Category Archives: mad scribblings

The Everest Question

By DavidSCohen | Published: May 30, 2009

There is a difference between getting great advice and getting the great advice that helps you get to where you want to go.  The key is to ask your Everest question.

So what’s the Everest question?  Let me explain.  I could walk up to you and say, “I’m 44 and I want to climb Mt. Everest, what should I focus on for the next couple of years?” and you’d probably be surprised, but after a pause you’d give me your best, well-reasoned, well-meant and practical advice. However, if instead I only asked, “I’m 44, what should I focus on for the next couple of years?” while I’m certain that I’d also get your best, well-reasoned, well-meant and practical advice – I’m equally certain that the subject of climbing Mt. Everest would simply never have come up.  Even hiking would have been a long shot. 😉

It is important for any business leader to seek counsel, but do yourself and your advisers a favor: if you have a burning desire, a vision, a big audacious goal that you simply have to reach, then don’t forget to include it when your asking for input.  And even though you respect the people you have gathered to give you guidance, don’t be shy about challenging them if their great advice isn’t moving you closer to your vision. They can’t help you climb your mountain if you don’t make it clear that the goal is to get to the top.

What’s your Everest question?

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Hugs, Punches and Business Communications

By DavidSCohen | Published: May 11, 2009

What does a hug feel like? It is a simple thing to do – the instructions are short: Person A and Person B embrace and then separate – duration varies, sighs are optional. What could be simpler? But this action belies a richness of emotion. The complexity of expression a hug can convey is enormous, human and irreplaceable.

The hug is an extraordinarily efficient means of communication. We hug for lots of reasons: pride, affection, belonging, friendship, comfort and sympathy. We hug because we missed someone. We hug because we will miss someone. We hug because we love – and the amazing thing is that in every hug those intangibles are clearly communicated.

Businesses should communicate so well.

We aren’t wired to get emotional about sanitized communications, but business isn’t supposed to be mushy, right? We don’t hug spreadsheets…

So how do we reconcile this? How do we get some clarity and human contact without getting sappy or sentimental?

What about a punch?

Punches, like hugs, can clarify relationships. Think about it.

If someone punches you square in the face it will shake the ambivalence right out of you. You’ll be “in the moment”. It is, as they say, very centering.

Yes, we associate punches with anger and aggression, but a punch is not always evil. A punch in the arm is jovial, a fist-bump is hip and benign, even a little rough-housing amongst kids can be a bonding act. Have you ever seen a coming-of-age flick without a big, cathartic, punch-out scene? It is is a cliche of modern movies.

Even when a punch is meant to harm one could argue that it is a form of overloaded expression – more often the product of an emotional upwelling than malice of forethought. We punch when our system can’t process the information through any other route. We punch because we are imperfect communicators. We punch because we are human and we hate, and we love.

But businesses are supposed to be predictable and unemotional, right? Hmm.

But there are lessons:

Punches and hugs unambiguously communicate a lot in a very short amount of time.

So be clear and concise.

They are hard to fake: You can fake the aftermath, the reaction, but if you pull the punch or you don’t return the hug the person on the receiving end will know it instantly.

So be authentic.

Hugs and punches differ, however, in predictability: You can pull out your calendar and name a bunch of dates on which you can say, with great certainty, that you will be hugged. Thanksgiving, Christmas, your birthday, etc. – the hugs are coming! Yet that will not diminish by one iota the spontaneity, the genuine emotion of any single one of those future embraces. On the other hand, unless you are a boxer, any punches that you might receive this year are likely to be shockingly unexpected.

So put the positive messages on a regular schedule, keep the close, interactive communication on a high rotation. Make statements of care something your customers can expect.

But isn’t this a risky approach for a business?

To hug a friend is only risky if you don’t mean it. To hug a stranger is always risky (you might get punched) – it puts a lot on the line and demands a reaction that cannot be controlled – but if you can hug a stranger and mean it the outcome can be amazing.

Humanness, authenticity, spontaneity, risk, emotion, shock and love – business-think eschews these messy ideas, it is more business-like to scrub away the emotion, focus on the data, the specs, the ROI and the bottom line. But we’re human. We crave connection and reassurance, comfort and belonging, and the occasional jolt of clarity. What do businesses crave? They crave loyalty. Loyalty, after all, is good for the bottom line, but where does loyalty come from? Loyalty is emotional, by definition. It doesn’t come without trust, but there is no trust without an emotional connection.

Businesses often won’t risk what is necessary to make us feel that connection. Businesses need to risk some punches if they want to win some hugs. Communicate with authenticity, be genuine, be human, and take chances. Accept the idea that no communication connects for everyone – not everybody wants to hug you, but your time, your energy, your thoughts, and your words are better spent meeting, cultivating and embracing the ones that do.

Also posted in Branding Thoughts, personal branding, social media | Comments closed

Seeking relevance

By DavidSCohen | Published: May 4, 2009

A recent  post by my pal, Sherry Heyl, The Future of the Web (is not Twitter!), got me thinking once again about relevance. Sherry aptly pointed out that the tools of communication are always evolving, but the pace of evolution (and revolution) of those tools continues to increase.

The Internet isn’t a single form of communication, it is a breeding ground for millions of experiments in ways for people to reach each other, singly and en masse.  If a new tool is lucky and skillfully promoted it may gain attention and grow audience, but unfortunately relevance does not always scale with the numbers. Something that starts out relevant can lose focus or become dissipated by the noise of an ever-increasing user base.  Success seems to necessitate an aftermarket of filters and management tools for any social media experiment to retain relevance for its users. 

Part of the challenge is that relevance isn’t a one size fits all proposition.  I may find discussions of Drupal theming to be quite relevant to me, a Drupal user, but your mileage may vary. I’m also going to seek out information on cutting-edge marketing – left to external filters, the marketing and the Drupal are not likely to get lumped together, but for me the combination is highly relevant.  

Wikipedia seems to do a good job of maintaining relevance by embracing irrelevance, or rather by embracing the notion of asymmetric relevance.  Those that really care about a subject have an opportunity to get highly involved in the discourse, while others are free to get engaged in completely other topics. But don’t mix ’em! If you try bringing something irrelevant or off-topic to any given Wikipedia article it will be made abundantly clear that only relevance is welcome here.  This is why you can find great articles on particle physics and equally great articles on B movies.  

Unfortunately Twitter doesn’t seem to be doing as good a job of cultivating relevance.  Today I received a follow from a Twitter user and did my usual investigation – I looked at the user’s profile and observed that this user had 1000 or so followers and about 1300 they were following. These weren’t unusual numbers by any means, but what I found odd was that the number of messages this Twitter user had actually produced to date was two.  That’s it, two messages: The first a mention that the user had just added a background to the profile, and the second being a link to the user’s website – an unveiled come-on promoting an ebook.  It seems highly unlikely to me that upwards of 1000 people, based on these two simple messages have really found the relevance emanating from this user to be sufficient to warrant subscribing to the Twitter account.  I suspect, however, that a 1000+ people have auto-following setup via a 3rd party tool and probably have no idea that they’ve volunteered to  receive the messages from this user, or many of the others that are now dissipating the relevance of their Twitter streams.  

Many are choosing to ignore relevance in the hopes of rapidly growing their audience, but an audience that is built on irrelevance isn’t an audience that’s listening. It is an audience that is ignoring, or at best, filtering.

How are you managing the balance of irrelevance and relevance in your use of social media?  How do you keep open to things that you don’t yet know will be relevant to you, when you’re trying to filter a sea of questionable information?

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What are you doing to grow your business?

By DavidSCohen | Published: February 18, 2009

***Update: I wrote this post in early 2009, but I think the message is still relevant today, perhaps even more so.***

I can’t sleep because I’m worried about people falling off boats.

If you are clinging to the side of a ship while wearing a life preserver, you may take some small comfort in knowing that if you fall the vest will help get you back to the surface, but it doesn’t change the fact that you know in your bones that you’re going to get wet.

I think that’s how a lot of folks are feeling about the current state of the economy. We’re afraid of the plunge. We can get paralyzed simply grasping for something sensible to hold onto – Ok, so now we have a stimulus package, maybe that’s the life preserver, but if you’re already hanging over the wrong side of the rail it can’t keep you dry.

So what are you going to do? Just hang on tight and hope that a safety net comes in time? Not if you’re smart. The smart play is to scramble and climb back over onto the right side of the rail before your strength gives out.

Scramble. Climb. Grow. Get strong. Save the economy.

That’s right, save the economy. Why not you? It’s not like the government can do it alone. Besides, this is America. we are a community of scramblers and self-starters – and it is the small businesses like yours and mine that make the difference. When we grow the economy grows. While so many are asking “What can I do to hang onto my business?” the question I urge you to ask of yourself and your colleagues is “What are you doing (even now) to grow your business?” Even now. Especially now.

It is easy to fall into the recession mindset. Easy to look only at cutting costs, saving the bottom line, but if you make the effort to keep this question in mind, “What are you doing (especially now) to grow your business?” you can change that mindset – and change your results. Ask the question every day. Especially now.

This isn’t about being reckless. The fact is that some prudent pruning might be just what the doctor (or accountant) ordered, but don’t just cut for the sake of cutting. Trim a weak branch if it will help a tree to grow, but trim too much and everything withers. The point that I think is essential is to keep this idea of growth top of mind. Sure, it is unapologetically optimistic, but it also implies keeping an eye out for opportunity. It is a reminder to keep planting seeds. The concept of asking for growth despite the tide is a deliberate challenge. To meet that challenge takes creativity, cooperation and bold execution – all good muscles to flex for any business – especially now.

So what are you doing to grow your business? Ask yourself. Ask your neighbor. And let me know when the conversation goes to “What can we do together?”

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I’m getting worried about Nike.

By DavidSCohen | Published: December 23, 2008

I’m getting worried about Nike.

A little holiday shopping led to this observation: There’s too much Nike at Nordstrom’s (hey I don’t spend all my time at Walmart).

While Julie tried on shoes it occurred to me that Nike is proving that it is possible to over-emphasize the new. They are competing as a fashion brand, and letting that agenda cloud their core message. C’mon, what do frilly purple boots and UGG knock-offs have to do with “Just Do It”?

Fashion is Nike’s differentiator in a field of athletic wear, but function has always come first. The function is the promise. Once upon a time a waffle-iron inspired a brilliant innovation: a better tread for better performance. A brand was born. It was a beacon. But when fashion eclipses function, the message just gets foggy, and a recession will punish foggy brands.

Do they have the DNA to become a fashion house? Can they build it or buy it? If not, they should throw out the fuzzy boots and get back to making moves that fit the focus of the brand (like this idea).

Nike means victory – on the athletic field, not the runway.

Disclosure: no positions

Full disclosure: Julie bought the UGGs.

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Cool hunting in a recession

By DavidSCohen | Published: December 19, 2008

In my last post I left off as I sped on my way to Walmart with a short, but important shopping list. Well, sped isn’t the right word. I kind of puttered around a bit and eventually got around to it. The problem was the list. There wasn’t a sexy thing on it. Nothing to rev my engine. Just a few of life’s little essentials. Yawn.

Does a recession have to be boring? I’m craving a little pizzazz – I’m hunting for a sexy brand story to be my beacon of hope as these financial waves keep crashing.

So who has a little sex appeal and makes a strong brand promise? Who gives you what you expect every time? Who never fails to captivate, always commanding our attention? You could call him Mr. Aurum, but ask OldGoldBug and he’ll tell you… it’s gold! Shiny, shiny gold.

Oh you can argue about how it will perform at any given moment, you can argue about when to get in and when to get out, but we can never quite get gold out of our collective imagination. Gold happens. It is like a force of nature. But is it really the brand story that I’m looking for? I mean, who controls gold? We get on board, and ride the ride, but we don’t have the reins. We don’t have a hero. There’s sex appeal, but where’s the role model?

Gold may shine, but it is not a beacon.

So maybe we need more than sex appeal. Maybe the hunt is for a brand that sets expectations and consistently meets them.

What about Coke? Coca-Cola is like gold you can drink, right? In a world of choices it is one we love to choose. Small players will flounder, experimental flavors will come and go, but Coke will endure. It has all the comfort and nostalgia of gold – we can taste it in our minds before we even pour a glass. You can’t do a much better job of turning expectation into anticipation than that. It’s refreshing even in a recession. But where’s the new? Coke hasn’t been around as long as gold, but it is older than you and me.

So here I am in Walmart cool-hunting for a brand that might have a story to tell despite the economy. An”it” brand – a “brand that can” in the shaky days ahead. I know you’re thinking “cool” and Walmart… might as well look for a contact lens in a bubble wrap factory, but their might be a glimmer of hope. The rumors are flying about a certain brand phenomenon making its way into the world of “always low prices” – the iPhone.

Yes, I’m picking Apples over Blackberries this season. The iPhone promised fun and great design and usability and cool. And it delivered. RIM doesn’t know what it is promising anymore. It is slipping into the purgatory of “me-too” when it should be trumpeting its difference and focusing on context.

Now there are some who might argue that putting the iPhone in Walmart will dilute the perceived value of the brand, but at this point all the cool kids and early adopters are already on their second iPhone. The allure of the iPhone is now moving through the mainstream middle and starting to convert some late adopters. And they’ll find plenty of them at Walmart. But that’s only part of it. You see Apple gets the idea of context. Steve Jobs understands alignment. The iPhone exists in harmony with iTunes, the App Store, and a continuity of experience with Mac OS X. The iPods and iPhones are gateway drugs for a Mac experience.

Apple is a beacon and the iPhone is their bright light, and even in a recession we’ll be following that beam towards new and better designs, and consistently (and insanely) great brand experiences.

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