Life lessons from an unlikely place

Why should I do a marketing course? I asked myself. ‘Is it any good?’, I asked around; the overwhelming answer was yes! To learn the ropes of marketing, I signed up for the Marketing Foundation Course.?

A sale happens when your product is: 1. physically available (sales); 2. mentally available (marketing). Some years ago, I transitioned my career from supply chain into business development (sales). So physical availability of product and building route to market (RTM) came naturally to me. I've always been a bit of a dreamer; I see the world through the lens of possibilities. I felt the need to acquire relevant skills so I could emulate how marketers weave magic to build mental availability.

As I journaled my notes, determined to apply my newfound learnings at work, the similarities struck me. Marketing has many profound life lessons to offer. From the power of storytelling, deeply understanding the human psyche, the power of branding, and finally building lasting relations.?

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If this intrigues you, listen to what I share today:

No matter how big your brand, your consumer thinks less about it than you imagine! That’s what we were told on day 1, not how you expect your marketing course to start. Any change in behavior of the consumer can be set off only with an emotional trigger. This is the art and science of marketing—also true for life!

?Brand positioning?is everything you wish your brand to be (your brand key), while brand equity is how your brand is perceived in the real world. The wider the gap, the more arduous is the job to be done. In life, how you ‘want’ to show up vs. how you ‘actually’ show up determines how far you will go.?What do you think about?

·?????? When you see red and hear the fizz! Do you not think about opening happiness? (Coca-Cola)

·?????? The sight of the twin golden arches says you are loving it! (McDonald’s)

That’s DBA (distinctive brand assets) for you—recognizable and memorable features that instantly bring a particular brand to mind. Strong DBA is what builds memory structure and long-term brand salience. DBAs make you unmissable. Be unmissable!

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The journey always begins with the consumer --- What does she/he want? Like in the Mel Gibson movie, no one really knows what women want. Likewise for marketers, knowing what their consumers want is what decides everything. Critical is to identify what are the Gain Creators and the Pain Relievers—products?and services that would get the job done.

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Henry Ford once said, ‘If I had asked my customers how to go faster from A to B, they would have asked for faster horses.' Why am I quoting Mr. Ford? Because consumers often don’t know what they want. What they 'say they want’ and ‘what they really want' are not the same. The truth is people don’t buy products; they are looking for solutions.

Life is a string of moments beaded together. Step into the life of the consumer and capture the moment in her life in 3 steps: 1. When I am...? 2. I want to...? 3. So, I can... That my friend is called the consumer job! Getting the consumer job right is like boarding the right train. If you get that wrong, you shall move ahead, yet never reach your destination.

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In the series Sherlock, when they first meet, Watson asks, ‘We don’t know a thing about each other; I don’t even know your name.' Genius that Sherlock is, tells Watson about Watson! Watson is left aghast with his jaw dropped. I got goosebumps.

Observation is what you see. Insight changes the way you see things. When you observe something, ask why, why, why!

·?????? Observation= what they say!

·?????? Insight= why they say

Example: The sun rises and sets every day; the sun goes round the earth—an observation. Earth goes round the sun is an insight! With a curious mind, patience, and perseverance often, you will find the insight you are looking for—much like Sherlock Holmes. ??

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Common sense is right—sometimes. Data is right—always!

What if everything you knew about marketing was wrong? Brand loyalty is a myth, and the heavy buyer fallacy is a reality. Marketing professor Byron Sharp argues that many of the marketing principles commonly taught are unsubstantiated myths. By examining the real-world data that indicates which marketing techniques succeed and which fail, Byron found the answer to ‘How brands grow’. The building blocks of an effective marketing strategy include the 6 Ps of marketing: product, price, place, promotion, people, and promotion. The effective integration of the 6 Ps of marketing does serve as the foundation for an effective growth strategy.

The P that matters is penetration! That’s the most important infinity stone. Much like life, your business is a leaky bucket—you must constantly keep filling it.

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Here I condense most of what I learned through an intense week:

• Be Smart! Your measures must be specific, measurable, aligned, realistic, and time bound. In my mind, sm-ART is also science meets art.
• Look for your I/O (surface issues/observations); you don’t gain or lose share of ‘one fine day’. Just like relationships, it happens when you ignore the symptoms.
• Do RCA (root cause analysis) using the 6 P audit tool to arrive at the JTBD (job to be done). JTBD is a simple yet powerful tool that brings clarity like nothing else does in 3 easy steps: GET WHO… 2. TO DO WHAT... 3. and HOW!
• Proposition is why a consumer will choose your product. It can be captured in 3 simple steps: 1. IS... (about the product); THAT... (what does it solve); 3. FOR... (who is it meant for?). Marketers worth their salt spend weeks pondering over the JTBD and proposition—and it’s worth it.
• Moving on to win, you must choose your MWA (Must Win Attribute), sharpen your MMO (Measurable Marketing Objective), and finally craft your MCO (Measurable Communication Objective). Here the magic word is measurable.
• Write an agency brief; craft an awareness-based or reach-based campaign with an intent to maximize CPR (cost per reach). To achieve the desired penetration, work relentlessly on your TDP (total points of distribution) and SPPD (sales per point of distribution). Compare your SOV (share of voice) vs. SOM (share of market).

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Phew!! If you are still reading this ??, it’s clear that marketing can sound like a lot of acronyms. A few more nuggets to go:?

·?????? Much like life, marketing feels complex, yet it is quite simple (if I dare say so). Do the basics right—day in and out—you ought to win. Here consistency and clarity trump creativity. Like in life, strength is in your scars and not in your stars. Most importantly, simple doesn’t mean easy; quite the contrary.

·?????? If you can’t say it in few words your consumer doesn’t get you. If you can’t say it in less than a page, you don’t get it yet!

·?????? Superman doesn’t spin a web, and Batman doesn’t fly. If superheroes don’t do everything, why should your brands? Your brand can only do a few things well!

·?????? Consumers want to hire a product to fulfill a job. Think about it: you are selling a promise, not a product. Products will disappear—brand promises will remain forever.

·?????? Life happens on the frontlines; marketing is no different. Where does inspiration set off? It can trigger anywhere—in the bus, bar, bath, balcony. But never in the boardroom! So, the key is to step out and meet the consumer. Get on the frontlines—be market makers.

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No marketing course can be complete without case studies. Of the many case studies, the one that stood out was that of Stadler. How does a humble stationary brand become unmissable?

If you look hard enough in the picture, you will notice Katherine Johnson, a NASA scientist who did the critical calculations to bring Apollo 11 safely back to earth. We walked each step of the journey to the genius ‘Highlight the Remarkable’ and celebrated the unrecognized hero. She gets highlighted from among an ocean of faces using a Stadler.

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As I conclude, we are all social animals, and each one of us is a brand. As they say, ‘I don’t remember what you said, but I remember how you made me feel’. How do you want to show up vs. how do you ‘actually’ show up? Is your brand perception disconnected from your brand equity? Evolve timely; stay relevant!

We all have life goals. We all aspire to become a better version. For example, we want to become a better son, spouse, or parent; find our purpose and go after it; find the meaning of life—it could be anything. That means there is a job to be done. Do you know what your life JTBD is?

After spending almost 2 decades of life at work, I stepped into a classroom full of bright Gen Z. Our course instructor, Tom Darlow Tom Darlow , with his rich experience as a marketer, now trains future marketers.

When was the last time you acquired a new skill? I just did, and it was worth it.?

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PS. Sharing the image of a fictitious proposition—Vaseline body-love created using Co-pilot. Good learning after we broke a few eggs.?