I am currently reading Seth Godin’s new book Linchpin which is so compelling and purpose-filled, that I wanted to share an excerpt. The American Dream was:
Keep your head down
Follow instructions
Show up on time
Work hard
Suck it up
…you will be rewarded.
That dream is over.
“The new American Dream, the one that markets around the world are embracing as fast as they can, is this:”
Be remarkable
Be generous
Create art
Make judgement calls
Connect people and ideas
…and we have no choice but to reward you.
The American Dream
Seth has a point. Organizations seek and reward employees with passion and energy and are flexible in the face of change. Employers want their employees to be indispensable. The linchpin has power! “When your organization becomes more human, more remarkable, faster on its feet, and more likely to connect directly with customers, it becomes indispensable.” So what the boss really wants in an employee is an artist who changes everything and makes dreams come true, can see the reality of today and and describe a better tomorrow. What the boss really wants is a linchpin. If he can’t have a linchpin, he’ll have to settle for a regular cheap drone. Are you a linchpin or a drone?
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Some of it is externally driven, like the new media movement. Much of it is self inflicted. For example, in T&T the AATT prescribes that clients should pay $5,000 for creative competitive pitches. Why? To cover some of the costs involved in preparing a presentation including research, copywriting, artwork and a whole lot of analysis that agencies undertake. I know many agencies, including my own, who have participated knowing that they will not receive this partial compensation for their efforts.
Clients say they won’t pay because if an agency wins, they more than make back their investment. And that’s the chance you take and if you don’t like it just refuse to take part. The reality is that will mean almost zero new busines pitches. So you rationalise that everyone does it so you have to too. That’s how we all end up breaking red lights. Or I should say some of us. Some still do the right thing.
Actions like these (pitching for free) commoditizes agencies. What irony? The great brand builders are commodities themselves.
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The Art of Marketing Conference, Toronto 2010
I very recently attended the Art of Marketing Conference in Toronto. The event was billed as:
Canada’s Marketing & Innovation Conference
This one day conference features six internationally renowned bestselling authors and leaders who will share an exciting blend of cutting edge thinking and real world experience on today’s most critical marketing issues. Don’t miss out on your chance to be a part of history and network with over 1,200 of Canada’s most influential marketers.
Sally Hogshead on Persuasion & Influence 
Lust. Mystique. Power. Alarm. Prestige. Trust. Vice. According to Sally Hogshead, these are the 7 triggers to persuasion and captivation. At the Art of Marketing conference in Toronto on March 2, 2010 she delivered a fascinating presentation complete with Jagermeister shots. To learn how to fascinate your audience, go buy her book and visit her website. She was one of six amazing speakers with a Ron Tite as a very entertaining host. Read more »
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Put yourself in their shoes. They get countless invitations every week to “the exciting launch of…” To you it’s the most important project in your work life at present and your key to building your reputation with your boss and your peers. Or maybe you just self motivated to do your best job possible. One of the most anxious moments for anyone organising an event involving the media, is standing waiting to see who pushes the door to come in.
To the media, many of these events are painful. Because they are so frequent, they are seen as much of the same with the logo changed. So how do you stand out? Here are some tips: Read more »
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What do brands have permission to do? Of course there’s the functional. KFC can sell chicken. Some might even say only fried chicken. So when I had pork chops in KFC in London many years ago, it was clear that some sharp GM had convinced head office that since both pigs and chickens were often neighbours on a farm, then it made sense for them to share space in KFC. Or I imagine, he reasoned via his 70 page powerpoint pitch to the annual KFC planning meeting that since Brits love pork chops then it made sense for KFC to offer them. The thing is that KFC does not have permission to sell pork. It owns the chicken folder in the mind, not the pork one.
And b-mobile does not have permission to organise concerts. They do not own that space in the mind. They own connect. They own cool. They own big. They own patriotic. They probably still own bad service. They don’t own the position of concert organiser. So in a sense, this will work in their favor when the brain starts storing any bad stuff from the Beyonce Concert experience. Because the computer in our head stores stuff by category. When the cell phone goes dead for one hour, that’s bad stuff. When calls are dropped, that’s bad stuff. When we get the wrong charges on our bill, that’s bad stuff. All of that is a stab on b-mobile’s brand equity. Dust and doubles and poor sound gets stored in a different file. It gets stored in the concert/all inclusive/fete folder. That doesn’t mean that b-mobile will be left without scars. Read more »
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This morning after Jourvert celebrations, I got stuck in a massive traffic jam. Nothings moving and I change course a few times to try to get through the mess. Several people in front of me eventually turn back. I decided to stick it out. And one hour later (for a trip that’s normally five minutes), I’m through and on my way.
Sometimes our brands get into a traffic jam. Sales are not what they should be or a new entrant has come in and are buying share through discounting or trade deals. And we are tempted to turn back. We drop price or drop ad spend or anything that seems expedient at the time. We sometimes forget where we said we wanted to go with the brand. What we wanted it to mean and to whom.
With branding, we need to stay the course. Make some adjustments in the tactics as needed and stick to the strategy we worked hard to develop. Otherwise like some folks this morning, we might end up going west when we want to go east. Brands need patience, discipline and sometimes a sense of humour to overcome traffic jams in the market place. Brands must stick to their plan.
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Kes the band performs on stage
Seth Godin says no to big events. “The reasons? Well, they don’t work. They don’t work because big events leave little room for iteration, for trial and error, for earning rapport. And the biggest reason: frequent cheap communication is easier than ever, and if you use it, you’ll discover that the process creates far more gains than events ever can.” says Seth.
With the dawn of the VIP section and the ubiquitous all exclusive; is that format providing the intimacy that Seth alludes to? Intimacy at $700 a pop is probably not what he had in mind. And where do the masses get their intimacy. Well they go to the all inclusives. The Fetes like Army Fete, Fire and Licensing where they know they are in charge in their territory and they feel powerful. The same kind of power felt by the managers and aspirants in the all exclusives. Read more »
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Every year, for the past 20 years, UWI (Development and Endowment Fund) has held its annual Carnival Fete. The purpose of the fete is to fund bursaries to deserving students. Less than one month after the 2010 fete, 160 bursuries each of $5,000 in value were awarded and handed out to recipients.
