Marketing Herman Miller Aeron failed market research tests This is the most famous chair in the world: Herman Miller Aeron. But, when they tested it with the focus group, people hated it. People thought it looked as funky as a shaved grizzly bear and asked for the finished version. It didn’t look like any chair in the
Marketing How do you really become a category king Who wouldn’t want to be a category king controlling 76% of their market? Exactly. That’s why everyone is winging out new categories faster than Nicolas Cage whips out new movies. But few of them stick. Most of them are just Silicon Valley’s cheap, unsticky pink bubble gum.
Marketing Your value proposition will define your success A great value proposition can be the difference between you barely getting by or making a bank. A couple of years ago, Profitwell did a study on how value propositions affect the willingness to pay. Aka, whether people are willing to pay just $10 for your product. Or $100. They
Marketing The guerilla marketing playbook that helped 50 Cent land a record deal & escape adversity. Here’s the guerilla marketing playbook that helped 50 Cent land a record deal & escape adversity. Today 50 Cent is a successful businessman. His ventures range from mining to TV production to Vitaminwater. But it all got started thanks to his rapping career. And that got started thanks to
Marketing The South Park's notorious record. Back in 1997, when the Comedy Central focus group tested South Park, it set a notorious record. Scoring just 1.5 out of 10 points with women. Three of the women in the group cried. They hated it so much. 👉But the group that mattered - adolescent boys and those
Marketing The thing that Jeff Bezos got wrong about advertising The thing that Jeff Bezos got wrong... If you have a great product, you don’t need advertising, right? That’s what Jeff Bezos believed for years. But then he made a 180-degree turn. “Yes, I changed my mind,” said Bezos. (- cue the Jeffrey Bezos song from TikTok -)
Marketing How contextualizing saved James Watt's business. Back in the 18th century, when James Watt tried to sell steam engines to mining companies, they told him to sod off. They didn’t see the value in the technology. They didn’t know what the cc-s or watts mean. Or how it can be useful to them. They
Marketing Now 99% of your target market is not actively looking for a product. The hard-to-swallow pill for so many b2b marketers- 95% of your target market is not actively shopping- has become even bigger, nastier, and bitter to swallow. Now 99% of your target market is not actively looking for a product. What to do? Here’s some advice I picked up from
Marketing How this TV show used the live studio audience as a focus group to make the most watched tv program in the world. At the height of its fame, Top Gear was the most-watched tv show in the world. It even broke the Guinness record for the most-watched factual program – 350 million viewers for a weekly episode. There were many things that made the show what it is. But one thing that definitely
Marketing A marketing tactic Coca-Cola used already a century ago, but what B2B marketers aren’t using to this day... A marketing tactic Coca-Cola used already a century ago but what B2B marketers aren’t using to this day... 3 weeks ago, I came across some old Coca-Cola ads from the 1910s, and I immediately noticed a pattern in many of them. Something I just recently read about from a
Marketing How Coca-Cola hacked their chicken-and-egg problem by inventing coupons. How Coca-Cola hacked their supply/demand problem by inventing coupons. Today, Coca-Cola is the role model of brand marketing. Everyone wants to copy them. And build as strong of a brand as them. 👉But people don't know, that Coke wasn't building a brand for decades when
Marketing Only 5% of your target customers are in the market ready to buy right now. A reminder that in B2B, only 5% of your target customers are in the market ready to buy right now. So instead of only trying to drive leads that make the register ka-ching. Make bets that pay off down the line. ●build brand awareness ●build brand salience ●build mental availability
Marketing How to make ads that get 350 million in earned media impressions? How to make ads that get 350 million in earned media impressions? Here's a trick from the man responsible for the legendary "Say it with bacon" campaign. Tom Bick was an ad lead who worked with brands like Miller Lite, Dunkin Donuts, Oscar MayerAnd he made
Marketing How to create powerful messages that grab people’s attention and spread like wildfire. It boils down to these 7 core ingredients, according to advertising legend Rory Sutherland. I've always wondered why some advertising campaigns are effective, provoke reactions and even go viral. While others sizzle away silently. The common thought would be, “they have good creative.” Ok, but what makes the
