(sales x marketing) to the power of technology = extraordinary results

Innovation: Are you a Picasso or a Cezanne?

I just attended the Women President's Organization Annual Conference in Boston, where Malcolm was the opening keynote speaker.  The focus of this year's conference was innovation.

Malcolm Gladwell is this very articulate guy with wild hair -- just to give you a visual.  He's written Tipping Point and Blink, and has another book due out soon -- and he writes a column in the New Yorker magazine. Here are some of his thoughts about innovation:

When thinking about innovation, he recently read a book by David Galenson, called "Old Masters and Young Geniuses: The two life cycles of Artistic Creativity" -- and pulled some of his concepts from this book.

He asserted that innovation comes in two forms:  Conceptual Innovators and Experimental Innovators.  He likened the first (conceptual innovator) to Picasso, who had bold  revolutionary ideas that he conceptualized, and then executed swiftly and efficiently.  He likened the Experimental Innovators to Cezanne, they sort of poke around, can't really talk about what the end result will be, learns through trial and error, does lots of research, and gets better and better until becomes genius.

Picasso had moments of brilliance, while Cezanne never had moments of brilliance -- and their careers were profoundly different.  Picasso produced his most famous (and now most expensive) work while in his twenties.  The Cubist movement in art was accomplished within the 10 years following that.  While Cezanne produced his most notable work (and most expensive) in his 50's, after toiling his entire life on his art.

Malcolm asserted that Innovation takes two forms -- as outlined by Picasso and Cezanne.  He said that businesses and investors like the Conceptual Innovator because you can talk about and outline exactly what you are going to do, how it's going to turn out, etc., and then execute it.  They don' like the Experimental Innovator, precisely because they have a vision of what's possible, but cannot really talk about it -- they don't really know what exactly it will look like when they get there, and they just start out experimenting and learning through trial and error.

He also said that is why some industries are in trouble today.  There is value in recognizing the different forms of innovation.  He spoke a little about his distaste for some of our educational methods that expect children are either good at math instantly or they never will be as discounting and in fact not even recognizing the possibility of the "late bloomer" (i.e. Cezanne).

He brought up Fleetwood Mac -- and their most famous album, Rumors.  He asked us how many albums Fleetwood Mac produced before producing Rumors (which is the top all-time selling album in history)?  Most of us thought it was their second, possibly third album -- nope -- it was their 16th!  Then he took us through the Fleetwood Mac history - they started in the mid-1960's, it took them 10 years, they had 16 different people come and go from that band before they got it right.  They switched genres many times.  And they had someone in the industry that stood by them, who believed in them -- and that paid off BIG with Rumors.  But that wouldn't happen in today's music industry; an artist gets ONE single -- it makes it or it doesn't, and if not, they are history.  That industry only rewards the conceptual innovator.

Why are we so biased towards Picasso rather than Cezanne?
1.  Picasso people can describe what they're doing before they start.
2.  Cezanne people can never tell you what they're doing.

Then he related information about drug research and how this approach has impacted those endeavors: they discovered if you can understand the nature of something, you can describe the solution and then target your research efforts. This is how the pharmaceutical industry now does its research and that sounds like a good plan, except most things aren't that cut and dried.  There are all kinds of stuff you discover that you never can predict.  The best discoveries happen by accident.

Gladwell says we need patience to buckle down and do the tough work.  Some of the very best innovation takes time.  There are a certain class of problems that cannot be solved overnight, and that patience is sorely lacking in business today.  While both types of innovation are necessary, you can't have a successful world when you're only following or allowing for one.

Which are you?  Can you be a blend of both?  Are Picasso and Cezanne two ends of the same "innovation" continuum?  Which gets fostered more?

Visit Malcolm Gladwell's website at http://www.gladwell.com/ for links to his writings.

Authenticity: the foundation of great Marketing

In my recent reading a book title caught my eye: “Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want.” The book itself is about consumers gravitating toward purchasing experiences where they feel they’re having a genuine experience and focuses on B2C companies like Starbucks. I was tempted to pick it up just to see that title staring back to me from my bookshelf.

In my experience, in B2B sales authenticity is also very much in demand. We live in such an over-hyped world that customers of any size are immune to being bombarded with benefit messages. A prospect or customer wants to have a feel for who your company is and what you stand for that saturates all levels of their interaction with you.

This is why it’s important to align Sales’ customer contact with Marketing’s messages. On the surface one off-message email isn’t that bad, but it does give a prospect the nagging sense that your company has two faces.

There’s often a misconception that Marketing is about making companies and products sound better than they are. In fact for many companies the true job of Marketing is to express the authentic face of the company and to keep it consistent even when that company is comprised of thousands of individuals.

Both the prospect and your organization are more inspired and more likely to work together when they experience something real and true in that relationship.

Prepare for the Unexpected

I don’t know how last week was for you, but for most of the people I know, it was less than ideal. This reminded me of a funny piece of fortune cookie advice a friend of mine received recently: “prepare for the unexpected.”

It’s good advice in a way, especially since our increased use of technology means that we’re confronted by the unexpected more often than ever before. Whether it’s a software issues, Internet connectivity glitch, server problem or even (as at the apex of my week) a garage door opener malfunction—technology sure can throw a curve ball.

So how can one prepare for the unexpected? It is by its nature not what we see coming, not something we had in mind, and not in the plan.

Two ways come to my mind. The first is to build as much resilience in our existing system as possible. Not just backups and backup plans in technology, but making sure that our human systems are resting adequately and taking care of ourselves. When a situation starts to go wrong often the first thing we do is neglect ourselves, which leaves us unprepared for the next crisis.

Secondly, and perhaps even more crucial, is to pay attention to who we’re being in response to the unexpected. You can even do this before anything happens. Imagine that you walk into your office tomorrow and something has happened that’s beyond anything you prepared for. What happens to your mind? Now, what do you want to happen in your mind? Sometimes when a situation spirals out of control we forget that we have the most say over our own reactions.

Open for Action

Why did you take the position you have today? If you’re in Marketing it probably had something to do with your love for communication – getting a beautifully clear message across to people who want to act on it. If you’re in Sales or if you’re managing people, chances are you love people. You probably have a competitive streak too, but at the end of the day you really enjoy forming a sense of positive connection with another human being.

So what’s all this technology for?

A great marketing automation system handles the details for you so that crafting your message or nurturing your connection can take the forefront of your mind.

When you’re bogged down with lead lists, ineffective and confusing software, pressure to sell but a lack of support, muddled marketing messages, then you don’t have the space in your mind and being to do your real work.

One way to evaluate any solution – technological or otherwise – is by paying attention to how much mental space it opens up for you. Remember what you love about your work and use that to navigate your way to solutions that make this more and more available to you.

Living beyond your opinions

In so many of my conversations with Sales and Marketing folks, there’s a disdain within each organization for the other. The Sales organization thinks Marketing doesn’t provide good leads and is out of touch with the 'real' customers. Marketing departments have attitudes about the inept Sales folks who don't properly use the marketing tools they're provided with. 

Whatever your position in the organization, a breakthrough in the Sales & Marketing relationship begins with seeing your own opinions about your counterparts in the other department – no matter how petty or ugly. Just take a clear look at what you tell yourself when a sale doesn’t happen or you don’t meet target numbers for a quarter.

When we believe something has gone wrong, it’s built into the machinery of our minds to make up an explanation – one that’s favorable toward us. There’s nothing wrong with that, the problem is that we believe our own hype and over time these solidified opinions can become part of our departmental culture.

One person can change the tone of a department. It’s difficult to move against a group, but also rewarding when you begin to see yourself as a change agent.

First you need to understand the background opinions in your department. What are the stereotypes and common complaints? Make them glaring obvious for yourself so a red flag goes up when they slip into a conversation. Then, stop honoring the prevailing opinion. If you find yourself parroting the party-line about how Sales is arrogant or Marketing is useless, take responsibility and revise what you’re saying. Contradict the status quo.

If you’re ready to test yourself with a real challenge, find someone in the other department who you think really doesn’t get it. Set up time to meet with them and leave all your judgments behind. As you listen to them talk about their job, find things to appreciate them for. You might say something really surprising like, “I used to think Marketing people didn’t do anything. I apologize, I realize I haven’t been paying attention and you’re trying to help me.”

I love to hear outcomes from people who have taken the challenge of living beyond their opinions. If you have a story to share, add a comment here or drop me an email.