Seth Godin’s Small Is the New Big: and 183 Other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas is a hodgepodge of his ideas and blog posts that seems disconnected, but there is a common theme through it all–treat customers and others with respect, and that is the secret to success. Sure, he talks about the advantages a small business might have: less bureaucracy, the ability to adapt quickly and be the new, new thing. Yet, it all comes back to what Aretha Franklin said: “R-E-S-P-E-C-T .Find out what it means to me.”
There are too many tidbits for me to recall and, since I listened to the audio in my car, I don’t have my trusty Post-its marking my favorite parts. However, I’ll point out a few that stood out. Note to readers: Seth read his own book, which I kind of liked as it felt like you were having a random conversation with him. In a similar vein, I previously enjoyed Sen. Barack Obama reading The Audacity of Hope and former president Bill Clinton reading My Life. Sometimes the voice can make or break an audio. I’ve listened to a few subpar chick lit books solely because I enjoyed the English accent of the reader. Or in the case of The Abstinence Teacher, I got a chill when Campbell Scott’s voice boomed out of my speakers. He was perfectly matched to the material.
Sure, I digress, although not really. A lot of what Seth talks about in Small is the New Big is the importance of the delivery of services and goods, whether it’s packaging, marketing or the actual product. As an example, note that I call him Seth. After listening to his monologue for the past two weeks in my car, I feel that we should be on a first-name basis. One example he uses of how the delivery of a message is almost as important as the message focuses on how JetBlue started selling a “safe journey.” The company simply redid its announcements in the airport. Rather than the garbled shouting, it trained gateway attendants to speak clearly and calmly, which can put otherwise cranky passengers in a much better frame of mind before boarding an aircraft with no food, no leg room and too many people putting oversized luggage into the overhead bin. (Thinking like Seth, I would say that airlines need to focus on the better delivery of checked baggage in order to increase their numbers of on-time flights. It’s the fear of waiting for, or losing, luggage that prompts too many people to take all their worldly possessions with them, slowing down boarding for everyone).
The JetBlue airline example hit home with me on one of my recent trips on USAir, which had the equivalent of an old-fashioned schoolmarm making the boarding announcements. She made clear when you would board, which side of the rope to walk on, and that you would be sent to the back of the line should you break the rules. Among the giggles of the business travelers who were undoubtedly having flashbacks to grammar school, we all marveled as the attendant ensured the quickest boarding of a flight I have ever experienced. Message from Seth: Setting the tone and people’s expectations can be done even if it’s with your tone of voice. This is what I remind myself as I start every customer service response with “Thank you for calling/writing.”
I also agree wholeheartedly with his statement that anonymity is the death of civilization. Anyone who regularly reads blogs has undoubtedly experienced the many irrelevant and useless comments of “anonymous.” There is a reason local newspapers only run letters to the editor if they are signed and verified–it helps maintain civility if you have to look your neighbors in the eye and stand behind your opinions. Unfortunately, we’ve created a world where people don’t need to know their neighbors anymore. This means less accountability and less civility. More on how our suburban sprawl has helped create a less accountable world in my review of Nine Shift.
Another interesting point was that Seth disagrees with Tim Ferriss, author of The 4-Hour Work Week. Ferriss advises you to read only items and sections of items that are relevant to your work. Seth, on the other hand, proclaims that you should read something different and not relevant every week. Thanks Seth, I’ll feel better about keeping my subscription to US Weekly–I’m not sure you can get less relevant than that.
However, Seth agrees with Ferriss in his analysis of how Americans have confused working hard with working long. In other words, working hard is getting up at 4:30 a.m. and plowing the fields; working long is a lawyer sitting at a desk in an air-conditioned office for 20 hours a day living on take-out sushi. He touches on the idea that there is no glory in working long; it just means you’re working long.
I’ll end with a few comments about his section on “respectful marketing.” Since marketing and branding are my business loves, I found it amusing that “respectful marketing” often is seen as an oxymoron. Which brings us back to Aretha. Consumers are smart. They know when you don’t respect them. And, if your product needs to mislead consumers or “pull the wool over their eyes” to get them to buy, then you need to rethink your product. Seth’s test of a good product? Imagine an equal marketplace between you and your competitors. Would people still buy your product? If not, it’s time to rethink your business plan.
Top Shelf Bottom Line: While this was not my favorite Seth Godin book, he does put in some good tidbits–so worth listening to especially if you’re in a customer-service business. But then again, aren’t we all in the business of customer service? Each person will walk away with something different, and you can read it or listen to it in bits and starts. I’d love to hear in our comments below what captured your attention.
This entry was posted on Saturday, February 23rd, 2008 at 12:02 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
One Response to “Respectful Marketing: An Oxymoron?”
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February 23rd, 2008 at 6:34 pm
I found the whole review helpful, but I found your personal comments most insightful. Esp. the one about saying thank you to anyone who contacts you. Yoink!
I always look forward to your next review, thanks so much!