Shave and a Haircut, Two Bits?

Well, I did it.  I decided to treat myself to the Kennedy's Experience.  But before I explain what that is all about, let me share the backstory.

I am not one to pamper myself, at least not when it comes to personal grooming.  When I was single, back in the 1980s, I used to shave in the shower, give myself haircuts and buy wash and wear suits.  Need I say more?  Over the years, I have adapted and adopted some new behaviors that I hope make me a little less suspect when I meet new people.  I credit my wife with this transformation.  Why she undertook the challenge at all, given my previous distressed and wrinkled appearance I'll never know.

But some things never change.  I still shave in the shower, something that could be dangerous and is definitely not very accurate, when it comes to the matching left and right sides of my mustache.  (Once while vacationing in Portugal, I accidentally cut too much off one side and decided to shave the whole thing off, causing my wife to scream.  She had never seen me without one.)  

Kennedy's Products and Menu of Services

Today, though, I am treating myself.  I actually got dressed up to go for a Signature Haircut and Shave at Kennedy's All-American Barber Club in Greenwich, Connecticut.  Billed as The Authentic Barbershop Experience, and operating on a membership business model, I couldn't resist the temptation to be pampered like a gentleman's gentleman.  In fact, the term "Kennedy" is a synonym for "The Ultimate Gentleman", according to the company website.  

The Greenwich club is run by Emely Serrano (ESerrano@KennedysBarberClub.com), who greeted me from behind the bar where she checked me in and offered me something to drink.  Coffee, espresso, soda or water were the choices.  We met last week when I brought my grandson Matthew for his haircut.  According to Danny Davi, the stylist who attended to Matthew last week and me today, Saturday mornings are usually the most popular day for the young gentlemen.

Danny Davi

The place is designed like no other barber shop or hair salon I know, with a touch of the old world in style, class and level of service.  I have to admit I had mixed feelings about all this.  Not only am I not accustomed to pampering, but a men's club?  Isn't that politically incorrect?  And what about Sal, who usually does my hair?  

Once I sat in the chair, crooned by the likes of Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra, I began to think I might actually enjoy this, even if I couldn't bring  myself to believe I deserved it.  Danny explained the process involved in the Signature Haircut and Shave package.  We would begin with the cut, followed by the shave and ending with a rinse.  It sounded simple, but it was far more involved than it sounded.    

My standard haircut typically takes less time than one quarter on the meter.  For those of you old enough to remember the old song, that's two bits or what a shave and haircut once cost.  Today's full experience clocked in just over an hour, and my scalp and face are thanking me for the treat.  I won't spoil the experience for you or for the male in your life you intend to treat, but I will say that at the end, I did feel I deserved it, and I probably will deserve it again in about a month or so.  

What I couldn't get over was the idea that I could become a member.  How posh is that?  I mean, do I have time to get a shave every day at "The Club"?  It is relaxing, though.  (I think I snored once or twice.)  

The concept is rather ingenious.  In an age when businesses are struggling to compete on all fronts, here is a staple (everyone needs a haircut, right?) that has gone over the top with a focus on service.  There is a lesson in strategic marketing and business design here.  If you do something well and pay attention to detail, you may make it in this world.  However, if you focus on the customer and do everything you can to make him or her happy, they will come back and bring friends.  And that's what I intend to do at Kennedy's.

Back to the Cave Walls?

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Emma Coates has a creative way of sharing lessons learned.

You may be familiar with the expression, "Actions speak louder than words." 

Or perhaps you heard this one, "A picture is worth a thousand words." 

Well, if both maxims are true, moving pictures, or at least picture stories should scream!  And, if anyone knows how to make us scream and laugh, it is Pixar.  This fabulous infographic on storytelling by Pixar's Emma Coates is as its title implies, phenomenal.

What is great about it is that you don't have to read it to get a message.  The message I get is that storytelling can be fun, which is not how many writers struggling with plots and characters, blocks and editing think.  It also looks easy, which is another attraction for the writer in search of a publisher.

In the days before written text, pictures on cave walls were the only means of non-verbal storytelling around.  Today we have billboards, tablets and smartphones.  And what do we put on them?  

WORDS!

Bad idea?  Pictures, whether static or moving, can do a better job, because they convey emotion.  As Emma's infographic shows, you can even use words as pictures if there aren't enough pictures available.

It means we need to take a close look at the way we are marketing.  With attention spans on the decline and content on the increase, getting our message out is only art of the problem.  It needs to be heard.  Video helps, but there too, the message needs to be visually pleasing or moving.  We do a great deal of interview work on camera, and while most of what we capture is valuable content, it won't be heard or viewed if the viewer doesn't know how to quickly get information on those topics most relevant or interesting to him.  We see that as a real problem and we're working on a solution.  Stay tuned.  Visual storytelling is going to get even more amazing.

Is Email Marketing Dead or Just Deadly?

Back in August, Hollis Thomases published a great article on the topic for Inc. magazine, entitled Email Marketing Isn't Dead (Yet).    She reference a Marketing Sherpa survey that indicated that 54% of respondents were increasing their budgets for email marketing from 2011 to 2012, and while that is significant, what she didn't talk about was the fact that three other marketing methods topped that list:

1. Website development - 65%
2. Social Media marketing - 61%
3. Content marketing (webinars, blogs, etc.) - 59%

So, while email marketing isn't dead, it isn't the only tool businesses are using, and there is a good reason for that.  Bad email marketing is deadly.  

We've all been victims and the unprofessionalism that plagues the industry has the potential to hurt the reputation of all.  Thomases offers some good advice on hoe to manage one's own email marketing strategy.   

1. Give your prospects a choice when it comes to signing up.
2. Get personal.  
3. Test your content, timing, everything.
4. Be aware of how your emails look on smartphones.
5. Carry the experience across channels.

In its white paper on interactive marketing, "US Interactive Marketing Forecast, 2011 To 2016", Forrester Research predicted email marketing spending would continue to increase at an annual rate of 10%.  But it was at the bottom of the list, with Social Media coming in at 26% and Mobile Marketing topping off at 38% per year, with Display Advertising and Search Marketing going strong at 20% and 12% respectively.

So, what's a savvy marketer to do?

1. Build a strong team of talented and creative relationship managers.  Marketing is not a spectator sport, but it is a team sport.  All members of the team need to know what the others are doing and that requires management and oversight.  
2. Focus on relationships, not sales.  Getting a great response to a call-to-action is only half the work.  Building a relationship with each prospect will help convert that prospect to a customer.  Growing that relationship with each customer will generate new leads and referrals.
3. Get personal.  People relate to personal stories, case studies, real events, personalized messages.    
4. Use the tools you have.  Social media, like LinkedIn, Facebook and Google+ are constantly enhancing the platform offerings to keep people engaged and interactive.  It doesn't take much time to take advantage of these tools to build and strengthen relationships.  (Check out the skills endorsement feature on LinkedIn for an example.)
5. Go small without teasing.  Attention spans are short, so email messages should be as well.  Give enough information to satisfy and then offer more.  Don't tease with a long description of what you will tell them if they click.  Tell them, and then offer the option to come back for more.

There are many talented people out there who can help you.  If you have the time, you can find the best talent for each and build your own team.  Or, we can do that for you.  We assess what you are doing today, show you how to maximize its effectiveness, and build a process you can manage without breaking the bank.  

Take this quick Marketing Assessment Survey.