In Forrester’s article titled “ A Close Look At Cloud Computing Security”  by Chenxi Wang, Ph.D. Wang states “While cloud computing is able to deliver many benefits, organizations should not jump on the “cloud” wagon without a compelling business driver and a clear understanding of the security, privacy, compliance, and legal consequences. An effective assessment strategy covering these items will help you reach the ultimate goal: Make the cloud service work like your own IT security department and find ways to secure and optimize your investments in the cloud.”

Forrester includes data protection, disaster recovery, and identity management as some of the areas under security and suggest that an audit of the potential cloud provider to see what level of security is actually provided.

As for compliance, the user should analyze how the cloud may or may not impact one’s compliance requirements.

For legal and contractual issues, Forrester advises that one understands who owns/is responsible for what, between the user and the provider (the data, the infrastructure, etc.)

Another article by Network World’s Jon Brodkin titled “Gartner: Seven Cloud – Computing Security Risks” he talks about seven security risk areas.

1. Privileged user access, sensitive data processed outside the enterprise.

2. Regulatory compliance, how does the cloud provider match your guidelines?

3. Data location, where exactly is your data housed?

 4. Data segregation, understand that your data is “sitting” next to other’s data

 5. Disaster Recovery, what happens when there is an outage?

6.  Investigating inappropriate or illegal activity may be impossible in cloud computing,

7. Long-term viability, what happens if your provider “goes away”?

Another article in Network World that reported on the RSA conference, and stated that the former technical director of NSA, Brian Snow is very concerned about vendors offering cloud computing from a security point of view. He is concerned about vendors not addressing current security issues and about new issues that cloud computing will create.   Ironically another panelist was concerned about “Big Brother” listening in on cloud computing and how this might impact enterprises’ privacy and compliance issues.

So to wrap up, the internet has security issues, and since cloud computing is in the internet, cloud computing will have those security issues, ones listed above, and ones yet to be discovered. It comes down to the risk profile for your corporation; what level of risk is right for your company relative to investing in cloud computing? Obviously part of the risk assessment depends on your type of company.  If you are a financial advisor or in stock management where your intellectual property is basically the company then cloud computing as we currently know it is not right for you at any cost savings. If you resell ping -pong balls (no offense to ping- pong ball resellers) than the risk is relatively low and the savings from cloud computing outweigh the security and other considerations. 

Have you conducted an adequate risk assessment before deciding to move to cloud computing?

RHL 03/10/10

Where is Generation Y focusing their attention today? Facebook was created at the perfect time for us. We began prodding around this site before we went off to college to meet future peers and have been loyal to it since. We have already built up a strong network of friends, photos, posts, videos, etc. so we are very attached to this site. It is not likely that we will phase out of Facebook anytime soon, even though we are a bit bothered that our parents (and even grandparents) are now on Facebook.

In a publication by Reynol Junco and Jeanna Mastrodicasa, they found that in a survey of 7,705 college students in the U.S.:-

• 97% own a computer
• 94% own a mobile phone
• 34% use websites as a primary source of news
• 75% of students have a Facebook account

You shouldn’t be surprised by these statistics, as you observe this generation using these sources every day. Facebook is essentially the most indispensable tool that we use, from socializing to sharing information, to posting memorable photos from events. We can easily keep in contact with former high school classmates, distant college friends, relatives, etc.
Generation Y is always on the go, however, this does not stop us from accessing Facebook since so many of us now own smart phones. Our mobile phones are essentially extensions of our hands and we have every social application we use right on us at all times to keep in touch.

We are the most eager to adopt new technologies as well. We love staying connected, talking with friends about new products, and showing off our latest and greatest technology purchases. That is why we are on the Internet so much, and almost all of us have a mobile phone. If companies market their new products to us correctly, and make the product look ‘cool’, we will be quite eager to at least try it out. Make it have a social component, and your odds of having us use it increases dramatically since Generation Y loves to share content.

Although Facebook is the most popular social network for Generation Y, it is not so for businesses. Our age group does not go on Facebook to be advertised to and we do not purposely search for business pages of which we want to become fans. I think Twitter solved this problem since it allows for much easier accessibility to businesses and advertisers. Twitter can be a very effective way to spread viral content about your business due to its ease of sharing, unlike Facebook.

Fortunately, Gen Y’ers are slowly getting on board the ‘Twitter train’ so to say, and if businesses already have a strong establishment on Twitter and have researched how to talk to this younger crowd on this medium, they will do well. So, although our generation uses Facebook the most, and Twitter has proved to be a very effective business tool, adoption of new technologies overtime will help brands relate to Generation Y quite effectively.

Kristin Dziadul, a recent college graduate, is a “digital native.”  She blogs daily about Gen Y activities and customs.  Her blog can be found on her website, http://kdmedianow.com

Until recently sales leads were generated by buying “lists” and sending out letters, holding “meet and greet” events in local areas, exhibiting at trade shows, placing bingo cards in trade publications and advertising.  In 2010 that has all changed.

Below is a representation of what was and what is happening today:

Lists are still being bought, but they can be purchased in much more granular fashion for targeted campaigns.  Leads generated from Google and Facebook ads, Webinars and other “opt-in” tools are much more valuable as they are already self-selected, perhaps better leads those generated at  “meet and greets,” as no food or drink is involved.

This change puts an emphasis on having a top-tier web site, easily navigable, with literature and “freemiums,” that can be easily downloaded,or information/tutorials that can be found on places like YouTube or BrainShark.  Buyers today are going to the web, your site and other areas, searching based on key words, evaluating companies based on what they find, selecting the 2-3 that are well presented and inviting them in for a final presentation.  In some cases they know more about the technical aspects of the product than the salesperson.

Have you looked at your allocation of Marketing dollars for 2010?  Do they correspond to today’s environment?  Are you using an obsolete marketing mix to reach your target market(s)?

RHM  3/5/2010

Please note, there are hundreds of vendors proposing to offer cloud computing. I have  selected five vendors and reviewed them at a very high level to see how they address our major considerations/filters (costs/capital expenditures, scale, instant access, business applications).   So as you read ask yourself if these vendors meet the minimum criteria for cloud computing

Microsoft’s Azure – Windows Azure offers an environment for developers (Web, ISV, business. etc.)  to create cloud applications and services.  So right off the bat; Azure is a developer’s “kit” not actual cloud provider. Microsoft’s Azure pricing is consumption based (usage) and they offer a SLA agreement (could not find any details).  Part of Microsoft cloud computing developer’s platform will be incorporated in data centers for off- premise applications for the final end user. 

 Callidus Software – Bring Sales into the Picture

Callidus, who provides Sales Performance Management (SPM) software, is expanding its suite on the Force.com platform to offer entire sales life-cycle from on-boarding deployment and payment, to talent development, while providing visibility into sales operations and financial performance. Basically this is an enhancement of SPM and it is supported by a “cloud” environment that provides scalability and uniform access.

Rackspace’s offering is usage based ($10.95/mo or 1.5¢/hr) with no long-term contract AND free technical support.   One can scale up & down at any time and access the cloud via Open Source APIs. Bandwidth is available for 7¢/GB in and 22¢/GB out.

According to Rackspace it is a three (3) step process; 1-Select your size of the cloud, 2-then the operating systems and 3- the rest is done by Rackspace    One note about their SLA guarantee. Cloud Files service will be available 99.9% of the time in a given billing cycle; if not you get a credit on your next bill.   Personally, this is not a good SLA component. 

 Zetta – Enterprise Cloud Storage on Demand

Zetta claims to provide cloud on – demand (scale) with pay (Zetta Enterprise Cloud Storage pricing starts at $0.25/GB/month) as you go. Zetta provides a Total Cost of ownership calculator so you can quickly compare your current costs to Zetta managed storage costs.  Along with the performance is performance assurance (assume some sort of SLA).  Not sure about instant access to business applications.

Stratascale – The world’s first physical cloud

They provide servers, firewalls and storage that are scalability (4 levels of clouds, which consist of 70GB/server, 1 Gbps bandwidth between servers, secure and reliability).  I did not find anything about their pricing structure or SLA agreements, so no comments.

This is really a hosted/managed service for servers with fire walling. Not sure how far they can scale and where are the business applications.

Bottom line, given this was a random sample: technically, none of these met all of the criteria for being a cloud computing vendor.  Most are offering some sort of storage/server solution with some uniqueness like added security or a management tool. Their specific offering may well meet a foundation or infrastructure component; but one would still have to find other vendors to help provide the complete solution.  Given this situation the pros might not outweigh the cons in your decision process.

Lesson learned, do a complete due diligence before you sign on the dotted line.

Happy researching in the cloud or it pays to keep your head in the clouds!

RHL   3/3/10

A “social network” device used during World War II

Here and here I blogged about my survey of Marketers in Eastern Massachusetts during the last two weeks of January 2010.  These are the front line soldiers that are making daily strategic and tactical decisions to reach their goals, and are executing these plans either directly or through their staffs.

As I mentioned, the lack of funding/credit is their number one concern.  Number two is extracting more money out of their installed base. (A broader, more in-depth survey is required to define a causal relationship between #1 and #2.)

Because of the buzz around social media and networking, I asked if they were using it, how, and was it effective.  (For my definition I lumped the following in this bucket; blogging, twittering, Facebook pages/fans, LinkedIn, MySpace, SEO, Google and anything else they wanted to include.)

The responses were all over the board.  Young companies that I thought would be in the forefront aren’t doing it; older, more mature companies are; there is no common pattern or usage to those doing it; measurements/metrics are weak or non-existent, etc.

For those not using any form of social media, the comments were:

• “We don’t need it, we have a small customer base/market and we know them.”
• “We don’t have the bandwidth or resources to spend on this…it seems to be a time-suck with no measureable return.”
• “All our resources in this area are dedicated to our website; our buyers don’t go to Facebook or twitter.”

For those using some form of social media, and no-one is a heavy user, the comments were:

• “We are using listening tools to track what is being said about us, although we don’t have a good response program established.”
• “We have found our Facebook page and fans to be interesting and useful, but is hard to track action there to sales.”
• “Some of the guys in customer service have twitter accounts, but I am not sure how far that is going.”

Based on my limited biased survey, the penetration of social media is relatively low, despite Boston being in one of the more technology advanced sections of the country.  In other words, it seems that in January 2010 and probably extending into the first-half of this year, the buzz around social media and networking is exceeding its usage and influence. However, all the people I talked to said that this is an area that they will be investigating, taking action and/or implementing additional tools in the future.

As Kristin has pointed our in her blogs, here and here, Gen Y’ers have a different view and approach to social media.  It is a fundamental part of their lives and it is carrying over into the work place.

Digital natives and digital immigrants are using the Internet and related social media in B2B situations unheard of a year or two ago.  An example is the recently launched Security Scorecard http://www.securityscoreboard.com/.  This site will aggregate peer information about security vendors’ products, providing the same sort of review that Yelp does for restaurants, bars and cleaners. Within a year, most security vendors can cut all their spending on brochures, catalogs and advertisements.  Placing high in this peer structured review will mean more to sales than any other customer facing medium.   Similar sites will continue to shift the power to the buyer from the seller in a variety of B2B industries.

Advice to CMO’s.  Move up the implementation of social media activities.  Don’t be a laggard in this area.  Part of the evolving situation is that not all tools will work effectively.  Rather than wait for the “right” solution, try them all, discard (for now) the ones that fail, and be prepared to pick up the new ones that come along.  Lack of visibility in this area may cause the need for intensive, expensive corrective actions within the next 18-24 months…activities your successor will enjoy.

Do you have a plan for implementing social media tools between now and the end of the year?  Why not?

RHM  2/25/2010

In my last posting I discussed the definition and some of the major factors about cloud computing.  This posting will outline its major “Pros and Cons.”

Remember our simplified definition of cloud computing, consists of shared computing resources that are virtualized and accessed as a service through an APL[1].

The Pros

1-      Costs/capital expenditures

If cloud computing is right for your company, then major cost savings can be seen in the buying and maintaining the needed infrastructure, support equipment and communication costs. The vendors and/or service provider, who charge the users a utility or user type fee, own these costs.

2-      Scalability

One of IT’s biggest problem is the constant need to add more equipment to keep up with the growing demand of accessing, storing and analyzing information by both internal and external users.  One example is in the data center where adding servers is a major cost issue (actually power for the data center is the number one issue, but it is related to the growing need for items like servers). Since cloud computing is virtual, one can expand or contract equipment/infrastructure as demands change.

3-      Start – up

Since the cloud (theoretically) contains the infrastructure and applications, all one just needs to do is “dial” in to the cloud.  One can start using applications immediately versus a customary installation, testing and then providing access to the appropriate user community. (Training is assumed to a constant.)

4-      Business Applications

Again, the cloud (actually the vendors and/or service providers) through contracts (Service Level Agreements –SLAs) provides numerous business applications for any user who is their client. Again like scale, enterprises only need to know which applications they need to run their business and understand what is actually provided to have access to various business applications. (Training is assumed to be a constant.)

5-      Flexibility

Since cloud computing is a virtual offering, a user has the flexibility to choose, on a regular basis, the applications, amount of bandwidth or the number of users by basically modifying his user contract and increasing or decreasing costs at a known rate or factor.

The Cons

1-SLA Agreements

This is the tricky and most important one.  SLAs can be very involved and it really leaves the onus on the user to understand and define all requirements in specific detail, and more importantly understand what one is getting in the terms of support, performance, security, etc. A good example is quality of service; one should understand what is offered and what the recourses are if the specified quality is not maintained.

2-Performance

Performance guarantees are usually part of the SLA document, but I have singled this one out because it is critical to maintain the performance (uptime) one needs both for internal AND external users.  Understand if the performance guarantee is defined as an average or just during peak times versus a “uniform” performance. If performance is compromised, it can impact many things including revenue and your company’s goodwill.

3-Vendors

Not all vendors are created equally! Many vendors are claiming to provide cloud computing, but in reality, they are just providing a specific service, or a specific application or worst they are a middleman and provide no value-add at all.  As I sated in my previous posting, one needs to understand the difference between cloud computing and hosted services or managed services or seemingly some form of virtualization. My best advice is to definitely get with reference customers and see if they model what you would like from the cloud.

4-Security

We all know that the internet has some security issues and since the cloud utilizes the internet coupled with applications infrastructure and support, users should be aware of the potential for new threats and increased risk exposure.  It is important to include your firm’s risk tolerance in any decision to move to cloud computing, as not all the security issues are understood, and new ones will arise.

5-IT Staffing

If one does utilize the cloud, then make sure one understands the vendor staffing that is available to support your needs and hundreds of others using their cloud.  A number of vendors out-source staffing and some of the personnel may not be as good as your own internal organization. Ask the potential service provider if they have trained personnel to support the applications you request.

As I have always stated, know your strategy for your IT organization and your lines of business and weigh whether the “pros” out weigh the “cons” for going with cloud computing.  Note that there are a number of advantages and disadvantages; do not be swayed by looking at cloud computing from only a cost-saving point of view. 

In all probability the answer will be some thing in the “middle”, i.e. some hybrid form of cloud computing.

Next time we will discuss some of the vendors that are offering cloud computing.

RHL 02/23/10

Generation Y consumers gather their information in ways that are quite different than the way Baby Boomers do. We do not read the newspaper, we do not tune in to the hourly news on the television much (except for MTV and E! News), and we change the channel as soon as radio news comes on. Instead, we are turning our attention the the Internet, friends, and families for our information. A Study by Marketing Management students at Western New England college (www.wnec.edu) found that out of 600 people surveyed, 480 reported that they use the Internet to make purchase decisions, and 420 said they turn to friends and family to gather information. This dramatic shift in how Gen Y consumes information about brands shows that trust in a company is not in the hands of that company, but rather in its endorsers and influencers.

I have found that purchase influencers are a huge part of how I shop and learn about brands. If I was going to buy a new phone, I would not rely solely on an advertisement or Consumer Report. Instead, I would find a friend who is either knowledgeable in that product category, or who has that product, and ask for their input. Social networks are a great place to ask these questions and hear back from various friends and family members, Pew Research (link: http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1093/generations-online) reported that 67% of Gen Y’ers use social networks to connect with others.

The diagram below is also from Pew Research (link: http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1093/generations-online). It demonstrates the online habits of each generation. While Internet usage has increased among all generations, the Gen Y habits are of particular interest. Generation Y can also be considered the Echo Generation since we are the offspring of the Baby Boomers, the largest consumer segment in history. Because of this, we clearly are also a large consumer base that will influence the way companies do business and reach out to us. The diagram shows that 84% of these consumers research for products online, and 76% get their news from Internet sources. 71% reported that they are highly likely to make a purchase online.

I strongly encourage every company that has a Generation Y target market to begin Internet and word-of-mouth campaigns. If your main consumers are online doing research on your company, you must ensure you have excellent, searchable content. You must also be on the social networks that your consumers are using so that you can start generating word-of-mouth advertising. If you post fascinating and intriguing information, we will be very likely to spread it. Fads online come to fame as fast as they can fade away, but if you are clever enough and do your research, you can generate tons of buzz in a short amount of time which can boost sales dramatically, especially if about three-quarters of Generation Y consumers are ready to buy online.

If trust in brand information is not gained through advertisements and Consumer Reports anymore, but through the Internet, friends, and family, how do you foresee your company’s marketing endeavors changing in the next few years to adapt?

Kristin Dziadul, a recent college graduate, is a “digital native.”  She blogs daily about Gen Y activities and customs.  Her blog can be found on her website, http://kdmedianow.com

As I mentioned in my earlier posting, I recently interviewed a wide spectrum of B2B Marketing people across a variety of industries, in different sized companies, regarding their views of 2010.  These front-line soldiers are making daily decisions in order to meet their objectives, bounded by internal constraints and external economic conditions.

As noted, the lack of available funding/credit is their key concern.  Their second most important concern is customers.  Here is where the biggest difference appeared in my survey.  Small start-up companies are in aggressive customer acquisition mode, trying to identify and close reference accounts, differentiating their product, defining their value proposition and working to establish a customer base.

The larger, more mature companies are taking a different approach.  Rather than aggressively pursue new customers, many of the Marketing people I talked to are focusing on extracting more money out of each of their existing customers.  The strategies and tactics that they are using are varied, and have long-term implications.

1. The “Bundle.”  Here the Marketer is tying together 2, 3 or 4 products, assuring the customer that they all work together nicely, and that by buying the bundle or adding product 2, 3 or 4 to a previous purchase, he/she can save money due to lower service costs, billing…plus having one throat to choke in the event something goes wrong.  (Note that “bundle” marketing is different than “solution” marketing, where 1+1 really does equal 3)
2. The “New Product.” Here the large company acknowledges a “hole” in its product line, and proceeds to fill it by buying a smaller company with an acceptable product.  The new product allows the larger company to more effectively compete in its space and provides a short term solution.  Over time the new product/technology is assimilated into the larger company’s product and service offerings.
3. Software as a Service (SaaS).  Here some of the companies, recognizing that their customers cannot afford a capital purchase, are turning to offering their product as a service.
4. Using social media to increasing customer satisfaction by implementing communities and “listening” to what is being discussed and reacting appropriately.

Note that these strategies and techniques do not focus on product or brand promotion and/or lead generation activities (mailings, events, etc).  And the implication to the Sales organization and management is that Account Managers are needed more than Gun Slingers.

While none of these tactics are cheap, for a large company the overall cost is less than aggressive new customer acquisition.  Each however, carries risks that are recognized and must be mitigated:

• Once the “bundle” is complete, what do you do next?  Also, if the sum of the individual pieces is less than each sold individually, will you be able to sell them individually?
• Will a product, added from an outside company, have the same image as one internally developed?  How often can you do this to fill holes in a product line and still appear as a value-add company instead of an aggregator?
• Once down the path of SaaS, you are committed.  This go-to-market strategy has different costs and margins than hardware/software sales.  If it is unbelievably successful, what will be the short-term, 1-3 years, bottom-line financial impact?
• Establishing and listening to communities requires the ability to be responsive without being intrusive.  Are social media customs built into the culture?

Using some or all of these techniques, the Marketing people I talked to are in the process of increasing the average billing per customer.  This will help them meet their 2010 goals and objectives.  These techniques will not help them add new customers or grow market share…which for many were not high up on the goal ladder.

Over the long-term these actions, coupled with buyers driving to reduce their vendor count, will lead to oligopolistic markets, where 80% or more of the market is dominated by 2 or 3 suppliers.

The implication for new, smaller companies offering point products is that in 2010 they have to present a very compelling story, most likely focused on a quick ROI, in order to succeed.

Are you extracting more from your installed base?  What strategies and tactics are you using?  If you are a small company, is your value proposition hinged on ROI?

The photo above is a picture of a mine exploding on the first day of the battle of the Somme, July 1, 1916.  The British strategy was to penetrate the German lines and “roll-up” the enemy from behind.  One tactic was to bury and explode 10 mines under German trenches in order to open a hole that would allow British infantry troops of push through, followed by British cavalry.

The largest of the mines contained over 24 tons of explosive.  The explosion was heard in England.  On July 1, 1916, the British suffered over 54,000 casualties, including over 19,000 killed.  The battle of the Somme is considered a failure in terms of strategy, tactics and execution.

RHM 2/16/2010

Looking at the ad a second and third time confirmed my concerns.  While it shows a cute boy, in an inverse situation, and mentions Doritos, I find the context disturbing.

Specifically the ad seems to highlight:

• Being a single mom is OK; they have no problems
• Leering after a woman’s behind is part of what a man does
• Violence (slapping) is an acceptable form of behavior
• Physically getting is someone’s face is a way to enforce your position

Underlying these actions is that the actors were black.  Would this ad been as “cute” if the actors were Asian or Native American?  Does portraying blacks in this way reinforce a positive stereotype?  What would have been the reaction if the adult had slapped the child?

I wonder if Doritos’ Marketing management asked and answered these questions when they oversaw the production of this ad, and paid about $1.5M for the airtime?  I wonder why they thought that this was acceptable ad to show to over 100 million Americans?

I recognize that the Dorito commercial is not the only offensive commercial every made.  Knowing the multiple influences on Marketers to differentiate themselves, I wonder if they have lost sight of basic Marketing 101:

• Know your customer (Who is it in this commercial, smug white people, stereotyped black people, mis-behaving 4 year olds?)
• What is the message? (What is Doritos try to express, humor, wisdom, knowledge?)
• What is the offer? (How different are Doritos than their competitors, what to they offer me, the buyer. that is different?)

If Doritos was interested in “playing nice” with their customers, and not highlighting unacceptable social behavior and reinforcing stereotypes, could that money have been better spent on education?

Or am I out of touch with marketing and advertising today?

RHM  2/12/2010

Many liken business to war.  We “attack the competition.”  We “defend” our customers.  Our new product introduction will “gain a competitive advantage and kill the enemy.”

Going into the New Year there was a lot of rhetoric about the Great Recession; whether the economy is growing, and what to expect.  The TV talking heads, bloggers and analysts have had their say, often repeating what someone else has said or changing their opinion based on new information.

I found much of what was being said contrary to what I had heard or seen.  So, during the past last two weeks I went to the front lines and talked with multiple marketing colleagues, located in Eastern Massachusetts, about how they think 2010 will unfold.  Like front line solders, these people are fighting a daily battle with defined tactical goals, surprises and limitations. They have real life experiences to document what is going on.  These conversations have taken place in person and over the phone.  The companies represented range from a very small start-up to billion dollar multi-nationals.  The industries range from hi-tech to commodities and covered both products and services.

I covered 5 subjects: money/credit, customers, social media/networking, new product introduction and marketing functions obtained or offered as a service…function as a service (FaaS).

One of the most interesting finding was the commonality on some subjects.  I heard the same thing regardless of size of company, industry or offering.  The starkest difference, not surprisingly, was between young startups with no or few customers, and larger more mature companies with large installed bases.  Yet even here, there were commonalities.

The number one topic related to money, or the lack of it. I will discuss my findings on money/credit below.  Future blogs will cover the other themes.

The Lack of Money/Credit

Everyone I talked to bemoaned the lack of money; to carry out programs, launch new initiatives, upgrade capabilities, add headcount, etc.  While some were operating on budget numbers that were below 2008 levels, others were using OPM (Other People’s Money) to meet their goals and objectives.  Using OPM included scheduling late payments (beyond 90 days) to working with vendors to fund prototype models and deliverables.

In some of the larger companies specific product lines, which had promotional dollars in the past, are now included in corporate or “umbrella” campaigns, while in both large and smaller companies each component of a lead generation program is vetted on a strict ROI basis…resulting in fewer shows, mailings, etc.

It appears the dictum to “do more with less” has taken effect.  However, few of the front line troops that I talked to felt that they were really “doing more.”  They felt that they were, at best, holding their own and that the risks to their product, brand, image and market share is much higher today than 18 months ago.  Some quotes:

• “We are losing our differentiation”
• “Sales say the number of qualified leads is significantly below where it was even a year ago.  I agree with them but have no funding to change the process.”
• “I have no discretionary marketing dollars”
• “I spend all of my time thinking about the next 30-60 days…I don’t know what is going to happen in the second-half.”

My conclusion, biased as it may be by geography and small sample size,  is that the lack of funding is constraining marketing activity and will result in slow, minimal growth.  The “do more with less” approach has morphed into “hold your position, don’t lose any ground” position.  Flat “growth” from year-to-year has become the new measure of success.

There is no basis for extrapolating these findings to the economy as a whole.  Were I to do so, it would suggest that there are no marketing drivers in 2010.  Few, if any, companies are adding marketing resources, mounting new campaigns, or taking chances.  The tepid commercials during the Super Bowl seem to reinforce this thought.  And, without Marketing driving business, new economic growth will be slow and uneven.

I would be interested to hear about your experiences in operating to today’s tight economy.

Next up: Customers focus

Note that a core Fire Alarm Marketing service is helping companies direct their scarce resources for an optimum return.  Call if you would like to discuss how we can help you.

RHM   2/11/2010