Horizon Point Consulting

Author: Mary Ila Ward

  • What happened to the newspaper? How technology is changing the way we market and communicate

    What happened to the newspaper? How technology is changing the way we market and communicate

    In my eight years at Red Sage Communications, change has been the norm rather than the exception. When I started with the website and marketing firm, most of our customers came to us for a basic website, a logo, a brochure, or some other similar basic item. Now, it is a website that is search engine optimized and mobile friendly, a strategic online advertising and social media plan, and advice on how to reach their customers since many of the traditional advertising and marketing methods are no longer working as well as they did not so long ago. The hard part is that by next year, that whole list could change again. Here are three major changes in our industry and how we survived them.

    1. The Rise of Social Media

    The decline of newspapers, magazines, TV, and radio (some more than others), and the birth of social media have changed how we reach and communicate with our audiences. What was once a one-way line of communication has suddenly become a two-way conversation with customers being able to provide instant feedback. Some companies have embraced this new way of communicating and have succeeded, gaining loyal fans of their brands who will advocate on their behalf. Other companies have not been able to give up their old school marketing styles and have either been ignored on social media or, worse, have created negative perceptions.

    2. The Introduction of Smart Phones

    Just five years ago, smartphones made up only about 20-25% of all mobile sales. This year, smartphones account for almost 75% of all mobile sales with expectations of that number increasing to 80-85% by the end of the year.This year, Google’s Mobilegeddon announcement put even more urgency on the move to mobile-friendly websites. In a scramble to keep up with the new way people were accessing websites, developers created mobile apps, mobile-only versions of website, and more recently, responsive websites. For a web developer, knowing what will be just a trend and what is a lasting solution for mobile has been hard to determine.

    3. The Boom of Online Advertising

    As more and more people have turned to the internet for their source of just about everything, marketers have followed. This means the days of placing easy print or TV ads where the rules were always the same have ended and the days of constant rule and medium changing have begun. We now spend our days keeping up with rules changes from Google, Facebook, Twitter, and others, worrying about whether our ads that were fine yesterday now violate a new content/graphic rule or if we’re going to be able to afford to stay competitive as all of our other competitors start bidding on the same two spots at the top of Google’s AdWords placement in the search results. If that was not enough trouble, we also have to predict when our audience is going to leave an online medium and where they will flock to next. We may have a “desk” job, but we’re exhausted by the end of the day just from the sheer effort of keeping up with the changes.

     

    How We Survive:

    Staying relevant within disruptive industry change is not an easy process. It takes a conscious effort to recognize, prepare, and manage change as quickly as possible. Here are three ways that Red Sage has survived change as a company, and how I have survived change as a practitioner.

    1. Change is Going to Happen. Accept it.

    Red Sage: “But, that’s the way we’ve always done it,” is a death sentence in the world of marketing (and really any business). If you accept the fact that things are always going to change, you will start preparing for change rather than reacting to it.

    Me: It feels as if my job changes every day. What I do and how I do it is constantly changing. Knowing that change is inevitable, I expect it rather than hate it.

    2. Keep Learning.

    Red Sage: One of the trends that I’ve seen in the marketing world is to hire a young marketing person simply because they use social media. There is a real danger for older marketing professionals who refuse to keep learning, because they could push themselves right out of a job. It is true also for agencies who refuse to keep up with change. Making the time to continuously learn new skills and watch for change is as important as taking caring of today’s client work.

    Me: I struggle with finding time to keep learning. It takes a determined effort to make sure that learning doesn’t get lost in the shuffle of busy.

    3. Do Not Forget The Past.

    Red Sage: Just because the industry may have changed, it typically does not mean that you should forget everything that you have done in the past. While advertising has moved from print to online, it is still advertising and many of the same ideas that made print ads successful can be applied to online versions. The same goes with even social media. It may be a two-way conversation now, but reaching your audience with the right message, at the right time still applies. Embrace change, but keep your foundation of knowledge and experience too.

    Me: Knowing that change doesn’t always mean completely new keeps it from feeling so overwhelming.

  • If You Want to Make a Difference, Start a Business Not a Charity

    If You Want to Make a Difference, Start a Business Not a Charity

    “An idea hit me: Why not create a for-profit business to help provide shoes for these children? Why not come up with a solution that guaranteed a constant flow of shoes rather than being dependent on kind people making donations? In other words, maybe the solution was entrepreneurship not charity.” Blake Mycoskie, TOMS Shoes

    Although Blake and his TOMS shoes have spurred the whole concept of one-for-one business models, he isn’t alone nor the first to consider how business can be a cause.

    With decreasing government funding for charitable causes (and I’m not saying this is necessarily a bad thing) and so many charities competing for individual’s attention, people who want to make a difference may be better off being entrepreneurs rather than social workers or not-for-profit managers. Blake’s quote tells us why: sustainability. Want to help, then you have to have a continuous flow of revenue to do so.

    There are three key ways we see businesses aligning with this idea:

    1. The TOMS Model.- One-for-one models.   Buy something, something is given. Simple as that. It’s done with shoes, water, eyeglasses, blankets, meals, vaccines, even condoms. The list goes on. However, in the wake of business as a cause through one-to-one initiatives, there is speculation that these models may actual hurt in the long run by sabotaging local economies.

    2. The Microsoft Model- Make a lot of money so you can give a lot of money.   It’s simple, make a lot of money so that you can give away a lot of money (and time) to support needs. What do you think Bill and Melinda Gates spend most of their time doing now?   It isn’t designing computer software. It is working to meet the needs across the globe through their foundation.   Many for-profit companies, large and small, operate charitable foundations, while others give a certain percentage of their earnings to charity.

    3. The Patagonia Model- Promote a social cause through your company message, product(s) and profits. With a desire to reduce consumption and waste the impacts our environment Patagonia started this campaign (see image below- subscribers click through) What happened? Profits are up. They sell fewer jackets that cost more, and should last forever, and by doing this they build a loyal brand of followers who are interested in the same thing they are, conservation.

     

    In all of these cases, the purpose is dual: the profit and what the profit can do for the purpose.

    In reality though, capitalism or free enterprise systems (with certain controls) where there is the incentive of profit to be made, is THE economic system that actually may be the single best way to reduce poverty in this world and fight the ills that result from it. History has shown that the to be best method for bringing a society, and therefore individuals, out of poverty is to give a person the opportunity to work for something worth working for- namely a profit (and this may be why the TOMS model may actually be hurting local economies). Because what does that profit produce? Self-sufficiency and independence. Then, some people will keep all they earn for him or herself, but most, as we can see by many models, find a way to give much of it back for the greater good.

    So what should you or your organization do if you want to start or focus a business on capitalism with a conscience?

    1. Identify your greater purpose. What is it that you want to impact and how is your business or how can you position a business to uniquely meet that purpose? Is it tackling poverty, world health issues, conservation, education, entrepreneurship? Define specifically what is you want to impact and get it on paper. You can’t move on to your how of impact until you define your what and why.

    2. Learn.  

    a. Learn by reading about these different models and determine what the best fit for your organization.   For the one-to-one model, read Blake’s Start Something That Matters as well as the pieces that show how this model may actually hurt- such as When Helping Hurts. For the Microsoft model, read Bill Gate Sr.’s, book Showing Up For Life. For a local model, read our Give Back Piece on Valley Rubber, LLC. For a piece on several models like Patagonia, read This FastCompany article.

    b. Learn through education. Like Casey Gerald said in his graduation speech from Harvard Business School, if you want to find a method for helping the most today, then go to business school. You may not need to actually go to business school, but you do need to know how to design a business model that meets a market need through your product or service.

    3. Create or revise your business plan so that it meets both the market need and the greater purpose you have in mind. For some great resources to do a business plan, visit score.org.

    What cause is closest to your heart and what business(es) are doing something about it? My guess is you buy from them.

  • The World of Work is Rapidly Changing. Are You and Your Organization Adapting?

    The World of Work is Rapidly Changing. Are You and Your Organization Adapting?

    The world, and especially the world of work, is changing at a rapid pace. In fact, from a technological perspective,Moore’s Law postulates that the rate of change is exponential, doubling on itself approximately every 18 months. Many of the things that are driving the changes in work are due to technology, but some are not.

    This month we will be exploring on the blog some of the key changes we are seeing in the world of work and what those changes mean for us, more specifically what they mean for us in terms of possibility and opportunity for the individual and the organization. We’ll provide some advice on what you can do to capitalize on each opportunity.

    Here are the key things we will hit:

    1. Trend 1: Conscious Capitalism. Want to make a difference? Don’t start a charity, start a business.
    2. Trend 2: What happened to the newspaper? How technology is changing the way we market and communicate from guest blogger and marketing guru, Heather Thompson.
    3. Trend 3: It doesn’t matter how and where work gets done. The death of office space, office hours and the employee-employer relationship.
    4. Trend 4: The death of the policy, at least we hope.
    5. Trend 5: The changing world of work changes education slowly but surely.
    6. Trend 6: Really not a trend, but the changing world of work and how it effects the job seeker by guest blogger Stephanie Siebel.

    The world is changing, are you changing with it?

  • 2 Things to Do to Address HR’s Biggest Pain Points

    2 Things to Do to Address HR’s Biggest Pain Points

    We had a great time and learned a lot at the Alabama SHRM Conference a couple of weeks ago. It’s always great to network with colleagues and learn from some of the best in our profession. We try to make this type of event part of our professional development game plan.

    In order to learn even more at the conference, we asked the professionals who stopped by our booth to complete a short survey where they identified their biggest pain points in HR.

    Here’s how the results shook out (subscribers click through to see chart):

     

    While there was no stand-out pain point above all the others, the highest scoring area was compliance training at 31%. Next in line were leadership training and employee development at 24%. In trying to make some sense out of these trends from the additional comments people added, two key things emerged:

    1. HR professionals’ biggest pain points are the things that impact the business in the long term. When you add it all up, so many of the things are people development issues- employee development, training of all varieties and succession planning- all critically important, but….
    2. The pain points aren’t being impacted for one of two reasons:
      1. Lack of buy-in from upper management
      2. Lack of time to address

    So how do we address the things that are keeping us from impacting the important things? I found some insights from the conference:

      1. There was so much focus at the conference on HR needing and wanting to be a “strategic business partner” and wanting a “seat at the table”. This ties to number 1 here. The gist of how to get a seat at the table and therefore buy-in from upper management was you gotta prove it. The best way to prove it is through data that shows the impact on the bottom line. In one of Jennifer McClure’s she focused on utilizing data to help make better human capital decisions, not to track metrics that have happened in the past. For example, she used data to get her boss to buy-in to an HRIS system that was needed.For example, one professional noted that the biggest pain point he/she has is succession planning. Comments he/she made tied to this issue went something like this… “We think the leaders that have been here 10 years will stay another 10 and even though I know they all won’t; there is no buy-in at the top to start planning in case people at the senior management level do exit for whatever reason”.Want to get senior management’s attention in order to get buy-in to start planning? Put in front of them the replacement cost of someone at that level and the lost time in productivity due to someone at that level exiting unexpectedly. Most cost to replace stats (SHRM has some good resources on this) show a 100-200% of base salary cost and that doesn’t even factor in lost time due to productivity.
      2. In terms of addressing lack of time to address key HR pain point areas, two insights showed up from the conference during Dawn Hrdlica-Burke’s lunch keynote on HR needing a revival. Some simple, yet profound insights were offered as methods to get rid of the “stuff” and to devote time to purpose and addressing your greatest HR pain points.
        1. Get control of your email.

          A great guy was sitting next to me at the lunch. When she mentioned getting control of your email, he leaned over and said, “I’ve started checking email ONLY at Noon and at 4 pm and it has increased my productivity dramatically.” I knew he wasn’t joking when we emailed after the conference about getting together for some business development reasons and I got an automatic reply from him stating that he only checks email at Noon and 4, and he would respond to me during one of those times. Well done! What is he doing during with that increased productivity time? My hope would be he is addressing some of those key pain point areas that impact the bottom line.

        2. Delegate.

          3. Once you’ve maximized some productive time by not letting your email control you, you can either delegate 1) the stuff that is keeping you from getting to your critical HR pain point areas (and a pain point may actually be one of these) or you can 2) delegate the pain point area. For example, if compliance training is your number one pain point area that you don’t have enough time to get to (and I would tell you this isn’t a strategic priority, it is just a get it done and check if off thing), then find a quality vendor that can deliver this training for you in a way that leads to more efficiency. But wait you say, “I can’t do that, it will cost money and I’m back to my issue of lack of buy-in”. See number 1 above. Prove the value of outsourcing it to with data. You know you’ve found a good vendor when they can provide you with this data to prove it.

      We at Horizon Point spend a lot of time focusing on helping clients address those strategic pain point areas that are critical to employee development. Contact us if you need to consider how you might bring in help to address those priorities that lead to a more engaged workforce. And we can help you with the data to prove it’s worth it. An example here.

      What is one thing you can do today to address a pain point?

  • True Leadership is Servant Leadership: Cory’s Give Back

    True Leadership is Servant Leadership: Cory’s Give Back

    As our focus on leadership this month comes to a close, it is only fitting for us to highlight someone in our Passion + Productivity = Give Back feature whose passion is focused on developing leaders of all ages.

    Cory Wilbanks, Director of Leadership Development at the Decatur-Morgan County Chamber of Commerce, facilitates four yearlong leadership classes for members of the community. Her focus is on growing potential leaders as well as nurturing the skills of well-established leaders. She does this not only through the leadership programs, but also through her own personal volunteer efforts and supporting the volunteer efforts of others.

    When asked her passion, Cory says, “My passion is people. I love working with the participants in the four leadership classes the Chamber offers. The two youth programs give me the opportunity to get to know and work with students in our county. It is exciting to see all of the potential the students have and the opportunities before them. The adult programs give me the opportunity to get to know some of our up and coming community leaders and some well-established leaders as well. In addition to working with the leadership classes, I also get to work with our Commodores. The Commodore program is a group of volunteers that serve the Chamber and the Community. The best part of my job is that I get to meet and know all of the volunteers and participants with the leadership classes and Commodores. They are phenomenal people.”

    Cory gives credit for the success and growth of the leadership programs to the dedicated volunteers. She says, “The Chamber has been able to add an additional leadership class during the last couple of years. We have great volunteers that work with our leadership programs. These programs wouldn’t be possible without the volunteers.”

    Seeing that leadership is grounded in volunteerism, Cory spends time each week helping students at Hartselle High School determine their career and college direction. Her focus is on helping students find their passion so they can be productive in the work they do and grow to be leaders in the community that give back through a servant leadership mindset.

    She says, “I help students look at career options and give them opportunities to see those career options first hand. It is so exciting to help students discover their passion. I tell them how important it is that they LOVE their job. My goal is to help students find a career that is well suited for their skill set, in demand and something they will enjoy doing long term. I think you foster passion and productivity by having people do jobs that they enjoy and fit their skill set. If you have the right person doing the right job then they will be both productive and passionate.”

    True leadership is grounded in an attitude of service, which allows leaders to make more leaders. Cory does just that through her focus on people and on giving back.

    Wanting to enhance your leadership skills? You can learn more about the Chamber’s four leadership programs here.