美國市調公司尼爾森（Nielsen）近期發表了一份「2009年全球網路消費者調查報告」發現，有9成的消費者相信那些他們所認識的朋友對產品的評價，有7成消費者相信網友在網路上發表的意見與評價，而消費者最不相信的是手機簡訊廣告、網路橫幅式網路廣告（Online banner ad）等等，從調查中可以了解「網路口碑式行銷」是目前最能取得消費者信賴的方式之一。
尼爾森這份「全球網路消費者調查報告」是針對全球50個國家、超過2萬5千個網路消費者所進行的調查，希望能了解消費者對於廣告與品牌的信任程度，從調查中發現，最受消費者信賴的前三名為：認識的朋友對商品的評價、網友在網路上發表的評價、可信任的品牌網站。而網友最不信賴的廣告倒數四名為：手機簡訊廣告、網路橫幅式網路廣告、網路視訊廣告、搜尋廣告。
尼爾森線上總裁Jonathan Carson就分析，消費者自組媒體（Consumer Generated Media，CGM），例如部落格、Twitter、Plurk、討論區等等，已成為目前掌握產品行銷的最新趨勢。
許多部落客因為具有意見領袖的特質，因此有些廠商透過部落客在Blog上「美言」幾句，拍品牌就成了網友們瘋狂搶購的商品。又或者網友們在討論區裡留下使用心得與感想，並得到其他網友的回應，造成更廣大的迴響，都將影響到商品暢銷與否。
由於，網路世代的購買行為是習慣先在網路上研究與調查別人的使用經驗與心得感想，再評估是否購買商品。因此，調查中也發現陌生網友在網路上的意見更勝於商品不斷的推出品牌或形象廣告。當該品牌獲得網友的好評，該品牌不用費力行銷與廣告，就已經擁有網友爆炸式的宣傳效果，反之，如果該品牌獲得網友的負評，該品牌可能就需要花盡心思「漂白」，也不見得在行銷上產生更好的效果。
因此，網路行銷專家就建議，企業並不能忽略網路社群媒體的力量，要試著與其對話，且品牌或產品要能經得起網友們的測試與評價，如此一來，可能比砸下昂貴的廣告預算更有助於品牌形象的建立或產品的銷售。
2009年8月4日 星期二
2009年7月14日 星期二
一句話學管理 <七月>
- 齊桓公只依靠一個管仲；蜀漢只依靠一個孔明，這兩人過世後，國家便陷於危機或衰頹。傑出企業能夠縱橫商界，靠的是人才密度；一棒接一棒的接班人計畫。
- 每次都負起100%責任的工作者，每次都是做到"恰到好處"，不會令人失望，卻也不會有超乎預期的表現。
- "當責"與權力相伴而生，領導人不能只要求"當責"，而不願意授出"權力"。
- 經理人要學習不要太在乎別人如何看待自己，只需關心"什麼是必要的?" "什麼是對的?"
- 如果主管眼裡只有明年的財務報表，不在乎未來五年、十年的策略，員工若有新想法、鄉多走一哩路(One more mile)，也會認為只是徒增成本，毫無必要。
- 對待部屬要像教練指導球員一樣，了解他的能力、提點他、教導他，而不是上場幫他應戰。
- 鼓舞士氣最好的方法，是員工看到公司的未來，賺錢回饋給員工，否則話講的再好聽也沒有用。
摘至七月份經理人 - 一句話學管理
2009年7月8日 星期三
微網誌帶來下一個網路革命
黏著度高的微網誌平台，因它的即時性方便分享訊息的傳播功能，以及朋友間現況交流而成就的社交網絡，將帶來現今網路產業的轉變。首當其衝的是以資訊領先而存在的媒體產業，過去媒體價值之一，"權威消息"的角色正在淡出。
其次是降低當今網路核心"搜尋引擎"的重要性。過往的網路上以關鍵字搜尋，所得到的結果可蒙是成千上萬筆資料，使用者還得花時間去整理，但在微網誌上，搜尋結果可能是朋友討論的內容、分享的網頁連結，讓人更快找到所需的資訊。另外，目前網路廣告購買價格以點擊率、瀏覽量計價，但透過微網誌作廣告，恐怕該以帳號朋友、粉絲數量計價。將改變網路廣告產業。
值得注意的是，<時代>雜誌指出，微網誌平台開創以來，已發展出龐大、複雜的社群架構，它的創新動力來自於使用者 -- 用戶型創新 (end-user innovation) 。不論是跟隨者結構、即時訊息搜尋、第三方應用程式開發等，都是圍繞著使用者經驗而發展出來的，其實是使用者主導了微網誌的價值。(摘至七月份數位時代)
其次是降低當今網路核心"搜尋引擎"的重要性。過往的網路上以關鍵字搜尋，所得到的結果可蒙是成千上萬筆資料，使用者還得花時間去整理，但在微網誌上，搜尋結果可能是朋友討論的內容、分享的網頁連結，讓人更快找到所需的資訊。另外，目前網路廣告購買價格以點擊率、瀏覽量計價，但透過微網誌作廣告，恐怕該以帳號朋友、粉絲數量計價。將改變網路廣告產業。
值得注意的是，<時代>雜誌指出，微網誌平台開創以來，已發展出龐大、複雜的社群架構，它的創新動力來自於使用者 -- 用戶型創新 (end-user innovation) 。不論是跟隨者結構、即時訊息搜尋、第三方應用程式開發等，都是圍繞著使用者經驗而發展出來的，其實是使用者主導了微網誌的價值。(摘至七月份數位時代)
2009年7月7日 星期二
一個Twitter帳號 創造三百萬美元業績
最近戴爾(Dell)台灣購物網標錯價的事件搞的沸沸揚揚，而後續處理更是糟糕透頂，最後台灣戴爾乾脆決定無限期關閉台灣線上購物網站，這樣一連續的凸槌跟危機處理方式，實在很難想像會是戴爾的風格。
但不論如何，回到企業可以如何運用微網誌行銷，戴爾在Tiwitter的"行銷軍團"，一定超乎台灣企業的想像，特別是當它其中一個帳號，為戴爾兩年創造了三百萬美元業績，更是讓人瞠目結舌。引入此項爆炸性營收的是戴爾在Twitter中的"DellOutlet"帳號，該帳號有約七十二萬人訂閱，主要內容為即時過季商品訊息，並附上購買網址，將有興趣的網友導入自家網站完成交易。帳號管理員尼爾森(Stefanie Nelson)六月份表示，自2007年註冊DellOutlet以來，透過該帳號直接賣出兩百萬美元商品，另外經由使用者重回網站，又再賣出一百萬美元。
值得注意的是，戴爾不是只有一個Twitter帳號，目前他共有三十三個帳號，包括英國、澳洲、中國、日本等地區帳號，以不同語言進行在地化銷售，雖然訂閱人數遠不及DellOutlet，但帶進的總收入也不少。除了銷售型帳號，戴爾還啟用新聞公關資訊、社群類帳號，做足官方與半官方的企業形象傳遞，以及針對宣傳部落格而開設帳號。
來自帳號大軍的分工合作，陣仗已經夠龐大，戴爾其實對微網誌行銷非常用心。這些過季品拍賣帳號，做的不只是出清存貨，網友可在上面提出各式各樣的問題，達到客戶服務的功能。另外，帳號經營者有時還會進一步請網友"每小時"確認商品是否到貨，讓整個銷售社群黏著度十足。
仔細研究戴爾的微網誌行銷，低價促銷才是他的成功關鍵，旦先行系統化經營微網誌、動用所以資源配合(查貨品、運送情形、行銷內容、賣場上線時間...等)、滿足微網誌使用者對時間的要求，其用心程度讓其他企業望塵莫及。
2009年7月6日 星期一
貝佐斯(Jeff Bezos)的創新成功學
才在剛開始讀了這期的數位時代的前幾頁的時候就讀到了這篇文章，還沒來得及繼續往下看，就等不及把這篇文章放上來想作為分享。這是在六月中旬，由<連線雜誌>(Wired)主辦的商業論壇裡，貝佐斯與大眾分享他對創新與創業的想法，也給了我很多啟發，但對於現在還是一個小小員工的我，也只能先暫時把它的想法先藏在我的腦袋裡拉~~
Unfortunately, my month-old MacBook died in the middle of writing that post and I lost much of it; it wasn’t until later tonight that I managed to borrow a ThinkPad from a friend. Of course, by now many have already written about Bezos’s comments on the Kindle, Google’s book efforts, and e-readers, so I’m going to skip those and instead focus on some of the comments about innovation and entrepreneurship. Many of his tips have helped me think clearly about our little startup as we grow older. Hopefully you enjoy these nuggets of wisdom from a man I like to call a constant gardener of innovation.
Innovation and large companies
In describing change, Bezos said that rapid change is always scary for incumbents, but if you’re not an incumbent, you have nothing to lose. Large incumbents have to worry about legacy revenues. Innovation is hard for large companies because you need to be long-term oriented. And since the innovative projects are such a tiny part of a large company, there is tendency to be dismissive of the innovation.
“You need a culture that high-fives small and innovative ideas and senior executives [that] encourage ideas,” he said. In order for innovative ideas to bear fruit, companies need to be willing to “wait for 5-7 years, and most companies don’t take that time horizon.”
In tough times, focus on the customer
In the aftermath of the dot-com bust, Amazon was one of the many Internet companies that saw its stock price dive faster than a flying seagull in search of food. “The stock price deflated but the business continued to grow,” he recalled. As a result, Amazon refocused its energies on the customer.
“Focusing on the customer makes a company more resilient,” he added. “We had to tell employees that they shouldn’t feel smarter because the stock went up 35 percent, because then they would feel 35 percent dumber if the stock price went down.” His tip on managing during tough times such as those faced by Amazon during the bust was to communicate more with its employees. With too many external inputs, Bezos thinks it’s important for companies to be talking with its people more often, easing their concerns.
Be stubborn
The difference between founders and professional managers is that founders are stubborn about the vision of the business, and keep working the details. Professional managers, when things don’t work, want to change the vision. The trick to being an entrepreneur is to know when to be stubborn and when to be flexible: Be stubborn about the vision, but flexible about tactics, Bezos said. For instance, you can be flexible about reducing costs, but you don’t change your vision to reduce costs. Great point, because more often than not, founders get caught up in the tactics and change their direction as a result.
Prerequisites of innovation
Bezos listed a few prerequisites for innovation and inventing, but the biggest one is willingness to fail. You need to think for the long term and be misunderstood for a long period of time. “If you can’t do those things, then you need to limit yourself to sustainable innovation.” In other words, seek incremental change to grow your business.
In talking about the need for thinking long term, Bezos said you need conviction. I totally agree — if you take a short-term approach, then you are constantly stuck with trying to deal with minutiae. He noted how much hated the idea of “sticking to one’s knitting” and not taking chances. That said, Bezos was clear in pointing out that his company looks at everything from a customer’s standpoint. “We do make business decisions in a very deliberate way,” he said. “We work backwards from customer needs.”
Errors of omission vs. errors of commission
Many people make too much about the errors of commission. People overemphasize their failures when trying something new. Actually failure is not that expensive and it’s part of work. If something fails, then you’re going to shut it down and cut your losses, Bezos said. The focus, he said, should be on errors of omission. These are the chances not taken. He is not ashamed of his failures — A9 search and Auctions are two examples he cites often. Both markets were big enough for Amazon to take a flyer.
以下就是貝佐斯談話的歸納整理...
大組織創新的困難 (Innovation and Large Companies)
現在的時代，"改變"是成功企業一定要學會的功夫。然而，改變對於現任執行者或即得利者，是非常困難的。這個簡單的道理，就是為何創新對於所以大型組織都很困難的原因。大企業必須考慮足以延續的獲利能力，因此內部創新計畫通常都小的微不足道，長期便很容易不了了之。
"關於創新的想法，不管多麼渺小，內部一定要有鼓勵的文化，這意味著上位者必須打從心裡相信，並且帶頭示範"，貝佐斯說:"要讓小小的創新有豐碩的成果，最短的時間基礎是五年到七年，多數企業沒有這樣的認知，也不願意等這樣長的時間"
永遠照顧好你的客人 (In tough times, focus on the customers)
2000年網路泡沫後，所以網路公司股價一落千丈，亞馬遜當然也是其中之一。市場不看好，反映在股價上，但其實亞馬遜的業務仍然維持在成長狀態。憑著這點，亞馬遜決心只將心力和焦點放在顧客上。
"專心照顧你的客人，會讓一家公司迅速回復活力"，貝佐斯說:"我告訴亞馬遜員工，股價上升時，不應該覺得自己好像比較厲害或做對了什麼，就如同股價下滑時，不應該覺得自己變笨或做錯事情一樣。"
在艱難的時刻(像現在的金融海嘯)，另一個重要祕訣是"勤做內部溝通"。當外界沸沸揚揚，許多負面訊息開始在公司流竄時，應該花更多精力與員工溝通，舒緩內部因外在訊息產生的不安和疑慮。
策略可彈性，願景要堅持 (Be Stubborn)
創辦人與專業經理人最大的差異在於，創辦人對於企業的願景非常執著，而且願意捲起袖子從細節著手；專業經理人則不同當事情行不通時，他們會想改變願景。"當一個成功的創業家或創新企業家，最難的是知道何時該固執，何時該有彈性"，貝佐斯表示，"對於願景，一定要固執；對於策略和作法，可以保持彈性。"
舉例來說，對於降低成本可以有彈性，但對於"降低成本的願景"就一定要固執。關於這點，我認為貝佐斯詮釋的精闢入裡。許多熱情的創業家並非不重視願景，而是在策略上被困住後，便不自主地改變了當初創立的願景和經營方向。
犯錯的意願 (Prerequisites of innovation)
針對創新與創造，貝佐斯也列出幾項"先修學分"，其中最重要的就是"犯錯的意願"(willingness fo fail)。意思就是說，要為大局著想，必須忍受長期被誤解的壓力。談到以長期眼光著想的必要性，貝佐斯說創業家最需要的就是"說服自己"。如果總使以專業經理人角度，過度重視短期效益，就容易被困在細節中。
貝佐斯也提到，他極度厭惡"各人自掃門前雪" "看到機會不敢冒險"的概念，他表示亞馬遜總是以顧客的視野為起點，企業決策依然深思熟慮，但每件事都是倒過來，先從顧客角度談起。
可以失策，不能失職 (Errors of omission vs. errors of commission)
貝佐斯認為，人們通常太在意工作或任務的失敗。嘗試創新的飾物，本來就有風險，而我們老是拿放大鏡檢是失敗的可能性與後果。失敗，沒有什麼大不了，而且應該是工作一部份。如果某件事情失敗了，最壞就是終止它或斷尾求生，機會從你眼前溜走，你沒有採取行動，代價才是最高昂的。
簡單來說，貝佐斯認為"失策"不要緊，但絕對不能"失職"。貝佐斯曾嘗試帶領亞馬遜進入拍賣和搜尋市場(A9搜尋引擎)，結果都失敗了，但他並不引以為恥，反而常掛在嘴邊。畢竟兩個市場都是能讓亞馬遜一飛沖天的好機會，至少亞馬遜沒有錯過。(翻譯:謝哲豪)
以下就是原文:
Tips on Innovation & Entrepreneurship From Jeff Bezos
by Om Malik
Listening to Jeff Bezos, founder and chief executive officer of Amazon, is like going to startup school where you learn that failure is part of entrepreneurial growth. Whenever I have talked to Bezos in the past, the things that have stuck in my head have been his willingness to be wrong and his unflinching abhorrence of the status quo. At the Wired Business Conference in New York City, Bezos reiterated some of those points in a conversation with writer Steven Levy.
Unfortunately, my month-old MacBook died in the middle of writing that post and I lost much of it; it wasn’t until later tonight that I managed to borrow a ThinkPad from a friend. Of course, by now many have already written about Bezos’s comments on the Kindle, Google’s book efforts, and e-readers, so I’m going to skip those and instead focus on some of the comments about innovation and entrepreneurship. Many of his tips have helped me think clearly about our little startup as we grow older. Hopefully you enjoy these nuggets of wisdom from a man I like to call a constant gardener of innovation.
Innovation and large companies
In describing change, Bezos said that rapid change is always scary for incumbents, but if you’re not an incumbent, you have nothing to lose. Large incumbents have to worry about legacy revenues. Innovation is hard for large companies because you need to be long-term oriented. And since the innovative projects are such a tiny part of a large company, there is tendency to be dismissive of the innovation.
“You need a culture that high-fives small and innovative ideas and senior executives [that] encourage ideas,” he said. In order for innovative ideas to bear fruit, companies need to be willing to “wait for 5-7 years, and most companies don’t take that time horizon.”
In tough times, focus on the customer
In the aftermath of the dot-com bust, Amazon was one of the many Internet companies that saw its stock price dive faster than a flying seagull in search of food. “The stock price deflated but the business continued to grow,” he recalled. As a result, Amazon refocused its energies on the customer.
“Focusing on the customer makes a company more resilient,” he added. “We had to tell employees that they shouldn’t feel smarter because the stock went up 35 percent, because then they would feel 35 percent dumber if the stock price went down.” His tip on managing during tough times such as those faced by Amazon during the bust was to communicate more with its employees. With too many external inputs, Bezos thinks it’s important for companies to be talking with its people more often, easing their concerns.
Be stubborn
The difference between founders and professional managers is that founders are stubborn about the vision of the business, and keep working the details. Professional managers, when things don’t work, want to change the vision. The trick to being an entrepreneur is to know when to be stubborn and when to be flexible: Be stubborn about the vision, but flexible about tactics, Bezos said. For instance, you can be flexible about reducing costs, but you don’t change your vision to reduce costs. Great point, because more often than not, founders get caught up in the tactics and change their direction as a result.
Prerequisites of innovation
Bezos listed a few prerequisites for innovation and inventing, but the biggest one is willingness to fail. You need to think for the long term and be misunderstood for a long period of time. “If you can’t do those things, then you need to limit yourself to sustainable innovation.” In other words, seek incremental change to grow your business.
In talking about the need for thinking long term, Bezos said you need conviction. I totally agree — if you take a short-term approach, then you are constantly stuck with trying to deal with minutiae. He noted how much hated the idea of “sticking to one’s knitting” and not taking chances. That said, Bezos was clear in pointing out that his company looks at everything from a customer’s standpoint. “We do make business decisions in a very deliberate way,” he said. “We work backwards from customer needs.”
Errors of omission vs. errors of commission
Many people make too much about the errors of commission. People overemphasize their failures when trying something new. Actually failure is not that expensive and it’s part of work. If something fails, then you’re going to shut it down and cut your losses, Bezos said. The focus, he said, should be on errors of omission. These are the chances not taken. He is not ashamed of his failures — A9 search and Auctions are two examples he cites often. Both markets were big enough for Amazon to take a flyer.
TomTom for iPhone
TomTom 於WWDC展示iPhone版的導航軟體
(Credit: TomTom)9日凌晨舉行的WWDC Keynote演說，新版本的iPhone 3G S和MacBook Pro可說得到了大家的目光，尤其是買降價的iPhone 3G好，或是等到8月再買iPhone 3G S，在網路上甚至是Plurk上都有熱烈的討論。但Keynote中一段開發者的展示卻吸引了我的注意，那就是導航產品大廠TomTom所展示的導航軟體 TomTom for iPhone。
當iPhone公布新版SDK Beta時，就提到了其會提供Turn-by-turn Navigation的支援，雖然因為版權問題不能使用Google Map圖資。但只要使用自己的圖資，就能開發出iPhone使用的導航軟體，而第一款就是TomTom for iPhone。
對iPhone使用者來說，就不需要在iPhone和PND上管理兩套導航地點，且在iPhone上進行導航，取用連絡人的地址也較為容易。
TomTom for iPhone分成兩個部份，主程式和地圖將透過App Store進行銷售；另外TomTom也推出了iPhone的專屬車架（TomTom Car Kit for iPhone），除了能把iPhone放置妥當、輕鬆的調整直式或橫向顯示，也有連接頭在導航時可同時對iPhone進行充電。
當iPhone公布新版SDK Beta時，就提到了其會提供Turn-by-turn Navigation的支援，雖然因為版權問題不能使用Google Map圖資。但只要使用自己的圖資，就能開發出iPhone使用的導航軟體，而第一款就是TomTom for iPhone。
對iPhone使用者來說，就不需要在iPhone和PND上管理兩套導航地點，且在iPhone上進行導航，取用連絡人的地址也較為容易。
TomTom for iPhone分成兩個部份，主程式和地圖將透過App Store進行銷售；另外TomTom也推出了iPhone的專屬車架（TomTom Car Kit for iPhone），除了能把iPhone放置妥當、輕鬆的調整直式或橫向顯示，也有連接頭在導航時可同時對iPhone進行充電。
專為iPhone設計的 TomTom Car Kit for iPhone(Credit: TomTom)
目前為止，TomTom只透露產品會在iPhone 3.0軟體上線後上市，還未說明包括售價和功能等較詳細的產品細節；不過，今天TomTom公布了較多的產品圖和一段影片，有興趣的iPhone用戶不妨先觀賞一下。更多細節可參考TomTom for iPhone產品網頁。
以上轉載於Crave科技熱 http://taiwan.cnet.com/crave/0,2000088746,20138832,00.htm
2009年6月25日 星期四
你是MBA嗎?
<數位時代>主編 王志仁提到，在全球化浪潮下，不同行業與專業不免產生跨界碰撞的火花，這時除了懂自己的專業外，還不需理解別人的專業，而這也是MBA和EMBA近年熱門的原因之一。
每個行業和專業都有自己的術語，半導體晶圓廠講求"良率"(Yield rate)和"量產"(Ramp up)；新聞寫作強調"導言"(Lead)和"倒金字塔"(Inverted pyramid)；公關公司幫客戶推廣有"線上宣傳"(Above the line，透過媒體)和"線下宣傳"(Below the line，透過活動)；做創投的重視"案原流量"(Deal flow)；新創公司則重視"現金流量"(Cash flow)。
光懂自己的專業還不夠，還必須想辦法讓別人也懂，並且去懂別人的東西。把簡單東西複雜化，對接更多東西，就能找到新的生意；把複雜東西簡單化，容易溝通理解，才能找到工作方法。這就是MBA和EMBA近年熱門的原因之一。比方說，上財務管理課，不是為了成為財務經理，而是看懂損益表和資產負債表，以及為公司打算投資的新項目計算出"內部報酬率"(Internal return rate)。
最起碼，你得知道營收叫做"Top line"、獲利叫"Bottom line"、損益叫P&L(Profit and Loss)、還未攤提折舊的稅前純益叫EBITA (Earning Before Income Tax and Amortization)。學會這些跨界和跨國的商業語言，就有可能去整合跨界和跨國的機會，或者被整合進去。
每個行業和專業都有自己的術語，半導體晶圓廠講求"良率"(Yield rate)和"量產"(Ramp up)；新聞寫作強調"導言"(Lead)和"倒金字塔"(Inverted pyramid)；公關公司幫客戶推廣有"線上宣傳"(Above the line，透過媒體)和"線下宣傳"(Below the line，透過活動)；做創投的重視"案原流量"(Deal flow)；新創公司則重視"現金流量"(Cash flow)。
光懂自己的專業還不夠，還必須想辦法讓別人也懂，並且去懂別人的東西。把簡單東西複雜化，對接更多東西，就能找到新的生意；把複雜東西簡單化，容易溝通理解，才能找到工作方法。這就是MBA和EMBA近年熱門的原因之一。比方說，上財務管理課，不是為了成為財務經理，而是看懂損益表和資產負債表，以及為公司打算投資的新項目計算出"內部報酬率"(Internal return rate)。
最起碼，你得知道營收叫做"Top line"、獲利叫"Bottom line"、損益叫P&L(Profit and Loss)、還未攤提折舊的稅前純益叫EBITA (Earning Before Income Tax and Amortization)。學會這些跨界和跨國的商業語言，就有可能去整合跨界和跨國的機會，或者被整合進去。
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