from JPT Group | September 2023 | Vol. 16 No. 9
Faster than a Speeding Bullet!
➔ The benefits of technology have become legion over the past several decades. We could enumerate them here, but we’re not that long winded.
So let’s just focus one relatively small, but impactful, aspect of the technological revolution: data reporting. Whether it’s websites or email campaigns, or whatever, at any given time, we’re amassing mountains of data.
If it’s websites, we know how many people are visiting the site. We know who they are by gender, age and location. We know when they visit and how long they stay; what pages they visit; what they click on; and, from what pages they leave.
If it’s an email campaign, we know how many emails have been opened, who opened them, when they opened them and if they clicked on any links in the email. We can A/B test certain elements of an email to determine what approach is most effective. We can embed surveys into our emails and track the responses. We can know when they subscribe and when they unsubscribe.
And as incredible as all that is, the thing that may be most valuable to businesses and other organizations is that we can learn all those things instantly – in real time. The minute that website is posted, the minute that email is sent, we can start seeing what kinds of responses they are generating. That can be a real boon to your business.
“The great thing about fact-based decisions is that they overrule the hierarchy.”
— Jeff Bezos, American business magnate,
media proprietor and investor
BUSINESS UPDATE
Common Denominator
Social media is overwhelmingly the most common channel B2B marketers use for both organic (96 percent) and paid (85 percent) content distribution.
— Content Marketing Institute
Branding Gone Wild
➔ The brand name gone generic has been hashed and rehashed over the years. Almost anyone can name a handful of familiar suspects such as Kleenex, Band-Aid, Aspirin, Xerox, Coke, etc. There are more – a lot more. Some of the not-so-popular, but no less brand names gone generic are: Dumpster, Escalator, Frisbee, Jacuzzi, Rollerblade, Scotch Tape, Thermos and Velcro. And let’s not forget some trusted old stand-bys like Cellophane, Jello, Post-It, Q-Tip and Zipper. To name just a few.
And now it’s the 21st Century and what better place to look for brand names masquerading as generic than the tech sector. Perhaps the most obvious is Google with its subsidiary YouTube rising in obscurity. Not associated with the internet but technology just the same, there is the electronic stun gun used by police, Taser.
Of late there is a new kid on the block. Becoming generic for online video conferencing (despite its many competitors) is the ubiquitous Zoom. “Can you do a Zoom meeting?” “We met up on Zoom.” “I’ve got a Zoom call this afternoon.”
It’s not a new term. Mazda tried to parlay Zoom years ago. In the movie Uncle Buck, John Candy remembered being in high school and “zoomin’ all the girls.”
But now, in the 2020s, it’s taking on a whole new meaning.
"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet."
– William Shakespeare, English playwright,
poet and actor
KEEPERS
This was found in a recent promotional email.
“36% off discount for new and returning customers.”
First, why 36 percent? Why not 35? Why not 40? What’s so special about 36?
Second, “new and returning customers”? What other kind of customers are there? And, if they’re not customers, for what are they getting a discount?
When the going gets tough… Americans waste $397 million on unused gym memberships every year.
— facet.com
All in the family. Research shows that family businesses actually last longer than other kinds of companies.
— forbes.com
That’s a lot of bull. A Nebraska man was issued a warning from police for having a full-grown bull ride “shotgun” in his car.
— Associated Press
Can you spare a dime? There are 293 ways to make change for a U.S. dollar.
— Mental Floss
“Fill up your cup?” When asked what they like about the U.S., one popular response from foreigners was, “Free refills at restaurants. Still amazed.”
— oddee.com
This is getting old. The share of companies offering elder care assistance grew by 177 percent from 2020 to 2023.
— Goldman Sachs
Gone global. More than half of those surveyed said their organizations operate in two or more countries, with 22 percent reporting they’re present in 10 or more.
— HRBrew
Dear Alma Mater. Maryland students listed their high school building for sale on Zillow as “Nice Half-Working Jail.”
— huffpost.com
Woof! Scooter, a 7-year-old Chinese crested was recently crowned “World's Ugliest Dog” at a contest in California.
— newser.com
Eight is enough. On June 22 a cleaning crew at a park in Columbus, Indiana found a dead octopus in a toilet.
— Fox59 TV
The Month of September
Month of the Month
Stay with us. September is ADHD month. In case you didn’t know, it’s also Mold Awareness month. And, if you need some exercise, September is Square Dancing month as well as Pleasure Your Mate month.
If your head is in the clouds, September 15 is Cloud Appreciation Day. If you’re feeling a little confused, it might be because today is also National Concussion Awareness Day.
Question of the Month
As we near the end of the Federal Government’s fiscal year and as the national debt is nearing $230 billion, you might ask yourself when, if ever, was the United States debt free?
Yes Virginia, there is an answer.
Quote of the Month
“If you want to know what God thinks of money, just look at the people he gave it to.”
— Dorothy Parker.
American poet, writer, critic,
and satirist
Get a Headstart
If you have ever thought about including a newsletter in your marketing communications toolkit, before you begin, download our free digital booklet – Getting Started with Your Newsletter – to get some basic questions answered as well as a little inspiration to nudge you forward. Be sure to check out “Something Special” at the end. Download your copy.
A Gridiron MBA?
Maybe that’s not possible, but there is much you can learn about business from football in the book, Hard Hitting Lessons. The subtitle says it all, “Some not-so-obvious business lessons learned from playing football.”
Get your copy here!
