Professor Merlin Stone - Marketing your Business
Thursday 22nd November 2007Key messages:
• Creating an effective marketing strategy
• Understanding the principles of Customer Relationship Marketing
• Fulfilling the marketing potential of your business
How often do you review your current marketing position and identify opportunities to fulfil your marketing potential and increase revenue?
Professor Stone is one of the UK’s most experienced marketing consultants. During this Master Class Professor Stone examined proven methods to transform marketing and customer service capabilities to meet the needs of customers and stakeholders. Professor Stone also presented an insight into Customer Relationship Marketing, database marketing, the growth of e-commerce and the internet.
Professor Stone is a challenging and innovative thinker and a critical commentator. In 2003, The Chartered Institute of Marketing listed Professor Stone as one of the world’s top 50 marketing thinkers. The following year, NOP World nominated him as one of 100 most influential individuals for his impact on the development and growth of e-commerce and the internet in the UK over the last 10 years.
Following Merlin Stone’s keynote speech, Nina Lovatt DipM of Marigold Consulting UK Ltd, a member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing who has extensive marketing knowledge of the tourism and hospitality industry led a facilitation session. Through discussion and practical exercises delegates explored their brand’s values and discussed best practices for communicating their brand’s message through the web site.
Professor Merlin Stone's Presentation
Please click on the PDF to view Merlin's presentation slides.Best Practice Seminar - Marketing for Success
Following the messages delivered by Professor Merlin Stone in understanding the key principles of customer relationship marketing, we heard from two tourism and hospitality businesses in the South West which are well known and recognised for their success in this field.
Three Ways House Hotel, Gloucestershire
Home of the Pudding Club and winners of the Small Hotel of the Year 06/07 in South West Tourism’s Excellence Awards, Jill and Simon Coombs from Three Ways House Hotel described how offering a niche product and service has ensured that the hotel’s unique offer is renowned across the UK.
West Dorset Leisure Holiday
West Dorset Leisure Holidays consists of 4 family run holiday parks on the West Dorset Heritage Coastline. The company has excelled in using marketing segmentation as an effective tool and has maximised business opportunities through diversification. Martin Cox, Director detailed the ways in which this marketing success has been achieved.
Richard Wyatt Haines Post Event Thoughts
When it comes to marketing, Merlin Stone showed us all the importance of focus and simplicity. In line with these key themes from his talk, these notes are produced in a manner which I hope would receive his approval; focused and simple. So here goes on the top 10 marketing tips from Merlin:
1. Focus on the customers that are worth knowing
• Make sure you have an intimate knowledge of your valuable customers and those customers with whom you wish to do business with in the future. Focus on these people and understand them deeply.
2. Ask them, and ask them again
• Keep asking your customers what they like and what they don't like, what they want and how they would like things improved. Keep doing it so that you can achieve number 1 (above).
3. It's all about human beings
• Remember you are serving real human beings not theoretical segments. Understand those human beings and you will be able to better serve them than your competition.
4. It's all relative
• You do not need to do everything to the highest level possible; you just need to be better than your competition. This means you need to understand your competition, what they offer and how they perform.
5. If it works, keep doing it
• If something works, make sure you keep doing it. Don't stop just because you get bigger, or forget, or can’t be bothered.
6. Keep testing
• Keep testing lots of little ideas and see what works. Keep records, make comparisons, make decisions. If it works well, go back to point 5 (above).
7. Ask them to come back
• If you're been successful in winning customers, ask them to come back. If necessary encourage them through the targeted use of incentives.
8. Be nice to me
• Customers live in a horrible world and simply enjoy being cared for. Your job is to care for them in a horrible world.
9. Grow your passion with the business
• Passion is at the heart of most young businesses but is often lost as the business grows. Find ways of bottling your passion and sharing it around.
10. Be different
• Stand out from the crowd; offer something others don’t and keep being different in a way that works for you and your customers.