They Who Must Not Be Named

Pleased To Meet You

The other day, I was on the phone with a good friend from my network, for the first time in a long time. As we caught up and talked about some of the places we've been, the conversation turned to a mutual acquaintance that had done well for themself, while their company had, well, not. As my contact had inside knowledge on the size of the largesse, and how little that seemed to be, well, earned, the mutual thought went through both of us: namely, what a perversion of the process this was, and how unjust it seemed, compared to what others had done and received for their time.

It is, of course, a terrible place for your brain to go, and yet, it's pretty much irresistible. Think about it long enough, and you'll lose your faith in capitalism, or at the very least, a just and loving deity. But the plain and simple fact about people who drive no value to anyone but themselves is, that, well, at the end of the day, they have to be them... and in so being, they will be unlikely to know real peace or satisfaction from that windfall.

Or, at least, that's the hope.

The reality is, of course, whatever occurs in that particular situation. We also might not have the full story of the work done by the person we didn't think much of, or what their real agenda or mission was. For all we know, we've got it all wrong, or even if that's not the case, that they might be doing amazing work for charity, or have a bevy of challenged family that need the funds. Hell, even if it's all going to terrible luxury purchases, some artisan had to make those, right? Capitalism wins again.

There's also this, and the very obvious reason why this entire post was (as far as you know) theoretical, along with anonymous... my contact and I are tight, but what if we had the conversation in a coffee shop, rather than on the phone? And the right / wrong person was in said shop, and caught wind of our true feelings?

Well, that's how billables, opportunities, and connections dry up, honestly. And if we've both learned anything over the years -- and we've learned a lot -- it's this: there is no such thing as job security in this world, and you are only as good as your network.

Which might include our affluent friend!

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Feel free to comment, as well as like or share this column, connect with me on LinkedIn, or email me at davidlmountain at gmail dot com, or hit the RFP boxes at top right. RFPs are always free, and we hope to hear from you soon.

The Ever-Constant End Of Email

User Error

In my feeds, there's a column I've seen at least 30 times over the years, all by different authors, with different words, but the same point: email is just the worst, and it's going away.

It's time-inefficient. It's strangling people's days. Such and such company got rid of it altogether, and now they are swimming in cash and endorphins. Along with the non-standing desk, the existence of coffee and the fact that some companies persist to have meetings, there's no greater silent killer of the business class. And so on, and so on.

What I'm always reminded of, in the scant moments that these things pass by my eyes, is something I picked up in a college philosophy class. I'm reducing it from it's complete definition to a more useful simplicity, but here goes...

The Naturalistic Fallacy: What is true for me is true for all.

There's probably a dozen ways to reach me digitally. Social media accounts, email channels, texting numbers, instant messenger windows; honestly, whatever platform you want, I'll work with it. What you'd also find in all of those accounts is that the in-box is clean, or will be within a day. (Also, that the way to use email is different than IMs, so your in-box for one isn't as critical as another. But I digress.)

Do I spend the entirety of my day on email? Hardly. I'm pretty ruthless with my time, and when I'm at my best, I am only doing one thing at a time. What I get out of email is, on a daily basis, a lot more than what I put into it.

That's because it compromises the majority of my competitive analysis and research for the day. If someone is sending me stuff that isn't helpful, I block it. I don't take days off to let the task accrue to dangerous levels, and I file obsessively, because that practice routinely pays off when I'm trying to answer a question or formulate a plan.

There's also this: I can't really think of too many co-workers, over the years, that were overwhelmed by email... who I'd really choose, if I were starting a company from scratch, to hire.

Literacy matters. Focus is important. Discipline in how you spend your time is a major difference between companies that work, and the ones that fail.

So... who, exactly, are we trying to save with these innovations?

And if you are one of these folks with the email problem, shouldn't you look to adjust the way you work, rather than hope for the functioning world to change for you?

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Feel free to comment, as well as like or share this column, connect with me on LinkedIn, or email me at davidlmountain at gmail dot com, or hit the RFP boxes at top right. RFPs are always free, and we hope to hear from you soon.

Five Universal Truths in Marketing & Advertising

In my current gig, I'm doing something I've been lucky enough to do a lot in my professional life, and that's pitch to an entirely new category with entirely new rules of the road. (In this case, pharma to health care providers.) But the more things change, the more they stay the same, and the commonalities might inspire in your own day to day.

1) Relevance and timing always matters.

No matter what you are pitching, getting it to the target with optimal placement, sequence and utility is worth its weight in gold. Otherwise known as why adtech companies exist, really.

2) List trumps offer, and both trump creative.

T'was ever thus. If you aren't playing in the right arena, and bringing the right pitch, it doesn't matter how well you might execute it. I've seen some truly regrettable pieces deliver great results, and perfect shiny objects fail. In so many different categories and channels.

3) Niche players don't care that they are niche.

No matter how specialized a list is -- and in my current gig, we can cut it down more than any provider I've ever worked for -- it's not as if those people wake up in the morning and fail to breathe air, grope for the coffee and struggle with a commute. Everyone is subject to the same kind of challenges and issues that others face. If everything in your consideration set is about the niche, your work will never try enough execution options to learn optimal practices.

4) Tactical wins travel.

There are test results that I've picked up in wildly different categories, and sometimes not even in the same channels, that inform my work today. That's because most creative test wins work for reasons behind niche reasons, especially when the results are conclusive and repeatable. Besides, most of our current lists are affluent, in demographics I've pitched to before, and overlap other clients. Experience, and a good memory, helps.

5) Every audience rewards respect.

A side note. Nearly a decade ago, I was doing acquisition work for a very compromised category that offered financial services to people with poor credit. Dominant art was all about fans of money, and if you didn't read the copy, you might think that you were reading lottery ads. Faced with a sameness issue that highly compromised learning optimal practices, my team and I created pieces that spoke to specific very good reasons why the prospect might have a need for cash fast. Hospital emergencies, transportation problems, services shut offs, and so on.

The ads performed nearly as well on response as the fanned currency. But more importantly, they did dramatically better on conversion. By bringing the point of the ad to the prospect's very good and very real reasons for converting, we put them in a better frame of mind to take the action we wanted them to take. That approach quickly took hold across the industry.

Regardless of category, your prospects are likely time-stressed, easily distracted, and wanting to be efficient with their browsing decisions. Designing and executing your campaign around their needs, rather than branding points or legal dictates, is almost always a clear win.

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Feel free to comment, as well as like or share this column, connect with me on LinkedIn, or email me at davidlmountain at gmail dot com, or hit the RFP boxes at top right. RFPs are always free, and we hope to hear from you soon.