This is the next contribution to this blog by Associate Phil Newman, a London-based marketing and commercialization strategist for technology companies. Phil’s post is part of our continuing series about the ecosystem necessary to bring technology to market. We welcome your comments.
By Phil Newman
Yield management involves the strategic control of inventory to sell it to the right customer at the right time for the right price. Book your flight to New York two days before you’re due to fly and you’ll get the idea of purchasing at the top end. Rather than considering late booking as a negative, why not apply airline pricing to your business to create demand among early buyers, or early adopters?
Airline pricing is an art that has helped airlines grow revenues and price their services to align with seasonal shifts, Icelandic volcanoes and the vagaries of economic downturns. Robert Crandall, former chairman and CEO of American Airlines, gave yield management its name and defined it as “the single most important technical development in transportation management since we entered deregulation.”
Read More
This is the seventh article in a continuing series that examines the state of the ecosystem necessary to successfully bring technology to market. Based on dozens of interviews with entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, angel investors, business leaders, academics, tech-transfer experts and policy makers, this series looks at what is working and what can be improved in the go-to-market ecosystem in the United States, Canada and Britain. We invite your feedback.
By Francis Moran and Leo Valiquette
“Nothing disheartens me more than meeting an entrepreneur in B.C. who says his ambition is to one day conquer the Ontario market,” Anthony Lee, general partner at Altos Ventures and co-founder of the C100, told us in an interview a few months back.
While building a globally competitive company may not be the right objective for everyone, Lee makes a key point. For any venture to succeed, its founders must have a vision that will stretch the boundaries of what they know and challenge what they believe is attainable.
Read More
This is the first contribution to this blog by Associate Caroline Kealey, an internationally recognized communications strategist, speaker, trainer, facilitator and author.
By Caroline Kealey
In my experience, decision making executives in a variety of sectors often fail to recognize the value their communications people bring to their organization. Often, this arises because the communicators themselves have not adequately conveyed the value they provide in a way that resonates with management.
As a senior decision maker, regardless of whether your organization is a startup or a mature technology company, you can make a powerful shift in your thinking by framing the communications function as a strategic element of your organization’s business development and revenue generation activities. Effective communicators contribute far more than the typical “stuff” of communications, such as news releases, speeches or events. They can provide unique counsel that will bring insightful and strategic “outside-in” thinking to your organization.
Read More
By Alexandra Reid
I know what you’re thinking because it’s what I was thinking before I went to Social Media Breakfast yesterday: “What the heck does the gaming industry have to do with marketing?” Coming out of the event, I am not only intrigued by the psychology of “gamification,” the tactics of engagement and how it could be incorporated into a marketer’s communications strategy, I am also convinced that it will play an increasingly important role in how businesses attract, cultivate and retain brand enthusiasts over the coming years.
First, what is “gamification?”
According to David Nicholson, former VP of product development at Power Change and host of yesterday morning’s event, “Gamification is all about modifying people’s behaviour.” Incorporating this tactic into a business strategy can increase retention, virility and engagement of a community around a brand.
Read More
As part of our ongoing series examining the ecosystem necessary to bring technology to market, we asked David French, a senior Canadian patent attorney with 35 years of experience, to discuss the importance to a company of protecting its IP and how creating the position of “IP Coordinator” can facilitate the process. This is the first of David’s commentaries and we welcome your comments.
By David French
The theme of this website is getting technology, to market. This is an honorable objective. Indeed, I would like to present why intellectual property is a key part of the business case for getting technology to market. And doing it right.
Intellectual property such as patents, copyright, trademarks, designs and corporate secrets, all have an important place in the modern business enterprise. Entrepreneurs who are founding a business based on a new product invariably see the patent right as key. Angels and venture capitalists look for the comfort of patent protection when considering whether to make an investment. But even in the absence of a new patentable concept, every business has to address choosing a trademark under which it will be known. So you have to get at least a little bit wet in the IP birdbath.
Read More
By Phil Newman
