Written par in Everyone working in an industrial company has observed that lean management experts and marketing teams evolve in different worlds and collaborate little. We do not accept the paradigm behind this taken-for-granted evidence, in the name of the fact that these two disciplines share the same goal: to concretely improve the value provided […]
Knock down the wall between lean management and marketing! Read Post »
Written by in As an industrial marketing practitioner in several markets, I have repeatedly investigated the reasons for the superior competitiveness of German manufacturers compared to their French competitors. One of the frequent causes has been the greater modularity of German product ranges. This article describes what a modular product range is, its advantages, and
Why do German manufacturers offer more often modular solutions? Read Post »
Written par in The driving role of emotions in B2B marketing is a fact established by research and experts. In a context where Marketing and Sales automation powered by digitalisation and AI agents is set to play a growing role in B2B markets, what if you chose to make emotion a lever for business performance?
BtoB Marketing: Arouse great emotions in your customers! Read Post »
Neo home robot Written par in The AI models you use will soon expand into the physical world, thanks to the down-scaling of AI computing processors, smooth real-time communication with humans in natural language, and a multimodal perception of the environment. This includes text and 3D images, as well as sounds, vibrations, colours, smells, force
Physical AI, humanoid robotics: What are the keys to success? Read Post »
Written par in Collaboration between big companies and start-ups or innovative small or medium enterprises (SMEs) is notoriously difficult. Anyone working with both worlds has felt the differences in terms of organisation, decision-making methods and relationship to time.Yet the stakes of a value-creating exchange remain high for both parties. Start-ups and SMEs are looking for
Startups and innovative SMEs: To sell to key accounts, don three costumes! Read Post »
Written par in In companies that invest in innovation, the asymmetry of knowledge between R&D and marketing teams is striking: On the one hand, R&D teams are made up of experts who have often been in their positions for many years, who have accumulated decades of knowledge and experience in specific fields, and established long-term
Three rules for a winning relationship between R&D and marketing Read Post »
Written par in Nothing is simpler than pressing a push-button, or activating a manual control. Does this elementary and barely conscious act deserve the attention of innovators? Why not relegate these objects to the vintage catalogue of 20th century technologies, when each of us carries a touch screen in the pocket? When the metaverse industry
Even push-button manufacturers will never stop innovating ! Read Post »
Written par in A difficult decision Our era of crises, disruptions and daunting challenges brings companies back to essential questions. Addressing them in earnest requires time. Building a product roadmap allows to answer to one of them: “What will we offer tomorrow and the day after tomorrow?”. It encompasses a vision of the major trends
Should I embark on a product roadmap? Read Post »
Written par in Having spent most of my career in marketing, I never miss an opportunity to champion the added value of this function, and the importance of acquiring solid training and experience before taking on responsibilities. It is therefore with perplexity that I sometimes discover the gap between the advertised function and the actual
Industry: What to do with the usurpers of the marketing title? Read Post »
Written par in A McKinsey paper estimates that companies that focus on satisfying their existing customers grow twice as fast as others. And yet, who among those of you who works in an industrial company has not heard the sales forces lamenting: “we are a product-oriented company anyway”, or harsher: “the engineers have here all
Can a product-centric company become customer-centric? Read Post »
Written par in Until recently, financial investors in industrial companies where keen to slash first marketing and communication costs to improve cash flow and short-term profitability. Geopolitical crises, economic sovereignty policies, the digitalisation of production, and efforts to reduce CO2 emissions have increased the interest in relocating factories closer to end markets. A new generation
Industrial CAPEX:Do not forget to invest in marketing! Read Post »
Written par in Communication is an integral part of the innovation process. Those of us who have worked with both R&D and communication teams may be surprised by this assertion. The profile of communication teams is obviously different from that of R&D teams. Communication teams are usually involved well after the development and testing phases
No Innovation without Communication! Read Post »
Written par in With order intake below expectations, the market launch of the innovation has been disappointing. The oncoming review meeting with senior management will be difficult. Yes, it will be necessary to admit that repeated weak signals had hinted at difficulties. Yes, some decisions should have been better prepared, some assumptions should have been
Getting my innovation adopted by the market:What is the winning strategy? Read Post »
Written par in Your company designs and markets technical products and solutions to companies around the world. You publish your product offering online, perhaps even a complete catalogue. Hundreds, thousands of potential professional buyers consult it before asking for a quote or an appointment. More than just a basic brick and mortar, the product brochure
The product brochure chore: what is the right recipe to use? Read Post »