by Chuck McKay | Oct 19, 2008 | Customer Education, Expectations, and Motivation, Psychology and Consumer Behavior
A couple of decades ago I sat on the invisible side of a two-way mirror and studied the members of a focus group as they watched some television ads my company was testing. One of my company’s most vocal supporters watched an ad that positioned our product as...
by Chuck McKay | Aug 25, 2008 | Customer Focus, Retention, and Evangelism
For the last week, as we’ve discussed steps to cope with the Recession of 2008, we’ve assumed that the recession actually exists. But, what if you agree with Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke? The Chairman tells us that a recession, by definition, is...
by Chuck McKay | Aug 24, 2008 | Advertising / Marketing Strategy, Advertising 101
Cash flow is tied to profit and loss, but makes allowances for lags which happen between the sale, and payment clearing your checking account. The problem of a slow economy can work to your advantage if your suppliers grant you credit. It can be fatal if you offer...
by Chuck McKay | Aug 23, 2008 | Budgeting, Pricing, and Return on Advertising Investment (ROAI)
Supply and demand tend to be somewhat elastic. Changing one causes a reciprocal effect on the other. When demand drops, supply increases, and all too often consumption decreases, too. In our terms, that means gross sales will head south as people determine they...
by Chuck McKay | Aug 22, 2008 | Advertising / Marketing Strategy
As much as we dread any economic recession, there are economists who insist tough times force us to become more efficient, and that’s a good thing. Perhaps this is most obvious when it comes to staffing. In many retail businesses, and nearly all service...
