Harvey Norman, amongst others, have made significant waves in the past few months complaining about Australian consumers buying products from overseas cheaper than from inside Australia, and avoiding duty taxes when doing so. Many retailers have seen their sales slump due to the influx in overseas goods and point the finger at a strong Australian dollar and cheaper overseas goods.
But really this is only one aspect of a greater problem, that has little to do with overseas prices and a strong dollar and much more to do with the ineptitude of Australian retailers.
If another business tells me they soley rely on word of mouth marketing for all their business referrals, I’ll scream.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with word of mouth marketing – and god only knows we do actually talk about it with clients all the time – but the way some people refer to it with a shrug of their shoulders like they don’t know how its working for them, can be infuriating
There aren’t many brands that command an outpouring of emotion like Ed Hardy Australia. Banks generate hatred through increasing interest rates in the face of static bank rates. BP is a good example of a brand hate campaign; spill that sort of oil over cuddly wildlife and the bile aimed at you is obvious. Lawyers, real estate agents and sometimes even fast food companies all generate their own amount of negative response. And of course, there are hundreds of great example of people loving certain brands.
Don't get me wrong. I'm a fan of direct mail. I've received some great pieces in my time - only a few months ago I got a razor from Woolworths. Nice touch. The mail, not the razor. But if you're going to spruik direct mail like Australia Post's 'Open Up To Mail', and you're going to spruik it to marketing folk, then really, your data needs to be water-tight.
