....Really?

Have you ever heard of a company called "HIPSTER"? The lastest in dot.com social media companies trying to change the world...one engineer geek at a time! Here's what their website says they are trying to do:

"Hipster is building a fun way to uncover the vast amount of information about real-world locations that isn’t yet available online. Based in SOMA, San Francisco, and founded in 2010, Hipster is tackling a really large problem in a really large market in a really unique way."

So if you what to be relevant, different and attract the right people to engagage in your mission you need to think differently and "make it matter" from the new hires point of view.

This should be a very interesting company to watch develop as they build their unique company culture (a bit like Zappos - which was recently aquired by Amazon for $1.2 billion). It's no wonder the investors line up like a who's who...

Like Us Like You Mean It!!

As more and more brands leverage the social media community and build brand buzz there is always the danger that brands shift from building "relationships" to driving "transactions"...better know as spam and/or advertising.  That strategy will absolutely back-fire!  Here's a great short piece by Emily White of Facebook on building local level relationships that are authentic, real and "make it matter".

Link:
http://bcove.me/y2c24wfb