We’re all familiar with this story.

A business is at the top of its game, makes a trajectory-decision based on an assumption, and subsequently misses the mark. In this case, the business is Netflix, the assumption was about its customer base, and – as we all witnessed (and were perhaps, as Netflix customers, privy to the news via e-mail) – Netflix missed the mark.

A year ago, if anyone had said that within the span of one month, Netflix would lose 800,000 customers and its stock would plummet, that person would have been laughed out of the “society of business punditry.” Netflix was the game-changer of how people consumed movies – arguably responsible for the closure of Blockbuster Videos around the country, as well as much of the Internet’s traffic. There was basically no current competition for Netflix; the business was at the top, gaining two-plus million new customers every quarter. Things were golden, until…

…until a haphazard blog post announced a price hike of 60%.
…until CEO Reed Hastings issued a disarmingly casual “I-messed-up” e-mail.
…until they decided to split the service into two different services
     (instant streaming staying as Netflix, and “Qwikster” for DVDs by mail).
…until they retracted that decision.

Netflix had a good business model. They had loyal customers. They had happy stockholders.

What went wrong?

First: Netflix made an assumption about their customer base, and this assumption was egregiously incorrect. They assumed that their customers were passionate enough about Netflix to stick by the business – that no matter what, these customers wanted their movies and would continue to use Netflix’s services. Although Netflix was right about their customers being passionate, they didn’t realize the passion would be railed against the company itself. In response to a price hike and change of services, Netflix’s customer base passionately informed the company of their disappointment and disapproval, and 800,000 of them jumped ship.

Second: Netflix employed poor communication and execution of the changes in service. Whether or not the new business model was good or necessary is one thing, but the way Netflix both announced and unveiled the changes fell short of their game. The announcement of changes first came through a seemingly slap-it-together blog post late at night, which sent the Internet ablaze in fury. Then Reed Hastings sent out an e-mail one might expect from a college buddy rather than the CEO of a company.

Finally, they retracted their decisions within a month of the first announcement. In the meantime, amidst all of these embarrassing communication flubs, the Qwikster website was not ready when the service launched, and the Twitter account was already in use by a drug-using teenager with foul language. All in all, the launch was sloppy. It seemed uncoordinated – like a last-minute decision gone awry.

We could spend all day disputing and defending the good and the bad and the ugly of Netflix’s recent business decisions, but I’m more interested in discussing the implications every business can take from this situation.

So what can we learn here?

What we can learn is that when you’re on top – when you’ve positioned yourself as a leader in your market, even if its just your local market – each decision must be well thought out (and hopefully the right one).

In the fast changing business world of today, it’s sometimes necessary to make drastic changes to a working business model. But before you are ready to go to the presses (or your customers) with these changes, make sure the model is carefully thought through in minute detail. Not analysis paralysis – but at least a thorough vetting with trusted voices. You have to at least try to do everything right or don’t do it at all.

If you are going to make business decisions based on assumptions, make sure they are the right assumptions. Validate them. Test them. Make sure you have the data to back it up before you go ahead and change your business model.

Once you have your facts in place, make sure you communicate well to all affected stakeholders. When you’ve amassed a loyal customer base, you need to keep them by respecting them, and respect comes through how you communicate. When all of these factors are set in place, ensure that your new business model is ready to launch from all sides of the company. You can’t cut corners – the market is too demanding and too connected for that.

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal really is near and dear to my heart. It’s about KIVA, the micro-lending entity that is beginning operations in the United States, helping nascent entrepreneurs, with big ambition but more bite-sized dreams, accomplish those dreams through micro-loans. The significance, of course, is that we are now entering a world with a new normal in the economy – the reluctant entrepreneur.

You know who that reluctant entrepreneur is. That’s your friend who’s a middle manager that just got laid off from a large corporation, has been looking for work for a year, and now has decided he’s a consultant. Maybe he is, maybe he isn’t, but he’s certainly gonna give it a go, because he has to put food on the table.

It’s tough out there, and a lot more people are finding themselves in this same boat, hanging up a shingle, freelancing or starting a business, not because of some burning passion to see a particular vision or concept come into existence, but as a survival tactic. However, there is an underlying reality that even people who are clinging onto their W2 paychecks are in fact, in many ways just on an extended contract. In other words, they are really no more secure than the person who’s actually embraced the reality of their “entrepreneur-ness” or independence (or lack of security).

Which brings me to KIVA.

Kiva’s mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty. Kiva empowers individuals to lend to an entrepreneur across the globe. By combining microfinance with the internet, Kiva is creating a global community of people connected through lending.

KIVA isn’t focused on white collar former executives starting 6 figure consultancies, but the principles are the same. To start something new, whatever your overall context, you need a little “seed corn”, some good ideas, a lot of hard work, and just the sense that you’re not all alone, and that you actually have people pulling for you.

So I commend KIVA for doing that for these micro-businesses in tough places for people who have truly meager resources. I also just want to extend a word of encouragement to all those reluctant entrepreneurs, (including many whom I know personally,) that this new way of living and earning a living might, in fact, be the best thing that ever happened. Of course, only the perspective of time will allow them to embrace that assessment, and I hope some of them will.

For those of you still looking for “traditional” work – here’s a nice post on using LinkedIn to do so from my friend Carla Bobka at SocialPie.

An Interview with Laura Vanderkam
By Jose Palomino, September 2010

I recently read 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam and I found that it spoke a great and new truth regarding time and life management connected to time. Her book pulls out some seemingly obvious facts about time – and places them into a fresh context. It provides a new framework that is powerfully liberating for anyone (like me) who’s been trying to put 2 gallons of life and work into a 1 gallon jug.

I’ve mentioned this book on other blog posts and tweets over the last few months. It brings a fresh perspective to a topic every “do-er” wrestles with: time. Laura’s book has received some great praise, including:

• “In 168 Hours…Laura Vanderkam, a highly regarded journalist and mother of two young sons, shows that it is possible to take your career to the next level while having a full personal life. “It isn’t easy, but it is doable as long as you actively choose how to spend your time the way you want.” –Cali Williams Yost, Fast Company
• “While 168 Hours certainly gets up in your business for wasting time, it’s not some dull or preachy book about time-management: It’s a compellingly written, logical argument against the emotional complaint “I’m too busy,” presented alongside practical advice and an engaging collection of time-use tricks.” –Christine Whelan, The Huffington Post

All the more reason I was so pleased that I recently connected with Laura and discussed her book and future focus.  The Interview is in three parts.

Part 1: It’s a Choice

Laura, our readers are people getting things done and, I think, looking for ways to change the world. So first off, Laura, why did you think to write this particular book at this time in your life?

When my first son was born in 2007, like many new parents, I tried to figure out how to make the pieces of my life fit together. So I set out to write about the “time crunch.” But every time I tried to track down numbers that would prove it, things became slippery.

Eventually, I realized that was because much of the talk about how overworked and sleep deprived Americans are, is misleading, and is based on our worst days, not our average ones. I also started doing the math.

If there are 168 hours in a week, and you work 40 and sleep 56 (8 per night) that leaves 72 hours for other things. Even if you work 50, that leaves 62. This is a lot of time. So why do people claim that there isn’t time to build a career, raise a family and have a life? I set out to explore that question.

• • • Total Hours per Week: 168
    • Work: 50
    • Sleep: 56
    • Everything Else: 62

As a young mom and a professional writer, was the subject of time and achievement something you have always thought about? Or did something specific prompt you to think about this now?

Certainly motherhood put the topic in my head. But the more I ponder these issues, the more I realize that I’ve never liked the idea of claiming we “can’t” do things because of some nebulous force, like lacking time. Better to realize that much of life is a choice, and if something isn’t working, we can choose to live differently.

Next… Part 2: A New Old Idea

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Laura Vanderkam is the author of 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think (Portfolio, 2010) and Grindhopping: Build a Rewarding Career without Paying Your Dues (McGraw-Hill, 2007). She is a member of USA Today’s Board of Contributors, and her work has appeared in Reader’s Digest, Scientific American, Wired, The American, Portfolio and other publications. Laura also blogs at http://www.my168hours.com/blog/

Now and then, we see the Internet blow up with activity. A picture or video spreads across all the social networking sites. This sometimes leads to the creation of spin-offs – inspired pictures and videos which follow the same cycle of viral circulation. In today’s Internet parlance, this is called a ‘meme’. And while many “old horses” from more traditional marketing backgrounds can think of this as just another mind-boggling phenomenon of the Screen Age, others see a potential innovation.

When Old Spice and its advertising agency, Wieden + Kennedy, saw its latest campaign was becoming a viral success, they immediately capitalized on it. Now, not only has the Old Spice Guy, perpetually wrapped in a bath towel and flashing a debonair smile, become a household name; product sales are growing and the company is enjoying a breath of new life in its industry.

What Old Spice and Wieden + Kennedy did is a perfect example of making good use of the power of “I3″. They positioned the men’s grooming product line as inspirational; an exciting trend any man would be crazy not to get into. The creative execution was simple and novel – show a good-looking guy seamlessly weaved through women’s fantasy settings, all the while boasting how any man can be like him if they just used some Old Spice body wash. A “net new” (innovative)twist on an old product. Given that cats and dogs and men and women remain interested in each other, this also made the product seem indispensable. Innovative, Indispensable, Inspirational… an I3 Value Proposition.

Interestingly, the ad was first aired on television, often taken as a dying medium for marketing (which it surely isn’t – just changing in how it needs to be used). Soon, however, it started making its way into YouTube and the rest of the Internet. When the hype still wouldn’t die down months after its first showing, the agency decided to further feed the flame with exclusive YouTube videos of the Old Spice Guy, (actor Isaiah Mustafa), addressing various celebrities and online personalities. Not only did this succeed in ‘fleshing out’ the character endorser, the stunt ultimately led to a 107% sales increase. Wearing Old Spice is finally cool again – a seemingly impossible feat just a year or two ago. This is a huge feat for a men’s grooming line that has long been associated with middle-aged men (ahem!). This is all thanks to innovative execution of a globally thought-through marketing campaign.

Are you dismissive of the “new” marketing? Yes, there’s lots of hype and snake-oil… but if a medium can take Old Spice and make it a New Spice – then it IS powerful and must be included in the mix – at least considered.

To what degree does a personality sell?

Look at Tiger Woods. There is an obvious risk with associating your brand too tightly to a single person. So, what is it that Tiger brings or what has he brought to Accenture or Gatorade (besides  great embarrassment)?

A presumption of excellence.

Not just golf excellence, but an overall sense of just being on top of the world and doing every thing really well. This also meant “marrying well”- gee, a super model,  and having a wonderful marriage – that is all a part of the image that is being sold and connected to the brands he endorsed.

Moral analysis, notwithstanding, Tiger became much more than a spokesperson – but an emblem for these companies.

How rare is it to have a spokesperson like Steve Jobs? Someone who is able to introduce an entirely new category of product or service?

In the case of  Steve Jobs he  brings, implicit in his presence, the notion that Apple will be a creative leader and a category buster.

He is a visionary with a track record – so he is not just imputing personal qualities to his company brand but is actually melding with and forming the brand qualities of Apple. He becomes visual short hand for the brand.  But what happens when he’s gone?

What would it take to develop some powerful personality around your company?  Should you? When does it make sense and when is it a waste of time?

…or the practical meaning of Indispensibility!

A recent MSNBC article on “Scientists, lawyers mull effects of home robots” had some interesting observations on how people FEEL about their purchases.

Specifically, there was a paragraph and quote that caught my eye:

“Shoppers personalize their Roombas, naming and decorating them, for example. Angle recalled an incident when a soldier plucked a banged-up military robot nicknamed Scooby from an Iraqi battlefield and carried it to a depot to be fixed. It’s doing you a service, you’re going to get attached to it.”

Now, think about it. A Roomba – or bomb-checking robot – causes attachment. Enough for a soldier to accept some risk to “rescue” his loyal friend, Scooby!

I think this just calls out the simple truth that when we offer a TRULY valuable service – our customers can and do develop a real bond of attachment.

No amount of window dressing or “flash” can compensate for a product or service that fails to deliver on its core promises. And if those promises are meaningful – affect the quality of (business) life of your customer, your reward could easily be loyalty.

Customer Loyalty doesn’t mean an opportunity to presume on your customers (thinking they’ll tolerate slippage in quality – as American automotive companies assumed for too long) – but an opportunity to innovate and inspire your customers with new and better services.

In other words, if your customers name your products “Scooby” – you have a golden opportunity to build on that affection (derived from your indispensability) and deepen the bonds with even better “stuff”.

Don’t squander the moment – your competitors will look to grab their attention with “new and shiny” – so do it first and your customers will be hard to steal.

Ok. Here’s the most ridiculous response I’ve seen in a long time.

AT&T’s response to Verizon’s brilliant “Map for That” campaign is this: Make stuff up!

The core problem with AT&T’s response is that anyone who uses AT&T – myself included – knows that it’s just not true.

See the ad below and hear the galling “spin”. AT&T has a shoddy, overburdened and unreliable network. Verizon’s is the class of the field. Consumer Reports’ annual survey of 20 metro centers lists Verizon as number one in ALL markets surveyed. It’s not even close.

So – why am I on AT&T? Am I an idiot? Maybe… – but there are two reasons I tell myself when I drop another call:

• 1. Contract and the cost of breaking the contract (those fees are painful).
• 2. My iPhone.

Note to Steve Jobs: for a super-detailed CEO of the Decade – this makes your Value Prop less than perfect. However, the “everything else” about the iPhone outweighs the “uggh” of your network (for now).

The message is this: a superior product in several “I3″ dimensions can overcome key liabilities…. to a point.

Where’s my breaking point? First – when and if (I hope When) Verizon gets the iPhone or its successor – I am beaming up to the good ship Verizon on the same day – and gladly paying the contract termination fee as a “toll” to get on the better phone highway.

What should AT&T do now? Shouldn’t it have the Marketing Right to defend itself?

Well, I think AT&T is doing much the same thing the American auto industry did: worry more about explaining its failures and blaming others (for example, suing Verizon over the ads). Instead, AT&T should focus on the only thing that matters for a cellular network – allow customers to place and keep calls. In other words – DO YOUR JOB!

Spinning some data in the face of the truth just angers your customers.

From a marketing POV – tell the story of continous improvement (if true) – of program innovation (rollover minutes) – of device innovation (Verizon’s historic weak link) – and… “we got the iPhone and they don’t!”

For now, that works for me…

I recently read a Fast Company article that quoted new research from Flurry that indicates “eBook apps are overtaking games in the App Store.”

Consumers are using their iPhones to read eBooks. I know I do, and it’s not a great experience. The selling point is that since I always have my iPhone with me, the service is accessible to me at any time, day or night. Regardless of what I want to read, or when I want to read it – from Chris Anderson’s “Free” to Malcolm Gladwell’s “Outliers” – the service is always there. I might listen to the audio book, or I might listen to the audio book and read along, which cognitively for me makes things stick.

The point is, that although the iPhone is not that wonderful a book reader – certainly not better than a Kindle or the new Nook (horrible name for a product – IMO) which is Barnes and Noble’s new eReader, consumers do things differently than marketers think they will.

And therein lies the lesson.

Without observing what it is consumers actually do, without tracking what they like, and without staying closely connected to consumers and their real behaviors (and by consumers here I include end-users in a B2B sale) … without knowing this, it’s inevitable that you will make guesses and make choices that seem intuitive, obvious, and clear to anyone with a brain - and yet are exactly opposite to what really happens in the marketplace.

I recently read an excellent blog post by Seth Godin that was about creating sustainable competitive advantage. In his post, Seth nets out a few key moving parts as to why some companies are able to stay ahead of their competitors.

Most notable was Seth’s assertion that technology advantages are not long term or real barriers to entry.

It may slow down competitive entries but if you look at a lot of these technology-based or enabled platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr or LinkedIn, they in themselves are not technically daunting to imitate. In his blog post, Seth enumerates various ways in which they create other, harder to duplicate advantages.

What I would like to add to the conversation is this: given how you might create a competitive advantage, the question remains: do you really understand who your true competitors are.

So often, especially with growing businesses, companies don’t really understand that their prospects look at a wide world of opportunities, a world of options – very differently than they think they do. Marketers often think that prospects are looking at the universe of options that look like their offering, i.e., a new type of printing service, or a new type of contact management software, (or some other kind of category that their wares most closely fits in to) and that their prospects are only looking at other companies that are just like them – in their neat, little categories. I realize that to a large degree, this is the essence of positioning. So, it’s not “wrong” – just incomplete.

More often, prospects may be solving the issues, the problems, the challenges, that a given solution (your product/service) addresses through various, very different means (for example, using “sneaker net” when local area technology was trying to break into markets).

So the thought here is not only create a sustainable competitive advantage within your category – but truly understand who and what you are competing with – from your prospect’s POV. In other words, don’t just compete with burger joints if you’re a burger joint – but realize that many of your customers are just looking for lunch – and that’s a much bigger world to compete in.

While this is an unpleasant and even more complex reality – it is reality. So, get real and know the options your prospects are really considering.

A recent article in the WSJ, Slicing the Bread But Not the Prices, discussed the Panera Bread company.

The title line read, “While rival restaurants offer discounts, Panera focuses on employed eaters willing to spend.”

Wow! What a focused target market statement. And – the secret to why Panera is growing in stores opened over a year, where Cosi, a competitor that most casual observers put in the same category, reported a loss of $969,000 for its second quarter and a 14% decline in revenue.

Note: I have eaten at both places, and have generally had a good experience with Panera and Cosi – so these are business model observations and not a critique of the food.

Panera knows who its market is. It’s created a wi-fi experience, offered fresher ingredients, and has not cut prices on the menu, and has held firm on offering a good value meal to those employed eaters willing to spend. Its created a magnet effect in attracting a market that wants what it has to offer. And so Panera picked up a higher percentage of a smaller market segment – however in so doing has managed its growth and managed to grow.

There’s a lesson in this: Really Really Know Your Market!

Don’t assume that it’s the same target market that you started off with 2-3 yrs ago when you had your perfect business or product marketing plan – when you thought you knew where your sweet spot was. Take a look at who is really buying your product or service. Many companies have found that there might be other markets that they didn’t initially consider or were unknown.

Take the example of the newspaper with the largest circulation numbers – USA Today. They started with self-service kiosks, and quickly became a hotel staple, followed by national papers like the WSJ or NYT. USA Today initiated a new niche in their market, which was hotels wanting to offer an amenity to patrons at a low cost, versus travelers picking up the paper on their own. Nowadays, we take this for granted – just about every major hotel chain slips a USA Today under your hotel room door so you can have the convenience of a national paper delivered to your room – but at the time, this was new and an example of a breakthrough value proposition.

What are some examples you can think of in which companies started off with an initial offering and then tightened their focus, tightened their lens of who they would sell to?

Are you still broad-based – or have you focused like a laser beam on those markets, those customers who view your pricing and your value proposition as being unique, distinct, and highly desirable to them, and “doubled down” on that?

Which is best … To google or to bing?

This may well be the debate between savvy internet searchers since Microsoft has totally revamped their old search engine, MSN Live, calling it “Bing” and giving Google real competition for the first time in its history.

Microsoft may have finally done something right in its quest to beat Google in search engine rankings. Instead of simply upgrading their MSN Live search engine they renamed it and started a heavy advertising campaign to get people talking about “Bing” and not “the upgraded MSN Live”. Smart move. The new name separates it from its predecessor and some people will never know its run by Microsoft.

The whole design of Bing is pleasingly aesthetic and simple. And, when you type your search phrase into the search box you get a big ‘bang for your bing’ – relevant results that are just as good as a Google search. And…a big difference – there are actually fewer results than a Google search – which Microsoft is promoting as an improvement to search. There are other options too – like news, articles and even your search history to choose from. With this more robust and fine-tuned search, I can see why Microsoft calls Bing a “decision search machine.”

Of course, Microsoft faces a major hurdle in its move to overtake and surpass Google: branding. [Note: WSJ Blogger, John Paczkowski, recently noted that Bing has been making progress]

Google is THE search engine everyone uses. It is a household name and has become synonymous for the word “search”. People don’t search the Internet, they Google it. Somehow, “binging the Internet” just doesn’t have the same ring to it! It sounds rather dull and boring in comparison. While it was a very smart move to give the search engine a new name, I’m not sure the name is smart! (I even mis-typed “bling” before…)

Naysayers declare that Bing will never catch or surpass Google. Who knows? A few years ago the big question was will Google ever be as big as Yahoo?

What do you think? To Bing or not to Bing?

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* Shakespeare’s Henry V, Act III

Let Jose Palomino show you how to create a value proposition that differentiates you from the competition.

This week, host Roger C. Parker will be interviewing Jose Palomino, author of Value Prop: Create Powerful I³ Value Propositions to Enter and Win New Markets, on the next Guerrilla Marketing Association call. You’ll get a new perspective on the tools and techniques you can use to differentiate yourself and your business from the competition.

“Today, it’s more important than ever to master the tools of differentiation. Competition is everywhere, usually just a click away. Jose Palomino provides a system to help you uncover your competitive strengths and put them to work attracting qualified prospects and converting them to customers. Jose Palomino not only points out the crucial significance of a value proposition, but also shows you how to create one—an extremely good one. His brutal honesty should be your cherished ally. His ideas are pure gold—no, even more valuable.”
-Jay Conrad Levinson, Bestselling Author “Guerrilla Marketing” Book Series With Over 20 million Sold

Warren Buffett and the Interpretation of Financial Statements

by Mary Buffett and David Clark Publisher: Scribner (October 14, 2008) ISBN-13: 978-1416573180

Ok – why a blog entry on a book about financial statements?

Three reasons:

1. For anyone who’s slogged through Finance classes – you know who you are - this book makes it very simple to understand. Clean, crisp and succinct – great plane reading. AND… it does it in a way that brings me to point 2…

2. This book makes it simple AND also strategic. That is, it not only explains the WHAT of Financial Statements – but WHY they matter and HOW they reflect strategy. This brings me to point 3, and why I’m writing about it in a blog dedicated to value proposition development and thought…

3. The book emphasizes the strategic power of a DURABLE Competitive Advantage (“DCA”).

Quite simply, this little, very well written book connects the dots of how a sustainable value prop (my spin on DCA) will manifest as financial performance.

Bottom line: this is a great business book for anyone wanting to get a handle on the connection of strategy to the “dry reality” of P&L, BS and SCF.

• Innovative: a new way to communicate financial statements to (non accountant) business people.
• Indispensible: laid out in straightforward reference style – you can jump to any section, whenever you want to. Very useful for a long time.
• Inspirational: ok, it’s not going to provide the answer to life’s deepest questions. But, it does a nice job of making the reader feel like they can “get it” – and I found myself breezing through, looking to get to “Interest Income”. (yes, I know that reflects on me a certain way, but it is what it is…)

Small caveat: the book tries a little too hard to make every major point from the perspective of “what Warren looks for”. Just disregard this affectation, it’s how they’re marketing the book, after all.

Just like everyone else, I held my breath. Would the economic bailout bill pass through congress?

Wherever you are on the political spectrum, and however you think this immense challenge should be addressed, September 29,2008 was a momentous day. The Dow took its 17th largest dip ever (777 points), and world markets soon followed.

And… you have something to sell. Probably, if you’re reading this blog, a busines product or service.

Is it the end? Should we all pick up our toys and go home?

Look at it this way: the US GDP is around $14 Trillion Dollars. That’s 14,000,000,000,000 (I think I got all the zeroes). If it contracted 10% (a DEVASTATING amount) – it would leave $12.6 Trillion.

My point? This is the largest, most vibrant and resilient economy in the history of the world.

Businesses will still need to buy supplies, material for production and CPA’s to file (increasingly depressing) tax returns. It won’t ALL be over – no matter how bad it gets.

What will likely change, from a sales and marketing point of view, is this: Radically Increased Selectivity.

That is, buyers (business and consumers) will become very cautious with every dollar spent. They will become demanding in terms of price and bundled services – and they will want to know “why is yours better?” and “how will it benefit my business?” to a much greater degree than ever before.

If you sell something – get ready to make a case as if every sale is being presented to the Supreme Court. Get ready to prove your value – more than at any time in your business life.

What else will change (beyond the obvious of credit tightening)? Let me know what you think.

Ok—here’s the thing: I love business. I enjoy people. I relish ideas and I love to help people bring ideas to market (yes, this is right from the preface to Value Prop but it is what I believe—and is a good place to start…)

Part of this (my interest and perspectives) has shown up as the content and tools that make up my book, this web site and the work I’ve done with g2m Group. And…part of this interest is my looking out at the world of business and noticing how things are working—how others are doing the hard and interesting work of setting themselves apart in crowded markets.

That’s what this blog will be about: my observations or “2 cents” and some linkages back to the principles I believe are worthwhile for those who engage in this tough work of bringing ideas to market—and making a profit doing so. What you won’t find here is much more than an occasional rant or riff on matters outside the marketing and sales domain—unless it’s tied to bigger issues or business trends and the overall global business landscape. Hopefully, the “Value Prop Blog” will give you some big ideas and insights you can use to set yourself, your company and your products apart.

Lastly—I want to ask you to join the conversation—use this blog as a “jumping off point” to develop some powerful ideas. Let me know if you think it’s helpful—or if you’d like me to focus on something in particular. I can’t promise I can do everything you might ask—but I will take it seriously and it matters to me.

Thanks,
Jose