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SUAOKI RANGEFINDER

In my quest for single figures, I've invested in a laser rangefinder to get some accuracy into my game and practice. In truth, I already have a Garmin G8 GPS device (Garmin G8 GPS) which for my current standard of golf has been more than sufficient when I play. It's pre-loaded with most of the courses I'm likely to play and enough features to keep me happy. However, as I've already mentioned in previous posts in the "Quest For Single Figures" thread my practice is taking a more structured approach and I wanted something to give me definitive yardages, particularly going forward with my work on my pitching and approach shots from 125 yards and in. As someone notoriously thrifty with my cash, I baulked at the cost of many of the main units on the market and wanted something that was cheaper but didn't compromise on quality or more importantly accuracy. I was put onto the Suaoki Laser Rangefinder through a couple of happy users via the Golf Monthly Forum and at under £100 it seemed meet most of my criteria.  It is capable of measuring in both metres and yards which is a handy feature. It's very simple to use with two buttons on the top, one for power/measure and a button to switch between modes (flagpole lock, roaming yardages, slope correction and fog mode when visibility is poor). Let me get it out in open at the outset, because it has a slope correction, although I've yet to test the units capability in this mode, it it highly likely it will fall foul of the rules of golf in competitions. That said, it's not what I bought it for primarily. I want to be accurate in my pitching yardages and build feel and distance control. I plan to use it on the course but this will have to be restricted to practice and social rounds, for getting exact yardages on par threes, and for anything from 120 - 50 yards. Inside of that I want to be able to trust my work on yardages, although I'll glance at the GPS if there's an element of doubt and the GPS will certainly suffice from 120 yards and out. I've already given it a stringent work out on the practice ground when I worked on my pitching distances from 50, 40 and 30 yards recently. I was able to lock onto the flag on the practice ground and adjust my position to stand exact distances away. Once I used my alignment sticks to make a 16 foot circle to act as a reasonable target to land the balls in I was ready to go. It is extremely quick and easy to use. I haven't the steadiest of hands and wear glasses to complicate matters. However with the unit on flagpole mode it's very easy to match the cross-hairs on the screen when you press the power button and once locked will give a reading. Even with a slight shake it was able to lock with no problems and looking through the eyepiece with my glasses on wasn't an issue. Another handy feature of the SUAOKI RANGEFINDER , is the fact that not only do you get the reading inside the unit when locked onto target but it has a large LED screen on the side which clearly gives the same reading. It makes it very easy to share the information with your partners or without having to peer into the unit. Perfect for me and my glasses. It has also been given a run out at several local driving ranges. One, Lavender Park has numerous targets and although there are distance markers out there, I've always doubted the accuracy of these. It also has greens and flags without any distances assigned to them. It's been a best guess, especially on the green around the 100 yard mark and the one at approximately 150 yards when hitting balls in the past but now, irrespective of which bay I use I can get an accurate figure to work on. They also plenty of flags dotted around short of the 100 yard island which are perfect to keep my pitching ticking over and these aren't the same exact distances I've worked on at the practice ground at Royal Ascot Golf Club. This means my feel is having to develop to ensure accuracy. Perfect for what I'm trying to achieve. On the course it has been very quick and easy to use with no issues in slowing play down. I've been able to get my exact number while my partners are playing their shots. I'm not too hung up on using it other than for distances close to the green (60-120 yards) and my GPS will suffice for most other distances. It comes in a soft carry case and while that does the job sufficiently (with a cleaning cloth included) I'm getting a harder case to give it more protection in the bag. There isn't anything to protect the objective lens and two lasers (emitting and receiving) which is something other more expensive units do have. That said, with care and replacing it into the case after each scan I don't see why there would be an issue but for that added peace of mind I think the harder case will provide extra durability and protection.

So how does it rate? I've broken it down into a couple of sections to give an honest assessment. The Unit Size - very compact and will fit easily into most golf bags 7/10 Weight - it's a light unit that sits comfortably in the hand 7/10 Functionality - it only has the four basic functions which is perhaps fewer than others out there on the market. However for my needs, specific as they are, there is enough there for me 6/10 Power - its powered by a CR2 3 volt battery (supplied). I've invested in some renewable ones and a charger as I'm not sure of the life expectancy of the standard battery provided and I wanted peace of mind that it wouldn't die on me playing or when working on my game 5/10 Ease - as already mentioned in the review, even with glasses and a slight hand shake it will find and lock onto the target easily 8/10 Accuracy - I used it on the course alongside a partner who had a more expensive model (Bushnell) and there was no variance in 6/7 readings we took and the one difference was out by a yard 9/10 Price - this is where the Suaoki is a real winner. For less than £100 it gives anyone looking for an entry level (or perhaps just above that) rangefinder, without too many bells and whistles, something that works well 10/10 User Manual - the manual supplied is sparse at best and there seems limited additional information available online even on the Suaoki website. It fails to explain the functions in any depth or give any operating instructions and it is left very much to trial and error 2/10 Overall - as a unit for my needs it meets most of my needs with aplomb. It's a basic unit compared to some but at the moment I have very few gripes other than the case, slope mode (and what it actually is) and the manual 7.5/10 The Course Speed of Use - the unit has been very quick to use for reading on the course It slips easily in and out of the protective case and responds quickly when the power button is pressed. It's refreshingly simple and quick to lock onto the target (flag) and give a reading and hasn't seemed to delay play in any way to date 7/10 Legality - this is my big bug bear. I need to find out more about the slope function (see my gripe about user manual) and see if it's a slope reading in the golfing sense which would make it redundant for a competitive round. Looking online, it appears it may be more for giving the height of objects but I remain to be totally convinced 4/10 Durability - the case isn't the most robust (I've purchased a more robust version) but the unit is waterproof according to the manual and their blurb and so it should function well in proper British winter conditions. I'm sure I won't have long to wait to put it through its paces in the rain 6/10 Practice Versatility - practice mode is what I purchased the Suaoki for and so far it has met all my expectations. I can scan targets quickly and easily and get accurate readings meaning I can stand there and trust my club selection. I'm trying to swap "technical mode" and swing thoughts for a more "game mode" practice routine and work on pre-shot routines, NLP (neuro-linguistic programming) and really make each ball count. It is easy to go from flag to flag and of course these vary depending on which bay (at range) or where on the practice ground I stand but I am now no longer without accurate distances - 9/10 Night Time - as it's winter, the ranges are floodlit when I use them. These lights aren't the best and certainly towards the far end of the range, it is pretty dark and sometimes hard to see the ball finish. However, I've still been able to pick a flag in the murk, without having to swap to "fog mode" and the unit has still managed to lock and load a number in. Ideal for hitting driver, fairway woods, hybrids and long irons 8/10 Quality of Practice - it is still very early days but I am finding it much easier to stand there and just swing, as I would on the course. I've not had a chance to repeat my statistics from the practice diary (Winter Practice Diary) but I'm hoping that the confidence and freedom the Suaoki unit has given me, it will allow me to improve on these numbers next time out. With the planned tuition from Andy Piper at Lavender park Golf Centre over the next few months I see myself hitting the ground running come the new season 8/10 Conclusion There are many laser rangefinders on the market and many offer far more features but these seem to come at a price. The Suaoki Laser Rangefinder perhaps sits higher than a basic entry level model but at the price it is offers very good value for money. It meets all my requirements, has performed well at the range and on the course and seems well constructed and durable. There are some quibbles as I've highlighted, not least this slope function (and lack of clear definition and instruction) which would prevent use in competitive golf. That isn't a major issue with my Garmin G8 filling that void but it's an irritation that needs resolving once and for all. It was perhaps something of an impulse buy, born from the thread on the Golf Monthly Forum about rangefinders, but is something I've considered for a while and the new "Quest For Single Figures" thread and my renewed vigour to improve, helped by some better health, made it an easy decision to push the "buy" button and enter my payment details. So far so good. If you are in the market this Christmas for a laser rangefinder but feel that you perhaps don't play enough golf to justify the £200-£300+ price tag of most other units, but want better yardages when you are out on the course (or as an alternative to a GPS device) this could very well fit the bill. Let me know if you have one of these and how you find it, or comment if you have any questions or points you want to make. You can either click on the comment box at the bottom or through Google+. Did this review help? Do you want to see more stuff, perhaps not necessarily main stream equipment being reviewed? Fear not, I'll be back soon with more Quest For Single Figures updates and some different bits and pieces for 2017. If I don't make it back here before the big day, a very merry Christmas to one and all. Thank you for taking the time to read my often rambling thoughts, and for those that have taken the time to comment here or on Google+, thanks for making the effort and providing some useful food for thought. A happy new year and I hope 2017 brings you everything you want for the golfing year ahead.

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Samsung Fast Charge Battery Pack

The Samsung Fast Charge Battery Pack (like: GOAL ZERO GUIDE 10 PLUS )   makes no bones about who it's intended for. With its sleek design reminiscent of a Galaxy S7 and support for the company's proprietary fast charging standard, this backup battery is clearly geared toward owners of Samsung devices. But with its 5,200mAh capacity, it doesn't pack a ton of power considering its $69.99 price tag. Samsung phones owner will appreciate the design and fast charging benefits, but everyone elsewill be better off with the equally stylish Mophie Powerstation$43.26 at Amazon, or the more capacious Anker PowerCore 10000$35.99 at Amazon.

Design and Features

The Fast Charge Battery Pack$44.42 at Amazon looks like a facedown phone. It has a similar build to the Galaxy S7 Edge, with a sleek gold or silver body that slightly curves on the sides. Even its dimensions are similar, at 5.6 by 2.7 by 0.4 inches (HWD) and 5.4 ounces. It's a bit taller than the Mophie Powerstation (4.7 by 2.5 by 0.5 inches), but the same weight. You won't have any trouble carrying either battery in your pocket or bag.

All the action is on the top. There's a single USB charging port that supports fast charging (5V/2A output) for compatible Samsung devices. That includes all Samsung flagship phones in the S and Note series, back to the Galaxy Note 4. With fast charging, the Battery Pack was able to charge a Galaxy S7 to 50 percent in roughly 30 minutes. To the right of the USB port is a micro USB charging port for juicing up the battery itself (a micro USB cable is included). The battery is capable of pass-through charging, which means you can charge it while charging another device at the same time.

There four white LED power indicators. The LEDs blink while charging, and shine solid when fully charged. There's a status button to the right; pressing it lets you check the battery status. The Battery Pack automatically starts charging when a device has been plugged in.

Performance and Conclusions

The 5,200mAh cell in the Battery Pack is enough to charge most smartphones 1.5 times, making it fine for a day's worth of travel. If you're going to be away from another power source for an extended period of time, however, you'll want something with a higher capacity like the aforementioned Anker PowerCore.

To test it, we hooked the Battery Pack up to a depleted Samsung Galaxy S7 and had it stream full-screen video over LTE at maximum brightness. It clocked 8 hours and 44 minutes of added runtime, which is more than an hour less than the Mophie Powerstation (10 hours), which has a larger 6,000mAh cell. It's also no match for the 10,000mAh PowerCore (23 hours, 44 minutes).

The Fast Charge Battery Pack will coordinate nicely with your Samsung device and charge it quickly, but for $70, it should pack a bit more battery life. It's a decent option for diehard Samsung phone owners, but both the Mophie Powerstation and the Editors' Choice-winning Anker PowerCore 10000 will get you more battery life at a lower price.

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The Advantages of Automatic Gates

Nowadays, safety and comfort go hand in hand, and securing the premises of your home is now affordable, convenient and practical. If in the past driveway gates or any type of electric gates ( for example MIGHTY MULE 560 ) were only for the rich and famous, now they are within reach for all budgets. There are numerous options available on the market, all sorts of automatic gate systems to meet all preferences, styles and requirements.

Whether they are for residential or commercial use, automation provides great advantages and increases the comfort level significantly. Either wooden, steel, wrought iron or from other materials, automatic doors provide increased security and convenience. They come with all sorts of gadgets and accessories, such as control kits, gate openers, remote controls, sensors etc., and they look great too.

There is a wide selection available on the market, from basic fence gates to gigantic commercial gates employing sophisticated mechanisms. Generally, the decision is based on the estimated frequency of use of the automatic gate, but also on the budget. But although gates may require a considerable investment, when it comes security and comfort it is worth it.

An automatic gate can provide numerous advantages. They are practical and convenient, easy to use and very efficient. Securing the parameters with sturdy automatic gates has become extremely common, as more and more people opt for this convenient solution. Basically, everywhere you look you see automatic gates, whether it's somebody's home, a fancy mall or an office building. Perimeter access control is affordable to all budgets.

So why opt for an automatic gate? Because it is easy to install, easy to use, affordable, convenient and will significantly increase the security level. With automated systems, only authorized persons have access, otherwise the sturdy fencing gate will not move and inch. With an automatic gate opener, however, you can open the gates as soon as you enter the driveway, straight from your car, just push the button and the gates will open and close obediently. Still, some types of automatic gates, especially older models, can be very dangerous. Without sensing devices or reversing mechanisms, such gates can turn into real death traps if they get defected, so be careful what you choose. Gates should have at least two safety mechanisms to prevent entrapment, one internal and one external. Such safety mechanisms are designed to reverse the opening/closing process if the gate encounters an obstruction, so the risks of someone becoming entrapped in the gate are reduced. You can find a wide variety of automatic gate types in home centers or hardware stores, but you may get a better deal online. Choose the type of gate you prefer, but pay extra attention to safety measures.

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The seven best hidden gems in Chinatown, according to an expert

While Chinatown remains perhaps the grimiest 'hood in downtown Manhattan, many of its top restaurants and local attractions have been blown up by hungry tourists and local culture vultures alike. Still, some of its best spots have flown under-the-radar for years, frequented mostly by residents and longtime patrons. To discover some of the neighborhood's lesser-known spots, we spoke to Wilson Tang, proprietor behind Chinese-American eatery Fung Tu and Nom Wah Tea Parlor—the city's oldest dim sum joint. As a New York native and long-time Chinatown small business owner, Tang knows a thing or two about the area's best kept secrets. From beef jerky to jewelry, here are his seven must-visit hidden gems in Chinatown.

RECOMMENDED: Chinatown, NYC neighborhood guide

1. Jung's Beef Jerky

Find excellent handmade beef and pork jerkies in sweet and spicy variations at this over 50-year-old mainstay, also called Ping's Dried Beef. The owners, a husband-wife duo, cut, marinate and dry the meat daily in small batches. Wilson's tip: "Get here early because once they are out, they are out." 58 Mulberry St (212-732-7645)

2. Chen's Watch Repair

Operating out of a small cart outside Fong Inn restaurant, this father-son business carries most types of batteries and bands needed for replacements. The elder Mr. Chen is a watch connoisseur who is very capable of handling higher end watches. Wilson's tip: "Looking for used luxury watches? He might just be able to get you one!"

3.Mama Eatery

A breakfast-to-lunch standby for lawyers, cops and jurors from the nearby courthouse areas, the kitchen turns into a Malaysian curry pop-up by night. Wilson's tip: "The avocado salad is a must for a light lunch but if you are in the know, they have curry chicken over rice that is a total sleeper hit." 46 Mulberry St (212-608-7440)

4. Po Wing Hong

This specialty grocer was founded in 1980 by husband-wife duo Patrick and Nancy Ng as a tiny shop on Hester Street. Now in roomier digs on Elizabeth, it offers authentic Asian goods ranging from dried foods to snacks and pantry items. Wilson's tip: "This is the go-to for Asian sauces, noodles, drinks and other obscure Chinese ingredients." 49 Elizabeth St (212-960-1080)

5. Latino Jewelry, Inc

Nestled between the crowd of jewelers on Canal Street, this family-owned standout boasts one of the largest selections on the block. Wilson's tip: "Shopping for a special occasion? Ask for Tommy and he'll help you out with what you need." 211 Canal St

6. Kam Hing Coffee Shop

The specialty of this Baxter Street favorite is sponge cake—offered in varieties like vanilla and green tea, and stored in giant Tupperware containers behind the counter. Wash down the treats with any one of the milk teas or a Vietnamese iced coffee. Wilson's tip: "Stating the obvious, but this is the best sponge cake in the city." 199 Baxter St (212-925-0425)

7. Lee Chung Cafe

Cheap eats don't come any better than this. At this no-frills, cash-only eatery, find a diverse selection of pan-Asian specialties ranging from Myanmar fish soups to Cantonese pork chop sandwiches and Taiwanese bubble tea. Wilson's tip: "For just $5, you get a well-seasoned and pan-seared chicken cutlet over rice and veggies. The chicken is marinated with citrus, garlic and shallots—it's delicious!" 82 Madison St (212-233-5142)

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Spinning a Yarn: 5 Ways to Weave a Story Around Your Startup

So you are launching a new enterprise communication tool (Slack) carshare platform (Uber) or location based dating app (Tinder). Great.

With roughly 100 million businesses launched annually, unless you truly venture into Harry Potter levels of weird and wonderful, the chances are that there someone else has already created a product or service similar to yours. Consequently consumers and journalists alike are becoming de-sensitized and are increasingly more interested in the back-story and narrative to an announcement, than the product or company itself.

For this reason, when pitching to journalists you should keep the explanation of what your product or service is to a clear and concise few sentences in a pitch, then move onto the real meat of your story, the who and the why.

We spoke to Jonathan Greechan, co-founder of Silicon Valley incubator "The Founder Institute" about how up and coming companies can weave a story around their company which will really engage the media and consumers.

Telling the right story.

When reaching out to journalists or publicizing your product or service, it is important to stick to the facts. Journalists are renowned for their sensitive buncombe sensors and fact checking is an integral part of their job. So don’t try to slip one past them, or you could end up with a red face.

Remember that your end goal is for people to actually buy or use your product, app or service so if you tell tall tales about its capabilities, you will get called out. A few negative comments could soon spiral into your dirty washing being aired in front of hundreds of thousands of industry savvy readers on social media and platforms like Reddit, ProductHunt and Growth Hacker.

However, while the information you offer about what your product or company does should always be straightforward and factual, you have a lot more artistic freedom when describing the who and the why.

“Most entrepreneurs screw up when reaching out to journalists, because they focus on the features of their product,” Said Jonathan Greechan. “When you pitch the features of your product to a journalist, you aren’t pitching a story - you’re pitching an advertisement. Similar to the phrase “feature not a company” (FNAC), I like to call this “advertisement not a story” (ANAS).”

According to Jonathan Greechan, the common startup stories you’ll find in the press really boil down into just five major themes:

1. Drama.

Whether you are pitching to TechCrunch or a tabloid newspaper, all media outlets love stories which are brimming with drama.

We are living in the age of disruption, when previously unknown tech startups are demoting global giants like Kodak and Blockbuster to the history books. However, on the flipside tech superpowers like Amazon and Facebook are monopolizing industries by acquiring tech and small companies to snuff out any startup competition. David vs. Goliath stories, such as Facebook launching it’s Poke App back in 2012 in a failed attempt to destroy new kid in town Snapchat -- which has since grown to become its biggest rival -- are music to journalist’s ears.

If you can tie your company to a Good vs. Evil theme where a previously unheard of company stands up to an established tech superpower, then do so. Likewise if your startup is solving a problem in which local authorities are failing, then this could be a great story too.

No one is safe in the modern world of business, and even the biggest companies are left with two options: change or die. Evolution is an attractive theme for journalists too, so if your company’s big mission is to change the way people do things for the better, or totally disrupt an established industry with new tech, then base your story around this theme.

Controversy sells. End of story. If your team is comprised of ex-Apple developers who are creating a product to rival the iPhone, then roll with it. If you are developing an app which could let you know which ones of your social media contacts are Trump supporters based on their likes on Facebook , then that has a good chance of getting picked up too.

2. Trends.

The media are always on the lookout for announcements related to ‘trending topics.’ A publication’s end goal is to get as many hits and shares as possible for their article, and this tends to happen when it’s tied into a larger discussion.

Most of the world’s biggest business and tech publications, and consultancy firms like Deloitte and Mckinsey release “Tech trends for 2016” style reports. This year anything to do with V.R, A.R, cross-platform integration, or bitcoin style security tech is popular. If you can attach yourself to a “cresting wave” opportunity, you can immediately make yourself relevant.

That said, be aware that many trends -- especially in the world of tech -- come and go very quickly, so timing is key. For example, when Pokemon Go smashed app store records, anything linked to AR tech or the Pokemon brand was relevant for a month or so. Even the most high-brow leading publications’ front pages were littered with "Gotta catch ‘em all’" and "Pokeball" gags. However, editors and readers alike grow tired of these trends quickly and one month later, pitching anything linked to Pokemon warranted nothing but a snarky response from publication gatekeepers.

3. People.

People are more interesting than companies or products, so try to include experiences of your founder or team backstory or your customer’s story.

Silicon Valley is brimming with eccentric, big characters, but many of them come from the same background. White, middle class, strong college education. If you as a founder do not fit into this stereotype, then this is something which you could make a story out of. Obviously this works better in the extremes. Stating you are 13 or 80, an ex-con or former politician or sport star, all add interesting differentiations to your narrative than your competitors.

Nick Morgan, author of "How to Tell Great Business Stories" states: “In a world where people have a lot of choices, the story may be the deciding factor."

Even if your backstory is distinctly average, maybe your struggle to the top was notable, like the female founder who wore the same pair of white trousers for three years to sell her product, the Swedish developer who went homeless and created a home office in a tent in the forest to cut costs, or the fact that the Airbnb founders raised $30,000 selling politics themed cereals when they were struggling to raise Angel funding.

These types of story paint a human picture of your company, and the hard work you have put in to get to where you are today, a far shot from the cold faceless corporate image of many leading enterprises.

4. Purpose.

Unlike in the fast pace world of tech, there are some global trends which no one is going to stop caring about any time soon. If you want to create a story which millions of people can relate to, have a big mission which can help millions of people. Force yourself to begin your pitch with phrases like “There are..”, “Today..”, “Since 2010” and you will effectively link yourself to a larger cause that makes your company relevant. Elon Musk is the master of this. His big mission for Space X isn’t just to launch commercial space travel, it is to colonize Mars and save the human race from extinction.

Take beehive manufacturer Flow Hive, which raised more than $13 million with its Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign. Rather than just playing on how neat it is to be able to conveniently farm honey in your backyard, the company focused on making the process "easier for bees." By linking to major environmental trends of bee colonies disappearing around the world due to climate change, which scientists argue “poses an enormously grave threat to human survival,” the company created the story of why their product was important.

5. Unique insight.

Unique insights for startups usually boil down to data. Journalists like to work with hard facts, and if you can provide them with interesting data that either supports or contradicts widely preconceived notions, it is likely to be a great press opportunity. Use this data to form a problem for many people for which you have the solution, and voila you have the makings of a story.

Journalists want to pick up stories which are engaging, trending and most importantly interesting. If you are an SAAS provider or are launching a new app -- unless it allows you to move back in time, or change sex at the click of a button -- then the chances are that your product itself is not any of these things to anyone apart from you and your development team.

To improve your chances of standing out from the crowd, you need to match a great product with an eye-grabbing narrative. It is up to the powers that be in your startup to weave a story which really grabs people’s attention and inspires them to invest time, energy and money in your dream.

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8 Tips for Producing Advertising That Sells

The following excerpt is from Craig Simpson and Brian Kurtz’s book The Advertising Solution. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes

In 1983, advertising legend David Ogilvy wrote about his experiences on a number of famous ad campaigns and commented on different aspects of the business in his book Ogilvy on Advertising. In the book, he gave a rather lengthy list of qualities he believed were essential to creating a successful ad campaign. He called it “How to Produce Advertising That Sells.” Let’s look at just some of the main points made by this master advertising legend, as they’re still on the money today -- and apply to any kind of promotion you may be involved in.

1. Do your homework on your product. In order to create advertising that sells, you have to do your research first and then let that guide the way you write about your product. Begin by finding out everything you can about the product itself. What are its features? What are its advantages over its competitors? What are some interesting facts about how it is made or the ingredients that go into it?

Learning all this can help you hit upon the “big idea” around which you will build your ad. It was this kind of research that helped Ogilvy come up with one of the most famous ad headlines of all time:

"At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock."

He didn’t even write that headline himself. It was an actual line from a company report that his research turned up and his instincts recognized as a “big idea.”

2. Do your homework on your competitors. If you research your competitors, you know what kind of advertising statements and methods are standard in your niche. This knowledge enables you to adapt some ideas that you like for yourself as well as to recognize a different, more revolutionary approach you could take to stand out.

3. Survey consumers of the product. Learn how they think about it. Find out what language they use when talking about the product, what aspects of the product matter most to them, and what kind of promise you could make about the product that would appeal to them.

You shouldn’t guess at any of these things. You can get the facts through surveying prospects and doing your homework on the prod­uct and your competitors. Once you have the facts, you can craft a piece designed to appeal to your best prospects.

4. Get your positioning right. Positioning is about deciding who your audience is, whom your ad should appeal to and what advantages you need to stress about your product so it will appeal to your target audience. The example Ogilvy gave is the approach he took to advertising a product that was just coming out called Dove soap. He could have positioned it as the perfect cleanser for men’s dirty hands. The better positioning, which he used, was as a moisturizing soap for women with dry skin. This approach turned out to be highly successful and is still the basis of the company’s ads today.

So how can you know how to position your product? Consider who your best prospect is and gear your ads to that person. Don’t try to please everyone -- you can’t. A dress shop might position itself as the trendy place where teenagers and young women in their twenties shop, or a sophisticated store for upwardly mobile professionals, or the place where mature matrons of a certain income level buy clothing for special occasions and cruises. You’ll never appeal to all these audiences, so you must choose which one will work best for you. Then your advertising should be positioned to reflect the kind of business you are and the type of customer you want to attract.

Always write in the language and terminology of your core audience. Your concern shouldn’t be whether your copy may be too sophisticated or simplistic; it should be whether you’re using the right language for the right audience.

5. Choose the right brand image. When you think of brand image, a number of famous examples come to mind. You may think of classic advertising figures, such as the Marlboro Man, Orville Redenbacher, Colonel Sanders, Queen Latifah selling CoverGirl or Andie MacDowell in ads for L’Oréal. The idea is to have some recognizable image associated with your product that supports its positioning. It’s often a person, but it can also just be the product itself, like Coca-Cola, which is a brand image recognized around the world.

Could you or someone else at your company represent and speak for your products and services? It needs to be an appealing and/or authoritative figure. You could set this person up as the recognizable face of your company. Done correctly, it could increase brand loyalty and boost your business.

6. What’s the big idea? Sometimes, through genius or just plain luck -- often based on tons of research that laid the groundwork for the “aha” moment -- someone comes up with a big idea. Ogilvy’s Rolls-Royce ad was a prime example. So was representing Pepperidge Farm baked goods with an old-fashioned bakery wagon pulled by horses. Another great inspiration was the Jack-in-the-Box clown as a business executive in a suit. These are all brilliant ideas that have worked for decades to sell products.

One colleague of mine always wore a cowboy hat in his promo­tions, and he put pictures of cowboy hats on all his literature. He wasn’t a cowboy and wasn’t raised on a ranch, but that hat was a perfect and highly recognizable representation of his maverick style. Maybe you can come up with something like that to represent what you do.

7. Identify the “positively good.” It would be great if you could prove that your product was significantly better than anything your rivals can provide, but that’s not always possible. Sometimes you and your competitors offer an equivalent product or service -- that shouldn’t be a barrier to making your ads stand out. You don’t have to convince customers that nobody else on the planet can rival you. You just have to convince them that your product is “positively good.” If they believe you’re good, and they’re not so sure about your competitors, they’ll give you the business.

Focus on telling prospects how good you are. List in detail all your great qualities. Create confidence in the value of your product. You don’t have to mention your competition at all. Finally, don’t boast or brag with empty statements. Use facts and descriptions to confidently put the spotlight on what you provide.

8. Repeat your winners. If your promotional efforts are working well, keep repeating them until they stop working. There’s no need to keep reinventing the wheel. And don’t change just for the sake of change. At the same time, don’t get caught short if what you’ve been doing suddenly stops working. To avoid being caught in a bind like that, you should always be testing alternatives. For example, if you’re doing direct mail or online ads, as long as your control piece (your basic advertising piece against which you test any variations you come up with) is out-pulling anything else you’ve tried, keep using it. When a new piece out-pulls the old one, roll out to a bigger campaign with the new one.

In determining which piece is your winner, you must know whether the data you’re looking at is accurate -- bad data is worse than no data. Making this call is based on statistical significance -- simply put, you need to truly know you have a new winner before you get rid of the old one. Yes, we have to make decisions faster now than we did before, but that’s no excuse not to be disciplined about your data. More than ever, we must have data we can rely on.

[askyfullofshades-blog]

Facebook Data Reveals What's Stopping Millennials From Being Loyal to Brands

Marketers can grumble all they want about non-loyal millennials, but that doesn’t change the reality that they’re going to need to adapt if they wish to capture this younger market.

New data shows that 18-to-34-year-olds do in fact want to commit to specific products and companies. A recent survey by Facebook IQ of 14,700 U.S. adults and found that millennials are 1.75 times as likely as baby boomers to say that they’d like to be more loyal to brands. The survey examined sentiments and behavior related to five industries: auto insurance, airlines, hotels, grocery and restaurants.

Millennials have different habits and expectations than their parents’ generation. Technology allows them to move around for work, and moving is 1.44 times more likely to be a barrier to them buying auto insurance than it is for boomers. The tech-savvy younger generation also expects to be able to get in contact with brands quickly, and it turns them off when airlines and hotels aren’t readily reachable.

When it comes to food, millennials seek cleanliness and healthiness. They are 2.5 times more likely than boomers to list a store’s hygiene level as a deterrent to stopping there, and they are twice as likely than boomers to cite a lack of healthy options as a barrier for dining at a restaurant.

Another aspect that might stop millennials from clinging onto brands is their finances. Facebook IQ found that survey respondents who report a household income of $150,000 or more are 32 percent more likely to be loyal than those who report a household income of under $35,000.

Millennials, according to the survey, were born roughly between 1982 and 1998. Many of them, especially those born in the ‘90s, have not had much time to build their careers and earn hefty salaries. This could explain why millennials are not as loyal as brands would prefer: They don’t have the money (yet). One company that looks to address this issue is Whole Foods Market with its new chain of 365 stores, designed to offer affordable products along with quality and transparency -- other values that millennials prioritize.

Another demographic millennials have yet to fully transition into is the parent set. The survey found that new parents are slightly more likely to be brand-loyal than non-parents across industries. Forty-two percent of parents with a child under 1 describe themselves as loyal, compared with 36 percent of people with no children.

Perhaps when more millennials become parents, they will forego brand experimentation and become more loyal to hotels, restaurants and other companies that they know will provide the necessary amenities when they have their children in tow.

To be sure, while prices and parenthood play important roles in purchasing habits, ultimately a person’s relationship to a brand has more to do with positive memories associated with that brand. When Facebook IQ asked adults across economic backgrounds to describe their most beloved brands, they focused more on experience than consistency, cost or quality. Words such as “fun,” “cool,” “healthy,” “clean,” “delicious,” “innovative,” “variety,” “friendly” and “service” fell into the “experience” category.

Meanwhile, the surveyors found that people who are loyal to specific companies tended to cite emotional motivators of service and trust, while those who make repeat purchases without company loyalty focus more on convenience and price.

It’s important to know who your audience is, what they value and expect and what life stage they're in. However, regardless of age or income, remember that “to achieve loyalty,” according to Facebook, “brand relationships should be up-leveled to a more emotional and experiential standing.”