Break the Business Traditions

Customer is everything. Customer is always right. Customer is the reason why your business exists. Customer is your bread and butter. Customer is….Customer is…. Listening to customers is generally a good idea, but it is not the whole story.

For all the talk of customer-oriented innovation and allowing feedback from customers to help build a new product designs, another lesson from the trenches is that smart companies should sometimes ignore what the market says it wants today.

The iPod was ridiculed when it was launched in 2001, but Steve Jobs stuck by his instinct. Nintendo has done something similar with its popular motion-controlled video-game console, the Wii. Rather than designing a machine for existing gamers, it gambled that non-gamers represented an untapped market and devised a machine with far broader appeal.

The dynamic companies of today’s challenging and cut-throat era do business in a dynamic, tradition-less and vibrant manner. 

There are some unique and striking characteristics of such companies. They sometimes ignore the current state of the market when designing products. Second, they learn from failure rather than stigmatizing it. That sounds like a pretty different corporate culture than most companies.

The vibrant and dynamic companies learn from their follies. Companies like Apple doesn’t care much about failures, but always look forward despite of the magnitude of the blow. 

 Break the Business Traditions video

iPhone is a response to the failure of Apple’s original music phone, produced in conjunction with Motorola. Both times, Apple learned from its mistakes and tried again. The real lesson to extract from these companies is not to stigmatize failure but to tolerate it and learn from it.

 Break the Business Traditions video-2

For all the talk of customer-oriented innovation and allowing feedback from customers to help build a new product designs, another lesson from the trenches is that smart companies should sometimes ignore what the market says it wants today.

Electronic Brands really successful or not?

Everyday we watch ads for electronic brands on different channels. These ads seem so interesting that I always think that I should buy the product. But I have never come across any one who might have bought or used these products.

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Every time the question keeps on striking my mind that how would be the working of the products or the results are really fruitful or not.

 

One reason for not using these brands might be that in Pakistan there is a lesser trend for using electronic products or should say that the trend is just increasing here

. Mainly because of the higher prices of electronic as compared to the monthly income. 

 

Only rich people here in Pakistan can afford to buy costly electronics and the middle class relies on buying products from the “Pathans”, roaming in Bazaars to sell different electronic gadgetry. These products have no guarantee and are cheap, but it is your luck if you find them working for a year or more.

 

Still have a confusion that the TV brands really work or is just the fascination because of the attractive advertisements on the TV. Whenever I meet any one, I do ask about these products.

 

Only rich people here in Pakistan can afford to buy costly electronics and the middle class relies on buying products from the “Pathans”, roaming in Bazaars to sell different electronic gadgetry. These products have no guarantee and are cheap, but it is your luck if you find them working for a year or more.

 Electronic Brands videos

Only rich people here in Pakistan can afford to buy costly electronics and the middle class relies on buying products from the “Pathans”, roaming in Bazaars to sell different electronic gadgetry. These products have no guarantee and are cheap, but it is your luck if you find them working for a year or more.

 Electronic Brands video

Rogue Shop Keeping

There is not price control whatsoever in Pakistan. Companies, wholesellers, retailers, and even the street-mongers, all have their own rates of the commodities. You would different rates for the same products in the adjacent shops.

 

There is not check and balance, seems to be there. It solely depends upon the will and mood of the shop keeper to ask for any price he wants for a given product.

Shop Keeping video

One hears that there are present some price control committees, and price checking teams whose responsibilities are to keep tabs on the undue price hikes and self-created rate list. This is more rampant in regards of open-packing things.

 

But you would even find the price difference in the packed materials, whose packing contains the embossed price from the companies, but who could argue with these spineless shop keepers.

This un-justifiable price difference is especially present in the prices of fruits and vegetables. You would the same “Chonsa” or “Langra” mango on different prices on different shops. Even the peddlers have different rates. You would find the “Chonsa” mango of prices Rs. 30, 35,40,50 in the same marketplace. Upon asking from the hawkers, as why there is a difference, there answer is that our product is “better”, but human eye is unable to differentiate between the products, which more or less is obtained from the same lot, unloaded from the same truck.

There also exists a specie known as shopkeeper committee, which ensures the congenial liaison between the market and the customer. This specie is rarely seen, and approachable. This wholly comprises of some of the most prominent (read rogue) shop keepers, and there sole purpose seems to protect the price hikes, encroachments and high-handedness of their fellas.

Its high time government should pay attention to these un-justifiable and cruel proceedings. Ok, I admikt, the previous sentence is a beaten sentence, but what the hell, this article and its title and everything in it is also beaten and have been said by many time and again

This specie is rarely seen, and approachable. This wholly comprises of some of the most prominent (read rogue) shop keepers, and there sole purpose seems to protect the price hikes, encroachments and high-handedness of their fellas.
Shop Keeping video

Free Motivation

Some days back, I happened to attend a workshop conducted by a renowned motivator at a local university in Islamabad.
 
The motivator was a director of something at CASE, Islamabad. His credentials were immaculate and had all the ingredients which are essential to capture the awe of a typical Pakistani. A foreign degree, experience of a multi-national, speaker at blah blah blah and not to forget the thorough know-how about IT.

His topic was motivation, and he spoke for good 4 hours. His talk consisted of some funny anecdotes, some jokes, two form-filling sessions, a words writing contest, power point slides, and a harangue. He just talked about the obvious

. What he told, I already knew. It was mere rhetoric and nothing practical. During his talk, he swayed from human resource to leadership to business process re-engineering to motivation.

He talked, talked and talked and I wondered. I have always wondered about such workshops, symposiums and courses which just talk common sense. I mean, its the simple thing that you must have a clear goal in your life. And its also a very common knowledge that to achieve a goal, you have to work hard and persevere. Its also a matter of very know fact that to excel in any field, you have to be on your toes and except the challenges. Its also doesn’t require that to know that your goal should be challenging but not un-realistic.

But I have seen individuals and companies paying thousands of rupees to the Motivators. Companies think that by arranging a workshop of some hours, they could achieve the elixir of motivation in their employees. Thats in itself is a very unrealistic goal. How could you produce a spark in a dull individual in just few hours with mere theory? Thats only the wastage of money and time.

Free Motivation video

A company should spend the money and time on devising ways to do simple things for employees and that is not some rocket science. Motivations is simple to convince an employee to not take work as a burden but as a pleasant task. Motivating an employee is all about making the work pleasurable for him. It doesn’t take an expensive motivator to know that what ignites the motivation employees.

Free Motivation video

To motivate the employee, provide them a comfortable working environment, give them sense of autonomy, justified wages, trustworthy promotion criteria, solid appreciation and justice in day to day matters. That’s it, and you see I didn’t ask for any motivational fee from you.

Brief How To of Marketing Plan

So you have built up a world class product or service, but wondering how to make world aware of it. In this difficult situation, you need a workable, cheap, and effective marketing plan to promote your product or service. In this world of cut-throat competition, this is very crucial.

 Take the opportunity to spend more time and effort to create deep relationships with existing customers as well as to attract new clients. Talk to your customers, vendors and even prospects. Ask them for their feedback on your product and/or service.

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Personal tactics include networking, seminars, workshops and trade shows, while impersonal tactics include direct mail, publicity and selling materials. Through repetition and the mix of both types of tactics, your prospects will begin to know and recall your product or service.

Customers will exhibit more of a “What’s in it for me” attitude. Now is the time to emphasize more what you can do for them rather than what you do in general. Make your product or service as relevant as possible and indicate how it fits into the life of the consumer or the end user. Motivate current clients to refer you to new ones.

A satisfied customer is your best ambassador. Promote an organized program that gives your customer a perk, discount or gift for referring business or renewing current business. It is well worth the price.

Create a timetable by backing into your programs from the target date. Be sure you have a flow chart of deadlines and expectations so that everyone is on the same frequency. Look overall your efforts at the end of each allocated period and give them a grade. 

What worked? What didn’t? What paid for itself? Write a summary while the results are fresh in your mind and keep it in the appropriate file.

Brief How To of Marketing Plan video

A satisfied customer is your best ambassador. Promote an organized program that gives your customer a perk, discount or gift for referring business or renewing current business. It is well worth the price.

 Brief How To of Marketing Plan video-2

Happy Customer

Consumer and customer happiness are not that much of concern in Pakistan, but in the countries, where they take the business really seriously, it is one of the most fundamental and paramount thing. They have realized that the success in today’s globalized and cut-throat market wholly depends upon the happiness of customer, who has got a broad range of choices and options, not only in the physical world but also in the cyberspace, courtesy to electronic business.

 When You meet a person as a customer you should try to understand all the needs they have, you certainly can have big and grand ideas on your head that for you are wonderful and fantastic, but in the real time it won’t going to make happy the needs of the clients. 

So you should strive and convince yourself to believe in meeting the customer very well after that start to show the best ideas that you have for the customer, and have a deal when the customer is happy about the idea and yes you are happy, because its a proven fact that the customer takes the right choice. 

Sometimes the customer has an idea that could be not good for their business. so it is your job to show him the best way to make the best thing for their business and at the same time make them happy.

All customers are different, they are always going to disagree with you in some level. Others are going to agree with you. For you every customer should be unique and every need of them is unique, so you really can’t in any possible way know for just one customer; all are important, all got needs, all needs solution and you here for create those solutions to make them happy. Guide your customers; don’t smother them.

A happy customer not only benefits your business in the short and long run, but he also becomes your best marketing tool. There is nothing beneficial than the word of mouth of a loyal and satisfied customer. The evangelisation of a happy customer serves your business very well both in the terms of money but also in the terms of goodwill. The more happy customers you have, the more you progress.

Happy Customer video

Does Pakistani companies give any damn to the happiness of customer? Can you name a single Pakistani company who is really passionate about making its customers happy? I cannot recall any and I am really eager to know if you have any company in mind.

Happy Customer video-2

“Happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.”