3 thoughts for the week of February 1, 2010 (value of design, LOST teaches marketing & opportunities in uncertainty)
February 4, 2010//Last Updated January 6, 2013
- This week, while sifting through some of our favorite business blogs, we came across an article titled “The Value of Design.” Well of course we had to read. This is an issue that is constant in all creative disciplines. Often dismissed by the general business environment as superficial and “fluff,” design has yet to fully claim its rightful place as a pillar of business success. It’s time to shift the corporate paradigm. Design is not an expense to be minimized at all costs. Design is an investment that can pay big dividends if deployed properly.Check out the Special Report on the Value of Design Series from Business Week:
- What else happened this week? Perhaps you have heard of a little show called LOST? Yeah, that’s what we thought. Matt was pretty excited, too. So, what is it about this show that has allowed it to build such a following? Although we could probably make a very long list, by far, the top reason has to be that this show has a lot of depth. It starts with a bold hook (dramatic plane crash on a remote tropical island) to catch your attention. But after you got past that, the show’s brilliant creators have layers, upon layers, upon even more layers of stuff (conspiracies, love triangles, time travel, etc.) to keep your attention. The more interest a viewer has, the more there is to find. And those layers don’t just stop with the television show. There’s been ARGs (alternate reality games), books, videos, podcasts, video games, commercials, mysterious characters on twitter, fake events at Comicon and even entire fictional websites made for characters and products seen on the show. We can take this lesson and apply it to marketing. First hit your audience with a strong focussed message. Then once you have their interest, entice them to know more with increasing levels of information. Trying to say everything all at once is confusing and easy to dismiss. But a well thought out, layered system of delivery will build a relationship and rewards those who dig deeper. Ultimately increasing the chance of total commitment (a.k.a. a sale).
- There’s a saying that states “Uncertainty Equals Opportunity.” This phrase pretty much sums up why Shea and Matt began this whole 3thought business. It was about this time last year when we both really started sinking in with us how uncertain our lives had become. After the holidays the entire staff at our previous company received pay cuts, and 3 people had to be let go. The work flow slowed way down, and we spent each day trying to look busier than the our coworkers which is far more difficult than actually working. February settled in and we watched as the Dow Jones slipped faster and faster with no end in sight. The situation looked bleaker with each passing week. It was as that point, that we stopped thinking of the uncertainty as a bad thing. We began to see the situation as our opportunity to take back some control in our lives. It was time to escape the box we had been in, and finally live up to our full potential. Sure, things have been up and down the last year, but we know we’re heading in the right direction. There’s comfort in knowing that you’re steering the ship, even if it’s too dark to see your way some times. So we want to know… Is it time to escape the shadows and break out of your box? Maybe now is a good time to rebrand yourself or your business? What about getting out to network and make new friends? How about learning a new skill or even a new language? Whatever you do, don’t just don’t sit there and let the fear of uncertainty rob you of any more time. Today IS your chance to turn uncertainty into opportunity.
Posted in 3 Thoughts, Blog