This is Part II in a series of blogs that breaks down each chapter. The brief chapter summaries are from Wikipedia, but the marketing commentary is all MarketMatch!
5. Energy explains the use of creativity and timing in building an army’s momentum.
The first 4 chaptershave helped you to FOCUS. In chapter 5, we build MOMENTUM! We finally get to creative!
The key to any quality creative is to speak in your target’s language and to your target’s needs. Do NOT speak financial mumbo-jumbo and do NOT focus on your products. Think of it this way … do you know that friend who always talks about themself and never asks you about your interests? The one who talks AT you and not TO you? Pretty annoying, huh? Don’t be that guy!
(See “Get Emotional” and “Communicating with Your Creatives” for more info. Click here to see samples and get inspired.)
6. Weak Points & Strong explains how opportunities come from openings in the environment caused by the relative weakness of the enemy in a given area.
Remember the Competitive Analysis in Chapter 1? Well, you have to keep an eye out all year. You may need to make tweaks to your plan based on what’s going on around you (this is also another reason to keep the branches involved like we discussed in Chapter 4).
Your competition is going to make moves: open branches, close branches, increase rates, add fees (thank you Bank of America!), etc. You don’t need to act on every change, but you should be aware of them and be able to quickly assess if it’s worth your response.
7. Engaging The Force explains the dangers of direct conflict and how to win those confrontations.
Direct conflict, in this instance, is point of sale. This is all about staff training and providing quality point of sale tools. How does your staff present your products? Do they fulfill the promises made by your marketing? Does product presentation align with your brand position? Do you track cross-sells by employee? Does your staff ask qualifying questions so they can recommend appropriate products? Do they know what questions to ask? (Click “5 Steps to Sales Success” for more specifics) Does your staff simply read brochures verbatim or do they provide value to customers? Do they treat customers as if the customer were a guest in their home? Is it standard to write a hand-written "Thank You" note for every new customer and product?
It is your job, as the voice of the customer, to ensure that the customer experience is exceptional.
8. Variation in Tactics focuses on the need for flexibility in an army’s responses. It explains how to respond to shifting circumstances successfully.
The key is not to blindly follow your marketing plan, but to be ready to deviate if market conditions and opportunities dictate. You may get a call from a vendor selling a better mousetrap. You may have an opportunity to partner with an organization or move into a new market. There may be a natural disaster in your market. It could be anything.
Knowing exactly how to react comes back to having clearly defined objectives. If you’ve spelled out the handful of measurable objectives that will define success this year, then all you need to do is ask yourself how each new opportunity or shift in the market will effect those objectives – and can an adjustment to strategy help leverage these changes to better fulfill the objectives?
9. Moving The Force describes the different situations in which an army finds itself as it moves through new enemy territories.
When entering new markets you need to:
- Understand the situation: Who leads in market share and share-of-mind? Why? Can you combat it? What is the awareness level for your institution? Map your current customers in the new market. Are there pockets of high-concentration? How many competitive branches sit between those pockets of concentration and your branch? What are the economic trends in the new market? Where do people from this new market hang out?
- Generate excitement: The bottom line is that you need butts off couches and into your branch. What is the most effective way to create a buzz? In the past, MarketMatch has used “street teams” to get the word out; teaser campaigns prior to branch opening; creative cash offers; one-day holiday events; and guerrilla marketing to fill branches.
- Measure: You’ll want to keep a close eye on growth. Where are new customers coming from? How did they hear about you? What products are they opening? Are your current customers referring?
There you have it ... how the first 9 chapters of The Art of War can help you take over the marketing world. Remember, with great power comes great responsibility. I trust that you won’t go all Napoleon on us with this information!
Keep an eye out for Part 3 of The Art of War…and Marketing.
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MarketMatch is a marketing firm, dedicated to the credit union and community banking community. We utilize knowledge-based strategies to help you FOCUS on the right story that will generate the greatest MOMENTUM and prove the best RESULTS with our written ROI Guarantee.
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