initiative is entrepreneurship!

Yesterday i had a chance to attend a presentation on entrepreneurship arranged by the leadership forum. i am sharing some of the rare worth mentioning points from the presentation for those who were lucky to miss it.

the presentation was of course delivered by none other than our own furqan, ali and zubair. the whole event was nothing more than a bunch of jesters inventing new ways of being mocked at, but they actually managed to say a few good things as well. the best part about their marketing and advertising consultancy company is the name itself. they have named it "Wishmarketing". when they were asked why they chose this name; Zubair told the audience that there was a wish behind starting their own business and the wish was to work for one's ownself rather than working for someone else. sine this wish became the sole cause of taking this initiative thy named their company Wishmarketing. during the highly interactive and amusing question answer session when they were asked to spell entrepreneurship, furqan very cleverly saved their shame by spelling it "INITIATIVE", which I believe is actually the true essence of entrepreneurship. the group told us that the fact that they are very young and inexperienced is not an obstacle in their way rather their clients actually like it.

telling a few words of wisdom, Ali said that one should do what he likes to do the best, enjoy his work and make it fun. after attending the session i can safely state that this bunch of jokers is actually enjoying the work and they are very enthusiastic about it.

the biggest positive I inferred from this session was that if these three guys whose brains work no more than an old drunken mouse can run a consultancy business, why can't I? its all about taking an initiative.

I wish them the best of luck for their fledgling business and appreciate them for taking this initiative. at the same time I disabuse them of their notion that they can earn a lot by working little and that money should be the sole motivation for working.

How Twitter can help you conduct your marketing Research

I found some articles about how Twitter can help in marketing research. Im giving their links below. Please read, discuss and post some more related articles if you find any.

http://www.searchengineguide.com/karri-flatla/twitter-as-target-market-research-tool-a.php

http://beingcheryl.com/2009/02/20/using-twitter-for-market-research/

http://pistachioconsulting.com/twitter-is-a-sea-of-market-research/

Twitter also sells research tools to marketers that allow them to direct message opted-in users with questions. It costs $20,000 to set up and $1.25 each time direct messaged users reply (Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/twitter/twitter-market-research)

10 Essential Entrepreneurs to follow on Twitter

http://mashable.com/2009/10/29/entrepreneurs-twitter-follow/

Beyond the wave!

This is a nice article about the brothers who came up with the ideas for Google Maps and now Google Wave. Please read and comment.

"The genius brothers behind Google Wave"
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/10/27/rasmussen.brothers.google.wave/index.html

How Apple Innovates!!

This article offers a good insight into the way Apple innovates. Read it and discuss please. Let's have some beneficial criticism

"You Can't Innovate like Apple" by Alain Breillatt
http://www.pragmaticmarketing.com/publications/magazine/6/4/you_cant_innovate_like_apple

Marketing research required all over

This post is basically in response to Rehan's last one. Gone are the days when companies and brands just used to launch products. Now each and every step requires extensive marketing research and careful planning. One has to look at customers' needs and wants. Remember the classic case of Coca Cola in 1985 when it introduced its new formula? Thats what I'm talking about. If you don't provide the customers with what they want, you are going under. Likewise when Windows Vista was launched back in 2007, it created a lot of hipe. But gradually as people used it they found out a lot of technical problems. And now Windows 7 has replaced Windows Vista and claims that those problems have been removed as well. All thanks to marketing research!

Use Anthropology to Get to Know Your Customers

When traditional market research fails, many companies are turning to ethnographic studies to better understand their customers' needs and desires. P&G launched a program called "Living It" where managers and senior leaders spend time in the homes of low-income customers around the world to develop deeper customer insights and create successful innovations. Google videotaped Chinese users as they searched using the powerful engine. The video allowed Google to see first-hand how the users were searching and exactly why they weren't getting satisfactory results. Think about how your company can observe customers using your products or services. Encourage your sales and marketing managers to get out of the office and closer to the customer. Reference: How Google and P&G approach New Customers, New Markets by Peter Sims