This, however, does not take away from the fact that they are an iconic company that has pulled off one of the greatest marketing feats in the modern world: building a fiercely loyal user base. A running joke in our office is that the fiercest Apple supporters would buy an empty box if Apple released it and called it “iProduct.”

According to Forbes, “Multiple factors created this amazing loyalty – brilliant design, highly original products, intuitive user experience, creative marketing, and more. But there’s one element that gets mentioned less but was a key driver of the fanatical loyalty of many Apple owners: Apple created an enemy, the PC and its users, and built that enemy into much of its marketing.

Marketing has always been closely related to psychology. Humans create social identities for themselves based on groups that they consider themselves to be a part of. Henri Tajfel and John Turner developed the social identity theory around the time that Jobs and Wozniak were developing the early Apple devices. According to the Forbes Article, Apple took advantage of the human tendency to divide and create rivalries. This has been a strategy of Apple’s since their iconic “1984” ad was released during Super Bowl XVIII. They continued this strategy with the “Mac vs. PC” ad campaign, which ran from 2006 – 2009.

The underlying truth in all of this is that people crave human connection. Apple was able to make their brand into a cultural “lighting rod” which attracted a certain type of person. This allowed Apple users to “connect” with other Apple users simply because they used the same consumer electronics.

Companies should be on the look out for a good enemy because “us vs. them” branding is as powerful as the need for human identity.

Gray Suit Marketing is proud to participate in the naming and branding for 2net.

The 2net Platform makes it easy for companies to connect wirelessly to their medical devices so that data can be made available across the continuum of care. Data is obtained from a patient’s medical device through several gateways, such as the 2net Hub, a mobile phone, another cellular-enabled device or application programming interfaces that connect to the customer service platform. Once the data is acquired from the medical device, it is encrypted and then stored in the 2net Platform over a cellular connection. After the 2net Platform has received the transmission, patient medical device data is transferred to the manufacturers’ interface of choice for the end-user.

In this video, Gray Suit Marketing president, David Warren, describes a case study with Hewlett Packard that gave us, as a firm, the opportunity to use smart creativity to solve problems.

This clip is 6 of 7 in “Climbing Back Up the Pyramid” from the marketing seminar that took place May 15 at Mintz Levin entitled “Is Your Marketing a Cash Burn or Profit Center?”

Check back weekly for updates.

Intrapreneurs are the adventurers within large organizations who see the world as progressive and incomplete. They dive into every task and objective with a ‘start up’ type mentality of innovation, flexibility and risk taking that results in the advancement of an established firm. Intrapreneurs see their company’s sphere as it is and work to make it as it should be.

There is always something missing. There is always something to be done, and they’re just the ones to do it.

Within such sizeable organizations, they’re equipped with the tools to accelerate development by bypassing bureaucratic hurdles in order to take advantage of new opportunities. The Fortune500 Intrapreneurs group is a forum for developing professional knowledge and relationships among individuals interested in the combination of entrepreneurial temperament and the immense potential existing in Fortune 500 corporations.

To join, please log into your LinkedIn account and search in groups for “Fortune 500 Intrapreneurs”.

This clip is adapted from the marketing seminar that took place May 15 at Mintz Levin entitled Is Your Marketing a Cash Burn or Profit Center?

A sales force for growth

Represents drive and foresight

with market knowledge

One of the most significant qualities a thriving business can uphold is a keen ability to acknowledge and develop value-adding resources from channels already existing within the company. Your sales force is a prime, potential candidate for just such an adaptation. It is “the frontline group best placed to gain an intimate understanding of existing customers, to observe the forces at work in an industry, and to identify potential new business.” McKinsey’s article on this topic breaks down the processes involved in generating this kind of value into four coherent steps. (quotes italicized)

Look Over the Horizon:

New technologies tend to sustain two primary characteristics: they’re sudden and they’re disruptive. Simply put, there is no way to avoid the obvious challenges to industry incumbents that new technologies create, so the only option is to expect, embrace, and employ.

The sales force provides insights into the technology initiatives of the company’s customers while continually pressing them for feedback about its shortcomings and the efforts of competitors. The ultimate goal is to position the company as a supplier that’s ahead of the curve and to enjoy superior sales growth while competitors scramble to catch up.

Hunt and Farm:

It’s easy for organizations to fall into the habit of seeking sales growth only through existing customers. Use your sales force to take advantage of “downtime” by staking out future opportunity. Even though the sales force is typically best placed to find and approach potential clients, individual reps may shun the uncomfortable task of cold-calling in favor of selling to customers they know well. Yet there’s only so much each customer can buy, so finding new business is critical for growth.

Motivate with More Money:

For years, the sales force compensation model has remained the same. A salary provides security and stability while bonuses and commissions offer incentives to perform, but a financial services company recently found that, while carrots and sticks did influence the sales performance of its financial advisers and sales managers, the results were short-lived. In order to continue incentives and bring forth passions necessary to continue efficiency, the employee needs to find a deeper motivation. The most successful advisers often spoke passionately about the sense of fulfillment that came from helping clients realize their dreams. This concept of creating, establishing, and meeting a goal that is “more than work” produces a more long term incentive than cash ever could.

Boost Sales without Slashing Prices:

Companies experiencing flat or declining sales often elect to cut prices to spur demand. Yet sometimes, averages lie: a decline across a market doesn’t mean that all market segments are weakening. The sales force is the perfect team to discover the depth of each marketing segment individually. They are capable of receiving valuable information from each territory and this granular view of each sales territory can lead to new sales approaches. In higher-growth markets with limited competition, sales reps can aggressively seek new business and raise prices where possible. In declining markets with stiffer competition, reps can be authorized to cut prices to prevent customers from defecting.

This video is a part of the section on Climbing Back up the Pyramid and it features Gray Suit Marketing partner, Dean Isaacs, providing another example of how experience converts to results.

This is the 3 video of a seven-part series. Continue to check back for more videos regarding smart marketing for modern businesses.

This is the second video of  seven part series. Continue to check back for more videos regarding smart marketing for modern businesses.