Eliminate the barriers to 'yes'

Just a quick one today, inspired by a text I just received. It brought to mind the title of this post, which I'm sure I've heard somewhere before but after a quick search can't find the source of.

The text is from my service provider, Orange. It reads as follows:

Hi from Orange. To donate £2.50 to UNICEF's Myanmar (Burma) Cyclone appeal, text DONATE to 864233. £2.50 will be added to your next bill. Thank you.

My thoughts? This is a brilliant idea.

A marketer's job is to eliminate the barriers to 'yes'. The less barriers, the more chance the person you're communicating with will do what you want them to do (i.e. say 'yes'). In this case Orange and UNICEF have teamed up to make it exceptionally easy to donate to the Burma appeal.

Personally, I probably wouldn't have donated at all if I hadn't got this text because I'm both busy and lazy - a terrible combination. However this approach has made me do it. One barrier to 'yes' (my laziness) is eliminated by this approach.

The other benefit is that because the money just goes straight on to my phone bill, it doesn't feel like a burden at all. If I were stopped in the street by a 'charity mugger' I may put my hand in my pocket for 50p or £1. I'd be pretty unlikely to cough up £2.50. Like buying things on the internet though, when you don't have to physically part with money, it doesn't seem as real. Another barrier to 'yes' eliminated.

My question today therefore is:

What barriers to 'yes' can you eliminate from your processes?

[Hint: Think about complicated sign-up forms, unnecessary login procedures, excessive post and packing costs, difficult to read brochures, poor customer service etc etc]

P.S. If you read the above and thought 'that doesn't apply to me because I'm not a marketer', then think again. Whether you're collecting for charity, selling your own product, signing up people to your latest seminar, managing a store, teaching primary school children, giving mortgage advice or arranging a conference, you're a marketer.

'Marketing' is part of being human, and learning that can make a heck of a lot of difference to your business and your life.

I'm in London today and tomorrow

I'm going to the Recruiters Network event, organised by uk:recruiter, in London tonight. So I'm getting the train at 1pm and should be in London by half 3. Staying in a hotel near the venue of the networking for convenience (it's on City Road, nearest tube is Old Street). If anyone is about therefore and wants to meet up, either later this afternoon or tomorrow morning (maybe near Euston before I get my train back) then let me know. Best to call me rather than email. My mobile is 07732 083 548.

P.S. If anyone wants to go to the networking thing, I'm pretty sure there are still places available. You can register here, or I'm sure Louise wouldn't mind you dropping her an email for details (visit her site here for the email address).

What social networking do you do?

Are you savvy when it comes to social networking? If not, you're missing out. If you're a social networking virgin then I'm happily volunteering here to be your first with some of the most popular services! See below for the 3 most prominent profiles of mine. Click through to link, friend and follow me...

My Linkedin profile (best for business)

My Facebook profile (best for friends)

My Twitter profile (best all round in my opinion)

Give it away

There's an interesting piece in the Guardian today on Chris Anderson's theories about the spread of 'freeconomics'. The idea that many products and services are on the way to 'free' definitely holds water. Well worth a read.

Get the article online here if you can't get hold of a copy of the paper (or just prefer web-print to news-print). The very fact that you can get it for free online rather than buying the publication highlights Chris' point nicely.

(Note: This story did the rounds in the blogosphere some weeks ago. Traditional media catches up eventually...)

Perfection requires commitment

Someone sent me the link to this video today. It's of a group of students with a bit too much time on their hands. Nevertheless, all credit to them; they've practised their asses off to get this good.

[IMPORTANT: Before you click the link below, be aware, the page it's on is definitely, 100%, totally and utterly Not Safe For Work. If you're at all offended by rude images, rude words and what is essentially pornographic content then please don't click. The video is safe, bar I think one swear word, but the site that hosts it isn't. Don't say I didn't warn you...]

Beer Pong - the most impressive video I've seen in a good while

Who are your Champions League Final fans?

Pic credit: Flickr CC - edwin.11

(This post is about sport; football in particular. I try not to do that so often because sport is a pretty divisive topic. I promise this one has relevance to your business though, so I hope it’s not a turn-off for too many people. As a bit of background for the non-football fans out there, the Champions League competition that I talk about below is the premier European club football competition. It sees the best teams in Europe compete to reach the final, which this year is held in May, in Moscow. For the first time ever, two English teams have reached the final – Chelsea and Manchester United. For anyone who is completely sport-phobic, football is a game where two teams of eleven men chase a spherical ball around a grass covered pitch. It’s only marginally less ridiculous than it sounds.)

The end of the football season is upon us, with all the inherent agony and ecstasy that brings. For me, as a Liverpool fan, the knowledge that my team won't be lining up in Moscow to compete for the biggest trophy in the club game is quite frankly gutting (Liverpool were knocked out at the semi-final stage by Chelsea). Whether you’re a fellow fan, or just one of those lucky folks who don't care a jot about football though, there are lessons to be learned from the coming final in May.

The word on the street (and the 6 o'clock news) is that supporters of Manchester Utd and Chelsea will need to divvy up in excess of £2000 to go and watch their team in the final game of the season. Additionally, a combination of factors (visa issues, shortage of flights and hotels in Moscow etc) mean that it’s also going to be exceptionally difficult to get there. Yet still somewhere in the region of 40-50,000 English fans are expected to make the journey to support their team in person.

So here's the question for you with that exceptional situation in mind: would any of your fans (i.e. customers and clients) do anything even similar for you?

• Let's say you’re a regular speaker at a variety of events and corporate functions but you’re going to take a break for at least a year. Would people pay far more than the going rate just to be at that big event?

• Or if you were ending a product line, would people do whatever they could (and pay whatever they could) to get hold of the last few items you had for sale?

• What about something smaller: if technical problems with your website meant that to make a purchase customers had to log in several times to complete the transaction, would they persevere or give up?

Clearly it's unlikely that you'll engender the kind of passion that a football team does no matter what line of business you're in, so don't worry if the answer to all of those questions was no. I’m definitely not suggesting that it’s necessary to have your customers worship you like the average football fan worships their team. However, I think there are two important takeaway lessons from the example of the Champions League final.

Number one: if you have a chance of your customers having for you even 10% of the passion that a football fan has for their club, do everything you can to nurture it. A ‘fan’ of your product or service will not only pay your efforts back directly but will act as your best ambassador and salesperson. True fans, loyal customers who believe in what you do, are worth it.

Number two: if your customers aren’t going to be as loyal and fervent as the average football fan, then you must commit to making things as easy and satisfying as possible for them. Die-hard Man Utd and Chelsea fans may be happy to spend their savings, travel thousands of miles and sleep on a railway platform in Russia to ‘make a purchase’; your customers won’t put up with a bad website, over-inflated prices, poor customer service or anything else negative to make a purchase from you.

[Bonus lesson: most people don’t really choose their football team, it chooses them. How about your business? I’d bet most people have a choice about ‘supporting’ you or not…]

Whatever you do, be it football, plumbing, consultancy or recruitment, your fans/customers are your biggest asset. Without them you’re in trouble, so do what you can to nurture them and help them support you. To use one last football metaphor, in business it really does matter to your fans how your team performs on the pitch.