House of Phoenixx, LLC

Blind Focus Groups: here's why they're important Your sales team doesn't know your customers nearly as well as they think they do. There, I said it. Before you start bashing away on your keyboard for a cheeky response, hear me out. Your sales team is well paid to nurture relationships with your best customers. They know their customer's hobbies, their important family dates, etc., and spend time and (your) money on events that keep them loyal. So when these same customers suddenly entertain a quote from a competitor, you and your sales team are shocked and angry, right? A blind focus group [conducted by someone outside your company] that reaches out to a group of your customers [along with non customers] to address product satisfaction / industry problem identification / new product ideas can be both extremely valuable as well as preemptive. These meetings are conducted brand-neutral [blind] - and no one representing your company or any other within your market space - is present. Blind focus groups can take a bit of planning, and they can be spendy at first glance, but the information and value gleaned from a focus group is immeasurable if they're executed well. Usually conducted at a hotel or third-party office space, your customers are brought into a conference room with others and presented with a series of questions that gauge their satisfaction with their current products, service, support - as well as questions designed to fetter out problems they have within their market segment, i.e., product failures, personnel shortages, ergonomic issues [relating to product design], technology improvements, etc. Much of this can be gleaned simply by asking: "if you could fix one thing about your industry (or your product), what would it be?" The key to blind surveys is to get your participants talking and simply guide the discussion to ensure everyone is heard. All of this is filmed so that your team can review the information in detail later. These focus groups often capture customer dissatisfaction with your products, your personnel and/or your processes - allowing you to compare that to what your sales team knows. Information is power - and data retrieved from a focus group allows your team to identify your weaknesses and develop a strategy to address shortcomings that you know your customers will want. For new product development engineers, this should be critical component in their design journey - as designing a product specifically created to solve their problem is half the battle. At House of Phoenixx, we're well versed in conducting blind research to provide our customers with a data-driven leg up on their competition. Let's talk...

So instead of being bombarded by everything that's wrong in the world, here's a great story of something that's great in the world. Our hat is off to the folks at Luff Sheets and Sleep in Heavenly Peace. Let's make these two organizations famous... for all of the right reasons.

Monetizing Customer Satisfaction Can Be Done If Looking at the Right Metrics A sad reality is watching your C-suite colleagues' eyes glass over when you mention "Customer Satisfaction." Sure it's a concern - and you have people employed to deal with product / service issues, but in the larger scope, it's viewed as a "touchy - feely" endeavor. I'm a strong believer that data gleaned from a smartly designed Customer Satisfaction [CSAT] program is among the best tools to identify what your customers think of your products, your people, and the customer-facing processes [sales, service & support]. Further more, if you tie it to gross margin, you can identify your true customers from those that see you as merely a commodity. Subsequently, you can ascertain which customers need to be touched more often vs. those that need to be introduced to your competitors [a.k.a. fired]. Through a simple survey addressed to the recipients of your product or service, you can gather information regarding your value propositions [whatever they may be]. If your questions are succinct and address aspects regarding your product's value to them [delivered value, delivered quality, dependability, service, warranty, etc.], this information can be tallied to provide a CSAT score for the product they just took delivery of. Head over to Finance and find out what that customer paid for the product in question. While there, find out what the cost of goods were to manufacture that product. The difference between what your customer paid vs. what your cost was to manufacture the product would be that transaction's gross margin. If you have this information for all similar products in this family, you can calculate the gross margin average [GMA]. Plotting the price your customer paid along with the most recent CSAT score COMPARED to the GMA will yield valuable [and actionable] information. You'll know very quickly which customers are paying more than GMA and where your CSAT score landed in conjunction to this. Your GMA line should be viewed as the "red line." If you make the assumption that a 4.5 out of 5.0 [90%] CSAT score is the "gold standard", and anything below a 3.5 [70%] needs immediate attention - you get a very detailed schematic of what your customers think of you. More importantly, if you track your customers' CSAT scores over time, invaluable trend lines appear that can be used to direct future marketing efforts. This is a very short explanation of a more detailed process, but I guarantee that if you do this and act upon it, you'll grow your bottom line, delight your customers, and frustrate your competitors. It might even put a smile on your CFO's face... [okay, that might be a stretch 😜 ]

Ensuring Everyone is Singing from the Same Hymnal Want to create a good [and potentially sobering] exercise the next time you get together with your executive team? Put out a piece of paper and tell them to write down the key value propositions that differentiate your company from your competitors. I'm willing to bet that at least 50% of your team will be unable to answer it fully or correctly. This merely begets deeper questions: If they don't have the correct answers - what are they telling their staff? What are your sales staff telling potential customers? Is there alignment - or is there a disconnect? Key differentiators are those foundational elements that your brand stands on. Hint: it's not quality, dependability, or any other "sister kiss" that so many companies proudly state. Why not? Ask yourself this... have you ever seen your competitor brag about their lack of quality or reliability? Of course not. Pull in one of your lead sales or marketing people and have them give you a two-minute elevator pitch regarding your company's value propositions on your latest product launch... and listen for the sister kisses. Instead, their answers should be crisp, data-driven - and providing solutions to problems that customers have asked you to solve. My recommendation is the next time you schedule an off-site executive meeting, challenge your marketing team to run a Value Proposition Work Shop where at the meeting's end, you have a rock-solid list of value propositions that differentiate you from your competitors and will resonate with your customers / potential customers. In order to make this happen, you'll need to ensure engineering, marketing, sales, manufacturing, finance, service, dealer development, etc., are in lockstep. This will likely require some pre-meeting homework to ensure you get it right, including competitive intelligence, customer feedback [which is of paramount importance], and a detailed SWOT of your competition. There is no room for "me too" statements, anything that starts with "I think or I feel," or those that can't be validated by data. Several years ago, I conducted brand research using a third party to determine the strength of our brand at the time, and how we measured up to our leading competitors. The answers were sobering - but it then led to a rebranding effort - where we used our deficiencies to develop new value propositions. We shored up our product, people and process issues and then resurveyed customers 24 months later. The changes were dramatic - along with market share growth that validated our changes. If you suspect your company might by in this boat - we're here to help you navigate your way to a stronger brand identity. Trust me when I say that development of defensible value propositions is the best money your company will ever spend. Your CFO will thank you...

Product Launch Strategy: Nothing Can be Left to Chance Launching a new product is always exciting - but without a well thought out launch strategy, the excitement can quickly lead to disappointment. In the most basic terms, a launch strategy involves a lot of homework prior to the event to ensure you have the right product, the right message, the correct platforms, etc. It's also critical that you have production, supply chain, and after sale support dialed in BEFORE you flip the switch. How many times have you been intrigued by a new product only to find out it's not available yet? The brochure is flashy, the video shows the product solving the problem you're having - and you can't wait to get your hands on one. You call the sales rep - only to find out the product won't be available for eight months. In that eight months, everyone will forget about your product and move on. Don't be that company. The most effective way to develop a product launch strategy is to work backwards from the proposed date of launch. Assuming that Engineering, Marketing and Sales have done their jobs regarding the development of KPI's that will ensure success, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Service need to sign off on when they'll be ready. I would recommend nine months to a year to ensure everyone is given time to put systems in place. Without products coming down the line, parts coming in the door and in-field service ready for the post-sale hand off, the launch won't be successful. Concurrently, Marketing needs to develop a communications campaign that includes media relations, sales support [collateral], web content, social media engagement, product video(s), regional dealer/show events and larger trade show appearances to build (and maintain) the hype. All of these elements should lead up to a formal product launch date where sales are engaged with customers to both take orders - and promise delivery in a time frame that delights. A successful product launch strategy is very much like a symphony where every participant knows the part they must play to keep their audience engaged.

Developing a Customer Satisfaction Program that Actually Delivers Results Too many times, customer satisfaction programs [CSAT] are developed with no clear goals defined or calls to action. Customers are left apathetic - and they remain "unmoved." More disturbing, company presidents are left with the idea that CSAT programs are a waste of time and merely gauge "warm and fuzzies," vs. something that can (and should) be acted upon. So let's start by developing a process that ensures customers are engaged - and company leaders are informed, both regarding how their products are being received, what issues are being identified, and how those issues are being addressed. For starters, develop a simple 10-question survey that goes out to your specific customer [the one using your product] after it's been in the field for at least 30 days. Questions should focus on the product, the personnel [sales and service], and the sales / warranty process. If you sell multiple products to multiple locations, each location needs to receive this survey. [This should also provide a good check for the quality of your customer information and the strength of your CRM system]. Two of the 10 questions should be: If you could change just one thing about this product, what would it be? Will you purchase this product again? All of these questions should be collected and scored [I use a 1 - 5 system]. Along with this survey, Finance should be able to provide you the gross margin you received on this sale. Once you have that, you can easily develop a matrix that tells you what your customers think of your product and the gross margin they paid. Those that paid above GM average with a 4.0 or higher score are advocates and you WANT to keep them. Those that paid below GM avg. but scored high are ones you want to PROTECT as they're vulnerable. Those that paid below GM avg. and scored low are the ones you likely want to introduce to your competitors [as they take up the most time with customer service and will never be happy.] You know the customers I'm talking about. This system is easy to set up and the information gleaned from it is IMMENSELY powerful if your company is consistent in its application. If you don't have this system in place and would like more information, we'd be happy to help set one up for you. Your bottom line will thank us!

Pitfalls of New Product Development What question should drive your company's new product development process? This might be a bit of a trick question - but it's actually pretty simple - but one a lot of companies get wrong [spoiler alert: engineering-led companies are going to hate the answer]. The answer should be: "Who is asking for it?" If it isn't a major customer, it might be time to pump the brakes and do some non-biased market research before you go too far down this path. Products that are conceived based upon detailed and data-driven customer research and validated thru dirty prototyping win every time. If you want validation, simply walk any trade show and find out those companies that are releasing new products. It's pretty easy to see the ones that were customer derived vs. those that were the brainchild of engineers or company leadership. Hint: they'll be the ones with only employees standing on the carpet. Bottom line is listen to your customers. Collect their customer satisfaction reports - and pay particular attention to what they say about your products. It might not be what you want to hear - but it's what you need to hear. This information represents an opportunity for a line extension - or even a new product that solves their problem [and most likely the same problem others are having]. It's not anecdotal like some would pontificate. It's real... and actionable and if it's coming from the person that signs the sales order - ignoring it comes at your own peril. Listen to your marketing and sales teams [and dealers]. Validate product / customer issues with data and field-based investigation. Identify the problem the customer is having - and then work with engineering to solve your customer's problem. The worse thing you can do is create a solution looking for a problem. If you're contemplating a new product launch and are having concerns you might not have all the information needed to validate the R&D investment, we're here to help you navigate through this.

The Lost Art of Trade Show Marketing I recently returned from the 2024 Waste Expo in Las Vegas and was pleased to see crowds returning post COVID. I walked the floor and talked to a lot of exhibitors- while visiting my own clients. It always amuses me to talk with some companies about their experiences as the show, ranging from "this is the best show we've ever exhibited at," to "this is the last time we're going to waste our money on shows." While this is pretty common at a show, I'm more and more of the opinion that a lot of the new marketers out there have forgotten that trade shows are much like fishing: your company is one boat of many trying to "reel in" those potential customers that are walking down the aisles. Those that have done their homework and enticed their customers to stop by with something that differentiates and/or disrupts their segment competitors are busy. Those that simply put products on carpet will likely be disappointed. #1: In the last 30 years, I've learned a lot regarding marketing products at larger events and it all starts with the product. Bring something that your customers [and your industry] want to see. Does it solve a problem your customers have TOLD you they have? Does it make their job easier? If the answer is no to either [or both] of these questions - leave it home. And if your engineers are telling you it's a "game changer," your guard should be up. It's only a game changer if your potential customers are telling you that. There's nothing worse that listening to a vendor try to sell you a solution to a problem you don't have... (and you know who I'm talking about). #2: Have your sales personnel put together their list of TARGET customers they have already scheduled for meetings while at the show [either on the floor or later for dinner / cocktails]? And to be clear, I'm referring to new potential customers - not customers you already have on the books. Key accounts are great - and it's important to acknowledge them, but your sales team can take out key account customers for lunch anytime. While at a show, [which are both expensive and a load on your company's resources], organic growth and ROI are best achieved by landing new customers. Corporate management should make sure Sales provides them the list of target customers being courted - as well as a show summary of those that were landed, vs. those that didn't fall into the "win" category. The old adage of "track it to attack it," applies here. #3: How do you save money when setting up a booth? #4: What is the one book you need to read BEFORE you move into your booth? #5: How to assemble a budget that's both realistic and accountable to the CFO? #6: How do you actually measure show ROI [was it worth the time and money your company invested]? If this has peaked your interest - or perhaps you've just been told you're the new trade show person, we have answers. We'd love to set up some time to walk you through how we can help.

https://lnkd.in/g-HTWDng Here's a great article that talks in detail about the challenge of remaining SEO relevant in 2024.

Jim Johnston is the reason why so many of us learned the ins and outs of chassis specs when we all worked at the same body builder back in the early 90’s. It made for better salesmen and women - and it made for better marketers. Today, customers will look to body manufactures for help when refuse bodies are married to chassis. It pays to know the difference between two models of transmissions and the weight distribution of a body. Jim / Autocar has taken this approach to the next level.