Everything Looks The Same
I grew up on the East Coast, and have lived on the West Coast for 18 years. So when I spent 2 1/2 years commuting to Indiana, it was a great experience for a marketer to see another view of the American consumer. I was left with a greater appreciation for the role of Wal-Mart in the typical consumer’s life, as well as a deep appreciation for the diversity found in my current city of residence, San Francisco.
Why the reminiscing? Because I just spent an hour wading through marketing materials from the Fred. Newell CRM Conference that took place earlier this month. Suddenly all of the database marketing/email/campaign management providers sound very, very similar, all promising more loyalty, more sales, higher ROI, more insight, etc. It reminds me of the ads for apartment buildings in Indiana, where everything had a pool, workout facility, clean units, a new kitchen, parking, and easy access to freeways. You had to filter based on location, then visit everyone in a region to figure out the differences. I quickly began using price as a proxy for quality to cut through the clutter.
Clearly there is a major challenge for marketing execs at retention marketing solutions (i.e. me) to better differentiate from competitors. Feel free to comment or send me feedback directly on the topic.
