Technology Solutions and Shopper Marketing Strategy

The following is a short overview of Creative Agency Services Team (Cast) relative to the current retail landscape and specifically the move toward implementing technology at Point of Purchase.

Background Considerations:

In regard to the choices many retailers are now facing in their attempt to integrate technology-based display devices into their shelves, one of the problems we have noticed is that many of them are taking a ‘reactive’ approach in allowing Brands –and brand managers- to drive the decision as to which variety of device gets installed. Regardless of category, most of these devices either run a constant product video loop or activate automatically and play a product commercial, not the type of content that is useful in providing the shopper meaningful or relevant information that drives a purchase decision.

The result we are seeing is a hodge-podge of devices that clutter the shelves, yell unwanted marketing information (in-store spam) at shoppers as they pass by, annoy stores associates; and if they don’t break down, have the net [funhouse] effect of turning shoppers off… In a very short time frame, many retailers are going to wake up one day to find their stores buried in a disparate array of ineffective devices that do nothing to enhance the retail environment or customer shopping experience.

As the Architects of Customer Experience, the Cast model is to work with our retail partners to formulate a ‘proactive’ top-down approach to implementing virtual, interactive, CONTENT-DRIVEN, quality technology solutions that entice shoppers and give them control of the relevant information they are seeking to support a purchase decision... when it is needed most, at the point of sale.

Retailers, from a strategic perspective, have an opportunity here to not only implement technology as an effective shopper marketing strategy and better control retail atmospherics, but also to leverage an opportunity to floor plan the costs across various categories. Virtual, interactive, technology solutions -with the RIGHT CONTENT- is a key driver behind the argument that a small shift in 'Brand marketing' dollars toward in-store merchandising displays will have a profound impact on brand awareness, brand loyalty and result in eliciting the desired consumer behavioral response... a product purchase.

Commercials are made for TV. Relevant product information at the point of purchase is the domain of interactive display solutions.

Cast Competencies:

With these background considerations in mind Cast offers three key divisions of competency:

Retail Services – Cast Retail is currently the fastest growing retail services provider in the U.S. Due to our volume base and 'in-source agency' relationships with leading national retailers and major brand manufacturers, we have developed systems, training, and protocol specifically designed to address the unique needs of our clients. We have a track record of successfully integrating the systems and management style of an in-house organization with the scale and efficiency of an out-sourced model. Our goal is for our clients to feel that our competency is “in-sourced” to them (rather than contracting for out-sourced labor). The organization consist of over 18,000 Cast Members and 632 employees in all 50 states including Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. We have offices in Sarasota Florida and Ventura California to provide a bi-coastal presence for client support and operational proximity.

Virtual Interactive Solutions – Cast Interactive offers proprietary virtual interactive solutions for today, tomorrow, and the future. Casts launched its proprietary Sellavision™ platform in 2010 and other game-changing solutions (such as JiveNET and mobile) are poised for introduction in the near future. These solutions offer our clients an integrated system for directly marketing to shoppers at the point-of-sale, training store associates, and more effectively managing retail service.

Creative Services – Cast Creative was originally founded to provide in-house agency support for our interactive technology platforms. Our staff consist of award winning graphic artists, photographers, videographers, programmers and copywriters. This capability now allows us to offer world-class Branding, Photography, Web and Print Design.

This unique blend of competencies provide both retailers and brands with the assets needed to truly enhance the customer shopping experience while driving incremental sales.

Sellavision Demo Content

Green Tech Will Drive Economic Recovery

I have been speaking a lot over the last few years about America's need to assume a leadership role in clean energy technologies and solving (or heavily mitigating) the global climate crises. I am happy to see an important change in attitudes and value systems of people across the world -and particularly in this country- as it relates to our shared dilemma... shifting from a mind set of wastefulness and resource depletion... to one of energy conservation and independence, recycling [everything we can] and moving toward a world that runs on clean, renewable energy and treating our planet's resources in a way that is sustainable for our many future generations.

Now that we have achieved a critical mass in collective thinking and concern about these issues it is time to start investing in and developing these innovative technologies and solutions... lest we allow ourselves to fall further behind the many countries that have leaped ahead of US in 'green tech' investment and research. It was America that created the ideas and technologies that have have changed the world several times over... from the industrial revolution to the information [technology] revolution... and now where are we? Behind the curve.

I just read a spot-on article http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/08/13/shapiro.green.jobs/index.html by Andrew L. Shapiro, founder and president of GreenOrder, offering a very reasoned assessment of where we are, what we need to do -as a nation- in order to help save our planet AND OUR ECONOMY from it's current peril.

The benefits of an even greater investment -by our government, our private sector and ourselves- in the new green economy are pretty clear.

Celebrating the Art and Design Community

This may be a bit off topic... on the surface. Yet, I wanted to celebrate the inauguration of a new forum for art and design professionals.

It is in keeping with the ceremony of the launch of this unique online community of inspired and talented artists, craftsmen and design professionals that I write this post on on the topic of social marketing.

In your respective fields, you cultivate ideas and create unique and compelling stories -masterpieces of art and design... that engage... that excite... that elicit emotion and fulfill desires. This online community will help you all share your individual stories.

Social Marketing is about telling your unique story to your defined market. Social Media is the tool. When individuals in your desired market participate in the process of sharing your vision and promoting your value, they become an integral part of building your brand.

The Community of Art and Design... Was Designed... to provide a forum for the collaboration of IDEAS... to engage each other and the people we seek to serve... and to leverage a world-class network of industry professionals to develop synergies and reach our defined markets.

Enjoy / Participate / Create

Jeff Kratsch
Chief Innovation Officer
MarketsBeyond

www.marketsbeyond.com

Fully Distributed PBX

I just read an interesting 2008 report by Allan Sulkin http://www.stcconsultants.org/TEQConsult%20Group%202008%20Market%20Review.pdf on the Enterprise Communications market that discussed the shift from traditional TDM phone systems toward IP-enabled and pure IP/PBX solutions. It got me thinking... the evolution of this technology, from circuit switched PBXs to hybrid (TDM/digital PBX hardware w/ bolt-on VoIP) platforms has paved the way over the last few years for the development of true IP telephony solutions. What began as very expensive and marginally reliable VoIP applications (just ask the customers and telecom dealers who have tried it) has created a whole new crop of phone system manufacturers that are making a play with pure IP PBX hardware that is less expensive and offers advanced feature capabilities.

But here's the problem. The market is now becoming over-run with all kinds of IP phone systems... it seems like everyone has a "box" to sell these days. Yet none of these new players (and certainly none of the old established ones) have been able to solve the problems inherent in delivering Voice over the Internet (i.e. latency, jitter, packet loss) without making customers pay for expensive, dedicated "pipes" and expensive [LAN] network components. Even worse, many of these platforms are built on PCs and servers; which we all know have one critical flaw.. they crash! If your workstation PC crashes it knocks out the productivity of one worker. If that computer was running your entire business phone system you would wipe out the productivity of the entire organization... would you take that chance with your business?

There are some more intelligent new-comers that have built their IP phone systems on solid state hardware (no moving parts, no hard drive or fans) but these still only offer businesses an on-premise soltion that is on one end of the call path, leaving the voice packets at the mercy of the Internet cloud; which makes for a less than adequate solution with poor call quality and zero business continuity.

Sulkins report also made mention of a company called Shortel, that supposedly has a "fully distributed" PBX; but Shoretel uses a "peer to peer" relationship. Each local PBX talks to all the others. There is no central hub. All functionality exists on-site, all of it. Business continuity is affected. To maintain quality across locations, expensive circuits normally need to be provisioned (essentially point-to-point); and the system is expensive and complex to deploy. It seems they were heading in a smart direction, but really do not offer the SMB market a reliable, cost-effective solution... and that is what this evolution is about, the SMB. Enterprise can afford to pay for Cisco-style stuff, but the SMB is where the real paradigm shift is going to occur.

So who will be the successful players in the IP telephony space in the next decade? Who will solve the problems with delivering VoIP? Who will deliver on the cost saving promise of VoIP... in a way that actually saves real SMB customers real money while providing reliability and business continuity?

I have only come across one company, Star2Star Communications, who seems to have done it right so far. A company with a very different architecture; a true "Fully Distributed/Fully Managed" PBX architecture. Star2Star has built an Internet phone solution for small to mid-sized businesses that delivers on the promise of VoIP -they solved the problem with QoS over the WAN and offer the call quality, system reliability and disaster recovery that their competitors simply cannot. And they deliver it all at a cost that is typically less than what the average business currently pays for phone service alone.. pretty impressive. www.star2star.com

Check my next post for more on this..