Brands need story's

Strolling through the Safeway I noticed a dishwashing detergent dedicating 75% of their label to “Made with real lemons.” While not note-worthy this comes on the heals of a laugh my son and I shared a week earlier- Squirt lemon soda “contains less than 2% fruit juice.” His 11year-old sensibilities thought  >2% was absurd and of course, it is.

Back in the soap isle I’m staring at real lemons, contained in a dry, soapy mixture that goes in a dishwasher. I’m seeing a story, not a product. The narrative of “real lemons” trumps anything else found on the isle littered with competition. A clear message using a real, tangible item known to all of us…lemons. It’s the story, not the product- it’s always the story. It can be 1.72% fruit juice or real lemons or even the Mercedes logo on the back of your car; we remember brands for their story’s.

Newton (redux)

The movement of change, and the ideas that propel it are governed by "organizational gravity." While great and unique ideas rise up like helium, an opposing force is doing everything it can to pull them back to the ground. Not necessarily on purpose- it may simply be the culture that influences the counteraction.

Is it then our responsibility to use a Newton-like math formula for every project we have? Is part of the presentation the acknowledgment of gravity?

Artist Fritz Scholder;
“Walking the tightrope between accident and discipline.”

Where's the growth? (Experience again)

Mining for sales, digging deeper for growth. Go a step past the customer and look at her experience. Customer Experience is a new trend (for the 129th time) and we need to jump aboard (again).

Start with analyzing the touch points, each time she engages the brand. Measure those areas, survey, get the microscope out. Develop a strategy, put a person in charge. Add value to each touch point by soliciting advise from the team, managers, front-line staff. Finally measure, measure then measure again. Sounds easy I know, but what's more important, doing email or managing the Customer Experience?

Modern day Nomads?

Nomads are are communities of people who move from one place to another, rather than settling permanently in one location. They follow food, water, warmth- basically the things they want most.

Organizations. Nomadic people. Is it a stretch? We follow the data, always seeking out a new customer, a better, more profitable market. We follow the sun (data) for the warmth (data confirms beliefs, makes us warm and fuzzy). If I continue to play out the narrative I land on the notion that "nomadic management" comes with a downside, scarcity. Always searching for a known food group or climate causes us to miss what we need most- new resources, fresh insight. Think American bison.

LIKE ME, AND HURRY

Further proof Facebook likes and twitter followers are not how you measure a successful social media plan http://mysociallion.com/

Now I know marketing has a history of stretching the data but good lord. If your boss measures you by "likes" then run!