Champions Life Academy Easter 2013

Team learning about The Children’s Trust.
Amazing Charity

Top 5 Ways To Humanise Your Brand To Students

Whilst listening to Chris Evans on Radio 2, my attention was grabbed when they started discussing smartphones. The news that Blackberry had just launched their new BB10 operating system and Z10 smartphone stirred the team in to discussing their own phones and differences in brand perception. Chris Evans asked the question, “Could it be that brands who have a face behind them are doing better that those without?” He gave examples of brands which he considered “humanised” like Microsoft and Bill Gates, Apple (and the iPhone) who had previously been led by Steve Jobs and Virgin with Sir Richard Branson. This lead him to the realisation that he was unaware of who the ‘face’ of Blackberry was and that this could be a valid reason for their loss of market share.

Firstly the CEO of Blackberry is Thorsten Heins, who could be considered the new (named CEO in Jan 2012) face of Blackberry. Secondly the answer to the question posed by Chris Evans is NO, there is not a correlation between brands with widely recognisable CEO’s and those without a recognisable CEO leading them, when it comes to success. What is important is a strong management TEAM. I base this opinion on a student panel survey (SPS) I ran focusing on FTSE100 companies.

SPS – I asked 15 students (Champions Marketing Ambassadors) if they could name as many past or current CEO’s of FTSE100 companies on the list provided.

The average number of correct answers was: 6 The maximum score was: 11 There was no pattern when it came to knowledge of the CEO and how successful the companies were.

(Try and guess how many you can name! I have submitted the question to the quiz show Pointless)

You do not need a ‘face’ behind a brand to humanize it, you can humanize a brand in many other ways. Having said that, I would like to differentiate between a CEO who is recognised by the general public and a CEO who is known by the markets. It is imperative that the CEO has the credentials and background to run a large company.

Champions Ambassadors getting ready for a Brand Campaign

The second part of the Student Panel Survey was to ask the students how they would humanize a brand when it comes to the student market. Below is the TOP 5 answers given by the students.

TOP 5 WAYS TO HUMANIZE YOUR BRAND TO STUDENTS

1. Create Access to the Company – Students want to feel like the brand is accessible. Head office tours sound like something out of Disneyland but they can be very appealing. I remember a visit and tour of The Bodyshop head office when I was at school.
2. Treat Students as Partners – Feeling involved or part of a process is desirable. Product sampling and surveys can create useful feedback but more importantly motivate students towards brands.
3. Empower Key Individuals – Certain students are power networkers either through societies or other social activities. Through engaging with these individuals, the brand starts to work on a peer-to-peer level.
4. Academy – Create a network or academy (forum) for student fans of the brand to engage directly. Many students are keen to help their favourite brands in return for recognition.
5. Awards – Continuing on from the Academy, rewarding students for contribution towards developing a brand is very desirable. This can be in the form of education (commercial) and certification.

written by John Pordum, Director of Champions Marketing

 

 

Incentives – Students want more than just money!

An incentive is something that motivates an individual to perform an action. The study of incentive structures is central to the study of all economic activity. (Wikipedia)

Incentives are one of, if not the most important driving force within our economy. You could jump to the conclusion that incentives are positive and motivate individuals to achieve their goals. The correct way to view incentives is that they motivate people to perform an action, the action can not always be predicted or be the intended action.

The root cause of the recent banking crisis has been traced back to the unwinding of the Banking Act of 1933 (often referred to as Glass Steagall Act) over several decades (source: President Clinton 2008 & American Bankers Association 2010). The Act, among other things, separated commercial & investment banking. Why did it/does it need regulation to keep them apart? If investment bankers have access to customers’ deposits, yet have no responsibility for these deposits, the incentive is in place for (a few) traders to gamble recklessly. What an amazing incentive for investment bankers and what a truly horrendous deal for banking customers.

So on one hand, the consequences of incentives can be very damaging and lead to undesirable events. On the other hand, with a careful study of your market place, incentives can be put in place to achieve amazing results.

Which brings me to the student market. In a recent student panel survey (source: Champions Marketing 2012), there was a disparity between what employers thought motivated students and what students cited as the main incentives they looked for, specifically in summer jobs. The issue with this is if employers do not recognise which incentives students rate the highest, then the desired actions will not be achieved.

When asked what students looked for in a summer job (187 Students and 15 Employers were asked) the results were:
#1 Motivator of Students (by employer): Money
v’s
#1 Motivator of Students (by Student): Experience

The current trend in student thinking (source: Champions Marketing 2012) is that they are already investing heavily in their degree (financially and time). What they desire most is experience during their holiday to complement their degree and give them the greatest chance of standing out from the crowd. Money becomes more of an incentive upon graduation.

An example of this can been seen within Champions Life Academy, who develop students for the business world through charity fundraising. One of the most impressive statistics the program promotes is that 89% of their alumni achieved their 1st choice job within 3 months of graduating.

Within the top 3 most desirable incentives (referenced by the students) offered by the internship was the company holiday. An all-inclusive trip for 1 week to a HOT destination, achieved by passing a pre-determined fundraising target.

Champions Ambassadors

This incentive over the last 5 years, has proved to be one of the most successful in terms of motivation and positive feedback from the students. The number of “likes” and photos shared through social media is testament to this. It also doubles as a fantastic way to show a potential employer different skill sets in an interview. Questions such as “Give an example of where you have set yourself a demanding goal and overcome obstacles to achieve it?” can be answered using the holiday achievement. Especially when combined with the fact that they knocked on over 3000 people’s doors to get there!

By looking closely at how incentives work and listening to your market place, there is a much greater chance of achieving the desired output. Not listening to feedback and to aimlessly put motivators in place can be more damaging than you think!

 

 

The Future is Peer to Peer Marketing

I recently read an article which opened with the claim “peer to peer lending could replace banks”. The source of the quote was Andrew Haldane, Director of the Bank of England. He went on to say “I see opportunity knocking for finance. Hopefully, the growth of peer-to-peer lenders and those involved in crowd-funding will help solve the problems we have with lending for small and medium enterprises. The banking middlemen may in time become surplus links in the chain.”

This is a bold prediction, considering the regulation that would have to change for this type of service to become main stream. I like this outlook and can see that the eBay of financial lending is on the horizon.

What interested me in the story was the similarity between this article and other recent news around peer to peer. I can see a clear trend throughout these articles.

People are connecting through many more channels. The way in which we communicate is developing, specifically in terms of speed and content. For example, disgruntled customers can connect more easily with one another, whipping up issues and exposing entire industries to unacceptable results or practices, sometimes within 140 characters or less.

So what is this trend?

Third Person Validation

Within social media this means, to receive agreement from the community regarding your communication. Social validation is very powerful and is a central reason for the rapid growth of sites like Facebook.

It is also the reason peer to peer marketing is exploding. The currency of Facebook is Likes, validation on Twitter is re-tweets. The more the community (especially peers) validate your opinions and views, the faster they spread. Good or Bad!

I believe this trend is going to continue and will shape the way we do business. The more genuine third person validations that circulate about products and services, the more small communities will begin to act as one and move towards or away from them.

Over the coming months, I will write up case studies I see or have been involved in, to demonstrate this trend and the huge power of peer to peer networks.

written by John Pordum, Director of Champions Marketing. Peer to Peer Marketing since 2008

University Student Numbers Drop – So what?

Champions

written by John Pordum on 12/12/12, director of Champions Life Academy & Champions Marketing.

The news is full of reports about 54,000 fewer students starting at UK universities this autumn.
The hike in tuition fees is without doubt one of the primary causes.

So What?

If you have read the book Freakonomics by Steven Levitt, you may be thinking along the same lines as I am.
The book explores the hidden side of everything, arguing that economics, at root, is the study of incentives.
The change in student numbers is a sizeable shift (an 11 per cent fall, according to the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service’s End of Cycle Report 2012). The result of the incentives to study at university changing.

1/ Getting a degree is no longer seen as a guarantee of a job
2/ Paying more money for what feels like a less certain future makes no sense
3/ Entrepreneurs in the media boast of having had no further education

I have no doubt in my mind that in decades to come, these changes in incentives will be listed as the main reasons for a fall in the overall levels of the UK population going into further education.

My Grandfather once told me that education is more important than I could ever imagine. It gives us the tools to make our dreams come true. As the son of a builder, he studied hard to become a successful vet and fulfil his dreams.

My straight forward conclusion to all this is if the UK wants to continue to thrive, invest in education at all levels.
The figures today point towards the news of tomorrow. The tools to build dreams are being removed.

What can you do?
Opportunities to develop yourself exist outside of the university arena. This is an industry which is likely to grow significantly as a result of the fall in student numbers as people seek out new ways to build their dreams.
Our business, Champions Life Academy, has seen an 800% growth in applicants in the last 5 years. The program offers students the chance to develop soft skills (communication, teamwork, resilience) through charity fundraising.
In the words of Steven Covey “Sharpen the Saw”. If the leaders of our country are making decisions with far-reaching negative consequences, you can still invest in your own education. Where growth stops, decay begins!

OnePiece and the power of Peer-to-Peer Marketing

OnePiece and the power of Peer-to-Peer Marketing.

OnePiece and the power of Peer-to-Peer Marketing

Earlier this year Champions Life Academy developed links with “OnePiece”. If you haven’t heard of the ‘onesie’, then take another look through the recent Sunday supplements and you’ll find several pages of coverage. Everyone from an X-Factor judge to football players have been seen in this adult bodysuit, a hooded sweater and sweatpants morphed into one.

OnePiece generously sponsor our student development program by offering their product as prizes. I was amazed at the reaction of our students, the demand for this garment of clothing was huge. How did they all know about it?

Whether you are a fan of the ‘onesie’ or not is exactly the point. Henrik, Knut & Thomas, three Norwegians in their twenties, have launched a new trend in fashion using 21st century marketing channels and a conflict of opinion.

The story of their meteoric rise is summarised on their website, “For two years they sold the OnePiece to friends and marketed it to high-school seniors in Norway. Then, in autumn 2009, some bloggers wrote about how much they loved the OnePiece, which triggered other bloggers to rant about how much they hated it. Fuelled by massive debate in social media, the OnePiece Jump in became a huge trend.”

Through bloggers expressing their opinions about the garment, the mass of information created on the product was vast, especially in the student world. Blogging sites led to more social media exposure and the upward spiral of awareness continued.

The student market is seen by many (especially Champions Life Academy) as a trend setting environment. Peer-to-Peer marketing is one of the most effective ways of rapidly grabbing market share. The student market has completely embraced the ‘onesie’ through a combination of social media exposure and Peer-to-Peer marketing. From this springboard, the company has been able to penetrate new markets and is on track for global awareness.

In summary, using blogging and social media as a way to express strong opinions, creates a great marketing platform. Within the student world, this can lead to a huge amount of student to student engagement, the ultimate product endorsement.

written by John Pordum, co-founder of Champions Life Academy & Champions Marketing, specialising in Peer-to-Peer marketing within the student world and developing students for business.

 

 

  

 

Champions

I am John Pordum, co-founder of Champions Life Academy & Champions Marketing. I am a fellow of the Institute of Sales & Marketing Management.

I blog about topics related to Sales & Marketing, specifically aimed at the student market.