Tom Asacker

Henry Miller on exemplars

"Example moves the world more than doctrine. The great exemplars are the poets of action."

I'm frequently asked to name a company that "gets it;" one which truly understands the why's and how's of succeeding in an economy of abundance.  I typically respond with the iconic Apple, Starbucks, Nike or Harley Davidson. But starting today I'll be adding Jones Soda to my short list, based on an article I read last week in Beverage World.

Here are some quotes from the piece, which were attributed to CEO Peter van Stolk, that tells me that Jones Soda "gets it."  If you "get it," you'll understand why there is no need for me to elucidate:

"Our mission statement is, 'It doesn't matter about soda. It matters about our consumers.' We have to stay true to our goal to create emotional connections and be relevant to our consumers."

"As a premium in any category, you have to create an emotional connection; that's critical if you're going to charge more than your competitor. People pay for emotions when they buy a brand."

On his patent-pending, mass customization label technology: "When we first started doing this 11 years ago, it was cutting edge and there was no clear indication that technology would transition into where it is today . . .  The personalized labels give consumers a sense of ownership of the brand in an authentic way that multibillion-dollar marketing campaigns can't achieve."

"I can't compete with Pepsi and Coke on the money, but our competitors can't put a consumer's favorite football player on a bottle."

"We here at Jones can't really talk about competition because if you start looking at competition, then you take your eyes off where you're going and you're looking in the rearview mirror all the time."

"The thing I really like about Jones is that we're not a flavor.  Nobody associates Jones with a single flavor.  So we can do anything we want and the limitations are what we put on ourselves."

On converting from high fructose corn syrup to pure cane sugar after numerous requests from consumers: "Financially, you probably can't justify the conversion in the first year, maybe even two or three years, but it's the right move.  You have to run your company for the long-term and this is a long-term right decision."

"Our strategy is to be a treat.  Our marketing campaign is 'Drink less soda, just better soda.' We're the first to admit that we are an indulgence and if you're going to indulge then you should have the best available."

On Jones Soda's plan to launch a new energy drink containing pharma gabatm, which  van Stolk hopes to gain exclusive rights to in the U.S. beverage market:  "We think there's a next category out there; something that's better, cooler and funkier."

On this year's holiday-flavored beverage, which like previous year's Turkey & Gravy, Mashed Potato, and Brussels Sprouts sodas will be a buzzworthy concoction that helps him and his team keep a light-hearted approach: "You're gonna go 'wow, this guy is nuts.' But this stuff is going to be ripping."

"I've said it before, but the world doesn't need another soda company, and it doesn't need Jones.   Nobody wakes up and thinks 'I've got to have a Jones today.' So you've got to be fun.  We're soda and what can be more fun than soda?"

Woodrow Wilson on identity

"Absolute identity with one's cause is the first and great condition of successful leadership."

Here's a link to my new article, The Brand Identity Delusion.  I hope you enjoy it.  And if not, at least I hope it makes you think.  Do let me know your thoughts.

Note: I also send out my articles with a short email of random thoughts about business, brands and marketplace success.  If you are interested in being added to its list of subscribers, simply enter your email in the box in the column to the right of this post titled "Occasional updates" (scroll down a bit).

Robbie Coltrain on noise

"The person who comes up to you and makes the most noise and is the most intrusive is invariably the person in the room who has no respect for you at all, and it's really all about them."

I just returned from a speech at the Wynn in Las Vegas, and while there I was struck by something. Actually, I was surprised by an absence of something: noise.  I really didn't hear any clanging coins, dissonant bells, or spinning WHEELS . . . OF . . . FORTUNE! And it wasn't just in the casino. The same was true of other areas (hallways, meeting areas, restaurants, etc.); I experienced a distinct sense of calm. As casino resorts go, the Wynn is one of the quietest by far. And it's also one of the most exclusive and expensive.

This got me thinking about leadership brands and their inherent sense of calm.  Organizations that truly take an outside-in approach to their brands, ones that strategically focus on their audience and deliver value with each and every activity (or lack thereof), seem to be quieter and more subtle than others. They appear to genuinely respect their audience and are thus less intrusive and less noisy.

Their customer-facing people appear more composed and self-assured. They talk less and listen more.  Their internal organization appears more composed and focused.  There's less redundant questioning and far less gossiping.  Their marketing is also quieter, with less hype, less intrusion, and even less copy than others (see Apple advertising and packaging).  It appears that the more valuable the brand, the less noisy it is (Harley's engine roar notwithstanding).

Paul Janowitz on the platform

"Don't blame the platform for failure."

Paul, posting at the new Awareness is Everything blog, is referring to the controversy over Wired magazine's recent story on the failure of the virtual world Second Life as an effective advertising medium. Paul's (and many others) argument goes something like this:

Different platforms are good for different marketing goals, e.g. brand building, selling, relationship building, etc.  And it's the responsibility of the marketer or advertiser to gain experience with the platform and develop a full understanding of its audience prior to launching an advertising or marketing campaign.

To this line of reasoning I say, horse hockey!  If a company's "platform" is in any way dependent upon marketers for revenue, then it is now part of that company's job to educate and assist those marketers. The good old, simpler days of owning airwaves, pipes, pages, channels, locations, et al. and charging an access fee (e.g. ad rate, time, rent, etc.) to communicate or transact with an audience is quickly coming to an end.

Why?  Because there are simply way too many competing platforms (or will be in the next three to five years).  Eyeballs and traffic are quickly losing their premium-priced cachet. Success will ultimately move to those platform owners who provide real value; those adept at helping marketers achieve their own level of success with said platform.  The rest will either stay alive by charging their audience the access fee (instead of marketers), or they'll quickly fade into obscurity.

Camille Paglia on sexuality

"Pursuit and seduction are the essence of sexuality. It's part of the sizzle."

Now I've seen everything. In their effort to pursue and seduce us, Wrigley have just released a product with the brand name "new." Any way, that's what I believed when I purchased it. But then I peeled off the cellophane wrapper and discovered that it's actually called "5." (I think I like the name "new" better.  It's so silly, it's a conversation starter.).

Wrigley's corporate press release calls 5 "a groundbreaking, new sugar-free stick gum with mouth-freshening, long-lasting flavors combined with invigorating sensations 'you can feel as you chew.'" Frankly, it tastes like ordinary cinnamon-flavored gum to me.  And that's the problem with today's tsunami of new products; there's a lot of sizzle, but not much meat.

Sexuality is a powerful attractor, but it's not enough to sustain a relationship.  Relationships require reciprocity; I'll buy your gum (again) if you give me "x" (a.k.a value).  Discovering and delivering the elusive "x," and in a way that can not be easily duplicated, is how brand success is created in today's hypercompetitive marketplace.

"But it's just a pack of gum."  Indeed, and it's just a cup of coffee; it's just a pair of running shoes; it's just a phone; it's just water in a plastic bottle; it's just a motorized vehicle; etc. But creative people have figured out how to uniquely bundle value into each and every one of them.

Face it. Today's marketplace is nothing more than a cultural game, with the objective being to take "just something," make it - and keep it - special to one's audience, and then pursue and seduce them. It really doesn't matter what the product or service is, since we (marketplace participants) are all in some kind of trance any way.  There is very little clear, rational thought taking place.

Couldn't you make the case that we should be brewing and enjoying our coffee at home with our loved ones; wearing $15 sneakers (the NBA star Stephon Marbury does); leaving our phones at home attached to the wall like we used to, instead of wearing them like six-guns (because we may need them at any minute); filling our own plastic bottles with tap water, instead of filling landfills; and walking everywhere to eliminate obesity and our dependence on foreign oil? Sure you can. But we simply don't think about it that way.

In fact, we don't "think" much about what we do, or don't do, in the marketplace.  Simply consider "The Simpsons Movie;" a hand-drawn cartoon about yellow-hued people who lampoon the very trance we are all in.  It raked in $71.9 million to debut as the top movie last week, and opened strongly in 70 foreign markets as well.  $71.9 million just last week!  And yet, the same citizens who shelled out $7 per ticket (plus God knows how much for buckets of sugar water and faux-buttered popcorn) are having a difficult time funding their public school systems.

I'll say it again (and probably again): this is not your father's marketplace. The days of "make and sell" are over.  There's simply way too much stuff!  Instead, today's marketers must "sense, respond, pursue, and seduce."  Sense what your audience needs to make them happier and feel better about themselves; respond by creating a unique bundle of value that provides that enhanced experience and identity; pursue them when and where they're most receptive to your offering; and seduce them with engaging and relevant communication. Simple? Yes. Easy? You tell me.