Cheeky Monkey Business Solutions » Social Networking

Sustainable PLM & the $1 project?

Nina Dar — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 19:24:23 +0000

For those of you that don’t know Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) is the art of managing your products from idea all the way through the development process to the point of changing it or killing it with “crystal ball” ability to getting the biggest bang for your buck.

PLM may sound simple, the art is all about science and magic. Ensuring that you understand what is happening in the world, in terms of the environment (where the stuff to make everything comes from = science), knowing as much as you can about the people who could buy it and what they need and want (even if they don’t know it yet = science) and putting something together that talks to you and me in such a way that we want it (magic).

This article focus on the start of any PLM journey WHO, WHAT, WHY…How could Reebok sell trainers for $1?

So, what is this really about?

Generating employee loyalty?
Creating and innovating projects in poor and developing areas of the world?
A chance for people to feel good again?
Corporations doing good, really? Just think about what Coke did years ago. They went to the far flung places in the world and sold their product at a price point that area could afford. Where ever I went with my backpack in the world I could share a coke with a local it was awesome and created world domination because of brand loyalty, people have grown up with that brand – it’s a fundamental part of their lives and has kept Coke at number 1 – creating brand loyalty is what this is all about isn’t it?
Even if it is it’s a slap on the back all round because economically this is what developing areas need. Source the materials locally so the people involved in that get money to invest in looking for better materials, get the local workforce to make them, so they have money to buy them (and educate their families which will lead to lots of other ideas) – it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Sustainable PLM is still finding its feet in industry and I think this is a great example of just what can and needs to be done by companies who want to future proof what they do and how they do it. They say it’s a social project which is interesting and I assume a nice PR angle. Social is just one aspect of work that is being addressed adidas are creating projects that address the future needs of doing business, finding new markets and ultimately new consumers.

Interestingly the article focuses on the price point and how they are having to go back to basics to figure out how to make this work and what the price point is, it may not be a $1…this is fantastic and a exercise every business should be doing right now. Forget the term recession, our world has changed and we need to know how to work within the new rules.

How are you looking forward to see who your future customers are and how you are going to reach them no matter how unrealistic that may sound? May be everyone should start a $1 project…

‘Good’ Game?

Hannah Whittaker — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 12:15:57 +0000

Online gaming has become a rapidly growing activity for more and more people in recent years. Partly due, I assume, to the ability of connecting with other players and the escapism of building a different online life or world. Hand in hand with gaming goes the incessant Facebooking that has left many businesses debating over its effect, detrimental or otherwise, on worker productivity. Since purchasing apps or games has become a mass money-making phenomenon in itself, I was intrigued to read about WeTopia, an online game that’s designed to provide gamers with the fantasy world they collectively desire while raising money for real children’s charities.

Firstly, it’s free to play. You can build villages and help neighbours for ‘joy’ currency, in-game coins for real charitable works which are converted to real-world non profit donations that promote healthcare and education. Buying an in-game fountain, for example, contributes a donation for cleaner water. Players can support projects they choose that help people around the world and then track them on a day to day basis. But perhaps most commercially distinctive, players can generate a donation from a sponsored advertiser through ‘joy’ points, without any money out of their own pocket.

I’m not a gamer myself, but could this ‘social gaming’ be a thing that really takes off? Two problems I can see create an interesting debate. Is the very attraction to gaming, in that it’s disconnected from the mundaneness of real-life, undermined by this link to the harsh reality of the real world? Further, is linking this harsh reality for some to frivolous play-time for others ever going to be good thing?

Personally, I fell in love with this idea. The question of success will be answered in how well it’s executed. Social enterprises often struggle with the straddling of economic success and moral purpose, needing to be doing ‘good’ in two often incompatible ways. The key in delivering success in all areas will be answered by asking how well they are fulfilling their players, investors and customers’ needs.

Evolutionary Novel Behaviour…mine’s another glass of champagne thanks

Nina Dar — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 08:42:16 +0000

I’m a brain nerd, I love reading about the latest findings on what this lump of grey matter can do, so much still unknown about why we do what we do and the potential of discovering much more. So imagine my delight when I spotted this headline Why do smart kids grow up to be heavier drinkers?

The reason Evolutionary Novel Behaviour…basically kids with a higher IQ grow up searching for the new stuff. This makes perfect sense and normally that fact would focus on the positive outcomes that you would expect to see, this though shows that it’s good and bad and of course gives me a reason for my willingness to indulge in an extra glass or three!

Although the articles are interesting, the comments left by people were more so…

“Drinking is a social lubricant; most days you don’t fit in but with a few drinks you do; Ignorance is bliss; Dumb people are happier; Intelligent people are more sensitive to what is going on around them, drinking creates a moment in time; Drinking helps to cope with the idiots”

The use of the word intelligence is also well debated; the studies used empirical data (IQ) but we have progressed enough to know that is only one measure, that is what makes the study of the brain so fascinating. Before anyone draws any egocentric conclusions on my behalf, I’m not putting myself in the traditionally intelligent bracket but I do have a mind that never switches off and the comments about alcohol creating a moment in time did resonate with me.

I was also taken by the social nature of all the comments, they weren’t about going home closing the door on a world that didn’t understand you and drinking in isolation, they were about fitting in, being social, getting on with everyone…the real element of “social” in our world of virtual networking.

So as the party season kicks off and we are at our social best, when someone raises an eyebrow at you enjoying a festive tipple or two, remind them you were a smart kid – kick back enjoy the moment and enjoy the company of all the other smart kids around you.

GagaVille

Michael Ryan — Fri, 13 May 2011 13:33:33 +0000

The music world is racking up with weird and wonderful promotional ideas; my personal favourite being The Flaming Lips recent release of 4 new tracks on a memory stick inside an edible gummy skull (largely promoted through singer Wayne Coyne’s own Twitter account). However, I have to admit that I was shocked to hear the news that Lady Gaga is planning to team up with the makers of Farmville.

For those of you who don’t know, Farmville is an online game in which competitors cultivate a farm. I haven’t been on it myself but if the endless stream of Facebook invites to tend so-and-so’s crops are anything to go by then it can be pretty addictive. In fact, my mum recently confessed to getting up at 4am to go online and tend her farm. While Lady Gaga might struggle to tempt my mum away from her crops to GagaVille’s unicorns and diamonds, there are another 60 million users that she might be more successful with. According this article in The Guardian, Lady Gaga is not alone as the bands Muse and Death Cab For Cutie have also commissioned their own online games to interact with their fans. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/may/13/farmville-lady-gaga-gamers-facebook While everybody is coming to terms with how to use Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to promote and engage with consumers, I think that it is interesting to see how the scope of social media is constantly changing to create new avenues.

Being sociable

Michael Ryan — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 12:16:16 +0000

This morning I read an article on the BBC news about the history of the room. In the past, surveys have shown a steady rise in the number of rooms. Initially, the average house had fewer rooms and so the emphasis was much more about communal living. In Victorian times, this number expanded (albeit within the wealthier circles) to included specialised rooms such as billiard rooms, drawing rooms or studies. However, the modern trend implies that the number is reducing again. However, it is no longer the living room that people congregate in; the kitchen is becoming the centre of the household. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-12483492 The article puts this down to advances in technology (for example, the extractor fan allows you to eliminate cooking smells making it a more pleasant environment) but I wonder if there is something else at play? Outside the home, offices and working environments are also changing. The move to open plan offices is nothing new but this concept seems to have expanded. For example, when my former employers moved offices last year, the environment changed to included more meeting “areas” rather than meeting rooms, the canteen was replaced with a restaurant and the new building included a coffee shop and a gym. As the line between personal life and work life blurs, our environments have evolved in search of a common goal … being more sociable while you get on with your work. In my opinion, there is an increasing need for people to balance responsibilities. The UK has the longest working hours in Europe so, by making the kitchen the centre of your home, you can still interact with your nearest and dearest while you get on with the cooking. Likewise, you can fit in your exercise and reward yourself with a nice latte and a piece of cake while you chat about work. So is it all about face to face contact? I personally like a good old catch up but our use of technology also seems to follow this trend. Most companies have an intranet system with a bulletin board. Meanwhile, social media has taken off in the home in a big way. Using Facebook, I can keep an eye on what my friends are doing and update everyone with my status updates. So what does this mean? Despite the pressures of modern day life, people still want to be sociable and keep in touch with the people around them. If you are leading a change, how are you going make it sociable? Like most relationships, it’s about communication.

New look Brits not so new look

Michael Ryan — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 16:51:24 +0000

I found myself watching the Brits Awards last night. True to form, the show started with a performance by Take That. Take That are now a man band and they want to share their message that, under their clothes, riot police are just people who want to dance in their M&S underwear like everybody else.

Just as I was about to exercise my right to choose and switch the TV off, I was halted in my tracks. This year’s event would be different; it would be “all about the music”. Having been an avid collector since my early teens I was interested in how well they would make that change? As far as I’m concerned, not well enough to make it believable. Despite their ‘overhaul’ of the voting system where artists were allowed to decide with the record company executives and industry figures, the night still felt like who’d sold the most. Here are my ‘highlights’ of the night:

The show also had an interesting effect on Twitter where viewers at the awards and at home, gave their running commentary on events. In fact, it was so compelling that, even though I had switched the TV off, I turned it on to follow it for myself. But for all these observations, the bit that really typified the Brits experience came when the announcer informed us that Plan B was well liked by Elton John, who described him as the “male Amy Winehouse”.

In short, they’ve tried to be all things to all men and in their desire to reach a new world they reached a transition point that satisfies neither old nor new. The transformation will not happen overnight; it will be a journey. The organisers of the Brits will have to make some tough changes to redress the balance. After all, most of the artists named above have not reached their audience because of the industry that support it. Tellingly, their success is no longer just measured in sales but also by the number of hits they receive on YouTube. How about changes in your organisation? Are you listening to your audience enough to understand what it going to make them believe in your intentions? Are you honest enough to understand the extent of what you have to do to make the change? More importantly, is your change the right change to make? After all, who ever watched the Brits for the music?

Radiohead – great band but even better example of a brand

Michael Ryan — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:17:30 +0000

I am so excited I can hardly concentrate. It’s not because it’s Valentine’s Day and I going out with my fiancée later. It’s this ….

This is Radiohead announcing the release of their new album, “The King of Limbs” on Saturday 19^th February. So what have they done to make me so excited? My passion for Radiohead’s music has increased with every bold and innovative move they’ve made. And let’s make this clear. I didn’t just hear Radiohead and decide they were the best band in the world immediately. They won me over. Here are three things that made me love Radiohead.

Kid A and Amnesiac

It takes a very brave band to risk the huge commercial success of albums like The Bends and OK Computer by releasing two very different sounding albums. Apparently unhappy with the sound they had created, Kid A and Amnesiac embraced the electronic music that the band had been listening to and created something that was not only different to anything they had done before but also quite different to anything that was around at the time. The guitarist Ed O’Brien said at the time “If you’re going to make a different sounding record, you have to change the methodology. And it’s scary – everyone feels insecure. I’m a guitarist and suddenly it’s like, well, there are no guitars on this track, or no drums.”

The release of In Rainbows

The album In Rainbows was released through their website with limited press and with no record company support. And, if you wanted it, all they wanted in return was a donation … and you could pay what you wanted. The average donation was £4 showing that, despite the opportunity to get the album for virtually nothing, their fan base was still prepared to pay for a reasonable price for it.

The In Rainbows tour

The band set their production team the challenge of making their world tour carbon neutral. As a result the team worked with their suppliers to create a lightshow using LEDs that used 50% of the energy of their previous tour. The light supplier i-Pix have an interesting case study available from their website about the development of the lights. The company had only 5 months to design and manufacture 206 units for the tour and they made it with 4 days to spare. They put their success down to “down to an exceptionally good team, some serious planning and pushing their subcontractors to the limits!” The case study is at http://www.i-pix.uk.com/gallery/case-studies.htm. There is also a great document available that gives other examples of the how they planned to reduce the environmental impact like using locations with good public transport and changing the way they moved the equipment. It is also available at http://www.i-pix.uk.com/downloads/RadioheadLSIJune2008.pdf. I saw them at the LCCC ground in Manchester and the effect was breath taking. I recommend that you watch it all but, if not, start at the 2m 45s mark. The lights are great and it puts pay to the myth that they are miserable sods who hide behind their guitars. There is a PLM story here. Radiohead are fearless in the products that they create and the way that they create them. They are prepared to innovate at the creative stage and they are not afraid to look sideways at other genres of music to create their unique sound. They also look forward; Kid A bemused a lot of fans when it came out but since it release it’s been hailed as one of the best albums of the Noughties by Pitchfork, Rolling Stone and The Times. They understand their fans and know that it’s not just what they sell that it is important but it is how they appeal to them. Radiohead have made a conscious effort not to follow the typical record company approach and have used technology to help them do that. But they still retain the elements that make them who they are. They do all this with a wider sense of responsibility and their approach is echoed in everything that they do and in the people that they work with. There is an argument that rock stars shouldn’t do this kind of thing but I disagree completely. Radiohead understand that people look to them as examples and the way they act is as important to their fans as their music. What these things typify to me are Radiohead’s innovative approach to artistic integrity and social conscience; an approach that in itself generates loyalty and excitement in their fans. Needless to say, my copy has been ordered and I am waiting impatiently for Saturday to come so I can download the album. I have to wait until May for the physical product to arrive. The decision to not buy it just didn’t enter my mind. So how about your brands? Are people craving your next move or just reacting to your launches?

Truth, lies and marketing…

Nina Dar — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 15:04:07 +0000

The digital age means we no longer believe the advertising we see (well very few of us do, probably my mum and your nan) instead we believe what people tell us in chat rooms, forums, blogs and the like. If you are really cynical about these things (like me) you will believe the thought leaders knew this was coming and planted “real people” in the social networking arena so we could believe what they were saying (and it was free). Are we really that gullible that we just believe what people tell us when it comes to products and services, things we part with our hard earned for? In the biggest twist of fate I have seen for ages Coca-Cola say NO WE ARE NOT! WHY, would the one of the worlds biggest consumer brands say that when it spends more than the GDP of a small country on marketing? Check out this article being circulated on Twitter today – The Dark side of Vitamin Water

In a staggering feat of twisted logic, lawyers for Coca-Cola are defending the lawsuit by asserting that “no consumer could reasonably be misled into thinking vitaminwater was a healthy beverage.” I completely agree with John Robbins who says I still can’t get over the bizarre audacity of Coke’s legal case. Forced to defend themselves in court, they are acknowledging that vitaminwater isn’t a healthy product. But they are arguing that advertising it as such isn’t false advertising, because no could possibly believe such a ridiculous claim.

My mind (that likes to process map everything) will not let go of this thought. Coke spend money convincing us their product is healthy, when all the time they know it’s not and believe we know it’s not. Is this the next raft of marketing innovation? Or is it that Coke believe that they just could not say “hands up your right and we are guilty as charged”

” Noting that the soft drink giant wasn’t claiming the lawsuit was wrong on factual grounds, the judge wrote that, “Accordingly, I must accept the factual allegations in the complaint as true.”

It will be interesting to see if this kills the brand or Coke are right, the one thing that has not changed is that through whatever channel, we will decide.

What turns you on?

Nina Dar — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 15:22:44 +0000

This cheeky title is of course not an invitation to be about open your most personal thoughts but more a question to make you stop and think about what turns you on at work? Do you know or have things got so comfortable you don’t look for that kind of excitement anymore… Are you having an affair?… …dabbling with a little social media, playing marketing consultant or technical reviewer in your spare time? Seriously, the social networks are creating opportunities for us to get involved in things that once were the domain of professionals that were out of reach. Now we can all have a go and the consensus is this making a difference to how we view the world and choose our products and services but is it changing the way we work?

Some questions… 1. Has the way you engage with people over the social networks e.g. chat with strangers, engage on topics of interest, etc. changed the way you engage with people at work? 2. Have you uncovered new skill sets via the social networks that you have used in your actual workplace? 3. Has the use of social networks made you feel more satisfied or less satisfied with your day job?

If you are an employer or manage people do you know what turns them on? Do you know what they are doing in the virtual world? A lot of companies knee jerked a reaction to the use of social networks in the workplace and banned them and now slowly they are creeping back in through another knee jerk reaction – now to use them from a business perspective. As always our advice start with the end in mind…find out what turns you and your workforce on, if it’s something they are getting from their “affair” there is an opportunity on your doorstep.

Corporate Engagement with Social Media

Dani Maxton — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 16:18:40 +0000

Why is it taking so long to achieve corporate engagement with social media?

Achieving the balance of engaging the consumer and building a relationship through the product lifecycle could be groundbreaking for businesses and individuals but many companies are still scared of giving the consumer a voice without control and so levels of adoption are limited.

Is it as simple as they would have to consider how they collate ideas from the public? How they screen these ideas and how they can keep the consumer involved through development & launch without their competitors taking their ideas and bringing them to market faster & cheaper?

There are toes in the water…

Unilever are giving people the opportunity to create adverts for their biggest Brands

Ford have set up a dedicated website to gather ideas from the general public and allow other people to rate the ideas – the most popular will be elevated to a “most-popular” list and reviewed by Ford’s advanced product planning and marketing teams

You can join the family at Innocent Drinks and they will ask you what you think they should do from time to time.

To name but a few.

Isn’t the beauty of engagement is that it is a two way street?

Is the real two way conversation too much to expect? At the end of the day these people have to run a business. This would mean the jury is still out on if social media interaction has a tangible benefit.

Unilever are running their new campaign as a competition with a monetary prize for the winner. Is this the way engagement should be tackled? Contribution that makes a difference gets a financial reward? Would this make the consumer see this avenue as an opportunity to earn additional income or should the idea of having your idea potentially on the screen be enough?

Does this type of engagement threaten the professional services that would traditionally be involved?

In the case of Unilever the advertising campaigns have been the domain of creative agencies with in- house marketing teams but with a more demanding consumer and access to a whole new world of social media is there a more effective way to bring the consumer what THEY want?

Is there a difference between the effectiveness of professional services and a consumer community when it comes to understanding what the consumer wants?

Companies have relied on professional creatives to gain a competitive advantage and paid the price. With today’s new age social media we the consumers are at the click of a button and we’re cheap!

Are we cheap and good?

How great would it be if you thought of something you really want…

A shower gel with a different smell or an ice cream with a new flavour and you could tweet your favourite manufacturer…

They then engaged with you the loyal customer and put the idea to the vote…

It doesn’t have to end there…

They could keep you up date through the development process, let you see packaging designs, colours, launch dates and you can tell them what you like, don’t like…

Would this involvement bring a more transparent market place and stronger brand loyalty or would the consumers ‘voice without control’ prove too much?