The Ogilvy Switch

Oh our Marketing cousins.

Seldom does an Enterprise solution salesteam's endeavour dovetail beautifully with the marketing department.

I've blogged on this a ton down the years.

Yet recent work touching on New Product Rescue exposed me to a merrie band of marketeers.

Eager to dispel the crayons and hopscotch myths. Conscious to seek true accountability. Determined to drop the barriers evident as is so often traditional between the two business units.

One firm focus was on removing the finger-pointing.

I sought to quell any blame culture by adapting wisdom of the discipline.

Not from any old source. But a doyen. Perhaps The Father of the discipline.

Ad colossus, David Ogilvy.

I chose this trio. Showing here my remixing.

"Great marketing selling only makes a bad product fail faster"
"Never stop testing, and your advertising selling will never stop improving"
"Advertising salespeople who ignore research are as dangerous as generals who ignore decodes of enemy signals"

I appreciate fuller context - which I cannot provide - might help getting this point across better. Yet even without, I hope you can sense where the vibe was aimed.

Not quite going back to first principles. But certainly seeking reasons behind unrealised potential. By shifting focus away from deficiencies. Instead, towards 'fast failure', testing and research.

It doesn't matter so much how 'accurate' such adapted citations are (& you must demonstrably adapt them). More the dialogue they open up, where they lead your thinking to, and the ideas they help spark.