The greatest marketing strategy is not all about advertising. It’s true the customer will want to buy the product he sees and knows about and advertising plays a role there, but as we learn more about consumer behavior we realize even the best advertisements do not convert into a sale.
In a country like India where owning a particular ‘brand’ is still a luxury afforded by only 10-15% of consumers, what makes a consumer buy a particular product is still unanswered to large extent. In this article I want to talk about an unused marketing team which every company has and which can help you sell your product in ways better than any advertisement campaign you plan. I am talking about the retailers. The retailers are your best salesman. They are at the end of your product supply chain and hold a distinct advantage as they are the ones dealing directly to your customers. They have a unique advantage over any of your marketing teams as they are the ones who finally sell your product. These are your best friends and will serve you good in business if you take their proper care.
I remember when I was a kid helping dad with his business; my job was to sell watches. I would say 8 in every 10 customers came in to buy a watch and 2 came in to buy a particular brand of a watch. And out of all the brands I had with me, for those 8, I decided what I want to sell based on what will be my margin. I am not saying I was always able to convince but the potential I had to make that sale was used by some companies better than others. The first 2 got sold for their advertisement, for the brand, but from the rest 8 who just wanted watches, I could sell to 4 the brand which took proper care of me. A 2% increased margin and the company had me fighting for their product. And margins were just one of the ways of their appreciation they gave me to fight their case.
It will still take time for the retail industry to give us the malls and the power (sometimes forced) to choose what we buy. But in majority of Indian households it is still the grocery store owner who decides what brand of toothpaste and soap that is used. I agree it is not applicable for all products but you can’t undermine the potential he has in convincing the customer buy a particular car, a particular washing machine, a particular soap, toothpaste, watch and so on.
So the next time you review the salary structure of your sales team or budgeting for your marketing strategies, do include a thought about this unused sales force and how much you want them to be on your side.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
chatting with extremes
It was a rather exciting weekend as far as my online chat avatar is concerned. I had couple of very amusing discussions with two people who really were at two different extremes in their respective lives right now.
On one hand was this smart ass friend who was busy, in fact tired of, chasing girls away. This was after months of making them feel like a princess and sincere efforts to charm them to fall for him. But even with being sure of repeating this process again in future, he was totally confused on the reasons of his actions.
On the other extreme was this guy, who was leaving no stones unturned to allow someone make a fool of him after falling madly in love with her. He was really sure that she is the one for him. As sure as she was that he was not the one for her.
The irony is with both the fellas, the one who is sure about things is in a mess and the one who is as confused as any could be is...in a mess too :)....so where do one stand, which path is the sane one. What happened to the good old concept of vanilla love?? How many are into that anymore..?? I chatted with both hearing them out for hours...and couldn’t help wonder how come all this reaches this level. How come you not know that someone doesn’t love you the way you do and back off before it hits you so hard that you can’t act sane? And how can you play everything around you like a game where you first run and touch and then run in opposite direction. First drawing the 'subject' and testing whether they run towards you so that if they do not you run some more to touch them. It's like all trophies will be won but not kept.
Now that the weekend is over...and when I look back to these conversations…it occurs to me that i may have been laughing at the foolishness but it was no joke and things were serious...these are real people and how much ever i say that "dude, its not that complicated"...i think it is... I think I don’t have the ability to comprehend why people do insane things for love...or why people put themselves in situations which have no logical explanations…(oh me and my love for logics J)
It’s getting difficult day by day to keep believing “life is not as complicated as you think it is”, it might just be as complicated as you think. Love might just be as complicated as they say.
On one hand was this smart ass friend who was busy, in fact tired of, chasing girls away. This was after months of making them feel like a princess and sincere efforts to charm them to fall for him. But even with being sure of repeating this process again in future, he was totally confused on the reasons of his actions.
On the other extreme was this guy, who was leaving no stones unturned to allow someone make a fool of him after falling madly in love with her. He was really sure that she is the one for him. As sure as she was that he was not the one for her.
The irony is with both the fellas, the one who is sure about things is in a mess and the one who is as confused as any could be is...in a mess too :)....so where do one stand, which path is the sane one. What happened to the good old concept of vanilla love?? How many are into that anymore..?? I chatted with both hearing them out for hours...and couldn’t help wonder how come all this reaches this level. How come you not know that someone doesn’t love you the way you do and back off before it hits you so hard that you can’t act sane? And how can you play everything around you like a game where you first run and touch and then run in opposite direction. First drawing the 'subject' and testing whether they run towards you so that if they do not you run some more to touch them. It's like all trophies will be won but not kept.
Now that the weekend is over...and when I look back to these conversations…it occurs to me that i may have been laughing at the foolishness but it was no joke and things were serious...these are real people and how much ever i say that "dude, its not that complicated"...i think it is... I think I don’t have the ability to comprehend why people do insane things for love...or why people put themselves in situations which have no logical explanations…(oh me and my love for logics J)
It’s getting difficult day by day to keep believing “life is not as complicated as you think it is”, it might just be as complicated as you think. Love might just be as complicated as they say.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
It has been four months I have not been home and i feel it......I think when you are away from home it always happens. ...you try and run back to your past..a past which doesnt exist in the same form as you remember...the games you played as a kid ...the fun times..you believe the things are all the same as they used to be .....waiting for you to come back and pick up from where you left
When you travel away form home you not only travel the distance but the time ...
I wish I could be in two places at one time..one me working hard in any part of the world making the sure the other me is happy and enjoying being close to home.
I dont know what i miss more the things i use to do or the people i did them with..
When you travel away form home you not only travel the distance but the time ...
I wish I could be in two places at one time..one me working hard in any part of the world making the sure the other me is happy and enjoying being close to home.
I dont know what i miss more the things i use to do or the people i did them with..
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Potential topics to write on...
random thoughts which will should convert into an article someday..
1.why don't we have paper and a pen/pncil insde the office restrooms...
2.People say "yar kuch padhai nahin kari" just to be cool...
3.Dont worry about non renewable sources of energy, trust the human intelligence, much before we run out of them we wil find alternate sources of energy...Devil's advocate
4. Its all in the name...identity the most important asset you have ..
1.why don't we have paper and a pen/pncil insde the office restrooms...
2.People say "yar kuch padhai nahin kari" just to be cool...
3.Dont worry about non renewable sources of energy, trust the human intelligence, much before we run out of them we wil find alternate sources of energy...Devil's advocate
4. Its all in the name...identity the most important asset you have ..
Friday, March 7, 2008
tying that perfect knot...
I take great pride to announce that today, for the first time in my life I was able to tie a tie knot by myself which was not only wearable, but close to 'the perfect knot'. For someone like me, to whom tying a wearable knot had always been some rocket science “turn it left now, no over to that side, oh now around that loose end” phew those directions, it was a big day today. All those complex formulas made sense to me in just one moment of truth.
I was sitting as usual on my happy place, with pants down till my ankle and dropping crap in the water, on more mundane days the next obvious action would have been to quickly take a power nap before I pack myself back to enter the civilized world again, but today was different. I had a purpose, I had a reason and instead of just crapping my way to a power nap I actually did what I had set out (sat down) to do. It seems odd now how such a mundane daily activity can mean so much more some time.
With thousands of failed efforts riding on my back, the perfect triangle eluding me for so long that it became almost a second Bermuda triangle mystery for me. I had always managed to reach squares and rectangles, managed with lengths short enough to enter my shirt pocket and long enough to enter my zipper. But today it was like I was born with a tie in my hand, swift movement of hands, hands gliding the fabric like a nanny knitting a sweater oblivious to her surroundings, creating a masterpiece for a close loved one.
And..in seconds it was there, the perfect triangle, the perfect length, the perfect knot. I wanted to stand up and clap for myself, but due to the circumstances just kept sitting and clapped anyway. I am proud of the fact that I dint quit on it and love the fact that it happened. Learned an important lesson today......Learning new things is the fastest way to earn self respect.
Stay foolish, stay hungry…..keep learning.
I was sitting as usual on my happy place, with pants down till my ankle and dropping crap in the water, on more mundane days the next obvious action would have been to quickly take a power nap before I pack myself back to enter the civilized world again, but today was different. I had a purpose, I had a reason and instead of just crapping my way to a power nap I actually did what I had set out (sat down) to do. It seems odd now how such a mundane daily activity can mean so much more some time.
With thousands of failed efforts riding on my back, the perfect triangle eluding me for so long that it became almost a second Bermuda triangle mystery for me. I had always managed to reach squares and rectangles, managed with lengths short enough to enter my shirt pocket and long enough to enter my zipper. But today it was like I was born with a tie in my hand, swift movement of hands, hands gliding the fabric like a nanny knitting a sweater oblivious to her surroundings, creating a masterpiece for a close loved one.
And..in seconds it was there, the perfect triangle, the perfect length, the perfect knot. I wanted to stand up and clap for myself, but due to the circumstances just kept sitting and clapped anyway. I am proud of the fact that I dint quit on it and love the fact that it happened. Learned an important lesson today......Learning new things is the fastest way to earn self respect.
Stay foolish, stay hungry…..keep learning.
Sunday, February 24, 2008
arbit thoughts
The other day I just asked a friend 'Are you waking up every morning doing something you are passionate about", to my surprise he said "yes". To my surprise, because he was the only one to say 'yes' out of around 10 people to whom I asked this question.
Now a question to you. What brings you to that cubicle, in front of that computer every morning 5 days a week? Have you stopped asking that question because you are tired of asking it....or do you still ask it as a ritual but don’t really look for answers anymore? What makes you not give your best when you for sure know you can do the job better. You know you are smart and if you really wanted, you could have done the job in a much efficient way but ...you dont do it. Is it that the juice doesn’t seem worth the squeeze? I don’t need answers for these questions....you do.
For me, while trying to find answers for "why I don’t put my best in work, is this plain laziness or is there some reason to it", I revisited my history and the places I loved to go, things I loved to do, I tried finding out incidents where I loved to go the extra mile, trying to remember those incidents in life where I pushed the levels of my commitment to a task and tried finding out what made me to do them then.
I remember I never wanted to miss school, whatever the case I had to go to school, even when some relatives were at home and mom would say you can take an off today, I would not miss school, what would make me attend the summer classes every year, be a part of all the annual, semi annual, quarterly, monthly, weekly daily functions or celebrations, where did that energy came from, why did I have to be a part of making things better in school. I remember....I loved my school.
I was never an early morning person, I would miss breakfast, sometimes even my bath just to have that extra 5 mins of sleep, and this makes me wonder, if I was so against of waking up early that I wanted it to be government law to not wake up kids before 8 then what use to make me wake up at 5 on those summer morning when I use to go play cricket, what made me wake up at 5 without an alarm clock then and what makes me miss my office bus at 8 with three back to back alarms now. I remember...I loved cricket.
Summers in Delhi can be really hard on you, with temperatures touching 45c you better stay indoors when your mom asks you to. Though they peak around June July, august brought the moisture in along with the heat and you sure will sweat like a pig if you are out for more than 5 minutes. But the summer sun could never stop me to climb up the stairs and sit on the rooftop flying kites, listening to music. I could barely notice how hot the weather was when the kite was in the air swaying at movement of my finger. How could I survive that heat for hours smiling and let go of a sighs and cries even is the AC switched of for a second in office. I remember....I loved flying kites.
Holi celebrations started at 9 in the morning, to get the heads up the next morning I would spend the whole night before the D-day filling up and tying the water balloons, I would negotiate with cousins for their help, trying to tell them why we need to start early on this, so they help me get the bucket full of balloons ready before I go to the battle the next day. It was a big deal for me back then. When I could spend hours on the night before holi to get heads up the next day why don’t I work on my presentations and reports the night before work in the same way. I remember...I loved playing holi.
It may be just me....but this is my blog it can be just me.
I am not trying to say I don't love my work. I do. I like what I do, but I am not passionate about it the same way I was about so many other things in life. I am part of the herd which was only offered a single dish to eat, take it or stay hungry, I think just like many I took it. Now, is it too late to go out there and look for something new, have I eaten too much....whatever the case may be ...I know when I was a kid there were things which I loved doing, something for which never cared how much was the hard work involved, for which the extra effort brought a smile and not pain ...and if I have to necessarily eat something for the rest of my life I better eat something I love to eat. I might go hungry on some days in between maybe stay hungry for longer than I expect, but it makes sense and deserves the risks.
The dots may never join, I may never be known for someone whose dots joined to make something spectacular, I may not become popular if the dots never join but I will always be well respected by me if I keep making the dots at least, so Mr. Steve jobs I bought your speech, I am promising not to settle until I find what I love, I am Staying hungry Staying foolish............
"Are you waking up every morning doing something you are passionate about?”
Now a question to you. What brings you to that cubicle, in front of that computer every morning 5 days a week? Have you stopped asking that question because you are tired of asking it....or do you still ask it as a ritual but don’t really look for answers anymore? What makes you not give your best when you for sure know you can do the job better. You know you are smart and if you really wanted, you could have done the job in a much efficient way but ...you dont do it. Is it that the juice doesn’t seem worth the squeeze? I don’t need answers for these questions....you do.
For me, while trying to find answers for "why I don’t put my best in work, is this plain laziness or is there some reason to it", I revisited my history and the places I loved to go, things I loved to do, I tried finding out incidents where I loved to go the extra mile, trying to remember those incidents in life where I pushed the levels of my commitment to a task and tried finding out what made me to do them then.
I remember I never wanted to miss school, whatever the case I had to go to school, even when some relatives were at home and mom would say you can take an off today, I would not miss school, what would make me attend the summer classes every year, be a part of all the annual, semi annual, quarterly, monthly, weekly daily functions or celebrations, where did that energy came from, why did I have to be a part of making things better in school. I remember....I loved my school.
I was never an early morning person, I would miss breakfast, sometimes even my bath just to have that extra 5 mins of sleep, and this makes me wonder, if I was so against of waking up early that I wanted it to be government law to not wake up kids before 8 then what use to make me wake up at 5 on those summer morning when I use to go play cricket, what made me wake up at 5 without an alarm clock then and what makes me miss my office bus at 8 with three back to back alarms now. I remember...I loved cricket.
Summers in Delhi can be really hard on you, with temperatures touching 45c you better stay indoors when your mom asks you to. Though they peak around June July, august brought the moisture in along with the heat and you sure will sweat like a pig if you are out for more than 5 minutes. But the summer sun could never stop me to climb up the stairs and sit on the rooftop flying kites, listening to music. I could barely notice how hot the weather was when the kite was in the air swaying at movement of my finger. How could I survive that heat for hours smiling and let go of a sighs and cries even is the AC switched of for a second in office. I remember....I loved flying kites.
Holi celebrations started at 9 in the morning, to get the heads up the next morning I would spend the whole night before the D-day filling up and tying the water balloons, I would negotiate with cousins for their help, trying to tell them why we need to start early on this, so they help me get the bucket full of balloons ready before I go to the battle the next day. It was a big deal for me back then. When I could spend hours on the night before holi to get heads up the next day why don’t I work on my presentations and reports the night before work in the same way. I remember...I loved playing holi.
It may be just me....but this is my blog it can be just me.
I am not trying to say I don't love my work. I do. I like what I do, but I am not passionate about it the same way I was about so many other things in life. I am part of the herd which was only offered a single dish to eat, take it or stay hungry, I think just like many I took it. Now, is it too late to go out there and look for something new, have I eaten too much....whatever the case may be ...I know when I was a kid there were things which I loved doing, something for which never cared how much was the hard work involved, for which the extra effort brought a smile and not pain ...and if I have to necessarily eat something for the rest of my life I better eat something I love to eat. I might go hungry on some days in between maybe stay hungry for longer than I expect, but it makes sense and deserves the risks.
The dots may never join, I may never be known for someone whose dots joined to make something spectacular, I may not become popular if the dots never join but I will always be well respected by me if I keep making the dots at least, so Mr. Steve jobs I bought your speech, I am promising not to settle until I find what I love, I am Staying hungry Staying foolish............
"Are you waking up every morning doing something you are passionate about?”
Monday, February 18, 2008
Word Power made easy...................
"To vegetate": .......
Perhaps you wake up some gloomy monday morning (why is it that monday is the worst day of the week?) and beginto think of the waste of the last years. Intellectualy, there has been no progress - you've read scarcely half a dozen books, haven't made one new, exciting friend, havn't had a startling or unusual thought. Economically, things are no better same old money in the bank, same old job, same old 9-5 workdays, the burgers, the sandwich, the junk as lunch, the same drear travel home that is also if you at your own. What a life! No change, nothign but routine, sameness, monotony -and ....for what?
(By now you you'd better get up - this type of thinking never leads anywhere, as you've long since learnt)
"To vegetate": .......
Perhaps you wake up some gloomy monday morning (why is it that monday is the worst day of the week?) and beginto think of the waste of the last years. Intellectualy, there has been no progress - you've read scarcely half a dozen books, haven't made one new, exciting friend, havn't had a startling or unusual thought. Economically, things are no better same old money in the bank, same old job, same old 9-5 workdays, the burgers, the sandwich, the junk as lunch, the same drear travel home that is also if you at your own. What a life! No change, nothign but routine, sameness, monotony -and ....for what?
(By now you you'd better get up - this type of thinking never leads anywhere, as you've long since learnt)
Sunday, February 17, 2008
she:"It's freezing outiside"
me:"i dont mind, i am used to being cold anyway"..
she:"for god's sake anish can you stop with this crap.."
first arguer:(chuckles)..i love it when she is annoyed..
second arguer: shut up asshole, can you give her a break
she:"can you give it a break ever"
SA: see..
me:(silence)
FA: what..i just thought it was funny
she:"are you even listening to me"
me:"yeah"
she:"what yeah, why cant you tell me what you are thinking, why do i always have to push you on this"
SA: now answer this, moron
FA: dont you know this answer
SA: look at this now, you cant even speak it out to me, bloody coward
me:"i am not thinking anything yar, why do i have to be thinking something whenever i am quite"
FA: wow nice answer man..
she:"anish, you very well know what you are doing... no point in telling you what it is about, i only want you start being true to yorself"
FA:what makes her think i am not !!!
SA:oh cmon u fucker are u .?..are u sure of what to say ...u fucking always just talk gas ..now what will u try and do to make her get pissed and leave u han
me:"yar, i am sure about things and."
she:"listen, lets talk when you know what you are saying, and when you plan to stick to what you are saying...i dont want impulsive arguments thrown at me ..i think i have had enough of them"
me:"i dont mind, i am used to being cold anyway"..
she:"for god's sake anish can you stop with this crap.."
first arguer:(chuckles)..i love it when she is annoyed..
second arguer: shut up asshole, can you give her a break
she:"can you give it a break ever"
SA: see..
me:(silence)
FA: what..i just thought it was funny
she:"are you even listening to me"
me:"yeah"
she:"what yeah, why cant you tell me what you are thinking, why do i always have to push you on this"
SA: now answer this, moron
FA: dont you know this answer
SA: look at this now, you cant even speak it out to me, bloody coward
me:"i am not thinking anything yar, why do i have to be thinking something whenever i am quite"
FA: wow nice answer man..
she:"anish, you very well know what you are doing... no point in telling you what it is about, i only want you start being true to yorself"
FA:what makes her think i am not !!!
SA:oh cmon u fucker are u .?..are u sure of what to say ...u fucking always just talk gas ..now what will u try and do to make her get pissed and leave u han
me:"yar, i am sure about things and."
she:"listen, lets talk when you know what you are saying, and when you plan to stick to what you are saying...i dont want impulsive arguments thrown at me ..i think i have had enough of them"
SA:she knows you dude....give it up..
FA: shut up asshole
me:"you have had enough of me ??"
she:" stop being useless anish"
FA:ok she wins this round
SA:can you please stop treating all this as one fucking game ..it is not...(silence)
me:silence
she: (leaves)
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
this valentines..
Its not a negotiaion, nor a compromise, a mixed game of pushes and pulls, 'how can you define it?' should be answered by 'why should you..'.......i am no expert on talking about love, but still today taking time to let someone know i still love him..
Today being valentines day just thought to reiterate in writing that i still love 'me'. I have not stopped trying and doing new things for 'me', still not doubting 'your' potetnial and still have a belief in 'your' abilities ..i want to tell 'me' that i still look forward to work on the things i promised 'myself'. That i still listen to what 'me' says .if not, then i promise i will try and listening to 'me' a lil more ...seriously. I promise to treat 'me' just the way i would treat someone i really love, cause 'me' deserves it as much.
I promise to be not too hard and forgive 'me' for his mistakes, i will plan surprizes for 'me' often , i will hear 'me's advice and will work on them too. Will try and make 'me' do the things he always wanted to do this year. I know i have not been that attentive but this valentine i want to promise that i would take care of things and would treat 'you' the same way as i would do for any of the other loved on
thaati..
PS: Still not convinced with why i ma doing this, bloggin i mean..but as promised, giving this a try for atleast a few weeks..
Today being valentines day just thought to reiterate in writing that i still love 'me'. I have not stopped trying and doing new things for 'me', still not doubting 'your' potetnial and still have a belief in 'your' abilities ..i want to tell 'me' that i still look forward to work on the things i promised 'myself'. That i still listen to what 'me' says .if not, then i promise i will try and listening to 'me' a lil more ...seriously. I promise to treat 'me' just the way i would treat someone i really love, cause 'me' deserves it as much.
I promise to be not too hard and forgive 'me' for his mistakes, i will plan surprizes for 'me' often , i will hear 'me's advice and will work on them too. Will try and make 'me' do the things he always wanted to do this year. I know i have not been that attentive but this valentine i want to promise that i would take care of things and would treat 'you' the same way as i would do for any of the other loved on
thaati..
PS: Still not convinced with why i ma doing this, bloggin i mean..but as promised, giving this a try for atleast a few weeks..
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
i am in..
name: Anish Jain
Age 23
first post ever..
i have never had the need to write anything..with so many people to listen and talk to all the time, writing a blog was last thing on my mind ever, plus to blog means to put in writing what i think. It is such a scary thought cause what if i think and write something today...but later change my mind. I cannot go deleting and editing blogs...but i think with new found vella time due to this oh so so very important trip and project (sarcasm yeah..) something has forced me to give this a try ..
i have heard how blogs could become somthing of a mirror to your personlity..well if that is true i think that should have been the best reason why i never tried this till now...(its enough that I see myself, why bother others with it. ),
anyway all those thoughts apart, i am doing here something out of my pattern of things, something i would have never tried even if i was paid to do so...hope this dies out soon and i get busy with useful work rather than coming here and typing about what i think ...will keep this to record random, arbit thought navigations for time being so maybe some day i come back to find out what was i thinkign at 23..
Age 23
first post ever..
i have never had the need to write anything..with so many people to listen and talk to all the time, writing a blog was last thing on my mind ever, plus to blog means to put in writing what i think. It is such a scary thought cause what if i think and write something today...but later change my mind. I cannot go deleting and editing blogs...but i think with new found vella time due to this oh so so very important trip and project (sarcasm yeah..) something has forced me to give this a try ..
i have heard how blogs could become somthing of a mirror to your personlity..well if that is true i think that should have been the best reason why i never tried this till now...(its enough that I see myself, why bother others with it. ),
anyway all those thoughts apart, i am doing here something out of my pattern of things, something i would have never tried even if i was paid to do so...hope this dies out soon and i get busy with useful work rather than coming here and typing about what i think ...will keep this to record random, arbit thought navigations for time being so maybe some day i come back to find out what was i thinkign at 23..
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