Ego

I realize the title of this blog is supposed to be about productivity as well as marketing, but in the initial stages of this blog I can't help but mention one more marketing topic that is close to my heart - EGO.

When you're marketing your products and services, there is really only one person that matters - the customer.  They're the ones making the purchase, they're the ones that have inspired you to create the idea or manufacture the product.  In the beginning stages this is an easy lesson to remember.  It's only too common that as time goes on  someone's ego gets in the way and suddenly focus groups or market research aren't so important anymore.  As times continue to change, customer predictability changes - daily!  You must never lose grip with who your customer is, what they think, etc.  You must become your customer and lose yourself, momentarily, so that you are able to look at your product from a third person perspective and critically preview if you're meeting expectations.  In other words, you must lose your ego.

About five years ago, I was a brand manager for a national foodservice company.  We were up and coming and things were really heading in the right direction.  As part of a multi-pronged approach, we created a new website, we promoted it with a full page ad in USA Today and the product we tied it in with really took off.  An established and fast growing company saw our ad, began talking with us and we both realized our customers were the same.  After short time they pitched us to partner with them.  Again, my company was an "up and comer," so the package they presented would cost us more than we were used to spending, but it was an obvious fit and  I saw large dollar signs in my dreams...  

I wish this story had a happy ending.  Unfortunately it does not.  I knew what our customer wanted and had the data to prove it.  Our president's ego refused to believe the research.  His instincts said otherwise (he said it was his instincts, but I say it was his ego).  In the end we passed on the opportunity and you can figure out the rest.  With no calculator needed, had we partnered with this large company there is no doubt in my mind our company would have become a household word.  It all came to a screeching halt (literally) because of one thing - EGO.

To borrow a popular branding campaign's slogan - when it comes to marketing, Leggo of your EGO.

The Alternative to Brain Storming

If you're like countless thousands of corporate types the world round, then surely you've participated in a ritual called "Brain Storming."  I would always submit two heads are better than one, unless it's me and my 1 year old, Sophia.  Most of her ideas focus in on graham crackers and barefoot walks in the grass; and while that's an adorable picture, it's simply not always practical.

The next time you get an email or call to the conference room to brain storm, think about it.  There you sit in your chair, next to a few others, who are looking around the room.  Someone moderates the group, under the supposition that you're not to poo-poo the others ideas and then at the countdown of 3-2-1-Go - you're off...tossing out ideas...looking out the window...staring at the ceiling...thinking about that email you have to write...and then suddenly you realize this is a waste of time.  While the room may commonly feature product shots from your company, your surrounded by the same-old same old and a great idea is about as foreign as finding the 3rd quarter in your desk drawer when you desperately need that Mountain Dew.

Here's a tip that I suggest and yes I will attribute this yet again to Doug Hall and his book, How to Jump Start Your Brain.  Whether your issue is about the latest sneaker design or the best way to market a new coffeemaker, keep a stack of magazines nearby or DVD's or better yet - suggest an alternative place to brainstorm - someplace away from the company's walls.  If that isn't possible, grab your magazines, throw them on the table and then for 10-15 minutes prior to the list-making event, have everyone start to review the magazines.  Make sure the issues are all over the board:  Sports Illustrated, Family Circle, MacWorld, Time, etc.  The farther they are away from the product or idea you're trying to overcome the better.  The obvious idea is to stimulate your brain by thinking of foreign ideas or putting yourself in a foreign environment.  Going to a coffee shop for a brain storming session instead of the conference room may help by seeing people you wouldn't normally see at work.  Perhaps a smell elicits an idea that takes you down a path.  Regardless, in short time you or your group will birth an out of the box idea that no one saw coming.  

Try this idea out and drop me a line if it works.