So here's a book update now that the semester is over and I've been able to get my desk in order and found some time (elusive though it is).
In one of my earlier postings I wrote about Robin Hood Marketing, a book that I had selected to use in my Non-Profit and Social Marketing class.
Well now that the course is over, I can look back and reflect if it was the right decision to include this book in the curriculum, and if I should continue to use this book as the springboard in the course.
Students were asked to read the book in the first three weeks of class. We held discussions on specific themes and they all participated. However, it wasn't until the final reflections that I got a better sense of how some felt about the book:
"My views started to change a little bit when I started reading Robin Hood Marketing. Some of the concepts in that book were very inspiring. The one that I relate to the most is the concept of checking your assumptions at the door. This is a concept that I need to work on very hard in my life. This class was a great example of the concept in my life. I thought it was a waist of time but as time went on I was able to see the light at the end of the tunnel. This chapter in Robin Hood Marketing changed my view on the class and is now a really big part in my life. I still snap judge situations but never endeavors."
"Although reading isn’t one of my favorite activities, the reading we did in this course was very helpful. In the first half of the semester we read “Robin Hood Marketing”, written by Katya Andresen. Katya preduced winning marketing campaigns to ten essential rules that are needed to either motivate people to take action, give money, or advance your worthy cause. I have read a lot of other marketing books and they have all seemed similar to each other, but this book helped me understand how to be successful with something you are passionate about, whether your organization is non-profit or for-profit. Katya made it clear that in order to get people to take action; you need to get the message not only into their heads, but into their hearts."
To start off the semester we read “Robin Hood Marketing” by Katya Andersen, which was about “Stealing corporate savvy to sell just causes.” This book was an introduction to the challenges that non-profits face with marketing and how they can overcome them[1]. One example of this is how many non-profits make the mistake of educating their audiences too much. Andersen makes the point that this is ineffective, and you are better off connecting with them in other ways like through their emotions. The examples throughout the book enforced the concepts of having a passion, knowing your market, and overall they just plain showed us that: Anything can be done!
1] I liked this book so much that I immediately emailed my mentor from my summer internship at a non-profit community center and recommended she and the marketing director read it!
There were some students who expressed that they didn't really like the book, however, what I observed was an overall better grounding in the material throughout the semester -- a great improvement from the several other times I've taught the course. It shows that adding this book to the curriculum has certainly made a big difference!
So, will I keep using Robin Hood Marketing? Yes I will. I think next year, though, I will add a blog reading requirement throughout the semester so that students get the foundation from the book, and then keep on reading more from Andressen.
It's a WINNER!
Facebook launched their third-party developer applications at the end of May and if you haven't gotten in to check them out, you really should. While a bit buggy there are some real gems in there that are set to take advantage of social networking and bump it up from the "what's my friend doing" focus to a more "how do I get my friends involved" focus.
While it's early yet several stand out:
- The CAUSE Application: Connect to any non-profit, put it on your profile and use it to not only invite your friends, but also donate! It tracks your invitations and the donors. There's some interesting debate going on in the dicussion topic on the Facebook group about how much of the donation is used for admin expenses, however I believe that the overall good and reach to access individuals is worth it. Uses Project Agape. Here's their pitch,
Make a difference, on Facebook. Causes on Facebook lets you start and join the causes you care about. Donations to causes can benefit over a million registered 501(c)(3) nonprofits. Learn more about Project Agape: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/about Have questions? We've got answers: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/help If you are a nonprofit that would like to work directly with us, please e-mail Randall Winston at randall@project-agape.com
The OBAMA Application: Connect directly to the Obama campaign. The only presidential candidate (so far) to use an application (note some controversy over this one which you can read about at techPresident) that not only puts a video and news feed on your profile, but even tells you which of your friends is located in an "early decision state" and lists them, with information on whether or not they are already an Obama supporter and a direct link to message them to tell them about Obama!
What I like about these applications is the fact that they move beyond the general options of music players and people ratings and shift the focus to even more involvement. Many applications are sure to follow with the masses deciding which will survive and which ones won't. Seems to me though, that this is an evolution in social networking which is going to have a big impact on those who which to reach specific demographics with a message -- whether it is a sales pitch or a call to some type of service.
It will be interesting to see which ones win out in this 18-23 heavy world.
Perhaps this is the way that younger Americans will engage in the political process...we'll certainly find out!
Kicking off the summer with a discussion on cheating doesn't seem to really make sense...since...well, school is out for the summer and who in their right mind would be cheating right now?
Lot's of people it would seem.
At least that is according to one of my colleagues, Greg Bemis, who offered up some thought today in a teaching demonstration about player-driven game design. Greg's point in the lesson was that any time an individual behaves in a way and takes actions that were not intended by the game designer, it's cheating. In essences, if it isn't in the rules, then it's cheating.
Other signs of cheating:
- Setting the game to an easier difficulty then you really need.
- Manipulating items in a game in some way they were not intended (example of Quake and people using rocket launchers to propel themselves up a cliff...rather than shooting someone with them.)
- Changing the "rules" in mid-stream when in a social game and working as a team.
- Shutting of your XBox just prior to it logging either success or failure in a competition-based area.
Greg's overall point is that human's are lazy. We'll take the path of least resistance, and its even easier to do that in a virtual game environment where the social pressure that comes from a face to face game is not there -- where anonymity rules.
I had never thought of cheating in this way, and frankly am still not convinced. In some of the examples above, I see inginuity and creative problem solving. And yet...others are just mean-spirited. So perhaps I don't disagree that much at all. If you are going to play the game, go with the process and have fun. However, if your fun is all about being better than everyone else at any cost, then it would seem that Greg's definition of cheating makes a lot of sense.
In the words of Mr. Spock, "Fascinating"!
Thanks Greg!
Ok, so it's clear that MY idea of timely is um...well...NON-EXISTANT!! There has GOT to be a better way to get this blogging done. Yeah...a direct link to my brain maybe? More hours in the day?
sigh...
Oh well. So it's time to look at some more books. I've got to figure out what to use for my Exploring Marketing class next Fall. This is a GREAT class where I bring together all the marketing majors into ONE room...and we do marketing stuff. Another one of those classes where the traditional textbook just does NOT work. Here's what I'm trying to decide between:
So the focus of the course is to have students fully explore the marketing field, so the Vault Career Guide makes a lot of sense. At the same time, I want to shake them up. Get them thinking. Make them take a look at this potential career choice and understand what it means and what it really is. Most students just think that Marketing = Advertising. It doesn't. We have to teach them that...what better way then some great case studies, or a book that basically shows that if you don't focus your efforts your marketing will suck? Stay-tuned to find out what I decided!
Switching the subject DRASTICALLY...
Social Networking. You already know how I feel about it. I really believe that it is going to be a big part of marketing -- of connecting with your customer and getting to know them...of building relationships. It's a wave that is only now just getting off the ground. I have both a Facebook and a MySpace page and I use them to connect with students.
And now I'm using Facebook to connect with recently ACCEPTED students, who, if all goes well, will decide that CHAMPLAIN COLLEGE is the place to come to in the Fall. And, of course, that the MARKETING or the E-BUSINESS MANAGEMENT programs are exactly what they want to be a part of.
What's particularly interesting is that current students and accepted students are using Facebook to connect with one another and to ask questions about the campus. Some current students are jumping in to provide info -- both positive and negative -- and the accepted students are eating it up.
And where is the College's ADMISSIONS department in all of this? Where is the MARKETING department? hmmm...
Actually...I wonder how the Admissions professionals are using social networking?
Rule #1 -- go where where your customers are and communicate with them the way they communicate. Snail mail and e-mail aren't working as much anymore with younger individuals who have found a way to by pass the marketing and get to what is real. Anyway...I'm connecting...so come on by and I'll see you on Facebook!
At the moment, my VOX blog seems to be the place where I post information about the books I am using in my Champlain College class rooms. I like to move beyond the traditional text book and bring in books that resonate with students (and with me). My Blogger blog, (yep I've got two!) is more about classroom interactions, and random stuff that impact marketing in general. Of course, this too may change! Anyway...
Some classes are just not textbook friendly. For example, my Non-Profit and Social Marketing class is one of those classes. I've taught this class for two semesters -- I'm in the third one now -- and one of the biggest challenges has been trying to find a book that reflects the main themes of the course: THE POWER OF ONE and PASSION. Traditional textbooks about non-profit work are boring. There is no life and there is no passion. With all due respect to the professors and authors, you've taken something that requires passion and beat it to death so there is no life, no engagement and no interest.
The past two times I've taught the course, I've cobbled together a host of different readings and articles. It's worked, but not to the level I had hoped.
What makes this course even more challenging is that it is a Service Learning Course -- one that requires students to work with Non-Profit organizations on a marketing challenge. I needed something that would really set the context...something they could read and refer back to and connect and make meaning out of.
About a month before the semester began, I hit Amazon and did a quick search...just in case. It was then that I say the book from Katya Andresen. The description was very interesting, so I ordered the book. When I received it, I begain reading and knew within one chapter that I had finally found THE BOOK for this course.
Andresen has captured all of the main pieces of non-profit marketing that I have incorporated into the course. The power of one, the passion, and the marketing imperatives that drive the best marketing decisions -- whether they be for profit or not for profit are outlined in this book.
The students read it in three weeks. It has set the context in a way that I have been unable to do before.
I believe it has made a huge impact on the focus in the Non-Profit course and that impact has been beyond positive. It has been affirming for the direction I have taken in the course, and it has provided students with a point of view that a traditional text would have NEVER done.
Thanks Katya!
Anyone hear of fydo? They are this great opera company in Burlington, VT and their focus is to bring classic opera to a new audience with exciting new ways to perform. Well..not so classic opera.
A group of Champlain College students will be helping out fydo this semester as part of our Marketing Management class. Their job is to help this organization with their Marketing. It will be interesting to see what the students end up accomplishing!
For more information on fydo check out "The Right Time for Opera" in the Burlington Free Press.
Who knew? We have our own LATE NIGHT show here in Burlington -- it's run out of Champlain College's Alumni Auditorium on Thursday nights. It airs on WCAX-TV on Saturday night at 11:30 p.m.
This small show has beat out Leno and tied Letterman and Saturday Night Live in it's first book Nielsen for November 2006.
That's right. BURLINGTON!!
Check it out!
My theme tonight is about keeping up. First off, how did almost a month go by since my last posting?? Well it is the life of a professor, student, mom...stuff happens! But that brings to mind the importance of keeping up in the world of Blogs...and how do you do it, and what should you post?
Tonight I have several observations about keeping up. I received an email today from my friends at EPIKONE, a local SEO and Web Analytics firm located in Williston, VT. The biz has been ROCK'N this week according to Paul who wrote:
There have been some major deals involving some of the largest mobile carriers and website in the U.S. in the last
3 weeks.Check these out, things are developing very quickly,,,,
MySpace Heading to Cingular Phones
http://www.marketingvox.com/archives/2006/12/06/myspace-heading-to-cingular-phones/First YouTube, Now Revver on Verizon Wireless
http://www.marketingvox.com/archives/2006/11/30/first-youtube-now-revver-on-verizon-wireless/Ad Targeting for Mobile Web Raises Privacy Concerns
http://www.marketingvox.com/archives/2006/11/27/ad-targeting-for-mobile-web-raises-privacy-concerns/
Moving QUICKLY?? Ok...that's an understatement Paul! The power of social networking on the mobile phone. Video on the mobile phone. Ads on the mobile phone. It's not too hard to see where we are heading...just check out Japan and how they are using their phones! Barcode and coupon scanning with your cell phone from a magazine ad can imbed a coupon on your cell so you can use it at a store. Colleges are now launching opt-in SMS messaging for students so they can sign up for news and information.
So I'm working on keeping up thanks to others in the field and will be bringing all of this to my classes -- including our online classes in Social Networking and Online Visibility in the Spring Semester. With articles like the above listed, my reading will change often and since classes don't start for another month...WHO knows what we'll be reading!
At what point do we become so overwhelmed by the possibilities out there that we don't know which really cool thing to use? Wikis are a case in point.
Here's my Wiki, where I'm addressing how and why to have a Wiki.
Wikipedia of course, is the mother of all Wiki's. The creation of an online living encyclopedia that just keeps growing and growing..contributed to not by highly paid experts, but by volunteers who have an expertise or knowledge of a subject -- just for the joy of doing it! Sharing knowledge.
Of course, there is the RSS option as well. I've set up my Wiki at WikiSpaces.com -- yet another free place if I can handle a few Google ads. So here at my Wiki, I now have an RSS feed dumping into my NetVibes feed reader so I can tell when anyone has updated my Wiki.
Knowledge is power! Wiki's are power! RSS keeps me informed. All the information is getting indexed. It is a never ending process.
So..come on over to my Wiki and lets look at how Wiki's can be used for marketing!
The next book I've decided to profile is Search Engine Optimization: An Hour A Day by Jennifer Grappone and Gradiva Couzin.
I'm digging this book because it is easy to read, clear and really highlights the importance of Search Engine Marketing. At the same time, much like the Moran and Hunt book, these authors get it! The Search and Internet Marketing world is changing faster than the traditional publishing world can keep up. So, these authors have a Website at http://www.yourseoplan.com. Not only does this site work to promote their book, it also provides articles and resources that are useful and keep things current.
There is a great overview and then the authors break it all down. What steps do you take and when do you take them, and most importantly...WHY?
I'll be using excerpts from this book in my Internet-based Marketing class next week because our topic is SEO. We've covered analytics and PPC, we've moved quickly through RSS, Blogs, e-mail newsletters, social networking and mobile marketing with an emphasis on how this helps the natural search rankings. Now its time to really get into how all this helps. This book provides the context and the writing style that is real, clear and easy to apply to other businesses. It's a winner for sure!
Recent Comments
-
Brittany said:
Another company that seeks to connect motivated individuals with the organizations they care about is Firstgiving.com. Firstgiving is a website... read more
on Facebook Aps Focus on the "Cause" -
katya andresen said:
Thanks Elaine! This really made my day, because I wrote the book in an attempt to try to inject more... read more
on Finding your Focus -
Elaine said:
That is certainly an interesting point. Where is your target market and how do you reach them when it comes... read more
on Politics and Advertising -
The Last Key said:
I noticed your post on surfing the VOX and you could not be more right. I live in New Hampshire,... read more
on Politics and Advertising
on Facebook Aps Focus on the "Cause"