When was the last time you read a book? And by that, we mean truly read a book - not just scan the words in the hope some of it might go in!
Over the last few months, a few members of Team J&PR have mentioned their forlorn attempts to sit down and get stuck into a good book because they were either too busy, too tired or had simply forgotten the joy that comes from reading.
That’s when Rhea decided it was about time books were reintroduced back into our lives and J&PR‘s Book Club was born!
Are you a purple cow?
You may have heard of the P’s in marketing, but have you ever heard of the secret P, purple cow?
That’s right, we said purple cow! Our first book, Purple Cow: Transform Your Business By Being Remarkable by Seth Godin, shared Godin’s belief that creative advertising is less effective today (or rather when the book was written twenty years ago!) because of clutter and advertising avoidance - a belief we all felt was still relevant today.
Godin suggested that for a business or product to stand out, it must be remarkable - something you’ve never seen before. In comes a purple cow.
We won’t lie, we’re pretty sure everyone sipping on their coffee in Wellington’s Gratitude Cafe were looking at us a little strangely when we spoke in great detail about purple cows, but it was definitely worth it!
But why a purple cow?
Once you’ve seen a few cows in a field you’ve seen them all, right? That’s exactly what Godin likens mundane marketing to, especially in the oversaturated market we all operate in nowadays.
With so many identical marketing campaigns and social media ads out there, there’s far too much noise, so we tune it out. That’s why you have to be a purple cow - to stand out.
Purple cows are different. They are noticed and they are talked about which is exactly what you want for your business!
But how can you become a purple cow? And how can you stay one?
Stop tasting like chicken
Becoming a purple cow takes imagination. Not only do you have to think of something completely different to your competitors but you also have to do it well, otherwise there’s no point trying.
“Tastes like chicken” is no longer a compliment. The last thing you want is for your consumer to lump you into being ‘like’ something else. If they wanted something to taste like chicken, guess what? They would probably buy chicken, not the runner up.
You need to create your own flavour to stand out amongst the rest!
Quotations are the highest compliment you can pay to an author - here are our favourites!
Sophie
"I don't think there's a shortage of remarkable ideas. I think your business has plenty of great opportunities to do great things. Nope, what's missing isn't the ideas. It's the will to execute them."
This is one of my favourite quotes in the book because I know we have plenty of amazing ideas at J&PR for all clients, but not all of them make it to the end stages due to them being too much of a 'risk'. Obviously, if a client says no to an idea then it's a no-go, but I've been implementing the Purple Cow 'risk' for one client at the moment and I've already seen really great results.
Freya M
“The influential sneezers.”
I absolutely love this term! To me, it suggests a domino effect when it comes to buying a product, with one consumer’s purchase prompting the rest. I’ve always been fascinated by purchase behaviours - especially since the rise in influencers - so it’s really interesting to consider the impact our purchases have on those directly around us.
Rhea
"Once you find people who buy pain relievers then you need people who want to buy a new kind. After all, plenty of people want the 'original kind'.....if someone has found a convenient, trusted effective pain reliever they are not out there wasting time looking for a replacement.
"Finally, you need to find the people willing to listen to you talk about your new pain reliever. The vast majority of folks are too busy and will ignore you, regardless of how many ads you buy."
When people initially think of their target market they can think it is huge, but when you think about it, and break it down, often it is a much smaller group of people than you think!
Freya R
"The lesson is simple - boring always leads to failure. Except, of course, when being boring is, in and of itself, remarkable."
I see this quote as a fantastically fresh way to tell people to think outside the box and is also a reminder that marketing is not black and white, with no real right or wrong way to do it!
What’s next?
After the success of our first meeting - and the satisfaction everyone felt from finally have an opportunity to get well and truly stuck into a good book - it’s safe to say the trial of J&PR’s Book Club has been successful!
Our next book to read is Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek.
Recommended by Sophie, it promises to be an interesting read - and one we can’t wait to discuss over coffee and cake at our next meeting!