Sunday, March 29, 2009

Buying and smelling?

You heard me right. Buying and smelling. I recently read an article where Marketers are tapping into our senses to boost sales. Makes sense, right (no pun intended). Brand futurist Martin Lindstrom says that our shopping journey is "not stimulating and the sensory experience is generic... shoppers are bored." He's right. In a recent study, he concluded that what we hear and what we smell are more powerful than what we see. Yikes! That freaks out most marketers who focus on creating only visual campaigns. Lindstrom says that our emotional brain overrides our rational brain when we are triggered by sound and smell. I'd bet that you have gone grocery shopping on an empty stomach and passed the bakery counter. You know what happens next. You've got a dozen hot buns in the cart and you're dying to eat them! Lindstrom predicts that the grocery stores of the future will be highly seductive zones that stimulate all the senses - smell, sight, touch, sound and taste. To all the marketers and designers out there - remember to think beyond the easy. Think about the brain being a multi-sensory unit that needs all kinds of stimulation. Make sure your designs and your programs stimulate all the senses. And, check out the book, Buyology by Martin Lindstrom. Georgia Mouka

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Trust....

I participated in an online eMarketing webinar today called Digital Marketing Now - Seven Strategies for Surviving the Downturn. Outstanding information. A few nuggets of info: Age of accountability; keep doing search; don't ignore the power of branding online; stay close to your customer; consumers trust eachother; engage with online video; transparency = trust. Georgia Mouka

Monday, March 9, 2009

Charlie Brown says good grief.

I say "Sheesh". My favourite word today. Don't use it enough but when I do, boy does it mean something. Try it. And when you're at it, scratch your head. Now does that not make you smile. Keep smiling. Georgia Mouka

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Loyalty... really?

Who's loyal these days? People are loyal to their friends, their family, their churches, their teams. But to their local diner? Sure. What does it mean to be loyal? Websters says that "loyal" is defined as being faithful to a cause, ideal, custom, institution or product. This should not be confused with being addicted. :-) I can think of about 100 things I'm loyal to. I believe in what that thing or that institution stands for. It's close to my heart. It's meaningful to me and powerful. It makes me feel good or better. It gives me strength. It keeps me warm. I'm loyal to my Tim Horton's coffee. It's consistent, it's good, it keeps me warm and it gives me strength. And Tim Horton's looks to innovate and change things up by introducing new things. I like that and that's why I'm a loyal. Thanks Tim Horton's. Georgia Mouka

How do you define business integrity?

Here's one definition. "Integrity is putting your values into action" says Robin Siemens. Great. That's a good one. Here's another definition. "The integrity of men is to be measured by their conduct, not by their possessions" according to Junius. Way to go Junius. How about being fair and the quality of being honest. A few more words come to mind like upstandingness, character and honesty. But, these days, business integrity is hard to find. So when the going gets tough, the best thing you can do is stay true to yourself and do what is right in your heart, for your company and your customers. Georgia Mouka

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Hard Sell versus Soft Sell... which is best?

I just read a great article today in Advertising Age about emotional messages beating out rational messages. Here's a link to it. http://adage.com/cmostrategy/article?article_id=134920
According to Pringle and Field, authors of Brand Immortality, emotional campaigns in general generate a wider range of desirable business effects including improving profitability and reducing price sensitivity. Viola.. these guys have done the research and they've got the data to prove it. Emotional campaigns tend to create a sense of differentiation that don't diminish when a competitor launches something new. Think about the emotional power of Apple, they suggest. Nothing can guarantee your brands superiority or longevity but really powerful and emotionally engaging programs can certainly insultate your brand. If you're looking to develop an emotionally engaged program that differentiates you from the competition and creates loving customers for life, we can help. www.greystonecommunications.com Georgia Mouka

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Giving thanks.

Hello World!


I effectively created this blog in 5 minutes. It's absolutely mind-blowing and amazing. The innovation. The simplicity. The ability to have a "voice" that transcends boundaries. I have to give credit to Cassandra Baccardax of the Small Business Enterprise Centre (SBEC) who organized an amazing 5 part event called Robust Retail. Scott Kendall, The Technology Coach, was the presenter today. I have to give a big thanks to Scott for sharing his passion and knowledge. And more importantly, showing the group how easy it is to create your own blog. I truly believe that if you give first, you get more back. So thanks to Cassandra and Scott. May you have many blessings. I look forward to getting started. To learn a little more about me and my company, click on www.greystonecommunications.com


Happy Blogging. Georgia Mouka