Interviews
- »One on One with Ed Hess
Grow or Die. It’s probably the most common business axiom, and the least accurate, according to the new book “Smart Growth: Building an Enduring Business by Managing the Risks of Growth” (Columbia Business School Publishing). To better understand the book’s implications for firms, Consulting’s One-on-One sat down with the book’s author, Ed Hess, a former Arthur Andersen strategy consultant and current professor at the University of Virginia's Darden Graduate School of Business.
- »One on One with Summit's David Litherland
When prospective employees interview for a job, they obsess over making a good, lasting impression. Firms should do the same. To learn how firms can avoid typical pitfalls, Consulting’s One on One sat down with David Litherland, managing partner of Summit Search Group, an executive search firm specializing in placing professionals within professional service firms.
- »One on One with PwC's Tom Craren
Senior executives are becoming immune to traditional marketing. Marketing consultants tell us that to pierce through the white noise of corporate communication, firms should consider “content marketing”. Instead of more traditional marketing, providing valuable insight and perspective in a blog or electronic newsletter can serve as a more effective door opener. One of the best examples is PricewaterhouseCoopers’ “10-Minute” series. For almost three years, PwC has boiled down complex thought leadership into small electronic pieces an executive can read in about ten minutes. To learn more about PwC’s marketing efforts, Consulting’s One-on-One sat down with Tom Craren, the firm’s brand strategy and thought leadership leader. His team of 20 writers produces between two to three 10-minute pieces each month, along with more detailed white papers.
- »One on One with Stanford Hospital's Kate Surman
Transitioning healthcare companies from paper to electronic records presents huge consulting opportunities.
» View all
advertisement
|
8
19
2009
»One on One With Infinitive Analytics' Ken Harrop
 As AOL’s VP for Metrics and Forecasting, Ken Harrop spent more than 10 years developing and implementing full Web analytics capabilities, including enterprise-reporting systems and tools for business intelligence, audience measurement and online advertising. He is now using that experience as a consultant, helping companies across industries maximize the return on their online investments. To find out more about this emerging consulting opportunity, Consulting’s One on One sat down with Harrop, CEO of the recently-launched Infinitive Analytics.
Consulting: Why did you start this firm?
Harrop: I met with a lot of companies when I was with AOL. And one thing that I found repeatedly was that companies had little to no alignment between their Web presence and their strategic objectives. It was as if they were a totally separate online business. I’ve spent my career working in advertising and online analytics. And I’ve grown to recognize this space is really taking off. Companies are starting to realize that there’s a need for people with expertise in analytics to help them make the most of the Web. Before we started the firm, we looked at organizations and saw some real opportunities. In this economy, opportunities are strong because customers are increasingly turning to companies’ online sites. More and more customers are looking to interact online.
Consulting: What are you finding are companies’ biggest online shortcomings?
Harrop: Companies measure their web activity, but they don’t manage it well. They have a lot of data, but do not know what actions to take. Most companies don’t know how best to set up navigation to increase efficiency and drive greater online marketing.
One of the promises of the Web was that you can gain greater knowledge about who is visiting a site – far more than Nielson’ s TV ratings or Arbitron’s radio ratings. You can do a lot with the technology today. There’s so much more you can capture today about who is viewing and interacting with online display ads. But when we look at larger organizations, they are awash in data. Some are measuring the right things, but not taking thinking through actionable next steps.
Consulting: What kind of information is available? And how can you translate that information into actionable steps?
Harrop: There are all kinds of things you can do. If you’re trying to get someone to buy something or register for information, you can measure how effectively people are able to get through that process. You can do a fallout analysis that lets you know that X percent of customers got so far before they abandoned the process. Knowing where and why people stopped interacting on your site can tell you where you need to make improvements.
If you’re in the media space and are dependent on online advertising, you want to attract a broad audience that visits the site with a high frequency and high rate of return. Crucial questions include: Is your audience coming back, how much time is being spent and where?
There are all kinds of online marketing aspects that most companies don’t think through. It’s not just the amount of traffic that’s important. The key is to know if it is qualified traffic. Is your site attracting the right kind of visitors? And are the visitors converting into paid customers to the extent that’s best for you?
Consulting: Where are you focusing your services?
Harrop: While our services are national and international in their reach, we’re geographically located in the mid-Atlantic and D.C. area. We’ve gotten good feedback from companies across every industry and size, so far. Generally, we’ve found that the larger the company, the more complex the Web situation.
Media companies have been very strong for us, so they’ve certainly in the sweet spot. We’ve had tremendous experience with publisher’s Web sites. Companies need help connecting their knowledge capital to their online Web presence. We’ve had success selling navigation and audience management projects to those companies. Broadly, the business-to-business space is also very interesting and hot right now.
We’re also seeing a lot of work in the business-to-consumer space, especially those that reach out to students and younger audiences. To reach those demographics, you need to work within the social media space. At a minimum, they need to have a Facebook presence and a blog. But they also need to be aware of how their products are perceived across the Web—not just on their own site.
|
|
