Christopher S. Penn – Marketing AI Keynote Speaker

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The soul of marketing

So here we are. The economy’s down, business everywhere is in trouble, prospects for the future look dim at best. What’s a marketer to do?

The thing to do is to take a moment and strip away everything in marketing that doesn’t matter. Put down for a moment ROI, analytics, metrics, conversation, social media, direct mail, campaigns, all the buzzwords that we insist upon. Put all that away because it clouds our vision.

The soul of marketing transcends all of this, all the technology, all the distractions. The soul of marketing can be boiled down into a simple three part creed. If you work for a great company, this is a formalization of what you already know.

I believe in myself.
I believe in my community and our ability to mutually succeed.
I believe in what I have to share.

I believe in myself. This is where you start. I believe in myself, I believe that I am larger, stronger, more powerful, more capable than any downturn, than any financial crisis or sagging economy, because I believe that I can make things happen in any environment, but especially in a challenging one. I believe that worry, doubt, and anxiety are largely mental limitations and I believe in my ability to go beyond my limitations.

I believe in my community and our ability to mutually succeed. I believe in my coworkers, that we share a common purpose to be successful, to do good, to help each other succeed. I believe that the more I share with my community inside and outside of my company, the more I receive in return unasked. I believe that giving is the greatest pathway to gain, and what I have, I have to share in order for everyone to prosper.

I believe in what I have to share. I believe in the company I work for and the products and services we have to offer. I believe that our goods and services legitimately improve the lives of the people who use them responsibly, and I believe that the company I work for stands behind our shared ideals. I believe that at the end of the day, our community, our customers, and our world is better for us having done business in it, and prosperity will be the natural by-product of the true value we create.

If you can wake up every day and affirm this creed truthfully to yourself, if you can look a coworker, colleague, or supervisor in the eye and feel these truths in action, then no amount of economic hardship will be able to slow you down.

If you wake up one day and you can’t affirm this creed, then you have to either change how your company does business or you have to change companies to one that does business in alignment with your ideals.

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December 9, 2008
The cold call receives the cold shoulder

I got yet another cold call at the office today. The sales drone on the other end, as soon as they confirmed they got a live human being, immediately launched into their pitch.

“Mr. Penn, I’d like just 15 minutes of your time to go over your telecom needs and introduce you to SomeRandomCompany, a leading national provider of…”

I lost him after the leading national provider. I think he went on for about 2 more minutes before pausing to ask when he could schedule an appointment to waste even more of my time, after which he got a polite and very brief “thanks for calling, please remove me from your call list, happy holidays, good day sir”.

Another mutual waste of time. Even if I had telecom needs, I wouldn’t use his services. Why? I despise being interrupted at work (we’re busier than ever at the Student Loan Network!), and nothing is worse than cold calling, whether on the phone or in person. (office supplies sales drones, I’m looking at you)

These folks are trying old school interruption marketing and it just doesn’t work any more. Why? If I don’t have telecom needs, then you’re just wasting everyone’s time. If I have telecom needs, I’m not going to wait for someone to interrupt me. I’m going to go to Google, type in telecom companies near 02169, and see what comes up. Simultaneously, I’m going to use Twitter or LinkedIn to ask trusted business associates who they use for their telecom and if they’re happy with them.

Are you still using interruption marketing techniques? You shouldn’t be – partly because I’m sure you’ve seen their effectiveness decline, but also because there are better ways to market. I had another guy leave a spam comment on my blog advertising his expert SEO services. I guarantee if I Google SEO expert, he won’t be in the top 3 results.

The very best thing you can do as a business looking to make a marketing move is to have something worth talking about that’s amazing. Do something amazing. Do something useful. If you’re a telecom who wants my company’s business, fine. Do something so incredible that I won’t ever look anywhere else.

Look at a company like Hubspot and their Web Site Grader. It’s a great, free tool that is amazingly good at what it does, and if I ever needed inbound marketing services, I wouldn’t even bother calling anyone else. If their free product is this awesome, their paid products must really rock the house.

I love the service I get from Blue Sky Factory for email. (full disclosure, they sponsor Marketing Over Coffee and PodCamp, and the Student Loan Network is a client) Name another email service provider that lets me IM tech support AND the CEO whenever I need help, and has a Twitter outpost that lets me hit them up for non-urgent stuff. When I was doing due diligence pricing research recently, one email provider’s live chat was with a customer rep who had no interest in answering my question about price. They stuck to script despite the fact that their answers had nothing to do with the questions I was asking that they didn’t even make it onto the short list. As my friend Chris Brogan said, customer service is the new PR – and your customer service has to be amazing.

Part of my work at the Student Loan Network is to bring a little of that magic to the student loan industry. We crank out eBooks like candy, like the new FAFSA line by line eBook and the Scholarship Search Secrets eBook, plus participate on all the major social networks so that we can be found. If you’re not interested or looking for student loans, that’s fine. I don’t want to interrupt you. If you are looking for student loans, then it’s my aim to have built presence of mind with our free goodies that will put us at the top of your short list.

The takeaway for you is simple: what can you do that’s amazing? What can you do that will absolutely dominate mindshare in your vertical and make you the painfully obvious choice for anyone who needs your products or services?

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December 8, 2008
Web design and photography assessment tip

How effective is a web design?

How effective is a photograph?

Here’s an easy way to tell. Load up your web site of choice on a mobile browser. Hold the device at arm’s length. If you can’t immediately pick out the call to action and get a sense for what the site is about, then your web design isn’t amazing.

The same is true of photography. Load up your photos in iPhoto or Picasa or the thumbnail browser of your choice. If at a glance not a single photo stands out, then your photos don’t have the famed Tom Peters’ Wow! factor.

The very best way to test this out is to do it with other people. Load up your sites or photos on the mobile device and ask someone to quickly take a peek. If they’re not getting the message you want, then it’s time to go back and sharpen the pencil.

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December 7, 2008
Celebrate International Day of the Ninja!

Celebrate International Day of the Ninja today by taking some ninja lessons right online! Want to take actual ninja lessons? Study with Stephen K. Hayes, or if you’re in Massachusetts, check out the Boston Martial Arts Center in Boston or the Winchendon Martial Arts Center in Winchendon, MA.

Ninja grandmaster teacher Stephen K. Hayes:

Learn more from An-Shu Hayes at his web site.

Ninja master teacher Dennis Mahoney:

Learn more about New Hampshire Martial Arts with Dennis at his site.

A room full of ninjas:

Download Matthew Ebel’s Everybody Needs a Ninja song. [disclosure: Amazon paid link]

Watch my International Day of the Ninja video where I teach you how to disappear like a ninja:

Happy International Day of the Ninja!

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December 5, 2008
New eBook!

Well gang, after much, much, much labor, data gathering, and reading the most awful documentation ever produced by mankind – from the US government – my new eBook, the 2009-2010 FAFSA Guide, is now published. It’s 47 pages of financial aid stuff about how to fill out the FAFSA, landmines to avoid, and tips especially for families pinched by the economy.

Grab a copy for yourself and share it around.

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December 2, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving and leftovers

As we celebrate Thanksgiving this year, please consider this super-easy leftovers tip: whatever you don’t need, whatever’s extra, please donate to a local food pantry, soup kitchen, or homeless shelter. Even just an extra can of cranberry sauce or can of coffee makes a difference, and it’s so easy to do.

Don’t know where the nearest one is? Use this Google Maps query. Go to maps.google.com and type:

food pantry near your town, your state / zip code

Example:

food pantry near 02169
food pantry near Quincy, MA

You might want to call ahead and ask if they accept actual leftovers; some pantries require food to be unopened for safety.

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November 27, 2008
PodCamp in 2009: Thoughts for organizers

As we wrap up 2008 and the interesting year that it was, I wanted to throw out some ideas there for PodCamp organizers for 2009.

1. Use the tools! 2008 showed rapid growth in every social network of note, and as organizers, the more you can help people meet and greet prior to the event, the better. Set up Twitter accounts for your event, groups on Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, and many others, use search and readers and RSS to keep tabs on word of mouth. There’s no shortage of opportunities to help your participants connect in advance. At MarketingProfs’ Digital Marketing Mixer, every speaker’s Twitter handle was bundled on a handout – no reason that every participant at a PodCamp who’s active in social media can’t make a directory listing in the event’s wiki.

2. Separate lecture from conversation. Mitch Joel pointed this out in his Pixelated conference series, where he and others gathered together the talking head portions of major conferences. Figure out what makes your local PodCamp special and what’s just talking head stuff, and provide talking head stuff well in advance so that participants can maximize their time together. Grab videos of folks like Mitch, CC Chapman, Chris Brogan, and many other PodCamp favorites far ahead of the event and share them so that when participants arrive, they’re ready to collaborate and share, rather than passively listen.

3. Go paid. The economy has made life tough for the end user and consumer, but even tougher for the marketing budget. Plan your PodCamp to run 100% participant-paid at the door. If you get sponsors, great, but don’t bet the farm on them, and don’t financially extend your PodCamp beyond what money you already have in the bank. Continue to publish your ledgers publicly so participants can see how every dollar is allocated, but strongly consider going paid and having the event be wholly “sponsored” by the participants.

4. Support your local community. Pick a local charity and find a way to divert time, energy, or resources to it so that your community is a little better off for having a PodCamp.

5. Stay lightweight. Keep expenses to a minimum. We’re all adults for the most part who can locate the nearest Starbucks, Dunkin, or McDonald’s. The magic of PodCamp isn’t in refreshments or epic sponsored parties, but in bringing together people to learn, share, and grow their skills. Some facilities will allow you to unbundle catering from facility rental, which can keep costs way down, as food & drink are typically the most expensive part of any conference.

6. Add pieces along the way. Start with barebones expectations for attendees. As funding becomes available, you can add amenities later. Set expectations low, and you’ll never disappoint.

What things have you learned from PodCamps and other conferences in 2008 that you would pass on to PodCamp organizers for 2009? Leave your comments below!

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November 25, 2008
Bad debt, good debt, and the great financial lie

One of the greatest lies ever told to people is the fallacy of good debt/bad debt.

“A mortgage is good debt! It’s an investment that will pay off!”
“A college education and student loan is good debt! It’s an investment in yourself!”
“A credit card is bad debt! Stuff you buy with a credit card doesn’t increase in value!”

Let’s break this destructive lie right now.

There is no such thing as good debt or bad debt.

There is only debt you are capable of managing financially, and debt you are not capable of managing financially. Are there things you’d like to buy or invest in that have a larger probability of paying off dividends in the future? Of course. Few would argue that a college education or a house to live in are wastes of money. But implying the value of a debt is equal to the value of the investment is a dangerous fallacy. It’s one of the main reasons we’re in the financial situation we’re in now.

Which is better? A diamond that increases in value paid for with cash, or the same diamond paid for with credit? The diamond is the same. How you pay for it is the difference. To be sure, there are some things in life which are exceptionally difficult to obtain without using a debt vehicle, like a house. That said, the mortgage on that house isn’t inherently good because the house might appreciate in value. The mortgage on that house is only as good as your ability to repay it without going broke.

Before you borrow, see your financial picture clearly, and break away from the fallacy of good or bad debt.

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November 25, 2008
Obama's vetting process is a good thing

I saw this story on CNN about the vetting process for the Obama administration being too cautious and too meticulous:

…some political observers say the president-elect’s similar caution with respect to recruiting new administration officials and key high-level advisers may be turning away a string of qualified candidates wary of subjecting themselves and their families to the most rigid presidential vetting process on record… political analysts say the Obama team’s unprecedented degree of scrutiny could result in several qualified individuals deciding to forgo consideration for a top post. This could especially be true among individuals considered for economic roles in the administration from the private sector who might be more financially entangled than those who have been longtime public servants.

CNN, get your head out of your ass. Look, it’s simple: if someone doesn’t want to be subject to intense scrutiny because their background may have questionable dealings, then they’re not a qualified individual.

We don’t and never should require invasion of privacy as a condition of citizenship. We should require intense scrutiny of those people who want to serve in the highest offices of the country, and require full disclosure of conflicts of interest, ethics problems, and other problems.

Remember, we’re not talking about the Obama administration knocking on Joe the plumber’s door and saying, “hey, want to be Secretary of State? All you have to do is give up your privacy”. We’re talking about people who are close to the halls of power already being very carefully investigated, and for those individuals, they already know it’s part of the game, the price you pay for access to power. If they’ve had questionable dealings, then I’m glad they’re opting out of the nomination process early.

Careful, thorough vetting of appointees can only be a good thing. I applaud the Obama administration for trying to prevent conflicts of interest and known problems in individuals who want access to more power.

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November 23, 2008
We are in a lot of trouble

Our economy is in a great deal of trouble. Far more than a problem in financial services, far more than just hype on the evening news, we’re in a LOT of trouble.

Consider a few things:

1. The jobless reports crested today at 542,000 jobs lost/initial unemployment claims filed. This is huge, and indicates that there is severe weakness in all sectors of the economy. This close to the holidays, jobless claims should be declining as the service sector staffs up for the holiday retail season, yet we see the opposite happening.

2. Major companies are getting pummeled, such as GM, Citigroup, and others. A failure of a major Dow component or Fortune 10 has a significant impact on the economy.

3. Mayors Bloomberg and Daley of NYC and Chicago were warned to prepare for thousands of layoffs by the end of the year.

4. We still haven’t unraveled Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers’ exotic financial instruments. A GMAC failure would be very, very bad.

5. We still haven’t unraveled the massive derivatives market.

There’s a lot of doom and gloom in the media, but not all of it is unwarranted. There really is no bottom in sight.

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November 21, 2008

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