From B2B and B2C to B2H

From B2B and B2C to B2H

When I started my career in Marketing & Communications, I was in the so-called B2B sector working companies producing electronic components first then computers & softwares and that particular “label” stuck to me for 20 years.

No matter how many efforts I put in applying for jobs in B2C, the recruiter always replied: “but you are a specialist in B2B”.

“So what!” was I tempted to say already convinced at the time that Marketing is based on basic principles, extended planning and detailed tactics.

I was very pleased to be given a chance to work for Lifestyle magazines more than 15 years ago & there I was, really convinced “so what!” would be my reply.

Applying basic principles and mindful practices to develop and execute Marketing strategies and plans require listening, listening with full attention to the last detail whatever the sector.

I remember being on both side of the “fence” with the same impression. 

When I was at the client’s side, agencies would come in to pitch for my account presenting all they could do based on how brilliant they were, they would all show logos of companies they worked for, forgetting dates and examples of what they did for large companies and all agencies ended up showing the same logos…

What they forgot was to do their “homework” first: try and find as many information on MY company and come and pitch me on the basis of what they learned from looking at MY reputation and MY ranking among competitors.They forgot to “listen”.

The same applies to being at the agency’s side, clients would always come out with stereotypes like “we are Nr 1 in…” and “we offer the best quality, the best service, etc,etc”.

They also forgot to do their “homework” by realistically stating where they stood in terms of reputation on the market place, show they ranking versus competitors and be humble enough to clearly state what they lack most.

Being a good listener allowed me to become both a consultant in B2B and B2C and then also a mentor and coach for start-up organizations.

I remember my first presentation at a Bizcamp a few years back where I recommended networking as the Nr 1 priority for young entrepreneurs or anyone really. 

 I didn’t realize at the time that Social networks would become so obvious in everybody’s business and private life after only a few years and here we are, in the era of B2H, Business-to-Human.

 I am so pleased, so positive about this new era. 

 After so many years of one-way communication from the part of brands, companies large & small, agencies, etc. we are all on the same scene now, the era of B2H, a 2-way communication where brands, companies, agencies, individuals have to not only establish contact but have to be in a position to listen, to maintain a dialogue, to be humble enough to accept criticism and to base their improvements on these public criticisms.

These are exciting times & I am pleased to be part of it.

I would like to change my business card to “Consultant in B2H Marketing & Communications”, wouldn’t you?

 

I am a positive Mentor and put emphasis on business-to-human.

Ghislaine is by far the most positive Mentor within the westartup community.

Marketing specialist with enormous experience, she is very generous with her superb advice on a broad range of topics: from off to online marketing including website design recommendation, content management with “swiss knife” marketing as her particular favorite.

Don’t forget to ask her about customer acquisition and retention programs with her latest favorite, mobile communication – and of course about anything to do with human beings!

These days Ghislaine lives in Thailand – and we certainly miss her! Our secret hope is of course that she’ll start a westartup community chapter in South-East Asia
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Q: Why did you join the westartup community in the first place?
A: I realized that a lot of people around me were retiring, moving and doing other things – so I needed to spice up my network. I also realized that with my experience I could be of help to young people. In the companies I used to consult I would give lunchtime coaching on marketing techniques, online/offline marketing, PR, print, events – because I thought it would be a good way to help them grow.

Q: So, what motivates you to be a Mentor?
A: Basically, ever since I started working I’ve always believed more in human beings than in human capital. The society is made of people – and they are the most important part of my job. As a PR person, I knew that journalists were sometimes prima donnas, but also people. Same goes for customers – we should think more in terms of business-to-human, not business to business. Social media is essentially about human beings, isn’t it? I’ve built a small social network for myself a while ago – way before social media existed. I still have contact with the first assistant I worked with back in 1978.

And that applies very much to westartup – it’s not only about business, it’s also about humans. I feel that the community, the network is progressing, that you’re building something for the future – and I want to be a part of it.

I’m also working as a mentor because I believe in the visionary people and in entrepreneurship. And of course if I could one day say that one of my friends is the creator of the next Facebook I’d be very proud too

Q: Were they surprises when you met entrepreneurs?
A: On a positive note, I’ve met many young guys who built businesses with passion and professionalism. Those were the people I was very pleased to meet and whom I would be always happy to help.

That said, there were also a few of them who just had an idea, didn’t prepare, weren’t ready to work hard to make it happen.

Q: Why do you think they aren’t ready?
A: We’ve “built” a generation of people who think everything is easy – to find information, to build a network, to start a company. I don’t think these guys have a notion of hard work. Most think that because they have a university degree they are entitled to a nice job, a big salary and a nice car.

Q: Is there anything we can do to fix that?
A: Environment and education. A lot of professors at business schools are guys with no actual experience in doing business, they just keep giving lectures the same way and with the same content as ten years ago – which is why I think the westartup seminars and workshops are much more effective than the classical education.

I also agree with Brice Le Blevennec – you can’t make a company in 54 hours (LE: reference to Startup Weekend) – but it’s a starting point. You can’t develop something that would make millions in one weekend, you have to keep working hard, very hard! People just scratch the surface, and then give up too quickly.

You learn from your failures – except that the young generation doesn’t accept the failure, they are not ready to continue working hard to make it happen or not ready to accept criticism which is always positive as long as you can take it.

Having said that, there are exceptions of course, the ones you meet at westartup!

Q: Was there anything particularly useful that you’ve learned?
A: I always learned something new about technology, marketing, finance, people, networking. I learned how people today make use of technology. I’m not an engineer, I probably won’t be able to develop my own software even for a toaster, but I certainly learned a lot about how it can be used.

Q: And about people?
A: Oh, you keep on learning about people all the time. What I love about westartup is that it’s not a congregation of any particular kind of people – it’s a mix of people coming from different backgrounds and countries.

Q: Would you advise anyone to join the westartup community, and if yes, why?
A: Any person should join. Not only if they have a brilliant idea – but just to share the interest in having as much information as they can gather to become multi-taskers, what I call “swiss knife”.

The future will be not be made of people who just have one specific area of expertise in software development, finance, marketing or sales. They have to go beyond their sphere of knowledge, especially the one they learned in school. You see that very much with companies in Web 2.0 – they can have excellent ideas but can be completely incapable of presenting them professionally, let alone selling or marketing them.

Networking also means that you will be networking with people who will be influential one day. Some people I’ve worked with many years ago are now CEOs of large companies, some others became organic farmers and then they are the crazy ones like me who went around the world on a sailing boat and going back to Europe once every 10-12 months to work as a consultant before “hitting the ocean” again.

Westartup is the one of the best level of networking, and you will always need it. Not only for business reasons, but also for personal reasons – the community today is not only about business, it’s also about human contact.

One day I got a photo of a newborn baby from a participant of one of the westartup events. It may sound ridiculous – but it is not. It means we have managed to establish a human contact. My favorite!

Let’s start 2012 on a positive note!

Did you say a sailor-marketeer?

Yes, that’s what I am a sailor-marketeer as well as a “swiss-knife” marketeer.  

I can be multi-tasking in a multi-lingual and multi-cultural environment and I love it.

It might sound odd to be a “swiss knife” Marketeer although I was born in the tiny country called Belgium but then again, it’s what I am.

With the years, I had the chance to cover Marketing & Marketing Communications from A to Z or more or else.

Why? Because I pay attention to very single detail and I am disciplined.

Boring?

Market analysis, Business plans and Marketing Communications strategies require discipline and I am keen on discipline.

There is a clear path to being a “swiss-knife” Marketeer far from the perception people have of a Marketeer being an individual with a large ego going from cocktails to restaurant openings.

Marketing Communications is actually a very serious matter because there must be a return on the efforts you put in, the plans you put through because they will serve the company’s success.

Years ago, people would just say that since I speak 6 European languages, I must be a translator. True in a sense, I was once, a long time ago, an interpreter stuck in a small cubicle above conference participants but it soon bored me to tears just being a parrot repeating what the people said, so I decided I wanted to have a say.

To have a say, you must first learn to listen and that’s what I did, going to courses in advertising, branding, design, Direct Marketing, web design and doing a lot of networking.

I listened, listened, listened with so much attention that I could gather all necessary information to develop both on and off line marketing plans for companies.

My generation is the one of the “off line” of course but I never stopped learning and am very keen on being constantly present on Social Media to learn more day after day.

Why?

Because I want to jump in a consulting contract by offering a “swiss knife” approach. I don’t have one specialty, I have several. I want to be “multi-tasking” because that’s what makes business life so interesting.

After more than 15 years spent in permanent assignments both in companies to manage their Marketing Communications activities or in agencies as Account Executive, I decided to go for a major change in life.

I went sailing around the world and because I was not rich or retired, I decided to become a free lance consultant so I could go back to Europe to work when I was running out of cash to continue the trip and I have done so for the last 14 years.

60,000 nautical miles and 260 islands later, I am back “ashore” here in South-East Asia where I am starting a new career in a new continent where I have been living in the last 5 years “on and off” contracts in Europe.

Thanks to Facebook and LinkedIn I got in touch with dozens of people here and my network is starting to build up so here I am looking for a new opportunity, a new challenge, a new adventure!

What’s a “swiss knife” Marketeer

I like to call myself a “swiss knife” marketeer because that’s how I can best describe what I can do, have done and will be continuing doing: putting more than 25 years of experience in Marketing & Communications at the service of companies, large and small, young entrepreneurs and travel, leisure and sports events organizers (regattas, Adventure trophies, etc).

It might sound odd to have chosen being a “swiss knife” Marketeer although I was born in the tiny country called Belgium but then again, it’s what I am.

With the years, I had the chance to develop business plans and models for companies large and small because I always look for details.

Market analysis, Marketing & sales techniques, Business plans development require discipline and I am keen on discipline. There is a clear path to establishing Business models and plans far from the perception people have of a MarCom person being an individual with a large ego going from PR cocktails to restaurant openings.

MarCom is actually serious matter because there must be a return on the efforts you put in, the plans you put through because they will serve the company’s success.

Years ago, people would just say I could speak 6 European languages so I must be a translator. True in a sense, I did study to become an interpreter stuck in a small cubicle above conferences participants but it soon bored me to tears just being a parrot repeating what the people said, so I decided I wanted to have a say.

To have a say, you must first learn to listen and that’s what I did, going to courses in advertising copywriting and design, Direct Marketing, web design and networking.

I listened, listened, listened with so much attention that I could gather all necessary information to develop both on and off line marketing plans for companies.

My generation is the one of the “off line” of course but I never stopped learning and am very keen on being constantly present on Social Media to learn more day after day.

Why?

Because I want to jump in a consulting contract by offering a “swiss knife” approach. I don’t have one specialty, I have several.I want to be “multi-tasking” because that’s what makes business life so interesting.

After more than 15 years spent in permanent assignments both in companies to manage their Marketing Communications activities or in agencies as Business Developer or Account Executive, I decided to go for a major change in life.

I went sailing around the world and because I was not rich or retired, I decided to become a free lance consultant so I could go back to Europe to work when I was running out of cash to continue the trip and I have done so for the last 15 years.

60,000 nautical miles and 260 islands later, I am back “ashore” here in South-East Asia where I am starting a new career in a new continent where I have been living in the last 5 years “on and off” contracts in Europe.

Thanks to Facebook and LinkedIn I managed to get in touch with dozens of people here and my network is starting to build up so here I am looking for a new opportunity, a new challenge, a new adventure!