Fail Fast: A Guide To Iterative Strategic Planning And Testing

January 25th, 2012

(Originally posted on Young Entrepreneur, by Lauren Perkins)

As 2011 speeds to its conclusion, now is the time to reflect on your company’s current performance and establish priorities moving into 2012. In order to set the stage for a productive year, it’s important to think about your top objectives as well as some tactical ways that you can test them. These two components should be the foundation for your strategic plan and execution roadmap.

In order to get a startup off its feet, it’s essential to quickly identify and course correct when something isn’t working. This is the core of the #failfast mentality. It can be hard to predict what’s going to evoke a response from your target audience, so why not mix it up and commit to trying new tactics until something works?

Fail Fast is a focused process, for those with a sense of urgency and the need to move swiftly from strategy to execution. You don’t want to continue investing time and money into something that isn’t working for your company. Sometimes you just need to try different things – if one thing doesn’t work or isn’t gaining momentum the way you think it should, then move on and test out your next strategy or tactic.

This tactic sounds simple enough to implement, but in order for it to be effective you must be able to realize when things aren’t working. If you catch a failure early, it’s much less likely to cause detrimental and irreversible damage to your company. If you don’t fail quickly, then congratulations! You’ve gained traction and you’re succeeding. Keep moving forward with the tactic that you tested.

So how can you put the Fail Fast mentality to work in your company? Follow the process below as part of your 2012 strategic planning process.

  • Determine and define your top 3 business objectives for Q1 2012
  • Choose one of the three objectives that will have the biggest, measureable impact on your business performance (awareness, leads, sales, etc)
  • Define Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) for the chosen objective
  • Develop a list of tactics that are specific and easy to implement
  • Prioritize your list of tactics in the order you will deploy them with the tactics that you expect will have the largest and/or fast impact on the chosen objective
  • Begin the #FailFast testing process with the first tactic on your list
  • Track the tactic’s performance against the KPI’s set earlier in the process
    If the tactic proves to have a positive effect on the KPI, look for ways to build this tactic into your regular business practice and repeat.

  • If you are seeing no movement, assess whether the KPI’s you selected were the right benchmarks
  • Adjust the positioning or execution of selected tactic and test again
  • Still no traction? #FailFast and move on to the next tactic in your deployment list

Haven’t started the strategic planning process for 2012? No worries, many of you are probably hustling to close the year out right. This process is great for the procrastinator in all of us or a busy founder that needs to work quickly to reach important business and marketing objectives. If you use this process to plan for the New Year, then you’re setting yourself up for success.

Good luck!

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6 Mantras for Business Success

January 20th, 2012

(Originally from our CEO Lauren Perkin’s article on Inc.)

I’ve founded two companies and co-founded two others, but some days, I still feel like I never know what’s going to hit me next. Luckily, I’ve found a few simple mantras that help me stay steady even when things get ridiculously hairy. Some have more to do with business, and others are more about the personality and mindset I need to bring to the business. They all help me cut through the mental clutter and uncertainty that can come with entrepreneurship.
Try reminding yourself of these mantras when you’re in a bind or have a decision to make. With a little repetition, they will soon become a natural part of your thought process, keeping you on a continual path to success.

Click here to find out more about Lauren’s 6 mantras for business success

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Networking 101: Being a Good Date

December 6th, 2011

The following article was originally written by Lauren Perkins on ForbesWoman.

from HA! Designs - Artbyheather via flickr

Networking events are a fantastic way to meet new business prospects, potential partners, and leverage relationships within your existing network for referrals. These events can certainly seem intimidating if you don’t have an action plan to keep you focused and on task. To make the most of networking opportunities, business women can treat each event as they would treat a date. Following the same rules that you would typically follow on a date provides some guidance for how to prepare for the event, what to do while there, and actions to take post-event to take advantage of any prospects.

Primping for your Date

The first step toward an engaging experience at a networking event is preparation. When you go on a date, there are certain rituals you do to get ready. These same rules apply to preparing for a networking event to be the best-prepared date you can be:

  • Research the event host and the demographics of the attendees. If there’s someone going to the event you want to be introduced to, ask a mutual contact for an introduction ahead of time. LinkedIn is a great resource to discover mutual contacts.
  • Have a stack of business cards ready to go.
  • Prepare your elevator pitch and main talking points, then practice a few times!

Be a Good Date

A good date qualifies as someone who makes you feel comfortable. This person listens to you and asks questions based on what you are saying. Networking works the same way. To be a networking queen and get the most from your experience, you should:

  • Ask other attendees about their purpose for attending.
  • Make conversation with people you have the most business interest in. While you should be friendly to everybody, don’t waste more than two minutes chatting with someone who you know you have no business interest in.
  • Listen to who they are and what needs they have that your business may be able to fulfill.
  • Ask strategic questions to direct the conversation- play to their needs, offer helpful hints, and suggest your business as a solution.

Exit Strategies

In any dating situation, you always need a good exit strategy. Even if you’re having a great conversation and are interested in working with someone, you don’t want to spend too much time with one person. The more people you meet, the better chance you have at acquiring business. Think of it as speed dating! You want to handle these situations with great care because you never want to leave a bad taste in someone’s mouth about you or your company.

Excuses to Exit:

  • To use the restroom: “Excuse me, I have to use the restroom. It was a pleasure meeting you!”
  • For a phone call: “Pardon me, I have a phone call to make. Enjoy the rest of the event!”
  • To meet a colleague: “Please excuse me, I have to meet a colleague. It was a pleasure speaking to you.”

If the conversation went well and you’ve procured their contact information, you may also need to excuse yourself for the above mentioned, but remember to:

  • Tell them next steps (“I’ll be in touch tomorrow to continue our discussion!”).
  • Exchange business cards.

The Morning After

Who wants to be the first one to get in contact after a date? YOU DO! Never wait for them to contact you first. In the dating world this may seem desperate, but in business we call this eager, smart and strategic. The day after the event, you should:

  • Add the person on LinkedIn. Include a friendly message in the invitation that recaps the conversation and next steps.
  • If the person doesn’t use LinkedIn, you can also send them an email with the same type of message. Also, make sure to download Rapportive, which is a social tool allowing you to view all of a contacts footprint on twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

Networking events may seem intimidating at first, but the above strategic tactics alongside your natural abilities will ensure that you make the most of the opportunity both personally and professionally. If you think about networking the same way that you would think about being a good date, you’re sure to come out with a broader professional network and a rolodex of untapped business prospects.

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Perks Consulting CEO Lauren Perkins Honored As Official G20-Y US Ambassador

December 1st, 2011

Recently I was honored to be invited to the G20-Y Summit in Paris France as an official US Ambassador for the “Innovation, Technology, Communication, Social Media and Wikileaks – Opportunities and Risks” committee. In addition to the committee I was a part of, other topics covered were: shadow banking; financial stability and regulatory issues in emerging markets; systemically important financial institutions (sifis) – resolution tools and regimes; climate change and green growth; integration of the perspectives of the Islamic countries into the G20’s mission and governance & regional conflicts 2011. The purpose of the G20-Y Summit is to inform the G20 delegates about major issues that are affecting all of us, especially the youth of today.

At Perks Consulting we know how important technology and social media is to all of us personally as well as on a business level. It’s now assumed that in addition to a website you should have a social media presence on at least Facebook and Twitter. The way we interact online is often indistinguishable from offline interactivity when it comes to human behavior and how it affects us emotionally and financially.

Innovation in technology and communication has fundamentally changed human behavior across the world. The pace of change and its potential impact, specifically in mobile and social media, continues to scale at an exponential rate. As a result, the world has become more interconnected. If harnessed correctly, innovation provides two solutions to current global challenges – GDP growth and job creation. If this isn’t addressed soon the existing divisions between ‘citizens and governments’ and ‘customers and corporations’ will continue to grow.

The solution lies in changing education, fostering innovation and improving the quality of access to and use of social media. To change this situation, the lack of understanding within government, business and other organizations of this technological revolution and its impact on human behavior need to be addressed.

We felt that G20 member countries should individually seek to understand their respective countries strengths and then collaborate to develop a global innovation policy. Once this is understood, G20 member countries should develop applicable frameworks for implementing education initiatives that foster innovation in a diverse, global economy.

From this point we proposed to build a G-20Y Summit Innovation Committee. The purpose of this committee is to identify and establish global best practices by leveraging experts across a variety of fields and to connect the components of entrepreneurial ecosystems across the world i.e. ideas, capital and markets. Providing all citizens with quality access is the pre-requisite to realizing the growth potential. Every 10% of broadband penetration results in 1.2% – 1.4% increase in per capita GDP growth (source: World Bank).

In order to take advantage of the opportunities at hand, it was recommended that the G20 set a timetable for the development of digital networks across the globe and define specific benchmarks for penetration rate, speed and quality of access. These solutions must be economically viable and environmentally sustainable. On a personal note, connectivity issues don’t just plague third-world countries. I had frequent connectivity issues while in France and Chile. You don’t realize how essential digital communication (email, social media, texting, etc.) is to your life until you don’t have access to it anymore.

With evolution across the technological landscape occurring vertically and inconsistently among cultures and borders, the open culture of social media networks has also brought economic and social disparities in full view. Movements of civil unrest have arisen, generating reactionary responses from government leaders, attempting to control and undermine access to such digital communication tools. As more of humanity comes to rely on technology as a part of their everyday lives, there will eventually be increasing ire towards governments that attempt to curb technological access or refuse to prioritize the development of digital infrastructure. This issue also extends beyond despotic countries, with governments lacking understanding in this revolution of communication norms and interaction, hoping to maintain the status quo and a powerful elite voice. Instead, social and mass media should be seen as a tool to engage, educate & connect with these communities to quell any issues and provide a more open forum for societal progress.

To address this we proposed that the G20 creates a Technology and Communication Board, to 1) maximize growth by identifying global trends that correlate to economic activity, measuring Key Performance Indicators and developing recommendations that capitalize on GDP growth opportunities and to 2) mitigate risks by creating a global policy on cyber security, privacy matters and the use of technology for criminal activity.

The world is only going to become more interconnected as time goes on. With an increasingly globalized trade system and lightning speed transactions, the lack of stable and accessible technological infrastructure needs to be addressed as a priority or major political, social, and economic consequences will arise for individual governments. Hopefully these suggestions from my G20-Y committee will be implemented in a timely manner in order to move forward effectively. I hope to maintain a commitment furthering the role of social media and technology across the board by staying involved in these issues, especially while engaging with Entrepreneur Week across the globe.

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Zipcar Innovates Social Shopping With New Facebook Reservations App

October 27th, 2011

When it comes to lifestyle innovation, the car industry is definitely doing their part to push things forward. The latest in a line of digital disruption is Zipcar allowing customers to reserve a car on Facebook, thus moving the social commerce needle forward. Why is this important? According to a survey done by Zipcar, 88% of their customers spend roughly 15 hours per day on Facebook.

First off, that couldn’t possibly be true. While it’s important to poll your customers, it’s also important to get the right data. For that statistic to be true, Zipcar’s customers would have to be on Facebook for every single waking moment. Having Facebook open isn’t the same thing as actively being “on” Facebook.

Regardless of the skewed data, Zipcar’s decision to allow customers to reserve cars on Facebook is no less important. It’s widely documented that people general spend a lot of time on Facebook and leave it open in a tab. Instead of forcing your customers to search for your website on Google, they can just search for your brand on Facebook and use it through that channel.

Zipcar’s engagement proves that online shopping goes beyond just e-commerce and buying products. Customers are hungry for viable e-commerce solutions that simplify the process by allowing them to shop where they spend the most of their time – Facebook.

 

 

via venturebeat.com

Facebook Zipcar

Zipcar launched a Facebook application today, for the company’s “tech-savvy” customers.

“We know that our members are tech-savvy and actively engaged in social media, so providing members with the ability to reserve a Zipcar directly through Facebook is a natural next step,” Scott Griffith, chief executive of Zipcar in a statement.

According to member surveys performed by Zipcar, 88 percent of Zipcar users are also Facebook users who spend roughly 15 hours a day on the social network. So why not capture the audience where it spends the most time? Not to mention the obvious opportunity to acquire new customers from Facebook’s 800 million active users.

Visitors to the Zipcar Facebook app will be able to find and reserve available cars, get direction to the car’s locations, and of course, share the reservation with friends. You will also be able to extend or cancel a reservation directly from Facebook and because it is a canvas app, there is no reason for Zipcar member to leave the Facebook website.

Facebook recently made a slew of changes to its platform allowing these apps to really flourish. These changes include updates to it’s developer-focused Open Graph, the ability to integrate different vocabulary into your “likes,” and more.

Zipcar users can also stay mobile through Zipcar’s mobile app available on both Android, iPhone and website.

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Opinionaided User Engagement Up From 2.5 to 3.25 Hours, Launches Android Customer Service Feedback App

October 26th, 2011
Social media marketing has moved from cutting edge to being standardized across online channels. Brands can ask their customers what they like on Twitter and Facebook, but when it comes to reaching them in a dedicated mobile environment there hasn’t been much in the way of innovation. That’s where Opinionaided comes in.

Opinionaided allows you to ask a question, upload a photo, and have users vote on it. As with all new networks and apps, the form of user engagement should be determined early on. If you decide to use a question and answer platform like Opinionaided, it’s better to ask if users like one of your products versus another one. Users should never be asked to compare to a competitor or be given an option to compare two of your products that aren’t similar enough. Remember, you never want to make your customers uncomfortable.

There’s also a possibility of engaging network influencers by making them brand ambassadors, but this shouldn’t be taken lightly. If payment is provided then disclosure needs to be standardized across the board. For situations like this we recommend Cmp.ly, which we worked with early on to design their iconography. We do not recommend doing this on your own, as navigating the paid brand ambassador waters can be tricky. It’s always best to bring in a marketing or consulting agency that has done lifestyle engagements before. Regardless of whether you use an agency, make sure you have a content creation calendar and social media guidelines with examples of proper usage before you set out to use any new network officially.

Everyone’s got an opinion — something that the mobile question and answer company Opinionaided has tapped into with its popular iPhone app. Today, the company is releasing its long-awaited Android app, which will help to spur on Opinionaided’s skyrocketing growth and increasing user engagement.

As of September, active users are now spending 3 hours and 25 minutes on the app, compared to around two and a half hours in August. Opinionaided users gave over 10 million responses to over 250,000 questions last weekend alone. Clearly, users are finding something addictive about the service, which allows you to take a picture on your phone, ask a question, and instantly receive responses.

“What is most significant to us is that we are creating a social utility based on helping others, with little judgment or bias,” CEO Dan Kurani said in a statement today. “By adding the Android app, we are able to cultivate a larger and more inclusive community of mobile users.”

Kurani tells me it took the company some time to put together the free Android app, which is now available on the Android Market. The Android app still doesn’t have some of the sharing features that the iOS app has, but Kurani says they’re coming soon.

In my brief testing of the Opinionaided service, I was struck by just how quickly responses to my questions came. That near-instant engagement even surprised Kurani when the app was first launched. He says that users are now seeing between 50 and 100 responses per question, with an average of 70 responses. Kurani attributes the impressive users engagement to the company’s focus on on opinion Q&A, instead of fact-based Q&A like Yahoo Answers.

Opinionaided is based in New York City and has raised around $6.7 million across two rounds of funding.

 

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Fashion Magazines Branch Out Into Online Retail

October 3rd, 2011
Fashion magazines have started to feel the strain of online on their advertising budgets, so some are starting to offer online retail in addition to their traditional editorial offerings. This shouldn’t be done as reactionary though. Offering ways to purchase items directly should be done naturally with lifestyle innovation, as readers want a way to instantly purchase something they desire. In print publications each editorial item should have a short URL that leads to the publication’s hybrid editorial ecommerce portal, where readers can see the item exactly how it was in the spread and purchase each item by clicking on it on the model.

Fashion publications would also do well to integrate into Facebook, as Details Magazine has done. Ecommerce is growing in leaps and bounds on Facebook (as is social reading) so it would be in their best interests to integrate both aspects in one easy to use experience. Tablet and mobile devices are also becoming more and more popular and as so different experiences need to be put in place for each interface. The user experience is of the utmost importance, especially on mobile devices.

Overall, if fashion magazines are truly to make the transition into a 360 integrated publication retailer they must pay attention to UI/UX, mobile development, social shopping development, custom Facebook integration development, and naturally website development. Perks Consulting specializes in all of these areas, offering the most versatile packages for our clients when it comes to a holistic solution.

via psfk.com

Fashion Mags Branch Out Into Online Retail
By Emma Hutchings on October 1, 2011

A number of major fashion magazines have recently announced partnerships with e-commerce sites, with Park & Bond’s ‘GQ Selects’ section and Esquire launching CLAD. After recent losses in advertising due to online competition and the economic situation, this move adds a new source of revenue for magazines. The websites also stand to gain, as editor’s recommendations and reviews boost their credibility with consumers. The NY Times reports:

While the glossies have long had a reputation for accommodating the designers they cover, sometimes guaranteeing coverage to those who advertise in their pages, a wave of new ventures and partnerships suggests they are willing to go even further by selling the designers’ clothes. It is a move that is raising some eyebrows in the industry, as magazines like Vogue, GQ and Esquire, struggling to survive in an online world, could potentially become competitors to stores like Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus and Barneys New York.

This move should prove beneficial for consumers who will be able to find everything they need in one place. So, if they read a review about a product they like, they can click through and order it straight away.

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How Facebook’s New Features Will Fuel Social Shopping

October 3rd, 2011
We’re huge advocates of social shopping, especially on Facebook. We have vetted over a dozen solutions and found that besides one or two, most are just special tabs on Facebook fan pages. Some even take you away from the Facebook experience by bringing you to a second page that loads the store without any fan page navigation. With these new changes to Facebook (customizable Open Graph and real-time news Ticker) brands will be able to reach more potential customers through new viral techniques.

 

The only foreseeable problem will be the ability to easily implement these new additions easily and quickly. While large brands can afford to pay developers to create custom solutions for them, smaller brands can’t. When we need to work with smaller brands we bring in established social shopping solutions that can be customized to their brand specifications and marketing needs. Hopefully social shopping vendors add these new changes to their solutions so both large and small brands can benefit from this. We at Perks Consulting are excited about these new viral techniques that will enable brands to connect with potential new customers.

via mashable.com

Christian Taylor is founder and CEO of Payvment and developer of the number-one Facebook ecommerce platform for brands, agencies and merchants, and the world’s only Facebook Shopping Mall.

Many of the new features introduced at Facebook’s f8 Developer Conference last Thursday, such as a customizable Open Graph and real-time news Ticker, will have a tremendous impact on social commerce and social shopping in the very near future.

 

 

Developers will now be able to build a Facebook commerce experience more relevant to shoppers and also offer more effective social discovery for sellers. Sellers will be able to access new insights into shopper preferences and will use this data to better promote their products. These new opportunities will make the Facebook shopping experience richer and more social.

Here are five ways Facebook’s new features will fuel social commerce and product discovery.

1. Better Self-Expression for Shoppers

Custom Open Graph gestures will bring a new level of relevance to the Facebook shopping experience. By enabling new buttons such as “Want,” “Own” and “Love,” shoppers will be able to express themselves more specifically around a particular product. Consequently, News Feed stories can also be customized to generate phrases such as “Jim reviewed” or “Jane loved” a particular product. These types of posts will drive much more effective social discovery than a simple “Like” story.

These new buttons will also be used to enrich the social shopping experience within Facebook storefronts themselves. For example, in the future, you will be able to see who “owns” a product you’re considering and connect with that friend for recommendations. This functionality will also enable sellers to engage more deeply with shoppers. For example, if I discover that Jim owns a product in my storefront, I might ask him for a product review.

2. Product Discovery Through Ticker

The new Ticker creates a persistent real-time stream that sellers can use to publicize products to shoppers, just as Ticker allows users to discover music their friends are listening to. For example, if my friend Jane visits a Facebook store and clicks the “Want” button on a product, the resulting Ticker story could read, “Jane wants a Granite Fountain at the Fountain Shop on Facebook.”

As powerful as this capability is, developers should be careful to publish only the activities that shoppers agree to promote. For instance, if a boyfriend is secretly checking out engagement rings, he might not want his whole friend list to know about it.

3. The Ability to Create Wishlists

As part of the new design, Facebook will aggregate application activity to create persistent modules on a person’s Timeline. Different social shopping widgets will post to a person’s profile, such as holiday and birthday wish lists or wedding and baby registries. These lists are created automatically based on the custom action buttons. For example, all “Want” button clicks will create a wish list on the Timeline.

 

Adding product-focused lists to your profile lets people know what you want, and makes it easier for friends to know what to buy you when those special events come around. Now when your friends get a birthday reminder for you, they can click through to your profile, and may even be able to buy you something from your birthday wish list immediately.

The Ticker will also play a role in promoting these wish lists. Want to remind people about your wish list before your upcoming birthday? Just “Want” a more recent product and it will automatically generate a fresh Ticker story.

4. Clearer Permissions

Have you ever started to use a new Facebook application, but hesitated when seeing how the application could use your data? The current permissions dialog box did not allow developers to explain why they want your permissions, so users didn’t always have enough information to make an informed decision.

Developers will now have more control over the content displayed in the permissions dialog, and thus can better articulate how a person’s data will be used. Social shopping applications can explain exactly what type of data will be used and what benefits it will provide the shopper; they can even include screenshots of posts that might appear on your Timeline. For example, a permissions dialog might explain that your Facebook interests will be used to provide product recommendations and special deals targeted to you. This option could, in turn, build trust and increase participation by users.

5. Shopping With Friends

The Facebook custom Open Graph and Ticker opened the door to social music discovery – so why not social shopping as well?

In the near future you might see an “invite friends to shop” button within a social storefront. Clicking on it would generate a post in the Ticker that says, “Jane is shopping for baby strollers.” When a friend clicks on the post, they would be taken to a chat room-style panel or comment box where they can share stroller recommendations. That feedback might become part of the public comments in the store, or may only be visible to the two of you. The end result is that you have enlisted your friend’s help to make a purchase decision, as if you were both shopping together at the mall.

These kinds of experiences are only the beginning. Just as developers have used Facebook to bring people together to play social games, so too will developers use this new functionality to make Facebook shopping a much more interactive — and social — experience.

 

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