Your Next Great Marketing Idea
I've wondered why we marketers sometimes work in silos or with our blinders on, when the very answers we look for could be in a cubicle or office just across the floor.
Recently, we launched a travel website for Sears associates. Why? The logic is as follows. There are over 40k across Canada. Sears employees get a further discount on travel. The corporation gets a more attractive looking top line. It's a no-brainer.
The best part is that the idea originated in part from a colleague in finance.
Results? The associate website has generated enough sales to justify its launch. Sales that would have gone to competitors. (We also a launched an exclusive associate email contest - details to come in a future post.)
My intent is not to be self congratulatory per se but to demonstrate how anyone can leverage non-marketing colleagues for ideas. If you are not doing so already, what are you waiting for?
By no means do I suggest bean-counters do your marketing. Or that marketing does your finance. But sometimes asking for an opinion that takes 5 minutes could result in $500k in incremental sales or savings.
I was recently told a story of Walt Disney. He was a workaholic and one morning he walked the streets of the Magic Kingdom at 3am. He saw some third shift maintenance workers, opened up a drink stand and invited them to have some lemonade.
After a while their supervisor said they had to prepare for the park opening. Mr. Disney said no problem and bid them adieu. As the crew walked away the supervisor asked him "Why would the CEO of Walt Disney World hang out with a cleaning crew?"
To which Walt replied, "Because I never know where the next great idea will come from."
