Experience is valuable. However, experience can also lead to people making the same old mistake, again and again and again. Too often, those of us with experience are blind to new possibilities, our vision blocked by knowing what has worked well in the past, and not seeing what can work even better in the future.
There's an old expression that goes something like, €If the only tool you have is a hammer, every challenge will look like a nail.€ It's quite possible that this expression has been overused to the point that it no longer has any significant impact on those who hear it. However, the sentiment behind the phrase is as true today as it has ever been.
Here's an example of how it could apply to a marketing situation. Company A has always used radio commercials and billboards to drive traffic to their monthly sales. As market share starts to slip, the most likely thing Company A will do is try and tweak the message and execution of their commercials and billboards, or maybe they'll start experimenting with variations on the monthly sales or promotion. Why? Because sales, commercials, and billboards are Company A's hammers.
What would happen if Company A tried a different tool? What if they created some TV commercials? What if they used direct mail? Or maybe a direct e-mail campaign? What if they started a referral program or a customer loyalty program? Maybe these ideas aren't revolutionary, but they are definitely worth considering.
If Company A really wants to reexamine their toolbox, maybe they could consider going away from monthly sales. Maybe they could adopt a different pricing strategy with €everyday low prices.€ Or maybe they could reevaluate their brand and realize that competing on price is distracting consumers from appreciating the high quality of the products Company A sells.
Obviously, this is a hypothetical situation with too few details to actually conduct a true study of what might be most effective for Company A. The point is simply to show that just because something has always been done the same way, even if it's been somewhat successful, it's not necessarily the best way to do things now and in the future.
But how do you figure out what new things to try? And how do you even come up with some ideas that are divergent from the norm?
These two questions bring us to another expression, probably even older than the one about hammers and nails. This expression says, €Start with a blank slate.€ No one actually writes on slate any more, so some people prefer to say, €Start with a blank sheet of paper.€ The idea behind these simple-sounding pieces of advice is actually relatively hard for most people to accomplish. The thought is to throw away all your preconceived notions and look at the challenge like it's brand new, like you've never tried to solve this problem, or even one similar to it, ever before.
Use all the knowledge, intelligence, and creativity you have, but try to ignore the experience. For many people and many organizations, this task can be nearly impossible.
This challenge can be just as difficult for outside consultants and vendors as it is for internal people and departments. If an advertising agency has had great success with TV commercials, they're very likely to suggest TV commercials to most of their clients, no matter what the client's specific challenges and desired reactions might be. If a different marketing communications firm has a number of strong media relations practitioners who've had great success getting newspaper coverage for other clients, they'll be likely to suggest press releases and media relations as a key component of the strategy.
The trick is to consider everything.
Even the absurd: What if we rent a donkey and ride it up and down Main Street while wearing a sandwich board that delivers our message?
The counterintuitive: Can we attract more students by increasing tuition?
Shifts in your business model: What if we target a different audience?
Strategies that fly in the face of convention: What if we flip flop our hours, staying closed all day long, and not opening until 5:00? (Don't laugh, for certain retailers or personal service companies, this might be a perfect way to cater to the lifestyle of the target audience.)
And ideas that might hurt our pride: What if we abandon the family name and develop a new one that more accurately reflects our new business model?
Consider everything. Discourage nothing. Have others in your organization do the same thing. The best ideas can come from anywhere at anytime. People simply have to be willing to share ideas, and more importantly, willing to listen to the ideas of others.
In theory, generating lots of €blank-slate€ ideas sounds good, but it can be very difficult to think differently, and even harder for some people to share their thoughts. Here are some ideas to help you start filling your blank slate.
- Ask people to answer questions such as, €What would be the dumbest way to solve this problem or market this product?€ or €What would we do differently if our product were striped?€ or €How would we do this if we were a startup company?€ or €How would Bugs Bunny or Abraham Lincoln solve this challenge?€ (Feel free to substitute other fictional or historical figures.)
- Bring everyone into a room and go around the table, having each person throw out an idea (no criticizing). Keep going around the table for 30 minutes, see how many ideas you can generate, and don't let anyone €pass.€ Forcing people to say something will make them say pretty much anything.
- Compare your company, industry, or specific problem to other people and other organizations that are completely different than yours. For example, a discount retailer could compare itself with a highly respected financial consulting firm. An accounting firm could compare itself to a successful sports apparel brand. And a non-profit drug outreach program could possibly learn something by comparing its strategies with those of a leading fast food chain.
The only way to find the right tool to solve the unique challenges of any business is to consider all the possibilities " from the tried and true to the absurd and new.
There's an old expression that goes something like, €If the only tool you have is a hammer, every challenge will look like a nail.€ It's quite possible that this expression has been overused to the point that it no longer has any significant impact on those who hear it. However, the sentiment behind the phrase is as true today as it has ever been.
Here's an example of how it could apply to a marketing situation. Company A has always used radio commercials and billboards to drive traffic to their monthly sales. As market share starts to slip, the most likely thing Company A will do is try and tweak the message and execution of their commercials and billboards, or maybe they'll start experimenting with variations on the monthly sales or promotion. Why? Because sales, commercials, and billboards are Company A's hammers.
What would happen if Company A tried a different tool? What if they created some TV commercials? What if they used direct mail? Or maybe a direct e-mail campaign? What if they started a referral program or a customer loyalty program? Maybe these ideas aren't revolutionary, but they are definitely worth considering.
If Company A really wants to reexamine their toolbox, maybe they could consider going away from monthly sales. Maybe they could adopt a different pricing strategy with €everyday low prices.€ Or maybe they could reevaluate their brand and realize that competing on price is distracting consumers from appreciating the high quality of the products Company A sells.
Obviously, this is a hypothetical situation with too few details to actually conduct a true study of what might be most effective for Company A. The point is simply to show that just because something has always been done the same way, even if it's been somewhat successful, it's not necessarily the best way to do things now and in the future.
But how do you figure out what new things to try? And how do you even come up with some ideas that are divergent from the norm?
These two questions bring us to another expression, probably even older than the one about hammers and nails. This expression says, €Start with a blank slate.€ No one actually writes on slate any more, so some people prefer to say, €Start with a blank sheet of paper.€ The idea behind these simple-sounding pieces of advice is actually relatively hard for most people to accomplish. The thought is to throw away all your preconceived notions and look at the challenge like it's brand new, like you've never tried to solve this problem, or even one similar to it, ever before.
Use all the knowledge, intelligence, and creativity you have, but try to ignore the experience. For many people and many organizations, this task can be nearly impossible.
This challenge can be just as difficult for outside consultants and vendors as it is for internal people and departments. If an advertising agency has had great success with TV commercials, they're very likely to suggest TV commercials to most of their clients, no matter what the client's specific challenges and desired reactions might be. If a different marketing communications firm has a number of strong media relations practitioners who've had great success getting newspaper coverage for other clients, they'll be likely to suggest press releases and media relations as a key component of the strategy.
The trick is to consider everything.
Even the absurd: What if we rent a donkey and ride it up and down Main Street while wearing a sandwich board that delivers our message?
The counterintuitive: Can we attract more students by increasing tuition?
Shifts in your business model: What if we target a different audience?
Strategies that fly in the face of convention: What if we flip flop our hours, staying closed all day long, and not opening until 5:00? (Don't laugh, for certain retailers or personal service companies, this might be a perfect way to cater to the lifestyle of the target audience.)
And ideas that might hurt our pride: What if we abandon the family name and develop a new one that more accurately reflects our new business model?
Consider everything. Discourage nothing. Have others in your organization do the same thing. The best ideas can come from anywhere at anytime. People simply have to be willing to share ideas, and more importantly, willing to listen to the ideas of others.
In theory, generating lots of €blank-slate€ ideas sounds good, but it can be very difficult to think differently, and even harder for some people to share their thoughts. Here are some ideas to help you start filling your blank slate.
- Ask people to answer questions such as, €What would be the dumbest way to solve this problem or market this product?€ or €What would we do differently if our product were striped?€ or €How would we do this if we were a startup company?€ or €How would Bugs Bunny or Abraham Lincoln solve this challenge?€ (Feel free to substitute other fictional or historical figures.)
- Bring everyone into a room and go around the table, having each person throw out an idea (no criticizing). Keep going around the table for 30 minutes, see how many ideas you can generate, and don't let anyone €pass.€ Forcing people to say something will make them say pretty much anything.
- Compare your company, industry, or specific problem to other people and other organizations that are completely different than yours. For example, a discount retailer could compare itself with a highly respected financial consulting firm. An accounting firm could compare itself to a successful sports apparel brand. And a non-profit drug outreach program could possibly learn something by comparing its strategies with those of a leading fast food chain.
The only way to find the right tool to solve the unique challenges of any business is to consider all the possibilities " from the tried and true to the absurd and new.
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