I will start with my favorite example which I consider as an all-time classic. If there were a Marketing Hall of Fame Awards for the entire last decade, this story should have won the topmost slot.
Marketing Through Influencers
Was watching an old Bengali movie. The protagonist reaches Puri Railway Station. As soon as he alights from the train he is surrounded by Ricksnaw-Wala. Tonga-Wala & T8Xl-Wala offering him a ride to the “best hotel” in town with a complete package offering for 3 days of tour inclusive of a Panda/Priest guided Puja & Tour of the Sacred Sri Jagannath Temple. and a ”Nulia (local lifeguards) guided swimming experience in the rough seas of Puri. etc. The Hero gets very confused but ultimately falls for the smooth-talking Rickshaw Puller and decides to book the hotel which he was recommending.
Now the question is why did our protagonist settle for the hotel which the Rickshaw Puller recommended and did’nt I check in at the more renowned properties of Puri* &. why did the Rickshaw puller so fervently recommend this lesser known notel* The answer to question number 1 is, because of the power of Influences marketing and Answer to question number 2 is ..well ..even a 4-5 year old boy would give you the answer.
Innovation Through Co-Creation
Dr J Robert Oppenheimer, the Father of the Nuclear Bomb, the Director of the Manhattan Project on the 16th of July 1945 famously chanted “Now I am Become Death- The Destroyer of Worlds” from chapter 11, shloka 32 of Sri Sri Bhagavat Gita while watching the massive fireball covering the entire sky at the first nuclear bomb test site at the State of New Mexico, USA.
The “Mantra” Behind Successful Innovations
Many a times a glittering Star Cast, a World-Renowned Director and a Producer with the deepest pockets backed by a mega-budget marketing campaign fail to create a blockbuster hit film, while a small budget film with an unknown star cast goes on to win Oscars.
Lets’ switchover to the great stories around great brands….the story of the authentic Coke recipe being stored at a secret vault at Atlanta, USA or that of the legendary Captain Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken who after retirement at the age of 65 founded his global empire.
Power of Story Telling
We all love listening to stories. The best stories have a protagonist, a plot, a crisis, and a happy ending. Some of the best stories in the world, like those of the Ramayana the Mahabharata & that of Troy have traveled down the generations through bedtime stories.
Lets’ switchover to the great stories around great brands….the story of the authentic Coke recipe being stored at a secret vault at Atlanta, USA or that of the legendary Captain Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken who after retirement at the age of 65 founded his global empire.