These are just a few of the issues marketer has to deal with in a daily basis. As you can see, marketing as a profession, isn’t exactly a very work-life balance friendly. It has a tendency to become very consuming if you don’t establish and enforce strong boundaries to prevent intense world, it is going to take over yourself and life. The worst part of it all, is when you think you have done all you can yet the result isn’t showing. That shows that maybe you need to take a step back and analyse what is the problem and come up with the solutions.
Secret to Success
Here’s some tips I come with my personal experience on how to rebuild yourself as an individual to excel better at work.
1.Have a Positive Attitude
Stay Positive
Positivity is the way to life especially when it comes to working in an intensive field like sales and marketing you need to have always an positive mind. When a client rejects you, or you are not reaching your target, DO NOT LOSE HOPE! Instead, learn what attitude is, what aspects of your life are controlled or directed by your attitude, how to determine your attitude at any given moment, and what specific strategies make a positive attitude a permanent habit in your life. This helps you to grow as person and produce better results at work.
2.Believe in Yourself
Believe in capacity
Understand what is your potential through a simple process of identifying your personal talents and abilities. You can do this by developing an academic strengths and personal interests to create personal fulfillment and joy in what you do. When presenting an idea or talking a client make sure to have faith in what you are saying. Confidence is the key here. People are only going to buy your things if you have confidence in your words. Self believe leads to customer trust.
3.Set and Achieve Goals
Set a target
Being goal driven and ambitious takes you places. First, recognize the difference between a wish and a goal. Make a commitment, plan and take action, and recognize completion. Don’t put way too much pressure on yourself. This is where people go wrong. The set target way beyond the reach and stress out when they cannot reach the goal. So, be practical and take one step at a time. Set your a goal and works towards that direction.
4.Use your Creative Imagination
Creativity leads to success
Extend your physical ability to accelerate problem solving and goal achievement in all areas of your works. In marketing and sales field, it is important to use your creativity. Let your imagination run wild and come up with new ideas, strategies and methodology and be bold in trying them out. Luck favors the brave. So, put in the effort and take the step up.
5.Be Persistent!
Work against time
Track your own progress. Make sure you see improvement! If you don’t, then it is just a sign that you are not putting in enough effort and you need to change up your game plan. Develop the focus and determination required to succeed, create an attitude of gratitude as the access to fulfilling your dreams. In this field, persistence is the foundation. You need to take your imagination and then turn it into exactly as you planned. It may not turn out how you want it to the first time, but when you add persistence to the equation it will only be so many attempts before you achieve perfection.
So, there you go. These are my top 5 strategies to how to be successful the marketing and sales field. It is simple yet we tend to foresee it due to the intensity of the field. Don’t let that get in your way and remember what is goal and work towards that.
Here a few more things you should pay attention to better a marketer.
Have a clarity of purpose and direction
Show commitment and interest in your work
Get inspired by outstanding performance of others
Establish a dynamic communication with your clients and customers
Companies assume that brand building is more of an art than a science. However, prominent companies use a combination of art meet science, to make decisions that appeal to their customers on an emotional and logical level.
Science meets marketing
When marketing enters the world of neuroscience marketing, it gives companies and brands an insight into the way the brain responds to certain stimuli. While neuroscience focuses more broadly on the behaviour of the human brain, “neuromarketing” looks at how companies can adapt their brand awareness strategies to influence customers on a psychological level.
Considering how much work we put into influencing the human brain, approaching branding from a scientific perspective makes a lot of sense especially because:
95% of buying decision are subconsciously made ( Harvard, 2018)
Human brain process visuals 60,000 times faster than text which is why pictures are important to content. ( LivePlan, 2018)
70% of the time, companies struggle to get customer attention both on offline and online platforms. (Zoho, 2018)
Neuroscience Marketing Definition: The Connection between Brain and Brand
The biggest challenge for marketers in today’s world is getting better results while spending less money. How can we solve for this challenge? Neuromarketing. Since the begin of marketing companies are trying to understand human attitude and behaviour to create products, services, logos and campaigns that appeal to the right customer. Marketers have even used these strategies to identify ideal user personas, using the right demographics and psychographic information. The more you can learn about our customers from a scientific perspective, the more we can adjust our marketing campaigns and advertising strategies to appeal to the right group and minimise budgetary waste.
For a basic neuroscience understanding , you just need to know that neuroscience is a field of research that studies the cognitive and affective responses of human brain. Essentially, it focuses on figuring out how the brain responds to a certain stimuli. So, in the case of “neuromarketing”, the main focus is on finding out how the brain responds to certain stimuli in marketing. Big companies like Google and Disney have invested in neuroscience marketing.Neuromarketing uses neuroscience methods to measure consumers’ neurological reactions to products, commercials, brands and so on. Thus, companies assure maximum appeal and immense profits. Although they may offer different services and products, the objective of all businesses is common which is to understand our brain so they can manipulate us into desiring what they offer. Neuromarketing enables them to do exactly that.
How exactly does Neuromarketing work?
How the Brain Works
It is not as complicated as it sounds to be honest though it is very scientific. Let’s say you are asked to think of something, the brain impulses travel to the cortex of the brain and make the articulators respond. This process whole happens so fast that the Electroencephalogram, (EEG) can capture every impulse. During the half second from when our brain receives a stimulus, and before it reacts, there’s something entirely neurological happening that is free from the control of the conscious which we call subconscious. It’s the action before our conscious filters the data because of bias or societal responsibility. The EEG promptly reads these electrical waves and relates them to memory, emotions and attention according to the activity in specific areas of the brain. It’s fascinating and may sound complex , but this half-second is the prime time here. It will give an accurate insight of how a person feels when watching a commercial or thinking of a product.
Neuromarketers claim though such methods are more cost effective, but it is even more efficient than traditional methods such as focus groups or surveys. A test using neuroscience methods like EEG does not need thousands of people to produce accurate findings. It only requires a sample of just twenty people. The low sample number is because our brains are remarkably similar, although there are differences between gender difference and age difference are some of the variables. Skeptics are fearful about the use of neuromarketing and mass manipulation over consumers. However, it can be determined that these tests can provide companies with valuable information, unlike traditional strategies. With neuromarketing tools they will know how to design products to look, function and feel before they are even ready to hit the market, minimizing risk and maximizing all resources.
How to bring neuromarketing into action?
Significant Red of Coke
1. Add Color to Life
Using colors to sell something is the best approach to it because colors can have significant impact on the human brain. Utilizing color effectively can be a powerful marketing tool. One of the most famous examples is the Red of Coca Cola’s.
2.The Need for Speed
Neuromarketing is useful for detecting customer trends. Whilst companies often seek to portray a sense of safety and security, speed and efficiency may be what customers are after. For example, PayPal has discovered that the promise of convenience activated the brain more than security. They used this information to convert more shoppers to their online payment service by emphasizing their speedy payment system.
3.Setting the Right Price
We are all aware that pricing something at $9.99 instead of $10 is an advertising tactic, but does it work? One fascinating new piece of information being used by neuromarketers, is that rounded figures are more likely to work alongside emotional decision making, whilst more complex figures work better when the logical brain is engaged. This is because complex numbers make the brain work harder, perhaps convincing it that the complexly priced product is the more logical decision.
4. Loss Aversion
One interesting thing utilized by neuromarketing is that people really don’t want to lose out! People are more worried about what they might lose to what they might gain. For this reason “buy before it’s gone” strategies are highly effective. When the alternative option is posed as a loss, consumers are much more likely to buy. A concept called “framing” is highly important in neuromarketing. This technique is teaches how to present decisions to consumers in a way that makes them more likely to splash the cash.
5.Ad Efficiency
Unlike back then where brain imaging was purely reserved for use the academic and scientific purpose, neuromarketing, has tapped into the incredible potential of fMRI imaging to grant us insights into human behavior and consumer habits. With that, you can compare advertising campaigns before releasing them to the general public. This gives an incredible potential and advantage for enhancing marketing strategies, increasing engagement and action.
Is neuromarketing praticable though?
The answer to that is certainly a yes. Though, skeptics are fearful about the use of neuromarketing and mass manipulation over consumers. However, it can be determined that these tests can provide companies with valuable information, unlike traditional strategies. With neuromarketing tools they will know how to design products to look, function and feel before they are even ready to hit the market, minimizing risk and maximizing all resources.
The idea that the brain can reveal hidden and profitable truths about consumers is attractive but can also be misleading, not least because behaviour is the bottom line in business. The most powerful development in marketing is not neuroscience but invisible and ever-present experiments. Every time you go online, marketers can test which ads and prices make you most likely to part with your cash. Because people today tend to shop on the internet more, few realise that others are tested with a different set of images and offers, before the most effective ones are chosen for the biggest return. The benefits are obvious, the tests are easy to run, and the scale is massive.
Don’t you feel sometimes all you want to do is just to take some time off and focus on yourself both physically and mentally instead of just work and work and more work?
Stress is a common mental health issue.
If you do, it is a sign that you are suffering from mental health depression at work!
Mental health is one of the last remaining taboos in the workplace. Yet according to World Health Organization one in every six workers experience depression, anxiety or stress at workplace and this is a significant portion of the workforce. It also appears as if attitudes towards mental health in the workplace remain in the dark ages where 56% of employers say they wouldn’t hire someone with depression. Globally, more than 300 million people suffer from depression, the leading cause of disability, with many of these people also suffering from symptoms of anxiety. A recent WHO-led study estimates that depression and anxiety disorders cost the global economy US$ 1 trillion each year in lost productivity. Unemployment is a well-recognized risk factor for mental health problems, while returning to, or getting work is protective. A negative working environment may lead to physical and mental health problems, harmful use of substances or alcohol, absenteeism and lost productivity. Workplaces that promote mental health and support people with mental disorders are more likely to reduce absenteeism, increase productivity and benefit from associated economic gains.
What are the work related risk factors for health?
There are many risk factors involved for mental health that may be present in your working space that even you may not be aware of. .Most of these risks are interrelated which are mostly interactions between for example type of work, the organizational and managerial environment, the skills and competencies of employees, and the support available for employees to carry out their work.
Risks to mental health include:
inadequate health and safety policies
poor communication and management practices
limited participation in decision-making or low control over one’s area of work
low levels of support for employees;
inflexible working hour
unclear tasks or organizational objectives
Risks may also be related to job content, such as unsuitable tasks for the person’s competencies or a high and unrelenting workload. Some jobs may carry a higher personal risk than others. For example, first responders and humanitarian workers, which can have an impact on mental health and be a cause of symptoms of mental disorders, or lead to harmful use of alcohol or psychoactive drugs. Risk may be increased in situations where there is a lack of team cohesion or social support.
Bullying and psychological harassment at workplace also known as “mobbing” are reported as the most common cause of work-related stress by workers and present risks to the health of workers. They are associated with both psychological and physical problems. These health consequences can cost the employers big time in terms of reducing productivity and increasing staff turnover. They can also have a negative impact on family and social interactions and personally too.
How to overcome Mental Issues at Work?
Work together to overcome mental issue at work
1)Creating a healthy workplace
A healthy workplace can be described as one where workers and managers actively contribute to the working environment by promoting and protecting the health, safety and well-being of all employees. A healthy workplace should firstly, protect mental health by reducing work–related risk factors and also promote mental health by developing the positive aspects of work and the strengths of employees and lastly address mental health problems regardless of cause.
2)Supporting people with mental disorders at work
Organizations have a responsibility to support individuals with mental disorders in either continuing or returning to work. Research shows that unemployment, particularly long-term unemployment, can have a detrimental impact on mental health. Many of the initiatives outlined above may help individuals with mental disorders. In particular, flexible hours, job-redesign, addressing negative workplace dynamics, and supportive and confidential communication with management can help people with mental disorders continue to or return to work. Access to evidence-based treatments has been shown to be beneficial for depression and other mental disorders. Because of the stigma associated with mental disorders, employers need to ensure that individuals feel supported and able to ask for support in continuing with or returning to work and are provided with the necessary resources to do their job.
3)Know Your Rights
The Malaysian Employment Act 1955, states that your employer has to work with you to try to overcome health problems. And don’t forget that it’s in your boss’s own interests to accommodate you. Anxiety and depression, the most common mental health issues, have been estimated to cause a fifth of the days lost to sickness in Britain.
It can be hard talking about such an emotional and personal subject at work, but focusing on practicalities and logistics can take the charge out of it. Try to suggest some concrete things that might help you cope. For example, switching to flexible or part-time hours for a while might give you some much-needed space to breathe. Would the option to work from home some days take the pressure off? Coming into the conversation prepared with potential solutions could make the conversation seem less daunting.If you’re nervous about talking to your manager, or if things don’t go well when you do, it’s worth having a chat to your organisation’s HR or occupational health department – but your line manager should be your first port of call.
Here are some guidelines your company can take to create a healthy workplace:
Creating awareness of the workplace environment and how it can be adapted to promote better mental health for different employees.
Learning from the motivations of organizational leaders and employees who have taken action.
Not reinventing wheels by being aware of what other companies who have taken action have done.
Understanding the opportunities and needs of individual employees, in helping to develop better policies for workplace mental health.
Awareness of sources of support and where people can find help.
Informing staff that support is available
Involving employees in decision-making,
conveying a feeling of control and participation
organizational practices that support a healthy work-life balance
Creating programmes for career development of employees
Recognizing and rewarding the contribution of employees.
In conclusion, mental health matter because it will only make sense as a perfect business sense for organizations to create a work culture that supports employees with good mental health. If your employees aren’t feeling well mentally, then they will not feel engaged or committed at work. The more we talk about mental health, the more stigmas get broken down, so don’t suffer in silence. Work’s important, but it’s not as important as your health and quality of life.
As for marketing, ASEAN region still remains as one of the most remarkably flexible, despite a blowout of sluggish prospects in many industrialised economies and a slowing Chinese economy. Though there are challenges to the retail sector which is mainly due to customer loss of confidence in the company and operating costs plus number of tourists visiting all as some of the reason but there region offers compelling growth opportunities anchored by rising domestic demand and fast-growing incomes.
The expansion of the market is highly being driven by the strong fundamentals of the ASEAN market including which is a young and fast-growing population, emerging middle-class consumers, and strong GDP growth in each individual member country. Other factors that are stimulating the retail sector include falling unemployment numbers amid a tight labour market and increasing urbanisation. Employment growth clearly adds to a country’s consumption ability, while urbanisation prompts demand for the development of organised retail outlets.
Among the major ASEAN economies, Indonesia and Malaysia appear to be in a strong position to have a booming retail sector. The four ASEAN biggest retail market nations in the region are Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. The economies in the region are at significantly different stages of development, with all offering unique opportunities for retail investment. All the countries in the region are in the rapid urbanisation phase where the infrastructure is improving with relatively young populations. Most of the government in the countries are making retail friendly policies to drive the retail growth. Singapore for example, represents a mature retail market with the presence of a high number of international retailers.
Fun facts about ASEAN market:
Retail sales in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia is estimated to grow by an average rate growth of 6%. (The Edge Market, 2018)
For the same four countries mentioned above, domestic consumption is expected to increase to 75% of GDP by 2025. (WorldBank,2016)
Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia’s GDP per capita figures are expected to achieve compound annual growth rates (CAGRs) of 5.4%, 9.8%, 5.0%, and 5.0%. (IMF,2018)
Countries such as Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia have the lowest labor cost (Canasean, 2016)
What Makes ASEAN the best marketing hub?
Malaysia- Asean Pride
1.ASEAN is a powerhouse of economic power
If ASEAN was a country on its own , it would already be the seventh-largest economy in the world, with a combined GDP of $2.57 trillion in 2017 . It is predicted to rank as the fourth-largest economy in the world market by 2050. What makes it the powerhouse though is definitely the labor-force expansion and productivity improvements. It is home to more than 600 million people, it has a larger population than the European Union (EU) and the United States of America (USA). Another advantage of the ASEAN region is its youthful population which makes it the best spot for your retail brand
2. ASEAN is not a monolithic market therefore one strategy doesn’t fit all
Monolithic mean big and one however ASEAN is very diverse. Each country is different and each market is needs different strategy. For example, the GDP per capita in Singapore is more than 30 times higher than in Laos and more than 50 times higher than in Cambodia and Myanmar. While Malaysia and Thailand are seeing positive growth in the retail market, Indonesia and Brunei are falling. For a fact, the standard deviation in average incomes among ASEAN countries is more than seven times that of EU member states. That diversity extends more than just economic. The cultural, language, and religion difference should all be taken in consideration before diving in the ASEAN market. Indonesia, for example, is almost 90 percent Muslim, while the Philippines is more than 80 percent Roman Catholic, and Thailand is more than 95 percent Buddhist. To come up with one for all strategy will not work in the ASEAN Market. Although ASEAN is becoming more integrated, investors should be aware of local preferences and cultural sensitivities; they cannot rely on a one-size-fits-all strategy across such widely varying markets.
Youth of ASEAN
3. ASEAN is highly E-commerce consumer driven
Believe it or not, ASEAN has outpaced the rest of the world on growth in GDP per capita even since the late 70s. The income growth in most of the countries has remained strong and stable since 2000 . In 2000, 14 percent of the region’s population was below the international poverty line of $1.25 a day but by 2013, that share had fallen to just 3 percent. More than half of the population are part of the working class, with incomes exceeding poverty rate. According to the World Bank report, that number could almost double to 125 millions by 2025. This make ASEAN crowd a pivotal consumer of the future. Though people thinks the consumer are all single minded but make the words there is no typical ASEAN consumer, though there is a growing preference for modern retail formats, and increment in brand awareness which is largely due to its young demographics.
Singapore- ASEAN Tiger
4. ASEAN is home to many globally competitive companies
ASEAN includes 227 of the world’s companies with more than $1 billion in revenues, or 3 percent of the world’s total income. Singapore is a standout in the region , ranking fifth in the world for corporate-headquarters density and first for foreign subsidiaries.Consistent with this growth, foreign direct investment in ASEAN has boomed, surpassing the levels of EU. In fact, the ASEAN nations like Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand attracts more foreign direct investment than China and India. In addition to attracting multinationals, ASEAN has become a launching pad for new companies; the region now accounts for 38 percent of Asia’s market for initial public offerings.
5 ASEAN is united hence easier to penetrate through the market
Despite their distinct cultures, histories, and languages, the ten member states of ASEAN share a common goal. It focuses on prosperity and development as a whole rather than just one nations. Which means investing in one country gives you a easy flow lead into another member state. Household purchasing power is rising, transforming the region into the next frontier of consumer growth. ASEAN’s goal of becoming globally competitive in a wide range of industries an opportunity to create a seamless regional market and production base. If its implementation is successful, ASEAN could prove to be a case in which the whole actually does exceed the sum of its parts.
In conclusion, the urbanization and consumer growth in ASEAN’s cities are booming. With 22 percent of ASEAN’s population living the in metropolitan cities ASEAN consumers are increasingly moving online, with a heavy mobile penetration and Internet penetration across the region. Its member states combined makes up the world’s second-largest community of Facebook users, behind only USA. All these, makes ASEAN the hub for retail venture.
在以友情为基础的结构里，你不能下命令、不能指挥，只能通过友情来权衡利益和权力，很可能形成一个矛盾圈和是非圈。这个问题如果得不到及时解决，新东方很可能做不下去。最后，我们做出决定，请徐小平离开董事会。
