Everything on purpose : How Marketing is like playing a game of Tetris.

When asked to define marketing, many marketers offer varying definitions. Some view it from a sales perspective, seeing marketing as all activities aimed at getting a customer to buy. Others adopt a value-based perspective, where marketing is a vehicle for delivering value from a seller to a buyer. These differing perspectives highlight that marketing, though seemingly straightforward, is far more complex and nuanced. This realization set me on a quest to find common ground, a 'unifying theory' of marketing. This quest led me to draw parallels between marketing and a popular classic video game: Tetris. At its core, marketing boils down to one thing: doing everything on purpose.

The Brick Game Connection

Like many other millennials who grew up in Malawi, I was once the proud owner of a brick game. I spent hours playing Tetris on it, even in the dark, thanks to its night light. Over time, I became quite skilled at the game. Reflecting on this, I realized that Tetris, much like marketing, appears simple but is inherently complex. To score high, you must be strategic, employing the concepts of setup and payoff.

Being Strategic: Setup and Payoff

Excelling in marketing, like excelling in Tetris, involves using setup and payoff as a strategy. Playing aimlessly results in stacking blocks without a purpose, leading to a faster end. Every move, every rotated Tetrimino, every placement should be goal-oriented, setting up a larger payoff—the long game.

Take, for example, opening a new clothing store. You might think, "I should put up a sign so people know where my business is." But where should you place the sign? Which way should it face? And why? Every move should be a setup for a payoff. Otherwise, the sign will be a pointless move, contributing nothing to your ultimate goal.

The Five Tetrimino Shapes: Representing General Marketing Forces

Tetriminos come in five distinct, unchangeable shapes (in the original classic version of the game), mirroring the five general external forces in marketing over which we have minimal to zero control. Just as you can't change a Tetrimino's shape, you can't alter these external marketing forces. However, you can change a Tetrimino's orientation (perspective) to use it to your advantage as you set up your payoff. Rearranging the pieces to fit—finding the best fit within given constraints—is akin to navigating external marketing forces to build toward your payoff.

Putting Numbers on the Board

Just like in Tetris, numbers are crucial in marketing. They indicate whether your strategy is on track. The competitive nature of marketing is reflected in striving for high scores, beating competitors’ scores as a demonstration of superiority and showmanship, traits common among marketers.

The Speed of the Game: Adapting to Changing Market Conditions

As you progress in Tetris, the game speed increases and the pieces fall faster. Similarly, in marketing, the landscape is constantly evolving, with new trends, technologies, and consumer behaviors emerging rapidly. Marketers must adapt quickly to these changes, rotating and rearranging their marketing pieces to stay ahead of the game. However, there comes a point where the game becomes too fast, mistakes accumulate, and you inevitably lose—bringing us to the core nature of Tetris.

You Can't Win

In Tetris, the goal is to stay in the game as long as possible to accumulate as many points as possible. Eventually, the game ends. Similarly, in marketing, every product is subject to its life cycle. Needs and tastes evolve, regulations change, and eventually, products die off. Then, you start anew with a new product to market and a new unique selling point (USP). Even Coca-Cola, which in my opinion is the longest game of Tetris ever played, will eventually end. Coke will die one day as a product, no matter how good its marketing gets. In fact, Coke is already on the decline. The goal, just like in Tetris, is to gain as many points as possible before that happens.