WHAT WE LEARNED THIS WEEK: Don’t over-extend yourself

Group buying companies have been the focus of quite a bit of criticism during the past year and that is partly because once or twice they haven’t been able to deliver products after customers bought too many of whatever they were after.

LivingSocial made headlines last week when it said it would take the company a few weeks to deliver pairs of thongs ordered a couple of months ago.

That has happened to other group buying sites previously and no doubt it will happen again. It is a perfect example of what can happen when you over-extend yourself.

While many companies might brag about “growing too fast” it can become an issue if you don’t watch it. Take too many orders, disappoint too many customers and you may find your company losing faith with consumers.

Under-promise and over-deliver

Apple released the iPhone 4S this week after months of speculation about whether the company would debut any new iPod products, a new iPod or even a fully reloaded version of the iTunes software.

But while customers would surely be excited about the prospect of a new iPhone investors weren’t so happy with shares sinking $US14 after the announcement.

Most point to lack of an all-new iPhone 5 at the event instead of the upgraded iPhone 4S. But while analysts may have been disappointed they forgot one crucial point –Apple never promises anything.

Even in Apple’s earnings results it consistently under-promises and over-delivers. It never hints about products, operating systems or new product streams until they are ready to be released.

Other businesses need to have the same attitude. Don’t hint at what you might do – just focus on doing it. Under-promise and over-deliver and you’ll soon get a reputation for exceeding expectations.

Work on your branding

Interbrand released its annual report on the world’s most valuable brands for 2011 and there were no surprises, with Coca-Cola taking the top spot.

But in one interesting trend Interbrand noticed that most of the brands heading towards the top of the list were related to technology.

Seven of the top 10 brands – including IBM, Microsoft, Google and Intel – were tech companies. So what’s going on?

While the list suggests that tech companies are certain to have their time in the sun, there’s a bigger issue at play – tech companies know how to leverage their brand.

Whether it’s Intel, Microsoft or Google, branding is essential to success. Those companies know they can’t ride the wave of the technology industry alone – the declining rankings of Yahoo and BlackBerry prove that.

Those companies instead work hard on building strong products and a strong brand, which is something every technology business should be thinking about.

Become social and location-focused

Google is talking to a number of American retailers about creating a new type of advertisement that will make online ads appear more like print advertisements.

As part of that shift Google blogged last week outlining some of the different ways the company is changing AdWords – specifically tying social and location elements to these types of ads.

Advertising and SEO experts have spoken about that, suggesting that SMEs need to pay attention. And they’re right.

If you’re using an AdWords campaign you need to start thinking about how you can use Google’s tools to tie your location into them and connect social elements into them as well.

The Google +1 button is becoming much more popular and businesses really need to pay attention to how it’s being used.

AdWords is still relevant but you need to make sure you keep up to date with how best to use them.

Track yourself with analytics – all the time

Late last week Google made another update to its analytics software, adding a real-time component that allows users to view where traffic is coming from as it happens rather than waiting until a few hours later.

That is a significant change because it allows businesses and webmasters to see exactly where traffic is coming from as it happens, allowing them to judge the effectiveness of different marketing methods.

Now they’ll be able to judge whether a Twitter campaign is working properly and to amend that strategy if it isn’t.

Whether or not you pick up Google Analytics as your tool you should definitely be using some form of analytics. There are plenty of free tools out there and you’re just kicking yourself in the foot if you aren’t using them.

Analytics can tell you exactly what is bringing traffic to your site and how often. Understanding that will help you to better understand your marketing.