Sometimes the best laid plans go wrong because, in fact, they weren't the best laid plans. In this season of spring, when new life and fresh hope comes a-budding, I offer a little... fertilizer. Herewith, a grumpy, glass-half-empty, downright surly look at all the ways we (and I do include myself) shoot ourselves in the foot.
10. "Let's find consensus on this."
Sure, and when you open the chest labeled "Consensus," you'll find mediocrity gift-wrapped inside. Consensus is great for team-building and community goodwill, but it's a certain buzz-killer for breakthrough creativity. You should be looking for the disruptive idea, the shocking approach, the sly move that makes others sit up and pay attention.
By their very nature, truly innovative ideas will ALWAYS make some people uncomfortable; if they don't, they're not really innovative. By its nature, consensus always retreats to the safety of norms and conventions—the very things you wish to leave behind. Forget consensus and embrace conflict—stand up and fight for distinctive ideas.
9. "This can't be good—no one else is doing it."
You do the research, run the numbers, build the case. It sounded crazy at first, but the more you think about it, the more your shower-inspired idea makes sense. Best of all, no one else is doing it—the field is wide open for your company to hoist the flag and claim new turf.
Alas, it's not to be. Not because the reasoning isn't sound or the execution practical. But because... well, no one else is doing things this way, so it can't be right. Right? "Really, Mr. Disney, no one will sit through a feature-length animated cartoon..."
8. "This has to be good—everyone else is doing it."
Everyone, stop what you're doing and pay attention! You have to have a blog! Doesn't matter that you don't have anything to say. Doesn't matter that you don't have an audience. Doesn't matter that you have no business case for it. "Everyone" is doing it, so you have to do it, too. Why waste time wondering why? The clock is ticking, and all the other lemmings have tied on their running shoes. What's holding you back?
7. "Because this is what our competitors are doing."
This is a loser on so many levels. First, without access to their facts and figures, you can only guess at the reasoning behind your competitors' actions. Lack of data regarding results (or the cost of obtaining those results) means you can't be sure these actions are even productive.
Worse, beginning a project with the competitors' activities in mind establishes your competition—not your reasoning, expertise or experience—as the reference point against which subsequent judgments are made. Finally, even if you succeed in your imitation, you've just put yourself in the "me-too" category—and reinforced the leadership position of your competition.
6. "We don't have time to test."
But you have plenty of time to fail. Look, there's only one certain way of determining the best course of marketing action—test options and measure results. No amount of research, gut intuition, or even previous experience can substitute for testing. Make it part of your plan.
5. "We're building our brand on 'service.'"
Yet operations will remain exactly the same. So even as your ads shout "service, service, service," your online ordering system is buggy and the wait times for telephone support are interminable. Which do you think your customers will believe? Your brand message—or their experience? If the two aren't consistent, you're fooling only yourself.
4. "We'll generate the leads—closing the deal is for sales."
Agreed, the sales division, especially in business-to-business, does have responsibility for making the sale. But if marketing front-loads all its efforts on leads and "branding," it leaves sales without ammunition during the often long process from initial contact to finalized contract. Plan on making efforts and creating deliverables that sales can use to help along the way, from articles and case studies to whitepapers and demos.
3. "This does/doesn't speak to me."
Who cares? The messaging doesn't have to resonate with you, it has to resonate with your audience. Their needs, desires, fears, hopes, and perspectives may be entirely different from your own. Your hot-button issues may leave them cold, and vice versa. Don't worry about your gut response—worry about theirs.
2. "Word-of-mouth is the best kind of marketing."
Actually, this can be true. If you commit yourself to dogged hard work. Every expert on WOM will tell you that it's powerful, but that it demands strategic preparation, persistence, support, and constant monitoring. That's a lot of action.
But too many people confuse word-of-mouth for sitting-on-butt, a passive approach that requires little or no investment. Don't just build a better mousetrap—plan on building a better path to your door, as well.
1. "We shouldn't be 'negative.'"
Funny thing—my "negative" content didn't stop you from reading this article. Why? Perhaps it is the power of contrast: it's the shadows that make the light seem so bright. Or maybe it's the increased believability: amateurs talk about the glowing possibilities; experienced professionals know all about the things that can go wrong.
It's the conflicts, problems, troubles and challenges that add drama to our points and greater credibility to our insights. You can accomplish more good work by getting in touch with your dark side.
