Be remarkable, be a purple cow

Traditional marketing has taught us that to be effective in the way we bring our products or services to our desired consumers, we have to effectively manage what has been labeled the "4Ps" of marketing: product, pricing, place and promotions. Then the mix became five, six or seven, depending on who was defining the elements of the marketing plan. Buzz words like positioning, publicity, packaging, pass-along and permission have been added to the "P-list."

Seth Godin, a prolific marketing guru and influential book author (Permission Marketing, Unleashing the Ideavirus, Survival is not Enough) has introduced yet another "P" to the equation. The basic marketing checklist has expanded even more to include what Godin describes as the Purple Cow. The concept, discussed with tightness, wit and provocation in one of his latest dissertations, Purple Cow: Transforming Your Business By Being Remarkable, was a by-product of Godin’s driving experience in France, where he and his family were enchanted by the multitude of storybook cows grazing in lovely pastures right next to the road. Initially, the travelers marveled at the whole experience, but soon enough got bored. At some point the well-bred, six sigma, and beautifully lighted cows simply turned into a sea of uniform-looking brown herds. What were once amazing cows became unexciting. The awe quickly turned into ho-hum.

Imagine a Purple Cow cutting through a plethora of flawlessly proficient, even indisputably exquisite brown varieties, and what we get is a new excitement – a different high brilliantly emanating from the stand-out features of the purple kind. The Purple Cow idea is all about being "remarkable," worth talking about, worth paying attention to, and worth supporting. The monotonous stuff quickly becomes imperceptible. Essentially, Godin’s thesis has to be seriously considered if we want to rise above the din of information overload. If we have to grow our business and win in cutthroat competition, we have to capture our market’s imagination and interest.

Purple is a mysterious color associated with both royalty and spirituality. The opposites of hot red and cool blue combine to create this intriguing color. Purple has a special, almost sacred place in nature: lavender, orchid, lilac, and violet flowers are often delicate and considered precious. And since it is derived from the mixing of a strong warm and a strong cool color, it has both warm and cool properties. Purple can boost our imagination and creativity. Too much purple, like blue, can result in moodiness. The meaning and values attached to the color inspired Godin to give birth to the Purple Cow principle.

Purple Cow marketing is the art and science of incorporating things worth noticing right into our product or service. It is a call for creativity, originality, ardor, courage and boldness. Godin says, "We go though life with passion, and guts beat the alternative (which it does), but also because it is the only way to be successful. Today, the one sure way to fail is to be boring. Our one chance for success is to be remarkable." He quickly adds, "Remarkable marketing is not just slapping on the marketing function as a last-minute add-on, but understanding from the outset that if the offering itself isn’t remarkable, then it’s invisible – no matter how much you spend on well-crafted advertising."

Godin takes a potshot at mass-media usage, overlooking the pervasive notion that advertising continues to be a main driver in launching new brands, and more important in maintaining excitement for mature ones. There are discussions about its erosion and impending demise. To this day, however, fast-moving consumer goods still rely principally on advertising for their communications needs. Sure, there are cases of successful launches and sustaining marketing communications programs anchored on unconventional modes, but in truth, it remains to be a major tool.

Strong leadership defines a Purple Cow. We can’t be remarkable if we assume the role of a follower. We need to lead the pack in product development, in answering the needs and wants of the marketplace, in finding that all-important differentiating factor that competitors in our category have not discovered or recognized. It will be terribly hard to tail a Purple Cow, precisely because he has done a remarkable thing, and a follower who decides to do the same is simply a copycat with unremarkable traits.

The more uncompromising the market, the more crowded the marketplace becomes. The busier our customers, the more we need a Purple Cow. As Godin avers, "Half measures will fail. Overhauling the product with dramatic improvements in things that the right customers care about, on the other hand, can have an enormous payoff." He believes that it is an effective way to break through the clutter, but not all marketers are embracing the concept. A lot are still so afraid; they continue to play it safe and follow the rules. Godin insists, "If you’re remarkable, then it’s likely that some people won’t like you. That’s part of the definition of remarkable. Nobody gets unanimous praise – ever. The best the timid can hope for is to be unnoticed. Criticism comes to those who stand out."

Godin cites the case of Dutch Boy Paints, which introduced a distinct packaging innovation. From a hard-to-carry, hard-to-open, hard-to-pour, and hard-to-close can, it launched an easier-to-carry, easier-to-open, easier-to-pour and easier-to-close paint jug. The new twist-and-pour container was widely noticed and accepted, which clearly contributed to the company’s expanded distribution and increased sales. It was able to demonstrate remarkable values, which resulted in a huge upside.

Starbucks’ remarkable performance a few years ago has allowed the company to expand to thousands of stores around the world. It became boring at some point, but the brand value in the coffee category resided with it, not with other coffee names that played safe and remained stuck with not much more than what they had a few years back.

Making and marketing something remarkable means asking new questions and tying new practices. Godin offers some suggestions on how to raise a Purple Cow:

• Differentiate our customers. Look for the group that’s most profitable and likely to influence other customers and work on them.

• Choose an under-served niche and own it.

• Get into the habit of doing the "unsafe" thing every time we have the opportunity to see what works and what does not.

• Explore our limits. We can be the cheapest, fastest, slowest, hottest, coldest, easiest, most efficient, loudest, hardest. Just be the most.

• Think of the smallest conceivable market and describe a product that overwhelms it with remarkability. Start from there.

• Discover things that are "just not done" in our respective category or industry. Then go ahead and do them.

• Ask "why not?" questions. Almost everything we don’t do is the result of fear, inertia, or a historical lack of someone asking, "Why not?"

• Rotate people around for "Aha, this is it!" moments, innovations, Purple Cow chasing.

Godin is master of marketing wordsmithing, and of turning old concepts into best-selling marketing viruses. His ideas may have been discussed before by other authors under different labels, but the fact that he was able to bring them to a fresh level for renewed consideration by his readers is truly remarkable. Color your world purple, anyone?

* * *

E-mail bongo@vasia.com or bongo@campaignsandgrey.net for comments, questions or suggestions. Thank you for communicating.