Be Empactful

Dr. Robert Cialdini speaks about 6 different aspects of Influence: Reciprocity, Authority, Consistency, Consensus, Scarcity & Liking.

How one is influenced in the workplace to be aware of spaces?

This might sound a bit tricky, theoretical, & academic in nature but that's how it influences us while the culture is being established for an organization.

Welcome to Season 3 of Be Empactful Podcast, In this episode, we have Sashi, who is a Gender & Behavioral science professional & Social Scientist with expertise in sectoral research, CSR partnerships, gender, intervention, research, teaching at TISS along with 12+ yrs of experience.

We hear a lot of noise about diverse hiring, women in leadership positions in organizations, LGBTQ is to be made of something which brings in different conversations, biases, influences, thoughts, decisions, and so on.

It's under the broader discussion of D.I.E.&B where #Diversity leads to #Inclusivity to #Equity & creating a sense of #Belonging.

Diversity: We have been exposed to & grown with it in our entire life, which also impacts the ability to perceive and understand, & communicate what is going on. There is a certain privilege of these intersections, bringing in opportunities & exposure. As we come from various regions, belong to various genders, different labeled people, different qualities, thought processes, gender, class, caste, religion, and a lot of intersections keep on affecting us on an everyday basis.

To Inclusivity: What comes to your mind when you hear "good or bad", "right or wrong", "black & white", "male & female", & so on.

These binaries have such a strong impact on our minds that anything that is different becomes a challenge to accept.

LGBTQ - companies focus on hiring, grooming people & making them feel comfortable, they are not marginalized.

When the diversity is respected & heard, move forward together as a collective. That's where we become Inclusive.

Gender is a very marginalized subject and a very important space for addressing the new upcoming trend, "Giving a second chance".

People take a little break after childbearing - being a little mindful about the words we use and the plays we give them, engendering of micro & macro economic policies, have to be some kind of affirmative action for gender to make place for themselves.

Equity is transformational in a way of moving forward. Imagine breaking the bias and everyone getting a fair chance to grow in a professional & personal environment.

Diversity, Inclusivity, & Equity together bring a sense of #Belonging.

Belonging is a long haul & Differences are OK.

We love the product-We love the service-We love the company

or

We love the company-we love the product or service it produces.

or

something in-between...

All of us at least cherish that one product or service where we will get into a conversation with our friends and acquaintances, share our thoughts, experiences and also defend them in case we believe that the person on the other side is sharing which is not in sync with & that is called word of mouth.

Check out:

Royal Enfield - a brand that was revived from death or near bankruptcy as the owners of the motorcycles connected with its legacy, craved for its experience and look at how the One Ride & Himalayan Odyssey is making its mark.

Leaders who adapt themselves to this generation of people joining an organization are in a better position to engage with them, groom them & lead the growth of the organization.

Welcome to Season 3 of Be Empactful Podcast, In this episode, we have Mr. Ravishankar, CEO @ Ceresta BC, and Business Director, Oil & Gas, Alethe Labs, where we discuss the role of leaders in this dynamic business environment, where a leader has to adapt to the changing pace of technology, changing pace of people, expectations of people, background, qualifications & exposure of people.

Also, in this dynamic business environment, there are collaborations, mergers & acquisitions, roles of communication, and so on...

Ravi graduated from IIM, Ahmedabad in 1987, and over the three decades been in the Oil & Gas industry which is considered a traditional industry compared to the new-age industry such as IT & ITES, although now every industry is using CRM & ERP and there's a pressing need to adapt these to stay relevant & competitive in this dynamic environment.

According to Ravi, in the first two decades of his career, the change was slow and in the last decade, things have transformed very fast. In this challenging business environment, leaders who adapt themselves are in a better position to engage, groom, & lead the growth of the organization with the new-age talent to make the best use of talent and resources.

Companies that have managed risks both planned and unforeseen, well & known for their efficiency & optimal use of their resource, leveraged the technology to the fullest extent possible, these are companies have survived during this period whereas others after a couple of months into the pandemic were on the verge of shutting down & out from the business.

Mergers and Acquisitions have become common in the post-pandemic stage where resource optimization is something that is at the fulcrum of all acquisitions.

There will be natural shake-ups that would take place with the major agenda of a leader is to clearly communicate the decisions to make the people prepared for smooth transitions.

The hierarchy has to embrace these changes and complete transformation in the functioning of the organization.

Key Takeaways:

Create more leaders and not more followers - for percolation to trickle down to the last person in the team.

Enable Decision Making - By delegating the authority.

Enable more involvement of everyone in the decision-making process.

Ensure Learning & Knowledge on a continuous basis.

Communication is very important, especially during challenging times. Right communication keeps the team working together.

Community is about people with diverse backgrounds coming together for a cause and once it is mission-led - Everybody unites under one flag. Led by a leader creating the next rung of leaders.

For our listeners who wish to connect with Ravi, check out:

A financial institution started by lending Rs. 5,000/- per month to women entrepreneurs in rural India as a part of CSR activity & now it lends Rs. 30,000/- per month to these women to scale their business.

Imagine 6 times growth over a period of time.

So investing in #community is good for business & good business.

Welcome to the Season 3 of Be Empactful Podcast. In this episode, we have Rajashri, Co-Founder of Impactree Data Technologies, where we discuss the journey of being an Activist, then working as a CS in the legal firm then coming to a decision point that led to Jagriti Yatra, and now building an organization which is using data to build in transparency, storytelling & impact.

With an aim to impact 5 million people by 2027 and a subset of it will be 15 lakh, women-entrepreneurs & family-led enterprises in rural India as a tribute to her late mentor Prema Gopalan.

The community became a key enabler and played the role of a critical partner in the ecosystem.

Rajashri calls herself a Recession Entrepreneur, as there was almost no work flowing in her team, and finally to her which led to submitting an application to be part of Jagriti Yatra with a promise that if the application is accepted she would quit the job.

That's exactly what happened, the application to Jagriti Yatra was accepted today Impactree Data Tech is Impact Partners in the program.

Jagriti Yatra is that transformative train journey and a space for young entrepreneurs to realize that "you are not alone", where you travel & stay on a train and stations to interact with entrepreneurs and become more realistic about what your goals could be such that if someone wakes you up from your deep sleep, you should be able to share your business idea in two sentences.

After running a couple of programs for 1,000 women entrepreneurs in the retail & clean energy space and scaling it across Africa & Indonesia, there is a realization from ideating, running, and reporting the data with action points. Implementing things at scale becomes a challenge that the solution becomes irrelevant when it is implemented 3-4 months down the line.

At Impactree there are systems in place where the donors get transparency whether they want to align these programs to integrate them into businesses or align as a charitable vertical in their organization.

Make Connections, Visibility of Data, Ease with which stakeholders can use & see it has been a real crucial change which has allowed stakeholders to innovate in the pipeline, not make CSR only another compliance tickbox.

In one of the cases the financial services organization was able to ensure two things:

1) Able to impact the community better through the CSR programs, because they were lending in that particular community by supporting the women to move up the entrepreneur value chain.

2) Reduce default rates by 8%, Move the women on ticket size they were lending to Rs. 5,000 a month, now they are lending 20-25k a month

The result is that women have established enterprises, which make economic sense to the community & to the corporates to add value to businesses in rural India through CSR.

For our listeners who wish to connect with Rajashri, check out the website: https://www.impactree.in/

Does anybody have anything to contribute? This is the worst ever statement to be made.

Rather look at actively engaging with the quietest people in the team.

Welcome to Season 3 of Be Empactful Podcast, In this episode, we have Mr. Vivek, Co-Founder, Impactree Data Tech.

A heuristic is a mental shortcut that allows people to solve problems & make judgments quickly & efficiently. These rule-of-thumb strategies shorten decision-making time and allow people to function without constantly stopping to think about their next course of action.

Whether it is good or bad, that's very subjective. Since our minds operate in a similar way and the best way to make the most of it is to figure out a way where it's a win-win situation for everyone.

In common terms, we call it Bias. Something which we have a preconceived notion.

There are two sets of Biases that operate among individuals while they are working professionally in a team or interacting socially.

The First one is Confirmation Bias - where we have the tendency to confirm, recall or interpret the information which we believe in.

And, the second one is Group Think Bias - where we tend to agree with whatever is the general consensus as we have the fear of being the odd one out in the team.

Biases are not going to get over soon.

So, How do we get over it? By building in the systems & processes with checks & balances in place to be followed in letter and spirit.

Understand the fact that the internal team of an organization is it a startup, growth-stage company, or an established enterprise has different dynamics as every individual has varied skillsets and they work at a different frequency... Obviously, there is a discussion about Skills vs Potential...

Every individual adds a different dynamic to the operating team...

There are three checkpoints while building the team:

i) When they are recruited during the interview process?
ii) Daily working with the team & Meetings?
iii) Evaluating process to measure the periodic performance.

It starts with the culture & whether the individual will fit the culture or not.

Unless you don't understand "How the team operates?" You won't be successful.

As the basic ingredients needed to become a high-functioning team. It is not only Skill Sets, Attitudes, whatever.

But Also, Expectations are to be set in stone & customized per person to person in the team with milestones & objectives to be rigorously reviewed.

It's a fact that an individual joins the company as an Individual Contributor & then is promoted and expected to lead teams.

Everyone is on a learning curve and it takes time to build & develop Trust. So build in checks & balances to validate this Trust.

A mentor becomes critical in this scenario as there is someone with whom this can be brainstormed & debated to put everything in order to figure out a way where the team is extremely agile and delivering on the objectives.

The role of leadership in driving company culture

Remember the time when you made your first sale? How did you feel about it?

You surely must have gone through a plethora of emotions. Be it the pre-sales anxiety or the post-sales celebration, the memory of this first experience is treasured by every marketer. This episode of our podcast will take you back to your first sales experience.

Welcome to Season 3 of the Be Empactful Podcast. In this episode, we have Mr. Abhishek Sagar, AVP Growth at Amura, a MarTech company.

Quick introduction: Right after graduating from IIT, Abhishek founded his first startup. In the process of learning and building things from scratch, he met his

mentor from IIM Ahmedabad, who shaped his career in many ways and continues to be an integral part of it even today. Her mentorship was instrumental in creating a customer-centric culture in the startup, formulating its processes and scripts, achieving a broader customer outreach and tackling every challenge head-on.

Another mentor who guided him through his journey was an investor in Infosys, a well-known Indian IT company. The nuances & nuggets of knowledge that he provided proved to be invaluable. Carrying these learnings ahead, Abhishek has transformed into a successful leader himself!

You can also get a glimpse of these learnings through this episode. Abhishek will share his valuable insights on digital marketing, various platforms used, the

importance of leadership, company culture, core values, and constructive feedback.

Here are some key takeaways from the podcast:

- The digital space has evolved remarkably in recent times. And the need for strong leadership is felt now more than ever. Leaders are indispensable to an individual’s transition into a successful professional. Along with strong leadership, an organisation also needs to re-evaluate its culture as it impacts the retaining and hiring processes. Furthermore, having knowledge of various digital engagement platforms can make wonders happen!

- For any organisation to be successful, developing a unique culture is vital. It defines the branding of the organisation. The podcast elaborates on various types of cultures that an organisation can have depending on its business goals.

- The organisation should also be built keeping transparency and a clear mission statement in mind. That way, the key stakeholders become the brand ambassadors and the community becomes the growth engine for your business.

With many other interesting insights like these, you can build and grow your organisation to reach exceptional heights.

M = DxP

M - Motivation

D - Dreams & Desires

P - Probability of fulfillment of desire through the job or profession they are into.

This might sound like a Mathematical Equation containing Probability but it is not scary as it sounds.

Welcome to Season 3 of Be Empactful Podcast, In this episode, we have Mr. Prantik Panigrahi, CEO, Vipran Enterprises.

He's India's first 3VQ Facilitator as well as a Licensed Psychogeometrics Facilitator among other different hats he wears as a Leadership Coach training folks on various aspects of human behavior leading to growth both personal & professional.

​Happy Employees make Happier Workplaces.

Happier Workplaces are Good for Business.

It is not counterintuitive but a realistic scenario as happiness will be reflected in productivity, personal lives, and social interactions.

Welcome to Season 3 of Be Empactful Podcast. In this episode, we have Mr. Rajeeva Ranjan, Founder of the Business Culture Club.

He's a veteran in the real sense, first served as an officer in the Indian Coast Guard for 14 yrs, and his second innings as an entrepreneur ran successfully Viraj Clean Sea Enterprises for 25 yrs, hung his boots, and now working on coaching & program with a mission to help 100,000 SMEs across India to grow their business using culture as a tool.

Strong company culture attracts talent and it helps in retaining them.

Welcome to the Season 2 finale of the Be Empactful Podcast.

Season 2 has been an interesting season for us where we were discussing #sustainability.

3 Ps of Sustainability - People, Profits and Planet - or Economic growth, Ecological development and Environmental friendly and the role Communities play in sustainable business development.

The other side of sustainability in business - Resilience or the ability to bounce back in the dynamic and even turbulent marketplace.

While we received feedback that we are talking about everything under the sun and not giving a checklist or actionable points for any business to implement it right away. Also, the skepticism around the fact that why is there a need for a coach & a mentor.

A coach & a mentor is someone who has been through a similar journey bounced back from the challenges and are there to help an entrepreneur navigate the journey. Similarly, there is no checklist on sustainability for a company to implement but guidelines that start, as a thought, vision & mission which transform into actionable insights acting as a North Star leading to the creation of a checklist.

Our guests this season Sreela from My Urjiva & Pukhraj from Moi Namaste are an example of the same. Venky & Aparna spoke about Goal Setting & Bouncing Back whereas Paras spoke about integrating #community into the Business Strategy for growth.

All in All it's been fun.

Now as the Host Bees take a rest to refresh, rejuvenate & prepare for Season 3. We would request the listeners to reach out to us with their thoughts for a cup of coffee or tea or a beverage and who knows where these conversations would lead to.

Welcome to Season 2 of the Be Empactful Podcast.

Today’s episode is dealing with the Marketing journey of a company.

Like any other journey we take, there is the preparation we need to do before we start the journey. And once the journey has begun, we have milestones in our journey which we need to know how far we have come and where to go next.

Most startups and small & medium businesses focus on sales and how to get revenue. They question the need for marketing, often saying that marketing does not get them customers and revenue – it is Sales that do so. The issue here is that companies often try to measure Marketing with Sales measures – something akin to measuring the number of oranges plucked with a liter measure can.

The preparation for marketing does not begin once a product or service is ready to go to market. It begins when the idea is birthed – to be validated against market needs. Market validation is required in various ways through every stage of product development till the launch.

The launch is when the marketing journey begins. And with any journey, we need to know the following:

- Where do you want to go – the target market

- Why do we want to go there – the outcome we want

- By when do we want to reach and how much are we willing to spend – the budget and timelines

- How do we want to get there – the brand messages and channels to choose

The Where and Why are key to developing the specific measures of success for the marketing program.

The marketing program then goes through a journey of 5 key milestones – marked by the vowels of the English alphabet – A, E, I, O, U:

- Awareness

- Education

- Interest

- Opportunity

- Ubiquity

More details on these in the podcast…

I welcome our listeners to share their thoughts on the need for a focussed marketing program for their business and how they are planning and executing for the same.

Connect with me on:

Season 2 of Be Empactful podcast was supposed to be completed on 26-Oct-21 with the release of the 10th episode.

But Host Bee Shiva is missing in action and the finale episode will be released on 2-Nov-21.

When we started this podcast series the idea was to debunk the myth about Strategy both Marketing & Community.

The purpose is to enable the decision-makers to invest in Strategy first & then Execution to scale.

The myth about Community Strategy is associated with social enterprise and here we are discussing incorporating it as a Business Strategy for long-term growth.

In Season 1, we covered the fundamentals of Marketing & Community strategy. We received feedback that it is too bookish or theoretical.

In Season 2, we focused on #sustainability & #resilience and interviewed a few founders who put people & the planet first which led them to build profitable businesses and create impact.

One of the major feedback received from Vineet’s prospective client on the consulting proposal is that it's too expensive whereas from the first State of Indian Community Management 2021 report the pricing is well within the range of what a professional with relevant experience would charge.

Two important factors to be noted:

1. Communication
2. Executive Buy-In

During the 3-4 days of deep work in the last week, I have ideated the service that anyone who wants to talk about Community, Community Strategy & Community Building could pick my brain for an hour for a small consulting fee.

This helps in lowering the adoption barrier with minimal commitment and gets prospects to get and stay invested for the long term.

Here’s the TIP:

Create a product or service for your enterprise which has a low adoption barrier and gets prospects invested.

Lets us know your thoughts and share them with us.

This episode is about the journey of Moi Namaste – a People and Planet first company that is focussed on bringing Ethical homeware and apparel made by Indian artisans to the world. The journey straddles all three parts of the sustainability pie with supporting and developing Indian artisans – ecological development; ethical products which are environmentally friendly, and finally build a business for their economic benefit.

Pukhraj Ranjan, Founder of Moi Namaste, relates her own journey from being a Teach for India fellow to moving to Finland for further education and work and then being inspired by her love for Indian arts and culture to build Moi Namaste – a sustainability start-up that has one foot firmly planted in Finland while the other travels all over India picking and choosing ethically made Indian arts and products to bring to the world.

Moi Namaste started ecological development by initially supporting 2 women's self-help groups to now sourcing and helping Indian artisan groups across India sourcing a variety of products to take to the world.

The Moi Namaste journey also speaks about important lessons learned which include:

- If you have an idea, just start, in whatever way.

- When you start a passion project, they become something that takes over your life.

- If not now, then when – the time is always right.

A key component is to ensure that they remain sustainable from source to consumer – selecting groups that fully follow fair trade practices to source the product, and often rejecting those who do not, even if there is a price advantage. They also promote the message to consumers to only buy products that they actually need and not because they see a product they like.

3 key takeaways from the Moi Namaste for the listeners are:

- If not now, then when – if you have an idea, start small, test the idea and then go for it.

- Sustainability is a process, not just a destination.

-  Find your purpose.

To know more about Moi Namaste and our guest Pukhraj Ranjan, check out

Welcome to Season 2 of the Be Empactful Podcast.

This is Episode 8 where we have a guest who believes in Community Building so much that he started evangelizing it in the Indian Ecosystem and in turn created an opportunity for other community professionals and it is gaining momentum as a movement to help businesses realize the value-added by incorporating community in their business strategy.

Welcome to Season 2 of the Be Empactful Podcast.

Today in Episode 7, we are going to talk about some of the feedback that we received from our listeners, who:

• Said that we were beating around the bush
• Asked for a specific checklist
• Asked us to talk about actual products or services that can be done sustainably
• How can we actually become sustainable?

Vineet and I discuss how sustainability is not a secret mantra or a secret formula that you apply to a business and voila.. you are sustainable

Greenwashing is fast catching up with companies who are trying to quickly jump on the sustainability bandwagon and paint themselves green in the eyes of authorities and customers. It is not as simple as just repackaging your product  - now with a green label and saying you are green. It requires a transparent label around your company where the world can see that are actually green at your core.

Customers today are demanding sustainable practices from the companies and companies, in turn, are forcing customers to become sustainable. Customers are willing to pay a premium for sustainable products and sustainable packaging. And companies are reciprocating in kind.

Blue Bottle Coffee and Starbucks - both leading Coffee chains are asking their customers to get or purchase reusable coffee cups. A small grocery shop in South India is asking people to get their own containers for food grains and other food items...

Companies from various sectors are becoming sustainable and setting well-defined sustainable goals. We have covered examples like

• Native Place and Nirvana from travel
• Dandelion Energy and Various Solar energy companies from the Utility industry
• Auroville as a community
• Be Earthly and Urvija in consumer products

The more we explore the more we hear about companies defining and focusing on sustainable development goals. We have also found that there is no fixed formula or checklist, each industry and company make one guided by its vision and strategy

What's important is to understand that when you are making a shift or change, there are bound to be challenges and issues. Companies should not give up due to failure and instead focus on what they analyze did right and analyse what went wrong. Companies can gain a lot of support by communicating and educating their ecosystem on their sustainability principles and goals.

So here's 3 guideline for listeners wanting to go sustainable - whichever industry you are in:

1. Create a vision to build a sustainable business and let that guide and drive you in defining your sustainability development goals and strategies

2. The path to Sustainability will have its own challenges. Do not give up, celebrate what victories you have and reach out for help and collaboration to get back on track

3. Ensure your complete supply chain from source to consumption is sustainable - vendors, employees, stakeholders, delivery and distribution partners, production process, and consumers - the complete business ecosystem.

We ask our listeners to go through these guidelines and start working on their own checklists for their industry or specific company - share it with us so that we can share it out with the rest of the community. Reach out to us if you want to discuss, just share a thought or even a cup of coffee.

Welcome to Season 2 of the Be Empactful Podcast.

This is Episode 6 where we have a guest who believes that economic resilience and environmental sustainability are just 2 facets of a company’s success today and should not be treated separately.

Sreela Pillai Roy is a Financial risk advisory turned Co-Founder of Urvija, a Sustainable Personal Care Products company, while also helping in her family's agri based business. She is passionate about the environment and especially against using chemicals in her products which either contribute to deforestation or harm the community or environment.

Sreela shares her journey of a video of how deforestation of forests for Palm Oil was killing the orangutan species, motivating her to start up a company which led to Urvija, India’s 1st “No Palm Oil” certified Personal care products company - a key milestone for the company and Sreela herself.

Sreela speaks about how they researched and identified locally available native ingredients that can be used in personal care products instead of Palm Oil, thus contributing to the sustenance of the environment and natural habitats of various species. This also helped in growing local market sources and communities which has improved the local ecology - a truly circular and sustainable model that looks at economy, ecology, and environment.

A simple wish she carries is that if this podcast and outreach can save 1 orangutan or preserve 1 habitat, we have started our journey back. It is this credibility & sincerity towards the cause which has resulted in Urvija getting certified by the Orangutan Alliance in Australia

3 key takeaways that Sreela has for listeners based on her own journey:

1. The journey to building an economically resilient and environmentally friendly company is full of multiple challenges. Don't stop your journey and don't hesitate to ask for help when you require it.
   
2. The challenges can sometimes defeat you. That is the time to count your blessings and celebrate every victory.
   
3. Focus on the impact you plan to leave, beyond just yourself and your company.
   

Welcome to Season 2 of the Be Empactful Podcast.

Welcome to Season 2 of the Be Empactful Podcast.

This is Episode 3 of this season where we are exploring how to build Sustainable Businesses.

Sustainability has 2 sides  - one is for businesses to be focussing on economic, ecological, and environmental development; the other is to become stable, flexible, and resilient to be able to weather any market upheavals and bounce back to a growth path. This episode is focussing on the latter concept of sustainability - building resilient businesses.

Welcome to Season 2 of the Be Empactful Podcast.

This is Episode 2 of this season where we are exploring how to build Sustainable Businesses.

This episode will be exploring the role of communities in building sustainable businesses.

Sustainable Communities are a powerful tool in redefining societies and businesses. The power of compounded thought coming together for a fixed purpose has often been the catalyst of change across the world and throughout history.

Welcome back to the Be Empactful Podcast with us host bees, Shiva & Vineet!!

As the world is going through the rollercoaster ride, we have had our share of roller coasters in the journey which led us to this podcast.

As Season 1 comes to an end with 10 episodes (Episode 1 to Episode 10),

Here are some key pointers.

There are 4 KYC to build your BS:

Company

Customer

Competition

Community

The AEIOU of Marketing:

Awareness

Education

Interest

Opportunity

Ubiquity

5 key stakeholders in Community Building:

Infrastructure

Service Providers

Network

Knowledge

Capital

The world has gone online and the distances have been reduced by Zoom Calls. Remember, Marketing & Community Strategy is not instant gratification but a long-term journey.

Listen to the podcast episodes, read the blog posts & connect with us to share your experiences, comments, and stories:

Welcome back to the Be Empactful Podcast with us host bees, Shiva & Vineet!!

After covering the journey of the 4 KYC to build your BS and our friends Beevis and his brothers building Beehive X, delving a little deeper into the Marketing Journey.

Today we will discuss:

Why is Community a necessary part of the Strategy?

&

How can Community be Integrated into Strategy?

Community Building is a subset of Marketing Strategy & it plays an integral role in building and broadening the audience base where businesses are pooling in resources from multiple stakeholders and each one benefits from it.

Here is the Equation coined by Vineet:

PEOPLE + PURPOSE + GUIDELINES = COMMUNITY BUILDING + GROWTH

This becomes clearer from the 3 examples:

Welcome back to the Be Empactful Podcast with us host bees, Shiva & Vineet!!

After covering the journey of the 4 KYC to build your BS and our friends Beevis and his brothers building Beehive X, today we delve a little deeper into the #Marketing Journey.

A Marketing Journey begins with creating a strategy that is based on knowing your company, customers, and competitors (Ep 2-7). Simply put, a Marketing Strategy is the plan to create awareness to engage your potential target market and convert them into customers for your company’s product or service.

Preparing for the Marketing Journey is similar to planning any other journey:

1. Identify your destination - your target market, potential customers
   
2. Identify the vehicle - the Brand message, the channels to reach that target market
   
3. Know tor define the desired outcome - What do we want to achieve out of this specific marketing campaign or journey
   
4. Clearly limit the Budget and Timeline - Know how much you want to spend on the budget and how long you want the campaign to run - and STICK to the PLAN!!
   

The marketing journey is a 5 step process - the A-E-I-O-U of Marketing that helps you define the journey to #identifying, #acquiring, #engaging, and #retaining the customer for a brand’s lifecycle.

A - Awareness - Let your customers know you exist.

E - Educate - Educate your customers to establish your credentials with information and knowledge.

I - Interest - Create Interest through engaging with your customers.

O - Opportunity - Create the Opportunity to convert your potential customer into paying Clients.

U - Ubiquity - Reaching out to the customers across channels and geographies – online and offline.

This AEIOU is not a single cycle but is a continuously turning wheel to build and rebuild customer engagement and refresh the customer relationships.

We also share some simple tips to get you started on your Marketing Journey - but we are not sharing it here - you need to listen to the podcast for it :)

So let us know how you are planning your marketing journeys if you tried any of the tips we mentioned or have any other of your own!! Buzz us a line - we are waiting to hear from you and happy to help in any way we can.

Connect with us to share your experiences, comments, and stories:

Thank you for joining us, the Host Bees, Shiva, and Vineet on this journey of building Empactful Organisations. Over the last few weeks, we introduced ourselves, spoke about the 4 KYCs to build your BS, and explored Knowing your Company, Customer & Competitor. This week we explore the 4th & final C of the KYC - Know your Community!

This episode of “Know Your Community” explains the 5 critical components of an ecosystem required to make your business successful by identifying the right stakeholder to partner with by being part of the critical piece for your clients and playing a critical role in ensuring the success of your partners & stakeholders.

These 5 components are Infrastructure, Service Providers, Network, Knowledge & Capital. Each stakeholder contributes their part according to their capabilities and it compounds into bigger impacts.

“See with your Heart, Listen with your Mind, Spread your wings Far & Wide.” - sage advice given by our meditating Bumblebee to our friends Beevis & his brothers.

Identifying the stakeholders of the ecosystem and purposefully engaging with them on a single platform that provides the safe space to build trust and enable collaboration between them to help them spread their wings far & wide.

As Beevis & his brothers in the quest to make the best honey and make the world the greener place collaborated with birds, insects & other animals with the cross-pollination of pollen along the way creating a ripple effect far & wide in mother nature.

Similarly, we discuss an IT training & consulting company for a leading ERP provider who engaged with their training participants meaningfully that created a ripple effect far & wide.

So listen to this episode and let us know about the critical components of your business & its ecosystem and how you are spreading your wings far & wide with the Community to create a long-lasting impact.

Connect with us to share your experiences, comments, and stories:

Thank you for joining us, the Host Bees, Shiva, and Vineet on this journey of building Empactful Organisations. 

Over the last few weeks, we introduced ourselves, spoke about the 4 KYCs to build your business, and explored Knowing your #Company. This week we explore the 2nd of the KYCs - Know your Customer!

This episode of "Knowing your Customer" helps you to select your best #customers from a crowded marketplace, build an intimate understanding of the customer, and then engage with the customer to drive maximum returns - both for the customer and yourself.

Selecting the customer is akin to choosing the dishes you like from a large lunch buffet - where you select specific dishes based on your choice of sweet, source, spice, flavor, and texture. 

Similarly, you select customers based on who can benefit most from your product or service, while also realizing which category of customers you can serve best in terms of size, complexity, and other constraints.

Once you have selected your shortlist of customer categories to pursue, you build a customer map, with the aim of defining that customer to the lowest possible detail required for meaningful engagement. 

This includes, in addition to the customer industry, the exact department and designation you want to target, the role they play in the decision-making, process, the identifying the pain and gain points and what information they will require to make their decision.

Once the map is built, it is time to use that information in the best ways possible to engage with the customer. One of the best ways to engage with your customer is to help enable them to engage and satisfy their customer - building empactful relationships with far-reaching effects.

Connect with us to share your experiences, comments, and stories:

We are on a journey of building Empactful Businesses, where you create the right impacts with empathy, creating sustainable growth for all. We are on a mission to help businesses build strong brands that contribute actively to their own growth while empowering all others around them. So join us, as we kickstart our new journey, where we share our experiences, and what inspired us, and what it means to BE EMPACTFUL!!

An Engineer by education and a Marketeer by Passion, he brings together over 2 decades of mismatched experiences to the one place that makes sense - Building Marketing Strategies. He loves to travel, click interesting photographs, meet people, and seeks to learn something new every day.