6 Things "The Witcher" Taught Me about Marketing

At the end of 2019, a new Netflix phenomenon hit the scene and exploded over night: The Witcher.

Whether the boom came because of Henry Cavill truthers, or because the video game is so beloved, I have no idea.

One thing I do know? There are TONS of marketing gems packed into this show.

Marketing? Really?

Yep.

You can find wisdom in the strangest of places, and I took note on this one.

It goes without saying that if you haven't seen the series (but still plan to): be prepared for some spoilers.

Let's dive in!

1. The quality of the product you market is far more important than the facade.

Yennefer starts her story with a hunchback, but as a genuinely good person. There was magic in her all along.

She later transformed into her ideal version of herself, but the magic in her was the same. Nothing changed outside of appearance.

A product has to be good in order to capitalize on marketing, but bad marketing will do nothing to change a bad product. Marketing can help improve a product's outlook slightly, but the quality of the product itself is what speaks.

2. Powerful leaders in marketing don't always need to be great speakers.

Geralt of Rivia is a mysterious, quiet, beast of a man who prefers to say little (if not nothing at all). His form of communication is much more expressed in his demeanor, facial expressions, and — most importantly — actions.

The common idea of who a manager should be (especially in marketing) tends to fall somewhere between Gary Vaynerchuk and Tony Robbins.

We expect inspiration, thoughtful speeches, moral-boosting lectures, and crazy amounts of energy.

But what if we were quiet instead?

There is true power in leading by example and remaining quiet wherever possible.

Of course, communication in marketing is absolutely key as there are so many moving parts.

But a stoic, consistent leader may just outdo an energetic one for many teams.

3. There are new monsters to slay every day.

One of the most fascinating parts about the show is how there are new monsters in every episode that Geralt is required to slay.

These monsters come in all shapes and sizes and in all varieties of lethality.

One day, Geralt is battling an octopussian lake monster with an old man face. The next, he fights off dragons or demons.

This, to me, is marketing encapsulated.

Every day, there are new problems to solve, new tools to try, new people to educate, new products to market, new services to sell, etc.

Geralt doesn't fight every single monster he is asked to tackle.

He chooses them according to importance and urgency.

We would be wise to follow this model, because there is always work to do — but how much of it deserves to be done?

4. The Law of Surprise may benefit our companies.

In the world of The Witcher, the Law of Surprise "dictates that a man saved by another is expected to offer to his savior a boon whose nature is unknown to one or both parties." (Esquire.com)

This is a bit dramatic for today, but there may be something here.

We should always look to repay our customers for their loyalty. Too often, marketers consider that their responsibility ends when they convert on a form.

We should be excited about the entire funnel, and that includes people who are already customers.

Reward customers in your re-marketing.

They "saved your life" by being a customer, so repay them with a reward down the road that makes it worth their while.

Retaining them is far important than saving a few bucks to treat current customers well.

5. The "edge of the cliff" walk is usually still the right way.

Geralt and company find themselves near the summit of a large mountain, and there are two paths: a safer way that would take much longer, and a path on the edge of a cliff that was faster and more direct.

Traditional logic would dictate that you should take the safer path, right?

Not so fast.

Geralt and crew take on the challenge of the cliff walk. The path is so narrow that their feet dangle off the edge even when pressed to the wall of the mountain.

In the end, they technically make it through without losing anyone and the timing proved critical.

Speed is highly underrated in business.

It is usually worth the risk of failing for the potential reward of reaching the summit quicker.

6. Sometimes it takes a solo venture to discover our best path.

On the opposite side of the story, we find a princess named Ciri who is tied to Geralt by destiny.

After her castle and village are ransacked and destroyed, she is forced to flea into the woods on her own. By the looks of her, she is adventurous but had never been given the chance to face the outside gates of the castle.

She travels far on foot, all by herself, and discovers a great deal about herself (including some magical powers).

She is strengthened by extremely difficult situations, and comes out the other side alive and better each time.

I think that all marketers, at some point, need to journey on their own and build something. Once we have the opportunity to build and market our own product or service, we get a much greater understanding of what we really like and where we excel.

This unlocks your own magical marketing powers.

Conclusion

There are lessons and nuggets of wisdom wherever you look! The Witcher was a fantastic binge, and I gathered a lot of useful tools out of it.

Next time you watch a show, play a video game, shoot hoops, or write code: think outside the norm and find a lesson or two.

I write content like this every week, so if you liked this feel free to connect or follow me on LinkedIn at www.dhirubhai.net/in/blakemal