Kick the 360 Marketing Plan to the Curb
- Aug
- 31
- Posted by Steve Marzio
- Posted in Blog, By Steve Marzio, Challenger Brand Strategies, Uncategorized
- 1

The powerpoint presentation can look dreadfully similar on the number of marketing communication vehicles you can use whether you are on a $5M Marcom plan or a $50 Marcom plan.
Put simply, unless you are the Geicos or Capital Ones of the world that have MARCOM budgets that dwarf the size of most companies’ total revenues and the GDP of some small countries, pick a…one…uno…a SINGLE communication vehicle that meets these criteria listed below to deliver maximum impact.
REQUIREMENTS FOR YOUR ONE COMMUNICATION VEHICLE STRATEGY:
1. Makes Sense Strategically (long vs. short story to tell? Reach vs. Frequency goals? Close to a Retail Sale? Etc…)
2. Reaches Your Target Audience – (obvious you want to shout where your target customers can hear you)
3. Penetrates Enough to Be Heard – (your budget should be able to support a high level of reach/frequency over time)
Hot Product With No Substitutes = Retail Leverage
- Aug
- 25
- Posted by Ben Smith
- Posted in "How To" Get Leverage, Blog, By Ben Smith, Hot Product, Uncategorized

We’ve come up with 5 strategies / paths / scenarios on how you get Retail Leverage. This will start a series of posts that examine each of those 5 examples.
1. “Have The Hot Product With No Substitutes”:
The Nintendo Wii example advocates channeling all of your resources into one product, especially if you have a product where there are no substitutes.
read moreRosetta Stone Speaks the Language of “Retail Leverage”
- Aug
- 23
- Posted by Vincent Young
- Posted in Blog, By Vincent Young, Examples of Leverage, Offer Exclusivity, Pent-Up Demand
- 2

THIS IS AN EXCERPT; TO READ FULL ARTICLE, CLICK ON TITLE.
SUMMARY:
Earlier this week, Office Depot formally announced plans to become the exclusive office product superstore to offer Rosetta Stone’s award-winning Rosetta Stone computer-based language learning system.
How did Rosetta Stone gain retail leverage?
1. Direct-response selling (infomercials)
2. Launch exclusively with specialty/boutique retailers
3. Launch exclusively with one major retailer
Success Breeds Success – Five Ways to Unleash “Pent-up Demand” at Major Retailers
- Aug
- 19
- Posted by Vincent Young
- Posted in "How To" Get Leverage, Blog, By Vincent Young, Examples of Leverage, Pent-Up Demand
THIS IS AN EXCERPT; TO READ FULL ARTICLE, CLICK ON TITLE.
SUMMARY:
Retail buyers hate risk.
Five approaches which establish a track record of success prior to engaging with the universe of major retailers:
1. Over-invest in Trade Shows
2. Seriously consider direct-response advertising
3. Launch exclusively with specialty/boutique retailers
4. Build a “community”
5. Launch exclusively with one major retailer
Remember, very few strategies give your challenger brand more leverage at retail than the promise of bringing your successful past to the retailer’s risk-averse present.
Is Paul Frank Monkeying Around With Target – Or Using Retail Leverage?
- Aug
- 12
- Posted by Ben Smith
- Posted in Blog, By Ben Smith, Examples of Leverage, Pent-Up Demand

Paul Frank launching kids line at Target is classic example of Rule #4 to Gain Retail Leverage – Bring Pent-Up Demand To Stores.
To read the full article click on the title.
read moreHow To Build A Culture Geared Toward Retail Leverage
- Aug
- 12
- Posted by Vincent Young
- Posted in "How To" Get Leverage, Blog, By Vincent Young, Challenger Brand Strategies
Five Ways To Build A Culture Geared Toward Retail Leverage:
1. Tie each corporate executive’s bonus to growth at a “pet” retailer
2. Have the sales team do some heavy lifting during National Sales Meetings.
3. Require product managers to model profit pool for their category at key retailers.
4. Shop together and learn.
5. Don’t enable the “Desktop Marketer.”
To read the full article click on the title.
read moreDon't Be A Jack Of All Trades At Retail
- Aug
- 10
- Posted by Steve Marzio
- Posted in "How To" Get Leverage, Blog, By Steve Marzio, Challenger Brand Strategies
Own something!
To state the obvious, stronger brand positions, or leverage vis-à-vis the retailer, means having a strong degree of consumer PULL. Retailers come to you and want your product, when customers come in droves to their well-lit, organized boxes asking for your product…by brand name. Even if your national brand position is small, your consumer pull should be strong in some way shape or form. OWN SOMETHING…or perhaps more correctly….OWN SOMEONE.
read moreHow Tivo Is Gaining Leverage at Best Buy
- Aug
- 05
- Posted by Ben Smith
- Posted in best buy, Blog, By Ben Smith, Examples of Leverage, marketing, Offer Exclusivity

EXCERPT:
TO READ FULL ARTICLE, CLICK ON TITLE:
SUMMARY:
Tivo is gaining leverage at Best Buy but they both stand to gain a great deal. In July they announced a marketing and product development partnership with Best Buy.
“Financial Growth” is a Challenger Brand’s Best Friend
- Aug
- 04
- Posted by Vincent Young
- Posted in Blog, By Vincent Young, Challenger Brand Strategies
By Vincent Young You’ve assigned a secret code name to each product on the development roadmap, you’ve spent months, sometimes years, preparing the required inputs for senior management to move the in-progress products through each step of your company’s stage-gate process. By now, you are well-versed in articulating and showcasing the new features, usability upgrades […]
read more4 Trends That Are Huge Obstacles For Challenger Brands
- Aug
- 03
- Posted by Vincent Young
- Posted in Blog, By Vincent Young, Why You Need Leverage
4 Trends That Are Huge Obstacles For Challenger Brands:
1) Improper Training
2) Retail Industry Consolidation
3) Private Label
4) Fewer Advertising Funds

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