I haven't posted my Online Spin articles for a while, but I'd like to do so now with 3 related ones that all triangulate on a brand marketer's need to change, move quicker, embrace the "fear" of failure (the only thing to fear is fear itself) and ultimately, adopt a much more progressive lean-forward approach to new media, emerging technology and partnership with startups/entrepreneurs.
- The opportunity cost of inertia - This article focuses on doing nothing. Being hamstrung with indecision or just procrastinating in general.
- Facebook isn't failing marketers. Marketers are failing marketers - This article really isn't about Facebook at all, but rather the approach that marketers take when evaluating and ultimately executing new media or emerging media programs. With respect to the former, it's all about old school reach and therefore replication and with the latter, it's anemic lip-service due to the lack of reach. The unadulterated creativity, originality and disruptive innovation is nowhere to be found...
- I have seen the enemy - and the enemy is within - My latest article, which goes back to the notion of "doing nothing" but this time focuses on all the wheel spinning, lost time and therefore expended resources on deciding NOT to move forward on opportunities already under consideration.
Here's the final article in its entirety:
Companies are their own worst enemies. The amount of wheel-spinning that takes place to get an initiative in place or even started, only for the rug to be ripped out underneath due to âa new CMO coming inâ (or an existing one going out), âa budget cutâ or âa reorg,â translates into significant hours expended, and therefore has a very real price tag.
I think itâs important we recognize the tangible cost of dragging our feet, being stuck in holding patterns and/or ultimately having cold feet as a substantial cost of doing business.
The waste of time -- and therefore money -- is mission critical, especially when dealing in a complex, dynamic and turbulent marketplace, with -- letâs face it -- extremely scarce resource (and by scarce resources, Iâm talking about talent and time). While we all complain about budget cuts, in reality we are swimming in obscene excessive amounts of money that go into the temporal renting of multitasking eyeballs (yes, Iâm talking about YOU, 30-second spot).
As a writer and speaker, I get to clench my fist and shake it disapprovingly at you a lot. You agree with me and yet you do nothing about it.
As a consultant and âagencyâ guy, I get to feel the short stick by being on the receiving end of your constant âreorgsâ and additional approvals and reviews.
But honestly, donât worry about me -- this is about you. Iâm really worried about you.
Did you ever stop and think that all this time lost is actually hurting the current and future state of your business? In other words, hastening the next reorg and restructure? Your inability to get anything done that is different, original, unique and/or innovative is without question putting your own continuity and value INTO question.
Seriously, consider the ROI of not doing anything. Itâs a Return on Inertia that is ironically very measurable both as an opportunity cost (past/hours) and opportunity lost (future/execution).
Instead, consider the analogy of waiting in a very long line. Youâve stood for an hour and youâre strongly considering calling it quits and walking away. Only, youâve already spent an hour and who knows, the wait might only be another 30 minutes or so. And then before you know it, itâs 90 minutes or 2 hours. Now you DEFINITELY canât walk away, because youâve invested 2 hours, which is much more than the hour. And then itâs three hours -- and so on.
Why not apply the same logic to your projects? Stay the course!. Consider all the hours and legwork that got you this far and use that as the incentive to keep going.
And if all else fails, consider this: âIf youâre not adding to your legacy, youâre adding to your eulogy.â
You can quote me on that if you like.
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