Should we appreciate Santa more for what he does or the kind of person he is? I’m not talking about Christmas as a holiday as much as referring to the spirit of the season. What does Santa do? He delivers gifts to all the good little girls and boys throughout the entire world. Kids track his route on Nexrad radar, eagerly anticipating his arrival at their house no matter wher it is. To them, he’s the hope of the season for getting “everything they always wanted”. But is THAT what’s really important here? Or is it the KIND of person it takes to be Santa that matters most? What kind of person is willing to sacrifice his entire evening flying around the world with a sleigh full of toys being pulled by a bunch of reindeer? Admittedly it would be fun to hang out with him for an hour or so, but to keep doing it year-in and year-out?
So many people see any gathering of multiple people as an opportunity to promote what they do to others. That’s what we’re taught in “sales school”, right? “If someone doesn’t know what you do, how can they ever ask you for help?” is a common argument. Totally understandable in the old way of thinking, but what about today when there are hundreds of alternatives to the products and services we offer? Does it really matter more than who we are as people? And if I don’t really like you as a person, why in the world would I want to do business with you? If you’re attending a party among friends, they already know what you do.
Santa is certainly kind enough to give you his business card if you ask for it, but he’s not going to just hand them out without being asked first…perhaps you shouldn’t either.
Posted by admin | Posted in A shift in advertising | Posted on 18-11-2009
The economics terms that I learned as ”what is produced versus what is consumed or purchased” and how the pricing model was correlated to that relationship…Both were “things”. What if we were to look at this relationship in a slightly different context? What if “demand” were an action instead of a thing? How can businesses create an experience so notable, unique, and remarkable that consumers DEMAND supply? How would lives be changed?
I may be a small business owner who has to earn a living, but I’m also a father with a busy family life. I really enjoy sitting at the dinner table talking to my wife and children about how their days went. The likelihood of me cheerfullyanswering a ringing telephone, eagerly opening a stack of “junk” mail, or signing up for your “free, once-in-a-lifetime webinar on financial success” is extremely low. Quite simply, it isn’t going to happen–ever. Now there is legislation being proposed that will prevent people from calling me back even when I initiated contact with THEM and provided MYcontact information.
What’s that telling us? That RELATIONSHIPS rule business. No matter how much money companies spend trying to maintain and enhance their images, the rubber hits the road when a personal relationship is established between the consumer and a needs representative. (I can’t even say salesperson.)
Do, think, feel… As the father of 3 very wonderful children, I have to appreciate their growing independence. I was reading some posts on www.dadomatic.com, and found it interesting how many dads think just like I do: Many of us don’t want our kids to grow up too fast. We want them to enjoy the time they have as children because they only get to do it once. As parents we are faced with a difficult dilemma: How do we raise them within the boundaries of the household while encouraging them to explore and find their own way?
Has there ever been a time that your child lashed out at you for “getting too involved”? My oldest daughter is thirteen, so I can see this one coming. What’s funny is that by the time she get to my age, the world will have bombarded her with its attitudes, opinions, fears and worries. This will then influence her to be reactive as opposed to proactive, just like her dad. How does this happen? How does an independently-minded child become an overwhelmed adult? Every day, advertisers, marketing professionals, and sales people spend millions to gain our attention in an attempt to make us focus on what is important to them. Why do they need to tell US what’s important? Where is our sense of responsibility to ourselves and our families? When, better yet HOW, do we regain control of the child within us who never wanted to be told what to do?
