Following your overwhelming and supportive response to my June 1996
"Publisher's Outlook" entitled "The Sad State of Marketing in Corporate
America," I became encouraged to write this editorial, which may be considered a
natural extension of the June 1996 "Outlook."
Develop A Full-Time, Integrated Marketing Plan
In the June editorial, I demonstrated that many companies could be doing a better job of
basic marketing. Although learning the basics of marketing is critical, to be truly
successful, companies need to become proficient at full-time, integrated marketing.
Unfortunately, the practice of integrated marketing is not widespread.
What does a full-time, integrated marketing program entail? It would
incorporate a regular, systematic, full-time approach to marketing in all of the following
areas, including: a) regular public relations, b) regular direct mail, c) regular
editorial publication of success stories, d) effective and regular advertising with
supplements and inserts, etc., for maximum results, e) effective trade show exhibiting
(including effective pre-show, during-show, and post-show marketing), f) effective
relationship marketing, g) effective customer care and customer service, h) effective
database marketing, including modeling and profiling, i) effective use of the Internet and
the call center.
These are the main ingredients of integrated marketing, which I first
outlined back in my June 1992 "Publisher's Outlook."
Integrated marketing is indeed the heart and soul of effective, full-time
marketing in any corporation, if the corporation is to survive global competition, and
meet the competition head-on in doing an effective job of market-share protection and
market-share augmentation.
Part-Time Marketing Is Widespread
Unfortunately, part-time marketing is a disease that has infected many corporations, large
and small. Those that have been able to cure this disease and put in place a powerful,
high-impact, integrated, full- time marketing program will usually prosper, while those
that do not, even with a far superior product, will not go anywhere. You can look around
you in any industry and notice that this is a true statement time and time again.
Part-time marketing is particularly prevalent in companies where the chief executive and
all other members of the organization wear many hats. In these types of environments, it
is very easy to get bogged down in day-to-day operations and completely neglect marketing
opportunities for the company. If you look around you will find that this is the rule
rather than the exception among entrepreneurial companies. Such companies not only get
entangled with solving day-to-day problems, but they also somehow prefer to admire and
enjoy what they have developed and think the rest of the world will buy their product
simply because they happen to like it. In reality, the market is not made for your
products, rather, your products are made for the market. If the market does not know about
your product, it has no reason to purchase it.
Companies such as those just described every now and again, due to
pressure from their sales departments, may take a feeble action toward marketing.
Entrepreneurs often think that if they erratically show up at conventions or erratically
place advertisements or erratically participate in editorial opportunities, they are doing
a good job of marketing. In reality, nothing could be further from the truth. A marketing
organization that prides itself in doing a first-class job must keep its name constantly,
even daily, in front of their customers and in front of the industry. Considering that
exposure brings familiarity and familiarity brings comfort in purchasing, if a company is
erratically marketing or if a company is out of sight due to part-time marketing, then the
buyers' perception is that the company is not, in fact, fully committed to the industry.
Periodic support of the industry or periodic exposure to the industry indicates periodic
commitment to your products and services, and to the industry. Therefore, no one would
consider your company as a serious vendor!
Next month, I will discuss in more depth the important methods of ensuring
an effective, full-time, integrated marketing effort in your company.
Congratulations
To Ted Schwartz,Chairman And CEO Of APAC TeleServices, Inc., The Telemarketing Industry's
Second Hall Of Fame Inductee
This issue's cover story, an exclusive interview with Ted Schwartz,
profiles a man who was one of the pioneers of the industry.
Ted's introduction of the "tape-recorded close" revolutionized
teleservices as it marked the introduction of Quality Assurance to the industry by
providing for the first time an accurate, retrievable verification and confirmation on
every sales transaction.
As an active industry voice, he was chosen to represent the industry at
the Federal Trade Commission Public Workshop Conference and also participated in the
review and enactment of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991. As a leading voice
for the industry, he has been an active supporter of TCCS™ (formerly TBT�), the
industry's leading conference and exhibition. His 1992 TBT� keynote address, "What
Telemarketing Has Done For America: The Untold Story," dramatically changed many
consumers' views of teleservicing and led to the first comprehensive set of industry
economic and employment statistics, which have since become an essential reference for
legislators, corporations and teleservicing providers nationwide.
Also among Ted's achievements has been leading APAC to first place among
the nation's largest telemarketing service agencies in Telemarketing� & Call Center
Solutions™'s August 1996 ranking of the fastest-growing telemarketing companies, with
APAC achieving an amazing growth rate of 173.47 percent over the past year. APAC has also
been a regular member of Telemarketing� & Call Center Solutions™'s "Top
50" rankings, and Ted recently guided APAC to become the first telemarketing service
agency to reach in excess of $2.5 billion in market capitalization.
On behalf of the staff of Telemarketing� & Call Center
Solutions™ and the entire industry, I wish Ted continuing success and congratulate
him on his election to the Telemarketing Hall Of Fame.
Nadji Tehrani
Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
Welcome To
TCCS™ MONTREAL '96
The Call Center Industry's Leading Conference
And Exhibition Brings Unmatched Educational And Networking Opportunities To Montreal
The TCCS™ Conference and Exhibition series is designed to provide
comprehensive information from three particular sources: seminars, exhibitors and
networking opportunities. Each source works in combination with the other two to impart
working knowledge of all aspects of the telemarketing/call center process. We encourage
you to take advantage of all three to ensure a comprehensive learning experience.
Conference Program
At TCCS™ MONTREAL '96, topics to be discussed range from human resource development
to call center technology. Besides having an international foundation, we've also added a
new component to the program. To wrap up the Conference, an assembly of the session
leaders (Canadian and U.S. industry experts) will address your most difficult questions,
and provide answers to your most pressing challenges. This new TCCS™ session will
ensure that you leave the Conference with the answers you came to find.
Targeted conference tracks include Human Resource Development; Operations;
Customer Service; Direct Response & Database Marketing; Business-to-Business; Call
Center Strategies; Call Center Technologies; and Selling Savvy. We urge you not only to
take advantage of these comprehensive course offerings, but also to join us for the free
keynote.
The Keynote
Canada As The Gateway To Global Marketing: Claude Boivin (assistant vice president and
general manager, Bell Canada, Phone Power) will examine how the impact of the Internet,
CTI and new advancements in computer technology has forced corporations to position
themselves on a global platform. He will explain how Canada, and Montreal in particular,
with its advanced telecommunications technology, multilingual workforce and attractive
exchange rate, is well poised to handle the demand for just-in-time service in the global
marketplace, making it an exciting new gateway to the next century of world business.
(Thursday, November 7, 1996, 10:00-11:00 a.m.)
Pre-Conference Clinics
Our Pre-Conference Clinics, which take place November 6, 1996 (the day before the opening
of the Exhibit Hall and the main Conference Program), allow you the opportunity to attend
these nonconflicting presentations on CTI (computer-telephony integration) For Management.
The morning session looks at understanding the benefits of CTI, while the afternoon
session provides guidelines for successful implementation.
Exhibit Hall: Showcase Of State-Of-The-Art Technology For Call Centers,
Internet, CTI And Teleservices Industries
While at the show, be sure to visit the Exhibit Hall and ask questions! What you learn
from exhibitors will be invaluable. The Exhibit Hall at TCCS™ MONTREAL '96 features
more than 40 exhibitors that serve the Internet, telemarketing and call center industry.
Be sure to exchange business cards with everyone you meet, particularly the vendors,
because although you may not need their services now, in six months they may have the
solution you are seeking. While in the Exhibit Hall, be sure to get the most authoritative
information from the industry's most credible sources: Telemarketing� & Call Center
Solutions™ and CTI For Management™ magazines. Our booth (#414) will feature the
Telemarketing Bookstore, which contains the largest selection of educational books and
tapes in the industry. For those of you who wish to attend only the Exhibit Hall, please
return the V.I.P. registration form, which can be found in this issue (between pages 144
and 145), by November 1.
Networking
Enjoy good food and meet with the industry's top executives at both the Opening Night
Reception, to be held on Wednesday, November 6 between 5:00 and 8:00 p.m. at the Hilton
Bonaventure (sponsored by Bell Canada) and Telemania!™, the industry's most
outrageous, fun-filled networking reception, which will be held on Thursday, November 7
between 5:00 and 9:00 p.m. at the Hilton Bonaventure.
We look forward to welcoming you in Montreal this November 6-8.
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