I love to create marketing campaigns the pull but if the meat isn’t there in the product or service my conscious can wreak havoc with my state of being. I’ve learned to make sure that what’s offered matches the offer… in this day of squeeze pages and poorly written hype stuffed sales letters I think this is something we all need to do ( I do love good copy, as long as the product or service is as good as the message used to sell it )

I love what you said about social media leveling the playing field ( as it should ) and this is definitely a nice shift and an exciting time to be alive.

Thank you for creating content that makes me look myself in the eye… hurray Jonathan!

It’s not that marketing kills innovation. Rather, marketing is often used as a crutch for people who cannot or do not innovate. You know, push a mediocre product or service or content out there, and hype it up with marketing.

Car companies have been doing this for years. Every unremarkable, mundane mid-sized sedan has commercials on TV and “insane deals” at car dealers. Whereas for remarkable cars, like the Hummer or the Mini, you don’t see many ads because the product doesn’t need them.

For those companies, the engineering department IS the marketing department.

So, like you hinted at, I think the amount of marketing necessary to promote a product is inversely related to how remarkable and original and authentic the product/service/content is.

-Ege

What I was trying to get across was not that marketing is innately bad, but that it often serves as an easier alternative for lack of end-stage innovation. And, it’s that final push in the innovation process that is not only the hardest, but usually the most impactful.

Interesting question about the role of manufacturer and designer in the innovation process, too. I guess it really depends on the specific nature of the product/service/content.

No doubt, having a marketing-pro at hand, once you’re ready to let her/him do their stuff is a great asset, because it lets you do what you’re best at!

@ Corinne – ahhh shucks!

Every post is better than the last.

Value wins every time.

I stumbled it. People should be reading your articles!

Seems all to often marketing is working in over drive and the promise doesn’t hold up to reality.

I don’t know if our customers would mud wrestle to get their hands on one of our products but I can say the majority of them will pay a premium and wait 3 to 6 months for it to be made.

I think I’m doing something right but still think a marketing expert could lend better advice or help map out areas I am not familiar with. their is a definate need for marketing people.

They can make a world of difference to a small business.

And a final thought… shouldn’t innovation be more a shared responsibility between the designer/manufacturer and the marketeer… as opposed to leaving it up to the designer./manufacturer?

why is it assumed that if you can make design or prototype a product you will be good at selling it? seems we are the least likely to be good at that…

isn’t that why marketing people exist? to take this burdon off our shoulders so we can keep being innovative in our new products?

I’ll bet we have 50 designs we have not had time to prototype because that same amount of time is taken up doing the things we have the least experience with. markketing is the beginning of our level of incompentancy and seems that is the exact time to seek help.

so, I’d have to say for me, a marketing pro would be a great asset and not merely a innovation stiffler.

lol, now that i re-read this, seems like i don’t agree with your post as much as i had originally thought:)

anyway, happy new year and try to look for the balance between the two:)

Thanks for your insights. My perspective is generally small-biz and entrepreneurs, so it’s nice to get the line from people who’ve worked on big business, too!

In the end, we are always just talking to ourselves. Heck, I’ve always considered my blog and my articles as a way to process what is happeneing in our business and in my life. Basically, you are all my group therapy!

Christine just wrote a bit about that though it is slightly different.