New Customer Care Index launches 23rd Oct
Posted: 7 October 2013 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013, 2020, B2B, BSK, business, care, cci, CiC, customer, Event, Exhibition, facts international, index, innovation, insights, inspiration, Kent, LIVE, marketing, october, opportunity, satisfaction, Vision, welcome Leave a commentA major new initiative launches officially at Kent 2020 Vision Marketing LIVE on 23rd October, providing a unique tool for businesses to measure and compare their customer care performance.
In a world where customers are becoming increasingly difficult to satisfy but where satisfaction is intrinsic to success – leading market research company Facts International are launching an innovative Customer Care Index (CCI) to discover what marketers are really doing to influence customer satisfaction.
Although most marketers would agree that caring for customers and ensuring they are satisfied is key to sustaining and increasing company profits – how closely do their actions actually reflect this?
From micro business marketers to those who work for SME’s and blue-chip companies, the Facts CCI will gather key insights around how marketing professionals are interpreting good customer care, whilst also allowing marketers to benchmark their customer care understanding and action against the norm and pick up helpful tips from their peers.
Find out more by attending the free workshop on ‘Making Customer Satisfaction Pay’ on Wednesday 23rd October – where the first results will be launched, as part of the free keynote & workshop programme at this month’s Kent 2020 Vision Marketing LIVE.
Or get involved straight away by visiting: www.facts.uk.com/cci or using the QR code below:
The Business of Being Social
Posted: 26 September 2013 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013, 2020, B2B, big data, BSK, business, CiC, Event, Exhibition, innovation, insights, inspiration, katie king, Kent, LIVE, marketing, october, social business, social media, Vision, zoodikers Leave a commentby Katie King, Managing Director of Zoodikers and keynote speaker at Kent 2020 Vision Marketing LIVE on 23rd October 2013.
The term ‘social business’ has been coined to describe the new generation of social media marketing. To benefit fully from this fast-growing communications channel, businesses need to be engaged in two-way social conversations – remembering to listen and react to both consumers and other businesses.
Within the social business environment, it is vital that Kent-based companies (whether they have a regional or a local approach to business) adopt the mantra of ‘putting the customer first’. Digital encounters are the start of developing a social business – often acting as an online handshake to start a conversation.
At every level, people are now connecting on a scale more vast than any previous experience. Interactions occur in real-time, via second-by-second developments that expose ever-increasing numbers of individuals to messages that are not controlled by the organisation.
It is the classic data conundrum: quantity over quality. The huge amount of data generated by social media can now be readily tracked and analysed – but a real social business also knows how to act on the knowledge that can be attained from it. Capturing and storing such ‘big data’ is relatively simple but using it to make intelligent decisions can be very challenging, where sharing and transferring information play a key role in benefiting from all the hard work.
Many consumer brands are now showing how it is possible to listen and react to consumers to actively drive the development of their business. Fundamentally it is down to the changes in the way people conduct themselves in core operations of the business – so leading the social revolution can be used to flag your organisation as a leader in social understanding.
A recent example of high-impact social media commentary is the launch event hosted by Apple in Cupertino and Beijing. The tweets sent in the hours immediately following the event were analysed to determine the online sentiment surrounding the announcements. This revealed that almost three-quarters of the 1.5 million tweets sent in relation to the event in the 24-hour period did not contain negative or positive comment. People were simply passing news around without really digesting it.
The lack of excitement and positivity surrounding the launch led to scepticism about the new products. Ultimately this led to a reduction in the stock value of the company in a matter of days. This was not directly based on the social media commentary, but the combined sentiment of the tweets did contribute to the overall lack of confidence in the launch, and a fall in stock price. As scary as this may sound, it is rapidly becoming part of the modern business world.
As we all know, in Kent even more so than our capital, people buy people. It’s a saying that sticks because it remains true. Online interactions managed well will manifest into face-to-face meetings. The power of social is proven: it’s just a matter of applying the concepts and working with all of that data.
Katie King will be presenting one of the inspirational keynotes at Kent 2020 Vision Marketing LIVE on 23rd October 2013. You can also follow her on Twitter @katieeking.
Visitors and potential exhibitors can find out more and register online at the event website: www.kent2020marketing.co.uk.
VIDEO PREVIEW: One Date > Two Events
Posted: 24 September 2013 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013, 2020, B2B, BSK, business, CiC, cim, Event, Exhibition, growth, innovation, insights, inspiration, Kent, LIVE, marketing, october, opportunity, south east, start-up, startup, Vision, welcome Leave a commentWatch our new preview video to find out what other visitors and exhibitors are looking forward to at this year’s Kent 2020 Vision START-UP LIVE and the brand new Kent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE:
Reserve your free place now to join hundreds of business owners and marketers on Wednesday 23rd October 2013 at the Kent Event Centre, with free access to inspirational keynotes, practical workshops and two focused exhibitions.
Both events are organised by by BSK-Direct with support from The Chartered Institute of Marketing South East (CIM), Kent County Council and The KM Group and delivered by the same team that deliver Kent 2020 Vision LIVE, the largest regional B2B event in the UK.
We hope to see you there!
What’s new in Marketing & Data Protection?
Posted: 18 September 2013 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013, 2020, asb, B2B, BSK, business, CiC, data, debbie venn, Event, Exhibition, growth, innovation, insights, inspiration, Kent, law, LIVE, marketing, october, opportunity, protection, regulation, thomas brown, Vision, welcome Leave a commentThe growing number of laws, regulations and codes affecting the marketing profession means it has never been more important for marketers to keep up-to-date.
At just one of the free workshops at Kent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE on Wednesday 23rd October 2013, you can get an expert insight into the latest marketing regulations, including the Information Commissioner’s office guidance on privacy and cookies; a ‘heads-up’ on the new data protection directive and a summary of the legal issues surrounding the sale and purchase of databases, and information security.
Debbie Venn, Head of Technology, Media and Telecommunications at ASB Law will offer valuable advice on how to stay on the right side of the law and explaining how many of these issues have been addressed in some real life situations.
Find out more and register online at: www.kent2020marketing.co.uk.
CIM index reveals rising confidence among UK marketers
Posted: 11 September 2013 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013, 2020, B2B, bloomberg, BSK, business, CiC, cim, confidence, Event, Exhibition, growth, index, innovation, insights, inspiration, Kent, LIVE, marketing, october, opportunity, thomas brown, Vision, welcome Leave a commentAlmost two months ahead of Kent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE, UK businesses are almost five times more confident than they were a year ago according to a major survey of marketing professionals. The Marketing Confidence Monitor, run by The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) and Bloomberg, found encouraging levels of confidence in business and economic performance, and a renewed focus on pursuing sustainable and socially responsible growth over the next 12 months.
The study, which is repeated quarterly and is produced from a weighted survey of more than 1,000 UK marketing professionals, has seen overall confidence increase by almost 12 points since April, and increase by a factor of five in the last year. The index, which now stands at +20.36 on a scale of +/-100, takes into account views on the wider economic outlook, career prospects, business performance and budget forecasts.
Confidence in the UK’s wider economic situation has seen the greatest surge, with an increase of over 29 points and over three quarters (84 per cent) of respondents stating that they are as or more confident that they will see economic growth and performance in the UK over the next 12 months compared to the last.
This upbeat assessment is perhaps supported by almost 90 per cent reporting marketing spend is to remain unchanged over the next three months – a finding that is consistent with companies of all different sizes.
Encouragingly the study also revealed that a vast majority of companies are focused on sustainable growth, with just under 80 per cent of marketers reporting that they are adapting their business policies and practices to become more sustainable and responsible.
This new emphasis on socially responsible business practice is underpinned by the seemingly growing awareness among business of the importance of such values to consumers, with 69 per cent of respondents stating that they felt responsible business practice influenced customer choice.
But for those organisations that may be planning to adopt wider growth strategies, there is still more work to be done when it comes to realising growth potential abroad, with only just over 20% of SMEs stating that they currently receive sufficient support from government to help with export trade.
Overall, the survey certainly provides many encouraging signs of economic recovery, although CIM is quick to stress that these will only be translated into tangible and sustained growth if UK companies start to innovate again and receive adequate support and guidance when considering expansion into new markets.
Anne Godfrey, Chief Executive of CIM, commented “In order for businesses to make the all-important shift from survival to growth and to ensure sustainable recovery in a global marketplace, they must now commit to investing in new business practices, products and services.”
You can hear more about this quarterly business barometer when you visit Kent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE on Wednesday 23rd October, where CIM’s Head of Insights Thomas Brown will be presenting a fascinating keynote on the key role of Marketing in the economic recovery.
This exciting new event is organised by BSK-Direct in association with CIM and is co-located with Kent 2020 Vision START-UP LIVE, the region’s leading event for new businesses. Entry is free-of-charge for Marketing, PR and Comms specialists, plus other senior decision-makers such as Managing Directors, Partners and Owner-Managers.
Visitors and potential exhibitors can find out more and register online at the event website: www.kent2020marketing.co.uk.
Opening keynote announced for Start-Up 2013
Posted: 16 August 2013 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013, 2020, B2B, britain, BSK, business, CiC, emma jones, enterprise nation, Event, Exhibition, growth, innovation, insights, inspiration, Kent, keynote, LIVE, october, opportunity, south east, start-up, startup, Vision, welcome 1 CommentBuilding on its fantastic first outing last Autumn, the second Kent 2020 Vision START-UP LIVE will take place on Wednesday 23rd October 2013 at the Kent Event Centre, delivering another full day of inspiration, practical advice and vital information for the early stages of any new venture.
We are excited to confirm a very special keynote to open this year’s event in style:
> Emma Jones, Entrepreneur, Founder of Enterprise Nation & Director of StartUp Britain
Emma Jones is founder of small business community Enterprise Nation and a co-founder of the national campaign StartUp Britain.
Following a degree in Law and Japanese, Emma joined international accounting firm, Arthur Andersen, where she worked in London, Leeds and Manchester offices and set up the firm’s Inward Investment practice that attracted overseas companies to locate in the UK. Bitten by the dot.com bug, Emma left the firm in 2000, to start her first business, Techlocate – and after 15 months, the company was successfully sold to Tenon plc.
The experience of starting, growing and selling a business from a home base gave Emma the idea for Enterprise Nation which was launched in 2006 as the home business website. The company has since expanded to become a small business community of over 75,000 people who access content, events and funding; online, in print and in person.
In March 2011 Emma was one of eight co-founders to launch StartUp Britain, the national campaign to encourage more people to start a business and support existing businesses to grow. Over the past two years, the private sector campaign has facilitated mentoring, hosted Industry Weeks, toured the UK with entrepreneurs and experts, launched special projects such as StartUp Loans and StartUp High Street and has had a critical role to play in record results of people becoming their own boss.
Emma is currently acting as campaign director of StartUp Britain and was awarded an MBE in June 2012 for Services to Enterprise. As an expert in small businesses, she is also the author of several books including Spare Room StartUp, Working 5 to 9, Go Global and The StartUp Kit.
Kent 2020 Vision START-UP LIVE is the South East’s leading event for new businesses, organised by BSK-Direct in partnership with Kent County Council and The KM Group. This year, the event takes place alongside Kent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE, a new one-stop-shop for Kent marketers.
The event is completely free-to-attend and is aimed at young businesses (typically established for less than 2 years) or individuals looking to start a business in the next 1-2 years.
CLICK HERE to register online.
The one-stop-shop for Kent marketers…
Posted: 7 August 2013 Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2013, 2020, B2B, BSK, business, CiC, cim, Event, Exhibition, growth, innovation, insights, inspiration, Kent, LIVE, marketing, october, opportunity, south east, thomas brown, Vision, welcome 2 CommentsKent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE is an innovative new event for forward-thinking marketing professionals across South East England, designed to provide fresh ideas, practical advice and the latest thinking on key marketing challenges via an intensive day of inspirational keynotes, interactive workshops and a highly focused exhibition.
The event is completely free-to-attend and focuses firmly on maximising the return on investment from every part of the marketing mix – to deliver more integrated campaigns, increase effectiveness and build real competitive edge.
Kent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE is organised by BSK-Direct in association with The Chartered Institute of Marketing South East (CIM) and delivered by the same team that deliver Kent 2020 Vision LIVE, the largest regional B2B event in the UK. The inaugural Marketing event will take place on Wednesday 23rd October 2013 in the new Clive Emson conference facility at the Kent Event Centre near Maidstone.
Throughout the day, delegates can hear expert advice on many of the hottest issues for professional marketeers, including a special keynote from Thomas Brown, Director of Research & Insights at CIM, , who will showcase the latest CIM research including insight on business confidence, challenges facing the profession and what organisations are doing to take on those challenges.
Other thought-provoking keynotes include Katie King from Zoodikers on the continued evolution of Social Media, Emma Jones founder of Enterprise Nation on specific challenges for SMEs and Simon Dixon from BankToTheFuture.com on the power of crowd-funding – plus a lively panel of industry experts discussing the integration of digital and traditional marketing channels. Meanwhile, practical workshops cover hot topics such as email and online marketing, data protection, effective market research and search engine optimisation (SEO).
Alongside the free seminar programme, a focused exhibition and networking area will feature a wide range of innovative marketing products and services, showcasing innovative suppliers of web design & SEO, e-marketing, social media, graphic design, print, promotional materials, PR services, market research, lists and data sources, direct mail, advertising opportunities and much, much more.
Chris Callander, Commercial Director at BSK-Direct, explains the rationale behind the first dedicated marketing event from the Kent 2020 stable: “With such a wealth of talent and a thriving creative sector in the county, it was clear that Kent’s marketing community would really benefit from a forum focusing specifically on their needs. The new Marketing event will enable Kent businesses to access a wealth of thought leadership and best practice that will help them to compete on the national and international stage while working with local resources that are right on their doorstep.”
“Our partnership with CIM South East also guarantees a level of expertise and professionalism that would rarely be found outside central London,” continues Callander, “So we are planning to deliver a truly first-class platform for sharing experiences and new ideas.”
The inaugural Kent 2020 Vision MARKETING LIVE is co-located with Kent 2020 Vision START-UP LIVE, the region’s leading event for new businesses – adding even more value for visitors when they attend on 23rd October. Entry is free-of-charge for Marketing, PR and Comms specialists, plus other senior decision-makers such as Managing Directors, Partners and Owner-Managers.
Visitors and potential exhibitors can find out more and register online at the event website: www.kent2020marketing.co.uk.
Kent Vision LIVE 