The Future Is Remember Your P's

Most of the electronic and social media companies were started by Entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs are fortunate today in that there are a lot of smart people out there with unique skills that they can hire.

For sure to be successful you need the talented people in place ready and able to fix the Entrepreneur's mistakes!

The new Disruptive Technology is how entrepreneurs handle talent management and how they teach the Five P's.

Talented staff is taught the five P's all over again. Who would have thought these P's would be so important 50 years after they were first introduced.

PEOPLE - ensure that all employees know how they contribute to the success of the company. Every employee must be able to contribute and talented Managers know this or they get rid of them.

PRODUCT - it must fill a need. It can be unique or mundane but it must be needed. Customers must need or want it and of course the more frequently the better. Think of the cola market. Why Coke over Pepsi? Some claim it is the "thirst satisfaction" solution others claim it's "a modern fun drink solutions" all the time. What's your need "flavor" or "action & fun"?

PLACE - so much today with social networks is about where we can get the product? Can it be used anywhere? Why wait for it? It must be freely available whereever the consumer is. Think aspirin for example, available in stores, pharmacies, airport stores, vending machines all over the place in all types of packages and price points. Is your product available everywhere?

PROMOTION - no question print advertising in magazines and the press is long gone. It's all about social media today. How can the company find out where the consumer is so they can be reached with a specific promotion? GPS tracking is going to grow beyond all recognition. Think your cell phone, car radio, home computer, credit card payments and tracking devices in shoes and on your body. In the future with that information, a brand owner can design specific promotions around a consumer's needs.

PRICE - used to be number one! Why pay $0.50 for water in a chain store, $1.29 at the service station and $3 at a sports game, all for the same product? It's the 'need it now' syndrome. So how can the manufacturer get top dollar all the time for their products? The answer is in the other four P's.

Business plans have to be written about availability, package size, convenience, social recognition and recommendation and, of course, enjoyment when using the product. Just this past month Coke announced it made an error with its new white can replacing the old traditional red can. The new white can became confused with Diet Coke’s white can with devastating confusion in the marketplace. Result, new white can gone! Tropicana had similar confusion with a design that made this Premium product look like a store brand and resulted in consumer rejection. What was the result? Bring back the old printed package.

So for 2012 and beyond Brand owners have to mind their P's.

People
Product
Place
Promotion
Price

A very successful 2012 to all our supporters.