LaughlinOutLoud

I was talking to one of the best young minds at the agency the other day and she described a recent experience with a strategic concept she’d been struggling with. She said she went from Oooh (“That’s cool, how’d they get there?”) to Aaaah (“I get it!”).

[Note from the author: The book – From Ooooh to Aaaah – is already in development. So don’t even think about it. I called dibs on the spot.]

Isn’t that what we’re – from assistant account coordinators to CMOs – all looking for? That moment of Aaaah? Or, as it’s also know, The A-Ha Moment?

The romanticized version of this includes a crazy-haired inventor. And an A-Ha Moment that changes the course of history.

The good news is we’re operating in an environment when the promise of “A-Ha” is everywhere. That moment of enlightenment that paves the way for all future decisions. We can measure more accurately, more quickly and across more platforms. Data is being collected as we speak. But that’s not the whole story.

Complexity and speed dictate the day. By the time you get to an answer, the question may have changed. Or another question has been raised. To paraphrase Miles Nadal, everyone wants to get to a point where they can say all of our dollars are going here, but there is so much change happening and going to happen that that point will likely never come.

That’s why we need to rethink the A-Ha Moment. It’s not that there are any less of them. In fact, we should have more. But they may be less permanent. Or their implications may be less far reaching.

We need to get comfortable with the new scope of A-Ha. Understanding what’s right. Understanding what’s right for right now. And understanding that things just changed. The exciting part – where success is ultimately found – is understanding the relationship between the three.

PowerPoint is a common enemy. And it’s a pretty easy target. Books have been dedicated to the subject. We’ve all seen many a good idea die at the hands of a poorly-structured PowerPoint presentation.

But I don’t think that we need to get rid of PowerPoint. I think we need to get rid of presentations.
We advise our clients on a daily basis that media consumption (and expectations) are changing. Yet hours and hours (and hours) are wasted on the same old presentations that are emotionless, bullet-pointed monologues. That’s not how to communicate an idea.

I offer two alternative solutions: performances and conversations. Together, they eliminate the need for presenting.

Performances. Performances have no droning or meandering. They have a point. They are engaging. They require little work to follow. And, at the end, they may even leave the audience wanting more. When was the last time you attended a performance? When was the last time you gave one?

Conversations. Not every gathering can (or should) be a performance. But, if we are unable to deliver one, let’s not fall back on a presentation. Instead, turn the event into a conversation. While conversations are still “led,” they are two-way. They still require planning, focus and takeaways. But they encourage listening, sharing and participating. The outcome of which tends to be more people operating from the same playbook. Wouldn’t you (always) rather take part in a conversation than a presentation?

Now, here’s the thing. PowerPoint (or, for the lucky among us, Keynote) are perfectly good tools for developing a performance or a conversation. They aren’t the only tools. But, reframed, it’s clear that each can be used for good, in addition to the unfortunate evil.

We just need to be clear. Is this meeting a performance or a conversation?

image courtesy of coloring-page.net

Marketers benefit when they use the same simple wisdom a six-year-old does when using a shortcut to solve a maze: Begin at the end. When marketing begins with the consumer – and where the consumer needs to end up – shortcuts are revealed.

If you trace your way backwards (instead of forwards) along any maze, the path to Point B is more likely to pop. Dead ends are taken out of the consideration set. Distractions are eliminated. Unnecessary choices vanish. And the answers to the many questions – left vs. right, up vs. down – are more easily defined. Choices that seem viable from one perspective seem irrelevant from “the end.” Marketing is the same way.

We are faced with an avalanche of decisions. And paralysis by analysis can quickly progress to death by 1,000 initiatives. But when you begin at the end those choices get easier. When you clearly define goals and objectives, the excess gets stripped away. The roadmap to success becomes clearer. So, think like a six-year-old. And begin at the end.

We are faced with choices on how best to tell stories on a daily basis. Often times, the decision comes down to “do we / can we trust the audience?” Can we trust them to be smart enough? Engaged enough? Responsible enough?

I was reminded of this the other night as I read How The Grinch Stole Christmas. It was the first time I had read it in, likely, twenty-five years. And you know what? [Spoiler Alert!] Despite the promise of the title, the grinch doesn’t steal Christmas. He can’t. That’s the point of the story. Here’s how the book ends:

And he brought back the toys! And the food for the feast!

And he… HE HIMSELF… !

The Grinch carved the roast beast.

The story ends with the grinch carving the roast beast at the Who’s Christmas dinner.

When run through a committee, the story would have been called “The Unsteal-able Holiday.” Or “How The Grinch Couldn’t Steal Christmas.” Or, maybe most palatable, at least in hindsight, “How Christmas Saved The Grinch.”

But it wasn’t run through a committee. Or made into a literal translation. It was told by someone who believed strongly enough that this was the exact right way to tell it. And that people would get it. The good Doctor Seuss used a title that was, in reality, the opposite of what the story was about.

And the story has been told and retold ever since.

Happy Holidays.

Global Handwashing Day lends good lessons for marketers.

October 15 was Global Handwashing Day. And a study of handwashers in a UK service station provides an insightful look into consumer behavior (or, rather, behaviour) as well as some important lessons for marketers. Three points of interest:

You can’t count on the truth. The study used sensors to record whether soap was being dispensed. According to Val Curtis, a hygiene specialist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the research team couldn’t ask people to report on their own behavior. “It’s a waste of time, they just say yes.” In reality, without any signs to remind them, 65% of women and just 32% of men washed their hands. Gross.

Contextual messaging matters. By adding a simple, text-only sign at the bathroom’s entrance, researchers were able to change those handwashing numbers by about 10% points. Shaming messages were more effective than subtle ones. The *most* effective message? “Is the person next to you washing with soap?” It seems the prospect of being watched yourself is quite the motivator. Peer pressure wins again.

Customized messages matter. But beyond the suggestion that others may be watching and judging, men and women responded to different messages. As Sarah Van Elzen reported yesterday, customized messages matter. They can make campaigns more effective. In this case, researchers found that men were more likely to change their behavior if they were grossed out (“Soap it off, or eat it later”). Women washed more with a more rational message (“Water doesn’t kill germs, soap does.”) The power of segmentation strikes again.

Friday evening, it’s 11:00 PM, do you know where your marketing agency is? Are they securing your Facebook username?

Over the course of this past week Facebook has released details on how to claim your Facebook username. Once called “Vanity URLs” the username rush will make it much easier to share your Facebook profile and pages.

For marketers it’s very important to secure your preferred username. Much like the valuable .com domain name, the Facebook username land grab will cause some companies to miss out on a preferred username. However Facebook has implemented some procedures to avoid issues with registered trademarks and copyrights.

If your brand does not currently have an official page, and you have the rights to a given name today, you can proactively prevent the registration of that name by filling out the form here: http://www.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=username_rights.

If for some reason you discover the name you hold rights to is taken, you can report the infringement here: http://www.facebook.com/copyright.php?noncopyright_notice=1.

Otherwise, what are you waiting for? Grab your username now, facebook.com/username.

In the debate between new or old media, viral or traditional advertising, push or pull
marketing, PR or product placement, one question comes out of the clutter, virtual or real. Is
there an idea in there? What are the words in the word-of-mouth campaign going to say?
What grand design will drive the digital?

You have to admire an industry that keeps finding ways to invade people’s privacy with new
technologies. I’m sure you can’t wait for your phone to start offering you Viagra when you
can’t get it up, or Tums when you can’t keep it down.

Maybe that’s why the best marketing was never an interruption. It was always a discovery.
The message never confused itself with the medium.

If you and the brand you’re working for are going to survive the next technology shift, realize
that it’s your ideas that will get you through. Artificial intelligence suggests that ideas can be
programmed. Well, not to worry, so can you. And yours will be better, or we’re all headed for
CareerBuilder.com.

Ideas occur in four steps. (It’s the third and easiest step that’ll get you down.)

Step one. Know what it is you’re trying to have an idea about. Seems obvious, but it isn’t.
Clever headlines, visuals, or publicity stunts aren’t ideas if they’re just there to get noticed.
Mixing plaids will get you noticed, too. If you can state your brand strategy in one simple,
declarative statement, you’re on your way to having an idea.

Step two. Absorb everything there is to know about the brand. It’s competitors. It’s
consumers. It’s selling channel. This is a good time to read that segmentation study.

Step three. Incubate. This is the secret step few know about, appreciate, or have the patience
to wait through. Your brain needs time to sort the data dump from step two and actually work
on the problem. It can’t produce an idea without some time off. This phenomenon is
commonly known as writer’s block. It’s shortened more careers than Donald Trump. The
antidote is relaxing. Thinking about something else doesn’t just help, it’s required.

Step four. Epiphany. The cliché is that the idea hits you in the middle of the night, or in the
shower when you least expect it. It’s true. And it’s a proven neurological fact.

James Webb Young, a copywriter at J. Walter Thompson in the early 20th century, wrote a great
little book called “A Technique For Producing Ideas.” He makes the idea process simple and
understandable.

Creative people take these steps instinctively, but knowing how ideas get made should give
anyone the confidence to work on them. Anyone except the client’s spouse or children that is.
Years of study have shown that’s where ideas go to die.

The sooner the rest of us get engaged in ideas, the sooner consumers will get engaged with
our brands no matter where they encounter them.