by Fronetics | Sep 7, 2016 | Big Data, Blog, Data/Analytics, Logistics, Strategy, Supply Chain
While the temptation to invest in big data may be strong, small and mid-sized companies might be better off starting with small, more manageable analytics.
Big data has become a big business. A 2016 Forrester report forecasts that the big-data management business will grow by 12.8% by 2021. It’s easy to see why, with the prevalence of stories from brands like Wamart and Rolls Royce that have perfected the science of capitalizing on detailed insights about customer behavior.
But many organizations — particularly small to mid-sized companies — are learning that big data does not always equate to big payoffs. In fact, many organizations have sunk millions of dollars into sophisticated data-analytics software only to realize they don’t have the capabilities to interpret the new insights nor the expertise to turn them into a competitive advantage.
Big data and the supply chain
Companies within the logistics and supply chain industries aren’t immune to this trend. An Accenture survey of more than 1,000 supply chain executives found that 84% have already employed big-data analytics or are in the latter stages of planning to do so. Respondents reported:
- 17% have implemented analytics in one or more supply chain functions.
- Three out of 10 have an active initiative to implement analytics in 6-12 months.
- More than one-third (37%) were engaged in serious conversations about implementation.
The promising applications of big data and how it might “revolutionize” the supply chain are hard to ignore. Increased efficiency across the supply chain, improved forecasting, better cost control, more accurate inventory planning: the list of benefits go on and on. These could lead to a significant advantage for companies with the expertise, structure, and knowledge to collect, analyze, and draw strategy cues from large sets of raw data.
But, again, small and mid-sized companies usually aren’t well positioned to do so, unfortunately.
Instead, start small
Supply chain and logistics organizations that don’t have such capabilities — or the capital to invest in technology that can do it for them — should start small instead. Even if you eventually want to implement a big-data strategy, there is a long-term benefit to gleaning insight from small data sets in the interim.
Here are some steps for getting started:
1) Determine your goals
Consider your business objectives and how you can leverage data to further your goals. Focus on just one or two areas for improvement, and clearly articulate what kinds of data you want to collect as they relate to those objectives.
2) Identify your sources
From where will you collect your data? Analyzing numerous data sets from a variety of sources will leave your head spinning and you none the wiser. Also determine which metrics will be most helpful to you, and which you can set aside.
3) Pick your people
If your company doesn’t have in-house analytics expertise, work to attract the appropriate talent. Regardless, integration and structuring of analytic personnel positions will be a more significant factor in your success than your use of even the most advanced statistical software program.
4) Master reporting
Finally, spend some time determining how your findings should be presented. You’ll want them to be formatted in a clear, digestible manner with a clear application for how they will improve your business.
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by Fronetics | Sep 6, 2016 | Blog, Content Marketing, Logistics, Marketing, Strategy, Supply Chain
Your customers use vendor content in their purchasing decisions, and you need a strategy to reach them — or your competitors will.
Content marketing can be a game-changer, in terms of new business and sales revenue, for organizations of all sizes and industries and levels of marketing savvy. But you can’t just set up a blog and a few social media accounts and expect sales numbers to start shooting through the roof.
The truth is, your potential customers consider vendor content in the purchasing process. If you don’t have a data-driven content marketing strategy to attract their business, you’ll lose them to your competitors.
Sometimes, the numbers say it best. Here are 12 content marketing strategy statistics that underscore the importance of developing a clear content marketing strategy to advance your business goals.
12 content marketing strategy statistics
Your customers want content.
95% of B2B buyers are willing to consider vendor-related content as trustworthy. (DemandGen Report – 2016 Content Preferences Survey)
47% of B2B buyers consume 3-5 pieces of content prior to engaging with a salesperson. (DemandGen Report – 2016 Content Preferences Survey)
51% of B2B buyers rely more on content to research and make B2B purchasing decisions than they did a year ago. (DemandGen Report – 2016 Content Preferences Survey)
Type of content buyers have used in the past 12 months to make B2B purchasing decisions:
- White Papers (82%)
- Webinars (78%)
- Case studies (73%)
- eBooks (67%)
- Blog posts (66%)
- Infographics (66%)
- Third-party/Analyst reports (62%)
- Video/Motion graphics (47%)
- Interactive presentations (36%)
(DemandGen Report – 2016 Content Preferences Survey)
It’s important to clearly define your strategy and goals.
Content marketing effectiveness increases with:
- Experience (64% of experienced marketers say they are effective)
- A documented content marketing strategy (48%)
- A documented editorial mission statement (49%)
- Organizational clarity on what content marketing success looks like (55%)
- Daily or weekly content marketing meetings (41%)
(Content Marketing Institute/MarketingProfs)
Only 13% of those who do not document their strategy feel their content marketing is effective. (Content Marketing Institute/MarketingProfs)
Your strategy should clearly define your target audience and their needs.
96% of B2B buyers say content that speaks directly to their company is the single-most influential aspect of a vendor’s website. (Demand Gen 2016 B2B Buyer’s Survey Report)
What makes content most effective?
- Audience relevance (58%)
- Engaging and compelling storytelling (57%)
- Triggers a response/Action (54%)
(LinkedIn Technology Marketing Community)
Your competitors are using content to win over potential customers.
88% of B2B organizations in North America use content marketing. (Content Marketing Institute/MarketingProfs)
75% of marketers are increasing investment in content marketing. (Curata)
79% of logistics and supply chain companies consider content as an effective tool for their business. (Fronetics)
The marketing software market is expected to grow to more than $32.3 billion in 2018. (IDC)
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by Elizabeth Hines | Sep 5, 2016 | Blog, Leadership, Strategy, Talent
Some companies include failure as a performance metric, but establishing a culture of innovation is a better inflection point for success.
Media executive Jason Seiken is known for taking the Washington Post online and for turning PBS into a digital media powerhouse. Several years ago, he wrote an article, How I Got My Team To Fail More, which described his efforts at PBS to create an entrepreneurial culture by requiring members of the digital team to fail. Seiken wrote:
“Soon after arriving at PBS, I called the digital team into a conference room and announced we were ripping up everyone’s annual performance goals and adding a new metric. Failure. With a twist: ‘If you don’t fail enough times during the coming year,’ I told every staffer, ‘you’ll be downgraded.’ Because if you’re not failing enough, you’re playing it safe. The idea was to deliver a clear message: Move fast. Iterate fast. Be entrepreneurial. Don’t be afraid that if you stretch and sprint you might break things. Executive leadership has your back.”
Five years after introducing the failure metric to PBS, unique visitors to PBS.org doubled, and in each of the first seven months of 2013, PBS.org was the most-visited network TV site (beating out ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox). Additionally, video views on PBS.org and PBS.org’s mobile platforms rose 11,200%.
Was requiring failure the key to success? Not all those who read the post believed so. Rather, many readers suggested that the creation of a culture of innovation, one supported by executive leadership, was the inflection point for success.
The idea that innovation in business or an entrepreneurial culture is brought about by leadership is one put forth by many, including Robert J. Herbold. In his book What’s Holding You Back: 10 Bold Steps that Define Gutsy Leaders, Herbold submits that it is the responsibility of a leader to establish a culture of innovation. That is, a leader must communicate a goal of innovation to his/her employees; encourage employees to aspire to innovation; reward innovation; and instill a sense of urgency.
I see innovation and entrepreneurism as the goal and not failure. For this reason I believe the focus should not be on failure, but instead should be establishing a culture which supports innovation. Yes risk-taking and failure are likely components of innovation, but they are just that — components. “Requiring failure” may be sexy, but I believe supporting innovation is more likely to be the game changer.
What do you think? Is failure a requirement for success? Should leadership focus on encouraging failure?
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by Fronetics | Sep 1, 2016 | Blog, Strategy, Talent
Try these four networking tips to stop feeling guilty about developing relationships to advance professional goals.
Does networking make you feel dirty? Research published in Administrative Science Quarterly confirms you are not alone. The authors suggest that acting in self-interest in pursuit of our career goals can affect our sense of morality.
But, as we know, professional connections are essential to advancing your career, pursuing new opportunities, and earning new business. But how can we get past our distaste for networking?
An aversion to networking can be overcome, according to research by Tiziana Casciaro, associate professor at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management; Francesca Gino, professor at Harvard Business School; and Maryam Kouchaki, assistant professor at Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. The team identified four strategies for learning to love networking, and published their findings in a recent Harvard Business Review article.
1) Focus on learning
People who approach networking as a necessary evil do it less often and consequently underperform in certain aspects of their jobs. Instead of viewing the next work outing as a chore, shift your mindset to focus on the possible positive outcomes — like gaining knowledge or skills that will help you do your job better.
2) Identify common interests
How do your interests and goals align with the people you meet? People establish the longest-lasting connections when working together on tasks that require contributions from both parties. When you identify mutual interests or objectives with networking contacts, your relationship is more likely to be authentic and to stand the test of time.
3) Think broadly about what you can give
When you don’t have an obvious mutual interest, try offering some kind of value to the relationship. Even junior-level employees, who don’t have company stature or connections to extend, have more networking capital than they may realize. Less tangible things — such as gratitude, recognition, and enhanced reputation — can be highly valuable, the authors suggest.
4) Find a higher purpose
Rather than focusing on the personal benefits, consider the collective value of forming professional connections. Will building relationships help your clients? Will more visibility in professional circles or at industry events enhance your company’s reputation? Framing networking in terms of a larger goal can make the activity more palatable, even helping you to see it as a beneficial opportunity.
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by Fronetics | Aug 31, 2016 | Blog, Content Marketing, Marketing, Strategy
Targeted content can help convince high-level decision-makers and executives to accept your sales meeting request.
There are many benefits to content marketing, but did you know it can help you land that next impossible-to-get sales meeting?
According to expert marketer Stu Heinecke’s new book, How to Get a Meeting with Anyone, top sales professionals use personalized content to target high-level relationships in what he calls “a shadow practice,” which has been extremely effective at reaching critical, hard-to-reach contacts.
In these campaigns, content is targeted to make the connection with the right people — without any obvious pursuit — and secure those hard-to-get meetings. This can be a game-changer for your business.
Heinecke’s book pools the advice of the top 100 sales thought leaders in the world. He recently shared some of his findings with Harvard Business Review.
Here are some key takeaways:
- You can use content marketing to combine marketing and selling, employing specific campaigns to connect with high-level decision-makers and specific C-level executives. Finding a few dozen of the correct high-level relationships can quickly elevate the scale of your business.
- When approaching connections derived from content, Heinecke found that response rates averaged from 60% to 80%, with some campaigns actually hitting 100%.
- The greatest success is associated with content that delivers something of value. Share the personality of your brand, but offer no sales pitch. “Your first mission is simply to create a connection, to establish yourself as someone they’ll want to listen to,” Heinecke states.
- You should offer something more, to be delivered at the meeting. The point is to continue to add value to the relationship. For example, offer to bring relevant research, a white paper, or a free audit of the executive’s business to the first meeting.
- Once face to face, continue to engage in conversation that provides insight to what the contact’s business challenges are. Refrain from a sales pitch, but share examples of other companies with similar challenges, which have benefited from your specific product or solution. Tell a story — similar to what your content marketing does.
Content can help you make important connections — just ask NoWait
The same HBR article also shares the story of the founders of NoWait, a mobile application which allows diners to put their name on the waitlist of a restaurant from a remote location.
With a minuscule budget, the NoWait founders used targeted content as the basis for their entire launch strategy. They sent personalized videos on iPads in custom packaging to the CEOs of the 30 top restaurant chains. Their highly targeted approach allowed the company to focus on the exact people who could do them the most good — the decision-makers of the biggest brands in the industry. The app is already used by more than half of their targeted companies.
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by Fronetics | Aug 30, 2016 | Blog, Internet of Things, Logistics, Strategy, Supply Chain
New research shows how supply chain and logistics companies currently are using the Internet of Things and how they plan to expand use in the future.
The Internet of Things is already here — monitoring our footsteps, heartbeats, lighting, home temperature, and environment. And it will continue to expand at a rapid rate. Frost & Sullivan estimates that connected objects will total more than 50 billion by 2020. Morgan Stanley says 75 billion. Either way, it’s clear that the number of internet-connected devices is growing exponentially.
For the supply chain and logistics industries, this is exciting news The transparency and end-to-end visibility afforded by the IoT creates new opportunities that businesses can leverage in order to optimize supply chains and generate value.
Eft, a logistics and supply chain solutions provider, recently polled 600 supply chain decision-makers to understand their “existing and future plans for leveraging the IoT within their operations.” The results offer an interesting picture of the changing relationship between supply chain and logistics and the Internet of Things.
Key findings include:
- 41% have an IoT solution in place.
- 87% plan to expand use of the IoT.
- 61% are analyzing less than half of their IoT data.
What kind of information are companies looking to gain with the IoT?
- Location
- Security
- Temperature
- Speed
What are companies hoping to achieve?
- To improve customer service with better information
- To provide customers with more frequent updates on shipment pick-up or delivery
- To improve speed, delivery timeframes
What types of solutions are companies using?
- Bar codes
- Data logger
- IoT sensor and monitoring technology
In which area are you hoping to improve operational visibility the most?
- 80% land shipments
- 50% air shipments
- 33% sea shipments
What level of threat is cyber security to your IoT strategy?
- 17% major threat
- 47% moderate threat
- 32% minor threat
- 5% non threat
What is the primary purpose of your IoT network?
- 59% alarms and real-time monitoring
- 41% optimization and prediction
Read the full report to get even more insight into how the supply chain and logistics industries are engaging with the IoT.
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