creatorbase

Nokia Streamlines Structure

by Erick Mott

Business changes are underway at Nokia, according to recent restructuring news posted on Unstrung. In addition to shifts in organization and financial reporting structures, acquisitions are anticipated.

The company's mobile device business accounted for 57 percent of revenues in the first quarter of this year. Nokia reported first quarter revenues of €9.856 billion (US$13.2 billion), of which €5.583 billion ($7.5 billion) came from mobile phones. Nokia recently stated that it expected to increase its global device market share in the second quarter from its estimated 36 percent in the first quarter of this year.

Dr. Kai Öistämö, head of the mobile phone business group, will lead the new devices unit. Niklas Savander, who runs the technology platforms group, will move to head up the services and software unit. Anssi Vanjoki, head of the multimedia business group, will move to lead the new markets unit and Mary McDowell, head of the enterprise solutions business, will take on the chief development officer position.

Your comments, ideas and links?

B2B Demand Generation Summit PPTs

by Erick Mott

This information is about 6 months old but I wanted to share some public nuggets from MarketingSherpa's B2B Demand Generation Summit I attended in November 2006 in San Francisco. Since most marketers are concerned with sales tools, lead generation, cultivation and retention that drives revenue  -- I think you'll find some of the session PPTs insightful and useful. Notable presentations were Day 1, #s 2 and 4; Day 2, #s 1, 3 and 5.

Some key tips:

• Content is critical!  And that means content for thought leadership, demand generation, purchase process, post sale and sell-through. It's one thing to create cool campaigns that get people excited, and another to actually deliver the right content, at the right time to support the relationship life cycle -- content that effectively moves prospects from oblivion to satisfied customers/partners.
• Create target audience personas to better understand who you're talking to, their pain points, and what they want to hear/experience from your company.
• Landing page strategies are changing! Consider using more audience segmentation and content variations in landing pages to attract prospects, facilitate decision-making and sharing, and increase conversion rates.
• There's a whole new set of metrics for outbound programs. Take a more holistic approach to measuring marketing impact that drives revenue, not just awareness and raw leads.
• Improve virtual teaming and info sharing -- with resources inside and outside of the company -- to communicate, execute and achieve successful results. 

2006 event PPTs are available for download. I plan to attend the 2007 Summit in SF and recommend it to others that value networking and exchanging best practices with marketing peers and industry leaders.

Your comments, ideas and links?

Father's Day 2007

by Erick Mott

This year's Father's Day was extra special. Most recently, with the births of two children (daughter, 2 years and son, 9 months), Father's Day takes on a whole new meaning! We all went to Grandpa's house and took a dip -- a first for our son. These past few weeks have been challenging to say the least, but last Sunday helped me to clearly see that fatherhood is one of my most important roles in life, and a lot of fun too.

Your comments, ideas and links?

New Web 2.0 Guide with Interactive Marketing and Environmental (Green) Benefits

Updated June 14, 2011: New product ideas come and go. But it's safe to say that Web 2.0 (i.e. ABC Shark Tank investors and community on Twitter; Google, YouTube, Facebook, LinkedIn, Groupon, eBay and Foursquare growth; this blog and websites like millions of others, etc.) has helped to turn around the economy and is igniting entrepreneurialism worldwide.

Web and social media services are increasing in popularity with incredible adoption by the day. Similar to the rapid growth of TV infrastructure, programing and viewership in the last century when television went from black & white to color -- people from all walks of life are discovering and relying on real-time web content and experiences to live, work, play, buy, learn, and be social.

Remember the infamous TV Guide that rested on millions of coffee tables and was the periodic source for programming info, editorial content and sponsored ads? It's now time for a new Desktop Media Solution next to every PC/laptop, so people of all ages and backgrounds can be reminded of and access relevant brands, content, services and offers via the Internet, while also using their Desktop Media Solution as a reading tool to organize and hold paper, books, notepads, magazines, etc. 

The new Desktop Media Solution will:

• replace millions of single-function copyholders from companies like Fellowes 
• be updated periodically based on community preferences (friendsourcing) with a selection of media refills available to order and receive by snail-mail with a few clicks of the mouse
• help to protect the environment (made from recycled materials and thinking)
• help brands physically interact with consumers, 24/7

Even though digital (i.e. web, email, social, mobile, search, etc.) is like a fast-growing vine, people need tangible tools to help bridge the gap between digital and point of sale experiences. Customer retention and loyalty can be a challenge when relying only on digital experiences that are quickly out of sight and out of mind. And the volume of these digital experiences are increasing by the day so it's important for companies and content on the Web to stand out and be engaging for consumers.

The Interactive Brand Opportunity. It's Huge!

I recently did a post in the Sitecore Community about how successful brands, Web 2.0 companies and publishers today are creating and leveraging interactive brand ecoystems with their websites at the core. Managing digital campaigns and conversations with the Web are standard practice today and there's no turning back.

When thinking about the Desktop Media Solution value proposition, envision personalized guides or media/reading stands sitting next to millions of PCs and web browsers -- including a web-based community that is creating content for the Desktop Media Solution based on their preferences, friends and recommendations. This content can also be purchased online and delivered via the Postal Service as "'media refills" for the Desktop Media Solution:

Desktop Media Solution Demo

Blast from the past. It's a little dated -- including the "CreatorKiosk" name that was issued on the patent in 2002 -- but you'll get a sense of the functionality and value proposition. Click here to view the interactive demo.  Note, you will need a Flash Reader to view the demo.

See more patent 6488251 details for the Desktop Media Solution -- the only product of its kind for brands, consumers, Web 2.0 companies and publishers on the Web, and the next best thing since sliced bread! It's a useful blend of low-tech, high-tech and green. Remember, there was only one TV Guide per television set and the same logic applies for the Desktop Media Solution with on-demand, printed media refills when consumers choose to receive them via snail-mail. 

FYI, the original product (Copy Grip, created before the Internet) was sold in stores like Office Depot, college bookstores, computer accessory catalogs and even via a test market at K-Mart. Customers loved the product based on sales and feedback! In 2002, the original product was redesigned and patented to become aligned with how consumers now use the Internet and to incorporate recycled materials/thinking for a more eco-friendly offering; the new Desktop Media Solution. 

Are you an ABC Shark Tank fan?

Interested in following this developing story? Please join me via this Facebook page ("Like") and share with others. I'll keep you posted on how my ABC Shark Tank mission is progressing leading up to and after the audition in Dallas on June 25th. Thank you for your support! 

 

Competitiveness through Business Mobility

by Erick Mott

I recently created and led a thought leadership initiative for Nokia that was both insightful and influential. We wanted to engage thousands of executives worldwide to capture and discuss their opinions on how business mobility is helping organizations, across many industries, to be more competitive and sustainable.

This effort included: quantitative and qualitative research; media partnering and outbound marketing; networking and a dinner discussion in NYC on 3/22/07 at the Nokia Flagship Store and Four Seasons Hotel; a report written by the Economist Intelligence Unit; media outreach and a press announcement; two key events ( CIO Forum in NY and CIO Summit in CA) to present the findings and discuss mobility strategies; and a June 28th webinar entitled "Business Mobility and the Agile Organization."

Download a complimentary copy of the EIU report to review data from more than 500 survey respondents, and read what executives from UPS, PwC, Sprint, Novartis, NTT DoCoMo and Ogilvy & Mather had to say about how their firms are becoming more competitive with business mobility strategies and execution.

Your comments, ideas and links?