Business Tip 13
A One-Size Fits All Approach to Consumer Centric Marketing -
Part 2

CCM Pointer #3 - Create geography specific selling materials

Why? Sales collateral like new item sell sheets are often the first impression buyers get of important manufacturer initiatives. The ability to presenting findings and relevant facts at a granular, geography-specific level stands to benefit parties on both sides of the table, especially considering the fact that consumer needs and wants vary greatly from one region to the next. Instead of presenting broad generalizations, try to answer (or ask) specific questions about how the product or initiative will impact the consumer at a particular store or region.

How? Relevant data is the foundation for generating specific, granular insights or recommendations and automation is the key to leveraging that data effectively across a large base of stores. Include tools in your business process that have the ability to consume and present vast amounts of data (from syndicated, through POS). Take advantage of automatic presentation generation to develop multiple iterations of collateral like sell sheets that have relevant data as well as commentary for each region, retail chain, or even stores. For example, XP3 from Interactive Edge can automatically generate real Microsoft Office output, complete with advanced intelligent commentary.

CCM Pointer #4 - Take your data on the road

Why? Because there is no one-size-fits-all approach, it is imperative to be able to respond flexibly at the point of impact. In the last set of CCM Pointers from Interactive Edge, we brought up the idea of drilling into data on-the-fly during manufacturer/retailer meetings. To do this, you need data—sometimes a lot of data. That volume of data is typically housed back in headquarters, and can be accessed over the internet. If you plan on presenting data-driven insights, and you don’t have a high speed internet connection (or can’t get through a firewall), you need to be able to take a slice of data with you.

How? First, leverage modern technology. Many people cringe at the idea of a “data slice” because it brings to mind the idea of giant, unwieldy Access files or proprietary storage from a data provider. In reality, these “issues” are symptoms of outdated tools and processes. Some of the world’s leading technology companies (e.g. Microsoft) have made great leaps forward in the last decade in terms of data storage and distribution. Today’s “data slice” is high-performance, compact, portable and available in an open standard that can be used across many tools.

Technology can also make the process of creating a local cube of data turn-key. For example, XP3, from Interactive Edge, gives users the ability from within PowerPoint to generate portable, local storage with a single click. The user can make selections through a simple wizard to identify additional data points to include, or just let the tool populate the specific data needed to drive that presentation. The local data that XP3 creates is small and in an industry standard format that can directly drive many tools—even Microsoft Excel.

The data, products and accounts depicted in this example are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual data, products or accounts is purely coincidental.