

Strategic Marketing Alignment
Background: A large manufacturer has multiple product lines. Product teams are producing incompatible strategic documents. Company and vendor stakeholders are frustrated by inconsistent data. Standardization is desired but product lines differ widely.
Challenge: How to provide standardization yet allow flexibility? How to satisfy all stakeholders without overwhelming with information?

Results: Full adoption of new template by all teams. Stakeholders applaud transformation. Strategic alignment opens up collaboration between product teams and even between departments.
How we did it
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Conducted interviews across 80+ stakeholders
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Synthesized into high-level recommendations
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Ratified strategy with Steering Committee
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Developed high-level information architecture
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Built prototype for most challenging product line
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Tested prototype, iterated, and documented standards
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Engaged and trained product teams to produce strategic documents per the new template
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Developed sharing rules and production timelines
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Identified opportunities for synergy across product lines
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Trained organization to update and improve process with time

RESULTS
CLIENT SUCCESS STORIES

Overhaul Customer Communications Program
Background: For 30 years, an automotive OEM has supported an owner-communications 50/50 co-op marketing program with it 1,200+ dealers. But dealer marketing practices are out of date and marketing vendors are taking advantage of them (and the OEM).
Challenge: Design a new program to be paid 100% by the OEM, roll it out with three national vendors, and convince the dealers to make the transition.

Results: 96% of Dealers convert to new program within 3 months. Owner response rates are well above industry averages. Administrative costs to run the program are slashed. Project boasts a whopping 20X ROI within the first year.
How we did it
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Collected and fused large, disparate data sets
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Analyzed marketing performance ​
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Understood what program aspects were working, what wasn't and why​
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Defined marketing channels, media types and cadences​
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Created funding model that sized financial support based on Dealer retention metrics​
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Negotiated national vendors for delivery standards and pricing
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Developed launch video for change campaign with dealers​
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Produced custom reports for each dealer showing "before" and "after" scenarios​
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Trained regional sales teams to roll out the new program and transition dealers
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Leveraged national promotion campaigns with the new owner communications program​
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Collected data to iterate and augment program in following year

Transform Diversity Marketing
Background: Multinational manufacturer has four separate advertising agencies, each targeting a specific audience (Caucasian, African American, Asian, and Hispanic). Agencies are competing for ad spend, creating redundancies and waste.
Challenge: Determine appropriate budget allocation (for multiple product lines) across agencies and how to effectively coordinate them across all marketing channels (broadcast, online, social, engagement, etc.). In addition, optimize synergies across agencies while ensuring optimal performance within each diversity audience.

Results: Market share of all diversity populations increase. Manufacturer is back on track to be #1 share across all diversity populations in product categories targeted.
How we did it
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Analyzed data (enormous amounts) to determine performance compared to competitors​
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Researched market trends and project diversity market growth rates over next 20 years
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Facilitated all-day summit of over 50 senior marketing stakeholders reviews research and data findings​
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Recommended shift from "vertical" silo approach to "horizontal" integrated approach
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Reorganized 150+ person marketing department (tectonic change)​
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Enforced 4-agency collaboration coordinated by lead agency
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Measured performance by marketing channel and create tight feedback loops​
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Aligned budget allocation according to performance by product and market segment

Transform Training Development & Delivery
Background: Company launches new products throughout the year and has to generate and disseminate training to its national network of dealers. Dealers are complaining the information arrives too late, there are annoying inconsistencies and redundancies. Company is experiencing high costs of production, both directly to vendors producing as well as high internal costs of marketing and legal review of content.
Challenge: Streamline the entire process, reduce delivery times and costs.

Results: Delivery times and direct costs of production are reduced 50% (indirect costs reductions estimated the same). Common language eliminates inconsistency of content. Customer satisfaction metrics double.
How we did it
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Mapped flow of information, understood critical paths and production bottlenecks
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Identified gaps between produced information and dealer needs
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Assembled team of subject matter editorial, video and graphics experts​
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Created unified information architecture across training products​
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Developed performance metrics
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Built "library" of information modules - pre-approved language from legal and marketing​
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Created knowledge management system to house and repurpose developed content
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Delivered training products via mobile technologies for faster and more convenient access​
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Integrated scripts for video series into development and approval pipeline