Why many marketing and sales initiatives fail

By John Graham

The company president refused to approve funds for publishing a much needed marketing newsletter for customers and prospects. Initially, he had been enthusiastic and supportive to the point that the first edition was written, designed and approved. But when it came to publishing and mailing the newsletter, he wouldn't approve the expenditure. Yet, four months later, he wanted to get it published and mailed as soon as possible. Why the change of heart?

More often than not, budget problems are an excuse rather than the reason for scuttling proposed marketing and sales initiatives.

Management's reluctance to fund these programs may stem more from doubts about the benefits derived than the costs themselves. For the most part, the failures result from failing to deal with certain basic sales and marketing challenges. Here are seven that companies should address if they want positive results:

1. Failing to capture the customers' attention

As strange as it may seem, the big task is not simply getting a company's message out to customers. In fact, that doesn't count for much. Besides, that's easy and you can see the evidence for it everyday and everywhere. Look at your mail, read newspaper and email ads. Most of what passes for getting the message out totally misses the mark.

We're flooded with messages -- and most of them go right by us. Why? Because they focus attention on the advertiser. What purports to be a message is no message at all.

The law firms that pay enormous fees to advertise in the Yellow Pages generally do it right. The headline says it all: "Injured?" That single word captures the customer's attention. The focus is squarely on the person who has been injured and is looking for compensation. While the name of the law firm is not unimportant, it's strictly secondary to capturing the customer's attention.

2. Not understanding what business we're in

A survey of hundreds of dry cleaning customers gave respondents the opportunity to express their comments. While some customers expressed concerns about a stain problem, a missing button or some other issue related to the cleaning process, by far the majority of comments related to customer service at the company's stores.

The survey revealed an interesting pattern: customers who were satisfied with the people behind the counter tended to be satisfied with the quality of work -- and vice versa. Those who did not care for the way they were taken care of seemed to be less satisfied with the quality of the clothing care.

Is the dry-cleaner in the business of cleaning clothes? Of course not. The basic business is satisfying customers. The task is figuring out how that is best accomplished. Among others, Dell, Amazon and HP have figured it out.

3. Not recognizing who runs the company

"Who runs your business?" It's a trick question, so watch out. The answers generally cover the narrow range of shareholders to CEO. While that's the most politically correct answer currently, it can't come close to the un-politically correct and unspoken answer. In more companies than dare admit it, it's the sales department that runs the business.

Employees in other departments can't figure out why management accedes so easily to requests from the sales department. They wonder why their mistakes are overlooked. And they don't understand why they are handled with kid gloves.

If sales isn't in charge, then it may be suppliers who control what is sold and to whom. They run the business.

Once in awhile, a more thoughtful person offers a different answer to who is in charge: "Our customers." Perhaps the housing and automotive industries come closest to letting the customer run the business. And that's no accident.

4. Wasting time looking for answers

The growing number of business how-to-do-it books and newsletters suggest that employees at all levels are something like the little lock in Alice in Wonderland that runs around looking for the key to "unlock me." Check the popular management books on amazon.com. Surprise! Those that give the reader what they want to hear make it to the top of the list.

While we're successful at responding to readers' wants -- quick, easy answers to complex and difficult problems -- we're not ready to spend time asking the right questions. We are quick to do something, but slow to know something.

5. Having a hard time staying on track

Perhaps the most pervasive marketing problem of all is a lack of consistency. Everyone starts out with a bang. It's going to be the greatest ad campaign, product promotion, newsletter or Web site. Time, effort and money go into the projects. And where are they six months or a year later? More often than not, they're either all but forgotten or already a memory.

If you look back through the files of just about any company, there's visual evidence of strong starts and whimper-like endings.

The success of marketing is not so much award-winning ads, brochures and Web sites as it is in keeping them going.

6. Ignoring the need to be responsive

An advertising agency began working with a producer of radio spots on a new project. Early in the production of the commercials, a level of irritation developed as the agency began receiving audition "reads" from voiceover candidates. As the emails arrived, confusion reigned. No one could remember the individual voices. And just about the time a tentative selection was being made, additional voices arrived.

If this were an isolated instance, it could be overlooked. But it's not. Rather than dealing with bits and bytes, we are expected to manage an assortment of bits and pieces, particularly when email is involved.

7. Staying lost in the crowd

Describing the auto industry, Wall Street Journal columnist Neal Boudette, writes, "Companies with strong brand images are raking in profit despite slumping demand in Europe and a price war in the U.S." He then says that these companies are "speeding ahead, because customers are willing to pay more for their brands." As he notes, "companies with weaker images .... are forced to slug it out in profit-sapping incentive wars."

Buyers are willing to pay more if they perceive the brand offers additional value. In this particular column, the writer describes BMW's total commitment to brand protection.

If a product or service lacks strong branding, the customer opts for the lowest price. Why has Tide been the biggest seller among Wal-Mart's detergent products? Because of the brand. Protecting the brand is the essence of business.

John R. Graham is president of Graham Communications, a marketing services and sales consulting firm in Quincy, Mass., 617-328-0069 or by email at J_graham@grahamcomm.com. The Web site is grahamcomm.com.