As a self-proclaimed marketing guy, I often find my way to the sales
and marketing section of the local Borders to find what’s being touted
as the latest and greatest book that’s guaranteed to improve sales and
drive more traffic to your brand or business than ever before. Upon a
rare occasion I actually find something that has at least a bit of
useful information. More often than not the latest Seth Godin title is such a book. So is the case with his recent work "The Dip."
"The
Dip" not only has some useful information about marketing and
entrepreneurship – when to quit, when to stick, how to tell the
difference between the two – it has a message I feel would resonate
well in Southeast Michigan. The message is – be the best or get out of
the game.
As the title of the first chapter of the book so aptly states "Being
the Best in the World is Seriously Underrated." We should identify what
areas, we as a region, can make the bold claim "We are the best in the
world."
Being like someone else - or in this case some place
else really means a cheap copy of the original. Mediocre at best. Think
the recent release of the Microsoft Zune…the mp3 player game is over.
As a matter of fact when is the last time you even used the term mp3 player?
It’s so over that we don’t even refer to mp3 players as mp3 players –
they are iPods. Game Over. Yet all the might muscle and marketing
dollars of Microsoft couldn’t get the Zune in the game. According to a
recent Bloomberg Report,
the iPod has about a 69% market share with all mp3 players compared to
Microsoft Zune’s 2.5%. Some of you may ask “Why would Microsoft try and
compete in a space that has been locked up for some time now?”
The better question is what are we doing in business, in life, or as a region that’s merely an attempt to be just like _____?
The Dip is a reference to the time between starting off with a bang
and then naturally slumping for a season. In sports they call it the
sophomore slump. The city is all abuzz over a wildly successful Super
Bowl and then BANG – job losses at the Big Three and declining
marketing share send us back into The Dip. The reality is that low
point is not only an essential place of decision, it’s the necessary
step between being mediocre and being the best. Those that endure The
Dip will come out winners. Many great ideas die in The Dip. Many
average ideas take off and become best in the world because of
someone’s ability to endure and persevere.