Decisions
Feb 22, 2010 Assumptions, Something To Think About
Are you making your decisions on purpose or are they incidental? Or worse, by default?
Operating any household or business, organization or entity requires thoughtful action. Thoughtful as in thinking things through. Being full of thoughts on the issues at hand.
When you simply rely on or allow default, when you don’t address the issues as they need to be, you are defaulting on way more than that one decision. You’re defaulting on yourself, your colleagues, your beer, your customers and your expectations.
Would you brand your business “Default Widgets: The One To Fall Back On”? Did you open your business to just meet the bare minimum?
Is something ‘that’ll do’ good enough for you? Or do you purposefully strive for better?
People everywhere – including your present and potential customers – want and deserve more.
Tags: decision making, thoughtfulness
Denver Hotel Bar
Feb 8, 2010 Assumptions, Myth Busting, education
Today’s post goes out to Joel and Wes of Knoxville Tennessee. I had the pleasure of coincidentally sitting at the same bar in the hotel last night for a beer and dinner.
gorgeous snowy Denver Colorado
They’re in Denver to ski – excellent plan – and I’m here on (pleasurable) business. One great thing about Women Enjoying Beer is that it’s a real conversation starter.
“Really?” is the comment from a lot of people when I introduce myself and pass them a business card. Beer holds a lot of allure and fascination regardless of if people drink much beer or not.
(I know…tough job. I do take it seriously while having fun at it though.)
So Joel asked me last night - what did I think were the two top reasons women didn’t drink much beer.
I turned the question and asked him what he thought the reasons were. His answer: calories and carbs.
Bingo – one exact reason WEB is around is to bust those kinds of myths.
Not so – and this is according to the hundreds of women I have talked to about beer, whether formally in focus groups or casually at, say, hotel bars. The calorie and carbs issue is a perfect example of advertisers marketing to what they think women want – without necessarily asking them directly. It’s someone else’s lens placed on the view.
And while health is part of the conversation for women and beer, as it is for men as well, it’s not the very top of mind issue.
The top two would easily be:
Number 1 they haven’t been marketed to accurately and authentically hence little engagement.
And number 2 that they haven’t been actively and consistently pursued educationally. i.e. breweries specifically reaching out to women about beer – not pandering or patronizing. Reaching out – recognizing the potential, realizing that beer should be genderless in it’s audience yet you have to first capture that market share to address it (like any market share).
And it’s not what I think. Those answers come from a large number of women from all kinds of backgrounds and in many different demographics.
Thanks Joel for the lively conversation and asking questions. The conversation has to include all genders. I hope you two had a fun night in Denver. How was Wynkoop?
Tags: calories, carbs, conversation, Denver Colorado
Say What (exactly)?
Nov 10, 2009 Assumptions, Myth Busting, Unbelievable, education
This article seems to go nowhere. Not sure what to even extrapolate…
Were way too many non connected questions asked of the survey participants? Were participants qualified? And to what end?
Craft beer is so minutely represented here (and then mass grouped) that I find it hard to believe this article holds any credibility.
Plus having done research on women and beer (which is continually ongoing) I find the gender inferences both ways, comments or sometimes blatant disregard staggering and sadly uneducated.
When you talk to a population about anything, you have to be more specific, hone in, not run all over the map. Information with no quantification is rather unusable.
Thanks Ronnie!
Oct 29, 2009 Assumptions, Good People, Myth Busting, education
Me before an educational event at Snake River Brewing - thanks Chris!
A big shout out of thanks to Ronnie for generating some great conversation ala his blog. Read it here.
Clearly, some of the readers who commented get it. Clearly others do not. I’ll chime in in a few days…after more conversation has been had.
For the moment:
- 1. What I’m accomplishing is authentically and accurately helping develop a market share for an intelligent market who is receptive and listening.
- 2. If you read my blog at all, you know WEB is not about gender when it all boils down. If you’re getting that out of it, you should reread posts and pages. Do you criticize out Rick Lyke for marketing beer to men for his purpose??
- 3. Conversation is the key to progress. I for one love the conversation that has been generated so far. Keep it coming!
Thanks Ronnie – see you Houston soon for a beer to two.
Tags: conversation, Ronnie Crocker
606
Oct 25, 2009 Assumptions, Something To Think About, Unbelievable
Is this right?
5% – seriously?? How can that really be appropriate?
It took me by surprise and I find it disturbing. And misleading. And inaccurate. And incorrect.
5% is still 5%. Without it, 95% is not 100%.
The public should demand 100% accuracy in this case.
ReThink
Oct 12, 2009 Assumptions, education
Here’s a good article.
Good = thought provoking, mind opening, discussion laden.
Right on, Patrick!
Tags: rice discussion
Miss/Information and Ass/Umptions
Sep 14, 2009 Assumptions, education
This kind of quote scares me. It’s a perfect example of someone being totally off base.
I’m not saying opinions are invalid – yet uninformed or ill informed or prejudgment type statements are dicey at best.
How did the Faust’s come to that conclusion (last line of the article)?
- Did they actually ask a cross section of women?
- Did they make this erroneous assumption themselves based on what they think women want?
It’s always disappointing to read or hear ignorantly stereotypical, uninformed statements.
One interpretation is that this Mr. Faust (and Ms. Faust?) sees most women at his winery drinking wine. Well…kind of goes to follow that that would be a case, yes? I would venture a guess most men visiting his winery would also drink the wine. Just like most people visiting breweries drink the beer.
I can help correct this incorrect mindset (and therefore increase your business) with a focus group execution of their specific market share, locals and supports who would (I guarantee) change his mind.
As an aside, Kim of Nebraska Brewing was at my session at the CBC this past spring so I know she knows that women do in fact enjoy beer.
Open your mind to the other 50.9% of the population (and business) and you’ll be richly rewarded.
“Emerging”?
Aug 25, 2009 Assumptions, Myth Busting, education
Are you listening?
Hell, the voices have been there all along. It’s simply that people are hearing them and listening for the first time in a long time in the Western World.
Photo courtesy of Flickr by drewdomkus
Tags: listening, the naked pint, voices
What ‘They’ Know
Aug 20, 2009 Assumptions, education
How did you acquire the knowledge you have?
Think about how customers get the knowledge they have – after all, they’re quite human just like you (and of course me). And we all started at square one.
Respect that people may not know all that you’d like them to. What they know is what they’ve experienced.
Therein lies the golden diplomatic educational opportunity.
And that most certainly is valid. Make sure you build up, not tear down per your own preferences and opinions.
Like I’ve said before, be a geek not a snob.