http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specificationDebate www.octopus.imCraig Twyfordhttp://www.octopus.imThu, 20 Jun 2013 09:16:52 GMTDebate Mon, 16 Jul 2012 14:14:40 GMTdata analytics traininghttp://www.octopus.im/data-analytics-trainingTue, 15 May 2012 05:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig TwyfordA great article on the importance of data analytics training in a world of big data

Why_Data_Is_Not_A_Competitive_Advantage_EGQ32011-Final.pdf

]]>http://www.octopus.im/data-analytics-trainingDeath by PowerPointhttp://www.octopus.im/5-tips-for-presenting-without-powerpointThu, 08 Mar 2012 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig TwyfordHow To Present Without PowerPoint.

I think we all recognise that PowerPoint is increasingly associated with ubiquity and mediocrity and that the really impactful and differentiated story-tellers are using other ways to make their messages memorable and engaging. If you are still leaning on that Microsoft crutch then I challenge you to try... just once... to present without it. You will find it a scary but liberating experience.. and your audience will love it. I don't care how complicated your content is, I am convinced that you will do a better job using your personality and language to communicate instead of bullet points and clip art.

 I won't, however, send you out on your challenge unaided. Below are 5 tips on how to present without PowerPoint. 

 Tip #1 Rigour 

Presenting without PowerPoint is not the time to start winging it. The very best presenters talk with confidence because they know their subject matter and they know their audience. So, before you start, ask yourself these questions:

1. Why am I entitled to give this presentation?

2. Have I learnt my subject.. am I an expert on what I am going to talk about?

3. What have the audience come to learn?

4. Do I have the information they need and will it help them?

 If you can not answer these questions with confidence then I suggest you find somebody else to give the presentation, or use PowerPoint and try to bore them into submission instead. If you can answer these questions positively then you are ready to think about your story.

Tip #2 Story Telling

Imagine that one of your audience pokes their head around the door 5 minutes before you are about to begin and apologises for their absence.. they have to rush off to an important meeting/dentist/hair appointment. Can you quickly summarize for them your main point in 3 sentences...without hesitation. Until you know the essence of your story you are not really ready to tell it. Once you can summarize the story in 3 sentences, try and do it in 3 words and then, finally, in one word. Then you are ready to think about how to tell it.

Tip #3 Visualization

So, what is the role of PowerPoint? Is it an aide memoir for the presenter? Well, if so, shame on you, you are a grown up.. learn your script. Is it an aide memoir for the audience? Maybe? But then is a picture of an elephant the only and best way to help them remember the growth opportunity in Africa? I don't think so. Maybe (just maybe) you have a very complex process to explain, and then, maybe (just maybe) I will allow you one slide.. but even then I would use something else, like Prezi for example, just for impact. Below is a list of different ways you can engage your audience without slides. It is not an exhaustive list:

Models 
Props 
Flip chart 
Drawings 
Analogies 
Videos 
Q&A
Moving around the room 

Have a look at some TED videos for inspiration. Hans Rosling is always a good place to start.

Tip #4 Theatre

Remember that you have to sell yourself as well as the message. So, what is it about you that makes you more memorable than the next presenter. This is very personal, it has to be true to you and it can be quite subtle.. you don't need to wear a big yellow hat but there needs to be a story or an angle that makes you more than just the presenter. The actor Chris O'Dowd used to stand out in auditions by claiming that he had been bitten by a dog on the way into the studio. Apparently he used this trick for years. Instead of actor number 17 he suddenly became, "hey, what about the one that was bitten by the dog?" I am not suggesting that you lie, but I am suggesting you inject a little personality, a little bit of yourself, into the story.

Tip #5 Execution

And finally, the best kept secret. The very very best presenters; the calm, commanding talkers who stroll around the room without notes or props.. these guys are the most prepared and the most nervous. If you are not nervous you are not going to be great. The trick is to practise and practise. Practise presenting in front of the mirror; practise presenting standing up with your eyes shut (it is harder than it sounds); present in front of the cat or the kids; when you first enter the presentation room find an excuse to stand at the front and see what the room looks like from where you will present  I don't care what anybody says - nerves are a good thing because they show you care.. and the more you practise the better you will be.  

If you can't do all of the above, then resort back to PowerPoint. It is safe, easy and boring. Your audience with feel safe, they will have an easy time.. and they will be bored.

If you are tempted to go that route then here is an example of what Churchill's great speech might have looked like in PowerPoint... lucky for the world he was around before Microsoft

We will Fight Them on teh beaches.pptx

Octopus



]]>http://www.octopus.im/5-tips-for-presenting-without-powerpointMarketing Strategy - Why Do Big Brands Stay Bighttp://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-why-do-big-brands-stay-bigThu, 19 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig Twyford

Octopus.

]]>http://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-why-do-big-brands-stay-bigMarketing Strategy - How Do Big Brands Stay Bighttp://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-how-do-big-brands-stay-bigThu, 19 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig Twyford]]>http://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-how-do-big-brands-stay-bigMarketing Strategy - Why Do Big Brands Stay Bighttp://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-why-do-big-brands-stay-big1Thu, 19 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig Twyford]]>http://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-why-do-big-brands-stay-big1Marketing Strategy - Creative Destructionhttp://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-creative-destructionThu, 19 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig Twyford

]]>http://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-creative-destructionMarketing Strategy - The Middle Ground Graveyardhttp://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-the-middle-ground-graveyardThu, 19 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig Twyford]]>http://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-the-middle-ground-graveyardMarketing Strategy - Reacting to changehttp://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-reacting-to-changeThu, 19 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig Twyford]]>http://www.octopus.im/marketing-strategy-reacting-to-changePrice Positioninghttp://www.octopus.im/price-positioningThu, 12 Jan 2012 06:00:00 GMTCatherine JuckesCatherine JuckesIf our supermarkets are going to drive growth in the UK through continued premiumisation of private label (in addition to space expansion), where does it leave brands in terms of price positioning? Managing the pricing strategy of your portfolio is best done when you know how a category actually works in terms of price. If you know which are the sub-sectors, the pack sizes, the flavors, the formats that best respond to price changes then you can ensure that your price tiering is based on sound economics.

We have the tools (through innovation) and the experience (over time) AT THE RIGHT PRICE (listening to our customers) to deliver this insight (as required). Take a look at our “WHAT” page to get a better idea of our approach. Then please give us a call, it could make the world of difference to your business.

]]>http://www.octopus.im/price-positioningDeath by PowerPoint 2http://www.octopus.im/death-by-powerpoint-2Thu, 10 Nov 2011 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig TwyfordEverybody seems to have loved the Winston Churchill "Death By PowerPoint" example so here is another one. If Martin Luther King had given his iconic, history changing speech  "I have a dream" in PowerPoint , it might have looked something like this. I know I am stating the obvious but I should just make it clear to everyone that it is meant to be bad... that's the point... enjoy.I have a dream.pptx

]]>http://www.octopus.im/death-by-powerpoint-2Death by PowerPointhttp://www.octopus.im/deathWed, 09 Nov 2011 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig TwyfordWe are on a crusade to stop Death by PowerPoint. Presentations should be fun and engaging, and you really don't need horrible boring PowerPoint to get your messages across. PowerPoint slides often get in the way of what you are really trying to say; it is often a cue to the audience that now is a good time for a quick nap. This is what Winston Churchill's great speech might have looked like if PowerPoint had been around at the time.

We will fight them on the beaches.pptx

]]>http://www.octopus.im/deathDeath by PowerPointhttp://www.octopus.im/death-by-powerpointWed, 09 Nov 2011 06:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig TwyfordWe are on a crusade to stop Death by PowerPoint. Presentations should be fun and engaging, and you really don't need horrible boring PowerPoint to get your messages across. PowerPoint slides often get in the way of what you are really trying to say; it is often a cue to the audience that now is a good time for a quick nap. This is what Winston Churchill's great speech might have looked like if PowerPoint had been around at the time

We will Fight Them on teh beaches.pptx

]]>http://www.octopus.im/death-by-powerpointBy none get one freehttp://www.octopus.im/by-none-get-one-freeMon, 27 Jun 2011 05:00:00 GMTCatherine JuckesCatherine Juckes“Buy none get one free” – where will it all end! In order to keep pace with increasingly price savvy shoppers, retailers now compete and deliver more generous and more frequent promotions. For CPG manufacturers in particular this means an increased erosion of the bottom line set against spiraling costs. This is quite simply unsustainable. But what are the alternatives? Suppliers cold start to switch to alternative routes to market e.g.on-line/depot collection delivery systems? Retailers could do something else with their estate – transform them into greenhouses to produce clean cucumbers and bean sprouts ? Together retailers and suppliers must define a new way of working through this problem in order to survive. Promotions are a hard habit to break and like all of the pleasures in life, too much is bad for you. Promotions must have objectives and objectives must be in line with strategy. Good strategies are built to achieve a major or overall aim for the business. So, today I think promotions need to be different – equally enticing and addictive and still store based by definition, but with less erosion of equity and margin. I am not saying that BOGOF’s and price cuts are a thing of the past but there is so many other ways to grow business. And ultimately, we all want that.

]]>http://www.octopus.im/by-none-get-one-freeStrategic Promotional Planninghttp://www.octopus.im/strategic-promotional-planning1Wed, 22 Jun 2011 05:00:00 GMTCraig TwyfordCraig TwyfordHow do we effectively manage our trade spend? In the last 6 months Octopus has met with over 100 different organisations and there is clearly one dominant topic at the front of everybody's mind. For the average company a 5% increase in trade promotion efficiency will increase profitability by c.10% but after a decade of trying to bring spend under control nobody seems to be having much success - every year trade spend continues to grow. The central issue for Customer Insights is that data analytics alone is clearly not solving the problem. The traditional approach of spending £100,000 a year measuring sku level price and promotion elasticity is simply not working. Knowing that a BOGOF promotion will increase sales by 337% is like knowing that a fast train is coming and that when it hits you it is going to hurt.

At Octopus we have come to the conclusion that to make efficiency savings you need to engage with the retailer and to do that you have to help the retailer manage their entire promotional strategy ...and to be able to do that you need to know how and what the shopper responds to as a whole - it is about understanding the shopper and the category not the sku and the promotion mechanic. We believe that Strategic Promotional Planning can do for trade spend what category management did for ranging in the previous decade.

]]>http://www.octopus.im/strategic-promotional-planning1Octopus is launchedhttp://www.octopus.im/octopus-is-launchedSat, 29 Jan 2011 06:00:00 GMTMark SavilleMark SavilleOctopus was created on 6 January 2011 to help companies make sense of all that wonderful information they have at their fingertips.

The amount of data is growing exponentially while the amount of in-house time available to extract the insight from that data is declining. Only a small fraction of Market Research information is used to make decisions that drive growth - the rest is discarded and rarely revisited.

Fewer companies have the time to join the dots between different pieces of research to gain an holistic picture that will create a competitive insight and market advantage.

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