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What Marketers Can Learn From Sesame Street

January 1, 2015

When Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett first embarked on creating Sesame Street, they could never have imaged the impact that it would have. With over 100 Emmy awards to its’ name, Sesame Street remains one of the most popular children’s television shows to date. Started in 1969, Sesame Street not only introduced us to Big Bird and Elmo, but it also revolutionized and challenged the status quo.

While at first glance Sesame Street may seem like an obvious children’s favorite, the reality of the situation was that Sesame Street was the counter to the ‘norm.’ Part genius and part luck, Sesame Street’s ‘success story’ serves as an excellent examples to marketers on how to make anything from an idea to a campaign succeed.

The Big Bird That Almost Never Happened

Believe it or not, but when Sesame Street was first conceptualized and created, Big Bird wasn’t part of it. Not just Big Bird, but other lovable Muppets, like Oscar the Grouch, were never even supposed to be part of the original sketches. What caused Cooney and Morrisett to write in the characters of Big Bird and other Muppets was the realization that Sesame Street didn’t ‘stick.’

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Business, Marketing

Ideas: Scalability Versus Creativity

December 19, 2011

Ideas: Scalability Versus Creativity

In a recent article entitled, “China, India Offer Marketers Opportunities for Scalable Ideas,” AdAge touched upon the scalability of ideas and how in certain situations, ideas that scale should come first, followed by creativity. Using China and India as examples of areas where scalability are keys to a successful marketing strategy, the article points out that in markets like Western Europe and North America, “digital technology is often ahead of other regions, and the consumer engages with the online medium at a deeper level.” Further, the article goes on to say that “ideas that ‘wow’ you and break through the clutter in a big way are more successful” in those regions. Conversely, AdAge notes that marketing campaigns focused in areas like China and India need to be focused more on the scalability side and not necessarily on the creativity.  While the ‘wow’ factor is great to have, in regions where population growth continues to climb, being able to develop ideas and strategies that scale means that you have the potential to reach every single person, which in these regions means millions of people. Continue Reading…

Business

Carpe Diem: Riding The Wave To Success

November 4, 2009

In 23 BC, Horace first introduced to us the idea of Carpe Diem. Carpe Diem, or “seize the day,” has since become a way of life for some, and for others, a constant reminder of the importance of ‘living’ each day. In the business world, carpe diem can be seen all around us. For entrepreneurs, carpe diem not only serves a motto, but also a beacon for new opportunities.

Seize The Day

When Horace first mentioned carpe diem, it was part of a longer message from Odes Book I.

In full, Horace writes: carpe diem quam minimum credula postero.

In translation this means: Seize the day and place no trust in tomorrow.

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Marketing

How Services Marketing Can Save Your Business

July 8, 2009

Do you know your customer? That is the question that every business owner should ask themselves. If your response is something along the lines of “sort of” or “not really,” then now is the time to change that. With companies struggling to find new ways to attract customers, most businesses are missing an essential aspect to it all. Without fully understanding one’s customer, developing new products and marketing campaigns are futile. One cannot expect to be successful without being able to understand their target market.

While companies invest millions into their advertising and marketing campaigns, the biggest area that fails to receive appropriate attention is services marketing. Services marketing examines the relationship between the company and its customer as well as the quality and value that the customer experiences. While many may believe that this is just a small part of a larger picture, evidence shows that services marketing is playing a much larger role in the success and failure of companies. Continue Reading…