Funnels Start with "Something Extra"

In the previous post, I looked at the Marketing Funnel and provided evidence on how the focus has changed over time. Initially, Marketing Funnels started with external leads but has since moved to growing on the back of successful client relationships. To dig a little deeper on this topic I start with the reason de existence of Marketing - and who else to articulate this than Peter Drucker.  

Drucker was a firm believer that 

“Any Organization Has Only Two Functions: One Concerns Marketing, and the Other is Marketing.”

In Drucker's view, business exist to create customers and as this is the most important purpose of a business - the two main functions to achieve this is marketing and innovation. For Drucker these functions produce results; all the rest are considered as costs. Innovation is important as it provides the business the edge to provide a better and more suited product or service than competitors. And Marketing is involved as it is driving the decisions regarding what innovation investment should be made.  

Fast forward to October 12, 2019 and a blog Post (quoted verbatim) of Marketing Guru and Herd-master of the Purple Cow Tribe, Seth Godin.  

Better than it needs to be

Every element of the organization has a spec, a minimum required performance. Accounting has standards, so does the department that measures the air quality.

Everything beyond spec is marketing.

That’s an interesting definition, but I think it’s true: All the money, effort and time that an organization puts into making anything better than it has to be is a marketing expense.

Because the extra is there to help change minds, to spread the word, to earn trust and loyalty.

The head of marketing is the person in charge of what’s extra.

 Because if you want to grow, nothing is actually extra. It’s simply an investment.

Seth builds and consolidates the message of Drucker. Drucker called it Innovation, Seth calls it beyond spec, or something extra. Both confirm the importance of doing more than required - Finding customers through innovating and investment. And when it comes to investment I don't think anyone will mind if I jump to the legendary Warren Buffet for advice. Readers will pardon a bit of poetic freedom and wordplay in adapting his quotes to fit marketing more fundamentally. Not that a lot is required! 

Here are some (Marketing) gems from the master of the Stockmarket.   (You can read the original quotes  here)

Only Build Wonderful Companies “Time is the friend of the wonderful company, the enemy of the mediocre.”

Great Marketing Don’t Diversify “Diversification is protection against ignorance. It makes little sense if you know what you are doing.”

“Wide diversification is only required when Management do not understand what they are doing.”

Your Business Image and Reputation “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

It’s More Important to Do Good “If your business survives and grow but nobody thinks well of you, I don’t care how much profit you make, your business is a disaster.”

When you get to be established, you’ll measure your success in business by how many of the customers you want to have love you, actually do love you.”

Most of us, and most companies I know, simply do not have the cash or capacity to innovatively invest in every aspect of our business. It's hard to be above spec on several things, near impossible to be above spec on everything in your organisation. Fortunately, Management consultant Joseph M. Juran coined the 80:20 principle. This principle infers that 80% of results achieved is the effect of only 20% of actions initiated. It is an axiom of business  management that "80% of sales come from 20% of clients"

 Above two respected leaders in Marketing make the case for investing in Innovation. A respected investment guru then confirms the value of investing in Wonderful. Not for profit, but for the future of the company and the people it seeks to serve. And lastly, a principle that allows us to create good results with minimal input helps us along our way in the quest for more customers.

Do we need more confirmation that the Sales and Marketing Funnel should start at the narrow end? 

Love your existing clients.

If you would like more information on how to love your clients - message me!

Disclosure: I am currently studying and acting as Sherpa in Seth Godin’s The Marketing Seminar (TMS7). Although I have read several of Drucker's works, I have not read the book “Drucker on Marketing” by William Cohen. It does look like a good book to have on your shelf.  I do not have any affiliate sales or marketing agreements with any authors mentioned in my posts.