Starbucks Rewarding Loyalty

Starbucks has launched a new loyalty program as they looks for better customer engagement.

Starbucks has tapped Draftfcb to assist with direct marketing, loyalty and CRM efforts as the company even as the company enters a cost-saving and retention mode.

The program will focus on the card-based CRM program, Starbucks Card Rewards, that the coffee chain launched last spring, and its upgrade, Starbucks Gold Rewards, which launched in October.

According to a company release, “Positive progress has been recorded from customer response to the new Starbucks gold card,” and the rewards program now has more than 500,000 members, averaging 15 visits a month and spending 10% more per visit than non-members.

Starbucks needs these valuable customers now more than ever, with same-store sales down 9% in the first quarter over the same period last year. The declining economy and an upswing in lower-cost competition from McDonald's and other fast-food chains has keeping the pot empty in reguards to the company's revenues, which in the US fell 6% to $2 billion in the first quarter.

“In the midst of the weakening global consumer environment, Starbucks is following a well-developed plan to strengthen our business through more efficient operations and by preserving the fundamental strengths and values of our brand,” said Howard Schultz, chairman, president and CEO of Starbucks, in a statement. “We remain focused on driving the discipline and rigor necessary to create long-term shareholder value, and we are taking aggressive steps to excite customers by providing relevant value and innovation, even during this challenging time.”

As a cost-cutting measure, the coffee company is eliminating 6,000 retail jobs and 700 corporate jobs. The higher-ups are feeling the pinch, too: Executives did not receive bonuses in 2008, and base salaries were frozen for 2009.

On top of boosting loyalty efforts, the company also is said to be exploring “value menu” options to lure customers.

Larson note: 10% more spending per stop is worth rewarding isn’t it? Do you have a club? You could you know. Clubs are easy to form and if done right customers love them as much as they like the usual special discounts that go with them. As writing in a previous blog if you have a prememer showing of new merchandic or stock for members only it can go along way.

If you need or want special membership cards you can have “credit card” style cards produced for yourself. (yes we make cards like that here at Larson’s) of you can have paper cards made up or even printed off your computer printer and laminated.

Have a member’s only showing, anything it takes to help make people feel special and they will come back for more.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
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http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

P.P.S. Twice a week we offer 2 free ½ hour consultations for marketing your business.
Call or email to get your spot today.


*Source: Lauren BellFebruary, Ad age,

Obama Overtakes Hanks

President Displaces Tom Hanks of Most Influential Celebs.

According to the latest data from the consumer-research firm Davie Brown Entertainment, President Barack Obama has displaced Academy Award winner Tom Hanks as the nation's most influential celebrity.

For the last two years, Mr. Hanks has ranked atop the Davie Brown Index (DBI), an independently conducted survey that brand marketers and advertising agencies use to determine a celebrity's ability to influence consumer brand affinities and affect purchasing decisions.

Of the eight key attributes, Mr. Obama ranks first in four of categories: "trust," "influence," "trendsetter," and "breakthrough." The president also ranks second in terms of "aspirational" ratings, which reflect the degree to which respondents felt the celebrity has a life to which they would aspire, behind only Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

Ironically, the president ranked fifth in the index's "endorsement" category, which reflects the degree to which consumers identify the celebrity as being an effective product spokesperson. In that category he finished just below Oprah Winfrey, the talk-show host whose October 2007 endorsement of Mr. Obama paved the way for his presidency.

Even more intriguing about the most recent Davie Brown Index is that eight of the top 10 highest-regarded public personalities in America are African-Americans: After Messrs. Obama and Hanks, the list is rounded out by actor Will Smith (No. 3); Michael Jordan (No. 4); Morgan Freeman (No. 5); Denzel Washington (No. 7); Michelle Obama (No. 8); Oprah Winfrey (No. 9) and Tiger Woods (No. 10).

In fact, the only other white celebrity to crack the DBI's top 10 was George Clooney, clocking in at No. 6.

Ranking over 1,000 celebs, the DBI is powered by a 4.5 million-person research panel, and is published four times a year.

Larson note: For years getting and having a celebrity to endorse you or your product has been the norm. How much people really pay attention to this I sometimes wonder, but then I am a cynical old man. Yet, if you had a celebrity you could use to promote yourself would you?

Sadly (not) I do. In my coaching and training business I am not ashamed that on one of my sites I have has a picture of me with Olympic runner and Illinois great,

Craig Virgin.

If you got it
flaunt it.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

P.S.S. If you are in Credit Cards I have just signed up the services of an EXPERICENED merchant service salesperson. Interested in using him, call today.

*Source: Claude Brodesser-Akner, Ad age, Photo Credit: Jason Innes

Pepsi Places Will.i.am Ad in Grammys

Pepsi with Will.i.am will be placing an ad to appear immediately after the singer presents a Grammy award.


Pepsi has made certain that after singer Will.i.am presents an award Sunday evening, a special "bumper" featuring the rapper's likeness will appear, then segue into a recently launched Pepsi ad featuring both Will.i.am and Bob Dylan. By arranging for the ad to appear immediately after Will.i.am will be on the screen, Pepsi hopes in this way to make the commercial more relevant to the viewing audience.

For decades, marketers ran their ads on TV by requesting placement that wasn't any more specific than Thursday prime time, or during a specific part of the day, or sometimes against a specific show. Now, with more consumers not just going to the refrigerator during a commercial they are fast-forwarding past the commercial breaks and with the economy wreaking havoc on the ad business, networks are willing to change their practices to guarantee that ads appear in more-specific places and for more-specific purposes.

At Pepsi, there seems to be a definite push to use network shows to whet consumer appetite for a particular commercial, rather than just peppering viewers with the same ad over and over again.

The people who manage the Grammys are known to guard the integrity of their show, awards, and property. These days, however, with networks' live ratings in dropping and marketers' ad commitments in flux or even being canceled, allowing ad tie-ins like this can mean the difference between lost revenue, found revenue and saved revenue.

Or course lets us not forget that in the aiding of the transition from awards-show moment to Pepsi plug is the fact that Pepsi’s advertising agency of record, TBWA also serves as the Grammys' ad agency. The ad shop has created a promotion for the awards program showing celebrity faces made out of the words of songs that have influenced them. Will.i.am's face, built out of song titles, will be seen during the "bumper" between his on-air moment and the Pepsi spot.

Larson note: You do what you got to do. Money talks and revenue in a down turn is increasing important so why not push the buttons and pull the levers of progress. If you had a record shop wouldn’t you use a “friend” who is well known? Do you? If you had a shoe store and could get a “friend who is not a well know actress to wear a pair of your shoes would you? Should you?

Now might be a good time to call in that favor.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

P.S.S. If you are in Credit Cards I have just signed up the services of an EXPERICENED merchant service salesperson. Interested in using him, call today.

*Source: Brian Steinberg, Ad age

The Week Ahead for February 9-13, 2009

Monday:
Tuesday: December wholesale inventories
Wednesday: December trade balance
Thursday: Weekly initial jobless claims, January retail sales, December business inventories
Friday: February University of Michigan consumer sentiment index

Larson note: Good news this week? Don’t hold your breath. If there is anything good to report it is that the economy is starting to bottom out. We still have more unemployment to drop but I am looking for April/May as the time period where business can begin to take a collective sign and start to more on.

As for us here at Larson’s we brought a new account into the Larson family and look to move forward with our 2009 business plan as written in this year’s growth plan and adding 1 new associate by the end of March.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

Online Revenue Loss due to Fraud

2004 $1.9 Billion
2005 $2.6 Billion
2006 $3.1 Billion
2007 $3.7 Billion
2008 $4.0 Billion

Larson note: What can you do? It is amazing the stories that I have heard form my customers that people come up with as to why they bounce or feel they don’t have to pay a credit card payment. Of course the same is true with some companies not paying an invoice, but that is a different blog to write.

What I did not check out was if this was a growth in % or just a growth in overall numbers. We all know that online sales are growing at a phenomenal rate as people use and trust buying this way, still $4 Billion? That’s a lot of money by anyone’s standards.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

P.S.S. If you are in Credit Cards I have just signed up the services of an EXPERICENED merchant service salesperson. Interested in using him, call today.

*Source: CyberSourse crop annual Online Fraud survey. Sample of 400 online marketing in the use and Canada

Top 3 Areas Marketers Plan to Raise Their Budgets

72% E-Mail Marketing
44% Search Marketing
35% Advertising

Larson note: Well this is what the big guys, the marketing pros are going. How about you.

In a quick review of the Larson Marketing Plan for 2009 we see ourselves putting together a more comprehensive Web Site and thus a better SEO plan. We see ourselves going deeper and harder into out blog initiative. We see a continuing presence in Social Media Marketing (because that is where our customers are). We see continued presence in using email to get our message though to previously contacted customers and prosects and we see and expanded use of snail mail to push out contact into qualified prospects.

Now I am NOT saying you should be doing what we are doing. What is right for us might not be right of you. You and your business are unique. Use those unique YOU qualities to propel your business forward.

So, how about you? Where does your 2009 marketing plan sit? YOU do have one right? If not it’s not too late to create it. Might I suggest the kind of planning we use here at Larson’s which entail a 3 month, 6 month, 1 year and 5 year plan? Doing this we can keep on top of new trends as they emerge yet know where we are heading. The key is to not become enthralled with your plan it is a living, breathing, growing, ever changing document for you.

Not up to the task, call us; we can map out your future planning for you.

Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

P.S.S. If you are in Credit Cards I have just signed up the services of an EXPERICENED merchant service salesperson. Interested in using him, call today.

*Source: StrongMail Systems sample of 949 business executives

Cost Effective Marketing

Everyone these days seems to be finding themselves with too much to do and too little time and money to do it with. Join the club. What it seems to be coming down to is how well you know your custemers, how, when and where you place your message, and how to provide a created call to action from them. Yet even in these tight times there are ways for you to place your message and get the most bang for your buck by using your existing assets to ensure that the marketing channels you are using are being used and performing at an optimal level for you.

Customers unwilling to spend now will at some point come back to the table and start spreading the wealth. Who will they shower their love on, you or your competition? I came across a new term floating in marketing this week called “lead incubation” and found it an interesting concept. In sales I have always used the funnel approach. But whatever you want to call it, sales leads need to be worked though a cycle, and the cycle is not yours it’s your customer’s. You can’t rush a good thing.

So how do we take these leads to desired ending point, the sale?

It still takes nurturing.

Compared to traditional media, the new digital and social media is often seen as being more cost effective. A Shop.org survey released in November 2008 stated that 25% of retailers created a Facebook page to try and boost holiday sale. However many warn against just jumping on the band wagon of SM just because it’s there. You cannot just go out and jump into social media networks and SMS and succeed. (Don’t I know it.)

A lot of people and would-be marketers look at the research and say we need to revamp our marketing strategy and get into these social networks. You still need a strategy to your marketing and it still needs to be comprehensive and singular in nature.

Larson note: So you want to get into SM? (Most likely you are or you would not be reading this blog, lol) Great but keep yourself tightly disciplined in managing money, time, and performance, and keep testing, measuring and refining the effectiveness of each marketing strategy you put out there. This is a fast moving word of innovation and ways to implement. It can be done but that too has a price.


Howard Larson
Larson & Associates
Target Marketing & Telesales Professionals for new account acquisition
Making good businesses great and great businesses even better
847-991-0488
larsonassoc1975@yahoo.com
http://www.geocities.com/larsonassoc1979/1
http://larsonassociates.blogspot.com
http://member.merchantcircle.com/larsonassociates
http://businesswarfare.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson
http://teamcircle.ning.com/profile/HowardLarson

https://twitter.com/LarsonAssociate

P.S. We make telesales for small business affordable by offering programs down to only 15 hours a week. Maybe you could add telesales into your marketing mix call today and find out.

P.S.S. If you are in Credit Cards I have just signed up the services of an EXPERICENED merchant service salesperson. Interested in using him, call today.

*Source: Shop.org, eMarketing