Posts Tagged ‘economy’
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
…and little incentive to invest it in people or equipment, according to a survey by CFO Magazine. What would loosen the purse strings? A killer acquisition or uptick in demand were the top two answers.
Other key findings:
- A lot of CFOs (43%) recognize the vicious circle: if they spend money, the economy improves but they want to hold off spending money until the economy gets better. But a big majority (71%) don’t feel obligated to invest in the economic recovery. The concern: they have a fiduciary duty to be safe and besides, they don’t want to hire and then lay off if demand doesn’t rise.
- Don’t look for the budgets to ease soon. A related study back in the Fall shows 25% reporting no plans to invest in the next 12 months. The reason: no attractive investments.
Why do you care? The above might explain the initial reaction of the “budget blues” even when prospects contact you. But know this: they have the cash. It’s just a matter of selling the ROI to the people holding the purse strings.
Tags: budgets, coaching, conversations, economy, experts, positioning, strategy, Vickie Sullivan
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Thursday, October 20th, 2011
The biggest tragedy in this recovery is that the opportunities we have grown to depend on are not coming back. Paid speaking engagements are now free or cut to 25 cents on the dollar. Many coaching assignments are handled in-house. And don’t talk to contract trainers about their fees.
So how do we find what’s next? This article in strategy-business last month has some good ideas. What we have to do: ignore evidence that confirms our assumptions. Yep, easier said than done. How to do it: look for incongruities. My favorite is #4: what is annoying shouldn’t be.
Sadly, the days are over when we can go back to the same places to offer our services. Now is the time to take what we have and make something new. Test your assumptions, reconnect the dots and see what happens.
Tags: consultants, economy, experts, positioning, strategy, Vickie Sullivan
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Tuesday, August 30th, 2011
Why are there so many leadership experts? Because leadership development is one of the biggest areas of growth in the corporate sector. Two reasons why: one, talent management has been tied to execution and is now seen as a strategic advantage; and, two, development is taking the place of raises and bonuses. (Thank you choppy recovery.) Next question: what do these buyers want?
Role playing is in and avatars are gaining fast, according to this recent study on leadership development trends by Chief Learning Officer magazine. Other findings we care about:
- The hemorrhaging has stopped. Only 11% of those surveyed say they will decrease spending in leadership development. Almost half (45%) will stay the course and a little less (44%) are increasing investments here.
- Trend that is gaining momentum fast: action learning. Solving real problems at work is the most popular delivery method, with 70% of respondents saying trainees use current challenges to learn leadership skills. The interesting news for us: this learning is facilitated not by experts (like us) but by certified learning facilitators. What would you like to bet that these folks work for at least half of our rates?
- Simulations are still a mixed bag, running 50/50 for and against. It is poised to grow, especially games and computer-based simulations. Translation: develop this option now but don’t put all your eggs in this online basket.
The bottom line: every silver lining has a dark cloud we need to deal with. Low-cost alternatives can be a real threat even when spending increases. Brand yourselves accordingly…
Tags: economy, education, experts, Marketing, positioning, strategy, technology, trends, Vickie Sullivan
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Thursday, July 14th, 2011
Well, the rumors are true: the rich got richer, according to several studies such as The World Wealth Report. Instead of looking at this politically, let’s focus on what the rich did differently than us mere mortals.
The think tank reported the rich took risks by investing more of their wealth — 33% from 29% — in equities in2010, with more planned investments projected — up to 38% — by 2012. (While trillions of dollars continue to sit on the sidelines.) At the same time, the wealthy hedged their bets spreading it around, investing in other countries than their own. And it worked: the number of wealthy people rose over 8 percent but also the money they had increased to almost ten percent.
I like that combination: take a risk but be smart about it. How will you implement this idea in your business?
Tags: conversations, economy, experts, positioning, strategy, Vickie Sullivan
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Tuesday, April 19th, 2011
That’s the total industry output meetings play in the U.S. economy, according to The Economic Significance of Meetings to the U.S. Economy study put together by 14 meetings organizations. This is the industry’s response to the bad press (and the AIG effect) from the economic meltdown.
This study confirms what I’ve said for almost 20 years: Corporate America is the 500-lb gorilla in this industry. They have the most meetings — 1.2 million out of a total 1.8 million meetings in 2009 (and that number will get bigger for 2011). Their meetings have over half (52%) of the almost 205M participants. The stat we care most about: speakers/trainers get 3% of the total expenditures, totally almost $4M in 2009 alone. Sounds worse than it is, as the category was in the top ten by percentage and amount. (The biggest expense: food and beverage at 28%.)
Why do we care about this study? Because it shows where the money is and where it is going. Great top-line information for anyone who wants to know more about the environment where most speaking engagements reside. Click here for key findings.
Tags: economy, experts, meetings, Speaking, strategy, Vickie Sullivan
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Tuesday, February 15th, 2011
Lots of talk about the Great Recession and its lasting impact. Here’s a chart from The Atlantic (yes, another visual from my collection) that reveals some lesser known but still major shifts in our culture as a response to the economic meltdown. Most interesting findings:
- Out of 50 states, 48 have budget shortfalls;
- In hard-hit Nevada, food-stamp recipients grew by 63%;
- For all the preaching about saving money, it took unemployment and foreclosure to double the saving rate.
What I noticed: look how fast we can change when we have to. Why am I showing you this? Because I’m talking to too many people who waited too long to change. Case in point: one internationally-known speaker waited over a year before asking for help. Result: after spending his savings on personal expenses, he no longer had the resources needed to jumpstart his business. And because so much time had passed, he was now desperate to get revenue in. He had little money and therefore little time to make the turnaround.
The longer you tread water, the more energy it takes to stay afloat. Sooner or later, you’ll get tired. By then, you won’t have the energy to save yourself from drowning. Too many of us change only when we don’t have a choice.
Tags: conversations, economy, positioning, strategy, trends, Vickie Sullivan
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Tuesday, December 7th, 2010
There’s a lot of talk about buyers being thrifty nowadays. And many of them are. The key question: if folks are being so careful with spending out there, why are high-dollar iPhones flying off the shelves by the millions?
Here’s my theory: there is a difference between thrifty and strategic. Thrifty is a mindset from buyers who are either using the budget as an excuse to negotiate or see vendors as interchangeable parts. Strategic is the mindset of “I’ll spend what I have to spend, but I gotta be smart about it.” Instead of buying anything, these folks prioritize their needs and only the top priority goals get funded. In Corporate America, it’s called “making the business case.”
What I’ve learned: if somebody wants something bad enough, they will pay for it. Period. The purchase becomes strategic, something so important to their lives that they will do what it takes to get it. And strategy will always trump thrift.
Tags: budgets, economy, positioning, strategy, Vickie Sullivan
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Tuesday, July 27th, 2010
Want to know what’s going on with corporate meeting spending? Ask the financial execs at the top. That’s exactly what AmEx did with CFO Research Services. Their recent survey of nearly 500 senior financial executives of global companies doesn’t look good for us experts. The stats: 26 percent project an increase in travel spending; 31 percent expect “no change”; while 44 percent plan further cuts. Maybe I’m just a half-empty sorta girl, but that last number isn’t good for corporate meetings.
The silver lining: the trend line for outside meetings is more positive. In 2009, 79 percent of respondents to the survey said their companies were likely to restrict travel to conferences and events; only 35 percent plan to do so this year. That sounds great until we remember that many associations are going the free speaker route to save money.
Bottom line: the paid speaking gigs are not in the usual places. They are in the nooks and crannies. Get out your flashlight and go find them.
Tags: budgets, economy, Marketing, meetings, positioning, speakers, Speaking, strategy, trends, Vickie Sullivan
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Tuesday, July 13th, 2010
Gearing up for the NSA Convention in Orlando this week. Know that I’m going to be asked a lot of questions about the market. Two words: cautious optimism. Yes, things are rebounding but look beneath the surface and some cracks are still there. Example: yes, association meetings are back and some groups are posting record-breaking attendance. However, industry insiders point to meetings consolidating and pent-up demand from our year-long dry spell in the association market. And this doesn’t help: the sugar daddy of the meetings industry — the corporate market — remains flat. Until that spending increases, be prepared for a roller coaster ride.
Tags: economy, Marketing, meetings, Vickie Sullivan
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Thursday, May 20th, 2010
Another area of rapid recovery this year: sponsorships in general. Industry giant EIG reports that Corporate America continues to be on the prowl for new deals this year. Other interesting stats:
- 66% report looking for new deals — slightly more than 2009’s uptick of 60%
- Budget cuts are still around, but not as much: 31% say they will cut sponsorship spending this year; yes, this is good news as 51% decreased spending last year. About half report the same budget for 2010.
- 41% spend NOTHING to evaluate prospective partnerships. Translation: decisions are very subjective and “fit” is open to interpretation.
- Speaking of fit, co-branding new products shot up in popularity this year. For us content producing machines, this means joining forces with associations and other industry groups is a no-brainer.
Tags: 2010, associations, branding, economy, opportunity, Sponsorship, strategy, Vickie Sullivan
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