On March 6th-8th I had the privilege of being selected out of hundreds of applicants to be one of 80 “Ruckusmakers” who Seth Godin, best-selling author & marketing wizard, invited for an intense workshop. It was held at the Purple Crayon, an intimate space in Hastings-on-the-Hudson, New York, where a dynamic group of successful people from around the world gathered for one magical weekend. We shared our deepest fears, biggest ambitions and were challenged by Seth to take on a project which might fail (which is the only way to make the magic happen).

Below are 3 of the many takeaways:

1. Why try something unless your goal is to be the best in the world.

This is mind blowing in the sense that there can be only one ‘best in the world’ but the spirit of this philosophy is to create a great compass. If your ambition is to be the best of the world then you can confidently deal with challenges by posing the question to yourself, “Would we do this if our goal was to be the best in the world?”. An important distinction is that the world is not literally the world, but the consideration set as you define it. Speaking of market segments..

2. Define your market as narrowly as possible.

In today’s day and age you often hear the terms “one stop shop” or “full service”. This is common. Companies are worried to miss out on that one sale in that one category that really has nothing to do with their core business. They are also casting a wide net instead of focusing on being the best spear fisherman in the world. The reality is that if you define your market and tailor your messaging for that specific market then you are sending a message to many other potential customers that “what we do, may not be for you”. And you know what? That’s just fine, and in the long run this will grow your business in ways you can only imagine.

3. You have to make your story easy to share.

Among the top buyers of promotional products & apparel are companies that sell intangible products/services. Why? It makes their story easy to share because it is a physical embodiment of their brand. It gives people a cue to mention their experience with your company (hopefully a positive one!). The internet and social media have helped to make your story easy to share also, but people will only share if it resonates. Is your story worth sharing?

This experience with the Ruckusmakers has given me many epiphanies which are already translating into projects and action. It has also reinforced my belief that we sell messaging solutions not products.

Additionally, we sell trust.

-Trust in our expertise

-Trust in our service

-Trust that we will do the right thing.

I look forward to sharing more Ruckusmaker insights with you all in the future!

Ruckusmakers