Remember George Costanza, the Seinfeld character? He does the wrong thing in virtually every situation, which makes him an endless source of reverse wisdom. In one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes, George has a revelation, deciding to do the exact opposite of what his every instinct tells him from that point forward . Immediately, his luck changes and things start to go swimmingly well. Women are attracted to him, he lands his dream job with the NY Yankees, and suddenly, life is great.
This is what I call the Costanza Effect. What worked for George can work wonders for you in your marketing program. To take advantage of the Costanza Effect, do the exact opposite of what most companies do in the following situations.
What most companies do with their web sites:
They try to convey every single, solitary wonderful thing about the company, right there on the home page. We get 42 different ways to find out more, read the press clippings, hear analyst quotes, sign up for something, purchase the product, read about the latest news, and so on—before we even know why the hell we should care! This barrage of self-importance causes most people to get confused and do nothing.
How to apply the Costanza Effect: Make your site all about one simple thing you do to help people, or one simple action you want them to take. Then organize your entire site around that thing. What a breath of fresh air that would be. When I can understand what you can do for me, or what you're asking for, I'm much more willing to consider it. At the very least, I won't abandon your site in a state of confusion.
What most companies do when they promote themselves:
They incessantly talk about themselves. 'We've got the fastest processor. We've got the best program. We cut capital costs by 25%. We've got the biggest selection. We have the lowest rates'. Blah, blah, blah. So the real message is, I'm supposed to translate your list of bullet points into something I care about, right?
How to apply the Costanza Effect: Talk about your customers instead of yourself. 'You can get your work done faster. You can be your best. You can have extra profit. You have more choices. You can save money. You'll look like a hero, you'll get a promotion, you'll spend more time with your family, you'll be sexier'. Now you're talking about what I care about most as a customer: me, me, me. That's the reason I bothered paying any attention in the first place.
What most companies do with their market research:
They do one of two things depending on the size of the organization. Big companies spend huge sums of money conducting far-ranging and in-depth market research, including quantitative, qualitative, focus groups, one-on-ones, account planning, and whatever other new technique is being touted. Then, feeling satisfied, they skim over the executive summary and place it on a shelf in three-ring binders, or on a hard drive where it gathers dust. It's mental masturbation on a grand scale.
Small companies figure they can't afford it. This may be true because they've spent a lot of money to hire a new marketing director from a big company. So they have lots of internal strategy meetings led by the new marketing director, where there's copious and abundant speculation on how to motivate customers. But in the end, everyone in the room knows whose opinion will win out.
How to apply the Costanza Effect: Talk to your customers. Take them out to lunch, ask them open ended questions, and LISTEN. But don't just listen, record or write down everything relevant thing they say, because if you don't, you'll inevitably reconfigure it in your head to match your own world view. Ask customers what reservations they had about doing business with you, and what they felt once they became a customer. Ask about all their pain points, and rank them from 1-10. After you've done that, have the internal strategy meeting once again. This time make your customer's opinion the most important one in the room.
What most companies do with their products:
They start off with a fundamental product or service that defines the company's brand—it's what they stand for. Think McDonald's hamburgers. The product or service fulfills a specific need for their customers and everyone is happy. As the company grows, the pressure is on to maintain growth and increase revenue, so management decides to expand and compete in another related area by adding more products or services which seems to make sense, but often leave customers scratching their heads. Think VW Phaeton. Soon, customers can't remember why they liked the company or what it stood for in the first place.
How to apply the Costanza Effect: Every time you're tempted to create a line extension, or add new services, ask yourself 'what am I known for, and does this new product make me more famous for that one thing'. If not, resist the urge to do so because you'll only confuse your customers and weaken your brand. Your best bet may be to improve what you're already doing so your customers will be happier. If you have a new idea that's so great, but doesn't fit with what makes you unique in the first place, start a new company to support it.
What most companies do with their media tactics:
They treat the latest marketing trend as a puppy dog regards a passing fire truck. Last year it was You Tube, this year it's Twitter and Facebook, next year it'll be mobile video and crowd-sourcing. Whatever tactic is the flavor of the month is enthusiastically adopted, dabbled with, and then ultimately neglected in favor of the next one that flies by, sirens screaming. In the meantime, there's only a vague notion of why it's been adopted, usually expressed in web 3.0 babble .
How to apply the Costanza Effect: Don't forget the reason you're in business—because you provide customers something they need. Forget about media tactics, and figure out your strategy. For instance "Reach disillusioned office workers and help them find a new career", or "Show System Admins in mid-sized technology companies how they can be more effective in their jobs, and improve their status". Once you've got a viable strategy that fits your company's mission, picking the media is easy. It's a matter of being in the best place to reach (and help) your customers. Once in a while, the perfect way to support your strategy might be one of those sexy new Social Media channels—if that's where your customers are when they need your help.
Thanks, George
Whenever you get an instinct about a new marketing direction, or a new program, ask yourself this: what would everybody else do? Then, apply the Costanza effect, and do the exact opposite.