Xerox’s Kodak moment?

In an alternative universe we could be writing a Chapter 11 obituary for Xerox instead of Kodak, but they’ve managed to transform their business model to deal with digital technology change.

And as part of that success story it was great to see Christa Carone, Xerox’s CMO (http://tinyurl.com/86nw7yv) championing Business-to-People (B2P) marketing and communications. B2P has always been at the heart of Corporate Edge’s approach to brands and communications. So much so that today that’s what we call ourselves – the B2P agency.

Putting B2P at the heart of our approach comes from a belief, and a lot of experience in many business-to-business and business to-consumer sectors, that the way to connect with an audience is treat them as real people rather than stereotypes. And this works for any audience you want to communicate to. We look beyond the analysis for insight and creativity that reaches the individual, the real person rather than the role.

We can’t take credit for the work that Xerox’s done, but there are some great examples of B2P in action including the Real Business Ready campaign and its social media council.

Of course, nothing is new, the essence of this approach has been around for a while, from David Ogilvy in the Sixties reminding (m)ad men that “The consumer isn't a moron; she is your wife” to the emergence of the concept of customer intimacy in the Nineties. We push it harder and wider now applying this thinking to audience challenges, like employee engagement and key messaging aimed at regulators and governmental stakeholders. But it’s all about keeping it and making it simple to get into your audience’s heads.

About Marcus

Corporate Edge's Director of Strategy