What not to do

When people submit articles for Market Leader, I try to ensure that, given our readership of practical marketing folk, the article gives a clear idea of what the reader should do, having read it. This mostly happens, directly or indirectly and the ‘to do’ points are usually helpful. But I’ve always had a sneaking feeling that telling people what not to do may be more effective.

So, I recommend serial entrepreneur Luke Johnson’s cover article in this issue. Few people know as much about the tricky business of spotting winners as he does and his experience and mistakes make his advice about what to avoid in sizing-up an entrepreneurial venture particularly valuable. Should you be thinking of starting an entrepreneurial venture yourself, here is a solid-gold list of mistakes to avoid. And for the non-entrepreneurs in the audience, the list of what makes a bad business plan could also be headed ‘what makes a bad strategy document’ since the skills of clarity, conciseness, engagement and plausibility are central to persuasion of any sort.

Another collection of mistakes to avoid can be found in Jonathan Richman’s discussion of why so many digital campaigns fail and why the aspirations behind them are often pure fantasy. One would like to think the reasons are complex, subtle and sophisticated. Richman says no. It’s very simple: most digital campaigns are terminally boring. The competitive frame for a digital campaign isn’t just other companies in the sector; it’s everything that people would prefer to do rather than to study your website. Put that way, failure is hardly surprising, but making a campaign interesting, surprising, likeable and shareable is another thing.

In the ‘never thought of it that way’ category, Paul Feldwick treats us to a delightful essay on the role of aesthetics in creativity. The essence of this nuanced examination is that the conventional definition of creativity – originality – may not quite cover it: aesthetics need to be part of the equation. Indeed, the artistry in the execution may be more important. Proponents of the ‘big idea’ school of advertising should take note.

The role of marketing is prominent in three other pieces in this issue. Ruth Saunders argues that marketers need more boardroom credibility, and Terry Tyrrell supports this view with an analysis of why so many M&As fail – ie insufficient attention to the culture and brand fit of the companies involved. However, on a more positive note, Mhairi McEwen and Andy Bird extol the importance of marketing as one of the key growth drivers.

Judie Lannon,

Editor [email protected]