Wear Sunscreen (The marketing version)

If you haven't heard the song by Baz Luhrmann called Wear Sunscreen, then perhaps the Marketing version of the song below will not make sense, I suggest you go check it out

WEAR SUNSCREEN (The marketing version)
by Jellyman

Inspired by Baz Luhrmann (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfq_A8nXMsQ)

Ladies and gentlemen of the TieCon 2009 debate, wear sunscreen!

If I could offer you one tip for the future sunscreen would be it.

The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable then my own meandering experiences.

I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of research; oh never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your research until your product or idea has failed.

But trust me, in 2 years from now you’ll look back at your idea and recall in a way you can’t grasp now of how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous your idea really was, had you done the relevant research.

Imagine. But know that this is but the first step to a great idea. A workable idea is one that blindsides you on some ideal Tuesday and makes you want to hypothesis of the need that dictates the desire to have that product. People are not living for our brands, they are busy living their lives.

Do one Focus Group every week that scares you to think your idea is a flop.

Conduct home observation studies.

Don’t be reckless with other people’s data, don’t put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Contemplate over the target audience. Don’t waste your time on just guessing; sometimes you’re correct, sometimes you’re not…the race is long, and in the end, only data saves your ass.

Remember the compliments you receive from your target audience and forget the insults; this will feed into your insights for advertising.

If you succeed in doing this, you should be in advertising.

Keep your old data, never throw away your old formulations you may need to go back to them someday when launching in newer markets.

Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what your consumer wants out of your product, advertise anyways, awareness will come with time.

Generate trial. The most interesting brand managers I know are willing to go all out in getting their product experienced by the consumer even if they have to give it a way for free. Some of the most interesting brands I know are still doing this and going strong.

Get plenty of feedback for whatever you advertise about your brand.

Be kind to your consumers, you’ll miss them when they’re gone.

Maybe you’ll merge, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll have variants, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll re-launch your brand in 10 years, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken on your brand’s 75th existence anniversary… what ever you do, don’t lose sight of your market and your competition - your choices are half chance, so are everybody else’s.

Enjoy your brand attributes, use it every way you can to promote it…don’t be afraid of it, or what other people think of it, it’s the greatest instrument you have for business sustainability.

Do NOT read online roamers about your brands, they will only make you feel irrelevant.

Get to know your consumers they’re the ones with real insight.
Understand that new markets will develop. Never lose sight of this because business growth is dependent on this.

And to do it properly you’ll need to continue your research and planningWork hard to execute your brand idea, bridge the gaps between geography and lifestyles.

For the older your brand gets, the more you’ll need your consumer to vouch for its benefits in their lives.

Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it’s worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen because it’s backed by conventional wisdom – i.e. in-depth research