Tips from marketing

Interesting book to read by Martin Lindstom “Brandwashed: tricks companies use to mipulate our minds and persuade us to buy” (see book here) this will make me start questioning my decisions while shopping (always wondered why I was attracted to the chocolate aisle – now I know it’s because my local Tesco pipes slow music over its speakers – nothing to do with me craving chocolate and not having enough will power to steer towards the fruit aisle!). However, the paranoid part of me will be looking over my shoulder to see who is following me and observing my shopping habits (if this book is to believed!)!!

However ,the lessons from this missive are quite intriguing, especially the fact that the art of marketing has been so elevated, that it has become a science. Driven by data gathered from consumers, marketing decisions on what products to develop and push are not “gut” derived any more it seems. It is based on facts, gathered by varying means (clicks on google; “likes” on facebook, online shopping habits etc) analysed by PhD holders (it seems!!) and trends and conclusions drawn by the “mad men”. To be a marketer now, one has to be an analyst it seems.... and it obviously works. Gathering data has become so integrated in the way we buy things that it is no longer noticeable. E.g. if you take out a Tesco credit card, you are able to link it to a club card and accumulate points. What isn’t noticeable is; not only is Tesco now recording data on what you buy in its stores, but now it has access to data on what you buy and where you buy PERIOD! A great outcome (for Tesco) from a subtle change.

Here’s a thought, how come HR (and by extension people managers) cannot be as fact and data driven? Why is it so hard to drill down and derive this sort of data that can translate to informed employee based decisions. For example a number of companies (can I get stats on this?) offer optional choices on benefits, am curious as to how the data offered up willingly by employees are used in making reward decisions or used as negotiating arsenal when buying providers? Or even how recruitment stats are being used to forecast and re-direct recruitment drives and even evaluate recruitment pipelines. (Case in point read this) I am curious as to how well data held on employees that have been in employment over time is used in projections, hr planning, forecasting etc. And I wonder how sophisticated hr can get in gathering and analysing data? I saw an interesting comment on a LinkedIn group I belong to debating the importance of HR professionals needing to know finance or maths  in order to get a job in HR; an intriguing one. My take is simply this: Yes. To be a great HR practitioner you need to have an arsenal of tools to deliver on your objectives. Maths/ stats/ analysis/ facts are tools, once mastered that can help in making value based decisions. My fear is that if we are still asking ourselves this question, we lose sight of the reality of the world we live in- a fact based driven world. Which offers up facts more readily now and we would be shortsighted not to learn to use them. If marketers sell us products and services, HR sells to employees the psychological contracts and employee brand of the company; its value proposition to the staff that carry out its activities.  That makes us marketers, Marketers that must be data driven!