Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Sep 02, 2010 @ 02:34 PM
I have a passion for soccer that I inherited from my dad. I tell my sons that soccer runs in their blood, that it’s part of their heritage. My sons play soccer, I play(ed) soccer, my brothers played, my dad and his brothers played, and my grandfather played soccer. My grandfather actually played for his local professional team, the Garth Rangers (Wales, UK).
My dad is a Welshman who moved to the U.S. when he was about seventeen years old. Growing up, I was very interested in U.S. sports, especially baseball and football. My dad didn't understand. Football...wasn't really football, didn't use feet much, was covered in pads, seemed over-complicated, unorganized, and just wasn't rugby. Baseball...was...just...boring (to him). Nevertheless, I loved to play and watch both.
In fifth grade, I was a pretty small kid. On my football team, I was a linebacker. One day, a much larger (probably slower) kid knocked me out of the circle used to test who started the game (the test was to h
it each other until someone fell down or was knocked out of the circle). I lost my starting spot and couldn't regain it for most of the season. At that point, football became particularly boring for my dad and as a player, I was frustrated. One day, my dad came to me and told me a story of magic, of glamour, of heritage and family, a story of the beautiful game, the world’s game, of George Best and European football...real football. I was hooked. At ten years old, I knew that as a half Welshman I could be the greatest American soccer player EVER (oh…if it were that simple…boy did I suck to begin with).
I began playing soccer in fifth grade and haven't stopped playing since. If you know me you understand that soccer has become a part of who I am. I'm passionate about it...bordering on nerdy. In my "spare time," I coach competitive youth soccer. I've been coaching youth soccer for about fifteen years. I coach two teams and they are good (in the top-10 at each age group for the state of Utah, U.S.) Last night, one of the teams had an experience that I hope to never repeat. We lost...BIG...REALLY BIG. When you hit the top levels of competitive soccer, most games are 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, 3-1, etc. A BIG loss would be something like 4-0 or 5-1. We lost 10-0. It was UGLY...REALLY UGLY...EMBARRASINGLY UGLY. The biggest joke around soccer communities is how bad the referees suck. This referee was terrible (they all are), he didn't call a thing (there were four different fights that I was aware of during the game...one that even turned into a shoving/kicking/swinging match...the referee had no control...and didn't call fouls on any of it). The referee, in spite of his poor performance, was not the reason for the 10-0 loss. We just took a drubbing to a team that we played 3-2 the last time we competed against each other. It was frustrating...and sad.
If you've ever coached through a situation like this, you go through some moments that are similar to the stages of grief…though significantly sped up (yeah…I told you I was a little nerdy…maybe the word is CRAZY is more in line).
1 – Denial and Isolation: “Really, are we going to get beat like this”…I walk up and down the sideline muttering…eventually I sit down and shut up completely.
2 – Anger: Bark at the players from the sideline, through half time, on the field, off the field, eventually no barking at all (which is even worse).
3 – Bargaining: “Please boys, just get your heads up, shake it off, and go out and play the way you know how. Show some heart…if you work hard, good things will happen." As I’m thinking (at 7-0)…"Just don't let it go in to double digits...I'll be a good person for the rest of my life if it just doesn't go into double digits." I guess I'm off the hook.
4 – Depression: I was so shaken by the loss last night that all I could do was stutter…I was ready to stop coaching…didn’t sleep well…couldn't think of anything else.
5 – Acceptance: Today I realize that there’s nothing I can do to change last night. I’m not going to quit on those boys. I feel a little idiotic (ok - a lot idiotic...it is JUST A GAME...right? Have you heard the saying "Soccer is Life"?). We really are a good team.
So here’s the inevitable point. As companies, or as employees, managers and professionals, we all take our losses from time to time. Sometimes we even get our butts kicked. Occasionally, we get our butts kicked badly. Social media has done some wonderful things for “getting the word out”. When you’re doing well, it quickly becomes apparent. Social media has also expedited the speed at which everyone else finds out that you just got your butt kicked (the 10-0 drubbing hit Facebook before I even returned home for the night). Most losses aren’t always public knowledge. Maybe you lost a big proposal, a big job you’ve always had on hand, a key staff member, a client, or had some negative press, and maybe it’s impactful…very impactful. We’ve all been there. In business, when you lose…BIG…what do you do? Here are some suggestions, along with some great quotes by the late great UCLA head coach John Wooden:
- “If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?” Flawless execution is one key way of succeeding consistently and minimizing the losses. If you’ve just experienced a loss, meet with your staff…reset…then teach your staff (or yourself if appropriate) to execute cleanly from the start. The first goal scored in my soccer game was within two minutes of the starting whistle. It started a very bad precedence and was the start of a very long night. Start with clean execution in mind.
- “Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be.” Do you know why you lost…or are losing? If not, figure out the cause of the loss, do some market research, especially if your losses are consistent. A good market research organization will help you figure out how to fix it. If you aren’t prone in that direction, figure out how to fix it yourself. Some things are difficult to change. Make the changes that make sense to change. Then ask yourself, is that enough? If it’s not, do something about it. Be a player rather than a spectator.
- “Don't measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability.” Evaluate your losses. Did you just experience one loss, or have you experienced many losses in a row? These are two different issues. Is there a trend? What are you capable of? Are you competing at that level of your ability? If not, why? Evaluate whether you need to make tweaks in your product or service offerings that align more cleanly with your ability. Do some product research. Or, make tweaks in your ability to align more cleanly with your product or service offerings.
- “A coach is someone who can give correction without causing resentment.” After our loss, a close friend gave me this sage advice. “The best time to teach is right after a loss.” At the time of the loss, I was so worked up I couldn’t see this simple principle. It’s worth remembering that a good coach (or manager or mentor) is one who can identify areas of improvement, help you see what needs to improve, and show you the path to improvement or how to accomplish it. Improvement means more wins.
- “Things turn out best for the people who make the best of the way things turn out.” It’s important to remember that once things are done, when the final whistle blows, there’s nothing else you can do about the situation. If you’ve worked your hardest, made the appropriate corrections, followed these steps for the next opportunity, improved yourself as a result of the loss, the final step is to let the loss go. Walk away, don’t repeat the mistake(s), and move on. This just might be the toughest step.
Any suggestions on what to do when you lose...BIG? How do you turn losses into wins down the road?
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Wed, Jul 14, 2010 @ 10:42 AM
My teenage years were in the 1980's. The era of odd synthetic fashion and tight pants, extreme hair styles, hair bands, punk, new-wave, breakdancing and early hip-hop music, MTV, VCR and the cassette tape, neon and uninhibited materialism, Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the end to the Berlin Wall.
I was actually in high school in the late 1980's when new wave and hair bands had a strangle hold on American culture. I grew up in a rural city in the West. My town was filled with tight pants, waffle-stompers (also called Keg Boots), tight t-shirts and 
feathered mullets (guys) or REALLY REALLY REALLY big feathery hair (girls). Big trucks with even bigger lifts reigned and a European car was unheard of. Local radio stations gave you the choice of hair bands, hair bands, more hair bands, or country western. In my neck of the woods, big ballads ruled the airwaves and new wave was looked down upon with radical distaste and unstopped disdain.
My pack of friends (shout out to those of you who read this), from three different schools, were...well...different. We were punks, skaters, preppies, mods, and wavers in a sea of butt-rockers and hair. It was easy to point us out and easy to identify us. We were the pre-generation of, and evolved into, the Grunge movement of the 1990's that was so well accepted with its long hair and flannel. We listened to bands like U2, The Police, Depeche Mode, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Big Audio Dynamite, The Cure, The Ramones, Social Distortion, The Violent Femmes, Jane's Addiction, and saw Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, and Pearl Jam before they ever played stadiums but could only be found on the local music circuit. We identified with bands that are very mainstream today, but were misunderstood in the 1980's.
This identification that my friends and I had with something "different" often lead to consistent trouble for us. I distinctly remember a moment in high school when my younger brother was surrounded by a group of butt rockers (about 15 of them), dog piled, and duct taped upside down to a pole in the middle of the school. At the time, the group felt justified in this action, because he was different than them. His career path has been in law enforcement. I'm sure this experience was a turning point. It's interesting how most of our life experiences and differences lead us down pretty specific paths. We were chased, egged, tripped, spit on, threatened, and asked to leave public places. In spite of this, we were a proud group, proud of ourselves and proud for standing out in a crowd.
Maybe I'm an optimist at heart, but I believe that things, and people, change for the better (most times). History shows that things that are "different" are often frowned upon at first, but often produce long-term acceptance or a positive impact on culture. It's an interesting evolutionary cycle as you watch "different" become mainstream, acceptable, and eventually embraced...much like the music transition from punk, new-wave, and the hair bands of the 1980's, to the 1990's grunge movement.
When is "different" ok? When is "different" encouraged? When is "different" necessary for your survival?
For your business to have value it must provide something that is better, cheaper, faster, more technical, simpler, easier, innovative...something...different. What makes you or your organization different...really different? I liked a recent blog post by ActusMR titled "Stand Out". It focused on the reasons that you want to stand out for sales purposes, but there's more to it than just sales...right? Businesses exist to make money...to sell...we all know that. It's the underlying approach to our economy. But they also do something more. They become a part of the culture, the social landscape. They become part of who we are. They support families, support individuals, alter the view, change communities, change countries, and in some instances change the world. Different...can change a lot of things.
Here are some simple tips to identify how your business is really different.
- Survey or simply ask your employees, your team, your department, what makes your group different. Do you believe what they say?
- Survey or simply ask your customers, your clients, your patients what makes your company different. This is risky business, maybe they won't know. Hopefully they do. In either case you'll learn something.
- Conduct a litmus test. Do the differences your staff identify align with the differences your clients identify? How do these two things align with the goals of your organization, your mission statement? If they don't align, work at bringing these two views together.
- When you speak to potential clients, are the characteristics you talk about unique to you, or are they industry rhetoric? If you talk about quality, what do you do differently than your competitors to ensure that quality exists? Rhetoric isn't the actual difference; it is an outcome. The different steps you take to achieve the outcome are the real difference.
It's important that you know how you are different. Now that you know how you are different, be prepared to talk about your differences and, more importantly, be prepared to show why they are a benefit to your customers, your clients, your patients, or your employees. Your organizations success and survival, either now or in the future, will depend on your ability to characterize why you or your products and services are different and why "different" matters.
- Are the other steps you take to identify what makes you different?
- How do you get the word out on your differences?
- What makes you different?
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Tue, Jun 29, 2010 @ 02:46 PM
My family didn't really have a lot of money growing up so we didn't often vacation to exotic destinations (OK - never). Typical summer vacations included visits to cousin's houses in rural Idaho and Wyoming (is there anything but RURAL in Idaho and Wyoming), camping in Yellowstone National Park located a few hours away, family reunions in Las Vegas, and the occasional trip to a Salt Lake amusement park called Lagoon.
On the rare occasion that we did leave the area on vacation, my family visited Disneyland. For this reason, the theme park holds a dear place in my heart and might just actually be the "Happiest Place on Earth". On one visit to Disneyland, my family packed up the van (we'd graduated from the original wood sided, green, 
station wagon with the rear facing seat to a yellow van with a seat that folded out into a bed...I don't think it had seatbelts), and headed to Southern California. The trip looked to be an exciting and unique vacation. Instead of camping as we typically did, we were going to stay in a cheap motel near Disneyland and I was allowed to invite a friend along.
I was probably sixteen at the time and my mom let me drive much of the trip (growing up, I had my driver's license at fourteen years old). The thirteen hour drive from Idaho to Southern California was largely uneventful (although I was pulled over by an Arizona State Trooper for speeding up and slowing down as I drove the highway through the canyons between Utah and Nevada...he thought I was driving drunk...I wasn't drunk...just inexperienced). By the time we reached our motel, we were hot (no AC), tired, and ready for some relaxation.
Every cheap motel near Disneyland has an outdoor pool. The sheer number of people that stay in these hotels is mind-numbing. There are always a million kids in the pool, kids in the halls, and families in every nook and cranny imaginable. The morning after arriving at the motel, my friend, my two brothers, and I decided to take a swim. We spent quite a while in the pool and eventually started diving for things at the bottom. We'd throw change into the pool and then dive down and retrieve it. At some point during this thrilling event, my friend dove to the bottom of the pool to retrieve something brown (he must have thought it was a penny). He came to the top of the water, looked at what was in his hand, and realized that it was poop. Yep - POOP. Surprised by what he found, my friend screamed at the top of his lungs..."SOMEONE POOED IN THE POOL...GET OUT...SOMEONE POOED IN THE POOL!" And, an interesting phenomenon occurred...my two brothers, my friend and I all jumped out of the pool and started running to our room...as did several others. The interesting part was that many of the other swimmers just stayed right there and kept on swimming...IN THE POOP.
We sprinted back to our motel room. I'm happy to say that I was the oldest and fastest so I was able to shower first. We never did go back to the pool for the rest of the time we were there. It was a memorable and funny experience (after we'd showered).
So, what's the point? In your business, your department, your team, do you have employees and coworkers that poop in the office pool? What about you, do you poop in the pool?
Most days you go to work. Many of us spend as much time with our work associates as we do with our own families. The million dollar question is, "How do you approach your co-workers, your vendors, your clients and your customers?" Do you try to AVOID...
- Participating in office Rumors, Gossip, Political Maneuvering, and Back-biting?
- Having No Filter - Do you avoid saying everything that comes to mind, especially the negative. Do you consider the emotional impact of your words on those around you?
- Beating Up On Others...simply because you can...because you're in charge...because you have a leadership role...or because you are in a vendor/customer relationship? Do you avoid fiscally, verbally, or managerially beating up on those around you?
- Smack Talking Clients (and vendors)
These things are like pooing in the pool. Regardless of how far away from the poop you are when it enters the pool, poop travels and still gets on you (maybe even in your mouth - yuck). Don't allow yourself, your employees, and your co-workers, to participate in these activities...Don't poop in your office pool.
As a company, a team, a department, you're all in this together. Do what it takes to build cohesive associations that watch out for the best interest of your team, your vendors, and especially your clients and customers. Live by the simple mantra "Relationships Rule". Build positive relationships and good things will happen. You'll respect your employees, your clients, your vendors, and they'll have greater respect for you. Good things will result, you'll have more success, and you'll be happier for it.
- What are some other ways to "Poop in the Office Pool"?
- More importantly, how do you avoid them?
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, May 13, 2010 @ 01:19 PM
A few years back my brothers and I climbed the Grand Teton, a mountain peak in the Grand Teton National Park. The Grand Teton is one of the highest points in Wyoming and reaches a daunting 13,770 feet in elevation. The approach to the peak and back is about a 14 mile roundtrip hike that spans two days. The first day is spent hiking to the base of the Teton and resting for the second day's activities. The second day is spent scaling the Grand, and hiking all the way back to your car. Scaling the peak itself requires climbing gear and a 2,700 foot elevation gain.
At one point along the climb, the trail requires you scale a cliff where you are suspended by climbing gear, butt facing out on about 12,000 feet of air. For me, this entire trip was a grueling, but once in a lifetime experience with many adventures, excitement, and tense moments.
Among the many interesting experiences we had on this trip, there's one that I'll never forget. As we reached the summit of the Grand, it began to rain...and lightening. I'm not sure if you've ever stood on a peak that high in the air but you quickly realize how miniscule you are. When lightening begins to drop, it becomes extremely scary and beautiful all at once. You can feel the electricity in the air, the hair on your arms stand on end, but you are taken aback by the setting. As the rain and lightening began to drop around us, it became quickly apparent that we were at significant risk of being hit. As much as we wanted to stay and enjoy the scenery, it was imperative that get off the mountain very quickly.
Cairns, as they relate to back-country hiking, are trail markers made from piled-together rocks that mark the trail when the trail itself isn't obvious, for instance through rock beds, rivers, etc. They help hikers avoid getting lost, are extremely important for navigation, and are sometimes very difficult to find. An Epic, in the climbing world, is a very dangerous experience...one that should happen infrequently...but that you live to tell about.
Our start on the second day was a little later than we would have liked and we moved more slowly than we'd have expected. As we sped down the Grand Teton, with rain and lightening falling all around us and the sky darkening, we realized that this Epic was nowhere close to being over. When the series of long repels were completed and we were able to get to a safer area, we had a seven mile hike in the rain ahead of us...in the dark. The Cairns that seemed so obvious in the daylight, were much more difficult to find with only a headlamp to guide the way. The trail was eerily difficult to follow and we were exhausted by the days epic events.
I learned something about human nature...and myself...on that trip. We, as humans, are capable of doing difficult things. We're capable of overcoming obstacles that we'd never imagine in our way. I believe these traits apply to not only our personal lives, but our businesses, employment, and work lives.
What are the Epics that you face in your business or your employment. Is the recent recession one? What about other events? What are the Cairns that you use to help you guide the way to business success? Here are some suggestions for guiding you through epic events...some business Cairns:
- Constantly collect feedback from your customers, your patients, your constituents, or your employees on what you are doing well and what you can improve on. Feedback surveys are a good way of collecting information to ensure you have a trail to follow.
- Provide yourself with immediate access to this feedback information so that you are aware of issues quickly. This access could be in a data or business intelligence dashboard format, or something as simple as dropping all feedback responses into your e-mail. Your customers, patients, constituents, employees, etc. will appreciate you for gathering this information and they'll be more likely to stick with the trail as a result.
- Make sure you act on the feedback information as quickly as you can. There's no reason to gather feedback if you have no intention to do anything with it. Waiting for months or years to address issues are as problematic as not knowing the issues to begin with. If the trail doesn't have a clear path with constant improvements, it becomes much harder to follow.
Let me know what you think. Have you had any epics personally, or has your business had epics? What do you do about them and how do you avoid them? What are your business Cairns? I look forward to your responses.
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Apr 29, 2010 @ 04:34 PM
I love questions, especially the unique ones. It's probably one of the reasons I enjoy market research so much. When I was young and working myself through college and graduate school I worked a series of menial jobs that ranged from fast food worker, pizza delivery guy, big box store associate (that was quite the promotion from fast food worker), and wound up with a job chasing a developmentally disabled individual around a learning facility, primarily to "discourage" him from touching people. My "college enlightened" brain was BORED. To entertain myself, I'd ask questions that not only entertained me but made the folks I worked with think...and passed the time more quickly. I loved to ask questions like:
- If you HAD to live the life of a Brady Bunch character...who would it be? Why?
- If you could only drive one TV car for the rest of your life, what car would it be? Why?
- If you woke up in the morning morphed into a superhero, who would you want it to be? Why?
- If you had to marry a cartoon character, who would it be (this was prior to "adult cartoons"...other than Heavy Metal or parts of The Wall.) And, Why?
- If you were going to work in a job, that wasn't "White Collar" and wasn't for the money, what would it be? Why?
I would entertain myself for hours thinking about and engaged in conversations surrounding topics like this...not exactly saving the world...but at least my brain wasn't turning to Lime Green Jello.
I was listening to some music this morning as I was going about my work. I love placing my Ipod on shuffle and seeing what comes out. Music has a fascinating way of putting you in a place, a time, an event, a frame of mind. One song can flash you to different events in your life...and you're there...for 
better or for worse...only for a moment. Music has meaning. For instance, if you ever walk into my office and I'm listening to show tunes...bust your butt to get out of there as quickly as you can...Don't get me wrong, I like show tunes and it could be one of those really upbeat songs that may sound really happy...it's still not a good sign.
This morning, due to some music I was listening to, I started thinking about this time in my life. The time when I had much less to do and much less responsibility...and I ran across one of THOSE questions...so I mandatarily asked my staff (no opt-in).
- If (Insert Your Company Here) were a band, a musician, or a musical group, who would it be and why.
If you've never asked a question like this of your staff, you should try it. In fact, I'd encourage you to ask this specific question of your staff. The answers are insightful. Is your company like:
- A Reggae Band - Doesn't get worked up over much, everything is always peaceful, and very little conflict exists?
- A Country Western Band - Down on your luck, always running into trouble...lost your wife, your horse, and your money.
- A Speed Metal Band - Loud, frantic, unorganized.
- A Lounge Singer - Solid for years, but struggling as the world outgrows you.
- A Classic Rock Band - The band that continues to evolve over time to meet the needs of the current listeners, but really has to work at it.
- An Alternative Band - New products, new ideas, new ways of delivering your message.
- A Pop Band - Smack in the center, not really trying to make any waves, but trying to continue as long as the song/group/market will hold out.
- A Hip-Hop Group - New and exciting, pushing the envelope, trying to make people think, maybe in it for the money...and the creativity...and the money.
- A Choir or Symphony - regimented but organized, inadequate as an individual, but brilliant when placed together.
The list can go on and on...but every answer has an underlying meaning. These types of organizational personality tests can say a lot without saying a lot. In a non-confrontational way, you can better understand your staff, the macro view of your company, and the view of what you spend most of your time doing. Take the following market research litmus test. The results may surprise you.
- Call your shot - If your company were a band, a musician, or a musical group, who would it be and why. Give me your company, the musician or group, and why it describes you. ENTER IT ON THIS BLOG...RECORD IT!
- Now ask - Ask this same question to those that report to you, your staff, your department, your company. TELL THEM WHAT THEY SAID...THEY'LL ENJOY IT!
- Evaluate the results - Does it match? Does the view of those in your organization align with what you've recorded here? Is it better or worse? Do you have work to do to improve your organization so that your view of the company matches the view of those that report to you (don't answer this question here).
I look forward to your responses. Have some fun with this.
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Apr 22, 2010 @ 01:02 PM
Sometimes you just run out of things to say. We've all experienced it. When you're engaged in conversation with a group of people, it's the lull in conversation between the end of one topic and the beginning of another. The quieting of the chatter. Then something happens, it's a little bit difficult to define what it is, but a stimulus occurs that shoots the conversation down a whole new track, a micro conversation that invigorates the macro conversation. I believe that this happens in social media, and I experienced it recently with this blog.
For the first time since starting this blog, for the past couple of weeks, I've frankly had very little to say. It was a very interesting experience for me. I'm not a rabid talker to begin with, but I typically have some thought...some idea...some topic for this blog...gestating in my head. I had nothing. A lapse in the conversation...
Until last night...
Last night I was given a very simple illustration of the impact social media can have on the conversation. I've mentioned this before, but I have teens in my household. Two of them began to argue last night about whether cheerleading is actually a sport. One of them is a cheerleader, the other a soccer player. The soccer player posted this simple question to his 300 friends on Facebook..."Who agrees that cheerleading isn't a sport? Sorry Sis." Incidentally, the cheerleader had just returned from a two-hour tumbling session, was tired, sore, and feisty. Chaos ensued. The simple question resulted in 42 Facebook comments (not 
to mention the internal "conversation" going on in my household). Both sides of the controversy chimed in with blistering frequency (over an hour and a half) and then the conversation stopped very abruptly when the parents of these teens sent them all to bed around 10:30pm.
In the process of the conversation, I Googled whether cheerleading was a sport and didn't really come to a definitive answer. When I didn't get a resolution to the question from Google, I consulted the mother of all immediate answers...ChaCha.
If you've never heard or used this service, it's very unique (and for the most part free). The teens I know use this service A LOT. You text ChaCha a question (242242 - spells "ChaCha")...any question...and ChaCha will text you the answer. You can send some N number of questions per month (data & txt messages apply) without being charged (I don't text them often enough to know what the limit is). The slogan on their website is "Real people answering your questions! Crazy Huh?"
I texted this simple question to ChaCha. "Is cheerleading a sport". As always, ChaCha came back with a reply in less than 30 seconds. "ESPN Court rules cheerleading is contact sport, yet many states for high school sports are not ruling it a sport, it depends who you ask. I would say Cheerleading is a sport." An ESPN Court ruled that cheerleading is not only a sport but a contact sport. If you've seen many cheerleading competitions, you'll understand. In the past several years that I've attended these competitions with my daughter, I've seen more people fall out of "stunts", more girls kicked or inadvertently punched in the face, fallen or dropped from 15-20 feet in the air, and/or hurt than I've seen in most other "sport" activities. At one point I actually tried to start videoing when these athletes "took a whipper." I agree with ChaCha. Cheerleading, at least competitive cheerleading, is a sport.
In connecting the dots from this experience to the market research that many of us provide, something occurred to me. Social media market research methods are REALLY UNDERDEVELOPED and VERY UNSTANDARDIZED. As I've followed the #MarketResearch hash tag on Twitter, I realized something. The way that most of us operating in the market research industry define market research, and the way that a lot of "other" businesses often define market research are very different.
You'll often see this post pop up on Twitter "Conducting #MarketResearch on...". The interesting point here is that this person is typically not doing any kind of Qualitative or Quantitative research as the market research industry has defined it. No focus group, no ethnography, no MROC, no survey, no statistical analysis, but is simply "looking stuff up". They're "looking stuff up" using Google, and Facebook, and Twitter, and article sites, and possibly...when they just can't get the answer, they're shooting the question over to ChaCha...all in the name of market research. Not exactly our market research methods...or are they? Are these our evolved research methods for conducting social media market research?
A few years ago I ran across an article in Quirks by Tim Macer. He was doing an evaluation of a number of industry software packages. Since then, when I run across his published articles, I try to take a look at them. Recently, he and an associate published their "Globalpark Annual Market Research Software Survey 2009". This was their sixth annual survey and well worth a look. Pertaining to this post, a small part of this study was an evaluation of the online communities being managed by his sample. The results were a little surprising given the amount of "chatter" that goes on regarding social media and research methods. He found:
- "Communities are still very rare."
- "Early adopters are still operating very few communities."
- "Over half of companies have no plans to operate an online community."
- Of the companies that were running communities most were using the same software to run their communities that they were using to run their panels.
This recent "cheerleading" experience and the lack of established and solid social media based research tools, leads me to the conclusion that I stated earlier. Social media research methods, and their accompanying technologies, are REALLY UNDERDEVELOPED and VERY UNSTANDARDIZED. In fact, I'm not even sure that they are completely defined yet or even exist with any level of sophistication...they are EXTREMELY UNEVOLVED. I appreciate the efforts by a few early adopters in our industry who have started writing about how to do this work more effectively. If you've seen or written one of these articles, please post the link to your article here as a reference for the readers.
Before we face the challenges of the unrepresentative online panel, we as a market research industry, should define what social media research is to begin with (even though the definition will evolve...much like the conversation evolves), and establish best practices for doing good, quality, social media market research that can be analyzed and/or evaluated in reportable ways that represent the opinions of engaged participants willing to add to the conversation.
- Are you aware of a great article on how to conduct social media research? If so, please link to it on this post. For the good of the market research community.
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Apr 01, 2010 @ 02:00 PM
Sometimes there's nothing better than hanging with the locals. They know all the right places, they know what to avoid, they can give you tips...the "insiders" view, and they know how to make your visit great. Every time I travel I try to get some "taste" of the local scene as much as a two day conference or client visit will allow. Many times this becomes a simple search for a truly local restaurant...a quest, as it were, for the tastes of the region.
I have a confession to make and I'll confess it right here...
"Hello, my name is Vaughn M. and I'm a food addict. I have NOT been clean of my food addiction EVER. And, in fact, I actually binged last night (no purging)." "Hello Vaughn M!"
The Food Network on television is one of the best inventions known to man (or woman), specifically the Iron Chef. For having such a girlish figure, I can eat like a horse. Though I love to watch the chefs on the food channel create artistic dishes, and like the idea of eating them, my real love is the cheap stuff. In my book, comfort food doesn't come from seven different foo-foo courses consisting of variations of Caviar, Basil, Hawaiian Moi, Lamb, Red Peppers, and Bacon but the "hard" stuff that kicks trash on your stomach and makes you feel like a stuffed turkey (...mmm...stuffed turkey). You just got to love it.
My food addiction has been both a pleasure and a curse at different travel points in my life. Here are a couple of memorable food examples for me:
- I was recently in New York, NY with my family. We were there for about a week hanging out and finding things to do. One of the most memora
ble parts of this visit was the time we took to sit down and eat a slice (of pizza) and dessert at the local shops and delis. Some of these shops and delis are horrible, some of them are heaven on earth...the best in the world. The hunt for the good ones was all part of our New York experience. - Cincinnati, OH has a very unique concept on what is considered good food...their chili. Have you ever been to Skyline Chili? Whoever imagined semi-bland chili on Spaghetti noodles...it actually kind of works. The locals seem to love it. Though the experience was memorable, the concept unique, and the "restaurant" was packed, this isn't a craving I get with any kind of regularity. The dogs were good. Their "3-way chili" must have a back-story. I think I'll ask about it next time. I will return.
- One of the most memorable eating experiences I've had while traveling was a visit to Austin, TX for a conference. A good friend and excellent market researcher (thanks MP) lined up a dinner for a group of us to a BBQ joint called The Salt Lick located about a half an hour outside of Austin in Driftwood, TX. I love BBQ, one of my favorites, and this restaurant didn't disappoint. We had a blast as we sat at a picnic table, ate family style, had great conversation, and pigged out. This was an awesome dining experience, shared with friends and colleagues in our industry, that I'll remember for the rest of my life...(you're coming to understand the true extent of my addiction).
- Some of you know that I took a trip to India a few years back. I spent about a week there traveling to different cities, staying in different hotels, visiting local businesses, and seeing local sites. After about five days of being in country, some associates and I decided to truly "go local" with a meal and visited a local Indian restaurant. The food and environment was wonderful. We sat and chatted with some locals, watched a Bollywood movie, and ate as much Indian food as we could stomach. The after effects of this experience, however, nearly destroyed me from the inside out. Up until that point, I thought I could eat just about anything. I've never been more food poisoned in my life. We ate Chinese food from hotel restaurants for the remainder of the trip and I haven't eaten Indian food since. Sometimes there's such a thing as "too local".
"Thank you for telling us your story of food addiction Vaughn M." What's the point? How does this apply to market research?
In a condensing world market (world is getting smaller - not flatter), and an increasingly competitive market research business landscape that seems to be losing its borders more and more because of new developments in technology, is there still room for regional tastes and local experts conducting local market research successfully? And, is there a strong benefit to using them in some cases?
I'd say yes. I believe that the globalization and specialization of interests we've experienced as a result of new technological advances like high bandwidth enabled streaming, social media exchange based on segmented topics, and cloud computing...providing the gateway to pulling all information sources together, has produced more of a benefit and a positive impact on these companies than you'd guess. If a company in the Ukraine wants to do a study in Laramie, WY it's now much easier for them to do it seamlessly and increases the probability that they can use the services of a local expert, rather than making a feeble attempt to conduct this research from the Ukraine themselves.
- I have a number of friends and business associates who have made their entire careers out of conducting market research in different cities in Texas. They are adept in technology, they understand their market and current market research trends and methods, and they've adapted their businesses to meet client evolution. These ladies really know their stuff (Shout out to the SWMRA gals in the Lone Star State).
- Salt Lake is another example. We Salt Lakers are a strange lot (not in a bad way). The further you get away from Utah and Idaho, the more misconception abounds about what Utah is or isn't about. The state has been built on very specific religious and cultural mores, conservative ideologies, and operational "norms". I'd venture a guess that even our "Liberals" would be considered semi-conservative in most other areas of the country. Because Utah is not very representative of the rest of the US, few people seem to care about what we think, but if you do...your research calls for it, does it make sense to use a local company?
For my
organization, most of our market research business has been aimed outside of the state of Utah (US). Over the course of the last couple of years we have turned some of our attention inside the state as well. When does it make sense to use a local provider for your market research (both US or Internationally)?
- Consider a local vendor when you are researching specialized local issues or products or when doing research for a local business targeting local respondents. Utah has a wide variety of products aimed at Utahans, or aimed at Mormons. We are the single largest consumers of Jello. We have many locally aimed products that can't be found with any frequency outside of the west. Local companies are best at dealing with these types of issues and products.
- Consider a local vendor when cultural concerns are prevalent to the subject matter. Have you ever done research in Hawaii? It's an interesting process doing telephone surveys with respondents in Hawaii. Many of the locals can pinpoint a "mainlander" within their first sentence. If you are dealing with issues that are of strong interest to the Hawaiians or other strong culturally driven locations, consider using locals to conduct this research.
- When you are bidding on research for local government, quasi-government organizations like utility companies, or universities, consider using a local vendor. Your project win-rates will improve as the organizations view local involvement as supportive of their community rather than "big business".
Are there other instances that make sense to use the market research services of the locals? For those of you who run local based businesses...here's your chance...please chime in!
Do you have food-based memories or am I just crazy?
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Mar 25, 2010 @ 04:54 PM
As I was driving into work this morning, a story came on the radio that I found very interesting. A group of Sociologists in Switzerland had conducted a study of a "representative and longitudinal sample of 1074 cohabiting and married couples living in Switzerland" to identify traits that would predict success in marriage. I tracked down an abstract of the research article "Optimizing the marriage market: An application of the linear assignment model" scheduled to be released April 16 in the European Journal of Operational Research. The title sounds pretty...
boring...really...academic, but the results will surprise you. Though the authors of the study would never have intended it, the results of the study were pretty humorous, may have some merit, would require a fundamental change to "dating", and don't reflect very well on those of us who are male. For example:
- It was recommended that women marry men that are five years older than they are. My take on this is that maybe it would give those of us who are male a chance to "GROW UP!" before we hear it repeatedly from our wives.
- They recommended that men marry women who are 27% smarter than they are. You always hear about men trying to "MARRY UP", now there is statistical evidence that validates why men should do this. Women...find someone who is clearly less intelligent than you are and your success in marriage will increase. I'm assuming this is because of the ongoing need to have someone smart enough in the marriage to compensate for the stupid things men do, their reluctance to ever ask for directions, and their inability to use a map.
- The researchers also recommend cultural similarity...aka a cultural "MATCH UP". Specifically, they recommended that the Swiss marry other Swiss. I find this somewhat insensitive, but do the statistics lie? Can this be applied to the US...if you are looking for a marriage partner, should you avoid the Swiss entirely? What about locally, should a Utahan marry a Mississippian? It's probably a good idea for Utahan's to marry other Utahan's, no one else understands them anyway (I'm actually from Utah so I have every right to say that). Does this mean that my Utahan sons have no shot at successfully marrying (and hanging on to) amorous French women because their potential for a successful marriage is statistically unlikely to succeed (even if they could find one to court to begin with)?
Some of the most entertaining parts in the abstract of this article were the claims that Switzerland is falling "well below the social optimum." That "we reallocate approximately 68% of individuals (7 out of 10) to a new couple that we posit has a higher likelihood of survival." And, they use "a central 'agency' that would coordinate the matching of couples." Assuming that a man, a woman, and a central "agency" cooperate, partners can expect marriages to succeed 21% more frequently. Are you ready to improve your marriage by switching to someone else or are you one of the 3 who married someone (younger & smarter for the males; older & dumber for the females)?
Sometimes research is pointless and only exists for research sake or a quick clip on a local news station. Though this study makes recommendations to "optimize marriage" the operational likelihood of these changes being made...or even considered...is completely non-existent. Market research is also guilty of doing this more often than it should. How can your market research be more actionable?
- Ask market research questions that matter to you. Is your question a "need to know" or a "might want to know...maybe...someday"? If it's a "might want to know" than don't ask it. If you do ask it, you'll be driving up the length and complexity of the study and decreasing the probability the participant will stay engaged...all for information you won't likely use anytime soon.
- Research the business questions that you are willing to, or able to change. It seems a little dense, but the only way you can have actionable market research is if your market research addresses something that you are willing to do something about. If you own a burger shop, don't ask about converting it to a mechanics shop unless you're willing to live with the results. Most research mistakes in this area are much more subtle, but there are likely elements of your business that you'd refuse to change regardless of the resulting information. Why ask about them to begin with?
- Use the right market research methodology to answer your questions. Don't pigeon-hole yourself into a research collection method that works well in one situation, but provides limited or no information in another. Online surveys are not the silver-bullet for answering the mother of all research questions. There are good and bad times to use online surveys, telephone surveys, IVR surveys, face-to-face, quantitative, qualitative, focus groups, MROC's...you get the picture. Understand when to use different market research methods...if you don't know, ask someone.
- Realize that things change and need to be re-evaluated over time. What was actionable...and not acted on...at one point in time may not be the best solution three years later. Kind of like your favorite shampoo...Wash, Rinse, Repeat...Evaluate, Implement, Evaluate Again.
Do you have additional suggestions for making your market research more actionable, if you do, please comment.
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Mar 18, 2010 @ 12:35 PM
Etymology is the study of the history of words. Words, just like everything else, have a history. They evolve, they change and they come to mean different things to different people. Take the word "Thong" for instance. Not many people would like to see me in a thong...let alone borrow a thong from me. But, in the 80's, thong meant something else entirely. It referred to a "flip-flop". The idea of me in an '80's defined thong is much less repulsive. Borrowing someone's thong to run to the store wasn't socially frowned on and it was perfectly acceptable to run out your front door...to your mailbox...in your mother's thongs.
More years ago than I'd like to admit, I had a professor in graduate school who was an expert in the history of meaning and how meanings come to be defined. His name was James Aho and he's written a number of books on varying topics ranging from politics, accounting, enemies, health, how we experience our bodies, how we experience the world, etc. I learned an important thing from him...that the way we experience our world and the meaning we assign to things in our world differ according to our culture, our family, our past life experiences, our politics, our country, our religion, the list goes on and on. Even systematic professions like the medical industry and accounting have relevant social meanings that are different for different people. What is considered "healthy" and "acceptable practice" has changed over time, differs according to current trends, and can be impacted by marketing.
The food pyramid is a prime example. In the first three minutes of a search on the food pyramid I found a pyramid for Vegans, Native Americans, Vegetarians, Low Carbians (All you can eat meat), and Diabetics. My son has a t-shirt that includes the food pyramid and only includes types of pizza. I even found a zombie food pyramid.
The simple food pyramid of the '90's evolved out of the notion of "food groups" (carbohydrates, protein, dairy, fats, vitamins, fiber, and minerals) and into the "new food pyramid" published in 2005 with an expectation of a re-release of an even "newer" food pyramid in 2010. To complicate things, many different countries have their own version of the food pyramid...you may be healthy in one area of the world, but not in another. Isn't it just food? Is there JUST food?
Brands operate the same way and evolve over time. What's the meaning of a brand? You come to define who you are as a person by the brands you consume...or is it the other way around...the brands you consume come to define you as a person. We've all seen (or written) the market research survey that asks what a specific consumer product means to you in characteristics that make very little sense to the physical make-up of the product but get to the bottom of the meaning of the brand. What product comes to mind when you hear these trigger words? Different products and meanings come to mind for different people.
- Rugged
- Refreshing
- Fresh
- IT
- Accountant
- Religious
- Socially Conscious
Brands invoke feelings and meanings...feelings of nostalgia for the past and anticipation for the future. I may drink
Coca Cola because I want to feel happy all year round. I purchase
Go-Daddy domains so that I can hang around attractive women and look cool (even if I'm a disheveled IT guy). I drive a
Subaru so people will see me as active. If I feel like I'm doing these things than, in essence, am I not these things. Who wouldn't want to be happy, active and attractive?
Finally, my fourteen year old son had a recent experience that really illustrated this point to me. The other day at a restaurant he filled his drink cup with Horchata. It was the first time he'd ever done that and seemed like a simple act. Many of you have probably consumed Horchata and may do it with some regularity. The meaning of the act, for him, was much different than the meaning you apply to drinking Horchata. You may like how it tastes, you may come from a culture who has a background in Horchata consumption, you may drink it to offset spicy food. My son does not.
My son identifies with all things alternative. We are from the US, but my father lived in Wales through his young adult years. My son has grown up watching EPL (English Premier League) football (soccer for those in the US) and particularly identifies with the Chelsea Football Club/Brand instead of an American football, basketball, or baseball team. He plays soccer instead of American football, and is submerged in the soccer culture. He has long hair (instead of the typical "short" cut typical of Salt Lake City) and listens to alternative music. So, how does he make the connection to his identification with all things alternative and Horchata? He listens to a New York originating band called Vampire Weekend. They sing a song called Horchata. Through some meaning that he's defined to his limited life experience, consuming Horchata connects him to what he likes best...all things alternative. He now consumes Horchata because that is who he is.
What does your brand say about you? Whether you provide consumer products, business to business services, or you're a market research company, your company brand says something and means something to those around you. Do you know what your company...what your brand means, what your customers experience is, what they view themselves to be when they use your products and services? If you don't know, I would suggest that you ask.
- What brands do you identify with...and what meaning do they take on for you?
Posted by Vaughn Mordecai on Thu, Feb 25, 2010 @ 02:54 PM
I just spent the last two days standing in our company booth at a local business expo. This was not a market research related event, but an expo that brings together a potpourri of businesses from all over the area (for me Salt Lake City, Utah USA). Though successful for us, the expo felt like a meat market. It seemed like I was ba
ck in the dating pool, trying to find a spouse, using speed dating techniques. "What do you look for in a boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse/business relationship/market research company?" "What do you do in your free time?...participate in any online surveys?" "What do you do...for work?" "What do you know about market research?"
Every booth had a "gimmick"... something to pull you in to the booth...a drawing for an Ipod Nano here, a Grand Piano there, a flat screen LED TV here, an Amazon Kindle there, nachos at this booth, candy at that one, pizza at this booth, burritos (yes that's right - burritos) at another. It was all a little surreal. We chose to give away candy and an Amazon Kindle (it's amazing how few people have heard of a Kindle...Reading?...That interferes with my TV watching). Our drawing had a catch. We decided to force (encourage?) people to get a better understanding of what we do. Have you ever tried to explain a market research business to the guy that owns the Heating & AC shop down the street? Taking nothing away from the guy...but...Market Research HUH?
We set up an online survey and required the attendees to fill it out in order to enter into the drawing for the Kindle. It was amazing how novel the approach was...and how open to participation the attendees were. More than anything, I wanted some idea of who...analytically...was attending the event and whether we should even consider going back. The results surprised me.
This is the third year that we've attended this business expo, and the first year we've had internet access to run a survey. Reflecting on this year vs. previous years, a couple of things stood out that may be interesting to market research companies overall. Here are some suggestions for market research speed dating:
- Have a product to sell vs. attempting to sell your services or your company in general. Maybe this seems like a no-brainer, but there's a difference between your products and your services. Products are typically much easier to explain in "speed dating" settings. Include demos.
- Don't make your product (too) gimmicky. Unless you actually sell the Sham Wow...don't approach your market research product like it is the Sham Wow. Market research products and services require a pretty intellectual approach. It's probably not worth dumbing your product down. Rather, find a product that meets the need of your audience and have a real conversation about how it meets your potential customer's need. Use examples.
- I'm sure that the qualitative researchers and ethnographers among us will agree that we need to be open to "other" non-intended uses for our products...even if they are market research products. Immediately on explaining your product, people will begin expanding the scope of it beyond what you had anticipated. Your customers are probably using your products for something other than, or more than, what you originally envisioned. It's a great opportunity to expand the scope. The only market research joke I've ever heard comes to mind...
A man doing market research knocked on a door and was greeted by a young woman with three small children running around at her feet.
The man says, "I'm doing some research for Vaseline. Have you ever used the product?"
The young woman says, "Yes. My husband and I use it all the time."
The man says, "And if you don't mind me asking, what do you use it for?"
The young woman says, "We use it for sex."
The researcher is a little taken back. "Usually people lie to me and say that they use it on a child's bicycle chain or to help with a gate hinge. But, in fact, we know that most people do use it for sex. I admire you for your honesty. Since you've been frank so far, can you tell me exactly how you use it for sex?"
The woman says, "I don't mind telling you at all. My husband and I put it on the door knob and it keeps the kids out."
- Finally, it's a heck of a lot easier to differentiate yourself when there is no one else around like you. Develop a unique, non-gimmicky, product that you can explain and that addresses a specific need in concise ways.
Call me quick on the uptake (or not), but in following this process, I quickly realized that people understood what we were doing, what we were selling, how they could apply it to their business, and why they needed it. If I could only have avoided the folks that wanted a lot of research...full scale research programs...for a cost that was less than the labor involved to put it together.
- Have you heard any market research jokes? What are they?
- Ever felt like you were market research speed dating? Example?
- Other suggestions for dealing with these settings?