Greatest of All Time

Good morning tennis players and others…Wimbledon has just ended, and again, I kept hearing about Serena and her GOAT status, to which I have always rolled my eyes.

Serena Williams is one of the greats in women’s tennis, but she is not the GOAT. (Greatest of All Time). She has been playing for twenty-seven years. Steffi Graf, in a career that spanned sixteen seasons, has her beat. She played for 377 consecutive weeks in the #1 spot, won 22 majors?—?each major at least 4 times. Put that in your racket and serve it. Graf retired at age 30, ranked #3 in the world. She never did any marketing of herself and certainly never had a merry band of girlfriends singing her praises to establish herself in the world as the GOAT. Not convinced? Margaret Court won 24 to Serena’s 23. And Martina won 9 Wimbledon titles to Serena’s 7. Serena is an amazing athlete with laser focus, but she is not a clear winner for the GOAT. But, as she steps down, no one is disputing the?perceived reality?of her GOAT title.

Why does she need to be the GOAT to have worth? Aren’t her accomplishments enough; aren’t all our accomplishments enough, without saying we are better than every?single person who has gone before?

Why is it we strive to be the best of the best of the best? The Hammacher Schlemmer of anything in which we strive to excel? Why is that the goal? I’m not sure it’s really attainable, or even the road to success, especially in building your business or career. Sure, if you are in the Olympics, fine, be the best, and hold onto that world record for as long as you can, but I don’t see it as the holy grail.

Remember the AVIS car rental successful campaign around being 2nd best? It was 1962 so you might have forgotten it.

“In 1962, Avis was in search of a new advertising campaign. Since its inception, the car rental company had trailed behind the market leader, Hertz. So the ad agency Doyle Dane Bernbach decided to embrace Avis’ second-place status as a sneaky way to tout the brand’s customer service. “When you’re only №2, you try harder,” went the new tagline. “Or else.”

The “We Try Harder” ads were an instant hit. Within a year, Avis went from losing $3.2 million to earning $1.2 million?—?the first time it had been profitable in more than a decade. From 1963 to 1966, as Hertz ignored the Avis campaign, the market-share percentage gap between the two brands shrunk from 61–29 to 49–36. Terrified Hertz executives projected that by 1968 Avis might need a new ad campaign?—?because it would no longer be №2.”?—?Slate Magazine

Those days are over, some would say. I would suggest we consider what we do and for whom we wish to do it. I strive to be and do a number of things in my time-challenged day. Be excellent. Be unique. Be vigilant. Be consistent. But I leave being?the?best?to someone else. Being?my?best is of interest, but not?the?best.

I admire some of Serena Williams and what her brand presents. I admire her tenacity. Her ability to travel her road without pleasing everyone around her. Her acknowledgement of what her sister did to ensure she had center stage and could travel her road more easily. But the

GOAT? I don’t think so. And I think trying to sell people on it diminishes that she is enough?—?more than enough?—?with what she has brought to her table.

GOAT. Let’s retire the term, especially in branding, because it’s not a measure of reality, but a measure of?perception, which we can all treat with the concern and kid gloves it deserves. Strive to be the best you can?be, not the best there?is.

-- Christine Merser, Managing Partner, Blue 2 Media?