Perception vs. Reality                           January/February 2008

In this Issue

Spotlight: Define reality...and then embrace it
Down-to-earth Solutions: Creating a new reality
Stellar Stats: Natural...or Not?
StarLite: How well do you know your reality shows?
StarLite: Do you like the real thing or a good fake?

Welcome

With the popularity of “reality” shows that feature people and situations that are anything but authentic, the ever-fuzzy lines that define actuality are getting more blurred. In the business realm, reality can be created by just one customer contact or an uncommon circumstance that becomes known as “the truth.”
How are you perceived by your customers, your prospects, and your employees? Are these perceptions accurate? Are they positive? Do you need to help influence a new reality for your business? This issue explores the notion of perception vs. reality, and provides some insight on what you can do to “Get Real.”

THE SPOTLIGHT: Define reality...and then embrace it

As a kid your mom may have told you, “Quit worrying about what other people think. Just be yourself.” In the right context, this is sage advice. In a business setting…well, not so much.

How people perceive your company’s persona is paramount. Descriptors such as quick, thorough, inexpensive, friendly, or old-fashioned may be exactly what you’ve been striving for…or position you far from the goals identified in your marketing plan.

Controlled surveys can be an inexpensive way to help you discover what specific audiences think and feel about your business and its capabilities, and why they have formulated those opinions. At M45, our market research experts can help you identify your target audience, determine contact strategies, gather information, and tabulate results, as well as formulate a plan to address them. Research vehicles may include:

• focus groups (local, regional, national, global)
• printed surveys
• phone surveys
• web surveys
• e-mail initiatives
• customized programs

Do you need help defining your company’s “reality?” If so, consider market research. It may be a prudent strategy to undertake and an eye-opening experience for your entire staff. If the results are desirable you can celebrate. If not, you can initiate change and measure your progress, knowing you have defined a “real” starting point.

DOWN-TO-EARTH SOLUTIONS:
Creating a new reality

The best educators nurture an adventurous spirit in their classrooms and encourage students to question the status quo. By teaching tangible principles, but then pushing their charges to think about possibilities, they help create new realities. Students become innovators. New doors open. We all benefit from the winds of change.

Highland Community College in Freeport, Illinois, is helping create new realities by teaming with EcoEnergy to develop Illinois’ first associate's degree program for wind turbine technicians. After the plan is passed by the appropriate college boards, this program will not only provide jobs for the local economy, but will also give young people an exciting career choice to ponder…a new reality that didn’t previously exist.

M45 helped the college and alternative energy company introduce the new degree program, coordinating all aspects of the press conference and its associated announcement. The college expects to begin offering the classes in the fall of 2008.

STELLAR STATS:

Natural...or not?

What does “natural” mean to you? Here are some common definitions:

• A note that has not been raised or lowered from its named pitch. On a piano, naturals are the white keys
• Pearls that are not interfered with by humans
• An off-white or beige color
• In Blackjack, a 2-card hand totaling 21
• A substance that is derived from mineral, plant, or animal matter and does not undergo a synthetic process (wood, stone, gases, clay)
• Being talented through inherited qualities; "a natural leader"; "a born musician"; "an innate talent"

It may be all of these, along with not altering one’s physical appearance. However, changing one’s natural attributes is becoming much more common. Consider these statistics:

• According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, there are approximately 11.5 million surgical and non-surgical cosmetic procedures performed each year in the U.S. Women account for around 92% of the procedures with liposuction, breast augmentation, and eyelid surgery being the most popular. Among men, the most popular procedures are liposuction, rhinoplasty (nose surgery), and eyelid surgery.
• Plastic surgery procedures increased by approximately 5.8 million procedures between 2000 and 2006. (US Census Bureau)
• Microdermabrasion is one of the more recent skin-care techniques to have crossed over from Hollywood to the mainstream, and is conducted approximately 1 million times per year.

STARLITE:
Twice as creative and at least a third less serious than your average newsletter copy

How well do you know your reality shows?
Match the right show with the correct description. Answers below left.

“The real distinction is between those who adapt their purposes to reality and those who seek to mold reality in the light of their purposes.”
- Henry Kissinger

Reality Show Answers:
A - 9
B - 6
C – 1
D – 10
E – 7
F – 8
G – 2
H – 5
I – 4
J – 3

Do you like the real thing or a good fake?

Think about it: we are surrounded by “fake” stuff everyday. In fact, lots of popular products are not “real.” Some of us eat artificial cheese, display artificial flowers, use artificial tears, or attach artificial fingernails to our stubby natural ones. We dye our hair, choose colored contact lenses, and procure pleather coats. We may don a cubic zirconia in place of a diamond, preferring the diminutive price tag to the natural gem’s whopping one. (We’ll forgo any comments about artificial insemination.)

Win something real.
Has any “fake” ever made your life better? Let us know about your favorite faux product and we’ll put your name in a drawing to win a REAL wheel of Swiss cheese from Kolb-Lena cheese company. Just send us your idea and we’ll share some of the best submissions in the next issue of Momentum.