The Sleeping Barber - A Business and Marketing Podcast Sleeping Barber

Ever wondered about the companies leading global markets from behind the scenes? Our latest podcast episode features Dr. Hermann Simon, who unveils the mystery behind his book 'Hidden Champions.'

These mid-sized, niche companies are more influential than you think. Tune in to learn the strategies that make them successful and how they contribute to the global economy in ways you never imagined.

We hope you enjoy the show!



Our Guest:

Founder and Chairman of Simon-Kucher & Partners: world's leading pricing advisor with offices in 27 countries

https://www.simon-kucher.com/en

Inducted into the Thinkers50 Hall of fame

Visiting professor at Harvard, Stanford, Tokyo Business School, INSEAD etc

Co-Author of multiple books including Confessions of a pricing Man, Beating Inflation and Hidden Champions



Our Hosts:

Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠

Get in touch with our hosts:

Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/

Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠



Timestamps

0:00 - Intro to Hermann Simon

2:40 - Why Germany is so successful in exports?

4:18 - The growth of Hidden Champion research

5:20 - Defining hidden champion companies

7:17 - Apple’s value chain of “deep tech”

9:22 - Niche businesses aren’t always tiny

10:28 - 3 pillars of Hidden Champions strategy

11:25 - Customer proximity is one of their biggest strengths

12:32 - Hidden Champion’s innovation advantage vs. enterprise orgs

16:01 - How niche focus leads to technological advantages

20:49 - Profitability vs. Market Leadership motives of Hidden Champions

21:45 - Pricing strategy of Hidden Champions

22:48 - Niche companies are not without competitors

24:18 - Why Germany produces so many Hidden Champions

29:12 - Competitive advantages - a 22 year overnight success

31:59 - Government’s role in developing supporting eco-systems

34:12 - Talent development & Leadership style of Hidden Champions

37:00 - The role of M&A

39:35 - Innovation processes inside Hidden Champion orgs

42:10 - Take-aways from Hidden Champions

46:55 - Post-pod with V and Marc



Background Research & Literature:

Simon, H. (1992). Lessons from Germany’s midsize giants. Harvard Business Review, 70, 115–123.

Simon, H. (1996). Hidden champions–Lessons from 500 of the world’s best unknown companies, Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

M&A has an 50-90% failure rate https://finance.yahoo.com/news/why-90-mergers-acquisitions-fail-155000525.html

Profit or Growth - You lie in the bed you make https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/10422587211059991

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cp/worlds-exports-by-country-one-chart/

Welcome back to another episode of The Barber’s Brief. A segment where we cover news that caught our eye, a marketing moment where we highlight a case study, and our ad of the week.

We hope you enjoy the show!

Our Hosts: Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠ Get in touch with our hosts: Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/ Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠ In the News

In the News

Meteoric Rise & Fall of Prime:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/meteoric-rise-stunning-fall-prime-130900275.html

Adweek: Google Delays Cookie Deprication a Third Time

https://www.adweek.com/programmatic/google-delays-cookie-deprecation-for-the-third-time/

Why most launches fail to grow your brand?

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/why-do-most-launches-fail-grow-your-brand-prof-dr-koen-pauwels-wwsfe/

lobal social media ad spend to approach £200bn in 2024

https://www.marketingweek.com/social-media-spend-200bn/

Marketing Moment: McDonald’s: A 15-Year Brand-Building Triumph

Background

In the early 2000s, McDonald’s faced significant challenges in the UK. Cultural outrage and negative perceptions threatened its very existence. However, the brand’s resilience and innovative approach helped them turn the tide.

The Crisis

Context: McDonald’s was once a beloved part of British life but had lost its luster.

Crisis: A series of events damaged brand perception, putting the business at risk.

Abuse claims - https://www.bbc.com/news/business-66231131

McDonald's runs out of milkshakes in England, Scotland and Wales - https://www.bbc.com/news/business-58315152

The Unique Approach

Emotional Brand-Building: McDonald’s focused on emotional connections rather than just transactions.

Target Audience: Instead of narrow segmentation, they aimed to reach the entire nation.

TV Advertising: TV remained their primary medium, allowing broad reach and emotional storytelling.

Results

Commercial Growth: Despite PR crises, market fragmentation, and Covid-19 disruption, McDonald’s thrived.

£4.7 Billion Net Revenue: Their brand-building efforts contributed significantly.

Case Study Gold: Recognized as the most effective restaurant brand case study by IPA.

References:

Mcdonald’s Marketing Strategy 2024: A Case Study: https://thebigmarketing.com/mcdonalds-marketing-strategy/ 

McDonald’s: Keeping customers Lovin It for 15 yearhttps://www.thinkbox.tv/case-studies/brand-films/mcdonalds-keeping-customers-lovin-it-for-15-years

Ad of the Week

Trucker Napp VW Meteor

Link: https://youtu.be/5RBayTVBUlQ?si=CxGSUuaH9nyJmErN


42% of auto accidents are related to lack of sleep
In Brazil, truck drivers suffer the highest # of fatal accidents while on the job
Pressure to get deliveries to a location often forces them to not sleep
VW & Livelo (Brazil's largest reward program) created the Trucker Napp app
Connect smartwatch to the Trucker Napp app
Earn points for sleeping
Better sleep quality = more points
The more points a company fleet earns, the more discount the company gets from VW

Timestamps

0:00 - Introduction

0:45 - In The News

0:50 - Prime Energy (The Rise and Fall)

5:40 - Google's Cookie Deprication Delayed. Again.

9:04 - Why Most Launches Fail to Grow Your Business

14:00 - Social Media Has Now Overtaken All Media Channels in Spend

17:00 - The Marketing Moment - McDonald’s: A 15-Year Brand-Building Triumph

23:00 - Audience Q/A

27:00 - Ad of the week

This week's episode of the Sleeping Barber podcast features Dale W. Harrison, Commercial Strategy & Marketing Effectiveness Consultant @ Inforda Services. Dale features an extraordinary background from physics to finance and marketing.

We dive into the fallacies of demand generation, the truth about ROI, and the impact of brand awareness. Don't miss this enlightening discussion that will leave you with a new perspective on marketing strategy.

Enjoy the show!



Our Guest:

Dale W. Harrison

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dalewharrison/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@BiotechBestPractices



Our Hosts:

Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠

Get in touch with our hosts:

Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/

Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠



Timestamps

0:00 - Introduction

2:46 - From experimental physics to finance to marketing

10:22 - Faith-based beliefs like lead nurturing and scoring

14:19 - Why some marketing measurements aren’t metrics

17:54 - Lead scoring, MTA & sales velocity should never be performance metrics

23:05 - Comparing the path to purchase of real customers to interpreted intent signals

31:15 - Why ROI is a troubling metric

36:41 - Performance vs. Brand advertising are different asset classes

44:34 - Business value of brand - it makes things more effective AND efficient

46:54 - The point of brand campaigns

51:11 - Mulit-Touch Attribution - just because you can measure something doesn’t mean it’s useful

57:39 - Billboard & radio

58:51 - The fallacy of demand generation & intent signals

1:13 - Post Pod with V and Marc



Background links:

Not All Marketing Metrics are “measurements” - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dalewharrison_%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F-activity-7170140668697276416-iTMJ?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Marketing Effectiveness vs. Efficiency - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dalewharrison_%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-activity-7148782037108178944-IEUL?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Marketing ROI is not a real number you can calculate - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dalewharrison_%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F-%3F-activity-7152401810681483265-yeeT?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

IS MTA actually Even Attribution? - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dalewharrison_%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-activity-7165085278636822528-pcGY?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

How the CFO Sees Your Marketing Budget - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dalewharrison_%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F-activity-7168655113627062272-Sgpo?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Demand Creation does not exist - https://www.linkedin.com/posts/dalewharrison_%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F%3F%3F%3F-%3F-activity-7157471671409373184-Ob9v?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop







Where to Listen:

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-sleeping-barber-a-business-and-marketing-podcast/id1609811324

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4v0kaM350zEY7X2VBuyfrF?si=7083317d5afd488b ⁠⁠

Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy84MWVjYWJhNC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwji_oSOopP-AhXnlo4IHTZKBgYQ9sEGegQIARAC

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sleepingbarberpodcast

Welcome back to another episode of The Barber’s Brief. A segment where we cover news that caught our eye, a marketing moment where we highlight a case study, and our ad of the week.

We hope you enjoy the show!

Our Hosts:
Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠
Get in touch with our hosts:
Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/
Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠

In the News

Marketing Week: Bloom & Wild - an online florist is “chasing profitability” by cutting marketing budget and focusing on customer retention.

https://www.marketingweek.com/bloom-wild-focuses-on-customer-retention-over-acquisition-as-it-chases-profitability/ 

Business Insider: Tesla lays off its new marketing team months after launching it.

https://www.businessinsider.com/tesla-new-marketing-team-advertising-cut-layoffs-2024-4 

Media Leader: Forbes 7-year scheme to dupe advertisers

https://the-media-leader.com/forbes-seven-year-mfa-scheme-shows-how-deep-the-rot-runs-in-online-advertising/

https://adalytics.io/blog/ads-observed-on-www3-forbes-subdomain

Social Media Today: Meta Brings Advanced AI Chatbot to All of its Apps.

https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/meta-ai-chatbot-facebook-instagram-whatsapp-messenger/713662/

Marketing Moment:

Baileys - The Pleasure Dividend

WARC Case Study

This strategy won Silver from the IPA Effectiveness Awards


Baileys Irish cream launched in 1974
By 2008 (34 years later) it was in 147 markets
Always has a role as a dinner liqueur, mainly at Christmas
In 2009, sales were declining and by 2014, they were 16% below the 2008 peak increased pricing to try and compensate for volume losses 
Tried a bunch of different campaigns but nothing was working
Diageo (parent company also owns Guinness, Johnny Walker) establishes a best practice - brand success is about being good at and committing to one big thing

The Campaign 

The big insight - baileys is part cake, part booze and pure pleasure

The Strategy

People love the product but they need reminders of when it might be relevant (CEPs)


You can have it after dinner at Christmas or 52 weeks a year when …



Poured over ice cream


In coffee


In cake


At brunch 


On the weekend


With Milkshakes


On French toast


In Chocolate


Anytime you want a treat




The Results


23% growth between 2015 - 2019 
250M pounds gross profit over 5 years
Increase in male share of purchases
Gains not due to price increases, discounting or increased distribution in big markets
Compared to previous campaigns, they get an extra $1 in profit for every $1 spent in media ($2.5 v. $1.5)



Have AI Break, Have A KitKat - KitKat Canada

Link: https://youtu.be/U33RTQsa7Bo?si=g47535UTjKrnWJHh

We're thrilled to announce a new segment featuring a friend of the podcast and fellow podcast host of That's What I Call Marketing, Conor Byrne.

This segment will delve into current marketing topics, drawing inspiration from Tom Fishburne's Marketoonist.

For this segment, each host has chosen two sketches to discuss, sparking engaging dialogue. We see this as a fun way to tackle pressing issues that surface in our discipline.

We hope you enjoy this new segment!



Get in touch with the hosts:

Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/

Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠

Conor Byrne:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/conorbyrne/



Timestamps:

00:00 Welcome to the Pilot: Introducing Mindless Marketers00:25 Diving Into the World of tom Fishburne and the Marketoonist,01:36 The Evolution and Challenges of the CMO Role07:54 AI in Marketing: Expectations vs. Reality11:50 Data-Driven Marketing: A Double-Edged Sword16:56 Navigating the Shift from Third-Party Cookies21:10 Rethinking Remarketing Strategies22:13 Scepticism and Realisations in Digital Marketing24:20 The Impact of Cutting Marketing Budgets31:37 Inside the Mind of a Consumer: Brand Perception39:08 Concluding Thoughts on Marketing Strategies

Where to Listen:

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-sleeping-barber-a-business-and-marketing-podcast/id1609811324

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4v0kaM350zEY7X2VBuyfrF?si=7083317d5afd488b ⁠⁠

Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy84MWVjYWJhNC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwji_oSOopP-AhXnlo4IHTZKBgYQ9sEGegQIARAC

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sleepingbarberpodcast



© 2024 Sleeping Barber

Welcome back to another episode of The Barber’s Brief. A segment where we cover news that caught our eye, a marketing moment where we highlight a case study, and our ad of the week.

We hope you enjoy the show!

Our Hosts:
Follow our updates here: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/sleeping-barber/⁠⁠
Get in touch with our hosts:
Marc Binkley: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbinkley/
Vassilis Douros: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/vassilisdouros/⁠

In the News:
[AdExchanger] - LinkedIn is Getting into CTV
Link: https://www.adexchanger.com/tv/linkedin-is-all-business-with-ctv/

[Marketing Dive] - Privacy tools fall short: Here’s what the numbers say
Link: https://www.marketingweek.com/ritson-measure-marketing-effectiveness/

[LinkedIn] Media Grows Markets - Marc Pritchard
Link: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/media-grows-markets-marc-s-pritchard-3oudc/

[Marketing Dive] - Coca-Cola heads to Marvel universe for new spot, packaging campaign
Link: https://www.marketingdive.com/news/coca-cola-marvel-universe-campaign-packaging-ar-experience/712454/

Marketing Moment:
Old Spice: "Smell Like a Man, Man"
“Look at your man. Now look at me. Now back at your man. Now back to me.”
Link: https://youtu.be/owGykVbfgUE?si=Be72eyLk061hEe9Q

TL;DR
Having failed to successfully rebrand back in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, Old Spice was rapidly losing market share to Lynx (‘Axe’ in certain markets).
Their biggest issue: Old Spice marketed their product to an aging population, which resulted in diminishing returns in the long term. They needed a way to return to their previous position as a major competitor.
To completely rebrand Old Spice as a product for a younger audience, the marketing strategy found its major focus in one key fact: 60% of body wash purchases were made by women.
Instead of focusing solely on young males as their target audience, Wieden + Kennedy switched things up and made young females the major focus of the campaign.

The Results
Old Spice quickly rose to become the top men’s body wash brand in the USA
300% increase in website traffic
Sales of Old Spice had doubled by July of the same year
1.2 billion earned media impressions
The campaign won several awards, including the Cannes Lion Film Grand Prix and an Emmy for Outstanding Commercial.

Ad of the Week
Downy Fabric Softener | More Than Laundry
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQQwUIX9OVQ

Downy Fabric Softener - More than Laundry
Just a blanket until you wrap a baby
Just a hoodie - till its felt by your first love
Just a jacket - till it brings you brings you back to your home
Just a sweater - till it a cryed into

Doesn't talk about the tech
Shows product in use
Breath life into your laundry

Where to Listen:
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-sleeping-barber-a-business-and-marketing-podcast/id1609811324
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4v0kaM350zEY7X2VBuyfrF?si=7083317d5afd488b ⁠⁠
Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy84MWVjYWJhNC9wb2RjYXN0L3Jzcw?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwji_oSOopP-AhXnlo4IHTZKBgYQ9sEGegQIARAC
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@sleepingbarberpodcast




© 2024 Sleeping Barber