All You Need Is A Good Idea!

What do you do after you innovate?

2013-05-20T10:34:02-04:00

There is nothing like a good idea to build a brand. But after the innovation comes…? Yep, getting it done.

As Cliff Oxford points out in the New York Times, “The biggest risk to your business is not that it will die because you stop innovating — it’s that it will die because you fail to rein in your innovating and start executing.” You know, the down and dirty things like packaging, selling, delivering and collecting the money.

A stream of good ideas can be wonderfully effective, but not if you are too busy creating them to actually execute any. Or the creative process gets in the way of simply getting stuff done.

Read his article and let me know if you agree.

Keep Calm

2013-05-16T10:41:00-04:00

Seemingly from out of nowhere, we have been invaded b y the British. I am not referring to television shows or bone marrow on toast. Rather, or rawther, I mean the unceasing parade of various versions and parodies of “Keep Calm And Carry on.”

Originally, as Wikipedia tells us, “Keep Calm and Carry On was a propaganda poster produced by the British government in 1939 during the beginning of the Second World War, intended to raise the morale of the British public in the aftermath of widely predicted mass air attacks on major cities.”

Why has it suddenly become as invasive as the approaching swarm of 17-year cicadas?

And more important, what are you going to do about it? Is there any way you can use this to tie-in with your marketing? But without seeming me-too, Johnny come lately and lost in the crowd? A tall order indeed.

Well, stay relaxed, and I am positive a good idea will come to you. Hmmm, as in “Keep Calm and Create.”

Lip Service vs. Customer Service

2013-05-13T11:03:00-04:00

Customer services (Photo credit: gordon2208)

Edward H. Bastian, Delta Airline’s president, said in a recent interview, as reported in The New York Times: “People worried if the airlines were going to make it or if they were going to be bankrupt. Today, everybody has scale, customers have choices and people have seen that service matters.”

It is the last two words of his quote that I find the most interesting. Ask most airline passengers about customer service, in today’s world of fewer airlines and less capacity, and they would giggle.

And while the article further points out that most airlines have been putting Wi-Fi and individual televisions aboard their planes, installing more comfortable seats for their business passengers and investing in mobile technology that gives passengers more control over their travel plans, let us be serious about all this. While these improvements are all part of upgraded customer service, it is not as if they were tossed out as gifts from the heavens.

The Wi-Fi pricing, the rental headphones, the high fares for these comfortable seats, the added charge for more spacious (LOL) economy seats, pricing for ticket-change fees (United recently increased its ticket change fees form $150 to $200), the baggage fees, the charge for meals, the…well, compare all that to the boast that “service matters,” and you can see the disconnect.

You cannot giveth customer service with one hand, and taketh it away with the other.

Got the idea?

You Can't Keep Up.

2013-05-09T11:09:00-04:00

Logo of google TV (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Below are some recent, though perhaps soon to be obsolete, products; actual, imaginary or anticipated. This is, of course, in addition to the latest updates for your current technological products, each usually tweaked just enough to require an intense learning new/forgetting old curve.

3D Printers
Google Glasses
Smart Watches
WIFI Wedding Rings
Bit Coins
YouTube Subscriptions
Vine
Snarkle TV

Since you are a creative type, or visiting the wrong blog, part of you is in awe of these good ideas. When you are finished wondering why you didn’t think of them, you are probably wondering which will actually survive, which will make your creative life easier, and with which of them you will have to develop enough expertise to explain to your clients why they should ignore, support, purchase or purchase advertising on.

Here’s the bad news: You can’t. There are simply too many innovations, tech or otherwise, for you to become the expert go-to person for all of them.

The good news? No one else can master them all either. And, if you are as lucky as I am, the one you pick to become proficient in will disappear as quickly as Google Wave.

My advice? Be aware of what’s new, through blogs, feeds, conferences, colleagues, etc. Focus on what’s most appealing to you, personally or professionally. If it captures your imagination, you are most likely to want to find out more about the process or technique. And since you are not a cat, don’t worry about what curiosity might do.

Got the idea?

43 Million Views

2013-05-06T11:16:00-04:00

Evian (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Don’t know if you have seen this video yet, though it has had over forty million views. No, it’s not featuring a gangsta, nor a cat. Actually it is a commercial, for Evian. There’s a lot you can learn from it. About creating a simple premise, spectacularly executed. And if you don’t smile as you watch it, I will be shocked.

Oh, and if someone wants to sell you a guide to getting your video to go viral, you might as well ask them to throw in the Brooklyn Bridge.

FREE WIFI…IN A MAGAZINE

2013-05-02T10:17:00-04:00

Microsoft recently promoted its Office 365 software by offering free portable Wi-Fi in random subscriber copies of Forbes magazine. When activated, it provided users with two weeks of free Internet service.

I found out about this good idea at Design Taxi, which explains the details, and I knew you’d be interested.
But equally as interesting to me were the comments about the promotion. They ranged from “really cool,” to “idiotic,” to “wasteful,” to “very smart.” Which brings me to the larger point.

When you are creating ideas be careful not to overly censor yourself. Of course you should be aware of the possible, well, inevitable, negatives. But don’t let that little voice in your head turn good into bland for fear of offending.

The gloomy truth is that no matter what you create, half the world is going to find something negative to say. Sadly, new ideas do not have the universal appeal of a tropical sunset or vanilla ice cream. Rather, they have the polarizing effect of cilantro, or Gwyneth Paltrow. Innovation is a worthy target for you to aim for, but unfortunately originality is also a target for the naysayers.

Do as your heart and brain (left and right side) prompt. You’ll at least have the satisfaction, that, as Sinatra has said, you did it your way.

Got the idea?

Name The Brand

2013-04-29T10:55:00-04:00

Above is an image I shot on the way to work. I was flabbergasted, or whatever today’s version of that word is, that any brand would spend all that money without actually saying anything.

The brand identifier was in the small red horizontal space on the top left. I covered up the name to protect the guilty. I am willing to bet that based on this poster, you can’t guess the brand. And I would double down that you couldn’t even guess the category.

Yes, a phone company might be a good guess, based on the only copy in the ad, “Life’s better when we’re connected.” But it would be wrong.

And it’s not an ad for a genealogy website, leash manufacturer, or duct tape.

Point is, a cliché image and a non-relevant headline is a big waste of your time, money and creativity.

Got the idea?

What do your customers leave with?

2013-04-25T11:27:00-04:00

When you go to your dentist for your annual or however often checkup-up and cleaning, your dentist probably drops a few goodies on you when you leave. Toothbrush, toothpaste, maybe mouthwash and floss. And even though, except for the toothbrush, they are all sample size, it is a gesture we appreciate.

Whom else do you visit on a regular basis who gives you any goodies? When was the last time your barber gave you a comb? Or your shoe repair person presented you with a shoehorn? Or your doctor gave you a thermometer or personalized tongue depressors? Yes, there is the occasional complimentary thirteenth cookie. And the bartender buybacks. But somehow, nobody does it like a dentist.

I am not sure why this is. Perhaps it is an attempt to make up for the pain that is inevitably caused. Or remorse for poking around inside your mouth with sharp metallic instruments.

And though I am positive you do not cause your customers unnecessary pain, what can you do that is above and beyond the expected. It needn’t be a tchotchke. But it’s more than the rote “thanks for the order,” the tickets to the ball game or the steak dinner.

It is personal, unexpected and relevant. The price is not the point. The expression of thoughtfulness and appreciation is.

Got the idea?

What Can You Own?

2013-04-22T10:59:00-04:00

I came late to the colorful world of Pantone, not being an art director. In the earliest form of which I was aware, Pantone sold books of removable color chips, glossy and non, each matched with a number.

So if an art director said to a printer, or a client, this will be Pantone 577, everyone was on the same (color) page, and knew what to expect to see in the finished product. So Pantone became the authority, the go-to source for color matching for graphic designers.

And my, how its little niche has grown. Since 2000, the Pantone Color Institute has been selecting the color of the year, claiming to base this on their color experts combing the world looking for the “color influences which best define the global zeitgeist.” Pantone even selects the social media colors of the year. Along with the most to least popular colors for brand logos. And they are selling Pantone branded accessories such as iPhone cases, mugs and flash drives.

Good for them. And perhaps a similar opportunity exists for your brand. How can you make yourself the expert, the go-to brand for the interview quote, the sine qua non of your category, the leader?

Size does not matter. Here’s what Barbra Corcoran says about the early days of her company: “When I started the Corcoran Group, it was a little tiny business in a world of giant businesses. And how did I succeed and get to the head of the pack? I had a gimmick. I created the Corcoran Report, which simply reported on sale prices in Manhattan every six months, and you know what that got me? Free publicity… So every time anything was written about real estate they came to me for statistics, and my name and my company was always quoted.”

Go for it. Become the authority. Remember, on the Internet, no one knows if you are a Goliath or a David.

Got the idea?

You Never Notice It Till You Need It.

2013-04-18T10:59:00-04:00

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There you are, in desperate need of a tuxedo to rent for the wedding. So you Google tuxedo rentals in your zip code. You discover that less than one block away is a store that rents evening clothes. And you have passed that store at least twice a week for three years. But until you had the need, you simply never noticed the store.

This happens a lot. Until you are thinking of buying perfume for your wife’s birthday, you don’t notice the perfume ads. Don’t need new tires for you car? Then you won’t be aware of even one tire commercial, even if you are watching the tire channel. Need a haircut? Amazing how many barbers are suddenly around.

Companies with big budgets can work around this. They just advertise with consistent frequency, so they are more likely to be seen when you have a need. And if you need an expensive bauble for that special occasion, Tiffany’s will certainly be among your choices. But few can afford this budgetary luxury.

Social media might help, “Can anyone recommend a place for me to buy a new (name of object)? Certainly search engines will guide you. And many usually take the easy way out, and just check out Amazon.

But is there a way to make your product top of mind? So that when someone suddenly realizes they need to purchase a Phufkel, they will think of you?

I wish I had the answer for you. I mean, there is the obvious, “Just make certain you have a really good idea that differentiates you from your competition.” And while that may work well with quotidian purchases, we are talking about the occasional, but important needs.

I guess, to use the Tiffany example, becoming a true a brand is an important answer. And word of mouth helps. But I feel terrible that I don’t have a great answer, though I am delighted that I raised the question.

It is worth talking and thinking about. And perhaps you have some insights you would like to share?

Got an idea?

All You Need Is A Good Idea!

What do you do after you innovate?

Keep Calm

Lip Service vs. Customer Service

You Can't Keep Up.

3D Printers

Google Glasses

Smart Watches

WIFI Wedding Rings

Bit Coins

YouTube Subscriptions