This week's Zone5ive topic has generated a lot of discussion in my team, so I'm looking forward to hearing the presentation itself.
The speaker is Allan Zander, from Scimetric, and here's the line that sparked our discussions:
"the center of thought leadership in your company should be within your product management team."
Throughout my career I've been doing product management in one form or another, and I like to think I'm somewhere near the center of thought leadership (though others may have differing opinions...) and so I didn't find anything remarkable about this view.
The opposing reaction was more passionate, forceful and used language not entirely fit for this blog...To paraphrase "that's why so many companies fail - they focus on the product and ignore marketing".
I suspect it comes down to different perspectives on what constitutes product management. Is it a broad, strategic role - assessing market opportunities, developing a product-market strategy, and maintaining alignment throughout the functional teams? Or is product management just a technical, feature-centric, inward looking role?
And no matter what you call it, where does thought leadership come from?
Clearly there are a variety of views - I'm looking forward to a stimulating session.
Steve
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Win Sen's Tickets!
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Robert Lesser's December 19th Zone5ive event is getting even better! The Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and Scotiabank Place have kindly donated another SUITE of tickets to be given away at our next event. Make sure you drop off your business card in the ballot box on the 19th to put yourself in the running to win a Gallery (300 Level) Suite (12 tickets!) for the Senators/New Jersey game planned for Saturday, January 6 @ 3:00 pm.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Shifts in marketing strategies and tactics
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I'm in the middle of a strategic and budget planning process (I know, you're jealous!) that has really highlighted the rapid shift in marketing tactics. You see, in the end, I need to fill in a spreadsheet with our marketing spending plans.
And just like we all start new presentations by changing old presentations, our budget templates have evolved year over year - adding new line items for new initiatives, but never really removing the old ones.
We used to spend a lot on events - especially tradeshows - and now do virtually nothing. (I have the fundamental belief that the only people visiting tradeshows are those looking for work.)
On the other hand, pay-per-click advertising didn't exist five years ago and now is critical to us.
And other things that are critical - like search engine optimization - we don't really spend much money on (although we do devote effort to it).
What's your experience? Have tradeshows become useful again? Are there other new approaches that you're finding valuable?
And just like we all start new presentations by changing old presentations, our budget templates have evolved year over year - adding new line items for new initiatives, but never really removing the old ones.
We used to spend a lot on events - especially tradeshows - and now do virtually nothing. (I have the fundamental belief that the only people visiting tradeshows are those looking for work.)
On the other hand, pay-per-click advertising didn't exist five years ago and now is critical to us.
And other things that are critical - like search engine optimization - we don't really spend much money on (although we do devote effort to it).
What's your experience? Have tradeshows become useful again? Are there other new approaches that you're finding valuable?
What we learnt from a market leader
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Last week, Zone5ive hosted Glenn Thurston, VP of Marketing at BTI Photonics, who highlighted some of the key marketing strategies that have enabled BTI to grow and prosper, amidst sharp industry downturn within the optical and photonics market. Agility and focus have allowed the company to respond rapidly, by identifying a profitable niche and buliding close and direct two-way customer relationships. Glenn’s insight into the sales realities were:
- surround yourself with the best people - those that are right for the level that you want to get to;
- for channel development - double any time estimate that you may have and ensure that your product influences the top three issues at your channel partner;
- carefully consider geo expansion (China is not the always the best option) and ensure that branding is simple & focused.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Why November's Zone5ive Is a Must-Attend
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Here's why this month's Zone5ive should be a must- attend event.
On November 17th, Glenn Thurston from BTI Photonics wll be sharing his unique perspective on how to survive and prosper in the face of shifiting market realities.
If you are a high tech marketer, you can identify with him. Too many organizations start out with a breakthrough product, but fail to make the crucial transition to sales and marketing execution. Others enter a market only to see their niche evaporate or shift dramatically.
However, a properly prepared organization can not only make the first transition, but survive and thrive on the new opportunities that present themselves when markets shift...
Luckily, Glenn has agreed to share some of his insight on how to accomplish this.
Even if your market is not experiencing a dramatic shift, you can still learn from Glenn's experience, and get the answer to these questions and more:
On November 17th, Glenn Thurston from BTI Photonics wll be sharing his unique perspective on how to survive and prosper in the face of shifiting market realities.
If you are a high tech marketer, you can identify with him. Too many organizations start out with a breakthrough product, but fail to make the crucial transition to sales and marketing execution. Others enter a market only to see their niche evaporate or shift dramatically.
However, a properly prepared organization can not only make the first transition, but survive and thrive on the new opportunities that present themselves when markets shift...
Luckily, Glenn has agreed to share some of his insight on how to accomplish this.
Even if your market is not experiencing a dramatic shift, you can still learn from Glenn's experience, and get the answer to these questions and more:
- How do you move your company from an engineering focus to marketing and sales focus?
- How do you respond to shifting market realities when resources are tight?
- Which market geographies should you pursue?
- How realistic are your partnering expectations, and what is required to make partnerships successful?
Monday, November 06, 2006
Looking for a marketing job in Ottawa?
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OCRI and working.com have launched an online recruitment portal to help Ottawa employers recruit qualified job seekers. The site is live at www.ocri.ca/jobfinder.
OCRI members can post their Ottawa-based job opportunities (providing they are within the high tech industry) at no charge. working.com are also giving members a 30% discount should they wish to extend their reach by having their job posting also appear on the national working.com portal.
Everyone should browse the OCRI JobFinder portal for two reasons:
OCRI members can post their Ottawa-based job opportunities (providing they are within the high tech industry) at no charge. working.com are also giving members a 30% discount should they wish to extend their reach by having their job posting also appear on the national working.com portal.
Everyone should browse the OCRI JobFinder portal for two reasons:
- to consider listing their next employment opportunity for free; and
- to look for a marketing or sales opportunity in Ottawa for themselves!
Friday, September 29, 2006
Ottawa's got talent!
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The word a few years back was that Ottawa lacks marketing talent. I find this very insulting - we have great talent in Ottawa - what do you think??
Thursday, April 20, 2006
What is Web 2.0?
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Confused about where we are exactly with regard to the evolution of the Internet? Further confused by the myriad of acronyms people use on a daily basis in meetings and correspondence? It's all thanks to buzzwords and hype, but once understood can help you navigate your planning and strategy for online initiatives.
>Web 2.0 - a definition: Web 2.0 is a term popularized by O'Reilly Media and MediaLive International as the name for a series of web development conferences that started in October 2004. It has since come to refer to what some people describe as a second phase of architecture and application development for the World Wide Web.
Web 2.0 applications often use a combination of techniques devised in the late 1990s, including public web service APIs (dating from 1998), Ajax (1998), and web syndication (1997). They often allow for mass publishing (web-based social software). The term may include blogs and wikis. To some extent Web 2.0 has become a buzzword, incorporating whatever is newly popular on the Web (such as tags and podcasts). A consensus on its exact meaning has not yet been reached.
So don't feel bad that you couldn't quite categorize what did - and did not - qualify as Web 2.0. For the most part, the items noted above were being done well before 2004 and practices such as application development and blogging are not that new. They have been available for many years, certainly longer than 2004. The difference is that they are now becoming more mainstream as marketers, communicators and IT departments adopt these ideas and technologies.
So be careful of anyone coming into your organization and purporting to sell you Web 2.0 technology. The fact is, they have probably just jumped on the technology bandwagon and won't be able to offer you much more than buzzwords. Do be cognizant of the technologies and trends that are available to you, and investigate their suitability for your environment.
Not every organization can benefit from podcasting for example, so use discretion when evaluating what is "cool" versus what is effective for your needs. If a technology helps you reach new customers, communicate better with existing customers, automates business processes and streamlines manual processes, increases your ROI .... then certainly consider them. But not everyone will reap the benefits of blogging, RRS feeds or podcasts.
If you're not sure, ask us. We can tell you.
And with that -- good luck and beware...Web 3.0 must be around the corner ...somewhere.Read more detailed article on Web 2.0 including Market Drivers, Advanced Technologies and so on >
>Web 2.0 - a definition: Web 2.0 is a term popularized by O'Reilly Media and MediaLive International as the name for a series of web development conferences that started in October 2004. It has since come to refer to what some people describe as a second phase of architecture and application development for the World Wide Web.
Web 2.0 applications often use a combination of techniques devised in the late 1990s, including public web service APIs (dating from 1998), Ajax (1998), and web syndication (1997). They often allow for mass publishing (web-based social software). The term may include blogs and wikis. To some extent Web 2.0 has become a buzzword, incorporating whatever is newly popular on the Web (such as tags and podcasts). A consensus on its exact meaning has not yet been reached.
So don't feel bad that you couldn't quite categorize what did - and did not - qualify as Web 2.0. For the most part, the items noted above were being done well before 2004 and practices such as application development and blogging are not that new. They have been available for many years, certainly longer than 2004. The difference is that they are now becoming more mainstream as marketers, communicators and IT departments adopt these ideas and technologies.
So be careful of anyone coming into your organization and purporting to sell you Web 2.0 technology. The fact is, they have probably just jumped on the technology bandwagon and won't be able to offer you much more than buzzwords. Do be cognizant of the technologies and trends that are available to you, and investigate their suitability for your environment.
Not every organization can benefit from podcasting for example, so use discretion when evaluating what is "cool" versus what is effective for your needs. If a technology helps you reach new customers, communicate better with existing customers, automates business processes and streamlines manual processes, increases your ROI .... then certainly consider them. But not everyone will reap the benefits of blogging, RRS feeds or podcasts.
If you're not sure, ask us. We can tell you.
And with that -- good luck and beware...Web 3.0 must be around the corner ...somewhere.Read more detailed article on Web 2.0 including Market Drivers, Advanced Technologies and so on >
The 'Three Rs' of Influencer Management: PR, AR, and IR
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This section pertains to the separate, yet interdependent, fields of public relations, analyst relations, and investor relations, which could be grouped together under the moniker of "influencer management."
What is Public Relations (PR)?
The Startups.co.uk Web site provides this broad definition: "Public relations, according to the Institute of Public Relations (IPR), is about reputation. The result of what you do; what you say and what others say about you. The PR practice is defined as the discipline that looks after reputation with the aim of earning understanding and support, and influencing opinion and behaviour. It is planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain good will and mutual understanding between an organization and its public – i.e., a company's staff, suppliers, shareholders, customers, etc."
What is Analyst Relations (AR)?
Analyst relations is a collection of strategies, programs, processes and activities, usually undertaken by a technology/service vendor, to engage industry analysts and leverage two-way communication between industry analysts and vendor stakeholders. Industry analysts are extremely influential in technology buying decisions, particularly those made by large enterprises. They also provide a lot of timely and relevant insight to a vendor as it assesses the product/technology/market landscape toward formulating strategic product-market decisions.
What is Investor Relations (IR)?
Investor relations is a strategic management responsibility that integrates finance, communication, marketing and securities law compliance to enable the most effective two-way communication between a company, the financial community, and other constituencies, which ultimately contributes to a company's securities achieving fair valuation.
What is Public Relations (PR)?
The Startups.co.uk Web site provides this broad definition: "Public relations, according to the Institute of Public Relations (IPR), is about reputation. The result of what you do; what you say and what others say about you. The PR practice is defined as the discipline that looks after reputation with the aim of earning understanding and support, and influencing opinion and behaviour. It is planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain good will and mutual understanding between an organization and its public – i.e., a company's staff, suppliers, shareholders, customers, etc."
What is Analyst Relations (AR)?
Analyst relations is a collection of strategies, programs, processes and activities, usually undertaken by a technology/service vendor, to engage industry analysts and leverage two-way communication between industry analysts and vendor stakeholders. Industry analysts are extremely influential in technology buying decisions, particularly those made by large enterprises. They also provide a lot of timely and relevant insight to a vendor as it assesses the product/technology/market landscape toward formulating strategic product-market decisions.
What is Investor Relations (IR)?
Investor relations is a strategic management responsibility that integrates finance, communication, marketing and securities law compliance to enable the most effective two-way communication between a company, the financial community, and other constituencies, which ultimately contributes to a company's securities achieving fair valuation.
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Last month, Zone5ive featured a speaker from Google, and this month our topic is Customer Experience & Branding. What's the link?
In my real life, we rely extensively on all the major search engines for both paid and natural search traffic. From a traffic and online sales perspective the results have been extraordinary.
The strategic challenge is that virtually all of our customers that find us through a search engine also find our competitors. To win - and keep - our customers we focus on implementing a customer experience that differentiates us from competitors.
Strategy is about doing something different than competitors - something that is hard to copy.
It's easy to run ads (ok, it can be expensive) - it's hard to win customers.
A couple recent readings http://www.customerpassion.com/improving_customer_experience.htm
http://arc.typepad.com/customercrossroads/
In my real life, we rely extensively on all the major search engines for both paid and natural search traffic. From a traffic and online sales perspective the results have been extraordinary.
The strategic challenge is that virtually all of our customers that find us through a search engine also find our competitors. To win - and keep - our customers we focus on implementing a customer experience that differentiates us from competitors.
Strategy is about doing something different than competitors - something that is hard to copy.
It's easy to run ads (ok, it can be expensive) - it's hard to win customers.
A couple recent readings http://www.customerpassion.com/improving_customer_experience.htm
http://arc.typepad.com/customercrossroads/
Our 2005-2006 Sponsors
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Throughout the program year, Zone5ive is supported by:
Ottawa Citizen
Hewson Bridge + Smith
Baldwin Presentation Systems
inmotion DVS inc.
Bell Mobility
Telecom Ottawa
Ottawa Citizen
Hewson Bridge + Smith
Baldwin Presentation Systems
inmotion DVS inc.
Bell Mobility
Telecom Ottawa
Zone5ive purpose
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Welcome to the new OCRI Zone5ive website. We want to help improve high-tech marketing -- 365 days of the year! The new Zone5ive web site has the resources, tips and tools to help -- for the days in between Zone5ive presentations. Technology marketing matters ... go further with a little help from your friends. Meet us monthly, surf daily for new insight. Enjoy!
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