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Canny marketing can make change desirable, says Dan Todaro

The government is committed to turning off the FM radio signal, but there will be no analogue switch-off until digital listening reaches 50%. At the moment that would likely miss the 2015 target date. Nevertheless, the benefits of DAB have been compared to the switch from AM to FM as the preferred medium: digital radio offers greater choice to the listener with better reception and superior sound quality.

Public reaction has ranged from embrace to indifference and outright resistance; digital listening currently stands at 31.3%.

Digital Radio UK has gone to great effort to get the ball rolling, with a national campaign to boost public awareness. Now with government backing, the switchover will no doubt prove a success.

It can be argued that the slow public response is down to people simply not quite ‘getting’ digital radio. However, given the lessons of the TV switchover, this isn’t such a difficult obstacle. People didn’t understand the TV process either; at first, many viewers questioned why anyone would need more than five channels – and was their TV really not going to work after the change?

But with teams of trained specialists offering in-store advice and demonstrations, experts manning a call centre and a national marketing campaign, the public understood, and finally embraced, the process.

Digital mascot D Love follows in the footsteps of the advocates of new services to TV viewers, such as Digit Al and ITV Digital’s Monkey. Executing this campaign has undoubtedly helped to spread information about the radio switchover. It is vital to have a marketing campaign in 2013 to reach as many radio listeners as possible, educating them about the imminent changes ahead.

This also applies to brands, which can also push the cause forward. Manufacturers and retailers also need to be encouraged to champion the switchover and aid that point of realisation among the public, underpinned by D Love and messaging. Significantly, BMW now offers DAB radio as standard across its entire range and owners of older models can upgrade.

It cannot be overstated how much of a coup this is for the switchover movement considering the previous reluctance of brands to drive the campaign, largely due to a fear of alienating consumers. Now, potentially, a whole generation of car owners will only know DAB and will in turn apply the technology to their homes.

The triumph of the TV switchover proves that, while change can be unsettling and the outcome unknown, in this context it is a positive and proves that the public can embrace new systems if guided correctly. Yes, people don’t like change, but the radio switchover will nevertheless take place when the listening figure exceeds 50%. And now, after an initial lack of enthusiasm to adapt to digital TV, people can’t get enough of pausing and rewinding shows, on demand content and even 3D TV.

The TV switchover was achieved through effective advertising, shop-floor training and raising public awareness. With a renewed emphasis and investment from the authorities, the digital radio campaign can be galvanised into further action to push DAB forward for a successful switchover ahead of the 2015 deadline.

Dan Todaro is managing director of marketing agency Gekko.

http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/

Dan Todaro, MD of tech field marketing agency Gekko, explains how field marketing can boost toy sales

Recent Gekko research shows that almost a quarter (23%) of shoppers say they would be very unlikely to purchase tech-led products, like kids’ tablets, without having some kind of in store interaction or demonstration beforehand. What’s more, 44% of respondents said they would like more interaction with brands in store and the same number (44%) said that it would tempt them to spend more on related accessories and products.  In such a tumultuous economic environment, brands would be foolish to ignore such obvious cries for attention from consumers.  Properly trained, dynamic brand ambassadors, who can give detailed demonstrations and showcase the toys’ key features, are vital when the consumer reaches that point where they decide either to buy or to walk away.

As is the case with most industries right now, toy manufacturers are feeling the pinch as consumers tighten their belts and look for the best deals out on the high street. Hasbro recently announced a 40% increase in TV, social and online advertising budgets, due to a 12% drop in boys’ toys sales.  The company is putting this down to a lack of screen time promotion, with no film or TV tie ups to boost merchandise sales. However, brands should not be so quick to assume the reasons why sales may have dropped, or indeed that the solution is to increase investment in ATL and online channels.

An additional investment in field marketing activity can be hugely impactful for toy brands, and if done correctly, can reap massive rewards without putting a big dent in marketing budgets.

There is no doubt that other marketing channels have a huge role to play throughout the festive period, and it’s not surprising that Hasbro is investing money in TV, social and online.  However, the sales can be hugely boosted by well trained, knowledgeable brand representatives, who can make a connection with parents and leave them with a memorable impression of both the product and the brand.  After all, an impressed, engaged parent means a purchase is likely, leading to a happy child, and ultimately, a successful brand.

Daniel Todaro, managing director of field marketing agency Gekko, on the future of the high street and why so many big retail brands get it wrong

So, HMV has been handed a dramatic lifeline by Canadian restructuring firm Hilco. Along with potential support from no end of major labels (Universal Music, Warner Music, Sony, 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, Warner Brothers) all seemingly willing to club together, there may just be a light at the end of the tunnel for the embattled retailer.

However, while we allow ourselves to be swept up in the sentiment and nostalgia around HMV and the subsequent delight at this proposed rescue package. We can’t ignore the events that led us to this point, nor the fellow high-street retailers that seemingly will not be as lucky to find their white-knight investor.

With Comet, Jessops and Blockbuster also calling it a day, we can’t lose sight of the fact that some serious errors in management led to the dark days the retail sector is currently experiencing.

How did these brands get it so wrong?

Once upon a time, HMV had a culture of cool. No place more so than the flagship Oxford Street store in London, to which a visit provided a sense of wonderment unrivaled on the high street – a unique haven of entertainment.

The browsing experience was an event in itself: a destination shopping trip for the whole family. Like the best in-store experiences, it could be legitimately considered a reward or a special treat (if the kids had been good, of course).

But cool is fleeting, particularly with management so out of touch with consumers. What’s particularly frustrating is that HMV offered consumers the opportunity to engage with enthusiastic staff that were passionate about what they sold.

They were authorities on music, film, gaming and tech, helping consumers make informed purchasing decisions. Instead, in what was probably the most symbolic epitome of HMV’s problems, management banned long hair and tattoos and told staff to smarten up. What better way to suck the personality and character out of your brand advocates on the shop floor, and the store as a whole.

Retail is a journey, one that must engage the consumer with above-the-line marketing and through to the shop floor experience. What many of these failed brands (perhaps Blockbuster aside) did not recognise is that with so much choice from competitors across the retail spectrum and online, they did not connect a desirable product offering with a unique customer experience that made people want to keep going back.

If HMV is to make the most of its ‘second chance’, it has to start with people. It’s time to remove heads from the sand, and work on getting that ‘cool’ back. I find it incredible, still, how the vast majority of high-street retailers are too afraid to give their in-store staff just a bit of freedom to go out and express themselves a bit on the shop floor. HMV has a great platform to re-launch from, it just simply cannot revert back to its vanilla retail proposition.

The onus isn’t just on HMV, however. We all have a role to play in restoring the brand to its former glory. Not just for HMV, but for high-street retailing in general.

It’s all well and good lamenting these retailers’ entering administration, but I imagine many of us are guilty of taking the easy option and bowing to the global mass-merchant online retailers far too often.

As a nation of shoppers, in the UK we’re blessed with choice, choice to purchase from a specialist focused on a specific category. If we don’t make the most of that opportunity, it’ll be gone before we know it.

In austere times, we do want value, but just be careful what you wish for. Bigger isn’t always better, and the possibility of shopping solely through mass merchants will lead to less choice within a category, less expertise and less fun.

Nothing can replace the in-store experience, whether it be a local butcher, the Sunday market or even a multinational entertainment retailer. The speed and accessibility of etail is great, but a world where only shopping is entirely confined to online?

Give me a horse burger any day…

It’s a Happy New Year for some but not for all this 2013. Whilst Sainsburys and the like revel in increased year on year growth, the reality is that niche retail as we know it is potentially dying. Some call it evolution of the high street. But is it survival of the fittest? Or something more sinister?

With Comet closing pre-Christmas and now HMV, Jessops and Blockbuster calling it a day barely a month after Christmas, the big question seems to be whether they were murdered by mass merchant competition and online propositions, or did they simply fail to adapt to the changing needs of the consumer?

As a nation of shoppers, in the UK we’re blessed with choice, choice to purchase from a specialist focused on a specific category; a USP that Apple amongst many others work to amazing effect. So how did these brands get it so wrong?

Retail is a journey, one that must engage the consumer from ATL to the shop floor experience. What many of these failed brands did not recognise is that with so much choice from competitors across the retail spectrum and online, they did not connect a desirable product offering with a unique customer experience that made people want to keep going back.

Jessops stores on the whole were tired, poorly positioned and uncompetitive, but offered highly valuable impartial advice worth paying that little bit extra for. HMV failed to make the transition online to support their huge retail overhead (the beating heart of the business); the misplaced focus on live venues allowed a tired retail format to become stale. As online brands thrived by reducing the transactional process to a matter of minutes, HMV never developed its proposition to promote the joys of the browsing experience and entice the busy shopper on their lunch break. Amazon, despite all the negative tax press, never once suffered a PR onslaught from HMV to appeal to those who love shopping online over to their e-commerce site, or even attempt to change perception to entice consumers back into an HMV store to feel the difference, a lost opportunity.

Once upon a time, HMV stores had a culture of cool, a sense of wonderment in this unique haven of entertainment; unrivalled on the high street. But cool is fleeting, particularly with management so out of touch with consumers. Like Jessops, it offered consumers the opportunity to engage with enthusiastic individuals who on the whole loved music, film, gaming and tech to help consumers make informed purchasing decisions. Instead, management decided to ban tattoos and long hair amongst staff.

In austere times we do want value, but be careful what you wish for. Bigger isn’t always better, and the possibility of shopping solely through mass merchants can mean less choice within a category, less expertise and less fun. In fact, the prospect of buying that chart dvd nowadays makes those horse burgers look quite appealing by comparison…

Daniel Todaro, MD, Gekko

Marketing’s ‘Agency of the Year’ publication, now in it’s 12th year, saw more than 80 agencies battle it out across 13 categories. Judged by an independent panel of experts, they are heavily skewed towards effectiveness.  In the field marketing category, Gekko is very pleased to have been classed as one of two ‘Best of the rest’ agencies:

Another strong performer was Gekko, shortlisted last year, which increased its turnover by 26%.

This growth in turnover was attributed to the retention of existing client accounts including Epson, Freeview and Samsung, and new business wins, such as John Lewis and YouView. The agency delivered training for John Lewis’ broadband proposition in its stores and provided product training and merchandising within the retail channel to support the launch of YouView, the digital television platform.

Notable campaigns in 2012 for existing clients included an awareness-raising drive for Freeview, based on its high-definition (HD) proposition. ‘The Summer of Sport’ roadshow gained significant cut-through for the brand.

Gekko commissioned the build, booked the venues, and managed staff and logistics for the roadshow. A survey showed a 25% increase in spontaneous awareness of Freeview HD, with 89.1% of respondents saying they are much more favourable toward the product and 73% agreeing Freeview offered value for money.

The agency also supported IT and communications provider Acer at the Olympic Park, co-managing its Experience Centre, with a dedicated team. This year it has placed significant emphasis on and made investment in the personal and professional development of its staff.

Its ‘Fit for Gekko’ programme is a training initiative aimed at enhancing staff skills and developing talent, with topics including account management and delivering effective presentations.

For more information visit: http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/news/1163331/aoty12-Field-Marketing-Agency-Year—Best-Rest/

Field Marketing agency Gekko has once again excelled at the annual Field Marketing & Brand Experience Awards held at the Marriott, Grosvenor Square on 22nd November. Having been nominated in six categories Gekko were very happy to walk away with 4 awards at the ceremony compared by TV and radio personality George Lamb. Gekko’s tally of Gold, Silver and two Bronzes came in the following categories:

Gold – Team of the Year
Gekko, Acer

Silver – Business partner award
Gekko, Digital UK

Bronze – Most effective sales demonstration or sampling activity
Gekko, Epson

Bronze – Field Marketing Agency of the Year
Gekko

This year each category has been more hotly contested than ever and in winning these awards, Gekko has demonstrated just adept it is at delivering campaigns of the highest quality for our clients. The Gold award in the Team of the Year category is a first for Gekko and recognises the effectiveness and exceptional dedication of the Acer Training Team. As a Worldwide Olympic Partner, 2012 has been an especially important year for Acer and the field team have found themselves at the forefront of the brand’s Olympic activity.

Check our facebook page for more photos from the event

Digital TV switchover in the UK has completed, bringing to an end more than 70 years of analogue broadcasting.  ERT reports on how it went.

Back in 1999, the then Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Chris Smith, announced the government’s intention to replace the decades-old analogue terrestrial TV signal with all-digital services – the digital TV switchover. In 2005 Tessa Jowell unveiled the timetable for the digital rollout across the UK, and last month saw the final area turn off analogue signals; the completion of switchover in Northern Ireland brought to a close a five-year programme that touched 26 million homes with around 60 million televisions.
The scale of the task faced by Digital UK, the independent, not-for-profit organisation set up to manage the switchover was tremendous – a billion-pound project to bring the biggest change to TV in a generation. It was clear that education would have to lie at the heart of the campaign, with a high percentage of viewers uncertain of the benefits of receiving more than the standard four or five channels they already had.

Part of this challenge would be providing support to the thousands of electrical retailers across the UK. Consumer research indicated that when contemplating options for the switchover, around one in four people would look to retailers for expertise, guidance and information on the programme.

Mark Nicholson, Trade Marketing Manager at Digital UK joined in November 2007, during the first Border region switchover around Whitehaven in Cumbria.

 “The retailers in Whitehaven and Workington did a great job working alongside Digital UK to support their customers,” says Nicholson. “While we could make good predictions about likely questions and issues, at this stage there was no empirical data regarding switching over 25,000 households. Against this backdrop, Brooks, McCulloughs and the Whitehaven High Street Currys branch all stood out in terms of quality of service.”

At this stage though, Digital UK was completely focused on a relatively small area. Retail support would need to be scaled up to prepare for much larger switchovers. Two years later, three million households were scheduled to switch over at the same time in the Granada region.

Benefits
“With no specific products to sell, we were genuinely offering retailers support”, continues Nicholson. “But some owners had to be persuaded of the benefits first. We were able to do this quite easily once we had an idea of the sales uplifts from switchover, but it was always important that we repaid their time investment by making the support relevant and accessible.”

With no internal training function, Digital UK appointed leading technology retail experts Gekko to provide an outsourced solution.

“Digital UK was unique in many ways,” explains Daniel Todaro, MD at Gekko, “as there was no direct sales element to the strategy, and no traditional pre-existing supplier/retailer relationship. Switchover was a change that touched practically every household in the UK over a strategic period of time, and it all had to be timed perfectly too.”

Before the full package of retail support could be implemented, a comprehensive list of shops had to be compiled to cover all relevant categories of retailers: electrical multiples, independent electrical stores, department stores, catalogue stores, supermarkets, DIY outlets and national rental organisations. Support could then be offered: information, point of sale materials and staff training. Evaluation was carried out through mystery shopping research and a field team presence in each region.

Central to the campaign would be support developed around the ‘digital tick’ Certification Mark, created to provide two-way information between Digital UK and retailers. The Mark itself was registered by the Government to provide an easily-recognised signpost to viewers requiring assistance with advice, equipment or suppliers. As well as giving customers confidence in any switchover information provided in stores, the support defined standards to ensure retailers had sufficient information and that consumer-facing staff were adequately trained.

Through the scheme, registered retailers received a host of benefits, beginning with permission to use switchover brand assets in publicity materials. These included the ‘digital tick’ logo and the switchover robot, Digit Al, both of which featured in the nationwide communications campaign, giving each consumer 100 ‘opportunities to see’. Digital UK then provided free point of sale materials, free staff training, information about sales patterns, face-to-face briefings and visits from a Digital UK Retail Support Executive (RSE). In return for signing up, Digital UK also created an approved list of reliable retailers for each region, made available to consumers through its website.

“While the large retailers were naturally well-known and were organised through head offices, a large challenge was not only to find all the independent retailers, but efficiently to encourage them to sign up to the scheme,” says Nicholson. “Thus we partnered with retra, Euronics and trade magazines such as ERT to reach out and promote the benefits.”
Staff training formed the most crucial aspect of the operation, and it was essential it was carried out in a fashion that ensured it was understood by the people that would serve the public. That meant calling on every single outlet selling TV equipment, tailoring the training to suit each business model and level of knowledge. This was largely delivered through the RSEs, recruited, deployed and managed by Gekko – with a heavy emphasis on face-to-face interaction.

“Encouraging direct, face-to-face training meant we could make the process both interactive and memorable,” explains Todaro. “It also tackled the issue of staff attrition, picking up new starters and testing the longer-term knowledge retention of other members of staff. This created a new skill and subsequent qualification too, that of Approved Digital Adviser – another incentive for shop staff.”

Training was staggered to fit in with regional rollouts, and was flexible enough to meet a variety of requirements. Groups could vary from one person to fifty, be carried out on the shop floor or in a training room, and range from informal discussions to formal presentations.

The team of RSEs expanded and contracted in size to meet the needs of each region, and included an online specialist to provide bespoke website support. At its peak, in the middle of 2011, there were 26 RSEs covering regions from Meridian to STV Central.
Upon completion last month, Digital UK had successfully trained 74,000 retail staff and signed up 7,000 retail outlets for the Digital Tick Logo Scheme.

“The grass roots engagement carried out by Digital UK and our retail partners really helped to ensure that a national campaign resonated at a local level,” says Nicholson. ”The UK now has a fully modernised terrestrial television service, bringing more channels and more choice to virtually every home across the country while freeing up valuable spectrum for new technologies such as mobile broadband.

“Switchover has been delivered on time and under budget.” 

Testimonials
Robert Chapman, Director, Chapmans Electrical
“We were looking to switchover with some trepidation, having both large commercial aerial systems and a domestic base, but need not have done. The way the rollout happened with the road shows, dealer packs, shop calls and help lines everybody felt included. It operated like a well-oiled machine (but I guess the feet where going fast under the surface).

The proof was when the day arrived we all had a chance to sell new product, but we also had a smooth switchover. I believe the time and effort invested in the dealers by Digital UK created this.

Whether it was ‘one to one’ or ‘group’ sessions the Digital UK team, headed by Mark [Nicholson] and David [Harby], was always there wanting to be proactive and engage, passing knowledge to our staff with tips that had been learnt from other dealers etc. Giving encouragement to embrace switchover, but still spotting the areas where additional help was required and giving it. They backed this up with point of sale materials and leaflets so we never felt alone and without support. The online training process allowed us to get all our sales and office staff up to speed where we could not have afforded to lose them away from the store.”

Steven Hadley, Technology Product Marketing Manager, Argos Ltd
“I think it’s fair to say that Digital UK has played a key part in making our switchover programme a success. We have collaborated and shared plans for each phase of the programme, building strong relationships with their team. The training and retail support team were warmly welcomed into our stores, providing a service which gave our store colleagues confidence and authority to talk about the switchover with their customers.

Having sound advice and a helping hand at the other end of the phone when things got a little confusing has been a great help!  All in all, they are a superb team and we will be sorry when the switch is over and we go our separate ways.”

http://www.gekko-uk.com/field_marketing_agency/press/Press-ERTDigitalUK.pdf

Sales teams handled by Gekko on behalf of Epson visit PC World, Staples and other retailers to merchandise stock, train sales assistants and collect data. This information is uploaded at the end of each day and used by Epson to check stock levels and product availability, and ensure that stores are compliant with promotional activity.

To ensure that only relevant data is collected, Gekko invested in Opus, a comprehensive multi-platform data-collection tool accessed via iPads.

Gekko staff also work in designated stores at peak shopping periods to demonstrate and sell Epson hardware, collecting data in the process.

This is used to check that the promotion is being communicated in-store and that the corresponding point-of-sale material is being displayed. The marketing team will assess the take-up rates and use of promotional material when creating future campaigns.

Epson’s consumer sales manager, Tim Bedward, says: ‘We place great value on field-marketing data, which is used both by our sales and marketing teams. Effective data management enables us to monitor stock levels, promotions and merchandising compliance nationwide, and optimise sales accordingly.

‘However, it’s important to keep a strong focus with regards to what you want to achieve, and work backward,’ he adds. ‘Great emphasis can be put on data collection and reporting systems both by agencies and clients, but unless the output is used effectively, then the effort and investment often goes to waste. Opus helps us meet that challenge.’

Read the full article at http://www.brandrepublic.com/features/1159231/Field-marketing-coping-data-deluge/?DCMP=ILC-SEARCH