Blog Yes & Know

One View

"Outside consultants don't give in, and don't give up".

Pricing as a Head Trip

Can prices be set too low for consumers? A recent study by Dr. Antonio Rangel of CalTech says yes. Dr. Rangel observed the brain activity of subjects and found they exhibited more pleasure drinking wines when they thought they cost more. For those of us that study the finer points of pricing, this is a very interesting result. We all know that there is a sense to "you get what you pay for" that acts as a negative factor when evaluating the lowest priced alternatives. What Dr. Rangel has established is that there is more than the fear of getting stuck with an inferior product at work; people actually get more enjoyment from certain products if they think they cost more. The data communicated by the price is working not just at a rational level, but at an emotional level as well. That is, from the brain's standpoint, these products are objectively better in a post-purchase environment.

Holding The Vision

The larger picture is about the vision and mission. The "how" of what we do each day to accomplish that (or not) is what I'm commenting on to get the actions/ behaviors / direction to be aligned to the larger vision. So even when I see that things are not working, I am determined to lead that part of the solution to get it back on track.

What was Ford’s Alan Mulally thinking?

Unless you are selling talking beer openers or donuts, comparing your product to Homer Simpson defies conventional wisdom. When your product is a slow-selling car, your actions are certain to leave people saying, "D'oh!" Yet, this is exactly what Ford Motor CEO Alan Mulally did recently. He wasn't subtle, in a public speech he projected an image of Homer over a picture of Ford's Taurus sedan while being critical of the design and talking up future models as much better. We can be pretty sure that this will not rally sales of the Taurus over the coming months, so has Mulally gone mad or is he actually smart?

Good Comeback Line

"If his very smart cat could write it, my very smart tortoise could write his database."

2008 Trends Watch

It's very risky to make predictions in the tech industry. If we knew for certain what the future would be, we'd all be retired and living on our stock investments.

Vision Holder Carries Flame

For any of you holding on to a vision, I say disregard anyone who says you cannot make it; fake the confidence, believe in it as if it was already in the rear-view mirror until it is; Never give up; Continue making an effort no matter what, and remember to envision the outcomes as done when you are talking to people on what they will do to carry the flame.

What is this Strategy thing?

Because all the "right" strategies in the world could be applied to any business but what makes it right for them is really about leveraging their core strengths today. So it's about discernment certainly to figure out what is a company's strength today. And what are they clearly not able to do. And then to look at that clearly, without bias to think about what makes sense. I suppose in some way it's the role of a parent to a child or a teacher to a student. The parent or teacher sees things the child or student doesn't. Not because the child is stupid or the student ignorant, but both are learning and are too close to the situation themselves to have some perspective of what true gifts / strengths / abilities they should place their leverage.

Yahoo in 2008

It would be difficult to find a company that underwent more change in 2007 than Yahoo.