Blogs

5235

Due to the tremendous economic and technological changes, businesses around the globe are tilted towards the service industries. The old giants of production and the big manufacturers no longer find themselves viable. It’s not that the markets have gone away; they are perceived differently now. Computing technology took the stage and changed market dynamics. Speed and response determine the markets now. As far as the business is concerned, geographic barriers only remain on maps. Marketing is now digital and it is easy to segment customers and target sales promotions to them. One can get instant access to markets for their products or services (if promotions are well planned). It is easier to relate to each customer and reap fabulous business and sales. You don’t need tons of money or equipment or even many people to run a business now. You may even start your journey sitting at home. One can learn from hundreds of fantastic success and failure stories in business now. With such success comes great responsibility. A business is always answerable to the customer. The boom in technology cuts both ways. Consumers are now digitally enabled to react and share experiences. A few well-placed comments or complaints can set off a ripple among millions of potential buyers. Failure to respond or act quickly has made businesses fall by the wayside. All said and done, human beings control and inhabit this digital space. Learn digital marketing courses online from the World’s top Universities. Earn Masters, Executive PGP, or Advanced Certificate Programs to fast-track your career. upGrad’s Exclusive Digital Marketing Webinar for you – Webinar with Q&A Session on Digital Marketing document.createElement('video'); https://cdn.upgrad.com/blog/kapil-panchal-alumni-talk-about-careers-in-dm.mp4 Here are the 5 ways to provide exceptional customer service: Quick Response A manager I worked with used to believe that the quality of customer service begins with how soon someone answers the phone; he recommended picking up the call on the third ring. Beyond that, there is a scope for the caller to be irritated. It’s true. Waiting for a call or for anything, beyond a level, irritates people, and customers are apt to connect this as part of poor service. So, pick up the call instantly and try to solve a customer problem on the spot without handing over the baton to someone else. This is also true for all other forms of communication customers may use to convey problems with a service or a product. Digital Marketing Free courses to Learn Influencer marketing free course Introduction to advertising free course Influencer marketing right free course SEO basics free course SEM basics free course Email marketing free course Social media marketing introduction free course How to leverage user generated content free course Content marketing free course Fundamentals of marketing free course Brand marketing masterclass free course Winning with Consumer Journeys A survey of the top marketing companies reveals that complaints by email or messages on an average, take 15 hours to respond. This is simply too long. Elon Musk, the owner of Tesla Motors, should be our example of ‘how to act’. Soon after his electric car ‘Tesla’ was introduced, he responded within 6 hours of customers complaining about some aspects of his wayside ‘filler’ stations (electric chargers) and solved the problem. This was crucial to the acceptance of his car. Complaints received this early in the launch, would have been devastating. There is this oft-cited story about the Lexus Sedan. Some time back, the manufacturer wanted to call back cars of a certain model owing to a problem with it.  Owners were instructed to drive down to certain dealer outlets and hand their cars in. Each one was replaced on the spot by a new one! The company realized it would take precious hours to find the problem and keep owners waiting and that is why it decided replacements immediately. Frustrated customers can be ambassadors of dissatisfaction – so don’t keep them waiting forever. Sense of Ownership When customers are not happy and they are telling you this, accept the situation gracefully. I had a similar experience with Amazon when I received a defected product from them. I called them and asked to take it back. They did it the next day and replaced it with a new one – no questions asked. Otherwise, you know how it is with a local shop with all the arguments – and you are fuming clutching the object of your complaint – still with you and not replaced. You soon realise that the shop is going to have a short life! Do You Have All the Skills Required to Start a Business? There are many such, joyous, extremely satisfying, experiences customers have had with Amazon – stolen products, packing tampered with –  all tackled with a quick acceptance of the problem and gratifying resolution. Amazon always sticks to its key policy, which is to keep customers happy. Its customers are its lifeline and it knows how to retain them and it gets immense rewards: profits and being on top of their game. As a metric, their standard of customer service is exceptional. Best Online Digital Marketing Courses Advanced Certificate in Brand Communication Management - MICA Advanced Certificate in Digital Marketing and Communication - MICA Performance Marketing Bootcamp - Google Ads from upGrad To explore all our certification courses on Digital Marketing, kindly visit our page below. Digital Marketing Certification Personal Touch This is cardinal to all – college administrators, shops, even your local cinema, consumer giants and others who survive through customers or patrons. Knowing someone by name, being in touch with them, occasionally inviting them personally for events; is an essential part of social relations and even superior service. I know a coffee shop which addresses its frequent visitors by first names and even shares invitations for shows, occasionally a cup of free coffee, etc. The head of the college I went to, remembered every student by name. These gestures work wonders for a sense of belonging and acceptance. This is what personalisation does. Startup and Mid-tier Business: Can they grow in 2018? In another instance, an automobile manufacturer helped in obtaining funds for a social cause by gifting a rose to all who bought their models – customers had to pay a little extra on the purchase of each car toward the proceeds. But it was the simple and elegant rose presentation which touched customers’ hearts, and also standing behind a social cause. It made each owner glow! A Customer is for Life Accept this, make it your mission and go out of your way to make it a reality. An angry customer tells 15 others about botching up while a happy one talks to at least 4-6 friends, research proves. A publisher I knew, sold textbooks to medical colleges in my city. Often these colleges would have hospitals attached. The publisher once donated storybooks to one such hospital as it was about to start an ‘awareness week’ on critical child afflictions for sensitising parents and guardians to certain crucial health issues. The publisher also conducted a storytelling event in the kids’ ward. The gesture was spontaneous and free of cost. This was a heartwarming and effective gesture and ensured a long relationship with their core customer base – medical students who often worked as interns there. The relationship with a customer is symbiotic. Top Digital Marketing Skills Online Advertising Courses Influencer Marketing Programs SEO Optimisation Courses Performance Marketing Certification Search Engine Marketing Course Email Marketing Strategy Content Marketing Strategy Social Media Advertising Digital Marketing Analytics Website Analytics Online Display Advertising Best Affiliate Programs Staying Engaged The new age customer service is proactive. This means that rather than waiting for customers to get on its website the company can anticipate customer problems beforehand. It can be done in various ways – encouraging online discussion forums or a feedback system which actively seeks out opinion online. Listening to chatter online can warn a company of potential dangers ahead and signs of early dissatisfaction. And the best way to do this is actively forming groups, blogs or even communicating regularly with users. A telecom company mailed more than 100,000 customers of possible network problems likely to ensue shortly in their areas. By doing this, it reduced customer complaints by almost half and made them more involved. The Super Six of Social Media Marketing Channels Companies need to have a presence on social media too for continual engagement. Happy customers will talk on social media about such experiences. People in the entertainment industry do it all the time. Their activity leads to form a perception of consumer experiences. And so they are on social media constantly engaging customers. Their existence depends on ‘likes’ over dislikes. When companies are proactive, they develop more loyal and intense relationships with customers even when they are not being directly addressed. This makes a customer feel like a part of the organisation and creates customer advocacy. Happy and joyful experiences are shared with friends and larger groups. So, win your customers, retain them and remember: happy customers are the key to success in any business. Digital Marketing Free courses to Learn Influencer marketing free course Introduction to advertising free course Influencer marketing right free course SEO basics free course SEM basics free course Email marketing free course Social media marketing introduction free course How to leverage user generated content free course Content marketing free course Fundamentals of marketing free course Brand marketing masterclass free course Popular Digital Marketing Blogs Beginners Guide to YouTube Marketing : Complete List How to Monetize Your YouTube Channel? Top 5 Actionable Steps The Complete Guide on setting up a LinkedIn Company Page Everything You Need To Know About Digital Marketing A Complete Guide to Digital Marketing Strategy: What it is and How to create it? Digital Marketing Tutorial: A Step-by-Step Guide To Become an Expert Future of Digital Marketing: How It Goes From Here Importance of Digital Marketing: Top 10 Reasons Your Business Needs it Digital Marketing Challenges: How to Win Amidst the Challenges in Digital Marketing

by Krishnamurty Worah

13 Dec 2017

Blogs

5101

There was a time when the world‘s fastest means of communication was the fax machine. Air travel was the fastest way to keep in touch. An event gathering of a few hundred people was an achievement of ‘Influence.’ This was until digital advancements brought the world to our doorsteps and within our reach. Technology has arched from the traditional meaning of fast or effective to unimaginable levels of possibility now. The old world of work is being given a huge makeover. Organisations have accepted and slipped into the ways of digital technology to achieve stupendous business expansion. By that token, middle-aged industry veterans separated by a hemisphere from their younger colleagues’ working styles, feel cut off. Coping with digital technology seems almost too much, coming on top of the aspirin defeating work pressures. A recent survey reveals that about 50% of the workforce is set to soon become redundant because of automation and artificial intelligence. Much of this automation is like being on autopilot where traditional work is largely replaced by computer engineering and digital processes. So, what does one significant half of our world – industry veterans – do for work? This article will try to offer some suggestions. What is digital technology? Digital technology implies the use of computers and software development to solve business problems and make decisions. It also gives the big chance to connect with people across the world, instantaneously and at the tap of a button. Challenges Non-human intervention looms on the horizon and from shop floors to stores, which is likely to replace people. The older workforce is one of the groups that’s most hurt by these titanic leaps in technology. Opportunities But middle-aged executives have a lot of experience and problem-solving abilities that can be advantageous to the work pool. This complements the natural energy and enthusiasm of younger colleagues. Most of the planning, projects, marketing, and research divisions use digital technology. It combines and analyses raw data to solve critical issues. Here, an experienced veteran’s instincts can also be useful for problem-solving. Real life experience can have an impact on the insights because data always has a pattern or tells stories. The sales and marketing functions are most enriched by digital developments. Organisations need qualified people to work for these functions to stay competitive. So training the experienced professionals can make a positive dent. Some possible avenues of work are as under: Digital Marketing has now grown to become a huge area of employment, enabling tech and marketing savvy teams to collaborate with clients. Social media is globally used for services and product updates. Publishing is almost completely digital and slowly outcompeting print media. It offers readers a choice of reading and interactive experiences. Books, magazines, news, can be delivered to browsers 24X7. Almost all modes of entertainment are digitally produced. Promotional programs run on all digital platforms, helping reach millions in different audience segments; ranging from Africa to America. Redundancy and unemployment are threatening our current corporate world. It would be logical to think of ways to face and overcome these threats. It’ll rejuvenate productivity by being inclusive of potential ‘retirees’. Industry veterans can be assets Thankfully, corporations and even smaller entities have come to realise that elder people are important to the business. Industry veterans offer life experience and vital real-life interpersonal skills. They just need to adapt to the modern technology, which in a way, is regenerative. It re-creates human assets and presents new opportunities for lifetime work. Industry veterans have ample ways at their disposal to retrain themselves. I know of someone who retired from work but took time to learn new skills online. Today, he is a digital consultant to various clients and earns a comfortable living.  Most significantly, he has a sense of his own worth and people like him cannot be willed into oblivion Best Online Digital Marketing Courses Advanced Certificate in Brand Communication Management - MICA Advanced Certificate in Digital Marketing and Communication - MICA Performance Marketing Bootcamp - Google Ads from upGrad To explore all our certification courses on Digital Marketing, kindly visit our page below. Digital Marketing Certification Learning resources But, it takes extreme determination to relearn. It’s not easy, but not too difficult either. The worldwide concern with re-skilling has led to linking technology to learning resources. Some of the world’s best platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn offer learning opportunities for lifetime work.There is an amazing range of online resources to learn digital technology applications. These take between 6 or 14 weeks to complete and even offer real-life projects at the end. There are courses for veterans which, when completed, allow them to re-enter the workforce laterally and be relevant technologically. The online development even enables one to earn certificates and recognition, which can be useful to flaunt if one is independent. The best of such learning modules are in sync with current trends. One needs to have the mindset required to learn and upgrade their skills constantly. Online courses do not demand awfully long hours, but one has to keep a short leash on distraction. At most, a couple of hours of daily study are enough, but it needs concentration. Learning is hands-on and there is a strong practical orientation. One needs to complete and test certain learning sequences to become proficient enough to apply these resources to real problems. Training veterans in the workplace Once trained by the company, senior workers can help contribute to efforts of leveraging technology, reducing costs, hiring and expanding the business. They can even take on renewed team leadership for their one to one skills, patience and ability to solve issues. Veterans can obviously do better than their younger team members in some vital areas. Complex problems are often not due to ‘glitches’ in algorithms or software. They often occur because of people problems. The movie ‘Money Monster’ shows this really well. In the movie, a computer ‘glitch’ is the apparent cause of a huge loss in the money market and to thousands of small investors. Deployment of technical solutions doesn’t help either. At last, some quick old-fashion investigative journalism helps to catch the real culprit – human greed. Field experience wins the day, even if the work – which is the production of a TV program, ‘Money Monster’ – involves technological wizardry. The point is, both worlds collaborate and veterans need not turn away. We can swear by recent avatars of James Bond himself! Industry hardened professionals are facing a world of opportunities. They need to make the leap. What do you think? Learn digital marketing courses online from the World’s top Universities. Earn Masters, Executive PGP, or Advanced Certificate Programs to fast-track your career. Top Digital Marketing Skills Online Advertising Courses Influencer Marketing Programs SEO Optimisation Courses Performance Marketing Certification Search Engine Marketing Course Email Marketing Strategy Content Marketing Strategy Social Media Advertising Digital Marketing Analytics Website Analytics Online Display Advertising Best Affiliate Programs Featured Programs for you – Advanced Certificate in Digital Branding & Advertising from MICA upGrad’s Exclusive Digital Marketing Webinar for you – What’s new in Marketing? document.createElement('video'); https://cdn.upgrad.com/blog/rumi-ambastha.mp4 Digital Marketing Free courses to Learn Influencer marketing free course Introduction to advertising free course Influencer marketing right free course SEO basics free course SEM basics free course Email marketing free course Social media marketing introduction free course How to leverage user generated content free course Content marketing free course Fundamentals of marketing free course Brand marketing masterclass free course Popular Digital Marketing Blogs Beginners Guide to YouTube Marketing : Complete List How to Monetize Your YouTube Channel? Top 5 Actionable Steps The Complete Guide on setting up a LinkedIn Company Page Everything You Need To Know About Digital Marketing A Complete Guide to Digital Marketing Strategy: What it is and How to create it? Digital Marketing Tutorial: A Step-by-Step Guide To Become an Expert Future of Digital Marketing: How It Goes From Here Importance of Digital Marketing: Top 10 Reasons Your Business Needs it Digital Marketing Challenges: How to Win Amidst the Challenges in Digital Marketing  

by Krishnamurty Worah

09 Nov 2017

Blogs

5123

Most of us dream of making it big. The explosion of mainstream and social media has beguiled readers with stories of rich and famous people. Successful people talking about their ventures, products and profitability after their start-up/business success. All these make you wonder if one day, you could also get the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Starting a business involves rewiring thoughts and attitudes; here’s a way NOT to start up: Read too many success stories This one’s tough. I remember reading ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’ and being mesmerized by Kiyosaki’s explanation of ‘business quadrants’ and investments. I thought it was so easy I just had to absorb it all and start that very moment – reading it was, after all, the first step. I was wrong. Kiyosaki’s book mentions how he started and met with failure – which is the essence of business. Starting and failing and doing it again, and this is the part I conveniently glossed over. Our favorite cases are only helping to keep some sort of romantic image in our minds about starting up – but these stories are not yours. Instead, they should spur you to cultivate a mindset of business and get real. Learn MBA Courses from the World’s top Universities. Earn Masters, Executive PGP, or Advanced Certificate Programs to fast-track your career. So, get in the groove first and be prepared to get smacked down before you ride your way to success! A simple ‘Match’ test Try this. Imagine a day of being in charge of a business – no really, visualise it. – Do you like what you see? A typical day requires extremely long hours, especially in the startup phase. Do you see yourself working that hard without a tinge of frustration or exhaustion? – This could be a day when you have to put out fires, generally run around to tackle and solve problems. A thousand decisions are to be taken and as circumstances would have it, it just seems like you have to take all the decisions! – Imagine having customers at an early stage and dealing with sales, servicing problems, irate customers, etc. Facing office issues, payment problems, various other paperwork and dealing with all sorts of people. These are some of the nagging issues of a business. If you don’t think you would be comfortable with these – delay your decision to step into the business landscape. After all, instead of being a firefighter you could be very successful in your job! How to Get Your Start-Up Idea Validated Failure Failure is almost always a part of the business journey. Money, great ideas, talent may not get you there – and you feel like even this right mix is not crystallising into your destiny yet and you just don’t know why or what to do about it. This is a critical situation to be factored into a decision. One has to be mentally agile, strong enough to face any backlash, the constant chatter of friends and family telling you ’I told you so…’, disappointment, over-analysis of what’s happening to you and fighting the urge to give it all up and take up a stable job and so on. If you are too security conscious to deal with failure, you are an uneasy candidate to fit the bill… It’s just that simple. THE BUSINESS ARENA Now that we are finally in the Colosseum with the other gladiators there is good news: You are in a privileged place where ordinary people can’t go – you are prepared to face the stakes and get on the path to achieving your dream, finally. This is the stage where you sharpen weapons, study the arena and empower yourself. Let’s get aware of some skills: DIGITAL The really cool thing which you have and many didn’t have way back, is the Internet. The Digital domains throw up huge opportunities to network, upskill and develop business. You can actually get thousands of potential customers for your product or service. You can sell to targeted customers and write books easily accessible for your readers. So, you have to be aware of information technology and the online landscape. Get yourself to develop these habits and get some training. There are certification courses and many people to help you along. ANALYTICAL / ACCOUNTING SKILLS Can be best developed by acquiring the analytical mindset – yes, it can be acquired. The test of sales or business revenue is no longer the only benchmark to judge business success. Metrics like: Ease of doing business. Quality of service. Dealing with huge data sheets. Shaking and stirring; finding the right combination can help you start up with the best partners. The accounting orientation puts you in touch with the figures and numbers – so Excel is useful. Train yourself in these areas, learn using correct tools and approaches. It will help solve many problems and glitches. A Start-Up’s Guide to Data Analytics SALES In business, the maxim is sales. In fact, selling may well take priority over the first two points in this section. No amount of analysing and planning will be useful unless you have an idea of where your product stands. You have to first get down to selling and have a real-time perspective of your customers. Set realistic sales goals. Avoid percentage projections and track what you sell. And you can only do this when you have gone out and sold stuff – EUREKA! TEAM SKILLS / SPOTTING TALENT ‘Team’ is a loose term for a group of people who are willing to work for you, come rain or shine. It’s not as simple as it sounds. People are hard to handle and these relationships can easily lead to fallouts. Ensure that the team you choose is better than you on some levels. Teamwork is all about filling up gaps and deficiencies so don’t assume you are good in all departments. You have to be able to spot talent which can replace you in some aspects. If you are in business for the long haul, at least make sure that you are able to carry your team through. This may not be a hard and fast approach to setting up a business, but can be a road-map to those willing to go the distance. While I don’t claim expertise over other, more qualified analysts, I do know that you can’t go wrong with these mantras and can make yourself just a little stronger to face the challenges of starting up. All I have done is to combine a little research and a little experience to piece this together. If you want to learn more about marketing and entrepreneurship, Liverpool Business School & upGrad offers Master of Business Administration (MBA) Liverpool Business School which helps you to transform your career. The program provides 1-on-1 mentorship from industry leaders, 1-week immersion program at University campus, dual credentials (MBA from LBS & PGPM from IMT), network with peers at offline basecamps and more.

by Krishnamurty Worah

12 Oct 2017