Adam Fairhead
Here’s a story of how to create a gold mine:
When I had flowers sent from M&S to my Mum after she got out of hospital, they were sent to the wrong address. The redelivery took the same flowers to the right address a few days later (posies out of water for a few days arrive dead, of course).
The cost associated with not issuing new flowers costed them our trust, and our future business.
When I purchased a Fitbit,...
Adam Fairhead
We all have different ideas of what ‘best’ means:
Being “the best in the business” only matters if the buying criteria defined by “the business” aligns with your own. The best restaurant in the business isn’t best for a Brit when it’s all the way in Singapore.
Being the mainstream “people’s choice” only matters if the mainstream has the exact same requirements you do. If you – and those like you – have needs or preferences unique to you, going...
Adam Fairhead
“It requires a strong constitution to withstand repeated attacks of prosperity.” – James Basford
Talking to customers helps a company succeed but doesn’t scale easily, so when growth hits, most abandon it or delegate it to someone they don’t talk to very often.
Changing marketing messaging quickly each time you learn something new from your audience helps a company succeed but doesn’t scale easily, so when growth hits, most lose pace or stop listening.
Care doesn’t scale easily...
Adam Fairhead
When does a fireman fail?
A fireman doesn’t fail at being a fireman when a house burns. He fails when he’s afraid of fire and won’t engage the flames.
A salesman doesn’t fail at being a salesman when a deal won’t close. He fails when he’s afraid to pick up the phone and try again.
A writer doesn’t fail at being a writer when writer’s block shows up. He fails when he puts down the pen because it showed up.
...
Adam Fairhead
Our team regularly gets replies thanking us for sending cold emails (which is really nice!)
We were recently asked, on a phone call following such an occasion, how we’re able to create such valuable and personal outreach assets.
The answer is two-fold:
First, having a really clear understanding of who your audience is and what they need to hear from you, means you’ve a great chance your work will resonate with who it was made for.
Second, “We get to...
Adam Fairhead
Many of us have heard of a Swipe File…
The place where we put emails that made us open, ads that made us click, calls that made us glow… all the good stuff, archived for our future reference.
These things are great to look at when the opportunity comes to work on a similar piece, to stand on the shoulders of giants and explore ideas for doing our best work.
…But what about the other things?
The emails we scoffed...
Adam Fairhead
There are many paths.
You can ski down the easy slope or the hard slope, both take you to the bottom of the mountain if you ski properly.
You can use SEO or social ads or content marketing to get attention, all get you that attention if you implement properly.
You can build high-volume or high-ticket methods of solving a particular problem for people, each can work if you build and market properly.
Your customers can choose you, or any...
Adam Fairhead
There is no such thing as ethical marketing.
Only ethical (or unethical) intentions behind a message and it’s implementation.
Opting in for something via email isn’t an unethical delivery model. But when the offer is bait for subsequent harassment, rather than a genuine effort to help, it goes bad.
Web cookies aren’t unethical in themselves. But when they’re used to as a flair for stalking and manipulating, it goes bad.
Social ads aren’t unethical in themselves. But when they’re governed...
Adam Fairhead
When we really care about those we serve, our metrics start changing:
“Content worth sharing” doesn’t mean “longer”, but “more relevant to those you serve”.
“Great value” doesn’t mean “cheaper”, but “more of what your people need and less of what they don’t”.
“Great results” aren’t based on your metrics for success, but on what those who buy it consider a win.
Without a real appreciation of those we serve, we resort to longer or cheaper, assuming these things are...
Adam Fairhead
We don’t buy products, we buy movement:
We don’t usually buy non-alcoholic drinks to be contrary. Perhaps it was to be more present with our choice of company while respecting our own boundaries.
We don’t usually choose software because we couldn’t perform its function any other way. Perhaps it was because the manner with which it approaches the solution is aligned with our own.
We don’t usually replace our laptops because they became underpowered. Perhaps it was because renewed battery...
Adam Fairhead
Cadbury’s staff have a great line for the heat of conflict, enjoyed by all able to remember it in the moment:
“We’re just making chocolate.”
It’s not uncommon to see passionate people burning-midnight oil and falling out among themselves in defence of their important work.
On one hand, it’s admirable – they care and they want the vision to be realised.
On the other hand, it’s a crying shame – as Napoleon astutely put it, “Men of great ambition have...
Adam Fairhead
Are you focused on making work better for those who buy it, or did you get distracted?
We create design patterns because it helps users know how to use things. Not because it makes the life of designers easier. When a designer defends a pattern when breaking it would make things easier for users, the designer lost focus.
We create SOPs and productised services because it enables teams to deliver more value with less cost (to the customer). Not because...
Adam Fairhead
What do these quotes all have in common?
You’ve probably heard many of them yourself:
“Hi there, let me tell you all about my product, by the way here’s my card, and here’s another, tell your friends…” — at networking events
“Thanks for having me on, it’s an honour to be on the stage with such game-changers, real quick here’s a bit about me” – on social-audio app Clubhouse
“Thank you for following us, please...
Adam Fairhead
Don’t sell dots.
Selling dots is hard and unfruitful.
Between the Problem experienced in the lives of those we serve, and the Solution they seek, is a line.
We get to be a Dot on that line (part of the journey that bridges those poles) if we want to be.
The problem with most marketing activity is that it focuses exclusively on the Dot, its benefits, and how marvellous it is. Not the line it rests on.
Focusing on your...
Adam Fairhead
What’s a story, what’s a narrative, what’s the difference, and why should we care?
A story is a linear expression of a series of events that effect people and situations.
We tell stories to entertain or as a vehicle for transferring information. If all we want to do is find effective ways of peddling product, we can stop here. It’ll give us everything we need.
A narrative is a way of looking at the world and one’s journey through that...
Adam Fairhead
Do you ever “lose your head”?
“Losing your head” tends to mean losing your cool, losing your patience, losing your confidence… for me, it means losing your clarity.
When we lose our clarity, we:
Adam Fairhead
We’re lulled into focusing on the wrong things.
So much content, so little context: Every social media channel is exploding with content. Yet so little of it is designed to serve individual groups of people. How can we create change when we aren’t committed to those we want to serve?
So much connection, so little connecting: More people have the Internet than ever before. Yet folks find themselves feeling lonelier than ever before. How can we connect with anyone when...
Adam Fairhead
If you’re going to fail, fail live.
When a TEDx speaker stumbles, the room roots for him/her, eager for them to succeed. Applause at the end reflects this.
When a Cirque De Soleil juggler fumbles, the room gets more excited, knowing it’s a tough act and wants to see it succeed. Applause at the end reflects this.
Not every failure benefits from an audience. But failing let’s those watching know that we’re human, too. Now we want to see you...
Adam Fairhead
Which Brain are you thinking with today?
Tired Brain says, “You’re so behind, look at the people who achieve more than you. Get on it, slowpoke! No rest, no lie-ins… get on it.”
Rested Brain says, “You’re making progress daily, everyones on different paths doing different things to you. Don’t compare. Stay the path!
Here’s another:
Tired Brain says, “Stop playing! Competition won’t rest…if you rest, they’ll spend crush you. If you care about family, keep working or they’ll suffer.”
...
Adam Fairhead
If your message matters, put it out in the Open:
Open is your accessible website. No logins, no country limits, no being bought by Facebook and shut down. Open for all who need your support.
Open is your RSS-enabled blog. No third-party paywalls and content/distribution restrictions. Just the words people need, out in the Open.
Open is an email address you reply with. No “sign up to chat”, no app to download, no waiting lines. Just connection with people who...
Adam Fairhead
The more connected we become, the more people seem to want to talk about themselves.
What if we did… the opposite?
It takes three words to connect with me on LinkedIn:
“Love the comics.”
Taking a moment to see what was actually in my timeline – and comment on it – outperformed even the most fantastical of self-important tripe.
A little bit of care goes a long way.
In the era of automation, genuine feelings of care and attention are...
Adam Fairhead
What do you think?
When we hear that question, we hear a request for our opinion. We often figure it out while speaking.
It’s also a request for reflection. What you think determines how you behave.
If you think you ‘hate people’, networking will be painful and unfruitful for you. Change your think, change your results.
If you think you ‘have it all figured out’, learning will be sparse or beneath you. Change your think, change your results.
If you...
Adam Fairhead
Most of us feel it.
At the end of a day, you may have gotten a lot of stuff done. Things that impress our teams, our families, and our peers.
But not ourselves.
It could the the growth opportunity you had an excuse for: such as an important call you were nervous about making that you got out of because something urgent came up that you jumped on top of.
It could be the piece you know you need to...
Adam Fairhead
We don’t have to start from scratch.
The audience you want to serve? They’re there already, engaging in great content created by thoughtful creators. Why not show up with them? (Perhaps the host would like a sponsor. Perhaps you could enhance the work already being done there.)
The complimentary companies you want to collaborate with? They’re there already, engaging with those you can best serve. Why not show up with them? (Perhaps their booth would be better with you on...
Adam Fairhead
What if I don’t know what to say?
What if nobody comes to the show?
What if nobody buys the product?
What if nobody likes the post?
What if I run out of ideas?
What if they don’t like my opinion?
What if my question is just stupid?
The void is where all our ideas and actions go. Into the unknown. Out into the world, into space. Who knows what will happen in there.
They always come out of the...
Adam Fairhead
Businesses want your attention.
Getting your attention means you’re not a secret anymore, but earning your attention means you’re not a stranger anymore.
Becoming known means you’re recognised by many, but doesn’t mean anyone got to know you.
We can put those together either way we want:
#1: Getting attention and becoming known? This means you chose to be loud.
#2: Or no longer being a stranger and letting people get to know you? This means you chose to care.
...
Adam Fairhead
Yesterday we talked about great goals.
What we didn’t talk about was the time it takes to let them germinate and bear fruit.
A big goal with no time to lose creates headaches, high blood pressure, and worried families. When there’s barely enough time to get it done right, there’s definitely not enough time to get it wrong (which you will, in haste).
A big goal with time to breathe and grow creates inevitability, fun, and value that the world...
Adam Fairhead
…make them great big goals.
Small goals fail because the motivation isn’t there. Losing a few pounds or earning a few dollars won’t motivate many past January, and the difference they make won’t amount to much anyway.
Medium goals must be met because anything short of success makes it a small goal, as above.
Great big goals get to fail because they’re so big. But falling short of a great big goal puts you in a much better spot than...
I create a newsletter called GrowthCandy. Each issue shares one idea to help build and spread your work, delivered as a short comic. Fast to read. Easy to apply. Hard to forget!