The other day, I gave a story about how concentration seemed to transport me forward in time and how it can make time and events around you disappear. (Read it here..)

And there is another lesson that was learned in that grocery trip that my wife just observed while in the store.

Clorox Vs Bleach

While in the store, looking to pick up a bottle of bleach (yes, take that! you coronavirus..) she came across an interesting, but not entirely surprising finding:  Completely empty shelves where the Clorox bleach was, while the "off-brand" bleach was completely full.

Hmmm... Same stuff.  Obviously different demand. 

You can't say it was the price, because the off-brand was cheaper. It wasn't because one is better than the other.  There isn't ANY reason that one is sold out while the other isn't ... except ... brand recognition.

Clorox isn't alone

There are other brands that have become household names.  In this case, you are not buying sodium hypochlorite, and you are not buying bleach, you are buying Clorox.  Facial tissue? Nope...Kleenex.  Smartphone?  Nope again ... iPhone.  Acetaminophen?  Nope ...Tylenol.

What are you? Your business?

If you are looking to start, build, or expand your business, having a brand that is recognizable is a huge advantage.  When you do that, your name...

Do you have a message that you want to get out to the world?

What is it?

Wait, before you answer, let me just put one constraint on your message.  There is just one rule you need to adhere to when providing your message.

The One Breath Pitch

You have to give your entire message .... with ONE breath.

Some people call it an elevator speech.  I think that's too long.

Some people call it an executive summary.  I think that's too long.

Many people have many rules about what your message needs to have.

My rule is simple:  ONE breath.

Attention Spans Are Now In Seconds...

In the world of social media, with short clips of video.  Short bursts of characters.  Disappearing messages and all sort of other gimmicks, one really bad thing has happened.  People's attention spans have shrunk to just a few seconds.

The Necessary Three G's

So in the world today, if you want to make a pitch to someone, regardless if it's to convince them to go to a certain restaurant, or buy a certain auto, or to invest in your new business, you have to do the three "G"s:

• Grab their attention
• Give them the necessary information
• Get them to take action

And because they have very short attention spans, you have to do it quickly.  Do it in ONE breath.

So how will you make your pitch in one breath?

What essential elements will you include in your one-breath...

What should you say about a customer who appears to be doing something wrong?  Are they still right?  

If you tell them so, is that improper?  Is it a disservice?  Are you the one that is wrong? 

If you don't tell them it's wrong,  are you then the one who is right? Or wrong?

This is all so confusing.  But it doesn't need to be.

The customer isn't always right

If you are there to serve the customer, then providing them information or products that are not right for them is doing a disservice.  If you agree with them when it can harm them, cost them money or result in other negative consequences to them, then you are doing them a disservice.  When you agree with them when they are demonstrably wrong, you are doing them a disservice.

Serving the customer isn't always about agreeing with them.

Serving the customer isn't always easy.

Serving the customer doesn't always keep them as a customer.

But in the long run, serving the customer honestly and faithfully will result in a customer base of loyal individuals who understand that you truly do look out for their best interest by providing them with the best service or product you can ... even when you have to disagree with them. 

Your Best Customers Trust You

A customer base that trusts you through agreement and disagreement is one that will serve you best...

Over my lifetime, I have heard people in various industries say one of the most idiotic statements ever uttered:

We will make up our losses on volume.

Math Doesn't Lie

Ok, let me get this straight.  You have a business.  It's highly competitive.  You decide that you will have to sell your product at a small loss to be in the game.  And you think that you will make it up by generating a higher volume for your product. 

But it doesn't work that way.  If you multiple small losses by big volume, viola ! you have large losses.  The math is simple.  Lots of small losses equal one big mess and a lot of red ink on your books.

You have to do more than increase volume alone

A lot of naive business people believe is that this crazy formula "works".  I have seen it in medicine.  In retail. In many different sectors.  They don't realize that there is more to it. They think that they will become magically profitable because they are busier.  That simply isn't so. 

Yes, the volume can help, but you need to know ahead of time how that volume will reduce your supply chain costs.  The cost of raw materials. The cost of purchasing your product for resale.  The cost of shipping.  The cost of fulfillment.  You have to know how you will reduce these costs, and know both how much and when it will kick...

There are two types of messages in the world.  

Those that are offering you something to choose.

Those that are trying to prevent you from choosing something.

Success isn't based on negativity, it's based on positivity.

Imagine these marketing statements:

We don't want you to buy that phone. 

We don't want you to buy that diet system.

Don't read that magazine.

Don't go to that movie.

Don't buy that product.

Do these messages inspire you to do something?  Or not do something?   In fact, I bet they have very little impact on your decision. It's not in human nature to respond positively to a negative message.  You often just shut out negativity.

Moving "Away" Has No Focus

People may wish to move away from a product, service, person, etc., but without having an alternative target or focus to move toward, there isn't any progress.  Each person may move in a different direction.  Certainly, they won't move en-mass toward your product or service.  By being negative, you have not forwarded your cause, product or service. At best you may have just managed to have people scatter, directionless, from the alternative.

What is the message you are projecting to other people?

Are you just "against" something? Or are you offering an alternative to choose?

Is a negative message how you want your company to be known and remembered?

Messages

We are barraged with messages from the media on a daily basis.  They come from everywhere.  TV. The Internet. Magazines. Books. Social Media.  

Everywhere you look there are different messages on virtually any topic you can think of.

And as soon as you can find one opinion on a topic, you can just as quickly find an opposing opinion on the same topic.

It used to be that the "food pyramid" based on grains was considered healthy.  Now it seems that low or no carb is being promoted.

Overweight is unhealthy, but plus-size models are in.

Actors tout preventing climate change from their gas-guzzling private jets.

Millionaire politicians preach the evils of capitalism.

Smoking is bad but vaping is good.

Drug addiction ruins lives, but legalization is good.

Society Message Trends

Some of these are "fads" or "trends".  But regardless, they send mixed messages to people.

Are your marketing messages congruent?  Do they support the core theme of your product or are there mixed messages in your materials?  If so, are they creating confusion for your audience?

Are there contradictory messages in your marketing efforts? 

It's something to consider.

Stone Soup

You can't eat a stone, but in the fable, the stone is the first ingredient that is used for a delicious pot of hot soup.

How did that happen?

It was from the contribution of many others to the singular effort of creating soup. Everyone contributed different items to the pot until the soup was completed.  

So what was the contribution of the stone?

It was the idea that inspired others to contribute.  It didn't contribute to the final product yet was completely responsible for it. 

Creativity And Inert Ingredients

Are you stuck in a non-creative situation?  Is your group or team failing to come up with new ideas or solutions to a problem?  Maybe what you need is to feel comfortable putting forth ideas that are totally different.  "Stone ideas" whose purpose is only to stimulate other ideas, knowing that they won't make it to the end solution.  

The paradox of using an ingredient essential to the creation of, but contributes nothing to, the final product. 

Maybe it's time to use a stone in your creativity sessions.

Diamond jewelry.

Luxury leather goods.

Designer clothes.

Virology.

Luxury Goods and Viruses Are Related.  Who knew?

The luxury goods market has recently been decimated by the presence of an infectious disease.  Who had any idea they were related?

Blindsided

The world and everything in it is interrelated.  Some relationships are obvious.  But in many cases relationships are not understood or identified ... until they have manifested.

That's the case with luxury goods and the coronavirus.  Luxury goods have been taking a huge hit because of the fear that is keeping people out of public places. The fear that is keeping people from traveling.  The fear that is dampening people's spirits.  The fear that is making people focus on more immediate elements in their lives than purchasing luxury goods. 

Who knew?

What about your business and products?  Perhaps it's time to think about how they could be impacted by events in society or the world?  It's a daunting task to try to consider everything that could happen.  In fact, you simply can't imagine every possible scenario.  It's just impossible to consider everything that could impact your business.  

But you can ask general questions that can provide a lot of the same information, based on the result of such events.  That can be very helpful. ...

Whitespace ...

It might not have anything in it....but it's not empty.

It can have a message that can make you do something.

This whitespace made you scroll down.  

Without instructions.  Without words.  Without effort.

Do you use whitespace effectively?  Do you use it to communicate?

If not ... 

...Why not?

Genuine.

Just what does that word mean?  What does it mean to you?

It sounds like it provides honesty.  Something that is real.  Something of value.

Perhaps its how you see yourself.  Or the product or service you provide.

But can it mean something else?

What does it mean if another word is added?  A word like ... imitation, or ...fraud, or ... artificial?

Genuine Imitation.

Genuine Fraud.

Genuine Artificial.

Now the meaning is entirely different.  It doesn't have any positive connotations.  It broadcasts a message of cheap, fake and ... avoid.

Why is this important?

You need to be sure that you don't leave your message half-finished.  Don't let your audience "fill in the blank".

You may not like how they complete it.